Added on Thursday, June 15, 2006  Gary Hurley

Morehead City June 15, 2006

Matt, at Chasin Tails Charters, reports that there’s a good spanish bite in the inlet and along the beach. Expect to find blues mixed in. Both are hitting Yo-zuris and spoons.

A good drum bite continues in the backwaters. There are trout to be found along with the reds. The bigger fish are coming on peanut shad, with smaller fish hitting mud minnows and Gulp baits.

The sheepshead are really picking up around the bridge pilings on fiddler crabs. You might also hook some black drum targeting these same areas.

The flounder bite has been hot both at the reefs off the beach and on the inside. Try peanut shad and mud minnows drifting the deep channels.

Joe, at Joe’s Pro Bait and Tackle, reports that the surf is producing some catches of bluefish, hogfish, good numbers of croakers, and spots. There were also some gray trout reported.

The cobia are still here, but numbers are decreasing as they make their migration north.

There are large Hatteras bluefish cruising such areas as the sand bar on the ocean side of the Cape Lookout hook point. They are being caught by cobia fishermen. This has been a really great year for the big blues.

The flounder are moving inside the sound in good numbers. Lots of limits have been caught. One good place has been drifting behind the Cape Lookout hook. And drifting down the channels in the sound is producing a fair number of flounder in the 1 to 3 pound range. Drift the edges of channels in water 7 to 12’ deep. Anchoring around manmade structure like the fuel docks, high rise bridges, and port wall will produce the larger flounder.

The spanish mackerel bite was good over the weekend, with lots of good-sized spanish caught at the Cape Lookout shoals. They are also being caught trolling down the beaches and at the artificial reefs.

Red drum are still biting well in the marshes, in the creeks, and on the north side of the sound around the boat docks.

The king mackerel bite is improving daily, including a 30 pounder at the Hook. Kings have shown up as close as the Sea Buoy, Barge Wreck, and AR315 and AR320. There are loads of them at AR330, Jerry’s Reef, the Trawler Wreck, and Northwest Places. Most of these kings are 10 to 20 pounds. It will not be long before they show up near the beaches and on AR315 and AR320.

Fair numbers of dolphin are being caught in the same areas. The key to finding nearshore dolphin is to look for flying fish.

Offshore, the dolphin fishing still continues to be very good. Lots of gaffer dolphin (up to 50 pounds) have been caught. The 14 buoy out to the Big Rock (and north of the Big Rock) has been hot.

The wahoo bite has improved, and more sailfish are showing up in the catch. Fair numbers of white and blue marlin have been caught.

Larry, at Sportsman’s Pier, reports that a few spanish and blues are being caught on plugs. The numbers should improve as the water conditions clear.

On the bottom, anglers are finding hogfish, spots, sea mullet, and croaker. And there is a good run of summer spots being caught using worms as bait.

Joyce, at Oceanana Pier, reports that flounder are being caught on cut bait. The biggest of the week weighed 1 lb. 15 oz.

Spanish, gray trout, sea mullet, and a few sheepshead have also been reported.

Shane, at Second to None Charters, reports that all the gaffer dolphin you want are being caught, and all of the boats are reporting billfish sightings. There’s been more blue marlin and white marlin, with the sailfish not quite as prevalent.

The wahoo have been scarce, with maybe one or two being caught. And no tuna reported this past week.