Surf fishing exposes youth group to natural resources

A very special surf fishing mission was executed early on Saturday morning August 6 when the St. Michael's Church men's prayer group made a special commitment. The group organized a joint trip with the St. John's youth group from the east side of Charleston, a group that had never experienced surf fishing before. Arriving at Edisto Beach by 8 a.m. the chaperones toted their surf carts loaded with rods, bait, ice and drinks down to the beach and the youth group arrived about an hour later. During an incoming tide, cut mullet was the bait of choice for the three good-sized red drum that were reeled in by the youths, along with smaller bluefish, whiting and spotted seatrout. The fish were a blessing on top of the fellowship shared on the barrier island beach that day, and a feature story is in the works for the Charleston Mercury. Needless to say, this was the type of day where everyone was reminded that sharing fishing knowledge with others was a great reward in itself, and that many prayers for a successful outing were answered!

To read my feature article in the Charleston Mercury click here.

To view past blog entries about surf fishing click here.

PhotosByJeffDennis: This 22-inch red drum was a first for this angler; It's didn't take long for the fishing rods to be in demand by the St. John's youth anglers; an arsenal of surf rods supplied by the volunteers; even a bag lunch was enjoyed on the beach; cut bait like mullet and shrimp were utilized and 4-ounce pyramid sinkers were necessary to hold the bait in the surf zone