I enjoy browsing this site but don’t post many catches. but I thought some may like to know that Sampson, in the pic, and I found the trout in 15-25 feet of water Friday fishing with 1/8 or 3/16 or 1/4 oz ball head jigs, depending on the current, using the Trout Trick or the Salt Water Assassin sea shad electric chicken. Had boat in 25-30 feet of water throwing towards bank and bottom bumping it back to the boat.
22 ft Glassmaster CC
225 Yamaha
nice catch… thanks for the report… looks like Sampson is ready to go back out…
21’ Triumph T-Top 150
Good report and catch. The trout are in their winter pattern now, and dropping arties off the ledge and crawling them very slowly across the bottom of deep holes seems to be the “trout recipe”.
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
Thanks for the good report!
I plan on trying that technique 12/26!
All things being equal, I would rather be on the water.
So are you fishing in spots where you know where the trout are or are you moving around until you find them?
I went a week ago to a spot where I was catching trout earlier in the fall and didn’t catch any. Earlier in the fall, I caught them close to high tide a little bit off the grass in about 5-8 feet of water.
I know there is a big ledge further off the grass at this spot.
I wonder if they are just deeper now off the ledge?
Just curious how ya’ll decide where to fish for them now or if you are trolling or what?
they def get deeper with cooler temps
19’ Key West CC 140 Johnson
16’ War Eagle 40 Yami
12’ Alumacraft 1954 Johnson 5.5
can you swim 5 miles? “NO” then what is the difference in 5 miles and 50 miles!!! Go for it!
Saluda, I caught them recently in a creek that has produced before. I “don’t get out much” this time of year, so I can’t vouch for the “find em” strategy.
If I did not have a “go to”, that is what I would do. I would fish deeper where I have caught them recently, or use the Top Spot map to narrow down the search to areas that normally produce trout this time of year. “Plan A” would be finding clear water & just dropping arties/jigs off the ledge at main river banks that have a “big S” on the January Top Spot Fishing Index.
For “plan B”, I would study that map and Google Earth looking for “shoestring creeks” - very long, skinny creeks with lots of hairpin turns. These creeks will be about 35 yards wide or less. The length of the creek means it moves a lot of water on mid-tides, carving out deep holes. I would go “prospecting”, checking out 6 or 8 or more of these deep holes on each trip. Best tides are 1 to 1 1/2 hours before and after slack, especially incoming (clear water), when the water is moving, but not too fast. There could be nothing better than finding your own “private trout hole” way up a creek that is not traveled much.
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drinker
Saluda, I think Spec has some great advice there. I will say that the only places we’ve looked and therefore only places we’ve found them are actually either along the ICW or a major, wider creek than he mentions feeding into it. But the same pattern, the outside of the curve on the deep side. And in our case there is 40 foot depth on out a little. And we weren’t trolling but using the trolling motor to move along the outside of the curve. Keeping the boat out in the deeper water and casting back to about 3-5 feet and bumping it back out to the boat. and if you think you’re fishing too slow, then SLOW down.
22 ft Glassmaster CC
225 Yamaha
Saluda, a couple other thoughts that seem to help. The first couple hours after the tide change is good advice from Spec. Less current then. Also I like to use small diameter line so that the lightest jig head can be used to work it along the bottom. Capt. Bob Sanders put me on this using 8 lb Invizx by Seaguar. Kinda pricy but I think it pays off. It doesn’t stretch and with a sensitive rod you can feel the bite quite well. And find the curve or part of the curve where the water is clearest, trout love clean water with some current.
22 ft Glassmaster CC
225 Yamaha
Man that is awesome advice!! I have a few “go-to’s” but I am always on the lookout for a private trout hole!!
Also I have always caught trout incidentally and in the past two years I have begun to target them with limited success.
That advice might push me farther along the curve. Thanks.
You can’t get better advice than the above. We caught these last week using the exact same tactics. And 100 more just like them:smiley: Fish deep, fish slow.
Capt. Larry Teuton
Cracker Built Custom Boats
“Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made.” -Robert N. Rose
Hey just reading back through ya’lls posts.
“Studying up,” I guess. Ha!
So when ya’ll say the first bit after the slack tide…do you think its better at low tide with the first bit of incoming or the last bit of incoming before the high tide?
According to my experience, I would think the last bit of incoming before high tide.
Maybe some good weather on Saturday!
I don’t know for sure. It probably depends on the location. My choice this time of the year would be to reverse the summer/early fall strategy of fishing Reds around low tide and trout on the higher stages of the tide. This time of the year, I think it’s best to target trout in the deep holes, or just off main river ledges, on the lower stages of the tide and target Reds in the grass on the higher stages of the tide. Reds in the grass probably works best on neap tides, with high tides in the 6.5 ft. range in the Beaufort area. That way you have an extended time when the bass are in the grass edge, but cannot get way back in the grass. The neap tides offer extended trout fishing in the deep holes too, maybe right through mid-tide, as the water will be moving slower than normal, and the water should be clearer (due to weak currents) if it has not rained lately.
I’m chicken when it comes to fishing way back in creeks that I don’t know well on the high outgoing tide. You may stay there a while, as many of these deep holes get “cut off” at about mid-outgoing by “boat blocker bars”. You can see many of these on Google Earth.
I usually avoid fishing on Spring tides or for a few days following heavy rains this time of year, as these muddy the water. But, the Spring low tides are the best time to explore creeks. If you can get way back in a creek on an abnormally low tide, you know you are safe to get in and out of there on any neap tide stage. If you find a “boat blocker bar” on a Spring low, you can figure out the “get out of there on outgoing” time based on where the water is on the bank/grass when you can get across the bar on the incoming.
I think the main thing in finding “private fishing holes” is a lot of hard work, involving lots of “failures”. The river does not give up her secrets easily. I usually count on finding 9 “cold holes” for every “hot hole”. But, I feel that the fun is in the search. You’ll learn a lot about the river in the process.
spec
1980 Skandia 21 w/ '93 JohnRude 150 gas drink
Remember the hole that is hot this week might not produce next week and visa versa so dont discount them!
Tripp…tell me again why I wasn’t on this trip? 
Fern JG, must have forgot to hit the send button!!!#128521;
22 ft Glassmaster CC
225 Yamaha
Oops, got spell checked. Dern not fern JG
22 ft Glassmaster CC
225 Yamaha
quote:
Originally posted by Tripped UpFern JG, must have forgot to hit the send button!!!#128521;
22 ft Glassmaster CC
225 Yamaha
Is this the Maps Unique Tripp??
NN
07, 23 Key West, Twin 115 Yammys
“Coastal Bound”
No, NN, must be another one.
22 ft Glassmaster CC
225 Yamaha