July 31

Morning surface water temperatures are around 85-86 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet. 

It’s a quick inshore update this week from Murrells Inlet, but we will have a more complete report next week – and hopefully by then patterns will be more predictable. Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service(843-241-7706) reports that the flounder fishing has been extremely inconsistent, and most days they are struggling to get more than a couple of keepers in the boat. It looked like all of that had changed yesterday when they caught 21- and 22-inch fish on the first two casts, but then they struggled to catch any more fish over 16 inches for the next several hours. It’s unclear why the bite isn’t better.

There are some redfish around, including some good ones, but they are scattered and hard to pattern easily.  Trout are slow. 

 

July 23

 

Morning surface water temperatures vary around 88-89 degrees, depending on the tide, at the mouth of Murrells Inlet.

 

Several species of fish are providing good action, but wind continues to be an issue for Charter Captains in the Murrells Inlet area fornearshore and offshore fishing. Captain Chris Regan with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that many trips are being canceled because of the winds, so increased pressure has been on the inshorespecies.

 

Captain Chris reports theflounder and redfish action has been good inshore, but the fish are moving a lot. His typical pattern the past couple of weeks is to locate either species in a specific area, and he’ll have about two days to work them; then, usually, by the third day they’ve moved and the search is back on.

 

Captain Chris said the flounder bite is good, with plenty of action and some keeper fish. 

 

 

The flounder fishing in particular has been very good. On a trip yesterday, his party caught a total of 30 flounder, including several keepers, topped by a 25-inch flounder. The flounder are being caught using mudminnows and mullet, but he knows some anglers are doing well using artificial lures. 

 

Redfish continue to provide good fishing, and they are scattered throughout the area, with some quality reds being caught. Again, they’ll hold in an area for a couple of days, then move to a new area. One factor is that plenty of baitfish for these species are available throughout the area, so fish are taking advantage of it.

 

The elevated water temperatures are factoring into strategy in terms of where he searches for fish. Early morning fishing options are good in most areas, but by mid-day he and his other guides are working areas that are deeper or have more current. Creek mouths and shell pods are typically good targets. Catching fresh bait for the day before dawn seems to be a big benefit for his success.

  

Anglers are catching the larger reds around hard cover, such as docks and jetties, and they’re catching redfish in the 17-18-inch class by fishing around grass and on the flats.

 

Trout action remains slow, he reports, but with the full moon approaching, he will target them more often because he expects some larger fish to move inshore during that time.

 

When wind allows anglers to get out, thereefs are producing spadefish as well as some flounder.

 

Thenearshore fishing for Spanish mackerel is good when they can get out. He had two two-hour windows this past week and was able to get on schooling fish using light tackle both times; his clients enjoyed great action.

--Terry Madewell 

 

July 2

Morning surface water temperatures are around 84 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet. 

The summer inshore fishing has been good, and Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that as we get into July things are changing. They are seeing a few more redfish in their normal spots, and in the creeks the best action has come around low tide in either direction. Inshore fish are mostly related to oysters right now, with creek mouths less productive. There are also redfish around at the jetties, but the pattern is incredibly random with the best action some days on high tide, some days on the low incoming, and sometimes at mid-tides. The one commonality for all the redfish has been that they are generally big fish in the new slot or above. 

As for baits, there is still a mix of very small 1-2 inch mullet and big 10-12 inch mullet, without the 3-5 inch finger mullet that typically show up right after July 4, and they are eating the best on small baits. Either little pieces of cut mullet or the biggest small live mullet are working best. 

Meanwhile the flounder fishing has been off-and-on, with a hot day when they catch a boat limit and then some cold days where they only manage three keepers. The fish are even more random than a few weeks ago, and one day the best bite is at the jetties, the next day it is at steep sand bars, and the next day on blazing hot shallow mud banks. Basically you just have to keep hitting your spots and try to figure out where they want to be on a particular day. There’s also no clear bait preference, with mud minnows, mullet, menhaden, and artificials all working best at times. 

Perhaps the biggest improvement is with the trout, and this moon phase brought in a decent number of big spawners. It’s unclear why it didn’t start earlier in June, but from now through September Captain Caleb expects to target trout more often – especially around new and full moons. With the lack of rain and accordingly not many shrimp around they are keying on mullet, and so downsized rigs and light drags are a necessity. The best tide for trout has been mid-tides but their locations have been pretty unpredictable, from grass lines to the jetties. 

Some days there are menhaden schools running the beaches, then they will disappear for a day or two, and there are a fair (but below average) number of Spanish mackerel around and some occasional kings. Sharks are most common.  But boats trolling all day for Spanish are getting enough to keep people happy. 

Nearshore on the few calm days there are a flotilla of boats excited to get out, and sometimes Caleb uses those days to have the creeks to himself!  However, he has been sometimes and there are some good flounder, spadefish, random Spanish, and some kings around. Yesterday a couple of good cobia were caught.

June 24

 

Morning surface water temperatures vary around 83-87 degrees, depending on the tide, at the mouth of Murrells Inlet.

 

Wind continues to be a negative factor for Charter Captains in the Murrells Inlet area, and Captain Chris Regan withCarolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that nearshore and offshore fishing has been difficult because of the winds. He said many trips have been canceled because of the conditions. And most of the recent fishing activity in this area has been inshore.

 

But the inshore fishing has been good, he reports, especially for flounder. But the inability to get out on the ocean is creating a lot of pressure on the inshore fishing.

 

Captain Chris reports that excellent flounder fishing is topping the list of inshorefishing opportunities this week. On most trips, anglers are catching plenty of flounder, though many are not keepers; the action is excellent. But keepers are being taken as well. He said the flounder are being caught on both artificial lures and live bait.

 

Captain Chris said big flounder are being caught, as well as plenty of smaller ones. 

 

Redfish continue to provide good fishing, and they are scattered throughout the area, with some quality reds being caught. Captain Chris believes the redfish numbers are down and thinks the new regulations are good for the fishery.

 

Anglers are catching the larger reds around hard cover, such as docks and jetties, and catching redfish in the 17-18-inch class by fishing around grass and on the flats.

 

Trout action is slow, he reports. Other inshore species that are providing good action include sheepshead and black drum.

 

--Terry Madewell

 

June 17

Morning surface water temperatures are around 80 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet.  

We’ll start with the exciting news, and Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that giant schools of menhaden have showed up off the beaches. There’s already a really good Spanish mackerel bite as a result, and a few cobia are also starting to be caught around the bait pods. The cobia action should just get better and better as the summer goes on.

But the inshore bait situation is a whole different matter, and the menhaden are either an inch long or 8 inches. Similarly, there are very few 3-5 inch finger mullet, and most of them are either an inch or 8-12 inches. Perhaps because of that, the big flounder they were expecting to arrive have just not showed up yet. Numbers are good and most days they are catching at least 10-15 fish, with 1-5 keepers, but the doormats that usually get caught weekly in June just aren’t around. 

The bite continues to be around the tide cycle – and all day with relatively mild temperatures. At high tide Captain Caleb’s boat is fishing mud flats that are exposed at low, on moving tides he is fishing ambush points and current seams, and on low tide he is fishing deep creek mouths and holes. 

The redfish are still very scattered, but they are catching some in the creeks and some at the jetties. But there are a lot of sharks around at the jetties, and if you find a group of redfish stop targeting them if they are getting eaten by sharks!  Caleb notes that the best catches of reds have come at high tide when fish are up on the flats feeding.  

Finally, as predicted numbers of trout are very low right now.

June 3

Morning surface water temperatures are around 75 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet. 

Unpredictable weather patterns have not helped the inshore fishing, and Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that this morning it was 49 degrees at the dock and blowing 30 miles per hour out of the north! Still it’s been a really good flounder bite recently, in all parts of the inlet including the north, middle and south, and the only frustration has been that there hasn’t been much of a pattern to the fish. There hasn’t been a noticeable difference between the rise and the fall, and artificials and live bait have been working about the same. 

But the numbers of good fish caught already make Captain Caleb very optimistic, and in the next week when more bait arrives and the wind lays down he expects some really big fish over 7 pounds to start to show up (his biggest so far this season is 6 pounds, pictured below). At high tide he will be fishing mud flats that are exposed at low, on moving tides he will be fishing ambush points and current seams, and on low tide he will be fishing deep creek mouths with 5-8 feet of water. Caleb also notes that it’s not unusual in June for the fish to bite about the same all the time, as until it gets very hot in July fish don’t really get into hard patterns like biting best in the morning. 

They are only getting about one trout a week, not unusual for June, but redfish are starting to show up in decent numbers in the creeks with most over the slot but a few inside. (There are also some reds at the jetties). The best bite is on lower tides around oyster banks and drop-offs with live mullet. For most of June fishing cut bait around oyster bars will be the go-to pattern for reds.

But for the redfish, and other species, to really turn on Caleb notes menhaden schools need to show up, as the lack of bait is really slowing things down.  

That’s true off the beaches and at the reefs, and once menhaden arrive then Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, and cobia will all show up. 

May 28

 

Morning surface water temperatures vary around 77-81 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet.

 

Excellent flounder fishing is topping the list of inshorefishing opportunities this week, Captain Chris Regan withCarolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports. On one trip, anglers caught multiple flounder topped by a 29-inch whopper weighing 10.1 pounds.

 

Captain Chris said a 28 inch, 10.1 lb. flounder, was caught on a recent trip.

 

The wind has been a hindrance at times in the past several days, particularly in the afternoons with a gusty southeast wind, but the fishing overall is excellent, Captain Chris said. He’s liking the mid-tides, incoming or outgoing, for the best action. Slack-water conditions are not nearly as productive. He added that live bait and artificial lures are very productive, and at times, the shrimp imitations are outproducing live bait.

 

Redfish are still providing good inshore fishing, and a good mix of sizes is being caught, with some quality fish mixed in. Anglers are catching the reds around hard cover, such as docks and jetties.

 

Fishermen are catching a smaller class of redfish in the 17-18-inch class, generally by fishing around grass and on the flats. Captain Chris reports that plenty of redfish are in the general area, but scattered in various areas. Anglers may have to hunt a bit to find the isolated hotspots, but diligence usually pays off with redfish.

 

Other inshore species that are providing good action include sheepshead and black drum.

 

Nearshore and along the beaches, Spanish mackerel fishing is likely still good, he believes, but windy conditions have made it difficult to get out recently, especially with such good inshore fishing.

 

Terry Madewell

 

May 13

 

Morning surface water temperatures are around 68-69 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet at high tide and about 72 degrees at low tide.  

 

After a period of increased flounder activity for theinshorefishing, the pace has slowed, but plenty of flounder remain in the area. Captain Chris Regan withCarolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that flounder are still in the area in good numbers and sizes. He said an angler fishing from a causeway recently caught a 28-inch flounder.

 

 

He reports that redfish are still providing quality inshore fishing, but some of the biggest fish are outside the keeper slot. Captain Chris reports that quite a few 27-30-inch redfish are being caught, with most caught around cover such as docks and jetties. He said most redfish are ‘CPR’d’ (caught, photographed, released) anyway, regardless of size.

 

Another common size class of redfish being caught are reds in the 17-18-inch class. These fish are commonly caught around grass and on the flats. Captain Chris reports that many redfish are in the general area, but the big schools anglers found during winter have dispersed throughout the inshore flats and creeks. But unlike some years, a lot of these fish still remain inshore, so anglers may need to be diligent about finding them, but opportunities exist for good redfish action.

 

Other inshore species that are providing good action include sheepshead and black drum, and he knows of one 30-inch black drum caught and released.

 

Nearshore and around the beaches, the Spanish mackerel fishing is holding up well and should continue to be productive for a while.

 

Terry Madewell

 

 

April 30

Morning surface water temperatures are around 68 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet. 

After a week last week where very little changed inshore, this week Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that things are dramatically differently now. Namely, the flounder have showed up, and yesterday Captain Caleb’s boat caught 60-70 fish with about 25% over 16 inches! Tide doesn’t seem to matter, and there is very little rhyme or reason to their locations. Some were caught at high tide in deep holes with 10 feet of water, while others were caught on low tide in as little as a foot of water. While other baits will work mud minnows are hard to beat.

The flounder fishing should stay hot through May, while in general the trout fishing in Murrells Inlet slows this month. Redfish should pick back up, and there should be some good schools found at the jetties. 

Off the beaches out to nearshore bluefish and Spanish should be around in May, and with menhaden already showing up off the beach it’s a near-certainly that some big kings will start to be caught soon either on the piers or at the reefs. Spadefish will also show up at the reefs.  

April 22

Morning surface water temperatures are around 67 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet. 

With almost no change in water temperatures Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that very little has changed with the fishing this week. They do continue to pick up some very large trout, but he is most excited because any day now the big flounder should arrive and start to fire off. 
One note of change is that there seems to be a decent run of bull red drum off local piers like Surfside. 

April 16

Morning surface water temperatures are around 66-67 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet. 

Inshore fishing continues to improve along the Grand Strand, and Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that they are now catching good numbers of redfish in the creeks as well as at the jetties. At the jetties it’s mostly over-slot fish, while inside they are slot-sized. In the creeks the best fishing is around creek mouths and oyster bars, with oyster bars at the mouth of creeks ideal. Both rising and falling tide have been good in these areas. 

The trout bite has also been good, not for numbers but for some high-quality fish up to 24 plus inches. They are extremely scattered and hard to pattern, and they could be found at the jetties or in the creeks, shallow or deep. Live shrimp has been a commonality for catching them but they will also take artificials.

While there have been some good flounder caught already, this should be the week where the keepers really flood the area with the warm weather. They are very hard to pattern so far but creek mouths on the outgoing tide are as good as anywhere. 
Nearshore the Spanish mackerel fishing was phenomenal a few days ago, with catches of 200 common! However, they have apparently pushed into towards the beaches where they are starting to be caught off the piers. 

April 3

Morning surface water temperatures are around 64 degrees at the mouth of Murrells Inlet. 

The big excitement this week in Murrells Inlet is the arrival of the flounder, and Captain Caleb Hartley with Carolina Hook and Fly Guide Service (843-241-7706) reports that on an inshore charter today they have already caught a handful of fish, including two keepers, and they are not finished!  There’s not much rhyme or reason to where they are finding the fish, or what they are biting, and after drifting an area for an hour with live bait and not hooking up they took a couple of casts with artificials and caught one. But earlier the keepers came on live bait. While it’s hard to point to a specific pattern, fishing low moving water (in either direction) in the vicinity of structure has been the best bet. Bait preference is a moving target but mud minnows are generally reliable. 

There are also a few redfish and trout around, but particularly the trout have been very moody. For some reason right now it’s hard to catch either species without live shrimp.

It’s a good time to fish nearshore and about to get even better, although right now you can still pick up some sheepshead and black drum plus Spanish mackerel have started to arrive.  Really the only question is whether the ocean will let you get there – because if it does you will catch fish!