The Best Fishing Spots in South Carolina
South Carolina offers diverse recreational fishing from tidal marshes and coastal inlets to offshore reefs and inland lakes and rivers. Anglers commonly target red drum, spotted seatrout, flounder and occasional tarpon inshore, while offshore trips pursue cobia, king mackerel, Spanish mackerel and bluefish. Freshwater anglers find excellent action for largemouth bass, striped bass, catfish, crappie and other panfish. Popular approaches include kayak, pier, surf, fly and baitcasting fishing, with tides and seasonal movements often shaping success.
Top Cities For Fishing
River Fishing
Lake Fishing
Lake Murray
Lake Marion
Lake Moultrie
Sea Fishing
Beaufort
(1 km to coast)
Bluffton
(8 km to coast)
Burton
(5 km to coast)
Charleston
(1 km to coast)
Folly Beach
(0 km to coast)
Forestbrook
(9 km to coast)
Garden City
(3 km to coast)
Georgetown
(3 km to coast)
Goose Creek
(20 km to coast)
Hanahan
(12 km to coast)
Hilton Head
(3 km to coast)
Hilton Head Island
(3 km to coast)
Hollywood
(15 km to coast)
Isle of Palms
(1 km to coast)
James Island
(6 km to coast)
Laurel Bay
(1 km to coast)
Little River
(2 km to coast)
Mount Pleasant
(2 km to coast)
Murrells Inlet
(2 km to coast)
Myrtle Beach
(0 km to coast)
North Charleston
(3 km to coast)
North Myrtle Beach
(1 km to coast)
Port Royal
(2 km to coast)
Ridgeland
(16 km to coast)
Shell Point
(15 km to coast)
Socastee
(9 km to coast)
Surfside Beach
(0 km to coast)
Top Saltwater Fishing Spots
Little River Inlet
On the North Carolina line near Little River and North Myrtle Beach , this inlet’s jetties and channels produce red drum, trout, and spring runs of Spanish mackerel, with king mackerel and cobia just offshore on bait-rich temperature breaks.
Bulls Bay
A wild bay north of Charleston , Bulls Bay features expansive marsh and oyster habitat that holds upper-slot redfish, gator trout, and doormat flounder; fish feeder creeks dumping into main guts and work topwaters on flood tides across the grass.
Charleston Harbor
Where the Cooper River and Ashley River meet the Atlantic Ocean , the harbor offers year-round red drum, speckled trout, and flounder around jetties, docks, and grasslines, with seasonal runs of sheepshead and tarpon; fish moving tides along the jetties and shipping channel edges.
Murrells Inlet
A protected estuary south of Myrtle Beach , Murrells Inlet produces excellent redfish, speckled trout, and flounder on tides around grass flats, oyster bars, and jetties, with summertime Spanish mackerel and nearshore reef action just outside the inlet.
Port Royal Sound
This deep, nutrient-rich sound between Beaufort and Hilton Head Island holds bull red drum in fall, spring cobia along sandbars and channels, and steady trout and flounder around creek mouths; work moving tides along rips and bait-rich drops.
Saint Helena Sound
Where the Edisto River meets the sea, Saint Helena Sound offers big-tide action for redfish, speckled trout, and migrating tarpon, with summer sharks on sandbars; target creek mouths, oyster edges, and nearshore sand rips on mid-moving tides.
Winyah Bay
Fed by the Santee River , Waccamaw River , Great Pee Dee River , and Black River , expansive Winyah Bay mixes fresh and salt for superb red drum, speckled trout, and striped bass around jetties, creeks, and delta marshes, plus seasonal tarpon through late summer.
Top Freshwater Fishing Spots
Lake Hartwell
Spanning the SC-GA border, Lake Hartwell is famed for schooling striped bass and hybrid bass blitzing bait in summer, plus year-round largemouth, spotted bass, and slab crappie; troll live bait along main-lake channels and work points and timbered coves near Anderson and the Seneca River arm.
Lake Marion
The larger of the Santee Cooper duo, Lake Marion is legendary for giant blue catfish and flathead catfish, spring crappie in cypress-filled backwaters, and big largemouth bass around stumps and grass; drift cut bait on main flats and probe treelines near Santee and the upper Santee River .
Lake Jocassee
A deep, clear mountain reservoir, Jocassee holds South Carolina’s best coldwater fishery with summer-dawn and winter bites for lake trout, brown trout, and rainbow trout, plus suspended spotted bass; troll spoons over steep creek arms and near Devils Fork State Park drop-offs.
Lake Keowee
Known for numbers of aggressive spotted bass and quality largemouth, Keowee fishes well year-round with finesse on points and ditches, and power techniques on wind-blown banks; winter schooling and dock patterns shine near Seneca and the Keowee River inflow.
Lake Moultrie
Connected to Marion via the Canal , Lake Moultrie offers fast action for trophy blue catfish, deep-water striped bass in cool months, and crappie around brush and canal pilings; drift big flats on the east side and target the Diversion Canal and Pinopolis Dam for schooling fish.
Lake Murray
A powerhouse for striped bass action, Lake Murray produces trophy striped bass in spring and fall on live herring and topwater, with steady summer bites at night; expect strong numbers of largemouth bass, crappie, and catfish around points, humps, and bridge pilings near Dreher Island State Park and along the Saluda River arm.
Lake Wylie
A Catawba River impoundment straddling the NC line, Wylie produces consistent largemouth bass, hefty blue and channel catfish, and spring crappie; fish creek mouths, bridges, and riprap near Clover and along the Catawba River channel.
Top Saltwater & Freshwater Spots
Broad River
From the Midlands to the tidal reaches near Beaufort , the Broad River supports strong striped bass and largemouth upriver, shifting to salt-driven action for redfish, trout, and summer cobia near the lower sound; fish current breaks, ledges, and creek junctions.
Cooper River
From Lake Moultrie to Charleston Harbor , the Cooper River offers spring striped bass runs below the locks, strong largemouth in rice-field canals, and tidal redfish and trout near brackish reaches; work tide changes at cuts, ditches, and rock edges.
Edisto River
One of the longest free-flowing blackwater rivers, the Edisto provides excellent redbreast sunfish, largemouth bass, and catfish upriver, transitioning to brackish redfish and trout near Edisto Beach ; float cypress-lined bends and fish tidal mouths on moving water.
Great Pee Dee River
A big-river fishery flowing to Winyah Bay , the Great Pee Dee offers strong blue catfish, seasonal striped bass pushes, and plentiful crappie and bream in back sloughs; drift cut bait through deep bends and jig eddies around downed timber.
Santee River
Flowing from the Santee Cooper system to Winyah Bay , the Santee River yields river-run striped bass in spring, heavyweight blue catfish, and backwater bream and crappie; fish current seams, deep bends, and woody cover from St. Stephen downstream.
Waccamaw River
Meandering from Conway to Georgetown , the Waccamaw’s blackwater sloughs and cypress knees hold abundant bream, crappie, and largemouth, with brackish reaches producing redfish and trout; target outside bends, laydowns, and tidal creek mouths.