Summertime, Summertime, it’s summertime fishing!
The weather is hot, the fish are here. But typical of summertime fishing, they are scattered and the bite is on and off. This is where patience and perseverance pay off. Did I mention a little bit of luck? That would come in handy too.
The piers are reporting a mixed bag of fish. Anglers are catching everything from flounder, croakers, mullet and pompano to blues, a few Spanish, and an occasional king mackerel. Morning and nights seem to be the best producing times.
Inshore quite a few flounder are being caught with some nice ones over three pounds being taken on finger mullet and small menhaden. They are still around the inlets but many have moved into the creeks and around the docks now that the finger mullet are plentiful in those areas. A few speckled trout are being taken on live shrimp, look in the deeper holes where the water is a little cooler near the bottom. The red drum are schooled up and can often be found near the grassy marsh areas especially if there is an oyster bar nearby.
The Ladyfish have started to show up. Try the turning bridge at night for best results. A few black drum are also being taken in that area as well as near the Hwy 172 bridge and the mouth of topsail channel. The surf and shoals at the north end of Lea Island are holding big schools of red drum. Live bait as well as cut bait is working well. A few pompano and mullet are also being caught in the surf.
Small kings are being caught near shore with an occasionally teenager in the mix. Larger kings are being taken around the AR366, & AR 368 as well as around the River Bed, Emory ledge and similar areas in the 12 – 18 mile range. They are biting dead cigars and spoons but for the bigger ones, live bait is working best. Try using a sibiki rig at AR 362 for some nice greenies and cigar minnows. On the north end of the Island, AR355, Gill’s hole and the “F” buoy are producing some nice kings.
Some nice mahi are being caught in the 15 mile and out range with an occasional smaller one in closer. Try a ballyhoo rigged on a Blue Water Candy mini-jag in green/chart/pink or straight pink. Some nice gag grouper are being caught in 80 – 100 feet of water with plenty of red grouper being reported in 100 – 150 feet of water. The wahoo have been scattered with purple/black and red/black lures trolled on a planer producing the best. A few sailfish are being caught with one or two being reported inside of 15 miles already.
Tight lines and wishing you a HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!