Santee Cooper Lakes habitat aerial preview

Posted on
Photography by
Craig Lamb
The Santee Cooper Lakes encompass Lake Marion and Lake Moultree. The latter lake is 60,000 acres, while Marion is 110,000 acres. Today is April 25, 2023, the second day of practice for the AFTCO Bassmaster Elite at Santee Cooper Lakes.
Covering all of Marion, known as South Carolina’s “Inland Sea,” would be impossible to do with a drone. And, the wind conditions were prohibitive for where I could safely fly. I chose to narrow this aerial tour to a small area of the southeast portion of Marion.
The chosen flight area represents a snapshot of the overall big picture of both lakes. Here you will see Bald Cypress, Tupelo Cypress, Water Cypress and various aquatic plants like eelgrass, water lily and more.
Points like this with isolated trees are known to attract late spawners as the spawning cycle winds down.
The vast wilderness areas encompassing the lakes are a sight to behold. Enjoy the tour, and look at some of the habitat that will be in play when the tournament begins. I’ll leave the commentary to the experts, namely South Caroiina native Davy Hite and the other talented analysts of our Bassmaster LIVE show.