November the month of Big’ole Speckled trout! Yes winter is coming but hey the Speckled trout bite, especially the bigger trout bite rocks in November!
In early to mid November I look for Speckled trout in the creeks and channels just off the ICW; any where water is moving with tide flow and bait. Speckled trout like current; weather its hard current in a main channel or light current up a creek. You need current flow to catch trout; rising and falling tide can be good for trout don’t let the tide keep you form going trout fishing! Marsh grass lines, oyster rocks that run in to a channel and drop-offs in channels are all good places to find Speckled trout in November. Almost any grass lines with oysters will hold some trout! Look for places where there is a slight current break and those trout will be close by! Later in November all of the above places will still hold trout and the inlets will start to hold more trout as the month goes on.
One key point to trout I’ve found is that most days Specks will bite, but what are they hitting that day? I’ve found that in early to mid November hard baits work well. This is when you need to know where to start; what lures to try? One of my favorites is the good’ole MirrOlure; it’s been around a long time and it is still catching lots of big fish. The series I prefer are the 17MR & 22MR (Catch 2000jr) suspending, 51M, 52M and 52MR sinking.
Colors; MirrOlure makes a lot of different colors but here are some of my go too colors around Southeast NC area waters. MirrOlure color codes: 11, 21, 26, 51, 704, CFPR, CH, EC, HP and Capt. Jot Custom color #1 and #2 color in 17MR, #1 in 22MR & 52MR (only found at Tex’s Tackle shop) Any local tackle shop can help you with these color codes or at MirrOlure.com. Fishing Depths to use these lures; 17MR & 22MR use these lures in two to six feet of water. 51M, 52M & 52MR use these lures in four to fifth-teen plus feet of water with current. If your lure is hitting the bottom go to a shallower running lure.
If you have ever done any trout fishing at all you know that a grub (soft plastic) lures work very well for Speckled trout too! Berkley Gulp three inch shrimp pattern is one of my go-to lures. I prefer colors sugar spice glow, pearl white and pearl white/fire tail. I also really like the Berkley Power Bait Pro Twitchtail minnow in three inch; color Chartreuse Ice, Pink Ice and pearl white. Saltwater Assassin’s four inch sea shad in colors chicken on a chain, sweet pea, mullet, rainbow trout and cantaloupe are all good choices in November as well.
I rig all of my trout grubs on 1/16oz, 1/8oz and 1/4oz jigs heads in colors red, gray or black; always use a fluorocarbon leader when trout fishing, I use Berkley Pro Spec twenty pound in clear, thirty pound if the blues show up in numbers.
Don’t count out live bait if you enjoy fishing with it. Try live smaller mullets, mud minnows and live shrimp. In shallow waters of two to five feet I like to float these live baits with a cork and a small treble hook. In deeper waters of six to ten plus I rig them on light Carolina rigs with a small number one J-hook (EC L42). Just wait until you feel that trout take off with the bait and lightly set the hook, remember trout have very soft mouths slow hook sets work best!
Here is one of my best tips I can give you for Speckled trout fishing around the Wrightsville area in November. The water gets clear, sometimes very clear around Southeast NC in November and I hope this year is no different. The water is slowly getting back to normal post storm.
I always use Fluorocarbon leaders for Speckled trout fishing; for artificial as well as live bait fishing! You will catch more trout using fluorocarbon leader; trust me! I use Berkley Pro Spec fluorocarbon leader material in twenty and thirty pound test. Give it a try; you’ll be happy you did!
*PS: Also keep your eyes peeled for trout with yellow or red belly tags, I’ve tag a fair amount from south Topsail to Carolina beach inlet this year and last. Yellow tags are worth $5 and Red tags are worth $100!
The bigger Reds start to show up in the ocean on hard bottoms and around the inlets during September and run until later November; this year has been an 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 a TroKar AP 8/0 or 9/0 circle hook 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.
If you like to catch Bluefish there are just about as many as you like around during November. Fishing around and just outside of the inlets you can catch just about all the Blues you want in the one to four pound range. Casting metal jigging spoons or diamond jigs is a no brainer for getting some Bluefish. Just look for the birds working and cast in that area. Watch those teethe Blues they do bite hard!
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II & Conflict II Spinning reels sizes 2000, 2500 & 3000 for the Speckled trout. Rods PENN Battalion and Allegiance II in 6’6” & 7’ med/light and medium action; line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in eight, ten and fifth-teen pound. Bull Reds PENN Fathom 20LW and PENN Rampage Jigging Rods with 30 pound Pro Spec chrome mono. Tackle Storage system I use Plano 3600 and 3700 Z-series Tackle Bags.
*Keep your eyes on my FaceBook page for I’ll be releasing the two dates of my inshore fishing school this month. I’ll have one school day on a March Saturday and one on an April Saturday. This school is limited to 32 anglers each date and it will sell out within two days of release date.
Thanks for reading, good luck fishing and have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on October 26th, 2018
September is the month of change, summer starts to wind down and fall starts to show it’s self. I personally really like to fish in September, warm days, a little less humidity, much less boat traffic and best of all; great fishing! Here are some of the “goto” fish I like to target during September.
The Flounder fishing has been good this season so far, with this said it looks like September should be a great mouth for Flounder too. I look for Flounder in the fall around the inlets, in the creeks; up and down the ICW. I also will find some very nice Flounder just offshore of Wrightsville/Topsail/Carolina Beach’s on live/hard bottom as well as artificial reefs. Mud minnows and small finger mullet will be the best live baits for Flounder in September. Rigging the live bait on carolina rigs with Eagle Claw 042 1/0 hooks is a good choice of rigs for Flounder.
If you prefer to use artificial baits, which I do; scented and none scented Jerkshad will do the job. Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in six inch with colors chart pepper neon and pearl white seem to work the best for me. Rig these on jig heads with longer hook shanks with will help with a better hookup ratio. I prefer 3/8oz inshore and 3/4oz to 1 oz jig heads for ocean fishing.
When the water starts to cool down the Redfishing (Red Drum) will heat up. I look for the Reds to be in the creeks, along the ICW docks and oyster rocks. Carolina rigs with live bait or fresh cut bait is a good bet to catch a Redfish.
If you want to go the artificial root, try Berkley Gulp three inch in color sugar spice glow or molting rigged on a 1/8oz or 1/4oz jig head should get’em to bite. Early mornings or late afternoons the top water bite should be good; cast MirrOlure Top Dog Jr’s and Top Pup’s for the best bite. Look for the top-water reds to be along marsh grass lines and shallow oyster rocks. You can also use rattling or popping corks in the same areas you use top-water plugs, just rig them with eight to fourteen inches of forty pound fluorocarbon, 1/0 hook L42 Eagle Claw and a live figure mullet.
The bigger Reds are starting to show up in the ocean on hard bottoms and around the inlets. 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 carolina rigs with TroKar TK5 8/0 or 9/0 AP circle hooks and eighty pound clear 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 (Old) 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 fishing can be great during September. The Spanish 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 will be around the inlets, up & down the beaches and near shore artificial reefs. Look for jumping Spanish and diving birds; that is where you will find the Spanish mackerel. Casting small spoons or jigs on light spinning tackle will put some Spanish 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 five to eight weight set up with floating line with a small minnow pattern fly or epoxy minnow pattern; my favorite!
Shark fishing will be good until late September. I see lots of different kinds of Sharks in September; Black tip, black nose, Sandbar, Hammerhead and Tiger. Best baits for the near shore sharks are fresh/live Bluefish, Mullet and Menhaden. I use spinning or conventional reels for Shark fishing with 300+ yards of thirty and fifty pound Spider wire Ultra-cast braid. Rigging the baits; eight feet of 80 pound mono leader; some of this leader will wind on to the reel. Connected to the 80 pound mono to a fifty pound swivel, then Two to three foot of #9 SS wire and a TroKar 8/0 or 9/0 AP circle hook. (I push down the barb for easy release) If you prefer Fly fishing, I like Striped bass flies in Menhaden patterns with 4/0 and 5/0 hook sizes. We use ten to twelve plus weight set ups; have lots of extra flies with you!
Fishing Tackle I use: PENN Spinfisher VI series reels 2500 and 3500 puppy drum, Flounder and casting to Spanish mackerel. Big Drum and Sharks PENN Slammer III or Spinfisher VI 5500 or 6500 series spinning reels or conventional Fathom 20LW reels. Rods PENN Battalion or Allegiance II 8 to 15 pound 7’ class for puppy drum, Flounder and Spanish mackerel. Big Drum and Sharks PENN Rampage jigging spinning or casting 30 to 80 pound class. Lines Light tackle (Flounder/puppy drum) Spiderwire Ultra-cast 10 to 15 pound, Big Drum and Sharks 30 pound Berkley Pro Spec Chrome. I prefer blaze orange color (easy to see). Tackle Storage Plano Z-Series Tackle Bags in 3600 & 3700 sizes.
Good September fishing to you and thanks for reading!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on September 6th, 2018
August fishing in southeast NC can be pretty good but a few things to keep in mind. Most August we have to watch the water temps, they can get pretty high during August. This year not so much, it’s rain and lots of it. With that said here are my “goto” tactics for stained and dirty water inshore/near shore fishing for later summer.
Flounder can be a tougher species to catch in dirty water, but keep in mind they still have to eat too! Working live or artificial lures slower so the flounder have time to see and react to the target (bait). Live bait is good for catching higher numbers of Flounder, but no always as many keeper size flounder with live bait. Mud minnows and small finger mullet will be the best live baits for Flounder in August. Small menhaden work too but die very easy in the warm waters of 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 which I prefer and I see bigger size flounders more often on artificial lures. Scented and none scented grubs as well as spinner baits will do the job in shallow waters. Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in five and six inch and colors of new penny, pearl white and chart pepper neon are all good too. Darker colors like new penny in heavy stained/dirty waters work better to get more bites. Also try Berkley’s Havoc Grass Pig lure in colors, chartreuse, pearl white silver and swamp gas (new penny). I rig these lures on jig heads in 1/4oz, 3/8oz and 1/2oz weights in colors red, gray or white.
Look for the bigger flounder around deeper water docks with good current, bait fish and lots of structure inshore. The inlets, offshore reef and ledges are all good places to find hot weather flounder. What do all these places have in common; deeper water, current and structure. Don’t forget look for the clearest water possible and when fishing very stained/dirty water slow down your presentation of the bait.
One fish that is always on my hot weather and stained waters 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 or raining cats & dogs you can hide under a bridge out of the sun/rain to catch them. Just think; fishing somewhere out of the sun/rain 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! PS: they are great eating in the two to six pound range.
North Carolina is not really known for Tarpon fishing but I do see them 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. I prefer TroKar AP TK5 9/0 circle hooks, super sharp and super strong! It not easy to catch a NC Tarpon, but I promise if you do or even just jump one off its still really cool to see!
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! Sharks don’t really seem to care if the water is dirty either. I drift live and fresh dead bluefish, Spanish mackerel, mullet or menhaden in twenty to forty feet of water offshore. I rig these baits with a 7/0 to 9/0 TroKar circle hook TK5 with one foot of ninety pound plus wire and six to eight feet of eighty pound mono leader. 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 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 7/0 to 9/0 TroKar 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). *Please take the time to revive Red drum especially bigger fish during warmer water months; it may take upwards of fifteen minutes to do so.
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II & Spinfisher VI reels 2500, 3000, 3500 sizes for the Sheephead and Flounder. Tarpon/Sharks/Bull Drum PENN SlammerIII 6500 & 7500 and PENN 20 Fathom LW casting reels. Rods PENN Battalion or Allegiance II 6’6” & 7’ medium and med/heavy for the Sheephead and Flounder. Tarpon/Shark/Bull Drum Rods: PENN Rampage Jigging series. Line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in ten and fifth-teen pound and Berkley Pro Spec Chrome mono in thirty and forty pound for the Tarpon/sharks.
Have a good August, stay cool & dry and thanks for reading!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Fishing Tackle Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on August 3rd, 2018
July around Southeast NC is a good month for fishing but with the warm season we’ve already had this year yo
u may need to fish a little differently this July. Go earlier or later in the day to find that cooler water. Even a light rain shower can make the fish feed better. Small changes can make for a better day of fishing or (catching)!
The Flounder fishing is in full swing about everywhere by July and it’s been a good Flounder season already! In July you can find Flounder around most inlets, in creeks (deeper water parts), main channels (ICW) and just off the beach. Using smaller lives baits like mud minnows, finger mullets and little menhaden should do the trick to put dinner in the boat for you. I rig these live baits on Carolina rigs, with #1 and 1/0 L42 Eagle Claw hooks; a forty pound mono leader will work fine for Flounder fishing. Casting and slowly retrieving this rig, drafting or anchoring with this rig are all good ways to catch Flounder with a Carolina rig. You can also go the 
artificial root as well to catch Flounder; (which I prefer). Try a Berkley Gulp five or six inch jerkshad in colors pearl white or chart pepper neon. I rig the jerkshad on 3/8 to ¾ ounce jig heads, working the jig slowly across the bottom. Remember it is always a good idea to have a good landing net for Flounder fishing; FraBill makes a lot of nice landing nets.
Redfish in July, well you can catch them but with the water really warming up you need to change the way you fish a little. If you want to target Reds in shallow waters, you really need to go early in the morning or late afternoon when the water is a bit cooler; top-water lures like MirrOlure Top Pup’s are my choice in the shallows. During the mid parts of the day try to fish a little deeper with jigs and grubs, the Reds like a little deeper water when the sun gets high in the sky. I really like Berkley Gulp baits, hey you can’t beat there great scent and Redfish love’em! Berkley’s three inch shrimp is my go to Redfish lure during the hot summer months, I like them in molting, sugar spice glow and white colors. I rig my Gulp baits on 1/16, 1/8 and ¼ ounce jig heads in colors red, gray and brown with thirty or forty pound Berkley Pro Spec fluorocarbon leader material.
I really start to keep my eye out for the silver king (Tarpon); these big silver fish are making their way up from Florida; they are a little early this year. I’ve already jumped two nice ones! The long trip has made them hungry and hungry fish are easier to catch, ‘most of the time’! I look for Tarpon around local inlets, shoals and hard bottoms close to shore. Live or fresh dead baits like Menhaden or Mullet on the bottom and free lining are the best bet for getting a bite out of these beasts. I prefer Trokar AP circle hooks in sizes 8/0 to 9/0 and my leader material is always Berkley Pro Spec sixty or eighty pound fluorocarbon; Tarpon have great eye sight! Tarpon are around from mid June to mid September most seasons around Southeast NC. If you hook in to one of these Tarpon hold on tight, they fight very hard!
I also enjoy shark fishing later in the summer and July the bigger sharks really start to show up. 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 just 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. 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 pound range.
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II & SpinFisher VI reels 2500, 3000, 3500 sizes for the Redfish and Flounder. Tarpon/Sharks PENN Spinfisher VI 6500 & 7500 and PENN 20 Fathom casting reels. Rods PENN Allegiance II 7’ medium and med/heavy for the Redfish and Flounder. Tarpon/Shark Rods: PENN Rampage or Carnage Jigging series. Line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in ten and fifth-teen pound and Berkley Pro Spec Chrome mono in thirty and forty pound for the Tarpon/sharks.
I hope you have a great Fourth of July, be safe on the water and good July fishing to you!
Capt. Jot Owens
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on July 4th, 2018
Southeast NC in May, it’s when it really gets cranked up! Many different species of fish start to show up and it’s when I feel like summer fishing has really started.
As the weather stabilizes and the temps go up in May we see a lot more days where we can get out in the ocean and look for those high speed, and good eating Bonita in earlier May (even later April this year) and Spanish mackerel all May long. These fish are a lot of fun to see busting the surface of the water and even more fun to see on the end of your line! Casting small spoons or using fly gear in weights six to eight can make for a great challenge on this light tackle. Look for these fish to be hanging around near shore artificial reefs, ledges and inlets. Trolling Clark spoons and small deep driver lures can be the key to success some days for the Bonita and Spanish mackerel. When using the Clark spoons, I would recommend the pink flash spoon in sizes #00, #0 and #1; the pink flash series has really helped me put more fish in the boat. You might come over a few False Albacore and Bluefish mixed in with the Bonita and Spanish from time to time; sometimes too many bluefish are mixed in!
Redfish and May go hand and hand, this month is a favorite for casting artificial lures to them. Reds really start to settle down in their summer spots by early May. Casting Berkley Gulp Shrimp in three inch size on light jig heads is one of my go to baits for May Redfish. My go to colors are sugar spice glow, new penny, Rootbeer gold/chart tail and natural. Another Redfish bait I like is the Berkley Powerbait Pro Shad 3.5” in color Pearl white and Perch Ice. Top water lures to catch Redfish is so much fun; casting top-water plugs like MirrOlure’s Top pup or the new Poppa Mullet. You can also cast popping or rattling corks in these shallow areas with a Berkley Gulp three inch shrimp which will catch the Redfish too. If you would rather go the bait route; try some fresh cut Mullet or Menhaden on a light Carolina rig. Try fishing fresh cut bait around docks in the ICW or along creek mouths when the tide is moving.
By mid May the Cobia start to show up around Wrightsville; one of my favorites! I forecast that the Cobia will be here a little early this season. I look for Cobia around inlets, shoals and bait schools; near shore/offshore reefs and ledges are also a good place to look too. With the water being so clear it has been easier to see those brown logs in the water. We throw big jigs like (Blue water candy cobia jigs), swim baits and live bait to the Cobia. Color really does not seem to matter; but “go bright”! When I’m not sight casting for them, we are fishing around inlets, shoals and near shore artificial reefs. I float fish, bottom fish and kite fish in these areas with live menhaden, blues, pinfish and mullet as bait. Sometimes a great bonus fish when fishing for Cobia is a nice bull Redfish. You can chum if you like, but the sharks and rays will come and they will come in numbers!
With the warmer weather the Flounder will finally start showing up in better numbers, there are still a lot of smaller ones inshore, but the bigger ones will really start showing up in May! Most of the Flounder fishing I’m doing is just off the beach (wrecks/ledges) and around the inlets. I’ve caught Flounder on both live and artificial baits in May, what I have seen is more numbers on live bait, but more keepers on artificial baits. Mud minnows on light Carolina rigs with #one L42 Eagle Claw hooks will catch the numbers of Flounder. Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in five & six inch sizes will get the most keeper Flounder. I rig these Jerkshad on 1/4oz, 3/8oz and 1/2oz, 3/4oz (ocean) jig heads with longer hook shanks in red or gray color.
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II & Slammer III Spinning reels 2000, 2500, 3000, 3500 sizes. Rods: PENN Battalions 6’6” and 7’ Med-light and Medium rods. Line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in ten and fifth-teen pound. Cobia Reels PENN Fathom 20LW or 25LW casting or Slammer III spinning 5500 or 6500 spinning reels, with a PENN Rampage Jigging rod 50 to 100 pound class. Tackle Bags/storage I prefer; Plano Z series 3700 and 3600. If you prefer a backpack style take a look at the Fishing 3700 Z series Backpack. All of these bags are zipper-less, no broken or stuck zippers anymore!
Thanks for reading and good summer fishing to you!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on May 7th, 2018
