October 30

Morning surface water temperatures inshore around Beaufort are still about 70-72 degrees and bait is abundant.    

It’s a pretty great inshore bite for Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503), with both redfish and trout being caught in very good numbers. Unsurprisingly the redfish have been shallower, and his boat is catching them on the flats in 1-3 feet of water. They are taking cut mullet and the best time to fish for them has been the first 2-3 hours of the incoming around docks, trees, and oyster flats. 

The trout bite has also kicked off, and in 5-6 feet of water Captain Pat’s boat is catching good numbers of trout over oyster beds, drops, and at creek mouths. There are also a fair number of 15-inch redfish mixed in in these areas. Live shrimp has been the best way to catch them, but they will also take mud minnows under popping corks as well as chartreuse curly tail grubs and Vudu Shrimp. 

Fishing has picked up on the Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437) pier this week, with lots of trout and reds as well as a few flounder and sheepshead being caught. Most of the redfish are in the slot but a few have been bigger.   

October 16

Morning surface water temperatures inshore around Beaufort are down to about 72 degrees and bait is abundant.    

Despite super windy conditions this morning and 57 degree air temperatures, Captain Tuck Scott with Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that the inshore fishing around Beaufort is still strong with redfish chasing shrimp on lower stages of the tide and tailing at high water. It’s that time of the year where it’s hard to go wrong, and on low water you can locate reds feeding on shrimp by looking for birds that are waiting for bait to be disturbed.  Redfish are in both the creeks and the rivers feeding heavily around structure and grass edges.

The high tide tailing bite has been a little odd, and the last five or so tide cycles have all been much, much lower than expected. With a northeast wind that’s hard to explain. Regardless they are still seeing lots of redfish tails as well as a ton of sheepshead and black drum. The sheepshead are up on the flats eating mussels (and very hard to catch) and so there may be a bumper crop of mussels right now in Beaufort. 

There are also still a few tripletail around and so it’s worth keeping your eyes open.

 

It’s a similar bite for Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503), but he has had to make adjustments because in the areas he is fishing the trout, flounder and redfish are all gorging on very small grass shrimp in certain places. Cleaning them their bellies are filled with one-inch shrimp.  He has seen redfish in 6 inches of water just sucking them up, and when that is going on they only seem to want the smallest white and chartreuse Vudu shrimp he can throw. 

At other times fish have had a wider palate, and on low to rising tide his boat has caught a bunch of redfish on mud minnows around downed trees. 

There has also been a really good trout bite in the right conditions, and on moving water when you find a line of current in 5-6 feet of water off oyster beds or grass lines then the trout are often stacked up. They will take about anything, including curly-tailed grubs, live shrimp or Vudu shrimp under a popping cork. 

While the biggest catch off the Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437) pier has been rays this week, they are also getting a fair number of redfish. 

October 3

Morning surface water temperatures inshore around Beaufort are still about 78 degrees and after the storm (including a possible tornado that came up the Beaufort River) there is tons of grass and debris in the water and it has muddied up.  

Despite less than ideal water conditions, Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) reports that inshore fishing has been pretty good this week and in fact some better trout have showed up. On high tide the bite has been slow and they have basically only picked up a few small flounder, but on the dropping tide redfish and trout (with some over 20 inches) have been found on the deeper edges of drop-offs, oyster beds and drains where depths drop to about 5-6 feet of water. 

The one disappointment is that so far they have not been able to locate the bull red drum in the inlets, but they should be around at any time.

That has also been the case on the Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437), where that for now the main catch has been whiting and slot-sized reds. The bigger blue crabs also seem to be showing up this week. 

Fresh off the water minutes ago, Captain Tuck Scott with Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that in general the tailing activity has been pretty good since the storm but was down a little today. However, on high tide they saw some redfish tailing but more fish over white sand. They were willing to eat. 

They have seen less tripletails recently, and that is probably a result of the freshwater inflow. At the same time more sheepshead are up on the flats right now, and Captain Tuck believes that is the result of storm surges pushing periwinkles up. For some reason there are not as many black drum around as they would expect.

Finally, anywhere in the state where you are boating right now, including Beaufort, Tuck points out that drivers should be standing and looking at what’s in front of them instead of sitting. There is so much debris and trash in the water that it’s important to have the best vantage point possible. 

September 26

Morning surface water temperatures around Beaufort are about 78 degrees and the water has been pretty dirty. More shrimp are showing up again on the flats. 

It’s been a pretty good week of inshore fishing for Captain Tuck Scott with Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250), who reports that redfish have been willing to eat. However, the best feeding time on the river flats seems to be at higher stages of the tide when water is getting into the grass, indicating to him that they are still thinking it terms of fiddler crabs. Cut mullet along the grass has been working well.

At the same time he is also seeing more redfish chasing shrimp at lower tide on the flats, as the shrimp finally seem to be back in numbers after the August storm. 

On the fly darker patterns have been working in the dirty water, and they are also seeing a fair number of black drum and sheepshead up on the flats eating fiddler crabs. As usual they are very hard to catch. 

Tripletail are still around, and tarpon are too. 

While he’s also had to contend with the effects of very high tides, including dirty water, debris and grass, Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) reports that they have still found a nice red drum bite in the creeks around docks, oysters and trees.  Fresh cut mullet have been working well for over-slot, slot-sized, and under-slot fish, with artificial lures mainly catching fish on the smaller end of the slot and below.

However, they are doing really well for 14-20 inch trout with chartreuse curly tail grubs on the low to incoming tide. 

 

Captain Pat is looking for a big run of jumbo red drum into Fripp Inlet anytime. 

While the bulls haven’t showed up on the pier yet, Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437) reports that they are getting good numbers of redfish, spot and whiting – and lots of sharks. They are also getting lots of flounder but for now keepers have been absent. 

September 12

Morning surface water temperatures around Beaufort are in the upper 70s and water conditions are churned up with all the wind.  Bait shrimp and mullet have been a little difficult to catch, perhaps because of the wind and rain. 

The fall inshore bite is underway in Beaufort, and Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) reports that he has been catching a ton of redfish from 12-24 inches around docks, oyster and trees back in the creeks. The low to rising tide has fished best this week, and he has been catching them on both mud minnows and shrimp.

 

At the same time the trout have been off this week, even as small weakfish have started to show up, but black drum have made up for it. They have been in the same places as the redfish on both sides of low tide. 

Flounder have been rare in the creeks but the reports around the rocks at Fripp Island have been good. 

It’s been a little slow off the Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437), but they have had some black tip sharks, skates, catfish, whiting and spot. 

August 28

Morning surface water temperatures around Beaufort are about 84-85 degrees and the water conditions are getting more normal again. Shrimp are everywhere. 

The inshore fishing is back to pretty typical for late August, and Captain Tuck Scott with Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that except for seeing way more gators than normal in creeks and rivers where they aren’t usually (because of freshwater inflow) everything is about right. The shrimp which became so hard to find post-Debby are definitely back and numerous species including redfish are keying on them. On middle and lower tides you can find fish working the edges chasing shrimp about everywhere, and fishing shrimp under a popping cork is hard to beat. For some reason fish are more spread out than normal which is good for blind fishing, and you are also less likely to spook the fish since they aren’t grouped up. Tailing activity is also above-average on the higher tides. 

Fishing out of Station Creek Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) also reports that the shrimp have returned, and right now they are having a blast fishing shrimp on very light tackle for small trout and redfish. While there are still better redfish mixed in, and a higher percentage of good ones on the flats, this month they have had so much fun catching small ones that it’s been hard to turn down the constant action. The best action has been around trees and oysters while docks have slowed a little for Captain Patrick. 

Fishing shrimp under a popping cork has also picked up some keeper flounder. 

Additionally, Captain Tuck reports that there have been plenty of schools of small jack crevalle around while Pat reports that tarpon are here but anglers targeting them report getting less shots than normal. 

August 14

Morning surface water temperatures around Beaufort were 84 this morning and the water is very tannic and/or muddy. Bait has moved around with the storm. 

The inshore fishing in Beaufort was really good for a few days after Debby, but Captain Tuck Scott with Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that today the fishing seemed more normal.  One consistent theme since the storm is that fish are more likely to bite in areas where the water is cleaner, and in places like the Harbor River where it is very muddy the fishing has slowed. The Broad River is very tannic but fish don’t seem as concerned about that since visibility is still okay.

Before the storm there were tons of shrimp and mullet everywhere, and the fish really seemed to have gotten on a shrimp bite. Mullet are still around but the shrimp seem to have moved, and as if they are longing for them the redfish seem to mostly want to feed on shrimp. 

Captain Tuck notes that we have a few days of evening tailing tides coming up and then the best tailing should again be in the morning. 

Fishing out of Station Creek Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) has noticed less effects from the storm, but there has been a really good bite for bigger reds on flats and around docks. The low to rising tide has been fishing the best. They are also seeing tons of small reds and trout, both of which are biting small grubs in addition to natural baits. 

A few days ago Captain Pat saw large schools of menhaden and tarpon feeding on them in Trenchard’s Inlet, but they are obviously moving around a lot and when he went back the next day bait and tarpon were gone. 

However, they did catch some resident bull drum on the bottom in about 20 feet on cut menhaden.

Finally, in Fripp Inlet there are prolific small redfish as well as some better fish, but in the dirty water trout have been pretty absent. Around oyster beds and structure flounder have also been biting well on the last of the outgoing and then rising tide when cleaner water is coming in. 

August 1

Morning surface water temperatures around Beaufort are back to the mid-80s and finger mullet are abundant. 

The summer inshore fishing in Beaufort came back to Earth a little this week, and Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) reports that even though the bite was still good everything slowed down a little. Still, they are picking up occasional big trout and decent numbers on live shrimp fished under a cork on moving tides. They are catching fish in front of oyster beds and along grass off bigger bodies of water. 

In the creeks the redfish are still around docks, holes, and downed trees on lower stages of the tide, but this week they have seen less big fish and more young of the year reds. Mullet are still the bait of choice. 

This is a transition week for Captain Tuck Scott with Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250), and for the first part of the week they were targeting fish on low water where they found some really big schools of reds. Consistent with the report from Captain Pat the fish have been a little finicky, and Captain Tuck suspects they are wearing out the small shrimp and generally well-fed.  

However, with a series of big evening high tides coming up around this new moon Tuck will be switching over to tailing fish for the next few days.  But at low tide the reds will almost certainly continue to form big groups, even though it will now be in the heat of the day.  

This week they did pick up a nice flounder out of a low tide school of reds on a curly tail swimming minnow, and while he is not targeting them Tuck notes that there are tons of tarpon in the areas he is fishing. 

Fishing off the Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437) has slowed down, and right now the main catch appears to be lots of whiting and a few skates. 

July 26

Morning surface water temperatures around Beaufort are in the mid- to upper 80s and both bait-sized shrimp and finger mullet are abundant. In some areas the water is really dirty but in closed systems that don’t have rivers flowing in it is still pretty clean.

The summer inshore fishing in Beaufort is still exceeding expectations, and Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) reports that the fishing for trout, redfish and more has been really good the last ten days. The trout are coming on live shrimp fished under a cork, and recently the best action has been on the low to rising to tide. But overall tide hasn’t made a huge difference as long as there is some current – at slack tides the bite really slows. They are catching fish in front of oyster beds and along grass off bigger bodies of water. While trout fishing with shrimp they are also picking up jack crevalle up to about 6 pounds, ladyfish and bonnethead sharks. 

The redfish action continues to be very good around docks, holes, and downed trees on lower stages of the tide, but especially for the bigger fish up to 30 inches Captain Pat has noticed that chunks of cut mullet are working better than live bait now. For slot-sized fish finger mullet are still doing very well. 

The one void has been flounder, and Pat is picking up very few.

The summer redfish pattern is pretty typical for Captain Tuck Scott with Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250), and he reports that in general he finds the most consistent bite is early before water temperatures really start to rise. However, he notes that an exception can be on big tides when fish will gorge on the tailing flats even in the heat of the day.  

While he is not seeking them out, Captain Tuck notes that there are tons of tarpon in the areas he is fishing. 

New report to follow from the Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437), but the last word was that flounder, redfish, trout, whiting, spot and croaker were all being landed in Fripp Inlet. 

July 11

Morning surface water temperatures around Beaufort are in the mid- to upper 80s.

It continues to be a pretty outstanding inshore bite in Beaufort, and Captain Patrick Kelly with Boogieman Fishing Charters (843-962-3503) reports that the redfish action just keeps on coming. They are catching lots of 15-20 inch fish and some up 28 inches, with docks and downed trees on low to rising tide still the most productive. About any bait will work but they are mainly fishing mud minnows and live finger mullet.

The trout bite has also been good, with the best action coming in 5-6 feet of water on live shrimp under a cork. They have been catching them on the incoming tide drifting the baits in front of oyster beds, grass beds and creek mouths. The better fishing is in bigger water, but whether the water is clean or dirty does not seem to make any difference. 

While it’s not a pattern for catching a ton of keepers, for really fast sheepshead action Captain Pat is finding fish around docks in 4-8 feet of water. They are catching them on fiddler crabs fished on a 3/8 ounce jighead, and the same rig with live shrimp has been producing lots of black drum around structure. 

Finally, there are tons of migratory species around including jacks, ladyfish and bonnethead sharks. 

The fishing continues to pick up on the Hunting Island State Park Fishing Pier (843-838-7437), and to the list of keeper flounder, redfish, whiting and croaker we can now add spotted sea trout and spot.