| Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie are where crappie, | | | | 40s, guides and local anglers have sunk their own |
| largemouth, striper and monster catfish are | | | | structure to create their personal honey holes. |
| hunted by anglers in the know when they take to | | | | Consequently, it only takes a short run by boat to |
| the water in South Carolina. There is plenty of | | | | find productive water. |
| room for all comers; Marion covers 110,000 acres | | | | If you hire a guide you can expect to pay for it. |
| while Moultrie weighs in at 60,400 acres. | | | | Unless you've got very deep pockets you might |
| Now, these lakes weren't always what they are | | | | want to consider using a guide the first day to |
| now. As a matter of fact, they were not there | | | | get a feel for the lay of the water and then take |
| at all. They were created when the Santee River | | | | it from there for the rest of your trip. |
| and the Cooper River were dammed. This | | | | For two people you can expect to pony up $150 |
| occurred in the 1940s and as little as twenty | | | | to $280 depending on if you furnish your own bait |
| years later the lakes had already gained a | | | | lures and tackle or leave that up to the guide. |
| reputation as a crappie fishing hot spot. | | | | Accordingly, the fee for 6 people can be as steep |
| Types of Fish in the Santee Cooper Arena | | | | as $480. So you see, how much you rely on the |
| Of course it's become a haven for trophy | | | | guide service or your own adventuresome spirit |
| Crappie, or "papermouths", as they are commonly | | | | determines how you structure your trip. |
| referred to. But don't be surprised if you reel in a | | | | When and Where to Fish for Crappie |
| monster catfish. These range from five pounders | | | | Although crappie can be caught year round, the |
| up to fifty pounds, rivaling anything caught in the | | | | most productive time starts in early March and |
| Mississippi or anywhere else for that matter. Try | | | | ends in mid December. Crappie have their |
| putting one of those babies in your pan. | | | | temperature comfort zone and they try to stick |
| But crappies are what we are talking about and | | | | to it while staying in structure. This has them |
| the best way to fill the boat with keepers. This | | | | moving deeper and the temperatures fall and |
| won't be hard to do in these two lakes if you can | | | | then moving back closer to shore as spring |
| just find them. | | | | approaches. |
| How to find Keeper Crappie | | | | As the weather warms, crappie start getting |
| Crappie like to hang out in and around underwater | | | | ready for spawning. They spawn in structure in |
| structure. If you are not familiar with the Santee | | | | the shallow water, depositing eggs in structure for |
| Cooper lakes, consider using a fish finder to reveal | | | | the safety of the eggs and the subsequent |
| underwater structure. The lakes are fairly dense | | | | minnows. After depositing the eggs they will |
| with it. In the first place, the damming of the | | | | move back into slightly deeper water. |
| rivers and subsequent flooding left plenty of | | | | Once they begin spawning, the best place to fish |
| growth underwater. In addition to that, since the | | | | is where permanent grass might be found. |