Home Care In Cherry Grove, NC

Big push inshore from wintering flounder fills smallish, shallow estuary.

Within feet of the state line, the northern end of the Grand Strand harbors a unique estuary with local and worldly significance. On a grand scale, Walter Maxwell’s 1,780-pound tiger shark — caught from a Cherry Grove pier in 1964 — remains untouched after almost 50 years, and is the only all-tackle world record from South Carolina waters. But light-tackle anglers recognize this area for an entirely different reason as April arrives. The two-lane boat ramp on the north end of 53rd Avenue in Cherry Grove gets more than its fair share of traffic, and for good reason. April means flounder around these parts, as Cherry Grove’s pocket-sized estuary fills up with hungry flounder moving in from the ocean through Hog Inlet when the rest of the region’s fishing barometer remains cold.

The Cherry Grove region has only 1,000 acres of shallow marsh between the mainland and the narrow barrier island that’s full of houses and high-rise hotels — and only 10 percent of that marsh has fishable depths for anglers with small boats. But this shallow estuary supports a tremendous invasion of flounder early in the spring when warm days become a regular happenstance.

Capt. Keith Logan of Feeding Frenzy Charters begins his spring charter season in Cherry Grove’s tepid waters. According to Logan, the regionally-unique locale is the hottest place around.

“The shallow water and protection from the wind allow the water to warm quicker than others,” said Logan (843-907-0064). “It’s shallow in there; the water will be five degrees warmer than the ICW and Little River Inlet.”

The bottom of Cherry Grove’s shallow estuary is covered with dark-colored sand and mud. On low tide, inhabitable water is restricted to the main channel and a few choice tributaries. Yet, these fish will pour into these estuaries as soon as the water temperature climbs into the mid- to upper 60s.

“Some flounder will be caught in cooler water, but 68 degrees is the key temperature to watch for and it’s when the fish start to bite well,” Logan said.

Capt. Mark Dickson of Shallow Minded Fishing Charters also participates in the spring flounder run in Cherry Grove — and in a big way.

“It’s a pretty unique place that produces a lot of fish,” said Dickson (843-458-3055). “Bring dozens of mud minnows, (because) plenty of flounder will be in there to eat them up.”

Flounder move into Cherry Grove’s estuary to feed and prepare for spawning, but they don’t all come in at once, even though it sometimes seems that with the huge numbers of fish available in spring.

“They move in from their offshore wintering grounds,” he said. “It’s mostly small fish at first, but the fish progressively get bigger as it warms up.”

As flounder arrive, they pile into the estuary’s waters, looking for a familiar place to set up for their spring feast, ambushing passing bait. While not too much of a surprise because they sport a low stature, flounder have evolved to blend in with the pluff mud and dark sand. The estuary is made of mostly shallow flats and marshland drained by a few confined channels and the main creek channel.

Dickson prefers to fish Cherry Grove on the lower end of the tide when the waters pack flounder into the deeper reaches of the sound.

“A lot of Cherry Grove is shallow and in low water, the fish will have few places to go,” he said. “Creek mouths collect fish on the falling tide in holes with six to eight feet of water.”

Dickson drops his Power-Pole and works the deep water slowly, fan-casting around. If he doesn’t get a bite in a dozen casts or so, he drifts down to the next hole and repeats the procedure.

Years of experience have taught Dickson that flounder will not move much during periods of steady current flow and will be packed together in small groups. But as soon as the current subsides to low tide, Dickson expects flounder to scatter out, looking for bait in a wide variety of places. The current packs flounder in small groups, usually against an undulation or slope along the bottom.

As the water begins to flow back into the estuary and pick up speed, Dickson will shift his position to catch the flounder as they change stance.

“As the tide begins to rise, the fish will move out of the holes and move up into the shallower places nearby,” he said.

Dickson will fish shallow places adjacent to deeper areas through a couple of hours into the rising tide. Logan also prefers to fish when the waters rise toward the high end of the tide.

“I like the two hours before and after the high tide in Cherry Grove,” he said. “The sun-baked mud flats heat up the water quickly. The top of the bars are good too.”

The solar-heated water on top of the mud and sandy flats attract any baitfish and crustaceans in the area, and flounder will take advantage of these unique places.

Typically, baitfish either swim with the current or get washed downstream by the strong currents. As a result, flounder orient facing into the current, anticipating meals gliding along with the tide. Logan uses a natural presentation of bait or lures that flounder will recognize and have no issues seeing.

“Cast upstream and work back towards the boat, bouncing along bottom and working very slow,” he said.

Logan and Dickson use a combination of live and artificial lures. Mullet minnows and peanut menhaden won’t be along until May, leaving tough-natured mud minnows as the staple live-bait option.

“We use minnow traps to catch mud minnows this time of year,” Dickson said, “but most bait shops will have minnows available in April.”

When the flounder bite hits its normal April stage, Logan said that a dozen live minnows will not last too long. He recommends bringing a few extra dozen minnows or a few packs of scented soft plastics as a backup.

“Flounder with a hearty appetite can be prolific this time of year. Never arrive without plenty of bait options,” Logan said.

For flounder, both Dickson and Logan prefer Gulp! shrimp and swimming mullet in white or new penny. While a 1/4–ounce jighead is generally preferred for Gulp! baits under these conditions, Logan employs small, white bucktail jigs tipped with Gulp! curlytails. The added hair gives these baits a realistic appearance and provide a real mouthful for flounder.

When using live bait, Dickson uses a Carolina rig with a ½- to 1-ounce weight and a No. 2, short-shanked 5180 Series Owner Hook.

DESTINATION INFORMATION

HOW TO GET THERE/WHERE TO GO: Cherry Grove’s marshes are easily-accessible from the public boat ramp at the north end of 53rd Avenue in Cherry Grove Beach. From US 17 at the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, turn onto Sea Mountain Highway and continue towards the ocean until the road runs into Ocean Drive. Turn left and proceed to 53rd Avenue. The boat ramp is at the end of the street, adjacent to the sound. Flounder will associate with the deeper channels and holes in the estuary. Fish deeper spots in the mouth of creeks and sandbars in the same immediate vicinity. All small or large channels will hold fish, as well as nearby shallows.

WHEN TO GO: While some small flounder winter in Cherry Grove’s estuary, most flounder migrate in from the ocean through Hog Inlet when water temperatures rise into the mid-to upper 60s, with 68 degrees a key temperature break. April 1 through May offers the best flounder action.

BEST BAITS/TECHNIQUES: Live mud minnows are the staple live-bait choice during the spring flounder run in Cherry Grove, but any live minnow, including mullet minnows, peanut menhaden and small croakers will produce. Bring lots of bait. Use small Carolina rigs with 1/2- to 1-ounce egg sinkers to get the baits to the bottom and a No. 2 5180 Series Owner Hook. Artificial lures will fare well, with scented soft plastics like Gulp! shrimp and swimming mullet in white and new penny fished on 1/8- to 1/4-ounce jigheads or bucktails. Fan-cast to deep holes and adjacent areas, casting upstream and working baits or lures slowly downstream. Baits can also be drifted or trolled downstream in the current at very slow speeds. Cherry Grove is littered with boat docks; fish the ones close to deeper water.

GUIDES/FISHING INFO: Capt. Mark Dickson, Shallow Minded Inshore Charters, 843-458-3055 or www.fishmyrtlebeach.com; Capt. Keith Logan, Feeding Frenzy Charters, 843-907-0064 or www.northmyrtlebeachfishingcharters.com; Fish-On Outfitters (843-249-2600). See also Guides & Charters in Classifieds.

ACCOMMODATION: Cherry Grove’s Public Information Portal, www.cherrygrovesc.info; Myrtle Beach Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, www.mbchamber.com; South Carolina Association of Visitors Bureaus, www.discoversouthcarolina.com.

MAPS: Navionics, www.navionics.com, 800-848-5896; 800-423-9026; Maps Unique, www.mapsunique.com, 910-458-9923.

Try this quartet of great spots to put some nice flounder in your cooler as fishing kicks off in the Carolinas this month, with summer just around the corner.

Flounder are arguably the most-recognizable inshore fish on the east coast. For die-hard anglers, they can be targeted every month of the year in the waters of both Carolinas, from brackish ecosystems to nearshore ocean reefs.

The inshore fishery that’s within reach of small boats fires off hot late in the spring and early in the summer, and that’s great for fishermen within a short drive of the North Carolina and South Carolina coasts, which have nutrient-rich estuaries that provide some of the best fishing through the flatfish’s range.

The National Marine Fisheries Service reported that commercial fishermen brought to the dock more than 3 million pounds of flounder caught in North Carolina waters during the 2016 reporting period, making the Tarheel State the No. 1 flounder-producing state in the nation, with almost 40-percent of the entire U.S. commercial harvest. The majority comes from the huge inland sounds for which North Carolina is famous, the Pamlico and Albemarle.

While South Carolina may lack a 3,000-square mile Albemarle-Pamlico inland estuary, the Palmetto State has plenty of excellent flounder habitat from Little River to the Savannah River supports a generous recreational and commercial creel limit in spades.

Late spring and early summer is prime time for recreational fishermen to target flounder, which are turning on after a long winner. While they live in just about every estuary, creek or bay along the coast of both states, several ares are known locally or regionally as hot spots for flounder.

Pamlico Sound

To begin with, North Carolina’s Pamlico Sound is one of the best and most-diverse flounder habitats anywhere and No. 1 on North Carolina’s hit list for spring/summer flounder.

This sprawling are of water contains endless, pristine flounder habitat with a massive forage base to support it. Dave Stewart of Knee Deep Custom Fishing Charters in Minnesott Beach, N.C., said fishing takes off near the mouth of the Neuse River as soon as the water warms up to around 70 degrees.

“We have a lot of flounder that winter in the deep water in the river,” said Stewart (252-670-2841). “When the water temperatures rise above 70 degrees, they move shallow and start looking for food.”

The sound supports an overwintering population of summer flounder in its deep areas; the amount of deep water supports a far larger winter population than other areas.

Stewart starts looking for flounder in places where they’re rarely found during mid-summer.

“In the early season, they will be along deep marshes and creek mouths on oyster beds, shoals along deep channels, rock piles, jetties and on points of marsh islands — all near deep water. It will not be until later in the summer (that) they get up on the shoreline to feed in the super-shallow water,” said Stewart, who will fish anywhere inside the crab-pot line from Cedar Island all the way to the Pamlico River.

According to Stewart, flounder will feed on small fish, small shrimp and even worms. As a result, his primary lures are soft plastics rigged on light jigheads or screwlock, weighted swimbait hooks.

“D.O.A.’s 4-inch shad tails or 3-inch shrimp — in white — work well for flounder, and D.O.A.’s new Sna-Koil dredged along the shoreline is a hot lure for flounder. They’ve been devastating it,” he said.

Roanoke Island

Roanoke Island is at the northern end of the Pamlico Sound, straddling the Croatan and Roanoke sounds with direct access to the Atlantic Ocean through Oregon Inlet. The area between the sounds is practically a funnel for baitfish and shrimp and has perfect habitat for flounder.

Guide Bryan DeHart said flounder fishing can be great in May and June if you can get in the path of their migration.

“In May and early June, our fish show up in waves and are moving through, feeding along the way to their summer places. They are transitional fish this time of year,” said DeHart (252-473-8632), “but the fishing can be consistent when you figure out their pattern on that day.”

One of the characteristics that make this estuary unique is the lack of a discernible tide. Flounder and other predators don’t get the luxury of setting up along a heavy current seam to feed. They must learn how to seek out bait and other forage outside of a tidal dynamic.

“We have wind-driven tides, and fish will position around points and shoreline structure to ambush incoming bait,” said DeHart, who concentrates along marsh shorelines with various types of bottom, including the 3-foot, cut banks and the sandy banks next to marsh points.

“I fish various areas until I find a pattern. I work banks methodically like a bass fisherman,” he said. “One of my most-important keys for catching spring flounder is the presence of bait. I bounce around to different habitats until you find spots with bait and there will be a good chance flounder will be there.”

Scented soft plastics dredged along the bottom are DeHart’s choice for spring and summer flounder lure options.

“I like Gulp or any other scented, soft plastic, but a Z-Man Diesel Minnow with Pro-Cure (scent) is hard to beat for flounder, too,” he said.

Little River

Little River Inlet and the marshes at Cherry Grove just south of the North Carolina/South Carolina border are prime hot spots that draw flounder anglers from both states.

Tom Cushman of Cush’s Calmwater Fishing Charters fills most of his spring inshore fishing charters with sizeable limits of doormat flounder.

“May and June are the peak months for our spring flounder fishing. We catch big numbers of fish this time of year,” said Cushman (843-997-5850). “Fish are moving in from offshore and into our inlets in waves, usually around the big tides from full moons.”

Being based out of North Myrtle Beach, S.C., Cushman can easily fish Cherry Grove and Little River in South Carolina, estuaries that are relatively small compared to larger ones associated with larger river systems. The small estuaries are inviting to baitfish, shrimp and inshore migrations of flounder.

“Flounder are aggressively feeding and moving inshore in large schools of similar size,” he said. “You will catch 30 to 40 12-inch fish one day and then go back the next day and catch 16 to 22-inch fish. When the schools move in, it’s exciting, especially when you catch a big fish early in the day — you know it’s going to be a good day,” he said.

Cushman starts in the main channels at Cherry Grove and then shifts to Little River as the water heats up, fishing around oyster bars and creek mouths. But he will stay on the move if the fish aren’t in a particular spot.

“Flounder aren’t sitting still this time of year. They are moving around with the tide and setting up in places the bait will come to them,” said Cushman, who targets places where the sand hits oyster bars near a drop-off, such as a creek drain with an oyster bar located along the edges. He prefers to fish the last two hours of the falling tide and the first two hours of the rise.

Live mud minnows are Cushman’s primary offering for flounder, but he will use finger mullet or peanut pogies when available. He also likes Gulp soft plastics in the spring and early summer.

“Flounder will inhale a 3-inch Gulp shrimp or curlytail mullet. They love scented lures in white,” he said.

Murrells Inlet

The small fishing village of Murrells Inlet south of Myrtle Beach receives very little exposure from tourists, but the pint-sized estuary packs a big punch for flounder in late spring and early summer. thanks to its ideal saltwater flow.

“Murrells Inlet is an anomaly. We have the right bottom here — unlike the inlets to the south of us with unconsolidated pluff mud,” said J Baisch of Fishfull Thinking Guide Service. We have hard mud and sand mostly. Also, we don’t have any freshwater feeding our estuary, and there is something about salt-in and salt-out this time of the year.”

Flounder prefer to enter Murrells Inlet early in the season. While freshwater inputs in brackish systems can offer baitfish and shrimp nutritional benefits, estuaries with a high saline content provide incoming life with similar water chemistry as in the ocean, which is preferred during the spring return.

Because it can still be cool in May, flounder will choose areas where the sun can warm the waters.

“I prefer to fish lower tides and moving water,” said Baisch (843-902-0356). “My favorite time is a good low tide in the afternoon when the sun heats up the hard mud and dark-colored oysters. But I will fish about any tide this time of year, because when the fish arrive, they are aggressive and ready to eat no matter what the tide is.”

Baisch fishes places along main-channel banks near the inlet as well as creek mouths and the edges of flats near deep channels with dark-colored bottoms with abundant oysters. Flounder will stage up on the edge of structure, waiting for food to be swept past. Live minnows fished on a jighead are his go-to baits.

Small estuary gives up big flatfish this time of year

Many inshore anglers begin the spring fishing season in small inlets and estuary areas for one of the most targeted of all inshore species, the flounder.

For anglers living close to the North Carolina/South Carolina border, the pint-sized estuary known as Cherry Grove is dead center for a spring flounder smackdown. And after the completion of the monumental dredging project, Cherry Grove’s bite is one to remember.

In 2016 and 2017, 165,000 cubic yards of dredged material was removed from 24 man-made canals between 42nd Avenue North to 62nd Avenue North in the Cherry Grove section of North Myrtle Beach.

Tom Cushman of Cush’s Calmwater Fishing Charters said the dredging opened up and created more habitat for flounder.

“Last year was the first full season since the dredging,” said Cushman (843-997-5850). “The dredging offers more places for bait and flounder to hold at low tide.”

Typically, Cushman concentrates on the deeper sections to catch spring flounder.

“Cherry Grove is a shallow estuary, and we catch the most spring fish in the channel when they are migrating in,” he said. “The new, deep-water canals give us places to fish outside of the main channel at low tide when the fishing is usually the best.”

As flounder move in, they arrive famished. Cushman will drift the main channel with several rods rigged with live mud minnows on Carolina rigs or flounder rigs with gold Kahle-style flounder hooks on the incoming and outgoing tides. He will fish through both the high and low tides this time of year.

Mud minnows are abundant in the creeks as spring arrives. Anglers can set minnow traps or pick up a few dozen from the local bait shops.

Cushman will also fish off his own dock, which happens to sit right on the edge of a bend in the channel, close to two large oyster banks.

“I catch 5- to 6-pounders off that dock every year,” he said. “You don’t have to have a boat to catch quality and nice quantities of fish in Cherry Grove when the action is hot in the spring.”

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