Freshwater Fishing Archives - Page 190 of 293

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August 30, 2026

The S.C. Department of Natural Resources stocks around 800,000 trout like this brown annually in mountain streams in three counties.

Palmetto trout stock on the rise

In the early 1930s, the fisheries managers with the state and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service began trout culture and stocking programs in mountain streams. […]

Cut slices off a styrofoam pool noodle, then cut the slices into wedges to go on the hook and hold the stinkbait.

Preparing Noodles

Phillip Gentry

The term “noodling” for catfish takes on a different meaning when applied to any number of dip bait/stinkbait concoctions. […]

Channel catfish have a sense of smell that is far better than most freshwater fish.

While many die-hard catfishermen make their own stinkbait concoctions guide Chris Simpson’s favorite is Sonny’s Super Sticky Channel Catfish Bait, which comes in a 15-ounce jar or 45-ounce tub and is designed for channel catfish. […]

Channel cats are often overlooked in larger reservoirs that feature other popular species.

Make your own stinkbait

Phillip Gentry

If you don’t want to buy a commercial stinkbait or dip bait, try this recipe. […]

The four main catfish baits at Lake Gaston include (top to bottom): bass shiner, gizzard shad, herring and alewife.

Gaston live-bait choices

Craig Holt

Anglers targeting Lake Gaston’s blue catfish have four baitfish choices. Anyone with a cast net can catch these baitfish, which are also available at local bait-and-tackle shops, but fishermen like guide Don Enderle know where to throw their nylon. […]

A Trilene knot, aka improved clinch knot, works best when tied with heavier line; it could have problems tied in lighter lines.

The popular knot may not always be the best knot

Craig Holt

Fishing l knots and their relative strengths and weaknesses are logical birds’ nests for many anglers, but Don Enderle has some things to say about knots for big fish that are worth a listen. […]

Perhaps the easiest way to distinguish blue catfish (top) and channel catfish (bottom) is the shape of the anal fin. In blues, it's straight; in channels, it's rounded.

Blue cat or channel? Telling them apart doesn’t have to be difficult

Terry Madewell

One of the biggest questions anglers often raise when they boat a catfish is whether they’ve caught a blue catfish or channel catfish, because there are distinct similarities in appearance, beginning with the forked tail. […]

This building, which formerly housed a restaurant, will be the side of the Fly Fishing Museum of the Southern Appalachians in Cherokee.

Fly-fishing gets a museum

Robert Satterwhite

The heritage, art, science, craft and sport of fly fishing will be featured in a museum dedicated solely to fly fishing on the Cherokee Indian Reservation. […]

The state legislature has passed a bill that addresses the decline of blue catfish in the Santee Cooper lakes -- just not effectively.

Santee Cooper blue catfish get first-ever creel limit, new size restrictions

Phillip Gentry

When the dust settles on this legislative session, a bill that was carefully researched and constructed by a large number of people interested in protecting the blue catfish in the Santee Cooper reservoirs will be laid on the governor’s desk in a watered-down version that few supporters will recognize. […]