I think most of us fisher-people can trace our roots to fishing for bream in a lake, river or pond. Last weekend we returned to Ralph’s roots, growing up fishing the blackwater rivers just like he did as a young boy with his brother Danny and their dad and “Pop-Pop”. We chose to go to the Combahee river in Yemassee for our journey. It’s an absolutely beautiful place. Once you get a few turns away from the landing you can’t hear any sounds of civilization; just cicadas, birds, etc. Many in these rivers are fishing for largemouth bass, but we chose to keep it slow and simple, just drifting downriver and casting beetle-spins tipped with a cricket “rider”. Just cast as close to structure as you can and give a slow retrieve with an occasional pause. The bream (bluegill, redbreast and warmouth) will hit the lure hard – there is no mistaking the strike.
It’s a fun change of pace from the familiar saltwater fishing that we do most of the time. Hope you enjoy this video, perhaps it will stoke some memories of your fishing roots.
Blackwater Roots from RalphPhillipsInshore on Vimeo.