Charleston fishing report for the week of September 10, 2026. The new moon this weekend brings the big flood tides that make the Lowcountry famous in September, and the redfish have been tailing in the spartina grass on the afternoon floods this week. The tarpon are still around the harbor and the inlets, though the run is nearing its end, and the trout have started to feed in the creeks as the mornings cool off.
What’s Hitting
What’s hitting this week is flood-tide redfish. The afternoon high tides around the new moon are pushing water into the spartina flats, and the reds are tailing on the flats from the Wando River down through the Stono and the Kiawah area, feeding on fiddler crabs. Tarpon are still around the harbor jetties, the Stono Inlet, and the Bulls Bay area, rolling on the bait at dawn. Speckled trout are in the creeks and around the oyster bars on the falling tide, with better numbers than last week. Flounder are on the creek mouths and the docks. Sheepshead and black drum are on the bridge pilings and the jetties.
Nearshore, Spanish mackerel and bluefish are on the bait at the harbor mouth, and the reefs in 40 to 60 feet have kings and some cobia.
Where to Find Them
For flood-tide reds, the spartina flats along the Wando, the Copahee Sound area, the Stono River flats, and the flats behind Kiawah and Seabrook. Get on the flat as the water covers the grass and look for tails and wakes. Tarpon are at the harbor jetties at dawn and around the Stono Inlet and the Bulls Bay shoals. Trout are in the creeks off the Wando and the Cooper and on the oyster bars in the Charleston Harbor tributaries. Flounder are on the creek mouths and docks along the Intracoastal.
Tides & Conditions
The new moon this weekend produces the biggest flood tides of the month, with afternoon highs that flood the spartina flats — check the tide table for the highest tides and be on the flat an hour before the peak. Winds have been northeast at 10 to 15, which pushes even more water onto the flats. Water temps are in the low 80s and starting to drop at night. Clarity on the flats has been good.
Tackle & Tactics
For flood-tide reds, a weedless soft plastic crab or a spoon fly on an 8-weight, cast a few feet ahead of a tailing fish. A weedless gold spoon works on spinning tackle. For tarpon, a live menhaden or mullet on a 6/0 circle hook with 80-pound leader at the jetties. Trout want a soft plastic on a 1/4-ounce jig head or a live shrimp under a popping cork on the bars. Flounder are taking mud minnows on a jig head at the creek mouths.
Local Intel This Week
Public ramps: the Wappoo Cut ramp and the Remley’s Point ramp on the Wando are the busiest launches in the harbor area, the Shem Creek ramp in Mount Pleasant serves the harbor and the Intracoastal, and the Buck Hall ramp on the Intracoastal is the closest to Bulls Bay. The Sol Legare ramp on the Stono covers the south side. Shore anglers have been catching trout and reds from the Folly Beach Pier and the Mount Pleasant Pier. Fish are concentrating on the spartina flats on the afternoon floods and in the creeks on the falling tide. Check current South Carolina DNR regulations before keeping fish — redfish have a slot and a reduced limit, and trout and flounder limits have changed in recent years.
This Week’s Tip
Flood-tide redfish are focused on the bottom, eating crabs, and they will not chase a bait. Cast so your fly or lure lands softly a foot or two in front of the tail and let it sit or move it an inch at a time. If the fish does not see it, wait for it to turn and try again. A cast that lands on the fish ends the game.
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