October 7

Santee Cooper water levels are at 74.65 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and about 74.5 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Morning surface water temperatures are still about 79 degrees.

There are mixed signals on the catfish action, but Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that most days it seems like the fish are feeding pretty well. He has had the best luck drifting in 10-20 feet of water on cut herring, although at night he is finding much better fishing out deep in 25-40 feet. 

During the day Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) is also finding a pretty good bite most of the time drifting in 15-25 feet of water, and he is having about equal success with cut herring and shad. 

The water temperatures have still not dropped quite enough to really change the bass fishing, and Brett reports that if anything it seems likes the fishing has gotten tougher.  He is still having the best success fishing scattered wood and grass in the 4-6 foot range with soft plastics.  

Most of the fish are still probably roaming offshore suspended and chasing bait, but when temperatures drop just a few degrees they should finally start to move into the creeks following shad and become catchable on topwater lures, swimbaits and square-billed crankbaits. 

It sounds like a broken record but the crappie still haven’t really turned on as water temperatures need to drop a few more degrees, and Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports that deeper brush in 25 plus feet of water continues to be the best. One day the fishing will be good and the next day it will be slow, but overall the best fishing is coming in the upper lake. 

Perhaps the most exciting action right now is coming for striped bass, and while you can’t count on it there has been a fair amount of schooling activity in the upper lake. When the fish aren’t on top they can be caught down-lining for suspended for fish or looking for striper that are stacked up on the bottom. 

September 29

Santee Cooper water levels are at 74.92 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 74.89 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Surface water temperatures range from about 78-81 degrees.       

The catfish action is still a little slow on Santee, but Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that if you work hard you can still put a nice box of fish in the boat. He has had the best luck drifting in 10-20 feet of water on cut herring, while Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) is concentrating more on the 15-20 foot range. Reports vary but there are some indications that the upper lake is fishing a little better than the lower lake right now. 

The water temperatures have still not dropped quite enough to really change the bass fishing, and Brett reports that everything he is catching is coming around scattered wood and grass in the 4-6 foot range.  It’s mostly a soft plastic bite and topwaters still are not producing. 

There are also a few fish being caught on brush piles, but the majority of the fish seem to be suspended offshore where they are chasing bait. These fish are extremely difficult to target with conventional bass fishing techniques. 

It shouldn’t be long until fish start to move into the creeks following shad and become catchable on topwater lures, swimbaits and square-billed crankbaits. 

The crappie still haven’t really turned on as water temperatures need to drop a few more degrees, but Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports that they are picking up decent numbers of fish by looking at deeper brush.  He has found the best action 14-18 feet down over 25-35 feet of water.  While they aren’t targeting them they are also picking up a fair number of big bream while fishing minnows on the same crappie brush, and so it may be time to start bream fishing!

September 16

Santee Cooper water levels are at 75.13 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 75.04 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). The lakes are clear and water temperatures range from about 82 in the morning up to about 85.     

In his estimation the catfish action has slowed down a little on Santee, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that the fish he is catching have shifted from about 15-25 feet out to more like the 30-35 foot range. They are still biting pretty well, and he is having success drifting both chicken and herring. 

Even though he is hearing those same reports from deeper water, Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) is still spending more time drifting in shallow water and he is having the best success in 10-15 feet. Herring is his bait of choice. Overall, based on what he is seeing the fish are still very spread out. 

Despite a very slight temperature drop it hasn’t moved enough to really activate the bass fishing, and Brett reports that he has not seen a fish so much as swirl at a topwater bait recently. Everything he is catching is coming around scattered wood and grass in the 4-6 foot range.

There are also a few fish being caught on brush piles, but the majority of the fish seem to be suspended offshore where they are chasing bait. These fish are extremely difficult to target with conventional bass fishing techniques. 

Now that fall is near Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) is back after the crappie, and even though he has had a few good days there are also times when the fishing is slow. Right now it’s slower than last year at this time. Steve’s boat is targeting the lower lake, and everything he is catching is coming on relatively shallow brush 7-10 feet down over 15-20 feet of water. The best action has been in creek-like areas.  

When the water cools then the brush bite for bream should pick up, and the canal should fill up with shellcracker. 

September 2

Santee Cooper water levels are at 75.41 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 75.31 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Despite recent rains the lakes remain relatively clear and morning surface water temperatures are in the mid-80s.   

It’s an interesting bite for catfish on Santee Cooper, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that the fishing is kind of feast-or-famine. Some days you find the fish biting and fill the box, and other days you struggle. Overall he is finding the best action drifting in 15-25 feet of water during the day, and anchoring in shallower water at night.

Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that he is seeing about the same thing, and on one recent trip the sweet spot was about 16-18 feet. Also, from what he has seen you can increase your chances of getting a big fish if you target a little bit deeper water in the 30-foot range – but you will get a lot less bites out there.

Cut herring are good for numbers while white perch will work to try for a bigger one. 

Water temperatures have not dropped enough to really change the bass fishing on the Santee Cooper lakes, but Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that when temperatures drop another five degrees then you should be able to fish topwater baits all day long and not just in the mornings. While he is still fishing soft plastics around trees right now, very soon fish should start to follow shad into the creeks and he will be getting on more of a shad bite. Most anything that imitates shad from swimbaits to Alabama rigs to crankbaits to Rattle Traps will work. 

This weekend Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) has several trips for crappie again after some time off, and his best guess is that the fish will be scattered 10-20 feet down over middle depth to deep brush. He will be fishing minnows. 

August 20

Santee Cooper water levels are at 75.39 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 75.03 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Despite recent rains the lakes remain relatively clear and morning surface water temperatures are 87 or 88 degrees.   

The catfish bite remains the best thing going on Santee Cooper, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that he is finding a good pattern for large numbers of eating-sized fish drifting humps and flats in 10-20 feet of water. Herring is out-fishing everything else.  There is also a good bite for bigger fish in deeper water, but the numbers are lower. To target the big ones drift in 25-30 feet of water with white perch.

Stevie has not heard many good reports for shallow anchoring recently, and there hasn’t been much going on in the canal.   

There’s no real change in the patterns for bass fishing on the Santee Cooper lakes, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that it probably won’t be until cooler nights that are consistently below 70 degrees that the fishing will change much and bass will get more active during the day. Muddy water could also change things, but so far the lake is still relatively clear despite the rains. 

The best pattern is still throwing topwater lures early around grass and then soft plastics the rest of the day around trees, particularly in the swamp. Deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water will also hold some fish. 

The crappie fishing got so slow that Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) won’t be guiding for them again until September 1.  If you insist on crappie fishing in August, there are still fish scattered 10-20 feet down over middle depth to deep brush that will eat minnows.

August 5

Santee Cooper water levels are at 75.56 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 75.42 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). The lakes are still relatively clear and morning surface water temperatures are in the mid-80s. 

The bass fishing has picked up on the Santee Cooper lakes, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that around grass and trees up in the swamp the action has been good – especially for August!  You can throw topwater lures, soft plastics or whatever you want to do at this time of year. Morning is certainly fishing best but there are bass that will bite throughout the day. 

In the warmer parts of the day mid-depth trees are fishing the best, and deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water is also holding fish. 

While the bass fishing is pretty good for August, Brett reports that the catfish fishing is just plain old good.  At night anglers are doing well anchoring in 4-8 feet of water, while during the day drifting in 18-25 feet of water has been most productive. Numbers have been good and there have been more big fish caught recently. 

Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) is seeing the same thing, although he has also caught fish out to about 30 feet during the day. He points out that herring is most productive right now. 

The crappie fishing has gotten slow and Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) won’t be guiding for them again until September. If you insist on crappie fishing in August, there are still fish scattered 10-20 feet down over middle depth to deep brush that will eat minnows.  

July 30

Santee Cooper water levels are at 75.48 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 75.25 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). The lakes are relatively clear and morning surface water temperatures are about 87 degrees.

The best thing going on Santee is still the catfish, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that they are not getting a lot of monsters in the summer heat but there are plenty of solid teenage sized fish being caught. Stevie is finding a good drift bite in 10-20 feet of water, while other anglers are having success drifting in the upper 20s. There is also some good fishing anchoring at night in 6-8 feet of water, and shallow anchoring is even producing some results during the day.

Herring is the best bait right now. 

The bass fishing remains in a pretty stable summer pattern, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that early in the morning there is still a decent topwater bite. 

During the day fish are still being caught on mid-depth trees where the best action is generally coming on jigs or soft plastics. There can also be some decent action fishing deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water. 

In shaded areas or around grass there can sometimes be surface activity during the day, but generally the fishing slows down in the very hot water and you have to grind. 

Out on the water today Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) has confirmed that the crappie fishing is slow, and he only had less than ten fish to show for his efforts by mid-day. The fish were scattered from shallow brush about 10 feet down over 18 feet all the way out to deeper brush, indicating that it’s not a matter of finding the magic depth as they just aren’t feeding very well. He caught everything on minnows. 

No new report on bluegill and shellcracker.

July 22

Santee Cooper water levels are at 75.65 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 75.56 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Morning surface water temperatures are about 84 degrees and the lower lake is still very clear. 

It’s still a really good catfish bite on Santee, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that – while you can certainly fish deeper – this week he found a really good drift bite on a flat in 6-9 feet of water. The fish were up there eating mussels, and in a few hours they were able to fill a cooler with fish. 

While there are a lot of anglers anchoring shallow at night with success, he is also about to start drifting deep water at night. This is sometimes a good pattern later in the summer. 

Drifting in 15-20 feet of water Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that his boat has found good success straight through the day, and yesterday they were able to catch about 25 fish up to thirty pounds between daybreak and 2:00. There were lots of 10-12 pound fish and everything came on cut herring. 

The bass fishing remains in a pretty stable summer pattern, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that early in the morning there is a decent topwater bite. This weekend they should be able to catch fish working areas with bream beds due to the full moon. If there is some cloud cover you can run these areas with a topwater lure all day, but if not then you need to fish worms and slow-moving jigs. 

During the day fish are still being caught on mid-depth trees where the best action is generally coming on jigs or soft plastics. There can also be some decent action fishing deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water. 

You can certainly still catch crappie on the lakes, but Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports that he is just starting to take a break from it because the numbers are so far down. You can fish hard and catch 10 or less fish, not unusual for the heat of summer. It’s not altogether clear where they go or whether they are still eating. 

If you do target them the best pattern is still to fish about 10-18 feet down over mid-depth brush. Minnows are working the best.

It’s been really easy to find bluegill and shellcracker around most any shallow cover right now, but the trick has been trying to find better ones. Steve is hopeful that this full moon will bring some more good ones shallow. He suggests searching for big beds before really starting to fish, and Steve reminds anglers that sometimes the beds might be just out of eyesight.

July 9

Santee Cooper water levels are at 75.30 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and 75.22 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Water temperatures are in the mid-80s. 

The catfish bite seems to have picked up again this week on Santee, and Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that they are again catching lots of blue catfish in the teens including some bigger fish. The best patterns are anchoring in the shallows early and late and then drifting in 15-25 feet of water during the day. 

Herring is the best bait right now. 

Even though he is likely about to take a break from crappie fishing during the heat of the summer, Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports that the fishing has picked up a little in the past week or two. He is getting better numbers of fish than earlier in the summer, although they are still in the same areas about 10-18 feet down over mid-depth brush. Minnows are working the best.

This new moon should bring some more bream up to spawn, but even before the moon Steve was seeing some good numbers of bluegill caught in the upper lake in the shallows. There have also been some nice ones holding around stumps in about 8 feet, although the moon may also bring those fish shallower. 

The bass fishing is in a pretty stable summer pattern, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that early in the morning there is a decent topwater bite. Around moon phases they are also catching fish working areas with bream beds. If there is some cloud cover you can run these areas with a topwater lure all day, but if not then you need to fish worms and slow-moving jigs. 

Fish are also still being caught on mid-depth trees where the best action is generally coming on jigs or soft plastics. There can also be some decent action fishing deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water. 

June 24

Santee Cooper water levels are high at 75.45 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and bouncing around 75.1 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). Water temperatures are in the lower 80s

The catfish bite may have dropped off a little this week on Santee, but Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) reports that it is still good. Considering just how strong the last two or three weeks were a decline certainly doesn’t mean the fishing is slow. 

Reports indicate that the fishing is a little better in the upper lake than the lower, and there are also a good number of fish moving through the canal. Drifting herring in about 15-20 feet of water is working well, but Stevie is also having good success for numbers of channel catfish anchoring dip baits in about 14 feet of water just off the canal. 

Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) adds that in the evening and at night they are catching fish in 3-6 feet of water, and while you can anchor at this depth more people are drifting. 

Even as the cats may be returning to more normal feeding patterns, the crappie appear to be picking up.  On recent trips Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports catching limits of fish including some really good ones. He is exclusively fishing mid-depth brush in the lower lake with minnows, and the fish have been 8-14 feet down usually over 20-30 feet. 

The bass fishing also appears to be picking up a bit this week, and Brett Mitchell believes that is likely the result of the full moon including its effect on spawning patterns of bream. The topwater bite has been a little improved in the mornings, and they are also catching fish working areas with bream beds. If there is some cloud cover you can run these areas with a topwater lure all day, but if not then you need to fish worms and slow-moving jigs. 

Fish are also still being caught on mid-depth trees where the best action is generally coming on jigs or soft plastics. There can also be some decent action fishing deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water. 

June 18

Santee Cooper water levels are high at 75.62 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and bouncing around 75.3 in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). The water remains clear and morning surface temperatures are in the low 80s. 

The catfish bite remains outstanding on Santee, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) reports that in addition to some very large fish being caught recently they are also still getting some excellent numbers. Lots of coolers full of fish are coming out of the lake again this week. 

During the day the predominant pattern seems to be drifting in about 15-20 feet of water, although some boats are still going as shallow as 10 feet. In the evening and at night they are catching fish in 3-6 feet of water, and while you can anchor at this depth more people are drifting. 

Herring is working really well but some people are using mullet when they are available. 

There’s not a lot of change in the bass fishing, which Brett reports remains pretty spotty on Santee.  

There is still a pretty good topwater bite periodically, and there is still optimism that the June full moon will get things really going if there is a good bream spawn. This will take place next Thursday.  

Right now the most fish are still being caught on mid-depth trees where the best action is generally coming on jigs or soft plastics.  There can also be some decent action fishing deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water.

June 10

Santee Cooper water levels are high at 75.85 in Lake Marion (full pool is 76.8) and bouncing around full in Lake Moultrie (full pool is 75.5). The water remains clear and morning surface temperatures are around 80. 

There’s no doubt that catfish have provided the most exciting action on Santee for the last week or two, and the fishing has gotten so good that Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) has pretty much switched over from fishing for other species to targeting cats. They can be found about anywhere, but the sweet spot seems to be drifting in 10-15 feet of water. One guide reported catching (and releasing) 40 fish over 15 pounds in a trip this week!

Steve’s son Captain Stevie English (843-709-8138) has found about the same pattern, and his best fishing has come in 10 feet. He notes that the bite is best early and does slow by about mid-morning. Herring is greatly out-fishing perch, bluegill and other cut baits.

Stevie’s most exciting catch this week was this massive flathead, estimated at about 60 years old!

The crappie fishing is basically slow and steady on Santee, and Captain Steve English (843-729-4044) reports that catching 10-15 fish in a trip is pretty normal. Right now he is catching fish 8-20 feet down on brush, and there doesn’t seem to be any consistent pattern to whether fish are shallow or deep. It’s much more about the location of the brush. Minnows are working the best. 

The bream fishing is still sporadic, with a few fish up shallow (rare beds can be seen) and plenty of small ones on deeper brush. That means the best guess is that most of them are staging on shallow to mid-depth cover such as stumps and trees just out from spawning areas. Today’s new moon could bring some fish up, but expectations are heavy for the June 24 full moon after a slow season so far. 

The bass fishing remains pretty spotty on Santee, and Captain Brett Mitchell (803-379-7029) can’t pinpoint exactly why one day will be decent and then the next will be slow. It does seems that the cloudy weather helped, but there have also been some sunny days where they feed better.

The shad spawn is finished but there is still a pretty good topwater bite periodically, and there is optimism that the June full moon will get things really going if there is a good bream spawn.  

Right now a lot of fish are still on mid-depth trees where the best action is generally coming on jigs or soft plastics. There can also be some decent action fishing deeper brush in 6 plus feet of water.