Savannah River Early Summer Bite: Reds and Trout on the Falling Tide

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Savannah River fishing report for the Georgia–South Carolina line. We’re sitting on a warming early‑summer pattern. Around Savannah, the National Weather Service is calling for morning temps in the low 70s climbing into the mid to upper 80s this afternoon, light southwest breeze around 5–10 knots, and only a slight chance of a pop‑up shower inland. Humidity’s up there, so expect that heavy, muggy river air. Sunrise over the river was right around 6:18 a.m., with sunset near 8:30 p.m. That gives you long low‑light windows; first light to about 9 a.m. and then 6:30 p.m. to dark should be prime. NOAA tide tables for the Savannah River entrance show an early morning high followed by a late‑morning falling tide and another high toward evening. That mid‑falling tide is your money window for pushing bait off the edges of the grass, especially around creek mouths and shell points. Recent reports from local shops along Highway 17 and around Port Wentworth say the **redfish** bite has been steady with slot fish holding on the shell bars and flooded grass edges on the Georgia side, and in the smaller feeder creeks on the South Carolina side. Folks are picking up half‑dozen to a dozen reds on a good half‑day when they hit the moving water right. **Speckled trout** catches have been a little spottier but improving; anglers drifting deeper bends and main‑river drops with live shrimp under popping corks are getting 5–10 keeper trout mixed with shorts. There’ve been **flounder** taken off sandy points and dock pilings, mostly smaller but with the occasional 18‑ to 20‑inch fish. Farther upriver, around the rice canals and the fresher stretches, locals are still into **striped bass** and **largemouth** early and late. A few nice schoolie stripers in the 3–8 pound range have come on topwater walkers and small swimbaits worked around current breaks and bridge pilings. Best producers right now: - For reds and trout: live shrimp or mud minnows under a popping cork, 18–24 inch leader to a 2/0 circle hook. Artificial‑wise, 3–4 inch paddle‑tail plastics in new penny, opening night, or natural mullet on a 1/8–1/4 oz jighead have been hot. - For flounder: mud minnows or finger mullet on a Carolina rig bounced slowly along sandy drops and the edges of docks. - For stripers: white or shad‑pattern swimbaits, small bucktail jigs tipped with soft plastics, and walking topwaters at first and last light. - If the water’s stained, go with darker plastics and add a little scent; if it’s clearer on the incoming, natural colors and lighter leaders help. A couple of local hot spots to consider: - **Elba Island and the nearby creek mouths**: work the shell bars and grass edges on the falling tide for reds and trout, especially where you see bait dimpling or birds picking. - **Back River and Lazaretto Creek area**: good mix of reds, trout, and flounder; target bends with visible shell and docks that sit right on the current. If you push farther upriver, the **Hutchinson Island bridges and pilings** can hold stripers when the current’s ripping. Given today’s conditions, I’d fish topwater or shallow‑running plugs at first light around points and grass, switch to popping corks and jigheads as the sun gets up and the tide starts to fall, then slide to deeper bends or structure mid‑day. Save some energy for that evening high and work the flooded grass for tailing reds with weedless plastics or live bait. That’s the word from Artificial Lure on the Savannah River. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next report. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn