Pamlico/ Neuse – July 2023
Donald, of Custom Marine Fabrication, reports that red drum have shown up just about everywhere in the river. The water salinity is good, and anglers have been finding the slot-sized fish both locally and way upriver as well.
There are schools of big reds around the mouth of the river and into the sound.
Speckled trout fishing in the area is pretty slow, with most of the larger fished pushed downriver and out towards the sound in their spawning pattern. There are trout being caught, but they are almost all small.
Schools of bluefish are around in some of the deeper areas downriver.
Striped bass fishing has been pretty consistent, with the bite mostly focused on the early morning and evening hours.
There aren’t yet many confirmed releases, but tarpon have been spotted out towards the mouth of the river.
Brad, of Gunny B Outdoors, reports that the ever-changing wind directions have made fish patterns very spotty. Despite this, fishing for slot-sized red drum remains steady. Tactics may need to be adjusted based on each day’s conditions, but mostly look for areas holding bait, and it’s even better if you find bait pushed up against grass banks and points.
Flounder are being caught just about everywhere, and they are striking at baits dragged along the bottom.
Bluefish are staged up in some of the deeper channels and will strike just about anything put in front of them.
Schools of bull red drum are around, but the bite isn’t consistent enough to start targeting them.
Tarpon are also being spotted in the area, as they are already moving into the sounds.
Benjamin Kimsey, of High Point, NC, caught (and released) this 23” red drum using a Johnson spoon. He was fishing in the Neuse River with Capt. Allen Jernigan, of Breadman Ventures Guide Services.
Colby, of East Side Bait and Tackle, reports that anglers have been finding really good slot and upper-slot red drum all throughout the river. These groups of fish are staged up everywhere from the creek mouths, out along the banks, and around wind swept points holding bait.
The occasional big “old” drum are being caught out towards the sound. This bite is definitely better the further east you go.
Some nice speckled trout are being caught, with that action mostly down around Swan Quarter and further east.
Anglers fishing topwater plugs early in the mornings have been doing well targeting shoreline structure for striped bass.
Tarpon have already been showing up. There haven’t been confirmed releases yet, but they are being spotted somewhat regularly out in the sound.
Mitchell, of FishIBX, reports that anglers looking for some high-powered topwater action are finding it in the striped bass fishery on both the Roanoke and Pamlico rivers. Paddle tail baits will also entice strikes if the search baits aren’t getting the action.
Red drum and some speckled trout are scattered all throughout the river, with the lower waters seeming to produce better. The area is also seeing a bunch of smaller bluefish around, and the Pamlico shorelines are covered up with some nice flounder.
Ashley Rook, of Atlantic, NC, caught this 4.11 lb. speckled trout on a topwater. She was fishing near Cape Lookout.
Grey, of Hyde Guide, reports that anglers on the water early have found some quality speckled trout (better with sizes than numbers). With the summer heat, though, this bite falls off quickly once the sun is up.
Anglers running out into the sound to fish the wrecks and reefs are catching gray trout, sheepshead, and black drum, but finding the calmer wind conditions that allow these runs continues to be an issue.
Slot-sized red drum fishing is good, but similar to other targets in the area, it is hard to work the flats when the winds are too high.
Anglers have been seeing some big drum showing up. When making runs out into the sound, you should keep your eyes peeled for feeding birds or bait slicks.
Hugh, of Pungo Charters, reports that the area is still seeing a run of inconsistent weather that is not typical for early summer fishing. These wind pattern changes require that anglers move around a bunch to target where the bait has moved to. Thankfully, July usually has more stable weather and anglers will have better opportunities to lock down and pattern the fish.
Speckled trout fishing has stayed strong in the lower Pamlico area. Popping corks rigged with soft plastics have been really productive, as they make great search baits to work through areas quickly to see if there’s any action.
There has been a nice class of upper-slot red drum mixed around this same area. As more bait has been showing up in the past month, the red drum bite has only improved. There are some scattered citation-class reds around, but it is still about a month out before these fish can be reliably targeted.
