OutdoorSC.com

These are uneasy times, particularly when life on the water tends to radiate discomfort. There is no real escape, only a somewhat mix of a happy medium to the period, and so we launch our boats and spend more time running than actually fishing.

Gas prices have shortened many trips. We partner with friends and family to spread the expense, yet remain cautious of giving up too much information for fear another favored spot will be lost to the crowds.

Nonetheless, there are several active species in local waters: spottail bass, flounder, trout, whiting, croaker, shark, wahoo, king and Spanish mackerel and dolphin.

On the freshwater scene, it should be remembered not all big bass are found in big waters. Fishing Bermuda Bluff last Saturday, Hazel Stanley demonstrated this with a 10-pound largemouth, caught on live worms. She beat out companion Norman Shoemaker for the day's honors.

Hazel said she fishes for anything that swims and adds this catch as one she will remember for a good while.

BILLFISH SERIES UPDATE

The sixth annual HMY-Viking Megadock Billfishing Tournament concluded last Saturday, and with it another event marked with great catches and a few surprises.

Among the winners was Jason Zachrich of Hilton Head Island, aboard "Reel Patience." Zachrich and crew took first place in the dolphin category -- not top prize, but at 43.5 pounds most certainly memorable.

The big winner was "Cerveza," with wins in three categories, as well as the conservation award. In all, the crew collected just under $150,000.

This is the second win for "Cerveza" owner Tom Russell in the S.C. Governor's Cup Billfishing Series -- he also won the Charleston Harbor Resort and Marina Billfish tournaments. The "Cerveza" crew made the event a family affair with captain Butch Davis, his daughter Nicole, son Matthew and father Jim. Also aboard were Tommy and Greg Boger, Steve, Beau and Hunter Schmeusser and Jon Meade.

Nicole Russell, 13, took the youth angler award and the lady angler award with five sailfish.

Eighty-one billfish were released during the event -- 75 sailfish, four blue marlin and two white marlin.

The Governor's Cup series concludes with the Bohicket Invitational Billfish Tournament, July 23-26. For information, contact tournament director Deidre Menefee at 843-345-0359.

DNR COBIA TAGS TALLIED

Karl Brenkert of the S.C. Department of Natural Resources would like to thank everyone involved with the season's cobia-tagging program. The period was a huge success and information gathered certainly will boost the knowledge gained by the endeavor.

"Your contributions of live fish, racks and DNA fin clips will greatly increase our understanding of the life history and behavior of this important recreational species," Brenkert said.

To date, 315 samples have been collected, down a bit from 2007. There were 137 females, 131 males and 47 unknowns. The average weight of females was 35.1 pounds, and the average weight of males was 24.6 pounds. Average fork length was 41.7 inches for females and 37.3 inches for males. Forty-eight of the fish were caught offshore, the Broad River produced 41 catches and 180 were caught in unspecified locations. Only 12 cobia were taken from St. Helena Sound.

Boat captains and guides accounted for a plurality of the carcasses (127), while area tournaments accounted for 97 more. Forty carcasses were retrieved from the recreational freezer program with 34 clip samples.

Limited personnel and budget restraints through DNR would have only produced 17 samples, illustrating how important local fishermen are to the research effort. For updates and information, contact Brenkert at brenkertk@dnr.sc.gov.