Swansboro April 29, 2010
Thomas Hill, of Bogue Auto Sales in Cape Carteret, with an upper-slot red drum he hooked in the marsh near Swansboro on an Almost Alive soft finger mullet. He was fishing with Capt. Rob Koraly of Sandbar Safari Charters.
Jeff, of FishN4Life Charters, reports that the water temperatures have risen into the mid-60’s along the beaches and 70+ inshore, and the warmer water is producing some excellent fishing.
Bottom fishing in the ICW and around the river mouths has been producing plenty of action with whiting, gray trout, spot, and other bottom feeders. Frozen shrimp on bottom rigs are drawing most of the bites.
Red drum have moved from the surf in the inshore shallows, and anglers are finding schools of 50-100+ fish scouring the creeks for crabs, mullet, and mud minnows. Topwaters and Gulp jerkbaits and pogies are producing most of the action with the reds.
Flounder (ranging from small to solid keepers) and some speckled trout (1/2-3 lbs.) are feeding around creek mouths on falling tides and will fall for Gulps or live baits.
Bluefish are feeding around the inlets, and anglers can find them by trolling shallow diving lures in the nearby channels.
The nearshore reefs are alive with summer flounder, sea bass, tautog, and a variety of other bottom feeders. Go with 1.5-2 oz. bucktails tipped with 4” Gulp shrimp to fool most of the flounder and larger sea bass.
False albacore and Atlantic bonito are feeding on the surface in the same areas, and anglers are hooking up while casting 2-3” metal jigs to schools chasing bait on the surface.
Capt. Jeff Cronk, of FishN4Life Charters, with a healthy spring speckled trout he hooked on a 4" Gulp pogy in the Swansboro backwaters.
Rob, of Sandbar Safari Charters, reports that flounder fishing has been good inshore and nearshore lately. Anglers are finding the flatties inshore around creekmouths and nearby drop-offs, and fooling them with live baits and Sebile Soft Stick Shads on football jigheads. The middle part of a falling tide is producing the best action.
Off the beach, the flounder are feeding at live bottoms, wrecks, and other structure in the 5-10 mile range. Bucktails tipped with Gulp baits or squid strips are fooling the nearshore flatties.
False albacore are feeding around the same structure and near the inlet tidelines, and some Atlantic bonito are around as well, especially to the south of Bogue Inlet. Pink Stingsilvers and Maria jigs are top lures to cast at the feeding schools of albacore and bonito.
Inshore, the red drum bite is on in the shallows. Schools of 50-100 fish and pods of 5-10 are working their way through the marshes, and any area with a soft mud bottom, oyster rocks, and not much of the green “winter moss” on the bottom is a good place to look for the reds. Sebile lures and Gulp baits are fooling most of the reds.
Speckled trout fishing has been spotty locally lately, but anglers are putting together solid catches off the Neuse River. Gulp baits and mud minnows will fool the specks.
Bluefish are feeding around the inlets and have made their way back into the mainland creeks as well.
Zach Messer and Capt. Jon Wood, employees of Dudley's Marina, with a citation 53 lb, 10 oz. black drum they hooked on a 4" white Gulp shrimp after they saw it feeding near a crab pot while they were sight-casting for reds. They subdued the beast after a 10 minute battle on a 2500 size spinning reel.
Dale, of The Reel Outdoors, reports that the bonito bite has been solid at nearshore structure lately, particularly down towards New River Inlet. Casting metal jigs or trolling Yo-Zuri Deep Divers are the best ways to hook up with the bonito.
Good numbers of flounder are feeding on nearshore structure off Bogue Inlet (with many 17-25” reported recently). Live baits and Gulp-tipped bucktails are fooling most of the flounder.
Red drum are still schooled up in the marshes, and anglers are catching solid numbers on Gulp and Trigger-X soft baits and on spinnerbaits. The topwater bite hasn’t really turned on yet. The fish are also very spooky in the shallow water, so anglers need to sneak up on them with the trolling motor in order to score bites.
Surf and pier anglers are hooking up with whiting and bluefish, and the first spanish mackerel of the year was landed on the pier last week.
Rhonda, of Bogue Inlet Pier, reports that plug casters are hooking up with decent numbers of bluefish, and the pier saw its first spanish mackerel last week as well.
Bottom fishermen are finding action with whiting and black drum in the daytime. Some spot and speckled trout are in the mix at night, and all the bottom feeders are falling for shrimp.
