Summer patterns, fishy options at Santee Cooper lakes

Santee is a great destination, even in August

Don’t think of the dog days of August as an ideal time to vacation from fishing. Both lakes Marion and Moultrie, and the rivers feeding water in and funneling water out, offer great August fishing opportunities.

It’s not that the fish-catching gets bad; it’s dealing with the heat and relentless sun of August. But this consistent weather situation forces fish into predictable patterns.

Adapting to these patterns is the key to success, and while it’s easy to believe fish simply go to deep water, that’s not always the case. Certainly, deep water, heavy cover and current flow situations are keys to success. But fishing shallow water bream beds, working mussel beds for catfish, and probing heavy cover in the shallows for largemouth bass are also effective.

The deep-water angle is important for those thinking crappie fishing. Both lakes Marion and Moultrie are prime destinations for deep water crappie action when fishing over brush, stumps, and other debris, natural and man-made.

Panfish

August delivers ‘crappie consistency’ at Santee Cooper and for this species, it is often about deeper water associated with woody cover. With water temperatures near, or at the zenith for the year, the slabs are ganged up around identifiable underwater targets.

Crappie anglers employ multiple ways to get fish in the boat, but most successful crappie fishermen rely on first locating the fish. And that usually requires searching with electronics. Once found, minnows or jigs produce bites.

The typical crappie pattern for August is deeper water, but not necessarily the deepest water. The key is finding cover and ‘deeper’ water. Crappie orient to specific depth zones, and on Lake Marion, that can range from 12 feet down to 22 feet deep to begin. The depth range is typically a little deeper on both ends of the scale in Lake Moultrie.

While crappies are not always caught in real deep water, the best brush piles for August fishing are those along drops and ledges near deep water.

One way to adapt for better fishing results during August is to carry a cage of crickets when targeting crappie, because not all deepwater brush is loaded with crappie. Some are stacked with big bream.

The bull bream common to lakes Marion and Moultrie are caught around some of these brush piles, so a deep connection to bream fishing provides an opportunity to have two options on each brushpile.

Bream still bed in huge numbers throughout August and even into September. While in shallow water, these late-summer bream beds may be slightly deeper than found during the spring.

Catfish

Catfishermen who brave the heat can make excellent catches in shallow water, especially around mussel beds. While low light of morning, evening, and at night are prime times to fish shallow mussel beds, mid-day action on these favored feeding areas can produce excellent results.

Catfishermen have the option of fishing at night in the shallows. During the summer, locate creeks or ditches that course through flats into shallow water. If mussel beds are around, or if you mark forage in the area, catfish will use the ditches as a travel route to move into the shallows at night to feed. This is a great opportunity to anchor and catch a cooler of fat cats.

Bass

Largemouth bass are found shallow and lurk in heavy weedbeds and/or woody cover to punch their August meal ticket. But their hangouts are not always near the shoreline, so checking offshore flats near ledges and deeper water can be a prime tactic.

The rivers flowing out of the lakes, and feeding the lakes, offer excellent options for summertime fishing too. Current flow in the Santee and Cooper rivers creates a situation where the bass bite is often great along the shoreline cover, and big bream are in reasonably shallow water during August. Adapting to the current and fishing small, still pockets and eddies, anglers can catch plenty of bass and bream. And current generally creates positive opportunities for catfish.

The Wateree and Congaree rivers flowing into the upper end of Lake Marion offer similar opportunities.

Don’t take a break from fishing this month at the Santee Cooper lakes because of the heat. Anglers can still find plenty of action around the clock.

Don’t stay home:

August’s heat can be stifling, but it’s not time to abandon fishing plans. Early morning is a great time too, but anglers find plenty of success even in the heat of mid-day.