Help

[BLWeng]

hello guys. I am looking for some help. I didn't grow up fishing except for bluegill in farmers ponds in Pennsylvania. I kind of fell into a really good situation here in South Carolina. I met a girl at the hospital, and before we decided to get married, she found out that she won a Triton bass boat from Buckmasters. Yes, the 2005 2nd place winner. I am need of some fishing help. I fish the the Great Pee Dee river and the Black river here in South Carolina. I have no idea if i am doing anything wrong, or if i am fishing the wrong spots, but i can't seem to catch any fish. If anyone on here could help me out with river fishing i would really appreciate it. I also fish Santee Cooper lakes. I believe lake fishing is a little easier than river fishing. Any help with lures, or anything else will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you

[Rebbasser]

BL, sounds like you got a good one!

A little more info would help-what the water is like-clear, muddy, stained-as well as the cover/structure-flooded timber, grass, hydrilla, etc. Give us some specifics and we'll get you pointed in the right direction.

[BLWeng]

good point Reb. lol. water is usually muddy. lots of cover on the banks. the entire river is lined with trees, longs, fallen trees, etc. not many rocks at all. not really sure what the bottom is, i think mostly sandy bottom and the like. I;m not sure what the bass usually feed on, but the river has alot of bream, so i guess that is what they are feeding on. I have caught 1 bass on a crankbait, and have some bites on other things, mainly worms. i usually fish little creek mouths and then back in the creeks. If this helps, good. If not, let me know and i will try to give you more info on the river. thanks

[WTL]

You mean you married a girl for a boat. I mean a Triton is a good enough boat, but damn.

First things first, notice the current - thats important. Look for breaks in the current and fish that if they exist. Concentrate on outside bends of the river cause they tend to have deeper water. Use the depth finder to pinpoint any holes. Lure selection - well thats a matter of feel and personal preference. But I would go with something in the meantime that will give you a maximum amount of bites so you can start tuning into how the bass, even the little ones, are relating to their surroundings. Maybe try a 2-3 inch pearl grub? Or pink floating worms? These are good river baits which tend to attract lots of fish. Use light line, 6-8 pound test mono or flourocarbon perhaps.

[BLWeng]

no wtl, acutually she was going to sell the boat. that was her plans. i get the same stuff from the guys i work with. lol
do you fish the main river, or the creek mouths. i usually only fish the main river at the creek mouths, then fish the creeks. Should i be focusing more in the main river than in the creeks?

[Rebbasser]

BL-don't fish the current. Fish the current breaks-rocks, stumps, retaining walls, whatever. Or, to be specific, the slack water behind the current breaks. Fish will sit in the slack water and ambush stuff as it floats by. throw upstream and retrieve your bait with the current, and pull it into the slack water.

If the water is muddy the fish will pull in close to cover. Like us, when we can't see real well we move close to an object for a frame of reference-think of turning off the lights then walking down the hall at night. We reach out for the wall to know where we are. And to keep from accidently kicking the crap out of something . Fish do the same thing. since visibility is limited think sound, vibration, and moving water. A spinnerbait with a big, single Colorado blade, a lipless crankbait, or a big, bulky worm or jig are good choices. They allow the fish to home in on it with their lateral line.

[OUTLAW]

Bl ,
I was on the Black River (S.C.)for a week,a few years ago.I remember every spot looked like a honey hole.It was very hard to fish.I talked to locals and they said the only time your going to catch fish is early in the morning and late in the day.My personal advise would be to start on the lake.

[BLWeng]

Thank you Reb. I have been using a worm and a spinnerbait, but i think they are the wrong ones. Junebug worm and white spinnerbaits with 2 blades. I tried several. I guess the more i fish the better chance of catching fish.

Law, thats funny you said that about the honey hole. My brother was down from Lancaster PA a few weeks ago and we fished the Black river and the Pee Dee. He said the same thing. There were lilly pads everywhere, along with floating grass, and all the cover. He fishes tourny's alot on Raystown lake, and the flats in Havre De Grace, sometimes on the Potomac. He said the cover is the best. He told me before he came down that we will catch fish, he almost guaranteed it. I caught 1 bass and we both caught a few mud fish over 5 days, and 2 of them days were on the lakes. I don't know why it is so tough down here. I am a transplant from PA also and only been fishing the rivers like i said only a short time. But some of the locals around here tear them up sometimes, but they don't share any info to me. Thats why i came on here. Thought maybe some of these guys can help. I can read and research so much information, and sometimes i try it and it still doesn't work. But i certainly appreciate the help so far. Keep sending. lol

[WTL]

I repeat, floating worms and little grubs. I love spinnerbaits and big junebug worms, but you will learn the river better with numbers baits. Pink floating worms, grubs - hell get some beetlespins. Learn the water first, then start throwing powerfishing lures like spinnerbaits.

[BLWeng]

Ok guys, i went yesterday to the Great Pee Dee and finally caught a couple of bass. first bass was about 2 1/2 lbs. and the second about a pound. Lots of fun. I had several others on that got off, but i had 2 others to the side of the boat. I used junebug worm texas rigged. Finally slowed down and took my time. That might be alot of my problem. I kind of figured that out yesterday. I was fishing lay down logs and tree branches laying in the water. I know 2 fish isn't anything to brag about, but for me that was the best day i had so far. Lots of fun. I appreciate all your help. Keep giving me ideas. I can use all the help i can get. lol

[zooker]

june bug is your friend on the pee dee. which is the south end of the yadkin chain..

bright colors- blue back cranks,chatruses dual blade spinner baits,and june bug worms..

as to where i don't know but trees, rock piles, channel drops are going to be what you need to target.. a laydown in currant or over the channel drop would definatly need to be fished..

forget everything you learned fishing up north.. this is a differant style fishing.. get used to running quite aways between holes..

zooker

[BLWeng]

Hey zooker, is the yadkin chain extremely muddy up there also?