Finally school is out and summer fishing is getting good! The warmer weather has really gotten the fish bite fired off in the last two weeks and I’m super excited about it!!! My customers have put some very nice fish in the boat the last few weeks; three Cobia (largest 63.2 pounds) dozens of over-slot Redfish and a few keeper sizes. All the Spanish mackerel you could just about want and the Flounder really started to show this week! Here my report/forecast for June>>>
The Spanish Mackerel are biting good most days, but the best bite has been earlier in the morning when the sun is lower in the sky; also the fish have been a little deeper in thirty to fifty feet of water for the last few weeks. When you mark big balls of bait with your fish finder this is usually where you’ll find the most Spanish biting. Clark-spoons in sizes 00 and 0 are doing the trick in colors silver, gold and pink flash behind number one planners. The Spanish hitting on top are hitting Blue Water Candy’s Spanish Daisy chains in colors pink, blue and silver; the great thing about this rig is you can pull it off lighter tackle outfits. Another lure that is working well for the Spanish when I’m casting to them is the River2Sea Sea Rock lure, these little casting jigs are just the right weight and size to get those fast moving Spanish to bite! The colors that I like to use are purple, white and blue; I prefer the two smallest sizes of Sea Rock in the number seven and four-teen. All so the hook that comes on these lures is great, finally a good hook on a lure right out of the package!
I love to catch Cobia; here are the ways I target the big brown beasts. This time of year I look for Cobia around inlets, shoals and bait schools; near shore/offshore reefs and ledges are also a good place to look too. I throw big jigs, swim baits and live bait to the Cobia when I see them. Color really does not seem to matter, brighter the better; Blue Water Candy makes some very nice Cobia jigs, check them out at our local tackle shops! Tip your Cobia Jig with a six inch curly tail grub or six inch Jerkshad from Berkley Gulp; this will help get that Cobia to eat that jig! 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 and mullet as bait.
The hot weather has really brought out the Flounder and they are finally showing up in better numbers, there are still a lot of smaller ones inshore, but the bigger ones are showing every day! Most of the Flounder fishing I’m doing is just off the beach and around the inlets. I’ve caught Flounder on both live and artificial baits lately, 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 are catching the numbers of Flounder. Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in five & six inch sizes are getting the most keeper Flounder; ‘yes a nine pounder last year’ came off a six inch Jerkshad in pearl white color! I’m rigging these Jerkshad on 1/4oz, 3/8oz and 1/2oz jig heads with longer hook shanks in red or gray color.
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 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 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 Big Reds out there.
Fishing Gear I use:
Reels: Reds, Blues and Flounder: PENN Battle spinning in sizes 2000, 3000 & 4000 sizes PENN Conquer 2000. Cobia fishing reels: PENN Battle 5000, 6000 & 7000, PENN Fathom 20LW (Great Cobia and Tarpon reel). Line: Reds, Blues and Flounder: Spiderwire Ultra-cast 15# Cobia Line: 30# Berkley Big Game Mono. Rods: PENN Legion Medium and Medium heavy. Cobia Rods: PENN Bluewater Carnage 20 to 40# class 7’. Leader material: Cobia; Berkley Big Game mono & Fluorocarbon in eighty to one hundred pound. Reds, Blues, Flounder: Berkley Pro-Spec Fluorocarbon leader material in Tannic and Gunsmoke tints; tannic for river and stained waters, gunsmoke for clear water applications.
If you would like to get real time and on the water reports, as well as free tackle giveaways each month; check out my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Capt-Jot-OwensJot-It-Down-Fishing-Charters-LLC/134340373310487\
Thanks for reading this report, if you have any questions just let me know!
Good Luck,
Captain Jot Owens
PENN Reels Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on June 4th, 2013
Summer has really been showing its face around here lately and with the warm air comes more bait and more means more fish to catch! I’ve seen a big change in water temps in the last few weeks, the waters around Wrightsville Beach are hanging around 65` inshore most days; it will not be long before we are swimming! The warm water has really brought out the bait fish, which is always a good thing for fishing! The water will only get better as May temps start to really hit summer time!
The Bluefish are really starting showing just off the beaches from twenty feet to forty feet of water; you should have no problem catching them. I’ve had the best luck with deeper spoons on number one planners, yes I’m seeing a few on the top line but the best has been deeper. Clark-spoons in sizes 00 and 0 are doing the trick in colors silver, gold and pink flash. I’m using thirty and forty pound clear Berkley Big Game mono for all my trolling leaders. Tip: keep your trolling and casting speed up; faster moving baits seem to get more bites, I troll around five knots or six mph. There is a few Bonita and False Albacore around too and more should start to show soon!
When the Bonita and Albacore are on top feeding; cast Sea Rock and Sea striker jig-spoons. The colors that seem to work the best are pink/purple, white, green and blue. I use a forty pound Fluorocarbon leader; about twenty to thirty inches long. I really like Berkley’s Pro Spec tinted (gunsmoke) fluorocarbon leader material for clear water conditions. A good light seven foot rod is very important for casting to these fish: the reason for this is the further you can cast equals more chance’s you will hook up. When there are a lot of boats chasing the Bonita, they get wearer of boats. If you can cast farther; you will cover more area and you will catch more fish!
The Cobia should be here most any day and you know I’m always looking for them! I look this time of year for Cobia around inlets, shoals and bait schools; near shore/offshore reefs and ledges are also a good place to look too. With the wind and rain we’ve had lately it will be a little harder to see those brown logs in the stained water, but that does not mean they are not around and hungry. I like throwing big 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 and mullet as bait. If you hook one of these beast, take your time fighting them, they don’t tire out easily; a green Cobia can really tear up a boat and/or you!
The Redfish have slowed a little bit over the last week due to the waters warming up, but we are still catching them; going earlier in the morning seems to help the bite some. Fishing top-water baits like MirrOlure’s Top Dog Jr or Top Pup also Sebile’s Ghost Walker are catching me some really nice Reds in shallow water. When I’m fishing in deeper water for Reds like around docks, creek mouths and deeper grass lines; I’m casting Berkley Gulp products like the four inch Ripple Mullet or the three inch Gulp shrimp. The colors I prefer in the Ripple Mullet are rootbeer gold/chart tail, goby magic chart tail, new penny and pearl white; in the three inch shrimp new penny, sugar spice glow and natural colors.
Rig these baits on a red, black, brown or gray jig head with a thirty to forty pound mono or fluorocarbon leader. I have had some good luck lately with spinner baits for the Redfish and the trick that seems to work for me is a Ripple Mullet in the color rootbeer gold/chart tail as the grub on the spinner bait. Remember reel that spinner bait; just fast enough to keep it off the bottom.
Fishing Gear I use:
Reels: Reds, Blues, Bonita: PENN Battle spinning in sizes 2000, 3000 & 4000 sizes Penn Conquer 2000. Cobia Fishing reels: PENN Battle 5000, 6000 & 7000, PENN Fathom 25N. Line: Spiderwire Ultra-cast Cobia Line: 30 pound Berkley Big Game Mono. Rods: Reds, Blues, Bonits: PENN Legion Medium and Medium heavy. Cobia Rods: Ugly Stik Tiger Lite Jigging series in 50-100 class spinning and casting. Leader material: Cobia; Berkley Big Game mono & Fluorocarbon in eighty to one hundred pound. Reds, Blues Bonita: Berkley Pro Spec Fluorocarbon.
If you would like to get real time and on the water reports, as well as free
tackle giveaways each month; check out my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Capt-Jot-OwensJot-It-Down-Fishing-Charters-LLC/134340373310487
Thanks for reading this report, if you have any questions just let me know!
Good Luck Fishing,
Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
Posted in Fishing Reports on April 29th, 2013
April is here; finally some warmer weather, better fishing and the list of fish species starts to really grow the month of April! Now I’ll tell you that there is some very good day’s weather wise in April around Wrightsville Beach, but the wind can really blow sometimes during April. With this said you need to pick your days of fishing and be ready to move your days around sometimes. Fishing during April can be very good around Wrightsville Beach; here are some of the species I target during April.
I know I talk about the Redfish (Red Drum) a lot, but hey they are one of my favorites to catch! In April we are going to see the Redfish really start to move around and one thing I’ve found is if there moving around they are looking for food. If they are looking for food then they are probably going to bite your hook! There is not a lot of bait around Wrightsville in April so I rely on artificial baits to catch spring Reds. You can not go wrong with Berkley Gulp 3” Shrimp in colors molting, new penny/chart tail, sugar spice glow and pearl. Rigging these Gulp baits on light jig heads (1/8oz & 1/4oz) in colors reds and gray should get the Reds to bite for you! Look for the Reds on the edges of oyster rocks, mash grass edge lines and creek mouths. Darker bottoms that warm up faster will hold more Redfish during April.
I love saltwater fishing but, I like any kind of fish pulling on my line salt or fresh and this time of year you can catch some really nice fresh water fish. I have run a few fresh water trips in the last few weeks with some pretty good success; we even got a few very nice bass on a fly rod early last week that went just over six pounds. Fishing local lakes, ponds and the Northeast Cape Fear River has been producing good catches of large-mouth bass. The best baits lately have been Berkley Powerbait 5” Sinkworms in colors green pumpkin/watermelon, black with red flake and watermelon. I’m rigging these worms Texas and wacky style on 4/0 wide gap worm hooks. When we are casting the fly rod we are using; six to eight weight rods with floating line and eight to twelve pound tippets.
Something that I love to do this time of year (late March to early June) is go up to lock & dam #1 and fish for Shad. These fish are so much fun to catch; they run, jump and run some more. Light tackle and fly fishing is the name of the game here! I see so many people fishing for shad use to heavy of tackle. Lighter tackle equals more bites and more fun! All you need is a light rod and reel; I use a Pflueger Echelon or a PENN Battle 1000 combo loaded with six pound Berkley Nanofil line. A two shad dart rig with Fifth teen or twenty pound mono or fluorocarbon leader; darts in colors pink and green; also some days Berkley Powerbait two inch grubs work great too. If you have not ever tried it; you need too! Also while your shad fishing you can put out a catfish line and sometimes catch a very nice Blue catfish using cut shad for bait.
Another fish that really starts to show around the inlets of Southeast North Carolina is the good’ole Bluefish. The good news of this is you can catch some choppers (big blues) this time of year. In mid April to mid May I look for chopper blues around the inlets and just off the beach. These blues will hit Berkley Gulp 7” jerkshad in colors pearl and pearl/chart pepper; hard baits like Sebile’s Koolie Minnow ML and spoons like Sebile’s Ondu spoon will also get these choppers to bite. Don’t forget the steal leaders for these fish or they will get a free lure form you every time! Try light single strand wire in sizes #2, #3 or #4 will keep your lures on the end of your line and not in a bluefish’s pocket! You can also use live baits like shad, pinfish or menhaden in King mackerel rigs to catch these bigger blues.
There is one fish that a lot of anglers over look in April and that is the Black Drum. What I love about these fish is you can catch them in good numbers this time of year and there pretty darn good to eat! On top of all that they are also easy to catch; all you need is a little fresh as you can get shrimp. Use a light two hook bottom rig with number two or number three size eagle claw bait holder hooks. Fish around docks, oyster rocks and inlets for these Black Drum; you might even get a Redfish mixed in as well! Sometimes I
catch two Black Drum at the same time on the same rig; that’s what I call good fishing!
Towards mid April the Bonita should show up just offshore of Wrightsville. Trolling Clark spoons and small deep driver lures can be the key to success some days for the Bonita. 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. A bird rig on top with a Clark spoon about five to six feet behind it or Blue water Candy Spanish daisy chain (blue, silver, pink) have worked very well for me on top too. Look for birds working or marking bait on you fish finder is the way to find the feeding fish. When the fish are not on top, I’ve caught some nice Blues and a few Bonita by casting a spoon out and letting it sink down before reeling is in. I’ve found that some times these fish are deeper and you can get them by getting down to deeper water.
Tackle run down: PENN Battle Spinning reels 3000& 4000 sizes. Rods: PENN Legion 6’6” & 7’ medium and med/heavy action. Line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in ten and fifth-teen pound.
If you would like to get real time and on the water reports check out my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Capt-Jot-OwensJot-It-Down-Fishing-Charters-LLC/134340373310487
Thanks for reading this report, if you have any questions just let me know! If you would like to go fishing drop me a line; I’m booking now for this coming summer fishing season and 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 April 5th, 2013
Well folks, as soon as the weather got warm, it got cold again, but wait here comes another (little) warm up? And then cold again; welcome to North Carolina winter weather! There are good things to this up and down weather, if you time it right the fishing can be good on the warmer weather times or just as it starts to cool off again! I can tell you not much has changed since my last report/forecast. I’m going to give a little more detail info on what I’m doing this time of year to keep y’all reading my reports!
The Cape Fear River Striped Bass fishing has been pretty steady for much of this winter and I’ve seen a hand full of very nice Striped Bass come form the river; a few over fifthteen pounds and one or two over twenty pounds. The most important tip I can give you for these fish is as its gets colder (water temps) you really need to slow down your presentation while fishing. I truly slow down just how fast I work my lures and it really will get you more bites when the water is colder.
Here are the ways I fish for Cape Fear River Striper’s. Try Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in five and six inch size; in pearl & new penny colors. Work these baits slowly and always rig them weed-less; there are many hangs in the Cape Fear River. Try a Moaner swim bait hook with the Berkley Jerkshad; this is a great hook at a great price. www.moanerhooks.com I use the weighted Stroker hook in 1/4oz 5/0. If you would like to cast hard baits, try casting X-raps in color green back or glass-ghost or MirrOlure 17MR or 27MR’s. Look for Stripers on drop-offs, dock pilings and reed-grass lines.
As the waters cool down it gets a little harder to catch Redfish, but they are still here! One very good tip I can tell you about winter Redfish is; when you find a school that won’t bite for you, take some time and try to get a bite. Most of the time if you get one Red to bite the others will fire off too! Warmer, sunny and lower wind days can be the key to catching these inshore winter Redfish.
Look for these Reds in creeks with dark colored bottoms and oyster rocks; anywhere the water may be a bit warmer. Scented soft plastics like Berkley Gulp should do the trick to get these Reds to hit. Patterns in Gulp like Shrimp in sizes 2” and 3” are my go too, colors that seem to work the best are pearl, sugar spice glow, molting and new penny. Try lighter jig heads like 1/16 and 1/8 when winter fishing; lighter jig heads help you to work the lure much slower and still look natural as possible. I always use fluorocarbon leader when I’m fishing cold water fish; the water is almost always clear during the winter months!
When the weather warms up a bit during the winter months, you can sometimes find a good Blackdrum bite up in some of the local creeks. I find these Blackdrum in creeks from Topsail down to Bald Head Island. Look for creeks with dark mud bottoms and good oyster rocks running down the edge of a hole in the creek. These are the places on warmer days you will find red and black drum. Try smaller well scented baits like Berkley Gulp 2” shrimp on very light jig heads. You can also try light Carolina rigs with small pieces of shelled shrimp, take the shell off the shrimp; trust me! Cast down the edges of these holes and drop offs in creeks.
Fishing gear I use:
Gear used: Redfish, Blackdrum and Striped Bass: reels PENN Conquer 2000 and Battle 3000 & 4000 spinning reels. Rods PENN Legion or Regiment in med 8 to 15# class. Line: Spiderwire Ultracast ten and fifth teen pound. Fluorocarbon leader material, Berkley Pro Spec Fluorocarbon in tints Gunsmoke for clearer waters and Tannic for river or stained waters in thirty.
Thanks for reading and good luck fishing!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on January 30th, 2013
I hope everybody is making through this winter so far, the weather been up and down and that is an understatement! There are some fish biting but you just need to go on the right days to catch them. If you’re settled down for the winter and don’t feel like fishing, hit a local or regional fishing school or boat show; you never know what you might learn or see!
The Redfishing lately has been pretty good most days when the wind is not howling and we’ve seen some nice schools of Reds. Warmer, sunny and lower wind days can be the key to catching these inshore winter Redfish. It’s not hard to catch them once you find’em, look for these Reds in creek with dark colored bottoms and oyster rocks never hurt. Scented soft plastics like Berkley Gulp should do the trick to get these Reds to hit. Patterns in Gulp like Shrimp in sizes 2” and 3” are my go too, colors that seem to work the best are pearl, sugar spice glow, molting and new penny. Try lighter jig heads like 1/16 and 1/8 when winter fishing; lighter jig heads help you to work the lure much slower and still look nature as possible. Don’t forget fluorocarbon leader in thirty pound, the water is very clear most days in the winter!
I’ve made quite a few trips to the Cape Fear River this year; there are three different kinds of fish to chase in the Cape Fear, Catfish, Redfish and Striped Bass most all winter long. Here is a few ways to put a CFR Striper or Redfish on your line. Try Berkley Gulp Jerkshad in five and six inch size; in pearl & new penny colors. Work these baits slowly and always rig them weed-less; there are many hangs in the Cape Fear River. I like www.moanerhooks.com weighted Stroker hooks in 1/4oz 5/0 size; great hook for the money! Look for Stripers on drop-offs, dock pilings and reed-grass lines. I catch the river Redfish on the same rigs for the Striped Bass. Remember the Cape Fear River Striped Bass Fishery is closed and all Striped Bass must be released!
If you would like to give the Catfish a try, use baits like cut mullet, chicken livers and cut eel. I use heavy Carolina rigs when I fish for catfish. Try an Eagle claw L42 2/0 to 4/0 hook with fifty or eighty pound mono leader to make your carolina rig. Look for the catfish on drop-offs from five to twenty feet of water. We have seen some blue cats over thirty pounds caught in the river so try not to use to light of tackle; these are not always your ‘farm pond channel cats’!
Fishing gear I use:
Gear used: Redfish and Striped Bass: reels Penn Conquer 2000 and Battle 3000 & 4000 spinning reels. Catfish: PENN SSV 4500. Rods PENN Legion or Regiment in med 8 to 15# class. Line: Spiderwire Ultracast ten and fifth teen pound. Fluorocarbon leader material, Berkley Pro Spec Fluorocarbon in tints Gunsmoke for clearer waters and Tannic for river or stained waters in thirty pound for Redfish and Striped Bass.
Thanks for reading and good luck fishing!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on December 30th, 2012
