Swansboro September 1, 2005
Capt. Jeff Cronk, of FishN4Life Charters, reports that the mullet minnows are currently scarce along the ICW. There are, however, plenty of 3 to 5″ mullet minnows and small shad in the creeks and bays along the mainland side of the ICW. There are also plenty of small threadfin herring around the Swansboro bridges. Live shrimp can be found, along with the mullet minnows, in the mainland bays and creeks, as well as up White Oak River and Queens Creek.
There are plenty of red drum in the surf along all 3 inlets: Bogue, Bear, and Brown’s Inlet. These fish range from 16 to 30″. Live bait and cut bait will be the best bet, although these reds will hit artificials like spoons and topwater baits, as well as soft plastics like the Calcutta swim shad. Plenty of reds are in the flooded marshes with the extremely high tides of lately. Early morning and late afternoon is producing some topwater action behind Bear Island and in the flats of Bogue Sound. During mid-day, these same areas will produce fish with live baits fished on slip corks and jigs.
The flounder bite along the nearshore live bottoms has slowed with the NE blow this weekend, but it should pick back up when the winds shift back to the southerly direction. Target live bottoms and ARs within 4 miles of the beach for the best summer flounder action right now. On the internal waters, better numbers of large summer and southern flounder are beginning to come to the scales. These big fish will lay at small creek mouths along deep channels, eddies off marsh points, deepwater structure around the inlets, docks, rockpiles, and along oyster beds where there is always easy prey.
Speckled trout are beginning to show in small numbers. The flood tides are bringing masses of glass minnows into the internal waters, and some specks up to 2 lbs. have been caught from the E.I. Bridge to Bogue Inlet and near Bear and Brown’s Inlets. The action should get better every week until it peaks in the month of November.
There have been some large sheepshead from 4 to 8 lbs. sighted and caught the past week. Deepwater structure near the inlets, including shelly bottoms, have been holding some of the bigger fish. Try fishing these areas as the current slows toward the end of the incoming tide. This will allow you to get your bait to the bottom. Sea urchins are the bait of choice for the biggest fish. Break off the spines and put the center portion on a strong, wide bend hook. Other baits that will work include fiddler crabs (available at Dudley’s Marina), mole crabs (found in the sand along area beaches), live shrimp, and mud crabs (found on live oyster beds on low tide).
There are some chopper blues showing up in small schools around Bogue Inlet and the shoals. Most of the fish are from 1 to 3 lbs., and they will strike artificials and live bait.
A reminder: Bogue Inlet Channel has recently been dredged. Some buoys have been moved, and new shallow shoals have been created by both the dredging operation as well as naturally. Use caution navigating near Bogue Inlet.
Denise, at Bogue Inlet Pier, reports that they’re catching some pompano (1-2 lbs.) on sand fleas. Everything else has been a little slow, with catches of a few mullet, flounder, and blues. Most of the flounder have been throwbacks this week, but they did land a couple in the 2 lb. class. The spanish bite has also slowed down, but using live grass shad is still the best way to go. Before the weekend the pier had a run of a few kings, but there hasn’t been any big fish since.
Dale, at The Reel Outdoors, reports that surf fishermen are mostly picking up a few pompano and mullet. They also run into the occasional spots, blues, and spanish.
Cedar Island has been hot for red drum fishing. Guys have been finding multiple fish in the 38-53 inch range. Most of them are using big cut baits for the big reds.
Not as many drum have been found recently in the sound around Emerald Isle.
Guys shark fishing on the point (toward the old inlet) have been hooking plenty of big sharks. Some of the sharks have been big enough to spool them, but they have landed sharks measuring 6-7 feet.
