Hello,
I’m a new member to the forum and would like to get some direction on striper fishing on Lake Murray. I have been boating on Lake Murray since 1985 and just bought my first fishing boat (Scout 210).
Can someone give me some advice on how to get started striper fishing? I have done a good bit of saltwater fishing over the years but not sure how to go after stripers. What type of bait, lures, hooks, and techniques should I try? Where are the best places to try?
Thanks for any input and I hope to meet some of you on the water!
RetiredGoFast
Here are the basics:
-Live & cut blueback herring, either suspended (downlines) or fished on the bottom is the ticket most of the time. There are several bait shops around the lake (such as Lake World & Better Bait) that sell them for around $6.00/dozen.
-You will have to have a large (30-35 gallon) insulated bait tank that is either round or oval to keep the herring alive in the warm months. The bait shops can answer your questions about aeration, water temps, additives for the water, etc.-talk with them first before buying a tank.
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Stripers are schooling fish and are very much structure-oriented. In the summer some of the best spots will be humps that rise up to 45-50 ft., that are adjacent to deeper water. You will have to anchor right over the humps (preferably with two anchors) to fish these spots.
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You can also catch a lot of stripers in the summer by drifting close to the towers (at the dam), with live herring suspended 40-60 feet deep.
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Probably the best advice that I can give you is to hire a striper guide for a day. They can show you how to rig up, where to fish, etc. & can answer any questions that you might have (other than the GPS coordinates of their secret hotspots 
).
-Speaking of GPS, if you don’t have one yet I would highly recommend that you buy a good GPS unit (Garmin or Lowrance) and also get the cartridge that has the detail for Lake Murray. As you find productive open-water spots (such as humps) you can mark them & come back to them later. I have a Lowrance with the “hotspots” cartridge, & it actually has good spots for striper fishing marked. Each spot has an explanation of what time of year to fish there & what to fish with.
Another good source of information is this web site: www.striped-bass-fishing.com . Go over there & post the same questions in the “South Carolina” message board & you should get some good tips.
Good luck
Megalops
Megalops,
Thanks for the response! Can you recommend any guides on Murray?
RetiredGoFast
21 Scout
Hey RetiredGoFast, I have been fishing for Striper for about 15 years on Murray and the lower Saluda River. I learned most of what I know about striper fishing by hanging out and fishing with folks from Lake World…small bait shop by the Dam on the Lexington side. It’s the small white building at the intersection of Corley Mill and Hwy6. You should go there and talk to Richard, Donna, and Vic. You will also find most of the best guides on the lake stopping in from time to time. Ask questions and then be willing to listen and learn. Even some of the younger guys there can tell you things that will really help you out. As for bait…nothing works better then Herring. You can troll it, drift it, drop it down deep, or cut it on the bottom. If you want to use top water you can throw Jumpin Minnows, Brooke Back Rapalas, any kind of pops, or go deeper with buck tails. Some folks on here will tell you Umbrella Rigs. While I know I might upset some folks by saying this…it true…Umbrella Rigs is harvesting fish not fishing. True fisherman wont touch’em. As for hooks I use a 1 Lazer Sharp Wide Bend tied to about a 18 inch+ leader. The leader should be just normal line. Use 10-15 lbs test so that the line is harder to see…just don’t try horsing a fish in. This time of year fish can be scattered, but lately we have been finding some real early around Spence and Goat on top water. As it gets hotter the fish will go deep and you should then be able to find fish in the big water. Right now troll coves, around islands, and points…just don’t be shocked if you get some nice large mouth. I grabbed several big large mouth trolling near points and weed beds. Hope this helps. If you ever want to get together and go look me up. CoachB@TeamFCA.com God Bless, Coach B PS: If you go to lake world tell them Coach Herring sent you.
Coach B Herring
Columbia, SC
CoachB@TeamFCA.com
Is it any wonder Jesus choose Fisherman for his disciples?
Coach B,
Thanks for the info and warm welcome!
RetiredGoFast
21 Scout
Retired,
Welcome to the forum. Coachb won’t steer you wrong. Striper fishing is similar to saltwater fishing. A striper is essentially a saltwater fish anyway. Stop by lake world and they can help you out. Also boaters world puts on striper fishing seminars all the time and the folks at lake murray hardware in ballentine can help you also. Anyway good luck. Oh by the way what coach said about the umbrella rigs, my striper fishing buddy wont touch em. He trolls those plastic swimbaits that are all white and glow in the dark and when people report they got skunked on here he still catches fish.
kloudking1