Myrtle Beach Fishing - Charters & Piers

Some of the best fishing is done off the coast of South Carolina where local fishermen work year-round. In winter, they do "commercial" fishing, meaning the captains and their crews catch all the fish themselves, which they sell to wholesale shippers and restaurants.During the warmer weather that coincides with the tourist season in Myrtle Beach, the local fisherman do charters, meaning avid fisherman visiting the area pay for a day or a portion of the day aboard the boats. On charters, the party paying for the time on the charter boat catches the fish, with the expert help from the captain and his crew. The fishing party usually take their catch home to their friends and family.

Types of fishing charters available on the Grand Strand

There are different types of charters in the Myrtle Beach area, and you should know what type suits you before planning your trip. There is party boat fishing, which takes individuals and large groups out, and there are private charters for the serious fisherman, which usually averages 6 fishermen per boat.

Length of fishing trips

The length of charter fishing trips vary as well, and there are several choices to suit your schedule. There are half-day trips, usually running 7am to noon or 1pm to 6pm; full day trips, usually running 7am to 3pm, and gulfstream charters, generally running 7am to 6pm. Special requests for custom trips and night fishing are also taken by the local charter captains.

Type of fish in the waters off Myrtle Beach

The most common fish caught in the waters off the coast of Myrtle Beach is black sea bass, snapper, grouper, larger sea bass, trigger, dolphin, wahoo, and king makerel.

Myrtle Beach Fishing Piers

Cherry Grove Pier - Apache Pier - Second Avenue Pier - Springmaid Beach Pier
Myrtle Beach State Park Pier - Surfside Beach Pier

Charter Fishing Boats on the north end of the Grand Strand

Fishing on the South End

by Claudea Treckeme

If you have never tried deep sea fishing, you are in for a real adventure! Even if you're not fond of fishing, but have a partner who is a fiend for the finny, tag along if just for the cool air, relaxing boat ride, great conversation and wild fish stories. Capt. Dick's Marina in Murrells Inlet is the place to go to charter a fishing trip on the south end of the Grand Strand.

We went for the gusto and signed up for the all-day (11 hours) Gulf Stream trip. We reported to the marina promptly at 6 a.m., an hour we had heard about, but rarely experienced. Capt. Dick's provides everything you need for the trip including license, gear, bait, nets food and drink and the greatest gang of deck hands you could ask for. Electric reels are offered for an additional price, and, unless you have the arm and shoulder strength of a professional boxer, we highly recommend the electric reels.

We headed out into the Inlet, past the barrier and into the open ocean. As the sights of the coast faded into the distance, our fear of leaving sight of land quickly faded. When we were out 55 miles, the boat stopped and 35 hopefuls dropped lines for triggerfish, red and vermillion snapper and sea bass. The Captain was not pleased with the result so we moved on a little, fished a little more, moved a little more and finally found the spot that made us all sure we would catch a whale, or at least a whale of a fish.

We fished in about 250 feet of water (remember I recommended the electric reels) and everyone had a ball. The deck hands were there to help bring up the big ones, and put a tag on each fish to identify the proud owner. We ran into a brief thunderstorm that day, and if you have never seen lightening at sea, it is amazing. Even with rain whipping at us, a few brave souls (yours truly included) managed to keep our footing and standup to the weather, at least until the rain started to feel like needles. The storm ended, the sun came out and we all laughed about our "storm of the century".

My partner won the Capt. Dick's Big Fish Winner award for a 42-and-a-half-inch amberjack weighing in at 22 pounds. Amberjacks are not great eating, but his excitement was evident as he hauled his trophy off the boat and posed for pictures! He still wears his white hat which proclaims him the Big Fish Winner, and is saving his free trip for this coming summer.

Capt. Dick's offers half-day and three-quarter-day trips, a 9 hour adventure to the Continental Shelf and an overnight Gulf Stream trip as well as a Saltwater Marsh Explorer Adventure and an Ocean Sightseeing Cruise. Capt. Dick's is located at the Highway 17 Waterfront on Business 17 in Murrells Inlet.