Veteran angler Josh Devlin of Florence said bream beds are easy to find on the Little Pee Dee River, and while he enjoys pulling out one bream after the other, he also makes sure not to fish them too hard.
“I don’t want to wipe out every bed I find. I will usually catch about eight or 10 bluegill from each bed, then hit the shellcracker beds for five or six fish, then move on to find another one,” he said.
One reason for Devlin’s plan is that he wants to be able to find fish easily the next time he fishes; he doesn’t want to overfish his honey holes.
Another reason is because he wants to do some exploring and find other honey holes. This way, he has the best of both worlds.
“Rivers like this will change from one year to the next; you’ll find some areas that have beds every year, but you’ll also find beds in new areas each year if you look hard enough,” he said. “With the big flood we had last year, this river has changed more than it has in my lifetime. So I’m finding new bedding areas this year, and that’s half the fun for me.”
