Following a heavy downpour in the morning, the Gostola family decided they were still game for their Mother’s Day fishing trip. The rain clearly did not upset the fish. Caught redfish up to eight pounds with cut mullet and cracked blue crab under docks to start the charter. As the tide rose, we focused on oyster beds and continued to find reds eagerly eating cut bait. Finished the charter catching ladyfish and trout with popping corks.

-Capt. Geoff Bennett

www.charlestoncharterfishing.com

A trio from Wyoming joined me this morning for a 3/4 day charter. While the wind was down, we started off stalking a big school of redfish on the flats. Keith hooked into this large redfish that had us dancing around the cabin of the boat as he was landed. Our next stop was fantastic as we found the best ladyfish bite of the season! Eating both minnows and shrimp under corks, these ladyfish were doing acrobatic cartwheels through the air and peeling off drag. Along with the ladyfish, we also landed more trout than I could count. A sweet day on the water.

-Capt. Geoff Bennett

www.charlestoncharterfishing.com

Fishing the rising tide, we focused on trout using popping corks. At our second stop, we got into a mess of trout as well as plenty of bluefish. Caught dozens of fish with mud minnows, shrimp and even started firing off silver plugs for the bluefish. As the bite wore down, we moved to our next spot and Alan’s cork dropped on his first cast. The fight was long enough that I thought it was a decent redfish and was blown away when a 5lb. trout was brought to the boat! The biggest trout of the season by far. Great work Alan!

-Capt. Geoff Bennett

www.charlestoncharterfishing.com

Matt Carter caught these largemouth up at Lake Monticello this past weekend. They were caught Texas rigging a soft plastic worm.

Rob, from Atlanta, caught this pig redfish on Zman paddlerz in smoky shad color. We started the day off with reds at low tide which was topped off by this nice red on light tackle. We then switched over to trout on the higher incoming tide. Another great day on the water in Charleston, SC!

-Capt. Stephen Fields

www.redfishcharleston.com

Location: Mt. Pleasant
Instructor: Lefty Kreh
Register: Call 843-884-2095 or Email chrisulmer@thecharlestonangler.com

Alexandria, VA – May 10, 2012 – Effective today, a ban on recreational and commercial fishing for deep water snapper-grouper in depths greater than 240 feet in the South Atlantic is no longer in effect. Since going into effect on January 31, 2011, this closure had a significant economic impact on businesses throughout the South Atlantic region. Over the past two years, the American Sportfishing Association (ASA) and several of its individual members impacted by the ban, made it known to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries) that the deep water recreational fishing ban was having a severe economic impact and strongly urged federal managers to lift the ban.

The 240 foot closure was put in place to reduce bycatch of speckled hind and warsaw grouper, two species subject to overfishing. After taking into consideration the high economic cost of the ban to the sportfishing industry, and a new analysis of fisheries data, the South Atlantic Council determined that the ban was not necessary to achieve the goal of ending overfishing for speckled hind and warsaw grouper.

“The deep water snapper-grouper ban demonstrated the severe impacts that can result from faulty science and inadequate consideration of socioeconomics,” said Mike Leonard, ASA’s Ocean Resource Policy director. “Thankfully, the South Atlantic Council and NOAA Fisheries acknowledged the severity of this ban and are now contemplating other, less restrictive measures to address overfishing issues without closing off a massive area of the ocean to fishing.”

The South Atlantic Council is currently exploring different management measures to effectively address overfishing of speckled hind and warsaw grouper at a lesser cost to the sportfishing community. The amendment, which is under development, considers additional measures to reduce bycatch of these two species, including the expansion of existing, and the establishment of new, closed areas.

“It is unfortunate that the South Atlantic Council originally felt it had to take such drastic measures that resulted in lost jobs and undue economic hardship,” said Ken Haddad, ASA’s Marine Fisheries advisor. “Anglers and the industry are willing to make sacrifices for the betterment of fisheries resources, but these decisions must be based on solid science with an aim towards reducing negative economic impacts. We look forward to working with the South Atlantic Council and NOAA Fisheries to explore other options to rebuild fisheries while still allowing reasonable access to the fisheries we depend on.”

The American Sportfishing Association (ASA) is the sportfishing industry’s trade association, committed to looking out for the interests of the entire sportfishing community. We give the industry a unified voice speaking out when emerging laws and policies could significantly affect sportfishing business or sportfishing itself. We invest in long-term ventures to ensure the industry will remain strong and prosperous as well as safeguard and promote the enduring economic and conservation values of sportfishing in America. ASA also gives America’s 60 million anglers a voice in policy decisions that affect their ability to sustainably fish on our nation’s waterways through KeepAmericaFishing™, our angler advocacy campaign. America’s anglers generate over $45 billion in retail sales with a $125 billion impact on the nation’s economy creating employment for over one million people.

Just in time for Mother’s Day!

Fished the first evening tailing tide charter of the year tonight. Found multiple redfish tailing at each of our three stops. We fished our first spot entirely from the boat but got out on foot for the other two so we could stalk the redfish in skinny water. Per usual, the redfish would charge and eat a Dupre’s spoon fly in gold. Lots of heart pounding action and wild strikes. Can’t wait to go again!

-Capt. Geoff Bennett

www.charlestoncharterfishing.com

Our fishery is really cooking now! The arrival of seasonal species like ladyfish, bluefish and shark now compliment our redfish and trout. Look around you on the water and you’ll also find plenty of baitfish including mullet and menhaden. You have more reasons now than ever to get fishing!

Recently, we’ve been making the most of live bait when fishing for redfish. Menhaden is a favorite choice whether fished live or as cut bait. Fishing chunks of menhaden under docks has produced some very large redfish. I’ll use a carolina rig with just enough weight to keep the bait pinned to the ground so it doesn’t get snagged. I use size 3/0 circle hooks and let the redfish hook themselves.

It’s that time of year to start thinking about topwater trout action at first light. My favorite lure is a Heddon’s Super Spook Jr. in chartreuse and black. Their silver mullet color works well too. Try a variety of retrieval speeds as you work these lures. When that trout strikes, try to resist the temptation to lift the rod tip and reel the fish tight instead. It’s hard to beat those explosive strikes!

As expected, sharks have returned to our waters with the warmer water temperatures. Look along the shoreline and you’ll see the fins of bonnethead sharks slicing through the water as they seek out prey. Live shrimp and chunks of blue crab both work well on these predators. Fishing for sharks can be a great way to get younger anglers involved as sharks are usually hungry and put up great fights.

Flyfishermen will begin to focus on big high tides or “tailing tides” when the redfish are way up in the grass. This produces very exciting fishing as anglers can see the backs and tails of redfish as they put their noses in the mud to forage for crabs. Dupre’s spoon flies have been particularly effective and I like their root beer color. When casting to redfish, remember to lead the fish by several feet, hitting them square on the head will cause them to spook and race away.

See you on the water!

Capt. Geoff Bennett operates Charleston Charter Fishing providing fly fishing and light tackle charters. Clients choose from a full menu of fly rods, artificial and live bait fishing options with charters tailored to their desires. USCG licensed and insured, Capt. Bennett is committed to providing a safe and enjoyable charter to anglers of all skill levels and ages. For more information, call Capt. Bennett at 843-324-3332, visit his website at www.charlestoncharterfishing.com or email him at captain@charlestoncharterfishing.com.