Flounder are a favorite target of inshore saltwater anglers in South Carolina because they are widely distributed, fun to catch and taste good. Photo by Pete Cooper Jr.

The short days of winter just don’t permit enough time to launch the boat and satisfy a hard-to-reach fishing itch.

I constantly think about saltwater fishing. Most of those mental gyrations involve planning a family fishing trip using the boat during the upcoming weekend. Once the days become longer, an after-work trip is also an option.

One way I stretch my fishing time is to fish from the bank during the waning minutes of the day.

Where I live there are several vacant lots, as well as some public access to saltwater fishing spots. All of these places have fish-holding structure, such as oyster bars and barnacle-encrusted piers, that spotted seatrout and spottail bass find attractive.

Grabbing a light-action spinning rod and some grubs, it is only a quick few minutes from the front door to the water’s edge. One particular pier at a former vacant lot where I prefer to fish had a “T” section at the end. Trout and spottails could be found holding on either corner, their location dependent on the direction of the tide.

I would quietly walk out on the pier nearly to the end, and make a long cast downcurrent with a grub. I’d work the lure as close as possible to the pier’s pilings, and most casts resulted in a fish. With each subsequent fish, I would move a little farther out on the pier.

By the time I worked all sides of the pier, including the far pilings for tying off the stern of a boat, it was almost too dark to see.

I didn’t catch fish on every spur-of-the-moment trip down there, but the location was a great outlet to satisfy a fishing urge. However, what was great about that fishing spot is also the epitome of saltwater fishing in South Carolina.

While I fished that spot from the shore, I also successfully worked it on every fishing trip from a boat, be it winter, spring, summer or fall. The winter catch was primarily trout and spottail bass, but warmer weather brought black drum and flounder to the location. Places like this one are replicated up and down the Lowcountry’s coast.

The point is it doesn’t matter if you fish from shore, a boat or both or if you prefer to fish during the winter, summer or some season in between, you can always find something biting in the salt water of the state.

SPOTTAIL BASS
Spottail bass, also called redfish, puppy drum or channel bass, are the state’s No. 1 saltwater inshore game fish, and for good reason. The fish is a tireless fighter, has a widespread distribution, bites 12 months of the year and isn’t bad on the table either.

If you are new to fishing for spottails, some of the best money you will ever spend is to hire a guide for the day. Don’t go back and mine all of his locations, but rather pick his brain about techniques and strategies to consistently land these fish. Most guides are willing to help.

While large spottails -- fish over 25 pounds -- are found in certain spots, such as near jetties and in shipping channels, it is the 1- to 4-year-old fish that the majority of anglers target. These fish spend nearly all of their time in very shallow water and can top out over 30 inches long and push double-digit weights.