Brunswick Islands Saltwater Classic
Chris Eckert and Rube and Caroline McMullan with the 43.14 lb. king mackerel that earned the OIFC team the victory in the Brunswick Islands Saltwater Classic. The hooked the fish on a naked pogie at a bottom-fishing spot in 100 of water.
Continuing a dominant streak on the 2010 king mackerel circuit, Capt. Brant McMullan and the “Ocean Isle Fishing Center” fishing team traveled far offshore to find the 43.14 lb. king mackerel that earned them first place in the Brunswick Islands Saltwater Classic, held September 10-11 out of Southport’s South Harbour Village Marina. McMullan, his father Rube, daughter Caroline, and OIFC charter mate Chris Eckert set out with a simple mission.
“We just figured we’d be doing well if we just caught a king mackerel,” McMullan explained, “since the fishing’s been so bad lately.”
The crew, fishing aboard a 32’ Yamaha-powered Yellowfin, started their day at the 90/90’s, a hard bottom spot off Ocean Isle that has been one of the only places anglers have seen king mackerel recently.
“We fished there for an hour or so,” McMullan continued. “All the signs were right, but there were a half-dozen boats there and nobody had a bite, so it was time to move on. Our plan had been to fish offshore anyway.”
Following the plan, the “OIFC” crew headed 30 more miles offshore, stopping at a bottom fishing number they had in 100’ of water.
“The idea was that if the kings aren’t inshore,” McMullan said, “and we knew they weren’t, that maybe they were out there eating snapper. Our spot was just some broken bottom where we catch beeliners and scamps and stuff.”
After putting lines in at 11:00 that morning, they didn’t have to wait long for their idea to be proven correct.
“We had a four-line spread,” said McMullan. “The 30’ downrigger popped, and Chris fed the bait back to the fish and hooked up. Moments later, our middle top line, with a naked pogie, went off, too.”
McMullan grabbed the second rod and held on as the king made a screaming run.
“It made a real good run,” McMullan recalled. “That fish definitely had my attention.”
Fighting their double hookup from a dead boat, as both fish had gone in different directions, the anglers worked their respective fish back towards the Yellowfin instead of chasing them.
“We sat in neutral the whole time,” the winning captain said. “We knew mine was a big fish, but our big fear was that it might’ve been a wahoo.”
Eventually, McMullan worked the king into visual range.
“We saw it was a king, and it made one circle under the boat before it came up and Rube gaffed it,” McMullan said.
Once the fish was in the boat, the anglers took a moment to admire its size.
“That’s the biggest king we’ve caught in a tournament around here,” McMullan reported.
Continuing to troll in the area they were in, the crew hooked several more kings and a dolphin, which 5-year-old Caroline fought to the boat.
The “OIFC” crew would like to thank the Ocean Isle Fishing Center, Yellowfin, and Yamaha for their support.
Jack Paczosa and the Rollin Out fishing team earned second place in the event with this 35.53 lb. king mackerel.
Weighing in a 35.53 lb. king he hooked in the Beaufort Inlet shipping channel, Wilmington’s Jack Paczosa earned second place in the event, but couldn’t be reached for an interview.
Mark Henderson and Cape Carteret, NC’s “Liquid Fire” fishing team scaled a 29.91 lb. king mackerel to finish third in the event. Henderson and his sons Crockett and Joshua, along with Chris and Lakota Waters, fishing aboard a Yamaha-powered Contender 31T, chose to fish the east side of Lookout Shoals in their quest for a winning king.
“We went offshore and started out in about 120’,” Henderson explained. “We thought the water would be cleaner out there, and it was.”
The clean water didn’t equate to king mackerel, however, as the “Liquid Fire” anglers fished several spots in the depths before returning to a ledge in 75’ of water where they’d had some success in the past.
“It was south of Drum Inlet but north of the Chicken Rock,” Henderson said.
Around 2:00, something inhaled the crew’s the naked pogie on the crew’s long top line.
“He made three strong runs,” Henderson continued. “That was a feisty fish.”
Crockett took the rod as the king ran and the anglers cleared lines and began the battle.
“The fish stayed up top almost the entire time,” said Henderson. “When we got up to him, he still had some juice left.”
The king may have still had some energy, but it was no match for the gaff wielded by Joshua, who sank the steel and boated the fish around 2:15.
“It was quick and exciting,” Henderson finished. “We had maybe 30 more minutes we could’ve fished before we had to run for the scales. We ran 112 miles, came back in Carolina Beach Inlet, and ran Snow’s Cut into the river.”
The “Liquid Fire” anglers wished to thank their sponsors for their support.
A 28.08 lb. fish earned fourth place for Chip Nifong and the “Reel Buzz” fishing team, from Hampstead, NC. Chad Morris, aboard “The Seahorse,” weighed in a 27.47 to round out the top five.
The Brunswick Islands Saltwater Classic is part of the Saltwater Classic Series, put on by Blue Water Promotions. More information and full results can be found at www.bluewaterpromo.com.
Their next event, the Atlantic Beach Saltwater Classic, has been rescheduled due to Hurricane Igor, and is now slated for September 23-25.
