Pamlico/Neuse – October 2022
Donald, of Custom Marine Fabrication, reports that anglers had a really productive “old” drum season out on the river. Bait has been plentiful and good water salinity had these trophy fish moving just about everywhere (including well upriver). Cooling patterns over the next few weeks should start this bait heading back toward the sound, and with them, the big reds will start dwindling.
Some really good-sized trout (to 22”) are starting to show up. These fish are currently staged up on ledges along the river shorelines.
Puppy drum and striped bass are also holding along the river shorelines and ambushing bait as they migrate out. Both species are being found just about everywhere, including well up past the ferry docks when there’s good water around.
Brad, of Gunny B Outdoors, reports that the old drum bite has been great on most days, with anglers having plenty of success fishing 4” soft plastics under popping corks. Soaking bait also works well when the artificial action isn’t quite working. The key for both tactics is mainly to find the bait.
The slot-sized red drum bite has also remained strong. Topwater plugs, popping corks with soft plastics, and gold or bronze-colored spoons have had a lot of success. If you need to fish cut baits, be sure to set up around areas of structure.
A lot of nice-sized flounder are being landed as well. Gulp baits fished on 3/16-1/4 oz. jig heads on sand flats near structure has been providing all the action.
The striped bass bite has been steady. Topwater plugs produce most of the strikes early, where later in the day has required a switch over to hard baits and soft plastics.
Some good-sized speckled trout are starting to show up in the catches, with most still staged up closer to the sounds. As water temperatures cool, these fish are starting to work their way back towards the river systems. There are plenty of shrimp in the river, so live bait has been working great.
Anglers are also finding bridges and structure in the lower river to still be holding sheepshead and black drum.
Dana, of Reel2Reel Fishing, reports that there has been a lot of citation-class drum in the river this year. Though weather patterns will start cooling, look for this bite to last into the middle of October before you really start seeing these fish start to move out. There is bait all over the place, so picking an area to start can be difficult. Looking for bait that is being pushed or agitated is key in finding these trophy reds, as depth hasn’t made too much of a difference this season.
Flounder fishing in the river was really good for anglers looking to grab their solo limit.
There are slot-sized red drum closer to the shoreline and staged up near structure and docks.
Speckled trout are also starting to show up as we move into fall. A lot of the action is focused mainly in those early morning hours for anglers fishing topwater plugs and sub-surface baits (such as MirrOlures), and then fishing popping corks with Gulp or similar soft plastics can produce strikes throughout the day.
Fishing around the bridges can still produce some sheepshead or black drum, but both species are starting to slow down and transition out.
Griffin, of East Side Bait and Tackle, reports that red drum action has been really good from well upriver all the way down to the sound. There are also plenty of slot-sized fish holding up closer to the riverbanks. The bait is plentiful, and anglers are having the most success running to find areas of more agitated bait when starting their fishing efforts.
Flounder season saw a lot of good-sized fish being caught. Anglers fishing live baits generally did the best, with some fish also hitting soft plastics worked along the bottom. For the most part, the flatfish caught were almost all keeper-sized, with not many shorts needed to be weeded through to fill the solo limit.
Anglers fishing the creek mouths or deeper structured ledges have been catching some speckled trout and striped bass. As water temperatures fall in the coming months, both action on these species picks up.
Mitchell, of FishIBX, reports that the trophy red drum fishing remains really good throughout the Pamlico River, including well up towards the freshwater line. Drier conditions and the large amount of bait around points to this bite remaining strong for a while moving into October. The classic popping cork and soft plastic combo remains the top producing setup, with some anglers finding success on spoons and hard baits when bait has been holding deeper.
With this good water salinity, there has also been a good bluefish and spanish mackerel bite.
Flounder season was a success for anglers looking for their solo keeper fish, and structured areas are still holding some black drum.
The speckled trout bite is starting to pick up moving into fall. The bite is a bit sporadic right now, but a lot of this can be attributed to wind and tide changes as it is still early for the trout.
Look for the striped bass action to pick up, too, with cooler fall temperatures prevailing.
Hugh, of Pungo Charters, reports that anglers are seeing speckled action picking up with both better numbers and better-sized fish showing up. There has been a slight cooling of water temperatures, and changes in the coming weeks should really finalize the transition into full fall fishing. Ledges and deeper banks around creek mouths have been the most productive areas. Popping cork setups are working great and produce a majority of the strikes, with live bait or Billy Bay Halo shrimp both having a lot of success.
Schools of menhaden are literally everywhere, and with that there are plenty of red drum around as well. Some nice-sized slot reds are being caught in the same areas the trout anglers are targeting, with a few citation-sized fish (to 47”) in the mix.
