Hello form still very warm (hot) southeast North Carolina. The good news is fishing has been good to very good and we are starting to see signs of fall everyday. I’ve got to tell you; this is one summer that I’ve been hoping for an early fall! I know, the winter will get here and we will want summer back again! To the fishing report>>>
Flounder has been the name of the game! We have caught a lot of Flounder this season so far and we are really just getting to good Flounder time. We have caught very high numbers with any where form one in two (50%) to one in four (25%) keepers this season. The good news is in the last two weeks the numbers as well as the size is getting better. On most ½ day trips we are catching fifth teen to over twenty Flounder. The best days have been on live bait but; some of the bigger fish have hit artificial baits.
Live bait has been the key for catching higher numbers of Flounder, but you can still catch very nice ones on artificial baits too. Mud minnows and small finger mullet have been the best baits for us lately. Rigging the live bait on carolina rigs with EC 042 1/0 hooks and thirty to forty pound mono or Fluorocarbon leaders. We use egg sinkers when casting for Flounder and river sinkers when drifting for the Flounder; the river sinkers seem to ride over stuff (hangs) on the bottom easier when drifting.
Jig heads rigged with Berkley Gulps new Mud minnow/croaker pattern have been great for our Flounder trips in the last few weeks. Also the Gulp Ripple Mullet and the Gulp Jerk shad have caught some bigger Flounder too. We rig the Mud minnow Gulp on a 1/4oz to 3/8oz gray or red jig heads (spring lock) works the best. A thirty pound mono or fluorocarbon leader about fifth teen to twenty inches long will work just fine. The colors that we’ve had the most luck with in the Mud minnow pattern Killifish, New Penny, Pearl White and Sardine. In the Ripple Mullet pattern colors that have worked well are Root beer/gold with chart tail and New penny. The Jerk shad colors that are working for us are Blue Pepper Neon, Sapphire Shine and Pearl White.
Speckled trout fishing is starting to pick up south of Wrightsville Beach and should get even better in September. The warm temps have made it a little hard to get numbers of Speckled trout but we have caught a few nice trout in the early mornings with top water lures. On very calm mornings or late afternoons one lure has worked well for us catching some nice speckled trout. The lure is the 10MR (MirrO Prop) by MirrOlure, this lure is a prop bait with sonic rattles. This lure is not loud to our ears but it emits vibration and sound that fish can hear very well. Give it a try on a calm morning when the water is flat and very still. Berkley Gulp Alive Ripple Mullets in the colors Goby magic with chart tail and New penny fleck have caught us some trout lately too.
The Sheephead fishing is still going very good and should be good until late October. Rigging is easy for Sheephead; we use a short carolina rig with forty pound mono or fluorocarbon leader about eight to ten inches long. The hook is a number one or 1/0 live bait nose hook; small, sharp and strong, very important for Sheephead! Look for Sheephead around pilings, bulkheads and large oyster rocks that stay covered up by water most of the tide. For bait, we catch fiddler crabs on mud banks on the ICW. Sheephead fishing takes patients and time to catch them but it’s worth the time!
Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Spiderwire Ultra-cast braid in 10 and 15#. Rods: Ugly stik lite 6’6” and 7’ Med light & Med and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line. I’m very busy this time of year but if you would like to go fishing please feel free to call any time to check my availability and don’t forget to take a kid fishing!
Good Luck,
Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on August 18th, 2011
Well folks the HOT weather is back and with it has been a brisk Southwest wind. The wind has really kept me inshore fishing for the last few weeks, but we did get out in the ocean a few times early in the morning before the wind got up. The days we got out the Spanish mackerel fishing was good and the days we could not get out we’ve been catching good numbers of Flounder and a few nice Redfish too. Let’s talk about that and a few other things in this weeks fishing report>>>
The great thing about Spanish mackerel fishing is that most days it is instant gratification fishing. When you take kids fishing or first time anglers this is very important for your day of fishing; “get some fish in the boat”! Spanish are fun on light tackle and they are good to eat, not a bad first time catch fish. Most of the Spanish lately are biting just off the beach to about two miles offshore. When the Spanish are on top, we are casting Maria jigs and jig fish spoons. We Rig these jigs with thirty pound mono or Fluoro leader material.
When the Spanish are not jumping, we are trolling number one planners with Clark spoons. The Clark spoons that have worked the best for us have been #00 and #0 in colors gold, silver and pink flash. We rig the planner with a ball bearing swivel connected to thirty to forty feet of thirty pound mono leader then the Clark spoon tied on. I have just this year started to use a new product for Spanish fishing and it works great, it’s the Blue Water Candy Spanish Daisy Chain. You can troll this rig on a light spinning or bait casting combo and catch Spanish in very good numbers. The colors I’ve had the best luck with are pink, blue and silver. We put a three foot shot of thirty pound Fluorocarbon in front of the chain with a ball bearing swivel for line twist. On one of my last Spanish trips we caught over thirty Spanish and a fifth teen pound King mackerel on the Spanish Daisy chain. Give it a try!
Flounder fishing has been good lately, with good numbers and starting to see bigger fish everyday. We have caught Flounder good on live bait as well as artificial baits and some of the bigger Flounder lately have hit artificial baits. Live baits like mud minnows and small mullet rigged on light Carolina rigs are doing the trick when using live baits. Jig heads rigged with Berkley Gulps new Mud minnow/croaker pattern have been great for our Flounder trips in the last three weeks. We have caught two Flounder over Five pounds so far on this new Gulp pattern. We rig the Mud minnow Gulp on a 1/4oz to 3/8oz gray or red jig heads (spring lock) works the best. A thirty pound mono or fluoro leader about fifth teen to twenty inches long will work just fine. The colors that we’ve had the most luck with are Killifish, New Penny, Pearl White and Sardine. I have no idea why these baits work so well for Flounder but they really do work. On a trip two weeks ago, I had one guy fishing with the Mud minnow Gulp and he caught the biggest and most Flounder that day!
We’ve caught a few Reds this last two weeks, not as good as I would like it to be but still getting a hand full. One thing we have in this area is a lot of pressure on the Redfish. With so many people today chasing Redfish and with not a lot water fish IE: “lots of people fishing”, Redfish are taking a beating around Wrightsville Beach. So how do you catch Redfish with so much pressure; go early in the mornings or very late afternoon or fish for something else! “I’m sure you can tell in this short paragraph how I feel about local Redfishing lately.”
Shark fishing has gotten very good in the last two weeks and will only get better. Shark fishing will be good until early October. Best baits for the near shore sharks are, fresh and live Menhaden. When we use bait to catch the sharks we use spinning reels, with 300+ yards of thirty and fifty pound Spider wire Ultracast braid. Rigging the baits; eight feet of 80 pound mono leader; some will wind on to the reel. Connected the 80 pound mono to a fifty pound swivel, then to Two to three foot of #9 SS wire and an 8/0 or 9/0 off set J hook; this rig should get’em to the boat.
Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Spiderwire Ultra-cast braid in 10 and 15#. Rods: Ugly stick lite 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line. I’m very busy this time of year but if you would like to go fishing please feel free to call any time to check my availability and don’t forget to take a kid fishing!
Good Luck,
Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on August 18th, 2011
Wow we have had some really nice weather around Wrightsville Beach and surrounding beaches! The forth of July weekend was some of the best weather I’ve seen around here this time of year. And with those cooler temps the fishing was great! It was starting to get a little to hot for June, but with the cooler weather the inshore and near shore waters have cooled just a bit and has helped the fishing. Let’s go over that in this weeks fishing report.
Flounder fishing has really picked up in the last week. There is a mix of size in the Flounders we are catching. Some keepers some not, but the bite is really on for catching them. Live bait has been the key for catching higher numbers of Flounder, but you can catch them on artificial bait too. Mud minnows and small finger mullet have been the best live baits lately. Rigging the live bait on carolina rigs with EC 042 1/0 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 3” pogy in pearl white and smelt colors. Rig the grubs on a red or black jig head for best results. Saltwater Assassin spinner baits with space monkey, copperhead, and chicken on a chain colored grubs have caught us some nice Flounder lately too.
One of my favorites when the water and air gets hot is the good’ole Sheephead! These fish are fun to catch and there really good to eat! It’s not hard to catch Sheephead, you just have got to put your time in and give it a try! Rigging is easy for Sheephead; we use a short carolina rig with forty pound mono or fluorocarbon leader about eight to ten inches long. The hook is a number one or 1/0 live bait nose hook; small, sharp and strong, very important for Sheephead! Look for Sheephead around pilings, bulkheads and large oyster rocks that stay covered up by water most of the tide. For bait, we catch fiddler crabs on mud banks on the ICW. Drop it down and check your bait in one minute, if it’s gone and you did not feel a bite; there is a Sheephead down there! Good luck!
We have seen some nice schools of Tarpon pushing up the beaches in the last two weeks. We jumped a nice eighty pound plus off on Tuesday morning, only got one jump but it cleared the water by five feet. Tarpon fishing in North Carolina can be very fun but it can be a challenge to get one to bite! We fish for Tarpon on the bottom or free lining, using live and fresh dead baits like; spots, bluefish and Menhaden. We are rigging these baits on fish finder rigs, with three to five feet of 80 to 100 pound mono 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 have also had a fair share of Tarpon on my kite rig with live baits like greenies, bluefish and menhaden. Nothing like seeing a Tarpon hit kite baits!
Shark fishing has been very good lately, with sharks of all sizes biting. We have caught a few over 100 pounds in the last two weeks and have seen some even bigger. Shark fishing will be good until early October. Best baits for the near shore sharks are, fresh and live Menhaden. When we use bait to catch the sharks we use spinning reels, with 300+ yards of thirty and fifty pound Spider wire Ultracast braid. Rigging the baits; eight feet of 80 pound mono leader; some will wind on to the reel. Connected the 80 pound mono to a fifty pound swivel, then to Two to three foot of #9 SS wire and an 8/0 or 9/0 off set J hook. 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 weight set ups; have lots of extra flies with you!
Redfishing is still going good on most days. The best fishing has been earlier in the day or later in the day (lower light). We are catching the reds on top water lures and rattling corks (SWA kwik-croks) with live bait in shallow water (one to three foot). When we fish docks and channels (deeper waters); we are using live bait, fresh cut bait and scented grubs. Scented grubs like Berkley Gulp and Powerbait have been working well for the Reds.
Keep your eye out for a great new Berkley Gulp product called the Ripple Mullet. Finally a Gulp bait with great scent and ACTION!! You’re not going to believe it till you see them! And yes they work; trust me!
Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Spiderwire Ultra-cast braid in 10 and 15#. Rods: Ugly stick lite 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.
Cobia, Shark and Tarpon: Spinning setup Penn Conquer 7000 with an Ugly Stick Tiger lite Jigging rod 6’ 6” and Penn 320LD Reel and a Tiger lite jigging rod. Line for Cobia, Shark and Tarpon: Berkley Big Game 30# mono and 50# Spiderwire Stealth High-Vis Yellow.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line. I’m very busy this time of year but if you would like to go fishing please feel free to call any time to check my availability and don’t forget to take a kid fishing!
Good Luck,
Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on August 18th, 2011
The weather is still warm to hot and the fishing is the same, some days warm; some day we have hot fishing. The water temps in the area are getting to late July temps already in June; I believe this is going to give us a summer trend of fishing for most of the season. To the fishing report>>>.
We are still seeing so good numbers of Cobia around the area waters. The Cobia are around the inlets, shoals, and bars just off the beach. We are also still seeing them offshore a bit; around hard bottoms and reefs. Live bait has been the key to the bigger fish lately. Smaller Cobia have hit jigs around the inlets and ocean sand bars. Sight casting live bait to bigger Cobia just off the beach has produced some nice Cobia form Carolina Beach to Topsail. When we drift fish for Cobia, we are using carolina rigs with three to four once egg sinkers and 7/0 circle hooks with an eighty pound Berkley big game mono leader. The baits we are using are small Bluefish, Mullet, and Menhaden.
The Flounder fishing is really starting to pick up. We are seeing Flounder inshore as well as just off the beaches. The places we look for Flounder are in the ICW, Cape Fear River and Creeks off the ICW. Look for drop offs on the edge of the main channel with current or any where baitfish are passing by. Most of the Flounder are eating little menhaden and Mud minnows on light Carolina rigs. The Flounder are mixed in size to just under keeper size to a few over five pounds. We have caught some Flounder on Artificial baits as well. We have had the best luck with Berkley Gulp 3” pogy in pearl white and smelt colors. Rig the grubs on a red or black jig head for best results.
We have had some great Sharks fishing trips in the last two weeks; the bigger fish are just starting to show up. We are already even starting to see a few Hammerheads just off the beach. Shark fishing will be good until early October. Best baits for the near shore sharks are, fresh and live Menhaden. When we use bait to catch the sharks we use spinning reels, with 300+ yards of thirty and fifty pound Spider wire Ultracast braid. Rigging the baits; eight feet of 80 pound mono leader; some will wind on to the reel. Connected the 80 pound mono to a fifty pound swivel, then to Two to three foot of #9 SS wire and an 8/0 or 9/0 off set J hook. 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 weight set ups; have lots of extra flies with you!
When Shark fishing gets good, it’s not long before we start to see some Tarpon in the area. We have seen some nice schools of Tarpon pushing up the beaches in the last two weeks. Tarpon fishing in North Carolina can be very fun but it can be a challenge to get one to bite! We fish for Tarpon on the bottom or free lining, using live and fresh dead baits like; spots, bluefish and Menhaden. We are rigging these baits on fish finder rigs, with three to five feet of 80 to 100 pound mono 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 have also had a fair share of Tarpon on my kite rig with live baits like greenies, bluefish and menhaden. Nothing like seeing a Tarpon hit kite baits!
Redfish are still biting well, but with all the hot weather its best to go early in the morning or later afternoons when the water is a bit cooler. Topwater lures and rattling corks in the shallow waters earlier mornings and afternoons will produce some Redfish. Working grubs like Berkley Gulp later in the day in deeper waters will also produce Reds for ya. Sometimes it can be just like colder mouths, slow down your presentation a little when the water gets hot. Give the Redfish a little more time to catch up with your bait.
A few other fish that are biting lately; Spanish mackerel bite has been hit or miss lately. The best catching have been earlier in the morning and casting jigs and spoons to jumping fish, has put most of the fish in the boat lately. The Sheephead bite has really picked up in the last few weeks, fishing around bridges, pilings and bulkheads will produce some nice Sheephead. Off the beach from five to fifth teen miles the King Mackerel and Mahi are showing some. Fast trolling Ballyhoo or slow trolling lives baits a working for the Mackerel and Mahi. There has also been a few Sailfish caught as well lately in the same areas.
Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Spiderwire Ultra-cast braid in 10 and 15#. Rods: Ugly stick lite 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.
Cobia, Shark and Tarpon: Spinning setup Penn Conquer 7000 with an Ugly Stick Tiger lite Jigging rod 6’ 6” and Penn 320LD Reel and a Tiger lite jigging rod. Line for Cobia, Shark and Tarpon: Berkley Big Game 30# mono and 50# Spiderwire Stealth High-Vis Yellow.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line. Book now for this coming summer fishing season and don’t forget to take a kid fishing!
Good Luck,
Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
Posted in Fishing Reports on August 18th, 2011
Southeast North Carolina has been quite HOT lately the good thing about this is the fishing has been the same; HOT! The summer trend of local fishing is really showing and the summer fish showing up in good numbers too. We have been fishing for all kinds of fish lately; Mackerel, Cobia, Blues, Redfish, Flounder, Trout and Sharks. Let’s talk about that in this weeks fishing report>>>
Let’s start with one of my favorites; Cobia. I love to catch’em, cook’em and eat’em! We have seen quite a few Cobia lately; we caught a forty pounder on last Monday. We are seeing most of the Cobia just off the beach and out to five miles off the beach. Live bait has been the key to the bigger fish lately. Smaller Cobia have hit jigs around the inlets and ocean sand bars. Sight casting live bait to bigger Cobia just off the beach has produced some nice Cobia form Carolina Beach to Topsail. When we drift fish for Cobia, we are using carolina rigs with three to four once egg sinkers and 7/0 circle hooks with an eighty pound Berkley big game mono leader. The baits we are using are small Bluefish, Mullet, and Menhaden. Drifting these baits around inlets, sandbars and near shore live bottoms; has produced the best bites.
The inshore Redfish bite has been very good lately with artificial baits as well fresh cut and live baits. Working shallow waters early morning and late afternoon when the heat of the day is lower has produced well. Later in the day when the sun is high, we are working deeper waters for the Redfish. The shallow water lures have been MirrOlure’s Top Dog Jr and Top Pup, also a rattling cork with a Berkley Gulp Alive peeler crab under the cork has also produced very well in waters of one to three foot deep.
When we are fishing deeper grubs that have been doing well are Berkley Power bait shrimp and Gulp Alive 3” shrimp in colors new penny and molting. Saltwater Assassin’s Copperhead and 10W40 colors are catching some Reds as well. Rigging the grubs on a simple red jig head 1/8oz to 1/4oz, just make sure the jig head has a hook that will not straighten out when you hook that nice Redfish! Tip: one thing I’ve starting using this season is Berkley Gulp Alive Shrimp spray; I put a shot on all my non-scented grubs. It seems to work well for Redfish and Flounder fishing.
The Spanish mackerel bite has been good lately with the best of it being early in the morning and late afternoon. Trolling Clark spoons in sizes 00, 0 and 1 in colors sliver, gold and pinks flash are working well. When we are seeing the Spanish jumping and feeding on top; casting jigging spoons is producing some nice Spanish. There is still a lot of Blues mixed in with the Spanish up and down the beach too. We have found some bigger Spanish by going off the beach a few miles and getting away from the crowds in the clearer waters.
Flounder fishing is really picking up around the area. Most of the Flounder are eating little menhaden and Mud minnows on light Carolina rigs. The Flounder are mixed in size to just under keeper size to a few over five pounds. We have caught some Flounder on Artificial baits as well. We have had the best luck with Berkley Gulp 3” pogy in pearl white and smelt colors. Rig the grubs on a red or black jig head for best results. Flounder fishing should stay consistent right through the summer and fall.
The Shark fishing is picking up with the warmer water temps and should be good all summer long. Best baits for the near shore sharks are, fresh and live Menhaden. When we use bait to catch the sharks we use spinning reels, with 300+ yards of thirty and fifty pound Spider wire Ultracast braid. Rigging the baits; eight feet of 80 pound mono leader; some will wind on to the reel. Connected the 80 pound mono to a fifty pound swivel, then to Two to three foot of #9 SS wire and an 8/0 or 9/0 off set J hook. 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 weight set ups; have lots of extra flies with you!
Keep your eyes peeled for some great new Berkley Gulp products that will be out soon, some of these baits are going to be great for Redfish and Flounder fishing; Trust me!!!
Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Spiderwire Ultra-cast braid in 10 and 15#. Rods: Ugly stick lite 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.
Cobia: Spinning setup Penn Conquer 7000 with an Ugly Stick Tiger lite Jigging rod 6’ 6” and Penn 320LD Reel and a Tiger lite jigging rod. Line for Cobia Berkley Big Game 30# mono and 50# Spiderwire Stealth High-Vis Yellow.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line. Book now for this coming summer fishing season and don’t forget to take a kid fishing!
Good Luck,
Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on August 18th, 2011
