June 11

Morning surface water temperatures are about 80 degrees around Beaufort.  

The cobia are presumably still around, and Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) notes that some scattered reports from anchored-up bait fishermen indicate that they are still feeding. However, conditions have been so wretched for almost a week that it’s been impossible to get out and look for them with the clouds and rain. 

However, there has been better news with other inshore species and the redfish have been tailing really well in areas like the Harbor River. Captain Tuck Scott even saw some sheepshead up in the grass tailing!

Outside of high tide the reds are also feeding pretty well on shrimp and cut mullet, and they are in the usual spots near current where they can sit in a slower ambush spot and pick off bait. 

The trout fishing has also been very strong at times, with the best fishing coming an hour after high tide for a couple of hours on the dropping tide. Areas with clean water hold more trout. Mud minnows under a popping cork have been working the best, and grubs are also catching some fish. 

The flounder fishing has been a little down recently, and even though a few big fish have been caught in areas like Fripp Inlet overall the keeper ratio is unusually low.  Bigger mud minnows seem to be getting bigger bites.

May 27

Morning surface water temperatures are about 78 degrees around Beaufort and shrimp are filling up the creeks.

As predicted last week, Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that a lot more cobia have showed up this week. In one trip Captain Tuck Scott’s boat sighted 9 cobia, and pretty much any day that it is very calm you can expect to see a bunch. They saw half a dozen today. However, more fish seem almost certain to come between the full moon and the arriving menhaden, and in a sign that it’s not as good as it will get Tuck has not yet seen any north of the Broad River Bridge. 

Most days Tuck points out that whatever direction you see one fishing swimming the others are likely to be doing the same, but the day that they saw 9 they were all over the place. Most of his customers are casting big streamers like a Flash Tail Whistler and stripping it back very fast just under the surface near the fish, but on spinning tackle big Spooks or other topwater lures can also get bites. 

With it looking likely that a lot of the inshore catch will take place in June, when the season is no longer closed to harvest, Tuck encourages anyone who catches a cobia in the Broad River to release it.

It’s hard to explain why, but despite the full moon there just have not been good tailing tides for redfish in the last few days. At the same time fish are eating shrimp really well on lower tides, and in the Harbor River this week Tuck’s boat wore them out with live shrimp fished in calmer pockets around oyster beds where fish could ambush baits.

There also continues to be a decent topwater bite right around daybreak, and fishing Spooks along the edges of the grass is the best bet.

The trout fishing continues to be above average for the season, and in moving water seams or around shell points when there is decent current you can catch fish on live shrimp or jigs.  Unlike redfish trout will be right in the current.  Usually 3-4 feet of water is ideal. 

While they didn’t see as many this week there should be more and more tripletail showing up, and so it’s worth keeping your eyes open for them floating around. They will take a crab, shrimp or minnow.

May 21

Morning surface water temperatures inshore are in the low 70s. 

There’s been some significant improvement in the fishing around Beaufort, and Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports the redfish are starting to feed much better. They are breaking up into smaller schools and foraging, and on upcoming flood tides they are expecting some really good tailing activity. Fish are eating fiddler crabs and so Gulp! crabs or crab fly patterns will both work – or the real thing!

Outside of high tide reds are definitely gorging on the small shrimp that are everywhere, but counter-intuitively better action is actually coming using cut mullet or mud minnows. Either the fish prefer something different or a larger, bait-size shrimp just doesn’t look natural.

There also continues to be a decent topwater bite right around daybreak, and fishing Spooks along the edges of the grass is the best bet.

The trout fishing continues to be above average for the season, and in moving water seams or around shell points when there is decent current you can catch fish on live shrimp or jigs. Usually 3-4 feet of water is ideal. 

There are also some tripletail showing up, and so it’s worth keeping your eyes open for them floating around. They will take a crab, shrimp or minnow.

But of course the main event in May in Beaufort is the cobia. Things do seem to be running about two weeks behind, and so Captain Tuck Scott is concerned that a lot of the inshore catch will take place in June when the season is no longer closed to harvest. He encourages anyone who catches a cobia in the Broad River to release it.

While numbers aren’t yet great they have seen a bunch of fish and caught several sight-casting, including the beauty below.  A variety of live baits and artificial lures will work, and of course the ideal is to catch one on a fly.

May 7

Morning surface water temperatures inshore are in the low 70s. 

The fishing in Beaufort remains a little tough at the moment, as Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that there are so many baby shrimp around at the moment that all the redfish have to do to gorge is open their mouth like a whale eating crill! Nonetheless, in the past couple of days there have been some signs that fish are actually starting to behave like fish again and move around to eat instead of just opening their mouths. 

First thing there is a decent topwater bite right around daybreak, and fishing Spooks along the edges of the grass is the best bet. Outside of that a few fish are being picked up on live shrimp or cut bait on the bottom.

At times the trout have been more willing to eat than the redfish, and in areas where the reds are up shallow if you fish out in 3-4 feet of water when there is decent current you can catch fish on live shrimp or jigs. They have even caught a few trout on the fly when they worked the deeper water out from where they were casting at reds.  

About a week or ten days ago some early cobia showed up, but for a few days they have not really been sighted.  It’s not unusual for there to be a lull after the first sighting before better numbers of fish show up again. It’s all happening a little later than usual this year because of the water temperature, but Tuck would not be surprised if the middle of next week is pretty good. The reports from offshore and to the south have been promising and so it seems likely that things are just a little delayed. 

Some other migratory species are starting to show up, and a few tripletail have been spotted and good numbers of sharks are now around.  More cigar minnows and needlefish have showed up, and while the menhaden are not yet here that makes sense because the cobia usually arrive with them.  There have been some Spanish mackerel caught in the Broad River.

April 30

Inshore surface water temperatures are in the upper 60s to low 70s in Beaufort. 

Beaufort has had a true spring this year, and the fact that we didn’t go from late winter to summer temperatures overnight means that the migration of bait and sharks into the area has proceeded a little slower than usual. What is in the water is tons of baby shrimp, and

Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that the redfish are gorging on those. As a result the bite is a little finicky, but if you can get live shrimp they will work very well. 

On high tide tailing action has been okay, but as temperatures warm it will get less sporadic. On low tide the fish have broken out of the really big schools, but, again, since they are gorging the bite is not stellar. When you do locate fish they are often a little bit deeper than usual in the saltier water (due to freshwater runoff). 

There has been a decent trout bite in the usual places if you have shrimp, with fish feeding in larger creek mouths where the water is being churned up over shell bars on moving tides in 3-4 feet of water. Jigs are working okay. 

Cobia are just starting to show up in the Broad River and soon the action should be very good.

April 1

Inshore surface water temperatures were around 65 degrees yesterday in Beaufort, but weather rolling in today is certain to drop them. Even with the high winds it is still fairly clear, but the water is more tannic than usual. 

The redfish remain in a transition mode in the Beaufort area, but Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that there have been several exciting patterns for catching them. As the schools start to break up cut mullet has generally been the best bait, but in cloudy conditions topwater lures have been working well.  When the sun comes out cut bait on the bottom is better. Captain Tuck Scott discovered this because redfish were hitting his popping cork until the clouds went away, when they started eating the mullet underneath!

As expected fish are also starting to tail, although this brief cold snap will most likely interrupt that pattern until temperatures return and fiddler crabs come back out. 

Generally, Tuck reminds anglers that when the water is tannic it means that the salinity is low and so redfish are likely to be closer to the bottom where the salt is more concentrated. 

There has been a decent trout bite in the usual places, with fish feeding in larger creek mouths where the water is being churned up over shell bars on moving tides. Mud minnows under a popping cork have been good as have paddle tail grubs or Gulp! on a ¼ ounce jighead. Smaller live shrimp would probably work but the big shrimp that are usually available in stores seem out of place right now. 

Some nice black drum are also around and will take fresh cut shrimp or cut mullet on the bottom.

February 23

Inshore surface water temperatures are around 51 degrees in Beaufort, and water clarity is surprisingly high right now. 

When the weather has allowed fishing, Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that the action for redfish has been good.  Fish remain extremely schooled up and so if you catch one there are almost certainly more in the area, and overall they are still pretty hungry.  

Most of the fishing is sight fishing right now, and on low tide fish will be moving around on the flats in big schools. On moving tides fish will be in and around shell points and creek mouths – but avoiding the fastest moving water. At high tide they can be spotted in and around covered shell bars. 

If visibility is low but you have an idea where fish are you can also work the banks, and the best time for that is when the water is just in or just out of the grass. Then you can go down the bank with the trolling motor and blind cast jigs or a swim bait. 

Gulp! baits have generally been working really well, and in the clear conditions lighter natural colors are good. If the water is dirty you will want to fish darker baits. At high tide it can be effective to fish the baits under a popping cork. 

While the trout fishing has been slow recently, the good news is that there are no indications that the water has gotten cold enough for a fish kill.

February 5

Inshore surface water temperatures rose a bit then dropped back to around 48 degrees in Beaufort, and water clarity remains high most of the time.

Even though Beaufort redfish are certainly still eating, Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that it has been so windy and unpleasant that getting out there has been difficult. But when you can the fish are still extremely schooled up and overall pretty hungry. If you catch one fish there are almost certainly more in the area – more than at any other time of year.

On low tide fish will be moving around on the flats in big schools, and on moving tides fish will be in and around shell points and creek mouths – but avoiding the fastest moving water. You can also work the grass edges either on the incoming or outgoing. At high tide they will be in and around covered shell bars. A lot of the fishing is sight fishing, but you can also blind cast in likely areas. 

Gulp! baits have been working really well, and in the clear conditions lighter natural colors are good. If the water is dirty you will want to fish darker baits. At high tide it can be effective to fish the baits under a popping cork. 

The trout fishing should also be pretty good, but expect the fish to bite better in warmer parts of the day.  Trout are hanging in moving water in about 3-4 feet looking for whatever bait is around, and in addition to casting grubs on jigheads they will take mud minnows or live shrimp presented under a cork.  Perhaps the most productive way to target them, though, is by trolling the creeks in 3-5 feet of water with grubs on a ¼ ounce jighead.

January 21

Inshore surface water temperatures are down to about 48 degrees in Beaufort, and water clarity is very high.

It’s still good conditions for catching Beaufort redfish, and Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that fish are extremely schooled up and overall pretty hungry. If you catch one fish there are almost certainly more in the area – more than at any other time of year.

On low tide fish will be moving around on the flats in big schools, and on moving tides fish will be in and around shell points and creek mouths – but avoiding the fastest moving water. You can also work the grass edges either on the incoming or outgoing. At high tide they will be in and around covered shell bars. A lot of the fishing is sight fishing, but you can also blind cast in likely areas. 

Gulp! baits have been working really well, and in the clear conditions lighter natural colors are good. If the water is dirty you will want to fish darker baits. At high tide it can be effective to fish the baits under a popping cork.

 

The trout fishing has also been pretty good, although the action for trout is clearly stronger in the warmer parts of the day.  Trout are hanging in moving water in about 3-4 feet looking for whatever bait is around, and in addition to casting grubs on jigheads they will take mud minnows or live shrimp presented under a cork.  Perhaps the most productive way to target them, though, is by trolling the creeks in 3-5 feet of water with grubs on a ¼ ounce jighead.

January 8

Inshore surface water temperatures are down to about 50 degrees in Beaufort, and water clarity is very high.

2021 is off to a bang in the Beaufort redfish department, and Bay Street Outfitters (843-524-5250) reports that the fishing has been really good. Fish are extremely schooled up, and so if you catch one fish there are almost certainly more in the area – more than at any other time of year.

On low tide fish will be moving around on the flats in big schools, and on moving tides fish will be in and around shell points and creek mouths – but avoiding the fastest moving water. You can also work the grass edges either on the incoming or outgoing. At high tide they will be in and around covered shell bars. A lot of the fishing is sight fishing, but you can also blind cast in likely areas. 

Gulp! baits have been working really well, and in the clear conditions lighter natural colors are good. If the water is dirty you will want to fish darker baits. At high tide it can be effective to fish the baits under a popping cork. 

There has also been a good trout bite, and part-time Beaufort resident John Long of East Columbia Sport Shop (803-776-8320) reports that they have found trout stacked up in deep holes surrounded by oyster mounds. They have been way back in the creeks, and he thinks the trout are also trying to avoid the dolphins. These areas may also warm faster than the main water on warm days.

Even though they have offered live bait to the fish they would not touch it, and instead of mud minnows the trout have showed a preference for paddle tail grubs. 

While the Fripp rocks continue not to produce as well as usual, they have found some sheepshead around wood in the creeks. They will take shrimp or fiddler crabs and Mainline Market also sells frozen sand fleas which can work at times.