The most frustrating feeling while fishing comes when I am doing everything right but still not catching fish, while someone nearby is effortlessly catching fish using the exact same bait. This was the case on each of our three previous experiences on the Saluda River. We fished hard each time, and I could always find someone who knew how to play the striper’s game. We were always sure to observe and approach the successful anglers to ask for some tips when there was an opportunity.
Dawson Jordan and I spent the night debating over a plan for our 4th trip to the Saluda. Dawson wanted to fish where the Saluda and Broad Rivers meet which forms the Congaree River while I wanted to fish from my canoe and work my way down the Saluda River.
Ryan Stephens, Daniel Camp, Dawson Jordan, Charlee Rhodes, and I left Dillon at 4 a.m., bound for the Saluda River. Dawson dropped Charlee and myself off at Mills Race Rapids and he drove down to where he, Ryan, and Daniel wanted to fish. We launched my canoe before sunrise while a thick fog blanketed the river. The river’s flow was 1,062 cubic feet per second which was less than the flow from my last time paddling here. Charlee and I paddled the canoe full speed into the rapid and followed the initial course successfully. I was watching the main current and turned my paddle to make the next turn but we overshot the turn. In a hurry, we chose an alternate course which led to a rock. The bow of the canoe dove and Charlee was pitched into the river. She went one way and the paddle went the other way. The canoe was wedged into the rocks so we had a moment to get things under control. I pulled Charlee back aboard and we paddled the remainder of the rapid. The boat was full of water so we paddled to shore to reorganize and also to get our paddle back.
The worst was behind us, and we dropped anchor to fish the rapid’s current. Some big striper like to congregate around the flow of a rapid to eat the disoriented bait that might have been sucked through. A cool refreshing wind could be felt coming off of the moving rapid water and the fog still hung low. Several fisherman approached the bank and three kayakers launched below the rapids.
Charlee and I tried fishing with heavy plastic swim baits, rattle traps, and crank-baits but none of the options were enough to rouse a strike from a striper. Charlee pulled the anchor and we made our way downstream to keep fishing, passing one small rapid along the way.
The three kayakers who we saw before were here and one of the men was fighting a striper. He landed the fish, took a picture and released it as we are not allowed to keep fish in this section of river during the summer. He tossed an empty coffee can to me, and I bailed the water while he told us about how he caught the fish. I mimicked his fluke lure and as I fished, he proceeded to land 2 more stripers. I was getting frustrated because I felt like I was doing the exact same thing but the striper were not interested.
Having a rapid above and below us, we wanted to fish each spot thoroughly because there is no returning once we move down the next rapid. Charlee and I drifted with the current, casting and retrieving our lines, then would paddle up river when nearing the end of our section. As we paddled up river, both of our lines were being pulled behind us.
We repeated the process several times and I was paddling up river when Charlee’s rod snapped tight. We thought that she was hung on a rock at first but the rod tip was bouncing and there it was, a swirl on the surface behind the boat.
Never before had greater importance rested on the catching of a single fish. This striper was our first River striper, Charlee’s first fish, and none of the guys down river would believe it. I spun the boat to face down river and we followed the striper. Charlee kept pressure on the fish and we finally had the fish in the boat.
Meanwhile on the Congaree River, Ryan, Dawson, and Daniel were struggling to hold their position in the swift current and the muddy water was creating less than ideal fishing circumstances. Ryan called at 9:30 to ask about our water. I told him that we had clear water and caught a striper. Hearing this, Ryan rallied Dawson and Daniel to paddle up River to the Saluda River.
Charlee and I continued to crack down on the stripers. We drifted down river casting and reeling through the current, or casting at the bank and under the brush. I could see stripers come out from under the shade and viciously attack a lure. It is so exciting to see them strike that I sometimes set the hook before allowing time for the fish to eat the lure. One fish followed Charlee’s fluke up to the boat striking and missing each time. One important thing to remember when you see fish following your lure is not to change the rate of retrieval. Bait does not swim slower when it is being stalked, and the fish will be able to catch the bait if it really wants to.
Each time we drifted to the end of the smooth water, we would paddle back up river trolling with two lines behind us to maximize fishing time. I packed plenty of water because the the sun came out and the late morning was hot. Two Cokes floated up to us from out of nowhere and Charlee and I took a break to enjoy a drink. We think that someone flipped along the way and lost their drinks. While I enjoyed my Coke, I couldn’t help but to think of Dawson and imagine what the rest of our group was going through down river…
Ryan screamed out encouragement as Dawson and Daniel paddled against the mighty Congaree. They pulled their kayaks out on the west shore and carried the kayaks, tackle, rods, and food on the walking trail for a quarter mile and then climbed back in the cockpit to paddle when the trail came to an end. From there, they spent the next hour and a half paddling up river through many riffles and small rapids. Sometimes the path was obstructed by rocks and they carried the boats over the rocks to get up river. The group was already exhausted when they reached the Shandon Rapids and Ryan paddled into the Rapids first, followed by Daniel. Ryan made it past a swift current and rested in an eddy behind a rock where the current was slack. When he paddled into the rapid to go further, he was overcome by the current, sweeping him back into Daniel. Both kayaks turned broadside as they were swept out of the rapid and nearly hit Dawson as he darted behind a rock. Dawson concluded that the effort was hopeless and they paddled to the starting point to take a car to my position.
Meanwhile up river, Charlee and I had caught 7 stripers and we decided to paddle to a rock for a break. I cooked MRE meals and we could hear the howling baboons and elephants from the zoo. I always get a feeling that I am in Africa when I paddle this river.
Dawson, Ryan, and Daniel launched their boats into the clear Saluda water above Mills Race Rapid. There, Dawson finally landed the largest fish of the day, and Ryan caught a striper right before he had to leave. They made their way back to the car and drove down river to the point on the Congaree where we had originally planned for both groups to meet.
Charlee and I paddled down stream to meet up with the rest of the group at about noon and passed countless tubers along the way. One tuber warned us about the danger of paddling through Shandon Rapids but after handling Mills Race Rapids, there was nothing left for us to worry about.
At this point, the river more than tripled in size as we came into the confluence of the Broad and Saluda Rivers which forms the Congaree River.
I noticed a similar occurrence here as I had seen at the Pee Dee Confluence four years ago. The clear Saluda River and the muddy Broad River create a line in the river where the warm muddy water remains on one side, and the cold clear water is on the Saluda side.
It took some distance for the waters from the two rivers to mix and I was surprised at how long it took for the temperature on each side to blend. We paddled down the Congaree through several smaller riffles in the water to where Dawson was waiting with the car.
Learning the secret to catching striped bass on the Saluda River took several trips, but I consider a fishing trip to be successful as long as I learned something about the fish that will help me on a future trip.
Whether that knowledge is learned from a more experienced fisherman or by trial and error, a fisherman can always improve their strategy.
The Saluda River is unique for its area in having cold water with rocks and rapids. There are few places outside of the mountains where trout, stripers, cold water, and rapids exist in such an easy to reach place as downtown Columbia, and it is well worth the trip to explore.