Swansboro Winter 2010
Tim Farless, of Raleigh, with a 29" red drum he hooked in the surf zone near Bogue Inlet. The red fell for a Gulp pogy while he was fishing with Capt. Jeff Cronk of Fish'N4Life Charters.
Jeff, of Fish’N4Life Charters, reports that anglers have found some excellent inshore fishing despite the massive rainfall recently.
The trout bite in the Swansboro area has been excellent recently (though many of the fish are smaller 10-14” spikes). Anglers are still finding some of the fatter 1-3 pounders in the area, though, and most are falling for Berkley Power Bait and Gulp soft baits. Scaling down to 1/16 oz. or smaller jigheads with the soft baits will produce more bites from the finicky specks.
As the winter wears on and the water cools down, anglers can expect the trout to make their way up the rivers and creeks in the area, where they’ll hunker down in deeper holes with dark mud bottom that absorb the sunlight and hold heat.
Crockett Henderson, of Cape Carteret's "Liquid Fire" fishing team, with a 30" red drum he hooked and released along the breakers near Bogue Inlet on a swim shad.
The area’s red drum bite is still incredible, and the fish are schooling up in huge numbers near the shoals around area inlets. The majority of the area’s upper and over-slot red drum will remain around the inlets and in the surf zone over the course of the winter. Anglers can locate the reds by sight when cruising behind the breakers, but they should be extremely cautious when boating in the surf zone. Gulp pogies and a variety of other lures and baits will fool the reds when anglers can find them.
Rob, of Sandbar Safari Charters, reports that the speckled trout bite is hot at the Cape Lookout jetty, and anglers are also hooking up with gray trout, sheepshead, black drum, and more while fishing the rocks.
Live shrimp and pink Gulp baits are producing the bulk of the action with the fish at the rocks.
Chase Stanci (age 11), from Kenly, NC, with a 62 lb. black drum he landed after a 40 minute fight on sea mullet tackle and a shrimp bait. Weighed in at Island Harbor Marina.
Anglers are also loading coolers up with blowfish around the rock jetty, and bottom rigs baited with shrimp or small bits of Gulp will attract their attention.
Closer to home, the trout bite’s also been solid around Swansboro. There are big numbers feeding in the sound (but most are on the small side). The larger specks are moving out of the inlets and surf and into the creeks and rivers, where they’ll winter in deeper holes inshore and around the sloughs and jetties in the surf.
Gulps and live shrimp are the top trout baits locally as well.
Puppy drum and smaller black drum are feeding around the docks and other structure in the creeks and off the ICW, and anglers can hook them on live or cut shrimp.
Gray trout are feeding in the inlets and at nearshore structure like AR-315, where anglers can hook up with them while bouncing Stingsilvers or other jigging lures off the bottom.
Chad Moore, of Clayton, NC, with a 4 lb. speckled trout he hooked on a live shrimp in the White Oak River while fishing with Capt. Chris Sewell of Fishead Charters.
False albacore are chasing bait from the beaches out to nearshore structure, and anglers are hooking them while chasing the breaking schools and casting soft plastic baits into the action.
Red drum are schooling up in the surf zones along the barrier islands and around the inlet shoals, and anglers can sight cast to the large schools when the water’s calm and clear enough (a north wind is ideal). Live finger mullet, Gulp baits, and a variety of other offerings will draw strikes from the reds in the breakers.
Chesson, of CXC Charters, reports that there’s been some excellent bottom fish action at structure not too far offshore.
There’s been a good black sea bass bite in around 50’ of water (with most keepers and some to 18”), and anglers are hooking up with them while jigging Stingsilvers and bucktails.
Some flounder are feeding around the same structure, and they will fall for the jigging lures as well.
False albacore are chasing bait higher up in the water column, and anglers are frequently hooking the falsies while reeling lures from the seafloor to the surface.
Susan Chapman, of Atlantic Beach, with a big speckled trout she hooked on a MirrOlure while fishing a slough in the AB surf with her husband Jerry.
Dale, of The Reel Outdoors, reports that the speckled trout bite has been on fire inshore around the area (but most of the fish are undersized). The fish should be around into January, and they’ll take an interest in Gulp baits, curly tail grubs, and MirrOlures.
Surf fishermen are picking up good numbers of blowfish and some fat whiting on bottom rigs baited with shrimp.
Red drum are schooling up in the surf, and anglers can hook them from the beach or boats on the backside of the breakers with Gulp baits, topwater plugs, and many other lures.
