Ah. Spring is in the air, can you feel it? I can. Warmer days, the southwest winds have started to blow and the Azaleas are about to bloom. All these point to spring fishing ahead.
I, like many resident anglers, fish the NC coast year round. I’ll admit I don’t get out as often in the winter. For one I dislike the cold but even on cold days I’ll head out if the weather and seas allow.
Winter fishing for me is mainly limited to speckled trout and drum on the inside and bottom fishing in the ocean for black sea bass, grouper and flounder. Bottom fishing is often referred to as “meat fishing” because rather than sport, it fills the freezer. Don’t get me wrong, I eat some of those specks and an occasional drum but most get released.
Earlier this week I went bottom fishing and caught some nice grouper and black sea bass. It makes my wife happy, she loves to eat fresh fish. It makes me happy, I love being on the water with the sun in my face and the tug on the fishin... [Read More]
The weather has started to warm a bit but the fish inshore are still a bit sluggish. Further offshore has been hard to reach because of all the wind and high seas the past few months. For those of you whom cabin fever is taking its toll, there is relief in sight. It is spelled S-H-A-D, as in American Shad, also known as white shad.
American shad is a saltwater fish and is highly migratory. They spend most of their time up north in large schools in the Gulf of Maine. They move into deeper ocean waters for the winter. However they are anadromous, meaning they swim up rivers to spawn. They can be found in most of the coastal rivers from St. Lawrence to Florida.
Many of them spawn in the coastal rivers of North Carolina, including the Cape Fear and Northeast Cape Fear rivers. They start showing up in the river in late February and run through March before returning to sea.
One of the best spots to find them is a lock and dam #1 in East Arcadia, about 30 mil... [Read More]
Cold, cold and more cold has been the forecast the past few weeks. There are still a few fish biting but you have to really want to fish to brave the cold and slow bite.
This is the time of year to get ready for the new fishing season. That’s right if you can’t fish at least you can get ready to catch a few once the fish begin to bite. A little time spent now preparing for the season will help you get off to a great start this spring and fish right on through the fall with fewer missed opportunities.
If you make your own rigs, winter is a good time to do that. I like to make my own Flounder rigs and King Mackerel rigs. It saves a little money but the “reel” pleasure is a certain satisfaction I get when catching fish on something I handcrafted. It also keeps me connected to fishing activities when cold or stormy weather forces me indoors. The materials are simple and are available at most well equipped tackle shops.
Maintenance of your gear is very important... [Read More]
Normally my weekly (bi-weekly in the winter) newspaper column focuses on coastal fishing. This week we take a detour to the NC mountains for some winter trout fishing.
------------------------------------------------------------------
Winter weather has set-in across the state, but fish still need to eat. Many leave for warmer waters but some stay here for the winter, fish like specks and red drum. Avid anglers pursue these fish all winter long braving the cold for the enjoyment of the catch.
I took a different tack this past week. I went to a colder climate looking for a fish that thrives in the cold water, not just survives. That of course would be trout, freshwater trout that is.
Growing up on the NC coast I was able to spend part of my summers in and around North Carolina’s mountains, the Smoky Mountains, Cherokee Forest, Nantahala and Pisgah National Forests. I learned to fish for the elusive native trout using the same gear I used in the sound. Often I could be... [Read More]
The past few weeks have been unusually warm. Unusual not in the fact that we reached the 70’s in January, that happens in many if not most years around these parts. Rather it is unusual in the fact we have had so many of those days strung together.
A number of fishermen including myself have taken advantage of the nice weather. In the past three weeks we have caught plenty of flounder, black sea bass and grouper on several occasions. Of course every winter these fish are available offshore. What is different this year is that we are fishing for them in short sleeve tee shirts and are able to get out more often.
However we have had a few cold snaps mixed in with the warm spells. In fact, just enough cold weather to remind us that it is January. The latest cold spell finds me in my shop working on fishing gear, lures and tackle. This is the time of year when I sneak in a trip whenever possible but spend most of my “fishing time” preparing for the next season.
I wonder if fish celebrate the New Year. If they do, do they eat caviar?
Like many folks, as I prepared for 2007 to be ushered in I found myself reflecting on 2006. For me it was a fine year from an angler’s prospective.
We had a mild winter which meant that there was no “freeze” kills of drum and trout. Thus many of the fish that would have been killed grew larger and provided some nice catches this fall. I caught more red drum and speckled trout this past year than I have in many, many years. Not only more, but the fish were on average larger. Last year’s spike size specks were this year’s keepers.
Flounder are not as affected with the weather, so mild winters do little to help them. Still I caught my fair share of keeper flounder in 2006. My largest this year was a 4.5 pound fish. Large enough to have been a citation size catch in 2005 but the state upped the citation weight for flounder to 5 pounds in 2006. I even caught a few flounder last week. With that... [Read More]
It’s officially winter time. Does that mean the fishing has stopped? Nope, not in these parts anyway. There is still plenty of fish to be caught along our coast. Granted, the bite is slower and you have to work a little harder. However for an avid angler, there are fish to be caught.
Speckled trout and red drum are here all year round as are a few flounder. The big drum head out into the deeper waters of the ocean but the juveniles stay here. They gather in schools when the weather gets cool and can be found in the creeks. Look for them on the sand flats or shallow oyster rocks on a sunny day. Often they will tear up any bait or lure you send their way as the pickings are sparse in the winter. However a slow retrieve works best. Winter often also means clear water, so concentrate on presentation and stealth.
Much of the above goes for specks too. However, they tend to school up in the deep pools and channels. Mud holds warmth longer than sand. So at the beginning of... [Read More]
Fishing inshore has been excellent this week. The specks are still hanging around the inlets up near the marsh grass and on colder nights moving into the nearby deep holes and channels. The water temps are in the mid 50's so you need to slow down your retrieve. I caught fish this week on Gulp! shrimp in several colors and on mirrolures - the MR808 is working best. Some of my buddies are using live shrimp under a popping cork and doing well.
Today as a buddy and I were fishing for specks near New Topsail Inlet, we had a great view of the ocean. It was almost flat as a lake with very little wind. After a while we could stand it no longer. We pulled up anchor and headed out of the inlet. With no real plan in mind, we rode out to a couple of reefs and ledges nearby. Pretty soon we were on top of a huge pile of black sea bass. I love to eat BSB and so does my buddy, so we decided to meat fish for a while.
We caught over 40 fish, keeping two limits (15 each). Most where i... [Read More]
Most of you are probably familiar with the solunar tables. They are used by both hunters and fishers to determine the best days and the best times of day to fish or hunt. These times are based on how the moon and sun line up, thus the name solunar (combination of solar and lunar). They follow patterns that are repeated each cycle of the moon but the times vary each day and month and are location dependent. We have a very nice solunar table on NC Angler, just click on "BiteTimes" on the menu bar.
Okay, now on to tides. Ask a saltwater angler when is the best time to fish and they will all most always state a "tide" they prefer versus a particular time of the day. For instances many flounder fishers feel the last two hours of the falling tide are best. The opinions vary and are dependent on what type fish you are targeting and even what season in some cases, like specks.
As you can probably guess, I keep tra... [Read More]
Introduction: Normally my weekly newspaper column is about "fishing stuff", but this week I went on a slight tangent. Hope you enjoy it anyway.
-------------------------
I have had a fascination for the origin of words since my ole “disc jockey” days when I was young. I spent six years in the Navy and now of course enjoy recreational boating. Below are some terms in our culture that have roots in nautical life. These are just a sample as there are over 100 of them that I know of so far.
Buccaneer
From the French boucan, or grill, for cooking dried meat. Originally referring to those who hunted and smoked meat, it expanded to include those who ate it (or stole it) as well. Predominantly in the Caribbean in the 1650's, buccaneers differed from pirates in that they did not attack their own nation's ships.
Cup of Joe
Navy lore: Josephus Daniels (18 May 1862-15 January 1948) was appointed Secretary of the Navy by President Woodrow Wilson in 1913. Amo... [Read More]
You may have heard that North Carolina will implement its new coastal recreational fishing license (CRFL) on January 1, 2007. Beginning on January first most recreational anglers will be required to have this license to fish in the state's saltwater estuaries and coastal waters. The license is regulated by the NC Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) but will be sold by the Wildlife Resource Commission (WRC).
What you may not know is that the license can’t be purchased until January 1st. Up to very recently the state planned to make the license available for purchase on December first to avoid a New Year Day rush on the license. However plans for advance sale of the license have been scrapped for several technical reasons according to Lisa Holcutt, customer service manager at WRC.
So if you plan to fish on January first you will need to buy the license that day. All of the current WRC license sales location will also sell the new CRFL and new sites along the coast are being added.... [Read More]
Speckled trout, red drum and a few flounder are being caught inshore. The cooler nights have the fish moving to deeper water so look for them in holes and drop offs and mud bottoms in the mornings and evenings. In the middle of sunny days you can find them up in shallow water on the sand flats warming up in the sun.
Surf City Pier reports some spots are still being caught as well as black drum, speckled trout and an occasional black drum and blue fish.
The big bait pods have moved off shore and the kings with them. They have been reported in the 20 mile and out area. Grouper, snapper and other bottom fish are being landed in 100 plus feet of water. Tuna and wahoo are being caught closer to the Gulf stream.
One of my favorite lures for catching speckled trout (spotted sea trout) is the MirroLure made by the L&S Bait Company. There are several different models and many techniques for using them ranging from trolling to casting to pitching them.
My favorite way to target specks with mirrolures utilizes the MR series and is best described as a modified cast. I'll explain in more detail below. These lures have been around for decades and are a favorite of many speck fishermen. The MR series is considered a sinking twitch bait. That is because it slowly sinks if left alone and the best action comes by giving the rod tip a twitch from time to time.
L&S recently introduced an updated version of the MR52 series. The updated model is called the MR52 Series lll. Same shape, weight and sink rate as the original but it features a holographic foil on the side of the lure and sports red hooks instead of the original silver ones. The original and the series lll are currently ava... [Read More]
I grew up hearing that said many a time. Perhaps it was dreamed up by some marketer, but it sure seems like good advice to me. At least it’s an enjoyable creed to follow.
As an avid recreational fisherman, I have a healthy respect for the environment. It only makes sense that we can’t constantly draw down the fish stocks to a level at which they can’t sustain themselves.
The Department of Marine Fisheries is responsible for keeping an eye on the fisheries. The minimum size and creel limits they set for different species are meant to allow the stock to stay at a sustainable level. They don’t always get it right the first time, but their fishery management techniques have made a positive impact on the recovery of several species.
Red Fish is a prime example of successful management and restoration of a "depleted stock." In fish management circles, a depleted stock is one that has dropped below sustainable levels, not... [Read More]
03-20-2007 10:50 AM
