Carolina Beach July 15, 2004
Steve, at Seagull Bait and Tackle, reports that good catches of flounder continue to come out of Snow’s Cut and the inlet area. There were several citation-sized flounder weighed in this past week, with the largest weighing just under 10 pounds. Mullet minnows or menhaden are the baits to use, but they continue to be hard to find. The pompano are back on the beach. There were a couple weighed in that went just under 3 pounds. Sand fleas and shrimp are the best bait. Spots and croakers are in the waterway. Puppy drum are coming off the surf at night. Try shrimp or cut bait for the reds. Small catches of blues and spanish are coming off the pier. The Carolina Beach Pier had 5 kings caught over a two-day period. Black drum, weighing up to 5 lbs., and sheepshead, weighing up to 8 lbs., are coming out of the waterway.
Kelly, at Cape Fear Marine and Tackle, reports that the kings seem to be scattered around the area. They’re being caught from right off the beach on out. There are some cobia still around as well. The shop weighed in a 46 lb. cobia. The spanish are still biting, with the bigger ones being caught while trolling with live bait for kings. The flounder fishing is still hot all over, but it has been hard to get live bait for the past couple of weeks. If you can get bait, the Cape Fear River and Snow’s Cut are the places to be.
Capt. Dave Marshall, of Musicman Charters, reports that the spanish are thick. Try along the beach or in about 35′ of water. Expect to see many little kings mixed in with the spanish. The ratio right now is a little less than one king for one spanish. For king fishing, try along the beach on out to the 200 line. There have been big kings caught along the beach, but expect the majority to be from 4 to 6 lbs. The gulf stream produced several billfish releases (more seen than caught), including blues, whites, and sails.
Capt. Dave Tilley, of Wild Rover II Charters, reports that the gulf stream is still producing a few tuna (mostly blackfin), with the occasional marlin. The water temps are high now, and this should hold for most of the summer. Offshore, king mackerel and dolphin are everywhere along the coast. They’re mostly scattered, but some bulls have been caught in numbers near the offshore wrecks. Grouper are chewing strong with reds and gags leading the lineup. Just about anywhere in 100 plus feet of water with structure will produce plenty of action. Be sure to keep a light line out to pick up those nosey dolphin that happen along. Inshore, spanish and juvenile kings are all along the coast. Be sure to check each and every fish that comes up to make sure you’re not keeping under-sized kings. Clark spoons, size #00 and #01, are the choice of baits.
