Savannah River Fishing Report: Tides, Trout, Reds, and Lures for a Mild Winter Day

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Savannah River fishing report. We’re sitting on a **big winter tide swing** this morning. Tides4Fishing’s Savannah chart shows an early **low around sunrise**, then a strong **midday high around 8½–9 feet**, easing back toward a modest evening low. That means a good push of current on the flood, then a softer fall late day. Best bite lines up with that late‑morning to early‑afternoon flood and again near sunset as the water tops out. Sun pops up about **7:30 AM** and drops around **5:40 PM**, so your sweet spots are the mid‑morning warming window and that last couple hours of daylight when the river slicks off a bit. Weather-wise, marine forecasts out of Savannah call for **light east winds around 5 knots and 1–2 ft seas just offshore**, with high pressure parked over the area. Inshore that translates to **mild, above‑normal temps, light breeze, and dry conditions**—classic “foggy early, pretty by lunch” winter pattern. According to Coastal River Charters’ latest Savannah report, yesterday produced **“a bunch of sea trout and some reds on a mild foggy winter day.”** That lines up with what most local boys are seeing: - **Speckled trout** stacked in deeper bends and around shell and rock. - **Slot reds** cruising edges of grass, shell bars, and dock lines on the middle of the tide. - A few **stripers** and bigger **redfish** showing farther upriver and around structure when the current eases. On **lures**, keep it simple and local: - For trout: 1/8–3/16 oz jighead with a **3–4" paddletail or fluke in opening night, electric chicken, or new penny**, slow‑rolled just off bottom. - For reds: **Quarter‑ounce jig with a Z‑Man or Gulp shrimp**, or a **gold spoon** slow and steady along shell and grass. - For upriver stripers: **white or chartreuse bucktail**, or a **small squarebill/medium crank** bounced through current breaks. Best **baits** right now: - **Live shrimp** under a popping cork along ICW banks and creek mouths for trout and mixed bag. - **Mud minnows** or small **finger mullet** on a Carolina rig or jig for reds when shrimp are scarce. - **Cut mullet or menhaden** on the bottom for big winter reds on the lower river edges. A couple of **hot spots** to circle on your map: - **Savannah River Entrance & jetties:** Work the inside edges and rock pockets on the last of the incoming for trout and reds; slide to the calmer lee side on the first of the fall. - **Back River / Little Back River around Hwy 17 and Port Wentworth:** Good winter staging water, steady current with breaks, and plenty of dock and shell structure for trout, reds, and the occasional striper. Overall **activity** is fair but very patternable: slower right at dead low, then a clear pickup as that strong flood moves bait and the sun gets on the water. Slow your retrieve, hug the breaks, and let that current do the work. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next rep This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.