I know this topic has been discussed at great length in the past, but I was curious if any new info is out there regarding the fishing up river past the ladson rd launch. I keep hearing rumors that people are catching trout up from the launch. Does anyone launch and fish from there regularly? How far south of the launch do you need to fish to catch reds/trout/flounder consistently? How shallow is the river at low? Any info is appreciated. I usually fish near sullivans but I live 2 miles from the ladson rd launch and wouldn’t mind trying it out occasionally for fresh and/or salt species.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
It’s very dirty water up there (silty). And it’s very brackish. I’d be very surprised if trout are being caught up there in numbers. I’d think they are confused or lost!
It’s very dirty water up there (silty). And it’s very brackish. I’d be very surprised if trout are being caught up there in numbers. I’d think they are confused or lost!
I was thinking the same thing. I saw a 20 ft key west cc cruising up the river the other day. Maybe he has a bluegill honey hole lol.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Nice blues! Any preference on bait? I don’t know much about cat fishing. I grew up in PA and we used to use stink bait dough balls on the bottom for channels.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Cool, thanks. I saw that there is a mercury warning for the ashley, apparently you can only eat fish out of there once per week. Kind of makes me nervous lol.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Dirty -meh… Its a blackwater swamp river… only time is dirty is after major rain storms. There is floating trash from the highways/upstream that gets washed down during major storms - but the river isn’t dirty.
I keep my 19 CC on a dock 2 miles upstream of the ramp. I avoid the river 2 hours before and and after low tide - I can make it, but always seem to hit something. There are stumps and downed trees all along that part of the river, it takes a few trips to learn where they are, and some are submerged at high tide and are large enough to damage your hull.
There are fish up there, but the river can’t handle much pressure. Bluegill, stocked stripers, bass, reds from time to time - even dolphin…
Dirty -meh… Its a blackwater swamp river… only time is dirty is after major rain storms. There is floating trash from the highways/upstream that gets washed down during major storms - but the river isn’t dirty.
I keep my 19 CC on a dock 2 miles upstream of the ramp. I avoid the river 2 hours before and and after low tide - I can make it, but always seem to hit something. There are stumps and downed trees all along that part of the river, it takes a few trips to learn where they are, and some are submerged at high tide and are large enough to damage your hull.
There are fish up there, but the river can’t handle much pressure. Bluegill, stocked stripers, bass, reds from time to time - even dolphin…
Thanks for the info. I only draft a few inches in my skiff but I’m going to take it slow out there because I don’t know the area at all. I’m going to launch out of there tomorrow morning and head up river in the morning to fish for fresh water species then head down river with the falling tide and focus on salt species. Not planning on catching a lot of fish but at least its close to home and it’ll be an adventure. Hopefully I don’t get stuck anywhere, I don’t think sea tow will come and get me lol.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Launched yesterday morning around 9am, falling tide. Made my way down past the power lines and tossed mm on floats and carolina rigs all the way down to magnolia plantation. Ended up with 2 blue crabs and 5 small catfish. Didn’t get any hits on blue crab or gulp shimp/swimming mullet. Spent 6 hours out there fishing any structure I could find. After trailering the boat I spoke to a couple of guys who were launching and they said they do pretty well with reds. Maybe i’ll spend some more time there, considering yesterday was supposed to be a slow day anyway. I would like to learn this area because of its convenience, but i’m used to catching fish!
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Plenty of fish up that way. Old man took me one day and we caught a largemouth, trout, crappie, and red withing 100yds of one another. He spoke of salinity pockets that the trout will stay in. We were waaayyy up there. I’ve caught fish in “his” spots again, but it’s hard to learn up there in my opinion. Bait of choice, 1/4oz blk/chat beetle spin with gold blade, trolled.
Plenty of fish up that way. Old man took me one day and we caught a largemouth, trout, crappie, and red withing 100yds of one another. He spoke of salinity pockets that the trout will stay in. We were waaayyy up there. I’ve caught fish in “his” spots again, but it’s hard to learn up there in my opinion. Bait of choice, 1/4oz blk/chat beetle spin with gold blade, trolled.
Thats interesting. I’m not giving up yet, just need to figure out the location. I’ve been told that if you head down river from the launch you can start to catch reds by the power lines. Maybe ill focus on fishing a small area with a different variety of tactics/bait.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Plenty of fish up that way. Old man took me one day and we caught a largemouth, trout, crappie, and red withing 100yds of one another. He spoke of salinity pockets that the trout will stay in. We were waaayyy up there. I’ve caught fish in “his” spots again, but it’s hard to learn up there in my opinion. Bait of choice, 1/4oz blk/chat beetle spin with gold blade, trolled.
Thats interesting. I’m not giving up yet, just need to figure out the location. I’ve been told that if you head down river from the launch you can start to catch reds by the power lines. Maybe ill focus on fishing a small area with a different variety of tactics/bait.
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
The area around the power lines is good and even holds decent stripers (remember the 26 inch min size) but the striper fishing is best from Feb-May. The pilings around Middleton Plantation hold reds, blue cats, flatheads, and some nice bream this time of year. The river above the landing isn’t as productive, but it does hold some big (30+) pound blue and flathead cats around snags where the water deepens a bit. Good luck!
Well I guess im starting to get the hang of it. I caught 3 reds ranging from 21 to 26 inches and a 19 inch blue cat and a 22 inch flathead. I guess its not the trashley afterall!
“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.”
Did you catch the reds after you were past the power lines? I have entered the river just above the R.R. Tracks and gone as far as the power lines. But have had very little luck,hope to learn some better areas on the river
Hope to hear back
Thanks
