Added on Thursday, May 29, 2008  Gary Hurley

North Myrtle Beach May 29, 2008

Mark, of Shallow Minded Guide Fishing, reports that flounder fishing continues to improve around Tubbs Inlet. Live mud minnows fished on Carolina rigs are the ticket to hooking up with the flatfish. There still aren’t many giant flounder around, but most of the fish anglers are catching now are keepers. The action should be good around Cherry Grove as well.

Speckled trout fishing remains strong at inshore structure like the Sunset Beach Bridge. Live shrimp are the top baits for the specks, but anglers can also cast 1/2 oz. DOA shrimp in glow or chartreuse colors with success.

Red drum have been a bit elusive over the past week, but anglers are hooking up with decent numbers of black drum while fishing chunks of blue crab in the same creek mouths and structure areas where they were finding the reds.

Spanish mackerel are feeding strong just outside Tubbs and Little River inlets. Trolling Clarkspoons will put some spanish in the boat, but anglers can have more fun casting metal lures like Deadly Dicks on light tackle to the breaking schools of fish.

Cobia are cruising the nearshore reefs looking for meals. One was landed on a DOA shrimp last week, but they’re more likely to fall for live baits.

Spadefish have begun to school up on the Little River Offshore Reef and the General Sherman.

There have been plenty of jelly balls along the beaches for anglers to use as spadefish baits, and anglers can also freeze the balls in zipper bags full of water for later use when they’re scarcer.

 

Patrick, of Capt. Smiley’s Fishing Charters, reports that the speckled trout bite has been solid around the Sunset Beach Bridge and other area spots recently. Chartreuse Billy Bay and Halo shrimp imitations are producing the most action with the specks.

Red drum are feeding around the Little River crossroads and the jetties. Live baits or artificials should tempt the reds to strike. The speckled trout bite has also been good around the jetties on a southwest wind.

Flounder fishing is going well for anglers drifting live tiger-side minnows in Tubbs Inlet and the Cherry Grove area. The minnows hang around sandbars in a few inches of water, and anglers should be able to cast net some without much difficulty.

Spanish mackerel are feeding around the inlet sea buoys and nearby along the beachfront. Trolling Clarkspoons or casting Maria jigs and other metal lures to the feeding schools is the way to hook up with the spanish.

 

Drew, of Crowd Pleaser Sportfishing, reports that the Gulf Stream dolphin bite has gotten incredible over the last few weeks. Skirted lures in front of rigged ballyhoo will attract attention out in the blue water. Boats should also bring some spinning rods offshore to cast baits to slinger dolphin hanging out under the weedlines on light tackle. Troll around temperature breaks and weedlines for the best results, and the areas around the 100/400, Blackjack Hole, and the Winyah Scarp are good places to begin looking for the breaks and weeds.

There have been a number of blue marlin reported from the 100/400 area, so boats should keep a watchful eye out for bills popping up in the spread.

King mackerel are feeding out in 70+’ of water, but they’ll soon be following bait and warm water right up to the beaches. The kings will fall for dead cigar minnows, but jigging up live baits from bottom structure will produce even better results.

Bottom fishing should be productive for grouper and other bottom fish around ledges, reefs, and wrecks in around 100′ of water. A variety of natural and live baits will produce well with the bottomfish, and butterfly jigs also offer an exciting new way to target them.

 

Mike, of Cherry Grove Pier, reports that anglers are catching some spanish mackerel and large bluefish on Gotcha plugs and mackerel trees.

Bottom fishermen are landing decent numbers of black drum (many in the 5+ lb. class). Cut shrimp are fooling the drum.

The water temperature is 75 degrees.