Headed to Chucktown to do some fishing with a couple of buddies. Hit the Wando for just a few hours on Monday. Conditions were pretty good, but the water was pretty dirty. We managed a couple of short trout, one ray, and two nice big trout. All on artificials.
Next morning, we greeted the sun and the low tide on the Stono. We were surrounded by big reds…but the tide was so low, we couldn’t position the boat in a way that allowed us to capitalize on them. My buddy did manage to horse one over-slot (29") red out from under a dock and from around a piling while wrestling it across a shallow mud mound. Once the tide was high enough, the bait and the fish dispersed and the bite turned off. Made a move and again found ourselves surrounded by reds (tailing and busting bait on the surface) but could get bit to save our lives. The only thing I can guess is there was too much bait in the area. The fish didn’t have to work to find food. A combination of sweltering heat and absolutely zero breeze made the rest of the day borderline unbearable. We managed one more keeper trout before putting it back on the trailer at the end of a very long day on the Stono.
Decided to head back to the Wando Wednesday morning. Water had cleared up a bunch from Monday and the tide was as low as I think I’d ever seen it on the Wando. The wind was totally opposite from the previous day on the Stono. In fact, between fighting the ripping current of the tide and the howling wind (which was grossly under-forecasted) with a less than cooperative trolling motor, it was down right dreadful.
Summation: three extremely long days on the water, killer flop tan, several short trout, one 29" red, one ray, 5 keeper trout. Wish the reward would’ve matched the effort but it was far better than a day stuck in the office or a stick in the eye.
Earn it everyday…