– By Brian Cope
Striper season is open on the Santee-Cooper lake system, and the bite has been on fire. Anglers are catching these fish with a variety of methods.
Capt. Leroy Suggs, who fishes out of Blacks Camp on the Diversion Canal, prefers fishing on the lower lake. And he’s put his fishing parties on several 100-fish days already, despite the season being open for just over a week.
Hanahan angler catches 77-pound Santee Cooper catfish
Brian Carroll Catfish, Fishing, Newsletters
Angler was fishing for bass out of Black’s Camp
Jason Cribb of Hanahan, S.C. caught a 77.1-pound Arkansas blue catfish at Santee Cooper this past Wednesday, Oct. 30. He was targeting largemouth bass when he caught the big fish on a live herring in 20 feet of water.
As we observe the 243rd year of our nation’s independence this month, a rare relic from the American Revolution is back home in Berkeley County. A British naval cannon, recovered by scuba divers from the Cooper River in the 1980s, returned July 9 to the Berkeley County Museum and Heritage Center and is again on public display. The museum is an attraction at Old Santee Canal Park. Conservators at the Warren Lasch Conservation Center in North Charleston recently completed the cannon’s nearly two-year restoration. The center is part of Clemson University’s Restoration Institute.
– By Two Dog Outdoors
This past week though, I was given the opportunity to fish with folks that have dedicated themselves to catching catfish predictably for twenty years.
Our guides, “Mouse” and “Boudreaux” Witherell, took two other outdoor writers (Pete Rogers and PJ Perea) and myself out on Lake Marion at sunrise for hours of consistent action on the lake.
Their company, Santee Cajun Guides, is a family run business. They fish Lake Marion or Moultrie for upwards of 240 days a year. Some days, that means multiple boats as each captain has their own spacious Pontoon boat.
Santee Cooper Golf Resort is set to open the Palmetto Traverse, a 35,000 square foot green designed for wild fun, with putts as long as 260 feet possible and over some of the most varied terrain you will ever see in a putting surface. The design is based off the Himalayas putting course at St. Andrews, and designed by golf course architect and Donald Ross restoration specialist Kris Spence.
(Editor’s Note: RheaReview.com outdoor editor Richard Simms recently returned from a 10-day road trip. Of course fishing was high on the agenda. This is the first of a series on fishing trips he experienced. Perhaps you might want to add them to your Bucket List as well.)
Another Fishing Attractor Enhanced
Fish attractor, site #15, was enhanced on Wednesday, December 13. 90 concrete pipes and culverts weighing 94.75 tons were placed around the buoy marker. The site is located on Lake Moultrie. Here is a photo of the Santee Cooper barge loaded with the materials and heading for the site.
Fishing Attractor Site Enhancement
On December 11, 2017 another fish attractor site was enhanced. 195.15 tons of concrete pipes and culverts were deposited at site #22 near Harry’s Fish Camp in Berkeley county.These enhanced sites provide habitat and protection for thousands of fish around the Santee Cooper lakes system. Thank you Santee Cooper PSA for your help with this project.
