And the rollercoaster of winter is almost here, it’s called February! February can be a 50/50 kind of month. Some years good, some years bad; I prefer a normal to a bit milder kind of February myself! Most years you need to pick the best days to go fishing around the Cape Fear area waters; warmer days with less wind are the keys to better winter fishing trips; “pick your days” and the fishing will be better!
Cape Fear River Striped Bass are one of my favorites for winter fishing in our area. I look for the Stripers on drop offs, around pilings and creek mouths. Working baits like Berkley Gulp five and six inch jerkshads and Berkley Havoc grass pigs should get you a bite or two from a Striped Bass. I prefer white and chart pepper neon for the jerkshad and pink, swamp gas and black in the Havoc grass pig. I rig my jerkshad and grass pigs on Moaner Stroker swim bait hooks, in 1/4oz weight; check out Moaner.com for great hooks at great prices! Mid water crank baits work too, try lures that dive from three to eight feet deep for best results. If the crank bait starts to hit the bottom let it float up a bit or trust me you’ll lose it to a log! Don’t forget that the Cape Fear River Striped Bass fishery is a closed fishery and is catch & release only; you must release all Striped Bass.
Another fish that can bite well in the River during the winter months is the Blue Catfish. 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 a TroKar Circle hook in 4/0 to 7/0 depending on bait size with fifty or sixty 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’!
There is one fish that can be caught very easily during the winter months; if you find them! This Redfishing can be some of the best of the year for catching numbers of fish; the deal breaker for this fishery is you have got to good weather, clam seas and bright sunny skies for the ocean schools. I use Berkley Gulp Ripple Mullet in colors Pearl/chart tail, New Penny and Rootbeer gold/chart tail; also the Berkley Gulp 2” & 3” Shrimp work well too. On warmer light wind days you can also find some nice schools of Reds in shallow water oyster flats and rocks. The Reds will sun on these dark colored bottom areas for a little extra warm up; this is also where you’ll see some bait fish doing the same thing (warming up). Work these baits slowly in front of the Redfish schools; not right through the school, all this will do is spook the Reds and will make it very hard to catch them. If the Reds are hungry they break away from the school and eat your bait!
With the late fall we had, water temps are a bit higher this winter than past winters and the Speckled trout bite has been a good pick most of the winter! Here are some ways I like to target Speckled trout into later winter months. A lure that always comes to mind for winter Speckled trout is the MirrOlure in the 52M, 52MR and TT series. MirrOlure color codes I prefer are: 11, 21, 26, 51, 704, CFPR, CH, EC, HP AND Capt. Jot Custom color (only found at Tex’s Tackle shop). Most any local tackle shop can help you with these color codes (a lot easier than spelling them all out here).
Working MirrOlures slowly in deeper water breaks and drop offs can produces some very nice trout. If the water gets a bit dirty due to winds or rain/ice/snow, give Berkley Gulp 3” shrimp, fire tail shrimp and Jerkshad a try. Rig the Gulp or Saltwater Assassin Sea shad’s on lighter jig heads, here too for the trout so you can work them just a bit slower due to the colder water temps. Don’t rule out a nice Gray trout mixed in during the winter while speckled trout fishing. Look for the bigger trout to be sitting close to the current, but just off and out of it. Remember these fish are not going to burn calories they don’t have too swimming against the current.
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II & Clash Spinning reels sizes 2500, 3000 & 4000 for the Redfish, Speckled trout and Striped Bass. Battle II or Clash 5000 & 6000 for Catfish. PENN Battalion in 6’6” & 7’ medium and med/hvy action; and Battalion 7’ 15-30 class for catfish; line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in ten, fifth-teen and twenty pound; Berkley Pro Spec Fluorocarbon leader for leaders.
Here is the winter seminars, tackle sales and meet & greets I’ll be attending:
~I’ll be speaking at the Angler Academy in Charleston, SC on Saturday January 30th. The Angler Academy is held during the great Charleston boat show location Charleston Convention Center 5001 Coliseum Drive North Charleston, SC You are invited to learn the latest in techniques and tackle from the region’s leading fishing guides. www.angleracademy.fish
~Saltwater Sportsman National Seminar Series in Savannah, GA on February 6th A strong lineup of the region’s guides and Captains from offshore to inshore we cover it here.
www.nationalseminarseries.com
~Bass Pro Shops Spring Fishing Classic in Cary, NC February 20th & 21st This is Bass Pro’s Big Spring fishing tackle and sale. I’ll be at the Cary, NC store for meet & greet also to help you find the tackle you need for your spring fishing adventure! www.basspro.com
~Capt. Jot’s Inshore Fishing schools March and April are sold out, but I’ll do them again next year so keep your eye here for the announcement during late November 2016.
Thanks for reading, stay warm and good fishing to ya!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Tackle Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on January 20th, 2016
December; can you believe it? November’s Speckled trout fishing was GREAT; I’m guessing December will be great too and the trout will be bigger! We’ve had a pretty mild fall and it looks like this December should be very good Speckled trout fishing along with a few other species around Wrightsville Beach, NC.
In December I catch some of the biggest Speckled trout all year, but you need to know which lures work better for bigger trout; bigger lures=bigger trout! Hard baits like MirrOlures have put some big trout in the boat for me and for many other anglers over the years. MirrOlure’s 52M, 52MR and TT series are great big trout baits. Try these lures in colors: 11 (redhead), 11FGO (Flo.orangehead), 21 (blackback), 26 (redback), 51 (white/white), 704 (pink/yellow), 808 (black/gold/orange), CFPR (chart/pearl), HP (hotpink), Capt. Jot Custom color only available at Tex’s tackle and for great night fishing; PD (purple demon).
Good looking scented lures that have been working very well for me are Berkley Gulp’s three inch shrimp and there newer three inch Ripple mullet. All the colors have worked well for me, but here is a few that I like for trout (shrimp pattern); Watermelon red glitter, rootbeer/gold, pearl white and new penny. Berkley Gulp’s Ripple Mullet in colors glow/chartreuse, pearl, rootbeer gold/chart, pink and goby magic/chart are all good trout baits. All of these baits have Gulps great scent, great action and come in some great colors too!
The grub (soft plastic) has been around forever in the fishing world! These days they come in so many different colors, here are few that work well for me when trout fishing. Saltwater Assassin makes a load of different grubs; I prefer the sea shad four inch pattern in colors chicken on a chain, rainbow trout, copperhead, new moon, sweet pea, pink diamond and silver
phantom/chart. I rig all these grubs with 1/8oz, ¼ oz and 3/8oz jig heads in colors gray, red and brown. Don’t forget that I rig all of my Speckled trout lures with fluorocarbon leaders; trout have very good eyesight and later in the season like December the water can get very clear! Get yourself a good fluorocarbon like Berkley Pro Spec or Berkley Vanish; both of these work great in twenty pound test.
In December another fish I really like to hunt for on sunny, warmer and light wind days is schooling Redfish. I find these schools on oyster rocks/flats, sand bars in the surf and shallow flats on the ICW. In December the Reds are not hard to catch when you find them, but some times finding them can be a challenge. My go to bait for the winter Redfish are scented grub like the Berkley Gulp Ripple Mullet or fire tail shrimp; Redfish love these things. Rig grubs with thirty or forty pound mono or fluorocarbon and a darker colored jig heads like red or brown should get the redfish to bite for you.
Not too far from Wrightsville Beach in historical down town Wilmington runs the Cape Fear River and in the Cape Fear there are some cold weather biting Striped Bass. These fish are not the easiest to catch, but they fight very well even in cold water. Working drop offs and grass lines on the edge of the river is where you can find the Stripers, using swim bait lures and Berkley Power Bait, Berkley Havoc Grass pig lures and Berkley Gulp Jerkshad should put a few Cape Fear Stripers on you line. Rig these lures on swimbait hooks for weedless fishing, (lots of hangs in the river). Don’t forget that the Cape Fear River Striped Bass Fishery is closed; catch and release only!
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II & Clash Spinning reels sizes 2000, 2500& 3000 for the Redfish, Speckled trout and Striped Bass Rods: PENN Battalion 6’6” & 7’ med/light and medium action; line Spiderwire Ultra-cast in eight, ten and fifth-teen pound or Berkley NanoFil (trout fishing) in eight, ten or twelve pound test.
Thanks for reading Marry Christmas, Happy New Year and good winter fishing to you!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Reels Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on December 7th, 2015
November; Fall has officially arrived at Wrightsville Beach and that means great fall fishing! When I think of November I think of Speckled trout fishing; November is the peak month around Wrightsville for trout! Here is the way I target Speckled trout and a few others during the month of November.
In early 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!
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 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 fish. The patterns I prefer are the 17MR, 18MR, 27MR, 52M and 52MR. Colors; MirrOlure makes a lot of different colors but here are some of my go too colors around Wrightsville Beach area waters. MirrOlure color codes: 11, 21, 26, 51, 704, CFPR, CH, EC, HP AND Capt. Jot Custom color (only found at Tex’x Tackle shop) Any local tackle shop can help you with these color codes. Depths to use these lures; 17MR & 27 MR use these lures in two to six feet of water. 18MR, 52M & 52MR use these lures in four to fifth-teen plus feet of water.
If you have ever done any trout fishing at all you know that a grub (soft plastic) lures work very good 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. Saltwater Assassin’s 4” sea shad in colors chicken on a chain, sweet pea, mullet 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.
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 Wrightsville Beach in November. 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!
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 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.
Tackle run down: PENN Battle II & Clash Spinning reels sizes 2000, 2500 & 3000 for the Speckled trout. Rods PENN Battalion 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.
Thanks for reading, good luck fishing and have a Happy Thanksgiving!
Capt. Jot Owens
PENN Reels Elite Staff
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
Posted in Fishing Reports on November 2nd, 2015
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
