I am an avid fishermen and fish the upper Wando above the 41 Bridge and have done so for over 10 years. These last two months have been some of the worst fishing I have experienced. I mostly fish artificial baits with great success. What is going on this year. Is it all the rain and the fact the water color resembles sweet tea. Lack of salinity in the water. Not many shrimp around right now? Is it me or is anyone else that fishes up this way experiencing the same lack of success.
It’s mostly the rain. The murky water makes artificials less effective.
When it’s not raining, it seems like it gets really windy and/or we get huge tides which has the same effect.
The fish have to have good years too, right?
Semper Fi
18’ Sterling
115 Yamaha
Big Ugly Homemade Blue Push Pole
I agree with you. Might have to go back to bait fishing for a while!
Bait fishing is tough now too. You can catch SOME, but overall, things have been incredibly slow compared to previous years.
That water’s as dark as Cypress Gardens. Time to break out the dough balls and vanilla extract.
19’ Fiberskiff, 150 Bluewater Mercury. 14’ Gamefisher, 5hp Mercury.
I’d say it’s the rain. I fish that area a lot too, mostly live bait and the shrimp are hard to find. It’s not just the rain here either. They’ve had heavy rain upstate and a lot of that fresh water has to flush down to the ocean. The slowest June fishing I can remember in a long time.
Jack Taylor
Both fresh and salt have sucked royally. I haven’t caught as single trout or red all spring (4 trips), I’ve only caught two largemouth (under 12" each), and one catfish. That’s literally about the only thing I’ve put in the boat. My poor son just thinks daddy is a big ol loser since I can’t put either one of us on the fish.
Whether it’s all the rain or not, I don’t know. The winter was really mild, for sure. I hope it turns around at some point very soon or I’m going to start planting tomatoes in my boat.
“Sire, it belongs in truth to the Church of God, in whose name I speak, to endure blows and not to inflict them. But it will also please your Majesty to remember that she is an anvil that has worn out many hammers.”…Theodore Beza
I live on one of the creeks N of 41 and there is almost no life to be seen. Very few shrimp and all small…even the birds are losing weight around here.
Can it really be the rain? Is it possible that the mild winter has some effect on this?
And what’s up with all the mites/parasites on the fish? A bunch of the menhaden I’ve caught had them in their mouth, and I’ve read posts on here of people catching redfish loaded with them.
“Sire, it belongs in truth to the Church of God, in whose name I speak, to endure blows and not to inflict them. But it will also please your Majesty to remember that she is an anvil that has worn out many hammers.”…Theodore Beza
Caught 6 reds off a dock Friday, on the incoming, past paradise island. All on mud minnows
Matt- every manhaden has a ‘parasite’ in its gills called a king shrimp. But really everywhere I’ve fished has sucked so far this month! I did find the cleanest water yet in.the folly, and I caught 8 trout and a few flounder 2 weeks ago by 526 in the muddiest water I’ve seen in the wando
My problem is I can’t seem to find any bait in the water. I’ve run the icw ragged looking for mullet and menhaden and have not found either the past two weekends. I’ve netted probably 15 tiny mullet and finally found 5 menhaden behind Morris island Saturday. Ended up with 3 reds on those 5 menhaden, but I’ve never had such a hard time catching bait. Guess I’m gonna have to start buyin some before I hit the water from now on.