Nectar Sunglasses is based on James Island here in Charleston, SC which is one of several islands surrounded by beautiful marsh and waterways that are filled with wildlife. I love spending my free time on the water finding new spots to fish and hopefully keep to myself before anyone else finds them!
Fishing in Charleston can be extremely overwhelming, with the vast marshland, extensive waterways just about everywhere you look, and a diverse ecosystem of different species to target, where do you begin? Here is Nectar's guide to inshore fishing in Charleston.
January to early April the water temperature is rising back up into the mid 60’s and the fish begin to get active again. With the inconsistent weather during these months the fish can sometimes be finicky, we would recommend live bait (mud minnows or mullet) on a popping cork with about a 1.5’ light leader(15-20 pound fluorocarbon). If you like to fish with artificial baits another alternative is a ¼ ounce jighead with a 3-3.5” paddletail, fish it slowly by twitching/bouncing it on the bottom. Some areas to look for when targeting redfish and trout are creek mouths with good water flow, or submerged oyster shelves. During these months the water is pretty clear, having a pair of Nectar polarized sunglasses is a must.
May to late August the water is exploding with life and the water temperature is in the high 70’s low 80’s. Baitfish have moved into the creeks, redfish are on the move, and trout have moved to deeper colder water. The summer months can be a great time to target a lot of species in Charleston, our personal favorite is to fish in the Charleston harbor for bull redfish (40-50+ inches). Using cutbait (mullet or menhaden) with a 4-8 ounce egg sinker (dependent on current) send it down to the bottom and get ready for the fight of your life. Be prepared when targeting big redfish to have a lot of sharks as bycatch in the harbor. Make sure to have a nice pair of polarized sunglasses on to cut the glare off the water when fishing in the harbor, because you might just see spanish mackerel blitzing the surface preying on small glass minnows.
September through late December is hands down the best time to target redfish. Once the water temperature comes down to about 72 degrees the redfish are everywhere and will eat anything. You can use just about any bait from frozen cutbait, artificial lures, or live bait. Also this time of year is best to target trout as well, they will stack up in schools in anywhere from 8-15 ft of water and they love to hit artificial lures like vudu shrimp and paddle tails. Another effective way to catch trout is a live shrimp under a popping cork with a (10-15lb fluorocarbon leader). Let the cork drift through moving water and it will be sure to get smacked!
Some items you should definitely have with you no matter what time of year you are fishing would be plenty of water to stay hydrated, a nice pair of polarized Nectar Sunglasses, and sunscreen are all definitely essential. Remember a day out on the water always beats a day in the office!
Dylan Geis