Fall transition brings redfish, albies into play at Charleston Harbor

What's biting

What's next

With Charleston Harbor tracking a fall tide that peaks near 6:40 AM and bottoms out just after midnight, the pre-dawn push into the high should be the best window for reds working the last of the falling water into first light. The waxing gibbous moon is building toward full, and the bigger tidal swings that come with it typically sharpen the bite along creek mouths and grass edges over the next several days.

Water still sitting near 84°F keeps the summer pattern lingering a bit longer than the calendar suggests, but as Sport Fishing Mag notes for the region, that's exactly when false albacore begin stacking bait on the surface, so surface activity should build through the week if temperatures start easing. Weekend anglers timing trips around the early high tide should get the best combination of moving water and low light.

Context

Water in the low 80s is normal for Charleston Harbor in late September, and the region sits in the early stages of its fall transition rather than deep into it. The redfish-on-the-flats and albie-on-the-surface pattern described this week tracks a typical schedule for the area, arriving neither early nor late. Redfish stay catchable through the fall as water cools gradually, while surface feeders like false albacore tend to strengthen through October as bait pushes out of the marshes.