Swansboro August 18, 2011
Kathy Beaulieu, of Coastal Marine and Sports in Cape Carteret, with a 5.75 lb. sheepshead that bit a dead crab on a 1/4 oz. jighead while she was fishing from a local dock. She landed the sheeper on 6 lb. line and a Shimano 1500 spinning reel.
Rob, of Sandbar Safari Charters, reports that the area’s flounder bite remains strong. Anglers are hooking the flatfish in the channels near the inlet, around docks, and at nearshore structure within a few miles of the beaches. Live baits or bucktail/Gulp combinations have both proven effective recently.
The red drum bite is still a bit slow due to the hot water in the area, but anglers are catching decent numbers along the edges of the ICW on finger mullet pinned to Carolina rigs.
More reds and some black drum are feeding around the oyster rocks on the flats in the area’s backwaters, and live shrimp are fooling both.
Ladyfish are still feeding strong around lighted docks and bridges with some current flow. The evening hours are producing the best fishing, and live shrimp have been far outproducing other baits and lures. Plenty of bluefish are mixed in with the ladies.
Sheepshead should still be feeding around bridge and dock pilings on higher tides, and fiddler crabs fished tight to the structure will tempt them to bite.
The full moon slowed down the big spanish and king mackerel bite last week, but it should improve as the moon wanes. Live baits fished around nearshore structure and the inlet tideline are the way to go for the larger mackerel.
Plenty of smaller spanish are on the feed around the inlet and along the beachfront. Anglers should have little trouble hooking up with them while trolling Clarkspoons behind planers and cigar weights.
Chesson, of CXC Fishing Charters, reports that anglers are still catching good numbers of large spanish mackerel (3-6 lbs.) while fishing small live baits on scaled-down king mackerel gear. The best action has been at the live bottoms and other structure within five miles of Bogue Inlet.
Flounder are feeding at much of the same structure. Bouncing a 2 oz. bucktail tipped with a Gulp bait or fishing live baits on the bottom will draw bites from the flatfish.
Logan York (age 9), of Hubert, NC, with a flounder he hooked in the ICW near Brown's Inlet on a 3" Gulp shrimp.
Amberjacks are schooled up at higher-relief structure in 55’ of water and deeper. Anglers can tempt the jacks to bite live menhaden, vertical jigs, and often topwater poppers and flies.
Rich, of The Reel Outdoors, reports that the spanish mackerel bite is still solid. Anglers who want to catch numbers can succeed by trolling Clarkspoons around working birds and surface activity near Bogue Inlet and along the beachfront.
Larger fish are feeding at nearshore structure, and they are more susceptible to small live baits on light wire leaders with small gold treble hooks.
The flounder bite is still going strong around inshore structure like docks, in the surf zone, and at nearshore structure off the inlet. Live mud minnows and finger mullet will draw strikes from the flatfish, but Gulp baits pinned to bucktails and stand-up jigheads are often equally or more effective.
Red drum are feeding in the area’s backwaters. They’ll take an interest in live baits, topwater plugs, spinnerbaits, soft plastics, and more.
Offshore, anglers are reporting some action with wahoo, sailfish, and blackfin tuna while trolling ballyhoo along the break. A few dolphin are mixed in, but the dolphin bite has slowed down considerably.
Billy, of Bogue Inlet Pier, reports that anglers are catching bluefish and a few spanish mackerel while working Gotcha plugs and other shiny lures from the pier.
More bluefish and some sea mullet, spot, and pompano are falling for bottom rigs baited with shrimp.
