Mount Pleasant Magazine July/August 2019

34 www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.BestOfMP.com | www.ReadMPM.com Captain Stuart is framed by a steady and consistent approach to deep-sea fishing because, “when you’re 60 miles offshore, it’s not a guessing game — mistakes can be costly,” the captain noted. Morning after morning, the angler wakes up at 3 a.m. to join his crew — including his son, Stratton, who is pictured on this issue’s cover — in chartering folks from Shem Creek to the open waters off Charleston’s coast. “One thing about Captain Stuart is he’ll put you on the fish,” said Bax Culler, who was on the charter along with Mount Pleasant Magazine . Culler and two friends work in the logging industry outside of Charleston and have chosen to invest in weekly trips with Captain Stuart because, well, “he knows where the fish are.” As the early morning dark gave way to the sun’s cornering of the horizon that June morning, our depth finder hovered around 300 feet. The Renegade’s engines roared pushing the vessel further from the Charleston coastline. We had been running for 90 minutes and still had another 90 in front of us before it would be time to drop our lines. “Out here you are looking for features,” said Captain Stuart. Once the boat passes the continental shelf and 300 feet turns to 1000 feet deep, the fish no longer hunt on the bottom. Instead fish will hang around objects floating in the water, namely seaweed lines which provide cover for smaller fish and hunting grounds for larger ones. In May, a Charleston fishing vessel also found around 50 kilos of Above: The Renegade crew reeling in a colorful catch. Below: Everyone aboard The Renegade shows off some of their catch. abandoned cocaine on a seaweed line about 60 miles from Shem Creek, but I’m guessing that’s a different weed line than the one we were searching for. At just over three hours from shore, Captain Stuart Photo by Thomas Runion. Photo by Thomas Runion.