Ocean Isle November 12, 2009
Ryan Weaver with his largest king mackerel to date. He hooked the 31 lb. fish 8 miles off of Southport on a double pogy rig while fishing with Capt. Russell Weaver of Living Waters Guide Service.
Brant, of Ocean Isle Fishing Center, reports that the king mackerel bite is on off Ocean Isle in 65-85’ of water. The Shark Hole and Horseshoe were especially effective for local boats last week, with some larger fish (30+ lbs.) reported around Frying Pan Tower and at spots east of the shoals.
Live and dead bait are both producing good results with the kings, and there are still some pogies on the beach for anglers searching for them. Dead cigar minnows are producing nearly as many, if not more kings, but the larger fish are falling for the livies.
Bottom fishermen are finding some gag grouper action at structure in around 65’ of water, but the bite has definitely slowed down a bit compared with a few weeks ago. Live baits are top choices for the larger gags.
Boats making the run to the Gulf Stream reported good numbers of blackfin tuna and a few wahoo while pulling skirted ballyhoo last week. The Blackjack Hole seemed to produce the most action.
Susie Browder, from Winston-Salem, NC, with a 12 lb. sheepshead she hooked on a fiddler crab while fishing some inshore structure at Ocean Isle with Derek Edwards.
Kyle, of Ocean Isle Fishing Center, reports that the speckled trout bite is hot and heavy, and anglers are finding the specks all over the area. The Little River jetties, Sunset Beach Bridge, local creeks, and Ocean Isle residential docks have all been producing fish, along with just about everywhere else likely to hold a trout in the area.
Not many gators have been caught, but many of the fish are 18-20” with a few to 4 lbs. reported from Little River. Live shrimp under floats are producing most of the fish, but anglers can also hook up while casting soft plastics or other lures if they’re willing to work a little harder.
Good numbers of red drum (most 16-18” puppies) are mixed in with the specks, and they’re also falling for live shrimp.
Anglers have been hooking good numbers of sheepshead while drifting shrimp for trout at the Little River jetties, so targeting the striped fish with fiddler crabs or other crustaceans will likely produce some impressive catches.
Lisa and Chance Hall, of Little River, SC, with a 5.9 lb. flounder Lisa hooked at the Sunset Beach Bridge on a live pogy.
Patrick, of Twister Charters, reports that king mackerel fishing has been excellent of late, with a good bite taking place at most spots in the 60-70’ range. The fish are falling for both live and dead baits, with dead bait producing big numbers of fish, but live baits attracting attention from larger fish (some to 40 lbs. in the past few weeks). The kings should stay in the same areas for a few more weeks, then move out to the 80’+ spots like the Horseshoe as the water cools off.
Dropping baits to bottom structure in the 60-70’ area has been producing some solid action with American red snapper and gag grouper.
Paul, of Ocean Isle Pier, reports that the piers had a few good spot runs over the past weeks for anglers baiting up with shrimp and bloodworms. Not much else has been going on.
