Warmer skies sparks a trip for season’s first inshore slam

Last week, I set a goal to catch my first inshore slam of the year.  

To do this, I needed to catch and release a trout, flounder, and redfish in a single day of fishing. 

When the water temperature approaches 60 degrees, flounder become more abundant in our rivers and creeks. With warm weather forecast for every day of the week, I had a decent shot at completing the inshore slam. 

On Saturday, Brody (the amazing fish-finding and stock-trading dog), Elliott (my son), and I set out on our quest for the slam. We launched the skiff into the last hour of the falling tide. Our plan was to release a trout before slack tide, then focus on redfish and flounder at dead low tide. 

I caught a trout on my third cast of the trip. It fell for a Finesse TRD on a 1/10 ounce jig. The trout bite was solid, but we left them biting to target redfish and flounder. 

We moved to a shallow area with a channel between several oyster bars. Mud minnows and finger mullet were hanging out over the oysters, and a school of redfish was in the channel. The reds were not particularly large, but they would count towards our inshore slam. 

I cast my Finesse TRD to the school of redfish and accidentally caught a flounder. We took a few pictures of the fish and released it. Brody quickly relocated the redfish, and we completed the inshore slam in record time: a little less than an hour. 

With the inshore slam complete, I asked Brody what to do next. Keep fishing or go to Orlando’s for a celebratory pizza? Brody emphatically voted for pizza and beer! 

COMMUNITY FISHING CLASS 

Location: Providence Church on Daniel Island 

Date: Saturday, March 28, 10 a.m. to noon 

Topic: How to locate fish and techniques to catch them 

Thanks to Providence Church, we now have a few more seats available. If you would like to attend the class, please send me an email at captgregp@gmail.com.