A summer Saturday with a nice weather forecast finds nearly every lake in North Carolina packed with anglers; arriving before daybreak is a prerequisite to having a place to park a boat trailer and tow vehicle at most public ramps.
South Carolina is known for its fantastic fishing, from 40-pound bull reds and gator speckled trout along its salty shores to world-record catfish and slab crappie from its notable reservoirs, Anglers don’t have to trailer far to locate a super-productive fishery.
Tactics for tagging a gobbler in the waning days of the season is often dramatically different than strategies for early season success. Late-season hunting typically requires a diverse skill set that includes patience, stealth, diversity in calling capabilities and mental toughness to commit to strategy.
Late this past December, the coastal regions of both Carolinas experienced some of the coldest weather in recent years, with water temperatures plummeting into the low 40s. Then, on Jan. 3, a winter ice and snow storm blasted the coast again, complete with snow and ice.
One of the signs that spring has returned to the Carolinas is the arrival of Spanish mackerel in coastal waters. These little mackerel are targeted by fishermen from Hilton Head to Nags Head, and rightfully so.
When most people smack their lips thinking about a recipe for blackened fish, red drum most often spring to mind. But anglers who fish the waters in and around Surf City are as likely to run across of another color.
Flounder are arguably the most-recognizable inshore fish on the east coast. For die-hard anglers, they can be targeted every month of the year in the waters of both Carolinas, from brackish ecosystems to nearshore ocean reefs.
This month, I am stepping a bit outside of this column’s normal subject matter, but I feel strongly about this message.
May is one of my favorite months to fish the Santee Cooper reservoirs, and while it's mostly because of the great fishing, it's also because of the typically great weather.
Fly fishers need to know the four basic types of flies, including how to tie them and present them, before heading out in search of trout.
Lots of natural food sources are available for wildlife this time of year, but food plots will still bring them in by the herd.
Walk into a restaurant across most of the Carolinas, ask for a Coke, and you might be asked “What kind of Coke?”
Regular readers of this column know there is always one turkey recipe each spring to go with the turkey season. Only once before have I added a second turkey recipe, but I’m going to do it again. It’s a turkey pie, cooked in a cast-iron pan, that can be cooked in the oven or taken outside to the grill in the warming May weather. It makes a lot, too, so there will be plenty for lunches for a few days.
Some anglers refer to the plastic lip recently added to the Rapala Glass Shad crankbait as a “potato chip lip,” which is what it closely resembles.
Slip corks aren't just for bream fishing. They're good for saltwater fishing too, even for big fish.
I am a Taurus bull, so I really love to get on the water in May and chase bass. It is a great fishing month, because there are a lot of fish on the bank that are easy to catch. We’ve finally got stable weather across the Carolinas, and even though some of the months earlier in the year might be better for catching your personal biggest fish, May is probably the most fun for me to go fishing.
Paul Daniels and his wife Janet, of Hanahan, S.C. decided to catch a few blue catfish for dinner after church on Feb. 11 in the Cooper River. But 30 minutes into the fishing trip, Daniels’ task for the day quickly changed into searching for a certified scale after his wife helped him lift a big flathead catfish — the new South Carolina state record — into his boat.
North Carolina deer hunters had a slightly better year across the board during this past fall’s hunting season, with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission reporting an 8-percent increase in the statewide harvest to 161,854 whitetails in 2017-18.
For anglers who want to catch potentially huge, tenacious, great-tasting saltwater fish in nearshore waters along North Carolina’s central coast, cobias fill the bill, especially in May.
A variety of methods will help anglers catch plenty of redbreast on the Edisto River in the springtime.
Guide Rodger Taylor of Rock Hill, S.C., said that catching blue catfish on Lake Wylie this month can be great. But you need to be flexible.
By May, spring fishing is going full bore inshore and offshore, and that includes fishermen who barely think about anything except redfish.
Grouper are popular throughout the world, usually occupying a big niche in seafood restaurants. While they are highly recognized on the dinner menu, few anglers ever make it onto an offshore boat to see one of these fish face to face. If they did, they would surely remember how much energy it took to winch them out of deep water.
“Fishing really gets cranked up on Hartwell in May,” said Harden, who runs Bucktail Guide Service from his Commerce, Ga., home. “I might be partial, but I think it is the best striper/hybrid fishing lake there is. We are just getting hot with schools of fish everywhere now — and Hartwell has some really big stripers.”
Guide Colt Bass of Collettesville, N.C., said May is a productive month for quality stripers at Lake Hickory on the Catawba River system.
Although most crappie fishermen regard early spring and the prespawn period to be the best fishing of the year, guide Chris Bullock of Fountain, N.C., holds May in high esteem for sheer numbers of fish and the pleasure of using a unique approach.
In the springtime, North Carolina anglers get the treat of having king mackerel show up within casting distance of anglers in boats, on piers, and even from the beach.
The song Good Timin’ by Jimmy Jones didn’t have shellcracker fishing in mind, but the lyrics certainly apply. “A timin’ is the thing, it’s true. Good timin’ brought me to you.”