South Carolina Cold Weather Redfish

Redfishing Outdoors the Surf

We made the 20-minute run north to Bull’s Bay, appropriately named since I had hopes of hooking a few of the large bull reds that transfer in there every fall. “October is the month for the largest reds of all,” says Capt. Probability Smith, as he anchors up the 18-foot Shipoke flats skiff within the wind-blown chop. Smith says he’s caught them proper at this spot to round 50 kilos.

Huge spot-tails, as reds are recognized on this space, roam the coast spring and fall. They are often caught simply off the surf line, the place one other Charleston information, Wealthy Moore, likes to pursue them on calm days. “We’ll fish simply outdoors the breaker line with blue crabs,” he says, including, “I’ve finished three or 4 of these 25- to 30-pound fish in a day.” Moore explains: “faculties of enormous seatrout, some 5 to six kilos,” generally present good motion outdoors the surf whereas anglers await the bull reds to point out up.

Proper out of Charleston Harbor, at a spot known as the Dynamite Gap, bulls of 20 to 45 kilos may be taken spring by fall. However it’s a difficult spot, and it’s a must to be in precisely the appropriate place to attain. He instructed me the night earlier than that the primary fall run of massive reds hadn’t moved in but, so fishing the Dynamite Gap can be an iffy proposition — however one nonetheless price a shot. Sadly, with little exercise evident within the bay and its waters rising choppier, Smith took us in to fish extra dependable areas for smaller reds.

Only a brief run from the harbor the place we launched that morning, we stopped to work the sting of a important channel, casting to inside inches of the thick spartina grass (tall sawgrass) that rimmed the deeper water. Within the rising tide, redfish fed alongside these edges. Aside from an occasional wake, we couldn’t actually spot the 4- to 10-pounders, however they have been there, proper the place Smith had pegged them.

Sight Casting to Large Colleges

Sight casting performs an more and more essential position as winter climate cools. “The water is way clearer so we are able to see faculties and even select particular person fish,” says Smith. Actually, within the chilly, clear water, “redfish will type faculties and actually gang up; it’s not unusual to see a faculty of 300 to 400 fish.”

By November and December, 20- to 24-inch “pups,” as Smith calls little reds, are so thick that “once I get the climate, I can catch and launch 50 to 60 a day with out a lot drawback.” If that feels like exaggeration, be aware that Smith’s greatest day to this point totaled 80 fish.

That nice sight fishing continues into March, in line with Moore. “The reds college up on mud flats again within the oyster beds in only a foot or a foot-and-a-half of water,” he provides. Moore encourages catching and releasing and prefers to catch only a few fish from a faculty, feeling that hooking too many from one group can stress the college — “and make them spookier the following day.”

However his method poses little problem since most winter days it’s not an issue to search out many such faculties of reds typically averaging 27 to 30 inches. He calls this “an enormous fishery,” noting that there are an ideal many bays and plenty of flats within the neighborhood.

There’s a caveat to winter fishing, nevertheless: “When the water drops beneath 50 levels, it’s arduous to get ’em to feed,” he recollects. “I keep in mind a two-week interval it was beneath 50 levels and you might see the fish however they simply wouldn’t chew.” Fortuitously, it will get that chilly just for brief durations through the coronary heart of winter months.

Fly Fishing for Redfish

Fly fishermen — who now make up about three-fourths of Smith’s shoppers in winter and a few third through the summer time — reap the benefits of these large faculties. Getting near the targets turns into important, for the reason that fish, extra torpid in feeding, prefer to have the fly dropped proper in entrance of them. Determine on making casts of at the very least 40 to 50 toes.

Any lethargy, nevertheless, ends abruptly sufficient as soon as these cold-water reds really feel a hook. “If somebody tells you a redfish doesn’t battle within the winter, I can inform them totally different,” Smith says. “I had one man inform me that — and the following factor you knew, he was into his backing on a 15-pounder!”

An 8- or 9-weight rod is about proper, significantly to cope with the frequent breeze, “However on a very calm day, an excellent fly rodder can sneak all the way down to a 6-weight,” Smith says. Clouser minnows and Bendbacks are in style, significantly in gold patterns.

Springtime in South Carolina: Reds, Jacks and Silver Kings

The spring months herald warming water, and meaning more and more aggressive redfish in shallow waters. “Then, greater reds are shifting in from offshore again into the surf and a few in Bull’s Bay, very similar to within the fall,” Smith says. It’s additionally an excellent time to search out any of a number of different species of inshore gamefish in the identical waters, together with seatrout, flounder and a few large ladyfish.

By late spring, jack crevalle as massive as 40 kilos, nice targets for anglers wanting an actual exercise, transfer into the harbor. Shortly after that, tarpon present up as effectively and, whereas there’s not as a lot of a directed fishery right here as round Hilton Head simply to the south, fishermen do hook up a few of the silver kings every year.

Actually, Moore mentioned he targets tarpon through the summer time in Bull’s Bay. It’s a fishery that’s choosing up steam; guides like Moore report seeing extra of the silver kings than ever. To date, it’s not a fishery that warrants reserving many journeys, however Lowcountry anglers take some good tarpon every summer time.