Source: Black seabass season to close Feb. 12 - Tideline Magazine - The Post and Courier - Charleston SC newspaper

Source: Black seabass season to close Feb. 12 - Tideline Magazine - The Post and Courier - Charleston SC newspaper

It's great to see that preventive measures are being enforced to preserve the sea bass population. But it's discouraging to know that there's not enough restraint during the year-round bottom fishing season. 

"Federal regulators say the sea bass closure is necessary because anglers are on track to exceed the maximum allowable catch for this fishing year."

Reds warm up in shallows on cold winter days

The inshore waters of the Lowcountry are barren during winter compared to the spring through late fall months. But redfish stick it out for the lean, bait-deprived winter. They move onto shallow oyster and sandbar flats in schools to warm up and stay inaccessible to patrolling dolphin.

When you find them in a school (sometimes in the hundreds), it's the best inshore fishing any time of year. 

Here's a slot fish that Pate caught (last December) after we herded a school like sheepdogs for two hours, landing seven. Several were hogs over 30 inches. 

  

Nature Conservancy grows Black River Swamp 440 more acres

Cypress preserve gets more acres | The Post and Courier, Charleston SC - News, Sports, Entertainment

7 ships cited for speed | The Post and Courier, Charleston SC - News, Sports, Entertainment

7 ships cited for speed | The Post and Courier, Charleston SC - News, Sports, Entertainment

Tideline Magazine opens up reader-voice section in next issue

The new November/December issue of Tideline is out. 

You can pick up a free copy of the magazine from north to Murrells Inlet and south to Hilton Head. A new section, starting in January, will be designated to reader-submitted fishing advice and your voice can be heard about anything ranging from snapper regulations to tournaments, and no-wake zones. 

Here's the letter from editor Matt Winter, who I get to work with on a couple articles a year. Shoot Matt an email. It may be published in the next issue.

http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2010/nov/02/editor/

          

Clear skies and clear water on Charleston Harbor

It was a special kind of day on Charleston Harbor Sunday with virtually no wind, a crisp 75 degrees, and no clouds in the sky. 

 We started off Sullivans Island at the grillage and landed one small flounder. The tide turned, incoming, so we pulled anchor and went to the jetties after bait bandits started plowing through cut mullet.

Rods were doubled over on three different boats when we pulled up to the south end of the jetties about an hour after the tide started rolling in. Clarity was down to at least three feet. Still using cut mullet, we landed four redfish (2 slot fish), 20 seabass (3 keepers), and two bluefish. The bite turned off after an hour. 

I normally like to release the reds, but Dad and little brother were in town from Beaufort, so we tossed them in the cooler for dinner.


  

Torture for Cuffy.

Jaws producers had it all wrong

After reading this article, it's now clear the Jaws producers didn't do their research before sending this box office thriller to the big screen. Just because the Great white was over 25 feet and three tons, it doesn't mean the shark could smell Richard Dreyfuss and Roy Scheider's fear on the Orca before eating one third of the crew, and half the boat.



Good read...

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2010/10/14/shark-smell-myth-fishy/