Hi Everyone,
I am new to the area, having moved from Charlotte, NC and the northeast coast prior to that. Can anyone advise if there are any Head Boats in the greater Charleston area? I cannot believe that the only similar type Boats are located in the Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach areas. I would think with the immense fishing population in Charleston that there would be at least a boat or two, that you could pay $50-$80 per person and go out fishing for a half or full day. If anyone is aware of any in the area please let me know as I used to work on similar Boats as a kid, and really enjoyed fishing off them as an adult. Now that I am back within 30min to salt water and don’t own a boat, I am itching to get back out there and fish. I really appreciate all your help and suggestions.
Tight lines, and thanks for lending an ear.
No, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but we don’t have them anymore. We used to have the Thunderstar, but it stopped 10-15 years ago. I could be wrong, but I think it had to do with boat speeds in whale’s migratory routes and made it unfeasible to get offshore quick enough (same thing with the gambling boats that were proposed a while back).
The closest head boats that I’m aware of are in the Myrtle Beach area now. 
The safmc killed the head boat business with ridiculous limits on abundant species. At one time there were quite a few, Thunderstar, carolina clipper, the jj the Gulfstream. No body would pay to board at $65 and not even be allowed to catch enough fish for a few meals .
I don’t know much, but this guy
http://charlestonfishing.net/rates/
is a fish catching machine. not a head boat per se, but he can take a bunch.
probably some of the 6 pack captains on here can do what you want too.
Thanks so much guys for the heads up, sad to hear the news about the industry in this area. I am really actually shocked by this because I know it would be a thriving business here. It’s weird the samfc regulations didn’t take out the boats in Myrtle or Hilton Head. I really appreciate the responses. I value the terrific local knowledge you have shared, and the history of the industry here. I am sure I will have some more questions regarding fishing the local waterways, I look forward to hearing from you again soon. 1 last question… are there any local angling groups or clubs in the area that you guys would recommend I check out? I was involved in a couple clubs up north, and it’s always great to meet new people who we can bounce ideas, and shoot the breeze with… especially if they are into fishing!
Thanks again fella’s
Mark Brown put us on the fish until I dreaded reeling in another fish. Nice boat and good people.
You can drive 1.5 hours to Murrells Inlet and hop on the New Inlet Princess. Robert Strickland is a legend. That said, I would come off the hip and charter a boat.
Head boats will only work in heavy tourist areas - When I ran the clipper , we had regular customers that would make 3 or more trips a year. serious fishermen. When I would see a guy coming down the dock with his own electric reel and 10 rigs tied & ready to fish, I knew that I had to put the boat on top of the fish. The demographic in Myrtle & HHI is very different. Robert Strickland is a good guy. He gets it! With tourists its about entertainment! They’re not looking to take a cooler full of fish back to Kansas
The head boats in Hilton Head I think only fish the nearshore stuff, ie small black sea bass and sharpnose sharks.
Sea Hunt 207CC,Yam F150
Carolina Skiff (old school model)17’ Suz D50
I know this has been a topic on another post. I just wanted to speak from my experience. Growing up we fished head boats every year. When I got old enough a couple of friends and I would come down a couple times a year. We loved it. A full day was a cheap ride to the offshore grounds. Took our own tackle and caught lots of dolphin and kings. The last time I went was about 9 years ago. We took a overnight trip on the thunder star. Fishing was good but what I saw before we left the fishing grounds made me sick. The mates went through everyone’s coolers and measured fish. They didn’t measure any fish when they could be released. The undersized vermillion and over limit vermilion could be seen over the horizon. That needed to be shut down.
Oh it has been shut down.