And then getting them to feed can also be a challenge. However, they are really having to work for them, and the bite usually gets tougher in the heat, so before long he will be taking a break from the crappie. Usually they are back in protected areas, and grass is often a magnet for them. They were led to few fans or pundits surprise by Brandon Palaniuk, who won the last time B.A.S.S. As a result fish are scattered out pretty much everywhere, and he has caught some fish on brush but there are also some fish being caught up shallow around bank cover. Both lakes hold a year-round population of Blue, Flathead, White, and Channel Catfish. Minnows for crappie and crickets for bream are out-fishing everything else. The Sunday Showdown Series had their first tournament of the season yesterday on Santee Cooper out of Black's. There have also been slow days where they only get five or six fish, showing that the numbers just arent there yet. Santee Cooper water levels are up to 73.81 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 74.51 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Today we spent the day tuna fishing. Display as a link instead, Herring, shad and mullet have all been working for his boat. Suitable for kayaking. These small, delicious fish are the quintessential first catch for any angler. Bouncing a crankbait that dives 6-8 feet off the bottom around stumps is an excellent pattern, and small swimbaits and spinnerbaits will also catch fish. frogs and buzzbaits are working well, Brushhogs, Texas rigged worms, Senko's fished slow, Series 1 Bandit , 1.5 KVD Strike King, and Spro (John 2023 FishingBooker.com. Mossy Oak Fishing Report: Bassmaster Elite Series Santee Cooper, 49 - The Pursuit of a Turkey in Every State Across the Country, Bill Lowen Fishes Various Lures at Santee Cooper Bassmaster Tournament, Brandon Palaniuk Catches His Biggest Bass in the Santee Cooper Tournament, Brandon Palaniuk's Preparation for the Santee Cooper Bass Tournament, Bill Lowen Explains His Lures and Equipment for the Santee Cooper Tournament, John W. Weeks: Conservation Legend, 20-Million-Acre Man, Mossy Oak Joins The Given Right as Title Sponsor, Launches New Digital Series, The History of the Legendary Bayou Meto WMA, A Comprehensive Guide to Buying Rural Land. The action for catfish on the Santee Cooper lakes can still be really good, but Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that right now the fish seem to be unusually particular about what bait they will eat. 2018-19 SANTEE COOPER COUNTRY. His boat is having the most success with herring. While drifting mid-depths is still working pretty well, it seems that some of the biggest fish were caught around shallow stumps. With another cold front coming that pattern may be repeated in the next few days. Went last weekend and the wind was crazy and it was 38 degrees, not good for kayak fishing. Other types of fish you can target while Santee Cooper Lakes fishing are striped bass, bream and bluegill. Yellowtail, bass, giant barracuda and bonitaare all biting well making for a action filled day on the water and fat bags of fillets for the BBQ. We dont really catch alot but the memories made far outway the small stringers. Known together as the Santee Cooper lakes (formally the Santee Cooper Hydroelectric and Navigation Project), Lakes Marion and Moultrie are located in the outer coastal plain to the southeast of South Carolina between the cities of Columbia and Charleston. Morning surface water temperatures are in the lower 80s. Lets just recap why Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie are the places to be if youre looking for a freshwater fishing trip in South Carolina. . Lake Marion is a drowned forest with trees still peeking out from the water. The feat has become a growing trend among the turkey hunting community in recent years with hunters across the country making the Super Slam a lifelong hunting goal. We are also starting to catch some real nice fish long lining in 30 ft. Bass. South Carolina freshwater Duck confit is a cooking method that leave the meat insanely silky that just melts in your mouth. If youre coming in March, youll get to experience some of the best Bass fishing Lake Marion has to offer. The lakes are very clear and water temperatures are still in the upper 50s. The bite is still good around offshore brush piles, and most of the time they are catching fish 16-20 feet down over 20-35 feet of water. There was even an off day when heavy winds forced postponement of Day Three, resulting in the rare Championship Monday.. For fish that are coming off the spawn Steve is less concerned with water depth, and more focused on location. I fished from my Old Town Predator PDL. Read now. Monticello Updates. Privacy Statement. Free-lines, planer boards and down-lines could all work depending on where and how deep the fish set up. The catfish bite has been pretty good this week on Santee, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that he continues to find the best action in deep water. Despite this, a bit of a topwater bite is starting to come on and there are also some bass chasing bait fish. While the topwater bite should be taking off Brett hasnt really found very much, and he characterizes it as only sporadic.. The biggest fish still seem to be coming on brush piles in 8-12 feet of water with crankbaits and soft plastics, but you have to know the locations of a lot of brush to catch fish this way. Anyone interested in Santee-Cooper should give guide Brett Mitchell a call to set up a trip. These creatures are available in the shallow waters as they prepare to spawn. Click here for 30 day free trial! AHQ INSIDER Santee Cooper (SC) 2023 Week 2 Fishing Report Updated January 13, Hudson wins first Sunday Showdown Series event of the season, AHQ INSIDER Santee Cooper (SC) 2023 Week 1 Fishing Report Updated January 6. Weighted Bass Rig Fishing Hooks, 2 Size Rig Fishing Hooks, Bass 2 Size Rig Fishing Hooks, The water temperatures have still not dropped quite enough to really change the bass fishing, and Brett reports that everything he is catching is coming around scattered wood and grass in the 4-6 foot range. Bass: Guide Jerry Kotal (706-988-0860) reports that in January bass should still be caught deeper in the main lake and at the mouths of creeks. Minnows and crickets are out-fishing everything else. 2020 All rights reserved. His best performance was Day Three, when he sacked 27 pounds 7 ounces to claim a good spot in the top 10, although he never brought less than 21-10 to the scales. These fish are extremely difficult to target with conventional bass fishing techniques. One day they may want nothing but mullet, the next day they could show a preference for gizzard shad or bream, and the next day only the people fishing menhaden are filling coolers. While there are still some crappie on brush, Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports that the best crappie fishing has come trolling jigs and minnows in 8-15 feet of water in the creeks. The catfish bite has dramatically improved on Santee, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that he has caught a pile of fish drifting over all different kinds of structure in 45-55 feet. Fishing Resources Get the latest fishing reports, hire fishing guides and more to help you make the most of your fishing trip in South Carolina. Minnows will work the best for crappie and crickets for bream. Learn more about how Santee Cooper can help you lower your energy use and save you money. Santee Cooper Fishing Report by Ray Sedgwick. Find the bait and youll find the fish. Lakes Fish Camp What more could you want from your fishing trip? Boat has a full enclosure to stay warm. Spend as long or as little as youd like on the water, and try to fill the boat with some delicious fish. Crickets and minnows are the best baits. Caught some nice size black crappies to. Catfish: Captain Rodger Taylor reports that in January catfish on Lake Wateree should be mixed between shallow and deep. Some days they may feed heavily, and then they may not feed for the next couple of days. Report this item Report this item - opens in new window or tab. This hard cold snap is also likely to knock some of the crappie back out of the shallows, and windy conditions will certainly make it very difficult to target them. The next new moon and then the June full moon may have more big bluegill shallow as well as some shellcracker. In clearer areas jigging a spoon should also work this month, and an Alabama rig can also be in play. Bass: Tournament angler Eric Enlow of Union reports that January can be a difficult month to catch bass on Lake Monticello, and fish are in something of a transition period. The lakes are extremely clear for Santee and morning surface water temperatures are about 61 degrees. For some reason the catfish bite has gotten really tough, and while there are some fish being caught its not unusual for anglers to strike out right now. Birds can often indicate the best areas to fish. There should also be a group of deeper fish out on the main lake that can be caught on underspins or jigs fished over humps and around bait. The bass are not on every piece of cover. We will be fishing the Coronado Islands. Between the full moon, rising water temperatures, and rising water levels from recent rains everything is combing to push the fish towards the banks. At the April full moon it should be gangbusters again, while this week they have caught decent numbers and a few big fish but nothing has been hot. Overall, based on what he is seeing the fish are still very spread out. Youll also want to bring spinning gear with a wacky worm or a dropshot because even though the fishery is massive, these bass do get pressured, and sometimes you need to downsize. Even though they are seeing a lot of bait shallower for right now there does not seem to be much feeding on them. document.getElementById( "ak_js_5" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Im coming this fall any tips Is it based on the number of rods? Stevie reports that they are still catching some fish shallow at night but the daytime bite has been pretty tough. Even between bream spawns there are fry and small bream hanging around the beds which they will use repeatedly, and those are primarily what the bass are eating. Perhaps the most exciting thing going on Santee right now is the striped bass bite in the canal, and drifting blueback herring over the rocks has been dynamite. Head out during the week to beat the crowds as thereis plenty of room on the boat all week. 1000 Assembly Street, Columbia, SC 29201 This week he has mostly been drifting 32-44 feet, and mullet has been his primary bait. into the May full moon. In the wet, windy conditions there have not been a lot of people out chasing crappie but the shallow bite has been surprisingly tough. Catfish: Santee Cooper Lakes Hwy 45 (on the Diversion Canal) 139 Canal Landing Road, Cross, SC 29436 Open 5:30 AM 843-753-2271 Santee-Cooper Fishing Report - FishingBooker Great savings on Santee-Cooper, United States fishing charters. They will be caught on jigging spoons, drop shots and jigs. When fishing on Santee Cooper, youll want a boat to get to the most productive fishing grounds. If the CBC goes forward somebody will still crush them, but its anybodys guess what the pattern will be. Pretty much everything has come on soft plastics this week. And the Dogwood trees are in bloom, as my Daddy said, it's the sign that fish are on the beds. The biggest catches seem to be coming on brush piles in 8-12 feet of water, but this is pretty specialized fishing for hard-core locals as you really have to know the lakes and where the cover is. I've fished as a co-angler twice so i have a very basic understand of the lake. Santee Cooper water levels are at 74.08 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and about 73.96 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Thanks for reading and for your comment. length. Continue to look for the birds and bait to locate fish. Fish are in the creeks or flats off the main lake in just 2-3 feet of water, and Brett has mainly been fishing the upper lake although patterns should hold in Moultrie as well. In his last trip Brett did manage one 7 plus pound fish and lot of smaller males, but it seemed that most of the better fish had moved a little deeper to the first drop-off and slowed down eating. Santee Cooper water levels are up to 75.47 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 73.44 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Oct 27, 2021. Drift cut shad and herring with Santee Cooper rigs in the deep channels. Crappie: Captain Brad Taylor reports that in January tight-lining for suspended fish up the rivers should be effective. Cut herring seems to be the perfect bait and drifting they are picking up a steady assortment of blues and a few good channels. If you dont like to sight fish, or the areas you choose to fish are too dingy to do so, keep that same wacky worm out and blind cast to likely bedding spots. Starting to see some real nice stripers coming from trolling stretch 25 and Alabama rigs deep in 40-50 ft of water. If you fish very, very early you can also find a shad spawn around dawn in some places. 1; 5; Details; 9mos ago George Horvath 0. . A record 58-pound channel catfish and five-pound black crappie were caught at Lake Moultrie. Things worked out remarkably well for the Mossy Oak team, as six of our seven anglers finished in the money and remarkably four of them were in the overall top nine finishers. Read on to find out how we think you can get the most out of these waters. In this article, we are going to walk you through some of the variables that affect how much food plot acreage you need to improve diet quality for deer over the spring and summer. Its a similar story from Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029), who also reports that the best cat action is coming in about 30 feet. You can also fish soft plastics around trees. Brush in about 14 feet has been the most productive, but they are also getting some fish in 15-20 feet of water. Striped bass: Captain Brad Taylor (803-331-1354) reports that in January on Lake Murray fish should continue to be caught on free-lines, on planer boards and by casting at birds. They are around brush piles, drop offs, and shell bars. Crankbaits, worms and jigs fished around rock should catch fish. Santee Cooper water levels are at 73.92 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and around 74.75 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). When the fish are very shallow they will take spinnerbaits, shallow-running crankbaits and other baits worked quickly, while when they pull out medium-running crankbaits and Rattle Traps are good. There are plenty of professional guides ready to give you a helping hand, and you can find one that suits your needs here. Drop live baits or throw swim baits into the bait schools. On the shallower side Captain Brett Mitchell continues to catch fish in 15-25 feet of water. The lakes are dingy in places but not muddy and morning surface water temperatures are about 51-54 degrees. Morning surface water temperatures are around 53 degrees. Lake Marion, north side of lake, Coca Cola Slough to Jacks Creek has been good. They are relatively shallow in 2-6 feet of water, but the pockets that are holding bait are adjacent to steep banks and deeper water. Its not uncommon to see some upper 30 pound bags come from Santee in the spring. Surface water temperatures range from about 78-81 degrees. Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that on one recent trip they caught 25 over 1 pound and fish up to two pounds. The best bite will be in the middle of the day when the water is warmest. Jigs and minnows will both work. . In the lakes he is looking for a ledge or stumps or something else that will provide the fish with a place to hold. The lower lake has fished a little better than the upper lake. Thanks for your comment and good question. Theres not really a wrong place to start off at, but Santee State Park has long been a popular place to set out from. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); My wife and I have kayaks and we live in Santee. From the Wateree River, across the flats of Lake Marion, to the open waters of Lake Moultrie and beyond, the fishing is exceptional. A few more warm days should bring the fish shallower again. Learn more. Aug 23, 2021. Fish Consumption Advisories, SCDNR at the State There are also a few fish being caught on brush piles, but the majority of the fish seem to be suspended offshore where they are chasing bait. Get out on the water and hunt the swampy bottoms and backcountry where monster Catfish and Bass love to feed. When the water cools then the brush bite for bream should pick up, and the canal should fill up with shellcracker. The bite can be decent if you locate a group of fish on electronics or otherwise, but thats the tricky part. White perch has been completely unproductive. Morning surface water temperatures have hit the lower 60s. With a June full moon right around the corner expect some really strong bream fishing for the next week, and Steve reports that he is already starting to see fish making beds. (803) 854-2131 Look for crappie on brush in 12-25 ft. On Lake Marion and 28-35 ft on Lake Moultrie. Tolling. Its been a good week for catfish on Santee Cooper, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that you can catch them pretty much everywhere right now. We had to reschedule a couple times due to very bad weather. Provided by Captain Joe Dennis with FatherandSonOutdoors. Top water and swim baits will work good. While there are tons of little fish out in very deep water, the best action has generally come drifting Santee-style in 25-35 feet of water. I live this lake and am planning even now a trip to celebrate my turning 60. Brett is trying to drift over hard bottoms in areas that have a pronounced drop-off. Santee Cooper is a shallow-water fishing paradise, and it's tough to beat the skinny water action of March. This week the sweet spot has generally been 14-18 feet down over 20-35 feet of water. This week the shallow morning bite at anchor has still been the best thing going, but during the day drifting 20-30 feet has turned on. After about 10 oclock the fish move deeper and it switches over to a drifting bite, and about 15-18 feet of water has been the magic depth. Some monster catfish were caught in the Big Cat Brawl over the weekend on Santee, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that there were a couple over 70 and the winning team had 6 fish over two days that were well into the 200s. Chartreuse, straight-tail jigs are working the best. Big worms, crankbaits, spinnerbaits and jigs will all work around brush. Morning surface water temperatures are around 87-88 degrees. River herring is fishing the best right now. All Rights Reserved. document.getElementById( "ak_js_21" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Replied on February 22, 2021 From 1939 to 1942 the lakes were created in a hydroelectric project by the South Carolina Public Service Authority, commonly known as Santee Cooper.The lakes vary from shallow swamps at the upper end of both lakes (but most famously Lake Marion) to the vastness of Lake Moultrie 14 miles across at its widest point and appearing to be a great, open bowl. The crappie fishing has improved marginally, but Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports that its still not where he would like it to be. 61 degrees led to few fans or pundits surprise by Brandon Palaniuk, who won the last time.. Conventional bass fishing techniques drop offs, and try to fill the boat week. Rigs in the next couple of days but thats the tricky part or! Warm days should bring the fish with a place to hold hard bottoms in areas have... 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