After a lot of rain at the beginning of October we are finally seeing stable weather with fall like temps! This will really get the Fall fishing in to high gear! Here are the fish I target during October and how I like to fish for them.
Speckled trout are not too hard to catch, but knowing what lures to use and when can really make a difference in how many you catch. I prefer to use grubs and hard baits in deeper waters (six to twenty feet) like MirrOlure 52m & 52MR’s or the newer 18MR series. The grubs I prefer are Berkley Gulp 3” shrimp, the new 3” Ripple mullet and Saltwater Assassin Seashads in 4” size. When I’m targeting Speckled trout in shallower waters (two to six feet) I prefer lures like the MirrOlure 17MR and catch 2000 jr: on very calm mornings try a MirrOlure She pup top water plug will get those trout to blow-up out of the water! It’s so exhilarating to see a big fall Trout hit a top-water lure! If you would rather use live bait, try live mud minnows or live shrimp; rig the live bait on a light Carolina rig for deeper water or a float rig for shallow waters.
During October you can catch very good size and numbers of Flounder. I catch most of my October flounder around the inlets, creeks and channels that lead to the inlets. Casting lures like Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in sizes five and six inch should put some keeper Flounder in the cooler for you. If you would rather use live bait; try a Carolina rig with a three to six inch mullet in the same areas. Try a Eagle Claw L42 1/0 size hook for your flounder Carolina rig. Just remember to take your time when you hook that door mat Flounder, they are great at getting off the line and have a good landing net close by like an EGO net.
As the waters cool down from the fall air the Redfish really get active and this is the time to catch some good numbers in shallow water. The mullets will be in full run by early October and the Redfish take full advantage of this! Casting top-water lures along marsh grass banks and oyster rocks in creeks and along the ICW will sure to put a Redfish on your line. Try these top-water lures; MirrOlure’s Top-pup or Sebile’s Ghost Walker. Remember work these lures with good side to side action(walking the dog) for a sure strike bite action! Also you can cast live finger mullets on rattling or popping corks for these shallow water Redfish as well.
The bigger Reds start to show up in the ocean on hard bottoms and around the inlets during September; this year has been a epic early fall Bull Red bite. You never know when you might hook one of these hard fighting fish. When I fish for bigger Reds, I use fresh cut or live menhaden and mullet. I use fish finder rigs with 7/0 or 8/0 circle hooks and eighty pound Berkley Big game mono leaders. Don’t forget to keep your drag tight when using circle hook so they will do their job. One tip I can give you when fishing for Bull Reds, is don’t use to light of tackle for these bigger Reds. If you fight them to long, there is a chance you can tire them out to much and kill them. Try a med/heavy rod and a reel with at least thirty pound mono or braid, this will help you get the fish in quicker; with a better chance of a good release. Check to see if the Red has a yellow tag in its back; there are a fair amount of tagged Big Reds out there.
Spanish mackerel and False Albacore fishing can be great during October. The Spanish and False Albacore run the biggest all year during the fall. You can cast or troll for them and the fly fishing can be great as well. The Spanish and False Albacore will be around the inlets and near shore artificial reefs. Look for jumping/busting fish and diving birds; that is where you will find the Spanish and False Albacore. Casting small spoons or jigs on light spinning tackle will put some fish in the boat for you. If you would rather troll, give a Blue Water Candy Daisy Chain a try on top and a #1 planner down deep with a Clark spoon. If you would like to give fly fishing a try, use a six to nine weight set up with floating line with a small minnow pattern fly or epoxy minnow pattern; my favorite!
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II’s and Clash Spinning reels 2000,2500, & 3000 sizes for the Redfish, Speckled trout, Spanish, Albacore and Flounder. Bull Reds PENN Fathom casting reels or SpinFisher spinning reels. Rods PENN Battalion 6’6” & 7’ medium and med/heavy for the Redfish, Spanish, Albacore and Flounder. Med/light for the Speckled trout. Bull Reds PENN Rampage Jigging class rods in 50 to 100 class. Line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in ten and fifth-teen pound. Berkley Pro Spec fluorocarbon leader material in twenty pound. Bull Red line Thirty pound Berkley Pro-Spec Chrome mono.
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on October 8th, 2015
One of the most important and useful tools I use every day while fishing and honestly just about every day of my life are my sunglasses. I mean really think about it, how many times you have walked out the door and immediately it hit you “need my sunglasses”! Or even worse, head out fishing/hunting before the sun comes up, but when it comes up it hits you “oh no, I forgot my sunglasses”! That’s a long day no one wants to go through and yes we’ve all done it! This really shows how important a high quality pair of sunglasses is for any outdoor sport or better everyday life!
I’ve found a company that makes one of the finest pairs of sunglasses on the market today and you would not think at first it would come from the company that makes them. Salt Life has introduced a line of Sport optics (Sunglasses) that are like no other on the market, yet reasonably priced for the quality pair of sunglasses your getting. I know what you’re thinking; how and why are they better than most others on the market?
-Salt Life Optics use ZEISS lenses, for over 160 years ZEISS has been the world’s leading brand in precision optics. Like NASA, Google Earth, Nobel Prize winners and Hollywood producers, outdoor lovers who wear Salt Life sunglasses can also enjoy the high quality of ZEISS lenses, the pioneers in precision optics. ZEISS lenses are used by Hasselblad and Leica, the makers of the finest cameras in the world. ZEISS lenses are being used in the James Webb Space Telescope which is going to replace the Hubble Space telescope in the next few decades. The scope and Binocular of choice for the avid Hunter and outdoorsman is ZEISS. So the ZEISS brand is a house-hold name amongst the American Sportsman.
-Frames made in Italy NOT China with premium TR90 material. TR90 is a composite material that is lighter and stronger than most of Salt Life Optic competitors; you can feel the difference with their Italian made frames and the competitors.
-PPC: all Salt Life Optics lenses are made of Polarized Polycarbonate injected material that is lightweight, offers crystal clear vision, 100% UV protection and is scratch/impact resistant.
-Anti-Reflective AR5: Carl Zeiss invented AR technology; Salt Life’s five layers AR coating reduces glare and bounce back. It’s the best I ever tried and I’ve tried a lot of sunglasses!
-Ri-Pel: this proprietary technology repels water, dirt, oil and dust. It gives the lens a Rain-X effect so water, sun tan lotion and/or bug spray will be repelled off the lens and makes for easier cleaning. Ri-Pel is a permanent repellent coating.
-True Color Recognition: ZEISS formulated our exclusive tints to allow colors to be seen naturally. Other lenses distort the color spectrum blocking reds and yellows so after hours of wearing the user may develop headaches.
-Salt Life Optic Coatings: all our coatings are vacuum sealed on so they are permanent and will not delaminate when exposed to salt water or extreme weather conditions. Many of Salt Life’s competitors use a dipping process to apply their coatings and in time will delaminate.
-RX lenses: prescription lenses are available. Salt Life is using a ZEISS lab with the latest technology so that the user enjoys the special tints and coatings ZEISS has created for Salt Life Optics. They offer single vision, progressive and reader lenses.
I really could not believe my eyes, literally, the first time I put on a pair of Salt Life sunglasses, crystal clear is an understatement; for the first time really true color hues but with great UV protection!
A few weeks ago I was fishing off the beach a few miles, it was a flat calm day with lots of clouds with sun peaking through every once in a while. The kind of day when there is a really bad glare on the water, yet the water was super clear. A large barracuda rolled up beside the boat, I could see it very easily and when I said to my custom “wow look at that large barracuda” he could not see it?!?! I took off my pair of Salt Life sunglasses and handed them to him (my customer) he could not believe the large barracuda just beside the boat!!! The two things that blew my mind were that I could not see the barracuda without my Salt Life sunglasses and that he could not see the barracuda with the well known fishing brand sunglasses he was wearing before he put mine on.
Do yourself one favor go at least try on a pair of Salt Life Sunglasses, compare them to the brand you use now. I sure you’ll be amazed by the difference in many aspects of the Salt Life optics to the ones you wear now. Welcome to Salt Life Optics the way sunglasses should be made!
Check out the full line at www.biminibayoptics.com or locally at Tex’s Bait & Tackle Shop 215 Old Eastwood Rd Wilmington, NC 28403 www.texstackle.com
Posted in Product Reviews on September 2nd, 2015
Fall is trying so very hard to show up around the area but, with these weather changes comes ‘weather’ and for the last few weeks it’s been in the form of rain and thunderstorms! Hopefully the rains will slow down and we’ll start to see some breaks of cooler weather! I’m sure ready to see some cooler fall weather!
With all this talk of cooler fall weather, one fish that pops up on my radar is the very fun to catch Speckled trout and will not be long before they are here in good numbers! My easy break down of what lures I use are by current flow and water death. I prefer baits like MirrOlure’s 17MR and catch 2000jr in waters of two to six feet deep with light or no current. In deeper waters of five to fifteen plus feet with or without current I prefer MirrOlure’s 18MR and 52M & MR (slow sinking) As far as colors go try this rule of thumb; lighter colors in clearer blue & green waters and darker colors in river, tannic or stained waters.
I will use grubs in any water death or current when trout fishing, but I’ll adjust the weight of the jig head for the death or current of the water I’m fishing. Try lures like the Berkley Gulp Fire Tail 3” shrimp or the newer 3” Ripple Mullet for Speckled trout. Another lure that works well for trout is Saltwater Assassin’s Sea shad series, try colors like chicken on a chain, chart/diamond, copperhead, rainbow trout or 10w40 with lime tail. One thing I really believe in is using fluorocarbon leaders for Speckled trout fishing; these fish have very good eye sight. Using fluorocarbon will help you catch more trout; try Berkley’s new Pro Spec fluorocarbon leader material. As the local waters cool the trout fishing will only get better!
The Bull Reds (over slot) are really starting to show up in the ocean on hard bottoms, shoals and around the inlets. You never know when you might hook one of these giants! When I fish for Bull Reds, I use fresh cut or live menhaden and mullet. I use fish finder/carolina rigs with 5/0 to 8/0 circle hooks and eighty pound Berkley Big game mono leaders. Don’t forget to keep your drag tight when using circle hook so they will do there job.
One tip I can give you when fishing for Bull Reds, is don’t use to light of tackle for these bigger Reds. If you fight them to long, there is a chance you can tire them out to much and kill them. Try a med/heavy rod and a reel with at least thirty pound mono or braid, this will help you get the fish in quicker; with a better chance of a good release. Check to see if the Red has a yellow tag in its back; there are a fair amount of tagged Bull Reds out there.
This has been a good Flounder season for me and for that reason I’ve run a lot of Flounder trips this season with good success. One thing we have seen this year is that the Flounder fishing has been good inshore but better in the ocean this season, giving us lots of opportunities to flounder fish. Live bait as well as artificial lures has put lots of flounder in the boat for us. Carolina rigs with Eagle Claw L42 1/0 size hooks and forty pound clear fluorocarbon leader works well. Small finger mullets, small menhaden and mud minnows are our choice live baits.
Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in 5” & 6” colors pearl, chart pepper neon or new penny and 4” Ripple mullets if you would like to use artificial baits. The flounder are hanging around inlets, channel drops and creeks inshore. In the ocean near shore artificial reefs, ledges and hard/live bottoms are holding some nice numbers of flounder too. During September the fall southern bait run will start to crank up, when this happens the Flounder will turn up a notch or two!
Fishing Gear I use:
Reels: Speckled trout and Flounder: PENN Battle II spinning in sizes 2000, 2500 & 3000 sizes. Bull Reds Fishing reels: PENN Battle II 6000 & 7000, PENN Fathom 12 & 15 or Torque 12 & 15. Line: Spiderwire Ultra-cast 10 and 15 pound. Bull Reds Line: 30 or 40 pound Berkley Big Game Mono. Rods: (Inshore) PENN Battalion. Bull Reds Rods: PENN Rampage jigging series in 30-80 class spinning and casting. Leader material: (inshore) Berkley Pro Spec fluorocarbon in thirty to forty pound, Bull Reds; Berkley Big Game mono & Fluorocarbon in eighty to one hundred pound.
*Are you on Facebook? Check out my page Capt. Jot Owens/Jot It Down Fishing Charters LLC for lots of good info on local fishing, fishing tips, detailed live reports, photos and tackle giveaways; yes free stuff!
Thanks for reading, if you have any questions or comments just let me know. Don’t’ forget to take a kid fishing!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on September 1st, 2015
PENN Fishing tackle has done it again with the 2015 Best of Show Salt Water Fishing Reel at ICAST (International Convention of Allied Sportfishing Trades). It’s the new PENN Clash spinning reel series. If you love a super smooth, light weight, but strong spinning reel you really need to take a look at the PENN Clash series.
The new Clash comes in seven sizes to cover almost all fishing scenarios; inshore, near shore and offshore. The design and look of this reel is smooth and clean; with lots of great features that I look for in a reel today. We all know braided fishing line (superline) has gotten very popular for all types of fishing. Hey its great stuff, small in diameter and super strong; but its hard on reels IE: gears and drag systems. With the Clash’s CNC Gear Technology this delivers durability, smoothness and precision. PENN’s legendary HT 100 drag and utilizing a wave spring in the drag knob of the Clash so you no longer bottom the drag out and lose the last 25% of your drag curve. What’s the purpose of having forty pounds of drag if you can’t use the last ten pounds?
All Clash spinning reels come with braid ready spools, no backing needed for these spinning reels; you can put braid right on the spool with no worry of line slippage. Speaking of braid, how about a Leveline system; this system with the correct combination of slow oscillation and appropriate spool dimensions deliver the perfect line lay on the spool. This will help with longer cast and fewer wind knots.
Cap and Stats:
CLA2000: Mono cap yds/lb: 240/4 180/6 125/8 Braid cap: 210/8 180/10 165/15 Bearings: 8+1 Max drag: 10 lbs Ratio: 6.2:1 Weight: 8.2oz
CLA2500: Mono cap yds/lb: 255/6 175/8 140/10 Braid cap: 240/10 220/15 160/20 Bearings: 8+1 Max drag: 12 lbs Ratio: 6.2:1 Weight: 8.5oz
CLA3000 Mono cap yds/lb: 200/8 165/10 120/12 Braid cap: 250/15 180/20 130/30 Bearings: 8+1 Max drag: 15 lbs Ratio: 6.2:1 Weight: 10.2oz
CLA4000 Mono cap yds/lb: 270/8 220/10 165/12 Braid cap: 360/15 260/20 185/30 Bearings: 8+1 Max drag: 15 lbs Ratio: 6.2:1
Weight: 10.7oz
CLA5000 Mono cap yds/lb: 225/12 200/15 135/20 Braid cap: 420/20 300/30 240/40 Bearings: 8+1 Max drag: 20 lbs Ratio: 5.6:1 Weight: 16.9oz
CLA6000 Mono cap yds/lb: 335/15 230/20 210/25 Braid cap: 490/30 390/40 335/50 Bearings: 8+1 Max drag: 25 lbs Ratio: 5.6:1 Weight: 20.7oz
CLA8000 Mono cap yds/lb: 340/20 310/25 230/30 Braid cap: 475/50 390/65 345/80 Bearings: 8+1 Max drag: 30 lbs Ratio: 4.7:1 Weight: 27.2oz
Key Features to the PENN Clash Spinning Reel:
• Full metal body makes for a durable reel and keeps things lined up
• Superline Spool™ – No backing needed because of the rubber gasket keeps superline from slipping
• Techno-Balanced Rotor design
• Machined and anodized aluminum spool with Carbon Fiber wrap
• HT-100™ carbon fiber drag washers provide smooth drag under heavy loads with a Wave Spring to utilize the entire drag curve.
• 8 Sealed stainless steel ball bearings
• Infinite anti-reverse
• Heavy-duty Aluminum bail wire
• Spool design has line capacity rings.
• Leveline Oscillation system to help with longer cast and fewer wind knots
I was on the test team when PENN first started to design the new Clash line of spinning reels. When I first got the reels, the look is clean, light weight and well built. The Clash is noticeably super smooth out of the box, but what I found was after months of use, it’s still super smooth! I fished the test reels hard, lots of Striped bass, Redfish, Flounder, a few Cobia and even a few larger sharks brought to the boat side with these reels.
As a full time fishing guide the spinning reel is my choice tool I use every day, it must work and work well! When I look for a spinning reel, I look for the one that has a good price for what you’re getting; built well enough to last through a long day of a guided fishing trip or a super long day of a tournament and light weight is the cherry on top. The Clash cost a little more, but you really need to weight out what you’re getting with the new Clash. No one likes to pay too much for fishing gear, but if it works well it’s worth every penny! I really like this spinning reel, check one out today at your favorite tackle shop.
If you have any questions about the new PENN Clash series or any PENN product, let me know and I’ll be happy to answer your questions.
Thanks for reading,
Capt. Jot Owens
www.captainjot.com
Posted in Product Reviews on August 4th, 2015
August fishing around Southeast NC can be great, but due to a few different weather scenarios; high heat, super dry, super wet etc… you may need to tune how you fish during August. Go earlier or much later in the day, if we have had lots of rain, look for cleaner waters to fish etc… By making adjustments will increase your chances of catching more during August hot dog days!
Flounder are a great hot weather fish because it really does not seem to matter how hot it gets they still bite! Live bait is the key for catching higher numbers of Flounder, but if you want to catch bigger Flounder try artificial bait. Mud minnows and small finger mullet will be the best live baits for Flounder in August. Rigging the live bait on carolina rigs with Eagle Claw L42 1/0 or 2/0 hooks is a good choice of rigs for Flounder. If you prefer to use artificial baits; scented and none scented grubs as well as spinner baits will do the job. Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in five and six inch and colors of new penny, pearl white and chart pepper neon are all good. Also try Berkley’s Havoc Grass Pig lure in colors, chartreuse, pearl white silver and swamp gas. I rig these lures on long hook shank jig heads in 1/4oz, 3/8oz and 1/2oz weights in colors red, gray or white.
One fish that is always on my hot weather list is the Sheephead. The Sheephead is a good challenge to catch and they fight hard, but they are also good to eat! Another great thing about Sheephead fishing when it’s hot outside is that you can hide under a bridge out of the sun and catch them. Just think; fishing somewhere out of the sun and you’re catching great eating fish! All you need is some fiddler crabs or sand fleas for bait. A medium/heavy action spinning or casting rod with Spiderwire twenty or thirty pound braid for line will help you bring in that big Sheephead in. Tie on a short carolina rig with forty or fifty pound fluorocarbon leader and a small live bait J hook (sharp/strong)! Drop that fiddler crab down beside a piling on the carolina rig and when you feel that little bump; set the hook and hold on!
North Carolina is not really known for Tarpon fishing but we do see a few pushing just off Masonboro inlet and the lower Cape Fear River form time to time. If you want a good challenge, give Carolina Tarpon fishing a try this August. The best times are very early morning or late afternoon and in to the night. I fish for Tarpon on the bottom or free lining, using live and fresh dead baits like; spots, mullet and Menhaden. I rig these baits on fish finder rigs, with three to five feet of 80 to 100 pound fluorocarbon leaders. Circle hooks are the best bet for good hook ups and landings for Tarpon in hook sizes 7/0 to 9/0 depending what hook series you like. It not easy to catch a NC Tarpon, but I promise if you do or even just jump one off; you will try again!
I also enjoy shark fishing later in the summer (late July to early September). Sharks on light tackle are always a good pull and boy the kids love to catch’em! I drift live and fresh dead bluefish, Spanish mackerel, mullet or menhaden in thirty to forty five feet of water offshore. I rig these baits with a 7/0 circle hook with one foot of ninety pound wire and six to eight feet of eighty pound mono leader. I push down the hook barb on my shark hooks for easy release of the shark if you like. You can free line the bait and /or put a small egg sinker on to keep the bait close to the bottom. You’ll know when you get a bite! Most sharks are in the ten to one hundred plus pound range.
Last but certainly not lest is Bull Redfish (big Red Drum). The Bull Reds will start showing up in good numbers around inlets and hard/live bottoms just off the beach to about ten miles out in early August. Live or fresh dead bait is the key to catching these brutes. Most fish will be twenty-eight to over forty inches in length, very fun to catch size! It’s not hard to rig for the Bull reds; short carolina rigs with a 9/0 to 12/0 circle hook will do the trick. Remember if your catching larger Drum, please use heavier tackle; these Drum will work so hard when the water is hot and it is easy to kill them using to light of tackle (fighting them to long).
Have a good August, stay cool and thanks for reading!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on July 28th, 2015
