Saturday, September 29, 2012

Sept 28 Crazy Conger Eel Fishing




Twenty years ago I decided that I didn't want to be a "Blue Marlin Fisherman", a "King Mackerel Fisherman", or a "Speckled Trout Fisherman". I wanted to be good at every kind of fishing and sacrifice the chance to be really great at any one kind of fishing.... I loved the variety of Saltwater Fishing that North Carolina offered. Roll with the seasons. Different species come and go as the calender rolls by.... Also I learned that each time I went fishing to be flexible and be prepared for all sorts of scenarios and sometimes truly remarkable things happen... Or just very unusual things.... Last night was one of those unusual nights. An unexpected species showed up in large Numbers and Sizes! Conger Eels are the European equivalent to our American Eels. (I think?) Unlike our American Eel, they grow to enormous sizes and they are very hard fighters. Worthy to be called a gamefish, I'd say...... Every fall I catch a few Conger Eels while Flounder or Red Drum fishing in Taylor's Creek. I also used to catch a few in winter while fishing for Black Sea Bass. Well, last night at Hatteras Inlet, there was a Conger Explosion. Considering the time----330am----I think I did a pretty good job of exploiting my first Conger Eel blitz! When the smoke had cleared, I had caught 5 Congers, including my two career bests at 6lbs and 8lbs. I also released 3 smaller ones. Wow, great Conger Eel Fishing. Let that sink in.... This afternoon I'n going to try to trade my Eels for 2 Chinese Buffet up at Avon, NC. If it works, you gotta love those Eels! Total Catch for the Night: 5 Conger Eels up to 8lbs, 4 Black Sea Bass, 8 Pinfish, 4 Bluefish, 4 Silver Perch, 6 Silver Porgy and 6 At Thread Herring   

Friday, September 28, 2012

Sept 27 Horrible Tide Cycle


The Monster "LOW" Tides are killing me. Plus, the Falling and Dead Low Cycle is taking ALL DAMN NIGHT.....  Yep, it's just that simple. Plus, the State Bridge Crew is repairing the Ferry Ramps at South Dock and those 2 things are absolutely flat out killing my Night Shift Fishing Results. Interesting, last night I caught a baby Gag Grouper on a jerk bait.... Then at 4am I finally got a bite on a live Pinfish! I was actually asleep in my truck when I heard my rod scraping down the rail.... When I picked up my rod it was obvious that something extremely large had ate my bait and had wrapped me around a 16 piling cluster. Remembering my 10lb 6oz Flounder from 2004 that had me in the same predicament, I was a little excited to say the least! So I straightened my rod out and pulled on the 80# power pro. Expecting and hoping to gain a little ground as I gently pulled my big Flounder back around the cluster...... Hell No. Unfortunately, this was NO FLOUNDER. Instead, the fish exploded and ripped 100 yards of line off my reel against a heavy drag. Okay, my Flounder had suddenly (probably) turned into a 100+ pound Southern Stingray. Anyhow, the power pro broke and the game was over...  damn. Total Catch for the Night: 1 Gag Grouper

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Sept 25 Flounder Time

Night Run at Hatteras in September...... Only means one thing. Big Badass Southern Flounder laying like "Shingles on a Roof" around the Ferry Ramps on the North End of Ocracoke Island. Last night was beautiful. No wind. Low tide. Good and Bad come together. The Calender said YES. But there was absolutely NO FINGER MULLET movement whatsoever. So, in 4 hours, I caught 2 Finger Mullets in my cast net and I caught 2 Southern Flounder. I caught some other things on live Pinfish, but that was it for the Flounders. One of them is a "maybe" NC Citation. I haven't looked at it since 330am. Tonight things will be better. Total Catch for the Night: 2 Southern Flounder up to 24", 4 Black Sea Bass up to 13" and 1 Oyster Toadfish

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Sept 23 Everybody got a Red Drum





Dan's crew is AVID RED DRUM Fans and the last time they tried to do this trip with me in 2010 a Hurricane messed it up. This time we had the weather in our favor, but the calendar was getting a little late. Since I started fishing for Large Red Drum in the Southern Pamlico Sound 14 years ago, this is latest in the year that I've ever tried it. So it was a little bit of a mystery. That's why I was so happy when Lisa pulled the hooks right beside the boat on a 50 lb Red Drum pretty quickly after getting setup under the setting sun. The Red Drum were here, so hopefully it was going to be a great night! Well, it turned out to be a really fun night and thankfully we needed 4 Red Drum and we got them. The fishing was a little slow and the numbers were disappointing, but it was still a great night of fishing. Dan had the hot rod up on the bow and he actually outfished my 4 rods with his one! Incredibly, he got ALL his bites on little Croakers and Pinfish that I caught while waiting for Drum bites. I also stumbled into a really nice Sea Mullet that I'm looking forward to checking out in the cooler as soon as I can peel myself out of the couch! We also caught a truly spectacular 40 lb Cownose Ray that shook up the crew with a long, fast run. Only to be topped by the last and largest Red Drum of the night, which "made our night" and pulled my Boga Grip down to 45 pounds! Total Catch for the Night: 4 Red Drum up to 45 lbs, a 40 lb Cownose Ray, 2 Southern Sea Mullet, 12 Croaker and 12 Pinfish

Friday, September 21, 2012

Sept 21 Part II Awesome Casting


Capt Columbus and I went for an afternoon adventure to "get Amy's Daddy some fish"... In Beaufort Inlet, it was every cast Bluefish on metal. Up to some legit 3 pounders. Fishing was spectacular with Finger Mullet getting attacked from below and the Brown Pelicans dive bombing from above. Chris and I also saw a 200 lb Shark get in on the melee, but we were too far away to give him a dental exam. After we stuffed the cooler with Bluefish, we went on a long ride that culminated with me catching a bright silvery 29" Red Drum that we worked on for an hour trying to sightcast as other boats and nice large breaking waves made very difficult. Total Catch for the Afternoon: 40 Bluefish up to 3 lbs, 1 Spanish Mackerel at 1lb 8oz and a 12 lb Red Drum

Sept 21 Taking Two Kids Fishing




Brian employed me this morning to take his 7 yr old son and 5 yr old daughter on their first saltwater boating/fishing trip. A two hour trip. The fish were hungry everywhere we went and everything we tried worked to perfection. I'd call it an epic fishing trip, all things considered.... Total Catch for the Morning: 6 Spanish Mackerel up to 1b 8oz, 12 Bluefish up to 1lb 8oz, 1 Northern Sea Mullet, 8 Hogfish, 1 Sea Robin, 1 Black Sea Bass, 1 Scup and 16 Pinfish

Sept 20 Casting to Spanish Mackerel

After making Michele Obama's visit to Greenville a safe success, GFD Fire Captain, EMT Life Saving Professional, Part-time Inland Rescue Swimmer, World Class Angler and Big Game Hunter and All-American Good Guy Captain Tuggy blew off some stress by joining me on a little fishing expedition. (Look for Tuggy on next season's "The Bachelor" as dozen's of beautiful women vie for his attention)..... Anyway, with dreams of Sailfish and King Mackerel dancing in our heads, we were both collectively slapped in the face by a 20kt NE wind that was too rough and made the water too dirty. We struggled mightily and decided that casting to Albacore would be "good enough" on this day. However, there were no Albacore around either. We ended up casting to very scattered Spanish Mackerel to the east and we finished up casting to very dense schools of Spanish Mackerel to the west. We tried livebaiting King Mackerel in both spots with no luck. We each caught a Bluefish and Tuggy also caught an Atlantic Bumper. Tough wind. Good day. Total Catch for the Day: 20 Spanish Mackerel up to 2 lb, 2 Bluefish up to 2 lb and 1 Atlantic Bumper

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Sept 19 NOTHING whoops 11:55pm Red Drum

To keep up my record of posting ALL FISHING, not just CHARTERS. Not just GOOD DAYS.... Today I went down to Taylors Creek to clean a Flounder from yesterday and casted my trusted, lucky White Gulp around the Pilings and Oyster Rocks and I caught...... NOTHING. Then much later, about 1140pm I went back down there to catch the high water. I caught 2 Red Drum on Gulp Jerk Baits and castnetted lots of Finger Mullet for future adventures....Total Catch for the Day: 2 Red Drum

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Sept 18 Red Drum and Flounder


Back home again and just before the STORM of the MONTH hits.... At least this one ain't coming up from the Southeast and this one ain't got a name..... Yeah its been a boring hurricane season on the East Coast.... Late this morning I braved the wind and barely beat the rain and journeyed down to Taylor's Creek armed with a 5" White Jerk Bait on my trusty dock spinning combo. First cast I saw my "wind loop" pull tight and I wasn't pulling! Quickly I gathered the line up and found an 17" Red Drum on my hook. Great start to a week of fishing! The next 10 casts produced a 17" Flounder, a Gag Grouper, a Black Sea Bass, and 2 Lizardfish. Then came the rain. I ran. Seems like the next 12-24 hours are SHOT, but hopefully I'm wrong. Total Catch for the Day: 1 Red Drum, 1 Southern Flounder, 1 Gag Grouper, 1 Black Sea Bass and 2 Inshore Lizardfish

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

9-11 Remember? And I'm back at Hatteras

Sept 11, 2001. I was on the Cedar Island Ferry. Headed to Ocracoke that morning. Seven days later I got my SPOT Citation off the Kitty Hawk Pier.....

I am back at Hatteras so here is my prediction.... A very memorable inshore "run" of Sailfish is about to occur. King Mackerel fishermen are going to nail them. Hopefully it wont be in the next 7 days because I'll be stuck on the Ferry.... Please let it be next week when I'm home.... But, this cold weather is gonna jump them outta here!

For bookings right now, I'm wide open for next time I'm home.... OPEN on Sept 19 and 21. Then OPEN again on Sept 23 and 24. I will be fishing for Red Drum & King Mackerel primarily....

****I got Capt Tugwell down for King Mackerel Fishing on Sept 20th out of Bft Inlet****
****I got Dan G down for Red Drum Fishing on Sept 22nd out of Cedar Island****

This week at Hatteras I will be chasing Sheepsheads and Flounders. Hopefully I am on a winning streak. Capt Tuggy thinks so..... I'm not so sure.

To remind me..... 
Oct 6 Admiral Gerald
Oct 7 Admiral Gerald
Oct 8 Tom Cheseboro
Oct 20 Mike Francis

Monday, September 10, 2012

Sept 10 Double Dipping Freshwater/Saltwater Grandslams


Busy day, with a whole lot of nothing. Got the Top Water Truck out of the shop. Missed the Ferry. Waited to say goodbye to Jennifer. Fished Taylor's Creek while waiting for my truck. It was on-fire with Flounder, Red Drum and a mix of garbage lead by very aggressive Lizardfish.... Fished the Mung Hole while waiting for Jennifer to come over. Used my 3 wt Fly Rod to capture Largemouth Bass, Bluegill and Pumpkinseed. I also caught 4 dozen Misquitofish with my dip net to keep Little Sid happy and well fed for a week... Then I drove all the way around to get to Hatteras because I missed the Cedar Island Ferry. I fished a couple of places along the way. Off the Melvin Daniels Bridge on the Manteo-Nags Head Causeway I caught a Speckled Trout on a white grub.... It got me thinking. Earlier I caught some Red Drum and some Southern Flounder. Add in the Speckled Trout and there is a North Carolina Inshore Grand Slam. Also, today at the Mung Hole, I angled my way to several Largemouth Bass, several Bluegill and a Pumpkinseed. These three sweetwater denizens make up the illustrious Mung Hole Grand Slam and for added notoriety we can add in "On The Fly" ....... Total Catch for the Day: 5 Southern Flounder up to 18", 5 Red Drum  up to 16", 2 small Bluefish, 2 small Pinfish, 2 small Black Sea Bass, 4 Inshore Lizardfish up to 21", 1 Spotted Seatrout at 14", 3 Largemouth up to 15", 10 small Bluegill and 1 Pumpkinseed at 8"

Sunday, September 9, 2012

Sept 9 Best Pond Fishing in North Carolina





Brandon, Branson, Chris and I hit a Private Pond in Eastern Carteret County that I would put up against any Pond in North Carolina. Fishing this place is an opportunity that I will never turn down. Last April, we bombarded the White Perch and caught 80 total with 18 being big enough for an NC Freshwater Fishing Citation...... This morning, the White Perch fishing was not as good as last time, but it was still VERY GOOD and we had lots of other interesting fish to catch as well. Branson and I each caught a White Bass. A first for me and a complete suprize. We also caught many land-locked Red Drum, Croaker, and Pinfish. For big fish excitement, we had lots of action from Longnose Gar but we never landed any of them. We also had a 13 ft Alligator nearby that  added the threat of death to our adventure. That always arouses the senses and makes survival all the more exhilarating! During one stretch, I made 12 straight casts with a Worden's Roostertail Spinner and caught a White Perch or a Red Drum on every cast. The Red Drum seemed very healthy and each one had a beautiful copper color and reddish fins...At the end of the afternoon, we had a huge pile of awesome fish fillets. White Perch is absolutely the best freshwater fish that I've ever eaten. Brandon and his family will be eating good tonight! Total Catch for the Day: 60 White Perch up to 14", 25 Red Drum up to 16", 2 White Bass up to 14", 20 Croaker and 8 Pinfish

Sept 8 Red Drum take a Beating





Once again. This time just Jennifer and I. I did manage one pic of her. She is making her debut slowly..... Also, thanks to Capt Columbus for loaning me the Santa Maria to use last night.... (Capt Ryan's record is still intact) Fishing was better than last night, with a few double headers and never 10 minutes without a bite! Tonight was about Capt Marty getting some big numbers and trying for to take a shot at the 6# IGFA record. So I loaded a reel with brand new Ande 6# test and went for it!  On the light tackle combo the best I could manage was a 45", 43 lb Red Drum! That fish was still 8 lbs shy of the Record Book. I always wanted to do it, but the fish are a "little small" this year. I could probably fish for a 2# record, but who cares? Sorry for being short, but the White Perch are calling.... Total Catch for the Night: 27 Red Drum from 33" to 48"

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Sept 7 Red Drum Chewing








Jennifer, yeah that's right...... Jennifer, Chris, Amy and myself caught them pretty good off Swan Point Channel which is off the NW corner of Cedar Island. Fishing from 8pm until 11pm, we released 24 Red Drum out of 30 bites. A few smaller fish in the 35" range. Then rest were from 42" to 48".On a night when I heard that alot of Boats struggled to make it to double digits, we caught them pretty good, especially when taking in to account that we only fished 3 rods for half the night and were only fishing 2 rods the last 45 minutes, and we left an hour earlier than ususal... The other memorable part of last night's fishing was the way Jennifer avoided the camera. How did she manage to do that? Total Catch for the Night: 24 Red Drum up to 48" and 1 Croaker

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Sept 6 Big Suprize in Taylor's Creek

Things are not going so well.... The beautiful weather of the past month has turned to crap. Hurricane Swell and persistant SWwind is making life miserable for the Small Boat Angler around Beaufort Inlet.... Meanwhile Red Drum are en fuego in the Neuse River. Two little problems stand in my way. Two beautifully sad big brown eyes attached to my equally beautiful Girlfriend when I mention fishing all night on the Neuse River or Pamlico Sound. As much as I love her, I NEVER LET THAT STAND IN MY WAY!  The real problem is the Fuel Pump on the Top Water Fishing Truck has died and I just watched her ride away on a Wrecker. Sad day indeed. Five Hundred dollars GONE and an EPIC DRUM CHEW missed...... Maybe..... Perhaps I can pull something off Friday or Saturday or Sunday.... In the meantime, while waiting for the Wrecker, on 4 straight casts in Taylor's Creek, I caught 3 Red Drum and a ........ Drum Roll Please....... In 40 years (yeah I said 40 years) of fishing off this Dock, My First ever Dock Cobia.... He slurped up a Gulp and waged a galliant battle on light spinning tackle. When he first popped up 75 feet out, he looked like a 25 pounder. As I gained on him and threaded him through pilings and boats and other obstacles, he stayed deep. Finally, he raced up in the shallows. On my first good look, I saw that he had a buddy. A twin. Finally after a 5 minutes give and take struggle, I wedged my 11 lb Cobia into my landing net. Thinking lets get the other one too, I hurriedly tried to unhook Cobia #1. As he twisted and turned inside the net, Cobia #2 escaped to deep water. Regardless, it was great moment in "Dock Fishing History".  Joining these catches as My Best Ever Dock Experiences: 1. 10lb 11oz Flounder on 10-18-2003, 2. 6 Flounder over 6 Pounds in 6 drops on 10-31-2005,   3. 100 Red Drum on light spin for Mark Rouse & I on one afternoon on 11-4-2004,   4. Ladyfish blitz of a lifetime 8-25-2009,   5. 11 lb Cobia on light spin 9-6-2012....... Total Catch for the Day: 11 lb Cobia and 3 Red Drum 17" to 20"

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Sept 4 Inshore Sailfish and Hurricane Swells

Gerald and I fought huge swells from Hurricane Leslie and wind chop from 18 kt SW wind and it made fishing very difficult. The day started good with us quickly catching 36 nice live Menhaden. We made the decision to run east first and left Barden's Inlet and got smacked in the face by very rough conditions. Fishable, but rough. With the Eastside of the Shoals being a little more than we wanted and my favorite Rocks to the South too far away/too rough, we made the decision to run back down to the west to AR-315. Once there, we knew the huge ground swell would kill the fishing and we figured we were basically looking for one bite and hoping it would be a BIG ONE! After a few trips around the Reef we noticed a thin black and purple shape following one of our live baits. Gerald was probably thinking Houndfish, but I knew those colors from past encounters and I thought what I was seeing was very interesting. However, I figured the shape I saw was too small to be a Sailfish? So, as my gaze was fixed on the mysterious fish, I wondered out loud what it was.... And then it twitched its dorsal muscle and up came the prettiest little sail fin you've ever seen. It must have raised it fully erect and it was only about 18" high. Damn, it was a Sailfish after all.... After about 30 seconds of exciting anticipation, the tiny Sailfish charged the Menhaden and got itself tangled up in the trailing treble hook. Three jumps later, he was beside the boat and Gerald and I marveled at the smallest "live" Billfish either of us had ever seen. The little Sailfish was probably around 28"-30" long and 3-4 pounds, I'd guess. I scrambled for my camera and just as I was getting it out of its bag Gerald announced that the tiny gladiator had shook his head violently and thrown the hook. In a split second, the little Sailfish had disappeared in a swirl on top of a 5 foot ground swell. Gone without a picture. The swell had reached us from SE of Bermuda.... I wonder where the little Sailfish's travels will take him? After that we caught a Barracuda and a Shark. Rough as a Cob. Poor Fishing. Good Time with Admiral Currin. Total Catch for the Day: a 4 lb Sailfish, a 25 lb Barracuda and a 8 lb Sharpnose Shark

Saturday, September 1, 2012

Sept 1 Finally a Sheephead



Three summers ago brought me 19 NC Citation Sheepsheads between 8-12 lbs. All together, I caught nearly 50 Sheepsheads in the summer of 2009. All these fish were caught by "sneaking" a quick drop here and quickly pitching a Sea Urchin here and there..... This summer, there have been very few Sheepheads around the Hatteras Inlet Ferry Docks. I did get a rise out of a 12 lb Sheepshead 3 days ago. Today, on a blind drop, I saw my power pro twitch and when I reeled up the slack there was a fish on the line! Unfortunately it was not the one I was after. A respectable 6 lb Sheepshead however. Thank Goodness, my Sheep Slump is over. Total Catch for the Day: a 6 lb Sheepshead