If you were fishing in Beaufort SC this March, it was a pretty good month overall with consistent action. Weather stayed fairly mild, with air temps ranging from about 45–65 degrees and water temps sitting between 50–60 for most of the month. Toward the end of March, we had a cold front move through, and that actually helped with fishing success. The fish got more active and shifted into more of a feeding mode, which made for some of the better days we saw.
Water clarity depended a lot on conditions, but on days without heavy wind or big tide swings, it cleaned up nicely and made things a lot easier. This was especially the case if we were doing any fly fishing or sight fishing. There wasn’t really a standout time of day either. Fish were feeding consistently, so we could get it done whether we were out early or later in the afternoon.
Fish Behavior
Most of the action this month was centered around redfish with a few trout mixed in. One thing that stood out to me was running into some bigger trout on the fly, which was definitely a nice bonus. On the fly side, white was by far the most productive color. It didn’t matter much what pattern; if it was white, it was getting eaten. The biggest factor day to day was just weather and water temp, which determined whether fish were grouped up tight or more spread out. Either way, we were able to stay on them and put together some solid trips. Same thing on the spin side: white artificials were the best.
Memorable Moment
One of the more memorable moments this month came on a slower redfish day when we decided to switch it up and target something different. We ended up landing a gar on the fly, which was a cool way to mix things up and knock a new species off the list. It ate a white fly too.
It was a steady, productive month and a good one as things start to warm up. This Beaufort SC fishing report shows things trending in the right direction heading into spring.
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