Savannah River Summer Bite: Falling Tides, Reds, and Early Morning Glory

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Savannah River fishing report for the stretch around Savannah, Port Wentworth, and up toward Rincon and Bluffton on the South Carolina side. We’re working a **morning falling tide**, with high just before daybreak at the mouth and water draining out through late morning. Farther upriver around Houlihan Bridge and Augusta Road, that tide will lag a bit. A dropping tide has been pulling bait off the grass edges and out of the small creeks, so current seams and creek mouths have been the money zones. Weather’s been **warm and sticky**, classic lowcountry early summer. Light southwest breeze, mostly clear skies, highs pushing upper 80s to low 90s by afternoon. Humidity’s up, water temps sitting in the upper 70s to low 80s in the main river. Sunrise came in early, with sunset on the late side, giving a long low‑light window at both ends of the day. That dawn and last‑light bite has definitely outperformed the bright mid‑day sun. Fish activity’s been good when that tide is moving. In the lower river and sounds, anglers this past week have been reporting **slot redfish** cruising grassy points and shell bars, with **speckled trout** hanging on deeper bends and along drop‑offs off the ICW and main river edges. There’ve been **flounder** picked up around dock pilings, rocky edges, and the mouths of little feeder creeks. Folks drifting deeper holes and ledges in the main Savannah River channel have been into **blue catfish** and **channel cats**, with the occasional big **flathead** showing up after dark. Inshore guys working from Elba Island down toward the mouth have been catching mixed bags: a handful to a dozen trout in a morning when the tide cooperates, a couple reds, and a flounder or two. Upriver, catfish numbers have been stronger than anything else: it’s not unusual to put 10–20 eaters in the boat on cut bait if you sit on them and let the scent work. Best lures right now: - For reds and trout: **quarter‑ounce jig heads with 3–4 inch paddle tails** in natural bait colors, and **shrimp‑pattern soft plastics** under popping corks. - For flounder: **Gulp‑style scented jerk shads** dragged slowly along the bottom. - For cats: heavy **slip sinker rigs** with big hooks and **fresh cut mullet, shad, or bluegill**. Live bait is still king if you can get it. **Live shrimp**, **mud minnows**, and **finger mullet** fished on a Carolina rig or under a cork around grass lines, dock pilings, and oyster points have been drawing consistent bites. At night for catfish, switch to fresh cut bait; stink baits haven’t matched fresh cut in the main river current. A couple of local hot spots to circle on your mental map: - **Elba Island area and the bends just upriver of the Talmadge Bridge**: good current breaks, dock lines, and shell edges for reds, trout, and flounder on a moving tide. - **Houlihan Bridge and the deep holes just above and below it**: strong catfish action, plus a shot at stripers around current seams, especially early or late in the day. Work that moving water, keep an eye out for bait flipping on the surface and birds dipping, and don’t be afraid to hop spots every 20–30 minutes until you find active fish. Thanks for tuning in to this Savannah River fishing report. Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next update. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn