7/12/07
Fishing still good for bass, catfish and bream
By Terry Madewell

The overall fishing success in lakes Marion and Moultrie has been very good. The early and late in the day largemouth bass fishing has been productive with a few really big fish being caught. The bream fishing remains good and some very good catches have been made recently. While the fish are not on the beds, they are still available if you spend a bit of time hunting them down. Plus, the catfishing news is still very good and some good nighttime action has been reported as well recently.

In addition, some very good fishing has occurred in some of the local rivers such as the Black and Lynches Rivers. The Santee River from below the Wilson Dam all the way down to the Highway 41 Bridge near Jamestown is also producing good bass, catfish and bream action. With the typical summer doldrums upon us now, anglers need to look for fish action near or in deep water or in the moving waters of rivers. Deeper water and current in the rivers are key factors in fishing success for some of the species, particularly largemouth bass and catfish.

Good top water and shallow water worm fishing exists for largemouth bass early and late in the day in shallow water. Buzz baits, floating minnow imitators, floating plastic worms and popping plugs have all been effective.

Once the sun begins beating down, most of the action seems to be found by fishing heavy cover such as brush piles or deeper water along the ledges. Some hefty fish continue to be caught in these areas on plastic worms and 3/8 ounce chartreuse spinner baits, according to most reports received.

The action on catfish is still good and more anglers are now fishing at night. This method is generally very effective from now throughout the rest of the summer. Very good catches of big blue catfish have been made on cut bait, both herring and shad. The big flatheads are being taken on live herring as well as other forms of live bait such as bream, perch and shiners. Good catches are also being made on the smaller channel catfish in the 2-10 pound class using night crawlers and stink baits such as Doc’s Catfish Getter Dip Bait. Some anglers are drifting whole shad or herring and if the bait is fresh, they are catching both big blues and flatheads in this manner.

Striper action remains fair on live herring and shad in the deeper areas of the lakes. Both lakes Marion and Moultrie are producing good catches on live bait fished along the drops, but the best fishing is generally very early in the day.

Bream fishing is still very good using crickets or worms around some form of cover such as trees, brush, weeds or docks. Some good action is being enjoyed along the mayfly hatches as well using fly rods and popping bugs. Beetle spin spinners and other tiny lures have been effective when fished around cover.

Sheepshead and flounder fishing is very good at the coast. Sheepsheads are taken by using fiddler crabs and the flounder by trolling mud minnows. Good action is also reported on trout and redfish. Good surf fishing for a variety of species is also being reported.