BigRed1977

I’m fishing the creek that feeds the river. Further downstream the fishing is good. It’s tidal too. The murkiness of the water is pretty extreme. A chartreuse spinner bait disappears when it’s 6 inches deep. Thanks for the help.

Bowfin and gar gulp air and fill their swim bladders with it. The swim bladders work like a lung for them because of how the capillaries surround the lining if the swim bladder. There are no signs of blue gill or break. “The bowfin is the only remaining member of an ancient group of fish which lived over 180 million years ago. The bowfin has several features similar to a gar. The head is covered with bony plate-like armor and much of the skeleton consists of cartilage. Bowfin can survive in poor water quality with low oxygen levels by breathing air directly into its swim bladder that will function similar to a lung. Anglers enjoy the strength and endurance of the bowfin, but not the taste.“ (http://www.dnr.sc.gov/fish/species/bowfin.html). The Wikipedia article explains it better. They are a really cool fish. But I’d rather catch bass!

There is a creek close to me that feeds into a larger river. It is fed by the swamps surrounding it. The water is always black. It looks like expresso coffee. Its a beautiful river and I’ve caught fish here but they are usually not that plentiful- Mostly bream. Sometimes bass. Yesterday i hooked up with a couple of bigger fish that spit the hook before i could boat them. i caught a bowfin that was around 19 inches. There were a lot of bowfin gulping air in the river. I know they do this to breathe. The bass fishing here is hit or miss. Couild the oxygen levels be so low that the bass are further down river? And does anyone have a way to look at water and tell if the oxygen levels are good for bass?

Thanks. Good info here. I’ve been fishing the cheap Wal-Mart ones and they work but sometimes I felt as if they should be working when they are not. Pretty sure it’s the blades not spinning like y’all have mentioned. Time to upgrade.

When I was a kid everyone fished spinner baits. Now it seems like few use them much less talk about them. I like because to me they are the perfect search bait. I can fish slow and drag the bottom and see what’s there. I can fish them through the entire water column and it seems that bass still hit them. I like crankbaits too but I don’t use them as a search bait because the snag a lot more often. Chatter baits don’t seem a versatile to me. So what’s the consensus? Are spinner baits dead? Do other baits work better?

Thanks. Mostly I was exploring. I used to live in Summerville and fish the Cooper R. Now I live in Walterboro and I was looking for somewhere to take the kayak that I don't have to fight the current. I was surprised at how strong the current was in Lake Warren. The drive to Lake Marion is the same as driving to Lake Warren for me so I'll probably just stick to the usual. I fish the Edisto and Ashepoo a lot. (closest) but I fish the lagoons the most! I always have rods in the truck so on the way home from work I'll stop and get some casts in.

I know this is an old topic but after seeing this I don’t feel so bad about not finding any fish here today. It was around 68 for the high. Low was 45 I think. There was little if any structure. Cool place though.

Lowcountry. Charleston area.

Same thing here. I haven't had a lot of success in the last few weeks. The weather has been off here. I wnet to Stratford High and my brother lives in Crowfield. The ponds there used to be full of fish They supposedly stocked it when it was built. I'd keep trying there if you are in town.

Thanks for the feedback. I'm going to put one in. If I'm worried about weight I just will not fill it. Id rather do it and not wish i had done it.

Outboards are pricey because you get a starter, alternator, engine, fuel injection, transmission,and "wheels" all in one package. It's basically everything under the hood of a car and under the car. Inboard motors are much cheaper by comparison. Also there is a phrase in business that says "what the market will bear." I had issues with this. So, I gave up my AC business because I felt like I was robbing people if I charged what I SHOULD have been charging. If a business cannot be profitable there is no point in being in business. I hate it but if I followed the "what the market will bear" rule, I'd still be in business and a lot richer. In the end it really does all balance out if everyone tries to make as much money as possible. Try being the "nice guy" and you will go broke and pull your hair out in the process.

So you have a house and a cottage on the ocean??? Priorities. Most of us would rather have a boat than a cottage on the ocean. I know one person that has a household income of over 200K and its just him and 2 kids. they have baseball bats and gloves and bags to carry their gear. The bats average 600+ a piece. The gloves 300+ a piece. It's crazy the money they spend on baseball but that's their thing. Another guy I know has massive amounts of hiking gear. Backpacks that cost 500+, tents that cost 400+. He could outfit an expedition up Mt. Everest. I have a historic house, kick butt theater system in the house, a jon boat and enough tackle to sink the boat. Priorities... People spend money on what they care about. For you it seems to be the cottage on the beach. Who cares what others can afford. I only care about what my family or I want and how i can make it happen.

I'd say it depends on the lake. Some lakes are huge without anything to block the wind. Some lakes are huge and are narrow or have lots of islands that block the wind. Or they are in mountain valleys that block the wind so waves are not an issue. I live in the Charleston area and I've seen kite surfers in the middle of the harbor on windy days, paddle boarders and kayaks in the harbor or in the santee cooper system. Unless you are actually going offshore (ocean) I think you can use just about any sized boat if you use common sense.

good luck

I'm working on making some modifications to a 14ft jon boat i have. Love the boat because of the tight places and skinny water I can get into especially when I'm chasing redfish. Do i really need a livewell? The issue is the weight. water is roughly 8 pounds per gallon so if i have a 11 gallon livewell I'll be adding 100 pounds. I have pipe dreams of fishing local tournaments sometimes so I know I'd need a livewell for that. I could put one in and I'd be good for weight in the boat if it' just me. But another adult and a kid would push the weight limit. If i do fish local tourneys do you normally have a co angler? Thoughts?

Goose Creek Res hold plenty of bass and it's great from a kayak. The hatchery in Lake Moultrie is a good spot. Bushy Park is a good place to fish from the kayak.

This area is home for me. All of the small neighborhood ponds hold bass. The water is typically stained. I'd use google maps and find some areas that are close by to fish. The neighborhood ponds are nice because they usually are maintained on the edges so casting is easier. I keep rods in the truck to fish them when I'm waiting on something like the kids to get out of school or a quick stop on the way home from work. There is A LOT of area to fish within an hour of goose creek \ monks corner \ summerville. West Dike in Pinopolis is a good place to bank fish and you can walk along the dike and fish Lake Moultrie. It's too cold for gator's this time of year. No worries there. Key West, What neighborhood if you don't mind me asking? I might now of a couple ponds close by that hold fish.