IRMO, S.C. — Irmo SC fishing on the Lower Saluda is working from a shorter park clock through the rest of the year at Saluda Shoals Park.
From Nov. 1 through Dec. 31 the park is open 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. The gates stay shut for Thanksgiving and for Christmas. The west gate stands at 5605 Bush River Road. The east gate is at 6071 St. Andrews Road and opens at 8:30 a.m. Daily admission is $7 for a car or minivan and $15 for a van or bus that holds 12 or more people.
An annual parking pass is $75 and covers both gates plus Dreher Shoals Landing during regular hours. Passes are sold at the administrative building from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., or by calling 803-772-1228. A one-month park pass is $10 per vehicle. The riverfront tract covers 480 acres and is run by the Irmo Chapin Recreation Commission.
Together with Hope Ferry landing on the south bank, reached from Corley Mill Road, the park’s two boat ramps are the only public launches on the river that take trailered boats. One ramp sits at the upstream end of the park and one sits downstream. There is also a canoe launch, a decked overlook and miles of trails along the water. From the Lexington side, the route crosses the Dreher Shoals Dam toward Irmo, turns right on Bush River Road and reaches the park about 1.5 miles down on the right.
The tailrace below Lake Murray is treated as a cold-water fishery. Anglers on that stretch go after trout and striped bass, and the river’s flows change with releases from the dam. On all waters of the Saluda from the Lake Murray Dam down to the Broad River, keepers are limited to five trout a day, and only one of those may be longer than 16 inches. From the eastbound I-20 bridge down to Stacey’s Ledge, trout fishing is catch-and-release only. No special bait or tackle limit is listed for either stretch.
Anglers 16 and older need a South Carolina freshwater fishing license. Lake Murray and the Dreher Shoals Dam, finished in 1930 and now run by Dominion Energy, remain the main outdoor draw for the Irmo area, and the park gives river access just below that dam.
Track river access, hours and limit reminders in the latest Irmo SC fishing report.
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