FISHING GUIDE · SOUTH CAROLINA

Santee Cooper Lakes (Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie) Fishing Guide

Santee Cooper is famous for giant catfish, landlocked striped bass, slab crappie and big largemouth bass. Lake Marion is shallow and full of cypress trees and stumps, while Lake Moultrie is more open and deeper. It is one of the best catfish lakes in the country.

📍 South Carolina, between Columbia and Charleston. Nearest towns: Santee, Summerton and Manning (Lake Marion); Moncks Corner and Bonneau (Lake Moultrie).

📅 South Carolina Fishing Calendar — best months, closed seasons, bait & rigs →

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)

Open the full Southeast Lakes map →

Quick facts

Lake Marion covers about 110,600 acres and Lake Moultrie about 60,400 acres; a 6.5-mile Diversion Canal joins them.
The lakes were built from 1939 to 1942 for hydroelectric power.
Home of a 58-pound world record channel catfish.
South Carolina state records from these lakes include a 109.4-pound blue catfish and a 77.3-pound flathead catfish.
The lakes do not freeze, so fishing goes year-round.

What you can catch

blue catfish
Fish of 40-45 pounds are common; cut herring or shad in deep holes and drop-offs.
channel and flathead catfish
World and state record water; bottom fishing year-round.
striped bass
Landlocked stripers; harvest season Oct. 1 to June 15 only, with a slot limit.
largemouth bass
Cypress trees and stumps on Marion; 14-inch minimum size.
crappie
Brush piles and dead trees; spring spawn late February to May.
bream (bluegill and redear)
Bedding on full moons in spring and summer; crickets and worms.
white bass
Schools on sandy points in April-May and August-September.

Month by month

January	Crappie schooled deep; slow live minnows. Bass deep with jigs and spoons. Stripers on big shiners in deep water.
February	Crappie start moving to creek mouths late in the month; drift minnows. Catfish steady.
March	Crappie spawn begins in brush 2-12 feet. Stripers run up the Congaree and Wateree rivers. Bass move shallow.
April	Largemouth spawn in 1-5 feet. Crappie and white bass strong. Blue catfish season heats up.
May	Bream bed on the full moon and during mayfly hatches. Bass post-spawn; crappie finishing.
June	Striper harvest closes June 16. Bass on deep ledges midday, shallow early and late. Catfish strong.
July	Catfish in deep holes with cut herring or shad. Crappie 20-40 feet around trees and brush.
August	Hot-weather catfish; white bass schooling on points. Bass early and late.
September	Catfish steady. White bass on sandy points. Watch for schooling fish late in the month.
October	Striper season reopens Oct. 1; schools chase shad to the surface (watch for diving gulls). Crappie move a bit shallower.
November	Stripers schooling; topwater, spoons and bucktails. Bass shallow around cypress and tupelo.
December	Stripers deep on large shiners. Crappie and bass slow down and move deep.

Tips

Lake Marion is full of stumps and standing timber; stay in marked channels and assume any route can hit a stump.
When chasing striper schools, do not run your boat over the fish and give other boats room.
Wind on Lake Moultrie can build big waves because it is about 14 miles across.
Cantey Bay, Black Bottom and Savannah Branch on Lake Marion are closed to all boats and fishing Nov. 1 through Feb. 28.
Terns can look like gulls from far away and often are not over stripers; get closer before you commit.

Rules and license

South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) · Official rules page ↗

Striped and hybrid bass (Santee River system, including Lakes Marion and Moultrie): 3 per day, Oct. 1 to June 15 only. Fish must be 23 to 25 inches, except one may be over 26 inches. Season closed June 16 to Sept. 30.
Blue catfish: 25 per day on Lakes Marion and Moultrie, and no more than 2 over 32 inches per day (effective May 15, 2026).
Largemouth bass: 14-inch minimum on Marion and Moultrie; 5 black bass per day combined.
Crappie: 20 per day, 8-inch minimum. Total game fish limit is 40 per day.
No trotlines, traps or eel pots within 200 yards of any permanent man-made structure on the lakes, or anywhere in the Diversion Canal, Tailrace Canal or Bar Pit.

Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 33 boat ramps and 0 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Augustus M. Flood, Jr. boat landing
Low Falls Landing

Sources

Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.