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8/20/2007

Regional Saltwater Fishing Reports

Northern District  Dare, Hyde, Currituck, & Beaufort Counties
Contact: Brian Melott August 19, 2007
For the 2006 fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional HMS harvest reporting requirements are also in place.

Please Note: Anglers sometimes confuse small king mackerel with Spanish mackerel. King mackerel and spanish mackerel have different size and catch limits. Make SURE you properly identify the mackerel you are catching. (Tips here)

A recreational Recreational Fishing License went into effect Jan. 1, 2007 for all of the state's coastal and ocean waters. Tagged Red Drum: Download PDF with reward details.

Ocean: Offshore success moderated a bit this week with nice dolphin, yellowfin tuna, and a few very large wahoo mixed in.  Billfish catches slowed considerably. Midrange anglers are still catching gray triggerfish and blueline tilefish with the welcome addition of some very large king mackerel.  Assorted others were also caught, including hake, black seabass, tautog, and amberjack.  Nearshore anglers had low success rates this week, with only a few small bluefish and undersize flounder being caught.  

Inlets/Sounds/Bays: Success rates were poor this week with small black sea bass, searobins, croaker, silver perch, oyster toadfish, lizardfish, and a host of others, all caught in low amounts.  Sheepshead and black drum were the only exception to the rule - most of them being caught on mole crabs, (sand fleas) around the bridge structure at Oregon Inlet.  A few weakfish were caught near the shallows of the islands.

Piers/Shore: Bluefish catches have slowed, compared to last week’s high volume catches.  Large croaker and spot have showed up with anglers catching them on a very regular basis. A few kingfish and red drum have also been caught.  Pompano catches in the nearshore surf zone have slowed.  Nighttime anglers are catching a few cobia off the piers. 

General Overview: Moderating temperatures allowed anglers to be more persistent this week.  Late August usually brings improved success rates in all modes of fishing and anglers should try their luck when weather conditions permit.  Water temp in the surf (Kill Devil Hills) the day of this report was 79 degrees.

Central District  Pamlico, Craven, Carteret, & Onslow Counties
 Contact: Suzanne Hill August 19, 2007
For the 2006 fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional HMS harvest reporting requirements are also in place.

Please Note: Anglers sometimes confuse small king mackerel with Spanish mackerel. King mackerel and spanish mackerel have different size and catch limits. Make SURE you properly identify the mackerel you are catching. (Tips here)

A recreational Recreational Fishing License went into effect Jan. 1, 2007 for all of the state's coastal and ocean waters.

Tagged Red Drum: Download PDF with reward details.

Ocean: Fishing has slowed considerably. Headboats are seeing many sea bass and vermilion snapper. Small sharks caught and released sometimes outnumber all fish caught in a day. Sea bass are running about 2.5 pounds. Charter boats are fishing for billfish and wahoo. Flounder cover the AR 342 reef.

 

Inlets/Sounds/Bays: There are many small red drum  reported  around Browns Inlet and Russells Creek in Beaufort. There are also reports they can be caught on the south side of Carrot Island in Beaufort. We have seen a few flounder, seatrout, croaker, bluefish hooked off Swansboro, Beaufort, and the West Channel near Bear Island.  But fishing is slow. Flounder have been reported out of Bogue Inlet and in Bogue Sound but they are few and far between. There are Spanish on the shoals of the Cape along with a ton of sharks . The "Barge" is surrounded by hammerheads and blacktips .  Silversides are numerous.

Piers/Shore: Jumping mullet are hopping over the waters around Beaufort. There is plenty of surf fishing activity at Fort Macon. They are catching bluefish and undersized flounder. Piers have small croaker, spot, Spanish, bluefish, lizardfish and rays.

Southern District  Pender, New Hanover, & Brunswick Counties
 Contact: Dennis Trowell August 19, 2007
For the 2006 fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional HMS harvest reporting requirements are also in place.

Please Note: Anglers sometimes confuse small king mackerel with Spanish mackerel. King mackerel and spanish mackerel have different size and catch limits. Make SURE you properly identify the mackerel you are catching. (Tips here)

A recreational Recreational Fishing License went into effect Jan. 1, 2007 for all of the state's coastal and ocean waters.

Tagged Red Drum: Download PDF with reward details.

Ocean:  Not much has changed. The wind blew most of the week, with the first part of the week being nice. There seems to be a good concentration of king mackerel in the 30 to 35-mile range. Along with the kings there are good numbers of red grouper. Closer to shore, the nearshore reefs are holding good numbers of flounder and spadefish.

Inlets/Sounds/Bays: Fishing for the most part is slow. There are some flounder being caught in the Cape Fear River, Southport, and farther south, but nothing great. Fishing should improve when the water temperature begins to cool some. There are still some trout being caught. The creeks behind Bald Head Island have been producing some nice fish in the early morning hours. Sheepshead are biting on both rock jetties, Masonboro and Little River rock jetty, as well as area bridges.

Piers/Shore: Typical summertime fishing. There are some decent flounder catches taking place on most area piers. Along with the flounder there are some sheepshead and black drum. Some area piers are catching a few spots. Fishing at night seems to be the best time to catch the spots. I didn't hear of any kings being caught on any of the area piers.

 

 

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