Added on Thursday, July 10, 2008  Gary Hurley

Wrightsville Beach July 10, 2008

Chris, of Tex’s Tackle, reports that red drum are feeding in the creeks and around docks and other structure off the ICW near Wrightsville. Gulp baits, topwaters, and other lures will produce strikes from the reds, but a Carolina-rigged finger mullet is tough to beat.

Flounder fishing is still good near the inlets, around docks, and in the creeks and marshes. Like the drum, they’ll fall for Gulp baits or a variety of live baits on Carolina rigs.

The speckled trout bite has slowed down for the summer.

Spanish mackerel and bluefish are feeding along the beaches and near the inlets when the water is clean. Anglers can troll Clarkspoons or Yo-Zuri Deep Divers or cast small metal lures to draw bites from the spaniards and blues.

Tarpon have shown up nearshore, and anglers may be able to entice them to bite slow-trolled live baits when they see the fish feeding and rolling.

Kings are still spread out from 5 miles to spots well offshore. Live baits or dead cigar minnows should attract attention from the kings.

Dolphin are feeding with the kings at spots a bit further from shore. Boats are hooking both while trolling ballyhoo, cigar minnows, and live baits.

Some sailfish are also mixed in with the kings and dolphin, and boats reported releasing them around 10 miles off the beach and further out over the week. Rigged ballyhoo and live baits should get the sails fired up.

The grouper bite is still best at structure 30 miles out and farther lately. Cigar minnows fished on bottom rigs will get attention from the grouper, but many anglers are also scoring bites while vertically jigging the structure.

 

Jim, of Plan 9 Charters, reports that boats are hooking some king mackerel and large spanish while trolling at structure 10-12 miles off Wrightsville. Dead cigar minnows fished on Hank Brown rigs are attracting their attention.

The kings have also been biting intermittently a little closer to the beach.

Inshore, anglers are landing some flounder in the Lollipop and finding hungry red drum at docks between Carolina Beach and Figure Eight.

 

Rick, of Living Waters Guide Service, reports that the flounder bite has been good up near Rich’s Inlet.

Offshore, anglers are hooking kings at spots from the nearshore areas to well offshore.

Bottom fishing has been phenomenal lately, with anglers landing groupers, triggerfish, grunts, beeliners, pinkies, and other fish while dropping jigs as well as live, dead, and cut baits to the bottom. Structure in 180-240′ has yielded excellent results recently.

Some massive amberjacks (up to 100+ lbs.) are schooled up further offshore, and anglers can hook up with them by dropping metal jigs to the depth the AJ’s are holding, usually visible on the depthfinder.

 

Danny, of 96 Charter Company, reports that jigging and bait fishing ledges and broken bottom around 23 Mile Rock is producing amberjacks (many in the 30 lbs. class), groupers, grunts, triggerfish, and other bottom dwellers. Cigar minnows will produce bites on bait rigs, and a 2 oz. Gotcha makes a good jigging lure for the area.

The 10 mile area has been somewhat slow lately, with plenty of nuisance sharks, but there have been some large spanish mackerel feeding there and at least one sailfish release recently.

Inshore, surf fishing for red drum has been excellent at Lee Island lately.

 

Mike, of No Excuses Charters, reports that jigging at nearshore structure is producing action with king mackerel, barracuda (some up to 6′), and amberjacks (many 30-40 lbs.).

Some large blacktip and spinner sharks are also feeding not far off the beaches, and anglers released several over 100 lbs. last week.

The spanish mackerel have scattered somewhat, but anglers are still seeing some surface feeding schools they can cast metal lures to.

Red drum are schooled up in the back marsh bays and feeding on flood tides. A live finger mullet fished around grass and oyster points where the reds are ambushing baits should be hard for them to resist.

 

Dan, of Johnnie Mercer’s Pier, reports that anglers casting Gotcha plugs are hooking some spanish mackerel and bluefish.

Bottom fishermen are hooking whiting and spot on bottom rigs baited with cut shrimp.

Sheepshead are feeding along the pilings, and anglers dangling fiddler crabs are hooking up with them.

Some flounder are falling for live baits fished on the bottom.

Anglers fishing large live baits from the end of the pier hooked several tarpon, some blacktip sharks, barracuda, and king mackerel (up to 18 lbs.) last week.

The water is 80.4 degrees.