Swansboro October 14, 2010
Brett Latimer with a 22" red drum that fell for a live shrimp during Tropical Storm Nicole as he was fishing off a Bogue Sound dock.
Rob, of Sandbar Safari Charters, reports that the heavy rainfall two weeks ago slowed fishing in the area, but just for a few days, and fall fishing is now back on track.
The fresh water influx pushed the majority of the area’s red drum into the surf zone, where anglers can find them schooled up on the inlet shoals and along the beachfront nearby.
Inshore, the red bite is best on the incoming tides in the marshes and creeks closer to the inlets and the ICW. Live baits have been working best lately, but the fish will also fall for Gulps and topwater plugs.
Plenty of keeper flounder are feeding in the bays, creeks, and marshes throughout the area, and anglers can tempt them to bite live finger mullet or Gulp baits.
The flounder bite is also excellent around the inlet and the deeper channels nearby.
Speckled trout were a little difficult to find after the rain, as it flushed them out of the rivers and creeks. They are now staging along shelly marsh banks with good tidal flow, where they’ll fall for live shrimp or a variety of lures.
Capt. Rob Koraly (mate on this trip) and Chris Schwarz, of New Bern, NC, with a 15 lb. red grouper they hooked on a 7 oz. Blue Water Candy Roscoe jig in 230' of water off Morehead City while fishing aboard the "Noah's Ark" with Capt. Andrew Brannan.
The extra-high lunar tides of last week are starting to moderate, and as the water gets lower, anglers can expect to find flounder, trout, and drum holding in front of creek mouths and waiting to ambush shrimp that are pushed out of the creeks on the falling tides.
The spanish mackerel season is pretty much over, but anglers are starting to see king mackerel arriving at nearshore structure, and the fish should be feeding on the beach after a few days of north winds. Live baits are tops for the kings, and anglers can find pogies just offshore, bluefish in the inlets, and jig baits like sardines and cigar minnows around the area’s buoys.
Rich, of The Reel Outdoors, reports that anglers are catching decent numbers of large red drum (some to 40-50”) while surf casting at the point at Bogue Inlet. Cut baits and live finger mullet will fool the reds.
Anglers are also picking up some speckled trout at the inlet and from the pier on cut baits and soft plastics.
Surf bottom fishermen are finding action with a mixed bag of bluefish, spot, croaker, pompano, and more.
Rose Bowers, from Atlantic Beach, with 31 and 25 lb. king mackerel she landed on live pogies at the Northwest Places. Weighed in at Chasin' Tails Outdoors.
Inshore, anglers are still finding plenty of red drum in the marshes, where they’ll take an interest in live baits, spinnerbaits, topwater plugs, and more.
Some speckled trout are feeding in the deeper channels, and live shrimp or a variety of lures will get their attention.
The flounder bite’s still solid inshore around the docks and other structure off the ICW and deeper channels, and live finger mullet or Gulp baits will tempt the flatfish to bite.
Offshore, bottom fishermen are finding action with black sea bass and triggerfish around bottom structure 5+ miles offshore. Cut baits and squid will fool both fish.
Billy, of Bogue Inlet Pier, reports that anglers are catching bluefish while casting Gotcha plugs from the pier. Some spanish mackerel are mixed in in the morning hours.
Bottom fishermen have been hooking up with some spot, whiting, and pompano on shrimp and bloodworms.
Some flounder and puppy drum are falling for small live baits fished on the bottom.
