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River Pond is a public lake in Beaufort County, South Carolina, managed by South Carolina DNR (public water access). It is public water managed for fishing by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Public access confirmed via SCDNR.
An Upstate mountain lake (Jocassee / Keowee / Bad Creek) — deep, clear, cold water with largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass, a trophy brown- and rainbow-trout fishery (Jocassee held the state-record brown), blueback herring and redeye bass in the feeder creeks.
River Pond covers about 13 acres in the Lowcountry region. Anglers here mostly fish for redbreast sunfish, warmouth, bluegill, redear sunfish; spotted sunfish, largemouth bass, flathead catfish, blue catfish are also on record. The nearest other mapped waters on PiscaMaps are Middle Pond and Big Pond.
Species from SCDNR public-access and species data.
Night fishing: No statewide night-fishing closure in South Carolina. Trotlines, jugs and set hooks are legal on most fresh water with a licence and gear tags. A few state lakes and reservoirs have posted hours; the Lower Saluda trout water and some WMA lakes close at night.
Boats: The big reservoirs (Marion, Moultrie, Murray, Hartwell, Wateree, Wylie) have no horsepower limit; idle-speed / no-wake zones are marked near ramps, marinas, bridges and dams. SCDNR State Lakes and Upstate water-supply reservoirs are often electric-motor-only or small-outboard only. A South Carolina boater-education card is required for operators under 16 running 15 hp or more.
Bank & bivvy camping: Camp at South Carolina state parks (SouthCarolinaParks.com), Santee Cooper's campgrounds, and Corps of Engineers lakeside sites on the Savannah lakes. The blackwater canoe trails (Edisto, Little Pee Dee, Lynches, Black) have a strong sandbar-camping tradition on the exposed bars. WMA camping is limited to designated areas.
Anyone 16+ needs a South Carolina fishing licence — resident annual is about $10, non-resident annual about $35, and non-resident 1-day (~$11) and 7-day (~$16) licences are sold. The freshwater licence covers trout — there is no separate trout stamp — but a Wildlife Management Area permit is needed on WMA trout waters and other WMA lakes and streams. South Carolina residents 64+ can get a free Gratis licence. Buy from SCDNR. A South Carolina fishing licence covers all public fresh water in the state, including trout (no separate trout stamp). SCDNR State Lakes and WMA waters also need a Wildlife Management Area permit. Santee Cooper and the Savannah lakes have trophy-catfish protection limits.
Every water carries species, bank & boat access, current regulations and live water conditions — and members get Swim Mapper, Catch Logger and Trip Planner. It's the only US map with a dedicated carp-water layer.
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