Stuck in the Mud

February fishing was very slow and unproductive. I caught only a few fish which I released, like this shrimp-loving Flounder

as well as some Black Drum at Edisto Beach State Park, South Carolina.

After Edisto Beach, we traveled north up the coast and camped at Huntington Beach State Park in Murrells Inlet, South Carolina. I fished the jetty at the beach last year with some luck, but this year got skunked completely. The water was still too cold.

Disappointed but not defeated, my friend, Rick Lopez, and I took another approach and tried our hand at harvesting shellfish instead. Since there was a non-commercial clam and oyster bed at Murrells Inlet, we took our boots and digging tools and ventured through the mud at low tide. His wife, Barbara, joined us too.

Murrells Inlet clam / oyster beds (photo by Rick Lopez)

Within a couple of hours, we harvested a 5 gallon pail of clams and another of oysters. Not bad, considering we were all complete novices. All of us got stuck in the deep mud, but were able to eventually pull ourselves out.  We celebrated my birthday with them - yum!

Oysters in the cooler / Clams in the pail (photo by Rick Lopez)

Raw oysters with hot sauce, horseradish, lemon and cocktail sauce

We returned the empty shells to the Oyster Recycling Center at Murrells Inlet.

Rick Lopez and me at the Oyster Recycling Center.

The empty shells are returned to the mud flats so the baby oysters in the beds can grow. They depend on the calcium of the empty shells. Healthy oyster beds help to create healthy fish populations as well.

An impressive and stinky mound of oyster shells

Now, I'm up in the Smoky Mountains in Marshall, North Carolina. The mighty French Broad River runs right through the town. Spring has sprung, flowers are out and mud season is here. How's the fishing? Too soon to tell, so check back for more updates!