Swansboro October 26, 2006
Jeff, at FishN4Life Charters, reports that the speckled trout fishing has been consistently getting better each week. The majority of the fish in the Swansboro area are showing up in good numbers from the ICW to the inlets and all the feeder creeks and channels between. They’re responding very well to Gulp baits, Mirrolures, live shrimp, and small mullet minnows.
The redfish bite continues to be good in the backwaters and in the surf with both spinnerbaits and topwaters. The redfish along the beach are hitting Gulp baits fished on jigheads. Most of the redfish are falling in the slot range. There are also some smaller fish as well as some 30+ inch fish in the mix.
The flounder are heading back toward the inlets; therefore, there are some nice size fish being caught in the bays and creeks close to the inlets. The ICW is holding some big flounder, too.
Along the beaches, AR’s, and live bottoms, there are still good numbers of summer flounder, sea bass, and some nice gray trout. For the gray trout, try jigging pink or green stingsilvers or jigheads tipped with Gulps just off the bottom around the live bottoms or AR’s.
The king mackerel are biting very well, with a lot of 5 to 10 pound fish (along with some into the 20’s and 30’s) being caught relatively close to the beach. There have been many reports of kings in the 2 to 5 mile range this week, with most fish coming off the downriggers. Live baits will be the best bet, and they can be found by jigging sabiki rigs around the AR buoys or wrecks.
Stan at Captain Stanman’s Fishing Charters, reports that the kings that were overdue to hit the inshore reefs finally arrived and are eating the props off of the boats. No problem getting a limit in 45 minutes to 1 hour.
Menhaden, on the other hand, are scarce in the area. A few have been spotted in the ocean, but none have been seen in the ICW in weeks.
Look for menhaden on the beach across the shoals. When you see a mud boil, throw on it. Menhaden are making the boils.
Another way to catch menhaden that is used widely in Hatteras is to use a sink net along the beach. Spread it from the beach to offshore starting in 6 to 8 feet of water.
Jig bait is getting a little harder to find as each week goes by. There are still pockets of sardines, cigars, and Boston mackerel around. When you see them, throw your sabikis at them. Then fish for kings around that same pod with your newly caught bait.
The east side of Cape Lookout got cold this past week. It shouldn’t stay slow for long. When it heats up, get over there and catch a 30 pounder. There will be a lot of them until the bluefin tuna arrive in the middle of November.
James, at Bogue Inlet Pier, reports that bottom fishermen are catching pompano (up to 1.5 pounds) and a few black drum on shrimp. The spots are running on and off. When they’re around, artificial bloodworms have been the best bait.
A few flounder are hitting early in the day, along with an occasional gray trout.
Bluefish from 10 to 24 inches are providing plug casters with steady action.
