North Myrtle Beach – June 19, 2014
Amy Monsour, of Sanford, NC, with a 27″ red drum she caught and released after it struck a live menhaden while she was fishing with Richie Ward near Little River Inlet.
Mark, of Shallow Minded Inshore Fishing Charters, reports that anglers are still catching good numbers of flounder in Tubbs Inlet and the Ocean Isle cement canals, with Gulp baits and live mud minnows pinned to jigheads and Carolina rigs producing most of the action.
Speckled trout have been feeding around the Little River jetties, where anglers are hooking solid numbers on live shrimp beneath floats drifted past the rocks.
Drifting through the middle of the inlet with live and cut baits on the bottom is producing fast action with bluefish, ladyfish, bonnethead sharks, and more.
Flood tides are producing some solid fishing for tailing red drum in the area’s shallow marshes right now. Gold spoons and Gulp soft baits have been tempting the skinny-water reds to bite, and anglers are also connecting on the fly rod with Cave’s Wobbler spoon flies.
Cobia action on the nearshore reefs and wrecks like the Caudle and Sherman has been phenomenal recently. Anchoring up around the structure with a chum bag has been drawing big numbers of the fish to anglers’ boats, and they’re fooling them with bucktail jigs tipped with large soft plastics along with live menhaden.
Spadefish are schooled up on much of the same structure and provide some unique angling opportunities and tasty meals for anglers pursuing them. Dropping several cannonball jellies down to the wrecks and slowly retrieving them to the surface will often bring a school of spades up, and anglers can use small pieces of the jellies as hook baits to tempt the hard-battlers to strike.
Bud McNeely, of Black Mountain, NC, with a cobia that struck a live bait just off Oak Island while he was fishing with Capt. Greer Hughes of Cool Runnings Charters.
Patrick, of Capt. Smiley’s Fishing Charters, reports there’s been some good action with speckled trout and red drum in the backwaters between Sunset Beach and Little River. Deeper potholes in the creeks and on flats are holding fish during the lower tides, and anglers can cast live mud minnows or a variety of soft plastic baits to tempt them to bite. Popping cork rigs and jigheads have been the most productive rigs recently. The reds will also take an interest in cut menhaden or crabs.
At higher tides, anglers are finding the fish feeding around nearby grass banks and structure and fooling them with the same baits.
There’s also been a good speckled trout bite along the rocks at Little River Inlet. Drifting live shrimp beneath floats or on jigheads around the jetties is the way to connect with the specks.
Flounder are feeding in Tubbs Inlet, Cherry Grove, and spots off the ICW in between. Live mud minnows and Gulp baits are tough to beat for the flatfish.
Dylan, of Cherry Grove Pier, reports that anglers are hooking good numbers of spot and sea mullet while baiting bottom rigs with shrimp and bloodworms.
Anglers working Gotcha plugs and mackerel tree rigs are connecting with spanish mackerel and some bluefish.
The water is 79 degrees.
