UTERJanuary
Big winter red schools; sea bass offshore
Low tide, clear water, a fly or a light jig on the flats.
Hilton Head to Little River
South Carolina Coast fishing
What's biting in South Carolina Coast in October: pompano, king mackerel and redfish at their peak, with tarpon, Spanish mackerel and jack crevalle around too. Fish Scouter's season calendar follows 49 fish here month by month, from Hilton Head to Myrtle Beach.
Everything inshore: reds, trout, flounder, kings
Port Royal and St. Helena sounds, the ACE Basin, Charleston Harbor and its jetties, Bulls Bay, Winyah Bay and the Grand Strand beaches — spartina marsh and oyster rakes behind barrier islands, with live-bottom ledges, artificial reefs and the Georgetown Hole and Gulf Stream offshore.
Hilton HeadBeaufortEdistoCharlestonMount PleasantMcClellanvilleGeorgetownMurrells InletMyrtle Beach
Updated
Now · October
Everything inshore: reds, trout, flounder, kings
Shrimp under a popping cork; flounder at the inlets on the outgoing.
RedfishSpotted seatroutFlounderKing mackerelLittle tunny (bonito)Pompano
This month here
From the season calendar, best firstPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAround
Pompano
Fall pompano with the mullet run.
King mackerel
Fall run on the nearshore live bottom.
Redfish
Reds everywhere: flats, creeks, docks, the jetties.
Spotted seatrout
Shrimp under a popping cork in every creek; the best month.
Flounder
Inlets and the Charleston jetties on the outgoing tide; the run out to sea.
Gag grouper
Whiting
Fall whiting off the beaches.
Bluefish
Weakfish (gray trout)
Fall gray trout in the deep channels.
Vermilion snapper
Greater amberjack
Wahoo
Blackfin tuna
Little tunny (bonito)
False albacore off the jetties and the nearshore reefs.
Spot
Fall spot run off the piers and in the creeks.
Scamp
Gray triggerfish
Red porgy (pinkie)
White grunt
Tarpon
Last fish leave with the first cool nights.
Spanish mackerel
Jack crevalle
Sailfish
Blacktip shark
Bull shark
Bonnethead shark
Atlantic sharpnose shark
Atlantic croaker
Atlantic cutlassfish (ribbonfish)
Sandbar shark
Tiger shark
Atlantic spadefish
Sheepshead
Mangrove snapper
Black drum
Red snapper
Black sea bass
Yellowfin tuna
Swordfish
Sand tiger shark
Almaco jack
Golden tilefish
The water
The tide here
Semidiurnal, 5–7 ft
Two big tides a day — seven feet at Hilton Head, five and a half in Charleston, less toward Myrtle Beach. Moon tides flood the spartina and put reds tailing in the grass.
Structure that matters
Oyster barGrass flatChannel edgePass / inletDock / pilingsBridgeFishing pierBeach / surfArtificial reefWreckLedge / hard bottom
After a cold front
Trout drop into the deep creek bends and can be cold-stunned by a hard freeze — SCDNR asks for catch and release after one. Reds school tight on the low-tide flats in the clear water.
Month by month
What's happening, and what to throwFebruary
Sheepshead spawn at the jetties and reefs
Fiddler crabs on the nearshore reefs and the Charleston jetties.
March
Black drum and gray trout in the harbors
Crab or clam at the inlets; shrimp on the bottom in the harbor channels.
April
Cobia move into the sounds; trout wake up
Port Royal and St. Helena sounds as the water hits 68–70; wahoo on the Gulf Stream ledges.
May
Cobia spawn in Port Royal Sound
Spawning cobia around the Broad River — rules tighten for this run, check SCDNR. Gaffers offshore.
June
Flood-tide tailers and nearshore kings
Crab flies on the moon-tide flood; slow-troll menhaden on the reefs.
July
Tarpon arrive; red snapper's few open days
Live pogies at the sound mouths; descend and release snapper outside the July opening.
August
Bull reds gather to spawn; peak tarpon
Cut bait at the Charleston jetties and the inlets — peak spawn is late August into September.
September
Spawning bulls at the jetties; tarpon on the bait
Jetties and sound mouths for bulls; first fall trout in the creeks.
October · now
Everything inshore: reds, trout, flounder, kings
Shrimp under a popping cork; flounder at the inlets on the outgoing.
November
Trout in the deep creeks; reds start to school
Slow plastics in the creek bends; fall wahoo offshore.
December
Winter schools form on the flats
Low-tide sight fishing; sea bass on the nearshore reefs.
Fish guides for South Carolina Coast
When, where and what to use, fish by fishAlmaco jackAtlantic croakerAtlantic cutlassfish (ribbonfish)Atlantic sharpnose sharkAtlantic spadefishBlack drumBlack sea bassBlackfin tunaBlacktip sharkBlue marlinBluefishBonnethead sharkBull sharkCobiaFlounderGag grouperGolden tilefishGray triggerfishGreat hammerheadGreater amberjackJack crevalleKing mackerelLadyfishLittle tunny (bonito)Mahi-mahi (dolphin)Mangrove snapperPompanoRed porgy (pinkie)Red snapperRedfishSailfishSand tiger sharkSandbar sharkScampSheepsheadSpanish mackerelSpinner sharkSpotSpotted seatroutSwordfishTarponTiger sharkTripletailVermilion snapperWahooWeakfish (gray trout)White gruntWhitingYellowfin tuna
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