More Charleston fly fishing as Ciara and her father came aboard to stalk big schools of reds at low tide. Perfect conditions with sunshine and light winds. Found plenty of dense packs of redfish cruising around and some were kind enough to eat our silver/white mullet pattern flies. Great family fishing day!
Targeted both sides of low tide this morning as David hunted for his first redfish on the fly rod. Water was slick to start and you could see big schools of redfish pushing water. On our first pass through, a six pounder smoked an EP silver mullet fly. Continued to catch more reds on the same fly. Easy as that…..some days it just works out.
Just finished our annual trip to the Madison river in Southwest Montana. Warm days and clear water combined to produce the best fishing of the last decade. Trout were rising from dawn to dusk and eagerly feeding. Grey parachute adams dry flies with bead headed prince nymph droppers were the ticket and produced countless rainbows and browns. Can’t wait until next year!
While the weather has been abnormally hot, it hasn’t slowed the fishing down. Anglers can try fishing early in the morning where they can find fish blitzing bait on the surface as well as calmer winds that allow them to sight fish on the flats. Alternatively, evenings also offer cooler temperatures and a chance to chase tailing redfish on big flood tides.
Fishing for redfish has been great. The large schools of redfish have now broken up but you can still find pods of ten to twenty fish especially on the flats. Putting a scent trail in the water and an easy meal in front of redfish is a tactic bound for success. We usually put cracked blue crab or live mullet on the bottom with enough weight to hold it stationary. Use circle hooks in size 3/0 combined with a heavy test line and hold on!
The trout bite continues to improve. We’ve started catching a healthy number of midsize trout whereas before we were only finding a few big trout that were ready to breed. Fishing mud minnows on jigheads can be quite effective and lets you get your bait in front of trout in deeper pockets. I use 1/8 oz. jigheads. You can use heavier jigheads but make sure their size is not significantly bigger than the bait.
Spanish mackerel are plentiful and can be best found at first light. If you find schools of fish busting bait on the surface, throw reflective casting jigs and reel them quickly through the school. Move your boat slowly around the school; running through a pod of fish will put them down. Alternatively, if you know fish are present but not up top, try trolling Clark Spoons at different depths and different speeds.
July and August will bring a number of significant high tides in the evening. This produces very exciting fishing as anglers can see the backs and tails of redfish as they put their noses in the mud to forage for crabs. As a result, these tides are called “tailing tides”. Sight casting to these redfish and getting one to eat is a true rush. Although you may spend a long time stalking a fish and positioning yourself for just the right cast, landing that hard-earned redfish is very rewarding.
See you on the water!
Capt. Geoff Bennett operates Charleston Charter Fishing providing light tackle and fly fishing charters. Clients choose from a full menu of fly rods, artificial and live bait fishing options with charters tailored to their desires. USCG licensed and insured, Capt. Bennett is committed to providing a safe and enjoyable charter to anglers of all skill levels and ages. For more information, call Capt. Bennett at 843-324-3332, visit his website at www.charlestoncharterfishing.com or email him at captain@charlestoncharterfishing.com.
Wayne let me know it was his 60th birthday and he really wanted to catch a redfish on the flyrod. Saw plenty of fish as the tide rose but they were more cruisers than interested in eating. We found a slower moving fish that was pushing bait and Wayne put a perfect cast a few feet in front of his nose. A few quick strips and the fish inhaled the EP mullet fly. Great fight in and out of the grass and Wayne eventually pulled a 7lb. beauty to the boat. Happy birthday!
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