My wife and I will be visiting the Mt. Pleasant area this weekend from the mountains of NC. I’ve been to the area once before and want to try and get her on a red. We will have kayaks, but I’m wanting to be careful about her getting worn out from paddling around all over and becoming miserable. Having said that, I was thinking about putting in at Paradise Island and fishing some live finger mullet and gulp. Also, thinking about some time out of the kayak fishing pitt street bridge with live finger mullet and/or mud minnows. Since we will only be there a few days and this won’t be entirely a fishing trip, I’m trying to work in a plan that will give us the best shot of a redfish. Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated.
If you want quiet/less boat traffic, I’d stick with Paradise. Shem can get pretty busy. There is also a landing on the backside of Sullivan’s Island that will put you on Conch Creek which has some pretty good docks and grass line.
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
When paddling from spot A to spot B, be sure to troll something behind you. I was down in Edisto last month and picked up a handful of reds and trout, and even a flounder while paddling between spots. I seem to have the best luck trolling with a gulp swimming minnow (with the curly tail) in pearl white. Just cast as far as you can behind you and start paddling.
Good point on the trolling. I learned “accidentally” that you can catch reds/trout that way. I had a mud minnow on a jighead, forgot he was out and started paddling. A few minutes later, ziiiiiinnnnnngggg.
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
Thanks for the advice, Shem seemed to be pretty crowded last time. Do you think Conch Creek would be an easier paddle and/or more productive than Paradise?
quote:Originally posted by DFreedom
If you want quiet/less boat traffic, I’d stick with Paradise. Shem can get pretty busy. There is also a landing on the backside of Sullivan’s Island that will put you on Conch Creek which has some pretty good docks and grass line.
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
I caught one of my bigger trout doing that, so it’s definitely something I always try to do now. Any particular way you rig the gulp swimming minnows?
quote:Originally posted by SCaveNJ
When paddling from spot A to spot B, be sure to troll something behind you. I was down in Edisto last month and picked up a handful of reds and trout, and even a flounder while paddling between spots. I seem to have the best luck trolling with a gulp swimming minnow (with the curly tail) in pearl white. Just cast as far as you can behind you and start paddling.
Not sure Shem is an “easier” paddle, I just know how crowded it can be with boats, sups and kayaks on the weekends. Conch Creek can get busy but there is much more room for such traffic. As for productivity, I have great days at both Paradise and Conch Creek and I have been skunked at both. Paradise will offer you the most options as far as which direction you want to go and whether you want to paddle with/agaisnt the tides, etc. Check them out on Google Earth.
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”, but really, who cares?
I live right around the bend from Paradise and I won’t use it anymore. Too many people have had their vehicles broken into. Also, there can be quite a bit of boat traffic the further down the Wando you go. Our go to ramp for kayaks/jet skis is Garris Landing. With a kayak, you can explore the creeks around Bulls Bay and if the fishing sucks there are hidden beaches to hang out on. Oh, and if you like shelling, you might stumble on a few locations where you can find a ton of whelk shells.
There are a couple of other places in Mt Pleasant to launch a kayak. There is a small kayak launch point at the Pitt St Bridge. Sounds like you are already familiar with that location. It really is just a rack to put your kayak in while you step down onto the bank. Then you can pull you kayak out of the rack and into the water. This spot can get pretty skinny around low tide, but has enough water for paddling at other stages of the tide.
Like DFreedom said, If you want to kayak Conch Creek the launch point on the backside of Sullivans on Station 26 is your best option. As he said, hit those docks on the right as you paddle towards Breach Inlet. Again, the launch can get skinny at lowest tides, but is good at other stages of the tide. Be careful where you park your car. I have seen cars parked close to the launch site almost float away during really high tides. Drop off your kayak then move your car back to the side of paved road just to be safe. Just make sure all 4 tires are off the pavement or you will get a parking ticket.
Well, we fought off a thunderstorm and tried pitt street bridge. Mostly a bust as we just seemed to be feeding the crabs and pinfish with mud minnows. She hooked into one red, but he got her wrapped around a pylon and broke her off. Any advice in not feeding the crabs? Don’t leave them out there on a carolina rig, but reel them in slowly instead? Thanks for all the input.
Yep, reel them in real slow and dip them out with a net. Heck, there ain't nothing wrong with catching crabs. They just don't fight as good as fish do :smiley:
I would put in at Paradise Island landing. I fish this area 1-2 times per week. In my kayak days, I would leave the ramp and hit the left side of the river. Almost every point has an oyster bed, and current. The fishing has started to turn on as of late. Its a great time to fish. Good luck.