Wrightville Beach Winter 2009
Josh Brown, from Wilmington, with a 7 lb. 6 oz. speckled trout that fell for a Purple Demon MirrOlure after dark near Masonboro Inlet.
Tex, of Tex’s Tackle, reports that anglers are finding action with speckled trout all over the area. The bite’s been excellent in the river lately, with good number of fish also coming from the creeks, around the inlets, and in the surf. Live shrimp are some of the best trout baits, but anglers are also catching them on a variety of artificials including MirrOlures, X-Raps, and soft plastics.
Last year, the trout bite stayed solid through mid-January, but the water temperature is falling faster this winter.
Some reds are feeding along with the trout, and anglers are hooking up with a few in the surf, though the action’s not hot and heavy. They were schooling well along Masonboro Island last week, and the schools will often cruise the surf zone all winter long. MirrOlures are top choices for the fish in the surf.
The striped bass bite in the Cape Fear River has been good lately, and anglers can catch these fish all winter long by trolling diving lures or casting soft plastics. The area from downtown Wilmington north is typically the best place to look for the stripers.
Bottom fishermen have reported good action with gag and red grouper and sea bass lately.
The last boats fishing the Gulf Stream found some action with sailfish and white marlin, but there wasn’t much of a meatfish bite. When some good water pushes into the area, anglers should be able hook up with some wahoo or blackfin tuna at local blue water spots like the Same Ol’ and the Steeples. Ballyhoo under skirted trolling lures are the best lures for the blue water fish.
Andrea Nelson, from Wilmington, with a 34” gag grouper caught aboard the “Job Site” on a ledge in 90’ of water off of Wrightsville Beach. The gag fell for a live pinfish.
Mike, of No Excuses Charters, reports that gag grouper are still around but a bit scattered. The best bite lately has been 25 miles and further offshore. Vertical jigs and cigar minnows and cut baits will draw attention from the gags.
Sea bass are feeding at bottom structure from just off the beaches on offshore. Jigging lures or a variety of baits will produce action with the bass, and the fishing should only get better as the winter wears on.
Speckled trout are feeding at all the typical wintertime spots near Wrightsville, with some of the best action coming while working the backside of the surf zone from a boat along Masonboro. There are plenty of eddies and pools in the surf zone to work at lower tides. Gulp has been producing well on the trout. Barring any severe cold spells, the specks will be around for several more weeks at least.
Large schools (several thousand strong) of red drum are hanging around the Masonboro area, but dirty water lately has made them tough to locate. This is a traditional winter feeding area for the fish, though, and they should be around when the water clears and on through the cold months.
Big numbers of reds are also running the surf in the Rich’s Inlet/Topsail area, too.
Nick Freeh (age 9), from Holly Springs, with a red drum caught on a Calcutta Flashfoil while fishing from the surf of Wrightsville Beach with Capt. Danny Wrenn of 96 Charter Company.
Jim, of Plan 9 Charters, reports that anglers are hooking up with plenty of sea bass, bluefish, and assorted bottomfish while vertically jigging at structure 3-15 miles off the beach.
Good numbers of spike speckled trout are feeding in the creeks and backwater behind Masonboro Island. Live shrimp will produce excellent results on the little specks, but anglers can also hook up while casting white soft plastics and other lures.
The striped bass bite has been solid lately in the Cape Fear River around downtown Wilmington and north. Anglers can catch the fish while trolling diving plugs and heavy jigs or casting soft plastics.
Nick Freeh (age 9), from Holly Springs, with a red drum caught on a Calcutta Flashfoil while fishing from the surf of Wrightsville Beach with Capt. Danny Wrenn of 96 Charter Company.
Danny, of 96 Charter Company, reports that red drum are feeding in the surf off Wrightsville Beach and Masonboro Island. Anglers can cast MirrOlures, swimbaits, and other lures to hook up with the reds, and the fish will be feeding in the same areas for much of the winter.
Striped bass (some to 30+” and 15 lbs.) have been feeding well in the Cape Fear River lately, and the bite usually stays strong through the winter months. Casting swimbaits and other soft plastics or plugs like MirrOlures and Rapala X-Raps will fool the stripers.
Offshore, anglers are running into some decent bottomfishing not too far off the beach, and jigging in the 10 mile range has produced keeper gag grouper, flounder, and sea bass in the past few weeks. Shore Lure Glass Minnows are effective jigs for this fishery.
Casey Bough (left), from Wilmington, caught and released this 61” sailfish near the Nipple while fishing with Capt. Mike Jackson (right) of Live Line Charters. The sailfish fell for a swimming plug.
Rick, of Living Waters Guide Service, reports that the bluefin tuna bite has begun off of Morehead City, and bluefins will capture many anglers’ attention for much of the winter. The bite is spotty, though, and the fleet will have a good day followed by tough ones.
Closer to home, anglers have caught some red drum around Rich’s Inlet on white Gulp Shrimp.
A sizeable school is hanging around the area, and they will likely be feeding nearby over the coming months.
Mike, of Johnnie Mercer’s Pier, reports that the speckled trout bite has been excellent from the pier lately. Anglers are hooking the specks on grubs, Gotcha plugs, and live shrimp and mud minnows. Unfortunately, many of the specks are between 11-12,” but anglers are catching the larger fish just before daybreak and in the late afternoons.
A few puppy drum are mixed in with the trout.
Small bluefish are falling for Gotcha plugs and cut baits.
Bottom fishermen are hooking some whiting and small black drum on shrimp.
