The summer heat may be bearing down, but the fishing on Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie can be just as hot as the weather.
There are several ways to cope with the heat. One is just deal with it and go fishing. Dunk your hat in the water periodically and drink lots of water. Fish can be caught during the day if you can take the heat.
Another tactic is to focus your fishing effort early and late, and another method preferred by many is to simply fish at night. Finally, some guides will fish a combination of late afternoons and nights until about midnight. This is especially true for many of the catfish anglers.
But for bass fishermen, daytime is the right time.
One thing that has changed for the good of hot-weather bass fishing is the rapid growth of natural vegetation in the lakes. This has eliminated the need for largemouth bass to always go deep during the summer months.
Cecil Wolfe of Cross fishes both Santee Cooper lakes regularly and guides out of Blacks Camp. Wolfe, 46, said having to the fish the deep drops and ledges for bass in the middle of the lakes is not necessary with all the new vegetative growth.
“The specific places where we’ll find largemouth in the summer will change from the shallow-water spawning sites,” said Wolfe (843-753-2231). “However, the largemouths have plenty of cover and food sources in water that may be from five to eight deep. In addition, early and late in the day you may find them in even shallower water and active on topwater lures.”
Wolfe said that the key is to look for the fish in vegetative growth that may be close to deep water, if not right along the edge of deeper water.
“I like to find isolated areas with slightly deeper pockets of water, but with plenty of vegetation,” he said. “The combination of even slightly deeper water and vegetation will hold forage, and that will keep the bass close by. The best lures will vary, but basically bottom-bumping lures as well as crankbaits, spinnerbaits and various topwater lures will work. I will refine the specific lures to the targets and depths I fish.”
Another excellent summertime fishery is crappie. While the fish have retreated from the shallows, they are now consistently found holding on cover in deeper water.
Buster Rush is a crappie guide on several lakes, but he targets Lake Marion as one of his favorite summertime destinations.
“July and right on through the summer and fall is an outstanding time to catch crappie on both lakes Marion and Moultrie,” said Rush (803-478-4879). “I primarily fish Lake Marion and will catch most of my fish off brush and woody cover in 12 to 16 feet of water. The guides fishing Lake Moultrie will often catch fish a bit deeper, but the general pattern is still the same. Locate brush or woody cover along ledges and drops and fish right in the cover. Some days you’ll find the fish hovering just above the cover which makes the fishing easier. But be prepared to drop your bait right into the cover on most days. I generally use minnows when guiding, but jigs will also produce plenty of fish.”
The fishing action for bream also remains good on both lakes during the summer. Some fishermen will catch bream off of the deep brush, much like the crappie fishermen. In addition using small Beetle Spin spinners and flyrods and popping bugs, especially around mayfly hatches along the shoreline can produce outstanding results.
Catfishing is a staple of summertime fishing on both lakes. Kevin Davis, owner of Blacks Camp on the Diversion Canal, said fishing for catfish is usually excellent on both lakes by drift fishing cut bait along the drops and ledges near or in deep water.
“In addition, July is a prime time to catch a lot of catfish in the Diversion Canal,” said Davis (843-753-2231). “When there is good water flow though the Canal in the summer months, the catfish will stack in there in big numbers and huge sizes.
“This is also the time of year when a variety of baits will produce, especially in the Canal,” Davis said. “Stinkbaits, chicken liver, worms as well as the more traditional cut shad chunks will all produce. The Canal is a prime place to catch all three of the big three species with blue, flathead and channel catfish being caught in good numbers and sizes.”
One final note is for July fishing is to remember we’re in the “no fishing” period for striped bass through the end of September.
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