Hello form still very warm (hot) southeast North Carolina. The good news is fishing has been good to very good and we are starting to see signs of fall everyday. I've got to tell you; this is one summer that I've been hoping for an early fall! I know, the winter will get here and we will want summer back again! To the fishing report>>>
Flounder has been the name of the game! We have caught a lot of Flounder this season so far and we are really just getting to good Flounder time. We have caught very high numbers with any where form one in two (50%) to one in four (25%) keepers this season. The good news is in the last two weeks the numbers as well as the size is getting better. On most ½ day trips we are catching fifth teen to over twenty Flounder. The best days have been on live bait but; some of the bigger fish have hit artificial baits.
Live bait has been the key for catching higher numbers of Flounder, but you can still catch very nice ones on artificial baits too. Mud minnows and small finger mullet have been the best baits for us lately. Rigging the live bait on carolina rigs with EC 042 1/0 hooks and thirty to forty pound mono or Fluorocarbon leaders. We use egg sinkers when casting for Flounder and river sinkers when drifting for the Flounder; the river sinkers seem to ride over stuff (hangs) on the bottom easier when drifting.
Jig heads rigged with Berkley Gulps new Mud minnow/croaker pattern have been great for our Flounder trips in the last few weeks. Also the Gulp Ripple Mullet and the Gulp Jerk shad have caught some bigger Flounder too. We rig the Mud minnow Gulp on a 1/4oz to 3/8oz gray or red jig heads (spring lock) works the best. A thirty pound mono or fluorocarbon leader about fifth teen to twenty inches long will work just fine. The colors that we've had the most luck with in the Mud minnow pattern Killifish, New Penny, Pearl White and Sardine. In the Ripple Mullet pattern colors that have worked well are Root beer/gold with chart tail and New penny. The Jerk shad colors that are working for us are Blue Pepper Neon, Sapphire Shine and Pearl White.
Speckled trout fishing is starting to pick up south of Wrightsville Beach and should get even better in September. The warm temps have made it a little hard to get numbers of Speckled trout but we have caught a few nice trout in the early mornings with top water lures. On very calm mornings or late afternoons one lure has worked well for us catching some nice speckled trout. The lure is the 10MR (MirrO Prop) by MirrOlure, this lure is a prop bait with sonic rattles. This lure is not loud to our ears but it emits vibration and sound that fish can hear very well. Give it a try on a calm morning when the water is flat and very still. Berkley Gulp Alive Ripple Mullets in the colors Goby magic with chart tail and New penny fleck have caught us some trout lately too.
The Sheephead fishing is still going very good and should be good until late October. Rigging is easy for Sheephead; we use a short carolina rig with forty pound mono or fluorocarbon leader about eight to ten inches long. The hook is a number one or 1/0 live bait nose hook; small, sharp and strong, very important for Sheephead! Look for Sheephead around pilings, bulkheads and large oyster rocks that stay covered up by water most of the tide. For bait, we catch fiddler crabs on mud banks on the ICW. Sheephead fishing takes patients and time to catch them but it's worth the time!
Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Spiderwire Ultra-cast braid in 10 and 15#. Rods: Ugly stik lite 6'6" and 7' Med light & Med and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line. I'm very busy this time of year but if you would like to go fishing please feel free to call any time to check my availability and don't forget to take a kid fishing!
Good Luck,
Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139
