Hatteras/Ocracoke – October 2024
Eric, of Hatteras Jack, reports that the speckled trout action has been good throughout the summer and it remains strong heading into fall.
Inshore anglers are also catching good numbers of bluefish and red drum.
Surf anglers are having success with bluefish and red drum, and storms have pushed the larger bull drum within casting range.
Debbie, of Rodanthe Pier, reports that anglers have had a lot of success catching strong numbers of bluefish.
Bottom fishing with shrimp or bait strips has been producing a bunch of croakers.
The red drum bite has been steady to good, with occasional larger bulls (to 46”) in the mix.
Heather, of Frank and Fran’s, reports that the bluefish action has been great. Anglers are having success both in the sound and from the surf, and the fish have been a fun size (to 21”+). Soundside anglers are also having success catching speckled trout and puppy drum.
Plenty of bluefish and scattered puppy drum are around in the surf.
Pompano fishing has been productive, mostly from Avon down to Frisco. Anglers are finding fish with hand-tied Sand Flea Imposter rigs.
Spanish mackerel are being hooked by casting plugs and metal from the surf, though they are mostly being caught by those fishing the southern beaches.
Chris, of Avon Pier, reports that with stirred up water conditions, bottom fishing has been producing all the action. Catches mostly include sea mullet and puppy drum.
As conditions clear, the pier anticipates seeing better bluefish numbers and more spanish mackerel show up.
Capt. Matt Paylor, of Sound-N-Sea Charters, landed this red drum near Cedar Island using fresh cut shad.
Bryan, of Hatteras Style Custom Rods & Tackle, reports that surf anglers have been catching plenty of bluefish in the 1-5 lb. range.
With a long run of northeast winds, red drum fishing started to pick up. Most of the red drum action was with puppy drum and the occasional yearling-sized fish. Surf anglers picked up a few big red drum, but for now, most of that action has been up on the northern beaches.
Soundside anglers are catching a few bluefish and speckled trout.
Stewart, of Frisco Rod & Gun, reports that surf anglers have been catching plenty of bluefish and some puppy drum off the beaches.
The area started to see some spanish mackerel showing up in better numbers before conditions became stirred up. Hopefully, the water cleans up quickly and anglers get a good push of spanish before these fish move on their way as water temperatures continue to cool.
Smaller bottom fishing setups are producing sea mullet and pompano.
Victoria, of Teach’s Lair, reports that offshore anglers are starting to see the better class of blackfin tuna showing up.
Some good catches of dolphin are also returning to the docks.
Wahoo numbers are beginning to pick up, with October and November really the peak time to get out there and target them.
The offshore fleet is still generating several billfish releases.
Inshore trips are seeing a mixed bag of bluefish, spanish mackerel, red drum, and speckled trout.
Joey, of Fingeance Sportfishing, reports that the main action in the sound has been speckled trout fishing, and the best tactic has been to cast lighter (1/4 oz.) jig heads with Z-Man paddle tail soft plastics in a variety of colors. The trout bite has been strong all summer and only gets better moving through October.
The area has finally seen the red drum action pick up after an odd late summer. On the windy days (which have been all too common), anglers are having success fishing bottom-rigged cut mullet. When the area gets calm days, anglers can find drum by sight casting to fish on the flats with spoons and jigs.
A lot of bluefish and spanish mackerel are around as they stage up for the fall mullet run.
Capt. Bud Bishop and his wife Charlie with a catch of speckled trout and bluefish caught on Z-Man MinnowZ soft plastics. They were fishing the sound behind Hatteras with Capt. Joey VanDyke of Fingeance Sportfishing out of Hatteras Harbor Marina.
Peter, of True Grit, reports that speckled trout fishing has been good, especially targeting 4-6’ depths with artificials. Soft plastics in the 3-4” range have been the top choice as they help avoid some of the smaller “trash fish” species, and getting on the water early is still key.
A ton of bluefish (to 10 lbs.) have hung around all summer. The blues put up a good fight, but they are keen on tearing up baits, especially on outgoing tides. Target them with Stingsilvers or live finger mullet and heavy (50 lb. test) leader.
Red drum (slot-sized and yearlings) are scattered in the action when bait fishing around shoals or up against grass flats.
Jay, of Bite Me Sportfishing, reports that there are still some decent numbers of mahi around when locating some sort of grass or debris.
Blackfin tuna are scattered in the counts. Anglers look forward to water temperatures cooling in the coming weeks and bringing in some of the larger blackfins.
Moving further into fall, the wahoo bite really starts to kick off in terms of both size and quantity.
Zane, of Tradewinds Tackle, reports that surf anglers have been catching a lot of bluefish as fall weather conditions become more common.
The red drum has action has been steady, with mostly slot-sized fish being caught on cut bait. The island is awaiting a good bull drum bite as these fish start moving out of the sounds.
Smaller bottom fishing setups are producing sea mullet, croakers, and smaller pompano.
Back in the sound, anglers are catching plenty of red drum, bluefish, and some spanish mackerel. Strong winds have prevented too many offshore fishing efforts, but anglers getting out are finding the wahoo action picking up.
