May 30- Capt Marty Turns 50

Oh Hell...... Today I realized..... If my LIFE was a CALENDAR.....

I'm into October..... It is TIME for achy, cranky Captain Marty Moore to get it DONE because LIFE ain't going to get much easier...... I need to accomish a few of my Fishing Goals. Time is Running Out!

I'd love to THANK my family. Mom and Dad, of course. My Brother, Michael. My many Cousins, Aunts, and Uncles. They made me who and what I am.... Probably not always proud, but hey, I could've done a lot worse. Very importantly in the past 3 years is my wife, Jennifer. We wasted enough time in the past, we are very happily ALL IN for each other now... Talk about "taking a bullet" for someone.... I'd take a Point Blank Bazooka Shot" for that woman. I LOVE YOU, Darling...( she is in a tent beside me snoozing as I type this cause she planned my birthday perfectly)....We are in the deep woods and right now it's just me and Emma (awake) and a loud mouth Whip Poor Will blurting his  call every 4 seconds.... Christ sakes Bird, I get it.... Poor Will must've whipped your ass pretty good..... Also, I'd like to acknowledge my small group of loyal friends. I love ALL YOU BASS-TURDS and thank you to everyone that helped me through 50 damn years of Life on this Orb......

FISH my Life Away..... The Marty Moore Way of Life

Still cussing and casting hard, running and gunning, sting silvers a-flyN, at Age Five Oh..... Thanks Everyone!

May 29- Cobia Fishing Failure

Pretty Day, Great Bait, Great Crew. The Cobia failed to show up. Ten hours of hard fishing. This day was hard... I was happy these guys were pretty serious fishermen, so at least they acknowledged my effort and tenacity, and they understood "bad fishing days" happen. Still, it was a tough day to concede to the enemy and to give up "empty handed".... Again, my sincerest apologies to this crew. I used to think of myself as an "elite fisherman" and on days like today, elite fishermen pull one out their Azz...... Today... I couldn't do it.. Total Catch for the Day: 5 Southern Stingray up to 50 lbs, 12 Atlantic Menhaden up to 8oz, and a 9 lb Atlantic Sharpnose Shark

May 28- Late Afternoon Bait Balling (part 2)

BAIT BALL

Cody on the HUNT

The Boys Find Success

Earlier today, as we struggled with Uncle Ray, 2014 client Cody called me and asked if I could take him and 2 buddies and their three girlfriends out fishing this afternoon. I explained to Cody, "fishing sucks man, if you'll be happy shagging Sharks and Rays, then I'll be glad to take yall fishing"..... He agreed! Sometimes a guy just needs to get out on the water! In the meantime, we caught a fat pig Cobia and the whole outlook changed! I dropped off Ed and picked Cody, his 2 pals, and Three Hott Tamales!!!! Top Water Charters looked like the Hawaiian Tropic Express as we cleared the Inlet.... First Bait Ball we hit had 6 Cocoa Puffs and one cast later we had a 20 lb Cobia on deck..... Epic Fishing ahead, I pondered!!! NO.... Three hours later we had ONE COBIA and 2 Southern Stingrays . Joyfully, we also snagged 20 Menhaden on our bucktails. We did manage to lose 2 mystery smokers.... Oh well, the view from the Tower was nice. Thanks Cody and crew. Nice crew. Total Catch for the Afternoon: 20 lb Cobia, 2 Southern Stingrays up to 50 lbs, and 20 Menhaden up to 6oz

May 28- One Bite, One Huge Cobia (part 1)

Ed's beautiful 69 lb Cobia

We needed a miracle, it seemed, Capt T called us and Ed made it happen.... Thanks Guys!

Fishing for Cobia has seen better days at Beaufort Inlet. Tough Fishing. Bait Ball Maddness. A fight to pitch a bait to a few 30-40 lb Cobias...... Well today we tried some old school crap and were rewarded with one bite..... And Ed made it count as he decked a 69 lb Cobia that provided a great show, a great leap, and plenty of excitement around the boat! The boys also caught Stingrays, Sharks, Bluefish, Menhaden, and a nice Summer Flounder. Capt T. Thomas bailed us out on the Cobia. After wasting all morning in places where "everything but Cobias" were biting, TT tipped us off to a "new" spot. Twenty minutes after arriving, Ed was engaged in a Cobia War. Ed won.  Mission Accomplished. Ed thinks I'm great. I've helped him to career best Spanish Mackerel, Gag Grouper, and now, Cobia. Three heavy hitters! Total Catch for the Morning: 69 lb Cobia, 3 Southern Stingrays up to 50 lbs, 2 Smooth Butterfly Rays up to 40 lbs, 2 Atlantic Sharpnose Sharks up to 10 lbs, 4 Bluefish up to 24oz, 15 Atlantic Menhaden up to 12oz, and a 2 lb Summer Flounder

May 26- A Very Important Date

Yes, I am still at Hatteras and there is literally dozens of Trophy Cobia being landed up here every day.... I will be back in Beaufort tomorrow. I will be getting started fishing pretty quickly. Thursday and Friday are booked. Saturday is my 50th Birthday. Damn, without question I'm on the short side of the balance beam now. Depressing..... Anyway, I plan to fish on either Sunday or Monday. After that, it's back to Work again and this time we have another Night Run and this time I think we'll have  access to a Big Skiff with a Tower. Beware Cobia, Triggers, and Spades....

Oh shit! I forgot the WHOLE REASON I started this Post:

Today is my Momma's Birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY NANCY MOORE! I love you and I believe you are the finest mother a young man (or old man 😢) could've ever asked for. I truly LOVE YOU with all my heart. Great Parent you were and still are. From Nantucket to The Boss. From the late 60's through 2015. You are my Momma, my Friend, and you are the Role Model that all other Women in my Life are judged by....I love you. Happy Birthday!!

May 24- Jumbo Cobias (and the One that Got Away)

Josh doing battle

Tensions are running high at this point!

Nearly the end...../

Capt Justin.... Game Over!

Josh with his 71 lb Cobia

Lil Fergie with his 75 lb Cobia

Dammit, John's monster escaped.... This was his Runner-up Trophy

Fergie looking good

John's View of the Action

I'm up at Cape Hatteras working one of the Night Runs. I got a couple of fellow fishermen on my crew this summer. That's nice..... Anyway, we've been watching a steady stream of Cobias hit the Docks up here. Quite obviously, in 2015, Hatteras is where "the meat is"...... So, we scrambled and found a buddy with a boat, and talked him into taking up to Diamond Shoals. So, Capt Justin put is the right spot and that's when the "Josh Faglie Show" started..... I've got admit, I turned myself into a "boat dummy". Actually, I filleted my left calf on a trimmed plastic tiestrap and pretty much bled for the next 6 hours! While I hobbled around with a compress on my leg, Josh hooked up 6 of the 9 Cobia we hooked by deploying his special Beaufort Inlet tactics. Good thing, many of these Cobia ignored bucktails..... Anyway, Justin Ferg caught a 75 lb Cobia. Josh caught a 71 lb Cobia. John Griffen lost a big brown submarine after a 20minute war. Johnny's fish was in his death throes straight under the boat, but we just couldn't lift him the 3-5 final feet to the gaff! This went on for agonizing minutes..... Then.... PING, he was gone. 80? 90? 100? I'll be dammed if I got a good guess. John got a 40 lb Cobia. I caught a 30+ pound Cobia and a throwback. .John and Fergie also caught Cobias in the 25-30 lb range. All told, we saw 10 Cobia. We hooked 9 Cobia. We caught 8 Cobia. We killed 7 Cobia. Casting to 2-3 lb Bluefish was pretty good too9 z

To Be Continued........

May 23- BIG NEWS

This is a tough post...... Here goes, there is a good chance that The Top Water will be sold in the near future..... I promise that the great fishing will continue and there will be a new "Top Water Boat".

I feel like, as my 50th birthday approaches that it's time for a new chapter in my Fishing Career.... It has been a life long journey. From a kid on the Morehead Ocean Pier, to my family's 16 ft Boston Whaler, to catching a ride to the Gulf Stream at every opportunity..... Eventually to bring a Mate on Charter and Headboats. Commercial Bottom Fishing All Winter!  To a career on the NC Ferry to allow 26 weeks of fishing per year. This lead to 10-12 King Mackerel Tournaments a year plus 30-40 days of Commercial Grouper Fishing a Year. Then I got my Capt License and became a Fishing Guide. 15 years of that with a 25 ft Tower Boat. The best "big fish inshore" boat EVER..... So now, at age 50..... I'm ready to slow down, go Flounder Gigging, spent more time in the Marsh and Rivers. And go back to bumming rides offshore.....


It ain't happened yet, but we will see how this plays out!

In the meantime, let's go Cobia Fishing!

May 19- Technical Difficulties

Capt Marty is suffering all sorts of technical difficulties as well as hyper extended elbow and ingrown toenail from hell

Patience Grasshoppers.....

C O B I A

Listen up Fishermen..... If you guys intend to catch a Cobia or two in 2015, now is definitely the
time to book a trip. With me, or someone else. Hell, after yesterday, you might want to look somewhere else for a Cobia Guide ....just kidding.  For real though, these next 4-6 weeks is Cobia Season in North Carolina Waters. Here at Beaufort Inlet, we are lucky enough to see a few Cobia from April through November. They are a fairly common, always unexpected surprise that pops up as a bycatch in both the King Mackerel Livebait Fishery as well as the Snapper/Grouper Fishery. As far as "Cobia Season" goes, it is NOW! The time is Right!. So, pick up the phone and call your favorite Fishing Guide. I am a fairly confident Fishing Guide. Therefore, tomorrow, look for some Cobia pictures right here!!

252-241-8350 Captain Marty Moore

May 15- Five NC Citation Red Drums and 100+ lb Sharks

Capt Marty's first Cobia of the Year faded to Red...... Red Drum and a nice one too!

Emma loves Sashimi

Tuggy and I got on a nice roll and popped out 7 quick Drum out of a tight fleet of Boats... Our Neighbors were MAD

Tuggwell in da house one more time!

Capt Tuggwell and Rhino and I went out this morning on a "Cobia Mission"..... In hindsight, I believe that we were one of the few Boats that DID NOT catch a Cobia today. Hell, some boats caught limits of Cobia..... Reports far to the North, we that ONE BOAT caught 45 Cobias.... Well, I knew we'd miss the Motherlode this year, but I still expect some good/great fishing. I DID NOT EXPECT to miss a Great Bite on a Day that we were "out there" though. We meandered to the East and wasted 4 hours when the boats to the west were whacking them.... That how it goes!!!!! Anyway, we salvaged our day by busting the Giant Red Drum this afternoon off Shackleford Banks. I got one that bottomed out the 60 lb BogaGrip. That was great.... Also, we hit the Bonito this morning and we also caught 2 Slammer Sharks. Both well over 100 pounds..... A zippy quick and high flying Blacktip and a brute force Sandbar, Both Bad-Ass customers.....Tomorrow is a new day and the Cobia will pay dearly for today's embarassment!!! Total Catch for the Day: 7 Red Drum from 34 to 62 lbs, 2 Atlantic Bonito at 6 lbs each, 20 Bluefish up to 4 lbs, 5 Spanish Mackerel up to 2 lbs,  1 Sandbar Shark at 135 lbs, 1 Blacktip Shark at 125 lbs, 1 Smooth Butterfly Ray at 100 lbs, and 2 Smooth Dogfish up to 10 lbs

Two Incredible Fish from OBX Nets

24 lb Summer Flounder that fell to a Trawler's Net

Hopefully I can get a picture of both of these catches, but yesterday saw 2 amazing Fish landed up here on The Outer Banks. Not that it matters one way or another, but you won't hear much about either of these catches because both fish died in a Net. First up, is a Summer Flounder which was caught in a Fly Net towed by a Trawler. This Super-sized Fluke weighed in at 24 lbs, significantly larger than the existing World Record which is holding on 22 lbs 7oz. Charles Nappi, if still alive, dodged another bullet! The Flounder he caught on Sept 15, 1975 is STILL THE RECORD!

Next up, Avon's Matt Farrow caught a Speckled Trout in a Gill Net today that weighed in at 17 lbs 8oz. Bigger than the existing World Record by 1oz. This fish could've been anyone's! The roe laden monster was caught just behind Hatteras Island, right against the Marsh, 200 yards from Hwy12! Right against the Marsh.... A perfect place to throw a Zara Spook. Just like Craig Carson did back in 1995 when he caught his 17 lb 7oz Speckled Trout down in sunny Florida. Somebody, anybody, could've beat that today! Hellfire, I was laying in bed, less than 25 miles away from the exact spot where Matt's Trout got "gilled". Dammit! First the Beach cruising Blackfin Tunas, now an All Tackle World Record Speckled Trout. So close, I felt water droplets on my brow when they busted bait on top!

I'll post the Flounder pic when I get home and hopefully I'll get a pic of the Speckled Trout. Obviously, this is going to be a Great Fishing Year. Rod and Reelers complaints of Commercial Fishing killing everything AND Commercial Fishermen yapping about Development and Pollution..... Bla Bla Bla. Seems to me that there are plenty of Fish around this Spring and obviously some of them are "TROPHY SIZED"

May 7- Taste Test and Hatteras Inlet Bluefish

One of the World's Great Gamefish. The BLUEFISH. I Love these Fish!

Another Watercolor Bluefish

Another thing I Love about Fish and Fishing is Fish Art. Here is a third Bluefish Print. All three are AWESOME

Two Great Great Gamefish are fighting it out on Capt Marty's grill this afternoon. The Atlantic Bonito, the inshore crusher versus the Lengendary Blue Marlin. So many Dumbos have asked me "can you eat Blue Marlin?".... Well, my most effective answer is "yes, the Atlantic Blue Markin is against the law to sell and they are banned from most restaurants in the U.S. for a pretty basic reason. That being, they are so damn tasty, they are subject to commercial annihilation". And because their presence in the Gulf Stream is so valuable to the Sportfishing Community, we can't afford to take any chances with their population. However, when a Blue Marlin dies on the hook of a Recreational Fishing Vessel, the excellent meat should definitely not be wasted. Therefore, when the Hatteras Charter Boat "Carolina Girl" landed a 300+ pound Blue Marlin yesterday and commenced giving away 5-10 lb blocks of pure meat, Capt Marty got in line. I have, in the past, grilled and blackened Blue Marlin and I must say, it is phenomenal! Making this Marlin even better is the incredible capture method those boys used. They were kite fishing for Blackfin Tuna when this unlucky Marlin repeatedly attacked the skipping rubber flying fish until he finally got hooked. It must've been an incredible sight. Those clients had that "special moment" watching that Show and they are now Hooked For Life..... Good job guys!

And the winner is....... The Bonito by a small margin. But take into account the Bonito marinated in Garlic Expressions for 2 days while the Marlin marinated for 2 hours. Also, this hunk of Marlin came from near the tail, which contains sinew and makes it a little tougher. Still, the Marlin was incredible and I've still got a 8 lb Block of Prime Shoulder Loin. It's going to be awesome!

Finally, I tossed a stingsilver in Hatteras Inlet for an hour this morning. I caught 12 Bluefish from 1-2 lbs each and had to hear "you should've been here yesterday from 10 different anglers. Evidently, Red Drum and Bluefish were on Fire yesterday. I don't care. It's been a good day! Total Catch for the Day: 12 Bluefish up to 2 lbs

May 4- Striped Apes Go Apeshit

Here is our North Carolina Bonito Species....... Average 4-8 lbs. World Record 18 ls 4oz

The "other side of the World" has a Bonito called the DOGTOOTH TUNA

The Dogtooth Tuna is one of Earth's Greatest Game Fish

The World Record Dogtooth Tuna is 230 lb 6oz. It is a Reef Species and is a great challenge to catch

This morning I called my personal good luck charm, Jeremy, into action. I only use Jeremy occasionally. He is not a Fisherman, he does not Fish. Whenever he goes with me GREATNESS ENSUES. He has, in 2 trips, seen a total of 17 NC Citations caught. He has seen a 24 Cobia day. He has seen a 94 lb Cobia caught. He has seen a 7 Citation Black Drum day. He is, without a doubt, my Good Luck Charm! So this morning, I grabbed Jeremy and we went Bonito fishing! We only had a couple of hours, like yesterday. Fortunately, for Bonito Fishing, the morning bite is where it's at! This morning was typical. Fish were busting sporadically for a hour from approximately 645 until 745. After that, blind casting and letting the sting silver sink paid dividends. Then, on the way home, we hit a rare bonus. We found a school of Bonito in extremely shallow water. A first for me. In all my years scouring the Cape Lookout Shoals, I've never seen them in the skinny water.

Dammit I typed for an hour on my phone working on this Report and lost it all when my battery died! Try it again some other day...

I ain't typing all that again. I've lost it twice. To summarize, we caught them good on structure,as expected. Then on the way home, we found a school boiling in 4-6 ft of water. Gulls, Terns, and Gannets joined the fray and the ball of Redbait was rapidly disappearing. We got 3 more Bonito out of this most exciting scenario! Bonito in 4 ft of water is very Bonefishesque in its fight. SUPER! Total Catch for the Day: 11 Atlantic Bonito from 4 to 7 lbs each, 30 Bluefish up to 2 lbs, and 4 Black Sea Bass up to 13"

May 3- Good Bonito Casting

Black Sea Bass seem to be stacked up on all structure. Spawning Time???

Fighting Bonito

Getting close.... Great Fight for its size!

If these guys weighed 50 pounds, they would be the Greatest Fish in the Ocean

Capt Marty with a Nice Bonito

Rhino crushes another Bonnie

Just my luck.... Ringtail from Hell

When the Limit is One, make it Count

Nice Catch by 930am.......

Back at the Dock at 930am with 4 Bonito and a 3 lb Gray Trout so I guess we can call it good fishing! Really the same old story, a  Bluefish, a Gray Trout, a Black Sea Bass, or a Atlantic Bonito on nearly every cast/drop. The Bonito were the headliners, of course. What a great fish. The Bluefish were everywhere.....1000's of them. It was hard " not to catch" one of them. We searched galliantly for the Blackfin Tuna. It was useless.... For 2015, they are GONE. we had our shot and we blew it.... Sorry to those expecting a miracle... Next up: The Cobia! Total Catch for the Day: 4 Atlantic Bonito 4-6 lbs, a 3 lb Gray Trout, 35 Bluefish up to 2 lbs, 14 Black Sea Bass up to 12", 1 Spottail Pinfish, 2 Pinfish, and 3 Hogfish

GREAT FISHING RIGHT NOW

COBIA are coming

BLACKFIN TUNA are jumping

BONITO are biting

SHARKS are menacing

BLUEFISH and GRAY TROUT are chewing

FISHING IS EXCITING RIGHT NOW. COME ON DOWN AND CATCH THE ACTION

252-241-8350

May 1- Blackfin Tunas: Would've Could've Should've

The Reefs were covered up with Sheepshank Bluefish. 

Largest Gray Trout of the week for Rhino and I

This Albacore fought an incredible battle. He deserved to live

A GREAT DAY of FISHING and we killed 3 great fish to eat. The was it ought to be......

We should've caught one or two, or more, 25 to 30 lb Blackfin Tunas. Because we damn sure had our chances. We slung sting-silvers into and beyond incredible surface frenzied forays that had Full Ass Grown Blackfin Tunas hurling skyward, bellyflopping, and plowing through schools of hapless Herrings. It was quite a show! But, this is a BLOOD SPORT and we failed miserably! There was two occasions that I actually had line smoking off my spinning reel. Both times ended in monumental failure. In reality, I don't think I hooked either fish. In hindsight, I think each was a case of a Tuna getting briefly wrapped up with my line as I cranked my stingsilver through the melee.... It is hard to exolain this level of excitement, anticipation, exhilaration, and failure. To see all those huge Blackfin Tunas, 500 yards off the Beach. 40 miles from where they're supposed to be. And to cast into them. Knowing that "you can't miss"..... Then to miss, cast after cast, after cast after cast..... So incredibly difficult to accept. And I know..... I've been preaching that THESE BLACKFIN TUNA come up this same Beach every year... ONE DAY. On May 6, 2010 I caught a 26 lb Blackfin Tuna, in the exact same spot as todays action. In 2011, a Blackfin Tuna were seen and chased by a friend of mine, all the way up Atlantic Beach. He could not get one to bite though! In 2012, one day in May, there was a Blackfin Tuna caught off a nearby Pier. In 2013, an angler out sightcasting Cobia saw an odd group of "Big Fish" chasing bait. He re-rigged a rod with a stingsilver and caught a 30 lb Blackfin Tuna. Then last year, my pal Capt Chris Kimrey was casting for Bonito and nailed a nice Blackfin Tuna, This was in May, as were ALL THE OTHERS..... One Day in May, the past 5 years in a row. Today was THAT DAY. I was THAT ANGLER. Me and Rhino. We failed. The Streak died......... God we wanted a Tuna soooooo bad.

Back to the Fishing.... Other than the Tuna, we had a great day. Rhino caught a fine Gray Trout at 3 lbs 4oz. We each caught a Bonito. We each caught a False Albacore. Then we saw a school of fish inshore from AR-320. Upon arriving it was a full fledged donnybrook. Packed full of hungry Gamefish. Bluefish. False Albacore. Atlantic Bonito. Hellfire, the Blackfins were probably there too, To say "every cast" was an understatement. I caught one particular Albacore that fought incredibly. Looking back, that fish must've been being chased by a Shark. This fish ran incredible circles all around the Boat 4-5 times. The line slicing the water as it flies by the boat at 20 knots is an amazing sight. I wish everybody could experience this..... I must say, the past 2 days have been AS EXCITING of a START TO A NEW FISHING YEAR as I could ever imagine. Unreal. Giant Sharks. Great Casting. Hurling 30+ pound Tunas 500 yards off the Beach. Trout as fast as you can drop to the bottom. "Every cast" casting. It honestly can't get much better!  Total Catch for the Day: 4 Atlantic Bonito up to 5 lbs 4oz, 5 False Albacore up to 10 lbs, 30 Bluefish up to 2 lbs, 6 Gray Trout up to 3 lb 4oz, 12 Black Sea Bass up to 13", 4 Pinfish, 2 Spottail Pinfish, and 1 Scup