Catching report

The wind has been blowing fairly steady and the swells have been rolling in, however the fall bite is in full swing.

Wayne at Seaview pier reports the Spot bite has been good as well as seeing some nice black drum and a few sea mullets come over the rail.

At Surf City Pier Vinita reports that while the king bite has slowed down the spot bite is stronger than ever. She hasn’t seen any of the yellow bellied spots but anglers are catching them “two at a time” on both sides of the pier! She says they are seeing some nice schools of Spanish but they are a little fickled when it comes to the bite.

The king bite has been hot says Robin at Jolly Roger pier. He also reports a “wide open” spot bite and feels this is one of the best fall fishing seasons he has seen in a long time. Nice size black drum in the 4 to 5 pound range are being caught as well as some flounder.

In the sound and waterway some nice drum are being caught near the inlet and along docks behind the island. The speckled sea trout bite is picking up with the New River area producing the best results right now. Again some flounder are being caught but many of them are undersize.

Tight Lines to all!

Spots

Spots, Spots. I’m seeing spots!

‘Bout now you can hear those words from folks up and down Topsail Island. They are of course referring to the fish by that name. This tasty pan sized fish is a favorite with locals and visitors alike, many claiming they would just as soon eat a spot as a steak.

A friend of mine that works at Surf City pier says this time of year, 9 out of 10 phone calls are folks wanting to know if the spots are biting.

The fish get their name from the distinctive black spot just behind their gill. The fish looks similar to a croaker but have little barbell-like bumps under their chins, are smoother and wider, and have forked tails. Like a croaker, when caught the spot will make a croaking sound but usually softer and less frequently.

An occasional spot will be caught about anytime in the summer and fall. However this month is prime time for the little fish. They are caught from ocean piers, the surf and on the sound side from boats and the shore.

They often travel in large schools. At times you can fill a cooler full of the tasty fish in a short period. Other times, the bite can be, well, spotty.

Blood worms and shrimp pieces are two of the best natural baits. “Fish Bites” is a favorite artificial used to catch this fish. In either case, use a two hook bottom rig with a pyramid sinker is most often used. When the bite is hot, anglers will pull the fish up two at a time!

Catching spots, a time honored tradition in these parts!

Latest report from the piers are they are catching them 2 at a time and some of the yellow bellied ones have finally arrived. While the rain hasn't dimmed the bite from the piers (spots love "dirty" water), they still aren't many in the waterway.

Hot King Mackerel bite

This past Saturday le left at 8:30 which is later than usual as the wind was suppose to (and did) lay down as the sun rose higher in the sky. We found some beautiful menhaden at one of our usual spots and headed out of the inlet.

Because the SW wind had been blowing most of the week and now it was from the west, we felt Surf City ledges was the best spot to start. We put out four lines and began to troll. We were fishing with friends in three other boats. There were probably 3 or 4 others in the vicinity too.

Of our four boats, 3 of us landed fish. We boated 2 kings, a 19 pounder and one that went almost 24 pounds. Our friends on the "Island Time" landed 4 and was spooled by a fifth that they lost. Johnny and his gang caught at two nice kings and 2 HUGE Red drum - we estimated them at over 40 pounds each. They hit menhaden on the king rigs.



As noted above he kings are still on the beach which is later than usual. The water temp. was 76 degrees! However with the cooler weather coming in this week, I'd look for them to move to the mouth of the inlet later this week then start their move to deeper water by next week-end or so.

Tight lines!

Blue Water Candy Lures

Blue Water Candy lures are made right here in Hampstead, NC. They have been my favorite for kings, dolphins and offshore trolling for a number of years. They are quality made products that work well! They just plain raise & catch fish! In the last year or so they have really expanded the line. In addition to their staple products like skirted rigs, dolphin chains, sea witches and daisy chains, they now have dredges, umbrella rigs, Jags, Chuggers and even bottom rigs for grouper and sea bass.



They are now available online at NC Angler's eStore. Tell 'em Topsail Angler sent ya!

A fish tale & a catching report

Warning: this column contains a fish story, while it’s a clean story, if you are sensitive to the truth being stretched, twisted, altered, or obliterated, you may want to avoid politics and stick to reading stories from fisherman.

On fishing trip last year off shore I had the opportunity to catch a fish, twice. The same fish twice that is.

The seas were calm with a gentle breeze and a few clouds in the sky. The kind of day that is very enjoyable just to be out in the ocean. You know what I mean, peaceful, serene, and relaxing.

We decided to head out about 20 miles to some ledges and try our luck bottom fishing. I made up some of my super, duper grouper rigs the night before. Much like the ones you can buy in tackle shops but with a unique bead pattern. I alternate red, green and silver beads above the hook but below the lead weight and swivel. A tradition I started one day years ago while goofing around on a slow fishing day.

I had a few assorted colored beads in my tackle box. Having nothing better to do, I decided to string a bunch of them onto my bottom rig. I figured at least it would give the fish something to stare at. No sooner than I dropped it down, I had a bite. The tugging and pulling indicated it was a grouper. Sure enough up came about a 12 pound grouper!

I put the rig down again and after a short wait, I hooked and landed another grouper about the same size. The third attempt resulted in a broken line, loosing my fancy bead work. I had no more beads and no more grouper rigs so I headed home. But a tradition was born.

Ever since then, I make my rigs using the same pattern of beads. Not that fisherman are superstitious or anything.

On this most recent trip, I anchored over one of my favorite ledges hoping to find some nice grouper. I lowered a big fat cigar minnow down to the bottom one of my super, duper rigs. It no sooner landed than I felt a slight tug on the line.

One thing you learn early on about grouper fishing is that you need to pull the fish off the bottom as quickly as possible. The whole battle is usually decided in the first 10 feet.

When a grouper grabs a bite to eat, they immediately turn to their hole or rocky ledge to digest the meal. Once in a hole it is very tough to get a grouper out of it. I liken it to trying to pull up a freight train that is wedged in a cliff.

On this occasion because he bite it so quick, I wasn’t prepared. When I felt the soft bite I was slow to set the hook and begin the retrieve. Just slow enough that the grouper made it to the safety of his hole. I pulled and pulled. He wasn’t budging an inch. Finally he broke the line off. When I pulled it up, the tell-tale signs of the line rubbing on a rock was evident.

I tied on a rig and lowered another cigar minnow. This time, knowing the exact depth, I stopped 10 feet short of the bottom. My hope was to lure a grouper away from the ledge and the safety of his hole. Nothing after 5 minutes, so I lowered it 5 more feet.

Bam, fish ON!

I quickly set the hook and turned the reel handle as fast as I could. It felt like a ton of bricks on the other end but I was making some progress. Finally I get the fish to the surface, a nice 15 pound grouper. As I’m removing my hook, I notice another rig hanging from his mouth.

It was another of my super, duper grouper rigs with the unique bead pattern. I had caught this fish not once but twice on this day! I think that was the best tasting grouper to ever pass through my lips.

Catching report

Inshore the speckled trout bite has been on and off but should be improving with the cooler weather. Mirrolures are working well as are live bait under a popping float. Flounder continue to bite striped mullet and soft artificial baits. Grey trout are still being caught on the near shore ledges and patches of hard bottom. Try a diamond jig worked vertically just off the bottom for good results. The spot catches have been strong at times in the surf and from the piers but be patient because the bite seems to go in streaks right now. Not many have showed up in the waterway and sounds yet but maybe with a steady NE wind for a few days that will change

Red drum, black drum and some trout are being caught in the surf. The pier reports a great fall bite. Lots of spots are being caught when the wind is out of the northeast. Anglers are also catching a few pompano, some flounder, and some big kings. The Virginia mullet are biting in the late evening and at night.

The near shore king bite has been excellent but I expect them to start moving further out anytime now. Many fish in the 15 – 30 pound range are being caught on live and dead bait from the beaches out to 15 miles. The grouper have moved in closer and can be found in 65 foot of water on ledges and reefs.

Grab and pole and go fish! Tight lines to all.

Spots, Kings, Spanish, WOW

The fishing has been pretty darn good this week. The kings are back on the beach, the spots are chewing big time and the Spanish are still biting. I also saw some nice Pompano and VA Mullet caught this week with a few flounders to round out the catches.

Grab your rod & reel and go Catch 'em up!

Pier tours stop at SCP 10-10-07

I had the pleasure of meeting up with Al and his lovely wife at Surf City Pier this morning on their week long NC Pier tour. Johnny (Fishin' Topsail) also was there and we fished side by side tryin to catch the largest fish on a gotcha plug. Sea Striker gave Al shirts and hats to give away at each pier for the biggest fish caught on their lure.



I caught several blue fish and then finally landed a 14" Spanish that ended up taking first place. Al also caught a nice 14" Spanish. Johnny finished in second place with a 10 inch blue fish (Al's fish doesn't count in the contest as he's the judge).

There were lots of folks on the pier and I saw quite a few nice fish come over the rail, mainly spots, blues and some nice pompano. We also saw a nice 16 pound king caught while we were there. He wrapped around five other lines but they still managed to get him to the gaff and over the rail! Another one hooked up at the same time but pulled the hooks.

As on most given day, you usually see something cool or different when fishing on a busy pier. Today I saw a large skate caught on a snoopy style combo. Yup - got a picture to prove it! (the gaff is in him to lift over the rail but he was caught and brought to the pier on the snoopy pole)

Freckled fish & a catching report

Freckled fish. I heard that term said one day almost in a whisper by an angler answering his wife’s inquiry about what was in his cooler. freckled fish. That is code for Speckled Sea Trout. Or around these parts we just say Specks.

Speck fishermen are some of the most secretive anglers I know. Oh don’t get me wrong, they will tell you exactly how they caught the fish, what bait they used, what tackle was used, what technique was employed. But try to learn the location of the catch and you might as well try to take a piece of meat out of a lion’s mouth.

As one speck fisherman told me, “catching specks is easy, finding them is the hard part”. He went on to say “they will eat just about any bait when they are hungry”.

The hard part is FINDING them. You see specks move around throughout the day in rhythm with the tides, currents and especially the bait. Getting a handle on these patterns will help you locate them next time you go out. So location of a particular day’s catch becomes top secret information!

Here’s a conversation you might encounter with an ole salty speck fisherman while he is on top of a school of specks:

Visitor (V.) How's the fishing today?
Fisherman (F.) Just got here myself (translation - "just" can mean anytime up to a full tide cycle).

V. Having any luck lately?
F. Nary a bite (translation - he's only referring to the time since you arrived).

V. Nice looking trout rod you have there, you have much luck with it?
F. That ole thing? trout you say – ah, so that's what it’s for. (translation - his most prized possession).

V. Well have a nice day, hope you catch some specks.
F. Aye-up (translation - I will just as soon as you get out of my sight).

One thing that will help you catch specks is to take notice of the conditions when you catch fish and keep a log. If you keep track of those patterns you can look for them in the same place when those conditions re-occur. Items you will want to keep in your log include: location, tide, current, time of day, moon phase and the type of underwater terrain where you caught the fish.

By the way, the specks are biting now….somewhere, I just can’t remember where.

Catching report

The big news this past week has been the king mackerel are back on the beach! Vinita at Surf City Pier reported one day last week that they had caught 20, count them 20, kings before noon. Sea View and Jolly Roger piers also have reported excellent catches of kings. The ends of the pier are also producing nice catches of Spanish and blues. Spots, grey trout, Va. Mullet and croakers are also biting hard on this recent NE wind. A few pompano, flounder and specks have been caught as well.

Grouper are being caught in the 12 mile range with some nice size fish being bagged. The mahi bite is tailing off but some can still be caught in deeper water. Wahoo and tuna are being caught near the Gulf Stream although the weather lately has limited the ability of angler to get to them.

Tight lines and hope you catch ‘em up!