Helping others capture the fever of fishing

By Eddie Litaker
Item Staff Writer

 

SUMMERTON - Capt. Don Wiles couldn't find success as a fishing guide in Charleston, but the 48-year-old catfish and striper specialist has found his niche during the last decade working the waters of Santee.

"I grew up in Charleston," Wiles said. "I worked at the shipyard down in Charleston, before they closed it, for 20-some years, and I got my captain's license. I was going to do the offshore fishing and I couldn't ever get in the right clique down there. I had a camper at this campground for over 15 years - I've been fishing these lakes all my life - and I came up here and started guiding back in '94.

"The first couple of years were slow because I didn't know anybody up here," he said. "After the first couple of years, it really picked up good, and I've been guiding on the lake for almost 10 years now. I'm doing good now."

Wiles, whose business is called Fish-N-Fever Guide Service, works primarily out of Taw Caw Marina and Campground, Randolph's Landing, Goat Island and Polly's Landing.

"I've got two boats, I keep them both on the trailers, and I go ... if the people are staying on the other side of the lake, I'll drive over there and pick them up," Wiles said. "I like to fish closer to (Taw Caw) so I don't have so far to go. I live about a mile up the road from Taw Caw, so anything on this side of the lake is closer."

Wiles said that this is prime fishing time for both catfish and striper.
"The wintertime and the springtime are probably the two best times," he said. "If you can put up with the cold weather, you can catch a couple of hundred pounds in a couple of hours, if you can find them, because they're ganged up. In the springtime, they're all in the shallow water and right now, they're all in the deep water, so when you find them you can catch them. You can really hammer them."

Wiles said striper fishing is more seasonal while catfish are usually caught year-round.

"(Striper) go up the river to spawn, around Columbia, in the springtime, so we normally only striper fish on this lake probably starting September or October (through) November and now December," he said. "About four months is good striper (fishing time). Catfish, you can catch 12 months out of the year.

"The catfish move in the springtime, starting in February, March and April," Wiles said. "They're all in the shallow water laying their eggs, just like any other fish. There was a 103-pounder caught this year in four feet of water."

Wiles said his business comes from a blend of locals, a lot of out-of-state people and some from outside the United States.

"I've got a few that are (from) around here and they say they can't catch any fish when they take their relatives out, so they'll hire me when their relatives come to town," he said, chuckling. "Most of them are from Georgia, North Carolina, I've had people from as far as Texas, the Caribbean Islands, I've had some people from Europe, Norway. They wanted to catch a big catfish."

While he knows he won't get rich being a fishing guide, Wiles said the job does have its advantages.

"I punched a clock for 20 years, and I don't have to punch a clock anymore," he said. "I love what I'm doing. I love to fish and I love to watch people catch fish. That's my favorite thing, especially kids. When a guy brings his wife and kids down, I love to watch kids catch fish. I figure if the kids have a ball, they'll want to come back and pester their dads to bring them back again."

Wiles has his own Web site, www.fish-n-fever.com, and is also featured on the Santee Cooper Country Guides Association Web site, www.sccga.org. To book a fishing trip with Wiles, call (803) 478-4699 or email don@fish-n-fever.com.