Pamlico April 11, 2013
John K. Watkin, of Chapel Hill, NC, with a 26″ speckled trout that earned him a release citation. The big speck fell for a D.O.A. CAL soft plastic near Oriental while he was fishing with Capt. Gary Dubiel near Oriental.
Mitch, of FishIBX.com, reports that striped bass are staging to spawn in the Albemarle Sound and lower Roanoke River, and they’ve become more active following the recent warm spell (with both bigger numbers and average size).
Anglers are connecting with the stripers while working lures along deep edges of channels and around flats and stump fields under warm, low-light conditions.
Casting swimbaits and flies like Clouser and Deceiver patterns is fooling most of the fish, and larger, heavier lures allow anglers to stay in the strike zone longer while working deeper channel edges, and hence, put more fish in the boat.
The warming trend also has the stripers responding positively to topwater plugs, especially in the shallower areas. It’s still early in the season, so more subtle topwaters are producing better results than loud, splashy ones.
The fish will continue to stage and feed while working their way up the Roanoke to Weldon, and anglers can follow them the whole way there.
Richard, of Tar-Pam Guide Service, reports that the speckled trout bite is still going strong in the Pamlico River, and anglers are also encountering big numbers of under/lower-slot red drum in the saltier waters closer to the sound. Soft plastics like Z-Man baits are solid choices for both the specks and puppy drum.
Cole Mobley with a gar he hooked while fishing the lower Roanoke River with Capt. Mitchell Blake of FishIBX.com.
Striped bass are feeding strong in the Tar River from Washington to Greenville. Soft plastics and a variety of hard baits will tempt bites from the stripers.
And there’s been red-hot shad action between Tarboro and Rocky Mount on the Tar and in the Roanoke River near Weldon.
Gary, of Spec Fever Guide Service, reports that the Neuse River water temperatures have risen 12 degrees in a matter of days, and bait is abundant in the river’s creeks, an excellent sign for the spring fishing to come.
Speckled trout, red drum, and a few flounder are feeding in creeks off the Neuse from New Bern down to the sound. Anglers are connecting with all three on D.O.A. soft plastics pinned to 1/8 oz. jigheads. The quick warm-up slowed the bite for a few days earlier in the week, but the warming water should only get the fish more active in the long run.
Striped bass action around New Bern has slowed to a crawl, likely because the fish are on the way upriver to spawn.
Dave, of Knee Deep Custom Charters, reports that the Neuse River striped bass are headed upriver towards Goldsboro to spawn. Warming water means anglers can find some topwater action early in the day along stumpy shorelines. Shifting to soft plastics like D.O.A.’s new Airhead and fishing deep ledges will keep anglers in the action as the sun gets higher in the sky.
Ken, from Raleigh, with an early-April speckled trout he hooked while fishing the Pamlico River with Capt. Richard Andrews of Tar-Pam Guide Service.
The speckled trout bite has been excellent in the creeks off the Neuse (with mixed fish running 6-26”). Again, D.O.A. soft plastics have been the best bets for success with the trout and some puppy drum mixed in with them. The big numbers of puppies in the area bode well for the slot drum action this summer, a bite that didn’t materialize on the Neuse last year.
Isiah, of East Side Bait and Tackle, reports that the speckled trout bite is going strong all around Washington (with most anglers limiting out on fish averaging 17-22”). Broad, Goose, and Blounts creeks and the Pungo River have all been giving up good numbers of specks recently. Warming weather has the trout on the move from the creeks into more open water, so it’s prime time to intercept them around creek mouths and other gathering points.
Most anglers are casting soft plastic baits for the trout right now, but a few are still hooking plenty of fish on MirrOlure MR17’s.
