My neighbor, Peter Poulnot sent us these pictures. While surf fishing on the beaches in front of Cape Romain, he caught a keeper and put it on the stringer. When he wasn’t looking, a bald eagle swooped down and claimed the Red Drum for his lunch. He didn’t argue, but he got a few pictures.
Saturday October 10th, 2009 the 18th annual Josh Thomas Memorial Creek Slam was held in McClellanville, SC. We had another successful turnout with 70 boats. The weather cooperated, although there was some wind, the rain held off. Plenty of fish were caught with a surprising number of flounder, including two 6+lb’ers.
The official results are as follows:
1st Place and $1901.25 went to Ross and Oliver Thames with 10 points. They had the 2nd place (6.63 lbs) Flounder, the 3rd place Trout (2.32 lbs) and 2 bonus points for catching all three species.
2nd Place and $1140.75 went to Steve and Bailey Chapman with 9 points. The father and son Chapman team were last years winners. Their first place (6.74lbs) Flounder and 2 bonus points for catching all three gave them 9 points for a tie, but took 2nd place with their aggregate as the tie breaker.
3rd Place and $760.50 went to Tom, Tombo and Bill Milliken with 9 points. The Milliken’s are a perennial power in the CreekSlam and made another great showing this year with the largest Red Fish (5.22 lbs) as well as catching all three species.
The Josh Thomas Youth Big Fish Award went to Kacie Williams who weighed in a 5.15 lb Red Drum. Kacie won a rod and reel combo from Haddrell’s Point Tackle Shop and $100 cash presented by the Thomas Family.
The folks at Archibald Rutledge Academy would like to thank all the anglers, sponsors and volunteers that make this event possible every year.
Here are a few photos compliments of Savannah McClellan and Bud Hill:
The date has been set, so mark your calendar. The 2009 Josh Thomas Memorial Fishing Tournament will be held on October 10th, 2009.
Archibald Rutledge Academy presents the
Print out and mail in this form:Â Entry Form
The tournament starts at first light (revised from official sunrise). Low tide is at 6:44 AM, so we start fishing the incoming tide. High tide is at 1:06 PM.
2008 winners Steve and Bailey Chapman
Last year we had 85 boats and first place took home $2250, and a total of $4500 in cash awards were given out.
The allowable fishing area is bounded on the north by the South Santee River (including fishing in the river) and the South by the Isle of Plams connector bridge. Each boat fishes as a team, and weighs in the largest of each species. All fish must meet the South Carolina rules and regulations for sizes and limits.
Amounts of the winning prizes will be based on percentage of total entrance fees. First place is 25%, second place is 15%, and third place is 10%. In addition we have a youth angler prize for the angler under the age of 17 that catches, lands and weighs in the largest legal fish of any species, (not just three species of tournament but excluding rays and sharks), will win The Josh M. Thomas Youth Big Fish Award. Ties will be broken as above. Youth angler must have caught fish unassisted.
Forms are available for download here:
NOTE: Under the new SC guidelines, Red Drum are to be measured using the pinched tail method which will be followed for this event: 
Feel free to contact us with any questions.
Archibald Rutledge Academy (843) 887-3323
Thanks to our generous sponsors:
Berkeley Electric Coopererative
Bulls Bay Supply
Cape Romain Marine
Carolina Consulting Engineers
Carolina Seafood
Dentco
South Santee Aquaculture
South Carolina Sportsman
TDS Telecom
Athena Technologies
Dawson Lumber
McClellanville is the home to some of the best fishing around. With the 100,000 acre Cape Romain Wildlife Refuge, there are miles of tidal creeks and bays to choose from. On October 10th, 2009 there is the CreekSlam fishing tournament for Red Drum, Trout and Flounder.  Later in the fall the Red October Surf Fishing tournament will be held.
McClellanville has produced some terrific fishermen as well. Ben Floyd of Charleston Fish Finders offers fishing guide services in the area. Ben has been featured in Gray’s Sporting Journal: “Expeditions: The hunt for wintertime reds”. Call Ben if you’d like a great guide that knows the area, (843) 670-3123.
Another native of McClellanville and outstanding fisherman is Chris Morrison. Chris was named the IGFA Top Saltwater Guide of 2008. Offering both 
offshore and flats excursions, Chris has help numerous anglers set over 76 IGFA world records.
Chris is currently a guide in Marathon Florida (in the Keys). However he will schedule trips in the McClellanville/Charleston area when he is here. You can contact him at Phone: (305) 393 - 2353 captchris@paradisetime.com or go to his website: www.CaptChris.com.
We had great weather for Dick’s 4th annual fishing tournament. About 30 kids showed up to fish. Of course after the first 30 minutes, the dad’s did most of the fishing while the kids played with the bait, ate hot dogs and generally ran around. Everyone had a good time.
The fish were slow to bite, at first but the big catfish started biting toward the end. The Wheeler Clan came out strong anchored by Granpa Dan but became a race for the most fish between grand kids. Ben Floyd and Audrey had some last minute back and forth with some sizable catfish, with Ben pulling it out in the end. The final results were:
Biggest Fish: Ben Duncan who’s 6 lb catfish barely beat out Aurdre Cooper’s.
Most Fish: Winston Wheeler
First Fish: Francis Wheeler
KEMAH — Ben Alderman, of Mount Pleasant, S.C., and Ronnie Pitts, of McClellanville, S.C., won first place at the annual Redfish Cup tournament in Kemah on Sunday…..Click for story
Two locals, Mt P and McClellanville, win Texas Red Fish Tournament and $40,000 prize.  All of that fishing in Bulls Bay really paid off. No body told me you could make a living at that.
This is a pretty late post, but I just got around to developing the pictures. Last Fall Dick and I fished the Red October Surf Fishing tournament. It is an annual tag and release Red Drum tournament that a group of guys from Mt Pleasant put on to raise money for Joe’s Buddy. The money creates inshore reefs and help get kids fishing.
The tournament was a blast. We were delayed a couple of weeks due to severe weather, but when we finally got out there everyone caught fish. Each person is given a camera and a tape measure. You turn in you biggest three fish. There is a prize for biggest, largest total aggregate and youth angler. Despite my 42″ catch shown below I didn’t place. McClellanville resident Waring Potter had three that were all just a hair larger.
It is a great event and it is always a good day when you can spend it just standing in the surf.
Water temperatures are starting to rise. This means the flounder will start showing up again. I have some luck in the creeks, but have yet to get out and try a summertime favorite, flounder gigging. Some people call it striking, but it consists of going out at night and poling your boat or walking along the bank with a bright light and a long handled gig. As you ease down the bank you can see the faint outline of a flounder that has buried itself. They are difficult to see, but after awhile you get know what to look for. You have to quickly strike him in the head before he gets spooked. You don’t want to hit the fish in the body because it will ruin the meat. Keep the fish pinned to the ground until you can drag it to shore or lift it into the boat. It is like hunting and fishing combined, very primal and exciting.
The limits are currently seem ridiculously high at 20 fish per person and 40 maximum per boat. This is proposed and will likely change soon to 10 per person and 20 per boat. The minimum size for flounder has increased this year from 12″ to 14″ and it is tough to tell when they are under water and buried in the sand, so you must use caution.  There are also proposals for eliminating gererator powered lighting in some area, so check with DNR if you are not sure of the local regulations.
Some friends had a successful trip this week, see the pictures below. Also pictured from the USGS is a flounder buried in the sand.
McClellanville’s annual Wisteria Parade had perfect weather this year. We had a record number of kids participating. Harper Youngman was crowned queen and Sully Donnelly was crowned king of the parade.
Santee Birding and Nature Festival, April 24th, 25th & 26th
“Experience the natural wonders of the Santee region! Birding trips, canoe and kayak excursions, lake tours, butterfly and fossil walks, photography workshops, conservation exhibits, a children’s nature walk and more! Register now to enjoy the incredible wildlife and wild places of central South Carolina” Â Go to the Cape Romain Wildlife Refuge Site for more info
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