Lake Moultrie

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lake Moultrie
Lake Moultrie - A picture of Lake Moultrie from the southwest shore.
A picture of Lake Moultrie from the southwest shore.
Location Berkeley County, South Carolina
Coordinates 33°18′07″N 80°03′15″W / 33.301838, -80.054283Coordinates: 33°18′07″N 80°03′15″W / 33.301838, -80.054283
Lake type reservoir
Basin countries United States
Surface area 60,000 acres (240 km²)

Lake Moultrie is the third largest lake in South Carolina covering over 60,000 acres (240 km²).

Contents

[edit] Location

Lake Moultrie is located in Berkeley County, South Carolina, is fed by Lake Marion through a diversion canal. Nearby towns include Moncks Corner, Bonneau and St. Stephen.

[edit] Origin

Lake Moultrie was created in the early 1940s by the South Carolina Public Service Authority. Its effluent is the Cooper River, and it is dammed by the Pinopolis Dam.[1] It covers about 60,000 acres (240 km²). It was named for Governor William Moultrie.[2]

[edit] Fishing

Lake Moultrie is a good fishing lakes that has a varied fishing environment. There are shallow swamps, black water ponds, thousands of tree stumps and live cypress trees, as well as large open areas of water. This lake does not form ice in winter months.[3] A world record Channel Catfish weighing 58 lb (26 kg). was caught from this lake. The lake also holds the state record for Black Crappie (5 lbs).[4] For fisherman that prefer the bank, the catfish tend to move up to shallow water near dusk and bite well at night. Large catfish are known to bite well on blue gill(live) and perch(live) off the bottom of shallow sand/mud flats close to shore. The catfish move in the shallow water to feed on small clams and bait fish found in the mud and cracks on the lakes floor. It is not uncommon for fisherman at Lake Moultrie to catch catfish over 20 lb (9.1 kg). Trotlines are common at Lake Moultrie as well as trolling and even arching with a bow and arrow by spotlighting catfish in the shallows at night.

[edit] Recent News

On 2007-09-16, a 59 year old man got his arm bitten off by a 12-foot (3.7 m), 600 lb (270 kg). alligator while swimming in the lake. Some nurses, who were at a picnic nearby were able to stop the bleeding until help arrived. Doctors at Medical University of South Carolina were not able to reattach his arm. [5]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ AAA Map: "North and South Carolina"
  2. ^ Lake Moultrie, South Carolina. SCIway.net. Retrieved on 2008-05-02.
  3. ^ History of The Santee Cooper Lakes. American Publishing (1997). Retrieved on 2008-05-02.
  4. ^ Freshwater Fish Records for South Carolina. South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved on 2008-05-02.
  5. ^ Associated Press. "Report: Gator bites off South Carolina snorkeler's arm", International Herald Tribune, Paris: The New York Times Company, 2007-09-17. Retrieved on 2008-05-01. 
This South Carolina state location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.