FishinsMyLife
Well-known member
A few days ago, I headed up the Lower Saluda River to try and hook up with a striper or two. This river is fed by the water from the bottom of Lake Murray, so the water is around 52 degrees year round. This colder temperature allows for stocked trout and smallmouth bass to survive this far south when they couldn't otherwise. The time of year was far from ideal to catch stripers because the run has been done for a while and these fish get pressured a lot in this small stretch of water, but some fish stay year round and can be caught.
After motoring upstream from the landing, we had to pull up the motor and drag the boat through some rapids. After a while more of motoring, we reached the base of the Lake Murray dam. On the drift back down to the landing, one fish took my fishing partner's cork under and then let go. Another time, a fish hit 3 times while my partner pulled the shiner out of its mouth each time. :roll: I didn't have any takers on live shiners. We used shiners instead of herring because I forgot the aerator. I had a trout up to the boat on a Rooster Tail, and I caught 2 Yellow Perch on the same bait. I also caught 1 Yellow Perch on an X-Rap.
This trip was a learning experience as I had never fished this portion of the river before. I have been told that the few stripers that have been caught were taken on cut herring or freelined herring in deep holes, so that's what I'll try next trip. I saw more trout and a big catfish while we were drifting back, so I might go for them more next trip.
Red Dot=Where we put in. This picture shows the full extent of the Lower Saluda until it merges with the Broad river.
Right where the river leaves the screen, there is a set of rapids where the biggest Brown Trout are caught, usually on cut herring. After these rapids, the Broad river comes in and the trout's range ends.
After motoring upstream from the landing, we had to pull up the motor and drag the boat through some rapids. After a while more of motoring, we reached the base of the Lake Murray dam. On the drift back down to the landing, one fish took my fishing partner's cork under and then let go. Another time, a fish hit 3 times while my partner pulled the shiner out of its mouth each time. :roll: I didn't have any takers on live shiners. We used shiners instead of herring because I forgot the aerator. I had a trout up to the boat on a Rooster Tail, and I caught 2 Yellow Perch on the same bait. I also caught 1 Yellow Perch on an X-Rap.
This trip was a learning experience as I had never fished this portion of the river before. I have been told that the few stripers that have been caught were taken on cut herring or freelined herring in deep holes, so that's what I'll try next trip. I saw more trout and a big catfish while we were drifting back, so I might go for them more next trip.
Red Dot=Where we put in. This picture shows the full extent of the Lower Saluda until it merges with the Broad river.
Right where the river leaves the screen, there is a set of rapids where the biggest Brown Trout are caught, usually on cut herring. After these rapids, the Broad river comes in and the trout's range ends.
