Added on Thursday, May 8, 2008  Gary Hurley

Topsail May 8, 2008

Chris, of East Coast Sports, reports that anglers are landing whiting and a few pompano from the surf and piers. When then clear water moves in, the bluefish bite has been good as well, with good numbers of large choppers falling for king rigs.

A few spanish mackerel and kings have already been landed from the piers as well, and it shouldn’t be long before anglers are seeing the spanish and kings running bait along the beaches.

Inshore, speckled trout and red drum fishing has been good in the creeks and marsh areas. A variety of lures and baits will get their attention, but the new Chatterbait shrimp has been particularly effective lately.

Offshore, anglers are landing good catches of grouper at structure 30+ miles offshore. Bait bouncers are doing well with cigar minnows, and anglers have also been catching big numbers of grouper on butterfly jigs.

Some king mackerel are feeding in the same areas as the grouper.

 

Ricky, of Speckled Specialist Charters, reports that the New River speckled trout bite is still going strong. The fish are feeding all over the river, but the bite has been particularly good around downtown Jacksonville recently. Anglers have landed trout up to and over 6 lbs. during the past week, mostly while casting topwaters, suspending MR17 and MR19 Mirrolures, and Billy Bay Halo shrimp.

The river red drum bite has been good as well, and anglers are landing double digit numbers of the reds while casting topwaters and other lures to the river banks.

 

Eric, of New River Marina, reports that Atlantic bonito are still feeding around Diver’s Rock and other nearshore structure. Some smaller kings and spanish mackerel are also in the mix. Casting diamond jigs or Gotcha plugs around the structure or breaking fish should result in bites, and boats can also search for the fish by trolling Yo-Zuri Deep Divers and Clarkspoons.

Offshore, grouper are holding at bottom structure 20+ miles from the beaches. Cigar minnows and spanish sardines should draw bites from both red and gag groupers.

Inside the inlet, speckled trout and red drum fishing has been excellent throughout the New River. Gulp baits, Billy Bay Halo shrimp, and topwater plugs have all been producing good results on the reds and specks.

Black drum are feeding in the river around large structures like the 172 Bridge. Most are 3-5 lbs., and a bottom rig baited with cut shrimp should produce plenty of bites.

Flounder have finally begun to move in the inlet and feed well. Anglers looking for the flatfish should fish near the inlets with live, Carolina-rigged mud minnows or finger mullet (some finger mullet have shown up in the river).

 

Vinita, of Surf City Pier, reports that bluefish (ranging from 1 lb. to choppers in the 5-10 lb. class) are feeding well around the pier. Gotcha plugs are attracting their attention, and the larger blues are falling for live baits on king rigs.

The whiting bite has been good for anglers fishing cut shrimp on the bottom. A few flounder and pompano are also coming over the rails.

The water is getting warm enough for spanish mackerel and kings, and it shouldn’t be more than a week before anglers hook up with them.

 

Robin, of Jolly Roger Pier, reports that anglers are catching chopper bluefish on live baits fished on king rigs. Smaller blues are falling for Gotcha plugs.

At night, anglers are hooking decent number of whiting on cut shrimp fished on the bottom. Some nice pompano are falling for shrimp during the daytime.

 

Frank, of Seaview Pier, reports that bottom fishermen are catching whiting, a few pompano, some undersized flounder, and a few black drum. Cut shrimp are the best bait.

Anglers are landing lots of bluefish (some up to 8 lbs.). Gotcha plugs and diamond jigs are responsible for most of the blues.

Live baiters have already caught several king mackerel, and the king bite should just get better over the coming weeks.