King Mackerel Fishing

For the next 6-8 weeks, weather allowing, I will be pursuing "The King" of Inshore Fishing. There is NO DOUBT that the most exciting inshore gamefish from Texas all the way around the southeast US coast to Virginia is the King Mackerel. As a kid who spend my early years on the Morehead Ocean Pier, King Mackerel were in a class by themselves as gamefish and the men that fished for them were legendary. The jumps, the strikes, and the line blistering runs are never forgotten. I remember my first King Mackerel like it was yesterday. It came from AR-315 while vertical jigging with a redhead gotcha plug. It was a 14 pounder and I landed him on a 16 ft Boston Whaler back in September of 1987. I remember my biggest King Mackerel like it was yesterday. It was October 30th of 1997. It came from the 30 Minute Rock, on the last Shad in the livewell. It hit while Stacy Mills and Gerald Curran were each fighting 30 lb Kings. My big King struck in the gray light approximately 15 minutes after the sun had slipped below the horizon. Ten minutes later, Gerald gaffed my King Mackerel in total darkness and dropped him straight in the fishbox. The following morning I was excited to dig our fish out because, the first fish that I caught that morning was a 74" long Wahoo. I couldn't wait to carry him to Aaron's Bait and Tackle to get a Citation. My big surprise came when I lifted the lid on the fish box and saw a Huge King Mackerel. I had NO IDEA my last fish was a that BIG! After a photo session, we went over to the Tackle Shop where I wrote up a 53 lb King Mackerel, a 85 lb Wahoo, a 55 lb Amberjack, and a 12 lb 6oz American Red Snapper. That was, still to this day, my Greatest Single Day of Fishing in my life. Finally and Fondly, I remember the 37 lb 4oz King Mackerel that I caught in August of 2000 that was eventually worth $52,900 because it, combined with the 30 lb 8oz King Mackerel that I caught the day before, won the Snead's Ferry King Mackerel Tornament................    By the way, I could just as easily write about 3 HEARTBREAKING King Mackerels that GOT AWAY! One huge King that broke the wire last year on a charter, another Monster King that escaped in another Boat's down rigger cable that would've been worth $100,000 in Grand Ole Opry's Greater Wilmington Open KMT, and one 25 pound King that broke my line (panic) on the Indian Beach Pier as a Rookie! But, its 4am so I'm gonna end this!

Next Week:

Let's Go King Mackerel Fishing:

Open on Sept 30, Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3, and Oct 4

During October and November some of the Best King Mackerel Fishing on the Planet takes place off the Carolina Capes. Home at Cape Lookout, we will get our share. Let's break the Top Water Charters and/or Capt Marty's boat record this year.... It still stands at 53 lb

FISH OHIO PINS

Weird...... Today while cooking Walleye fillets for our supper I took a break and went to the mailbox. Inside was my 2015 FISH OHIO PIN. This is basically the Ohio equivalent to a North Carolina Fishing Citation. I qualified for a 2015 Pin on both July 9 and July 10 with large Walleye from Lake Erie. The Walleye are delicious and getting a "Fishing Award" in the mail is always fun!

Sept 20- The Honeymoon Miracle King

Today I was fishing with Elvis and Diana. They got married Thursday and are spending a week at Harker's Island. I felt honored and nervous. In the meantime, on Saturday Jennifer and I went out for a joyride on the Top Water Boat. I secretly wanted to catch a Crevalle Jack on fly and I wanted to scour the Shackleford Beach for Red Drum. Meanwhile, my wife thought we were out for a boat ride. Regardless of our intentions, as we rounded the corner at Lennoxville Point, we were smacked in the face by a suprizing NNW wind at 20-25 kts. All Fly Fishing, Red Drum hunting, and casual Boat riding immediately went "out the window". I was disappointed, my wife was mad, hell even Emma was giving me bad looks....... We settled on Wade Shore and anchored up for swimming and a hike to the Ocean. Nice time we had! I even went "Naked and Afraid" on a dare! Anyhow, back at the Boat, I turned on the VHF Radio and listened to the NOAA Marine Weather Forecast for the Sunday forecast for my Big Honeymoon Charter. It was a very disappointing "Small Craft Advisory" with 20 kt North Winds...... A nightmare scenario! Later, as I talked to Elvis I explained our plight and actually tried to talk him out of going fishing. Thankfully, Elvis persisted and I planned for a miserable day of "2 hook bottom rig fishing" and an avalanche of Pinfish, undersized Hogfish, Croakers, and Black Sea Bass. A "best case scenario" was an early Spot bite...... I rigged up some ultralight spin and was in the process of pulling most of my usual tackle off the boat, when I figured, why not leave a couple of King Rods in the upper rod holders. Thank Goodness........ Then I bought 2 pounds of shrimp and some fresh #5 hooks and went to bed with visions of blowing spray and Pinfish swimming around in my head..... Imagine my surprise at 2 of Mother Nature's boldest early AM weather hints when I arrived at the Top Water Boat at 6am. #1 was a HEAVY HEAVY DEW. That means the night before was very calm and cool nighttime temps. (Calm).  #2 was a very suprizing HEAVY FOG. Nearly zero visibility for a while between 630am and 730am. (Again, calm). To get to the point, there was NOT ANY 20 kt winds this morning! All my fears were unfounded. Actually, as the day unfolded, it wasn't the prettiest day to run around in the Ocean, but it was a beautiful day and we found something exciting to do. I never touched the shrimp and I never saw the first Pinfish! Our first move was to try to catch some Menhaden. I drove out from under sunny skies and dove the Top Water Boat into a Fog Bank off Harkers Island. Seemed like a bonehead move. It was dark, damp, and eerily quiet. For 10 minutes we sat in stunned silence. Then our first mini-miracle occurred.... Right on cue, just as the Fog lifted, the Menhaden started popping and I literally mean a half mile of solid bait! One throw of the 10 foot Cast Net yielded us 30-36 prime King Mackerel baits. The "perfect" number. No need to throw again! Maybe we'd get a chance at a Big Fish after all...... We quickly loaded the Live Well and ran the inside passage to Cape Lookout and as we entered the Bight we saw a beautiful sight! A stud King Mackerel hurled itself upward through one of the many many immense schools of large finger and corn cob sized Mullets that were racing westward all over the entire area. I quickly deployed a couple of menhaden on livebait rigs amid millions of running mullets.....and it didn't take long! The rod in the port side T-Top Rod holder screamed! Diana took the rod as Elvis and I cleared the cockpit. Then it got interesting....... As I ordered Diana to the bow, I took the helm and prepared to pursue our runaway King Mackerel. I glanced left and saw trouble. BIG TROUBLE and there wasn't a damn thing I could do. With our fish stretching out 150 yards of line, the was a 35-40 foot Sailboat under sail that was "right on top" of where our line entered the water. I'm not sure what sort of keel that boat had, but looking back, I have NO IDEA how we didn't lose that fish. The Sailboat actually tacked hard to miss our fish and really all he did was successfully run over our fish twice. But, it was close quarters and there was nothing us or him could do to avoid it.... A stressful minute passed and the Sailboat finally passed. Amazingly we quickly became aware that our fish was still hooked up and moving in a manner not consistent with the motion of the passing Sailboat! We were still HOOKED UP and we were clear of all obstacles! Finally, our King made one play towards my outboard but Elvis grabbed the rod and quickly anticipated the King's move and countered it. As he handed the rod back to Diana, the King surfaced and I quickly sunk the gaff. Hallelujah! And since it was the ONLY BITE OF THE DAY, I'll quit right there! Three Things...... #1 Elvis and Diana were GREAT and I'm wishing them a great life together! #2 King Mackerel were putting on an aerial show today. We probably saw 18-20 SKY ROCKETING KINGS in 2 hours. In spectacular fashion. I know I saw 20-25 lb Kings flying 30 to 40 feet high today, with hundreds of Mullet showering all around. Very Exciting! #3 Finally, the King that we caught was an AMAZING SURVIVOR of one crazy accident. Evidently, sometime in the past, a fisherman somewhere had dropped or tossed a small coil of bright silver single strand wire, probably 60lb test or so, overboard and apparently this King Mackerel had mistaken it for a baitfish and swallowed it. A Coil of Wire! I am not sure if there was even a hook on it. Honestly, it could've had a Sea Witch and a Ballyhoo on it at one time! If so, it was never actually Trolled because the wire had never been uncoiled! All I could see was the coil of wire that had worked its way through the King's left side abdominal wall and had healed itself all around the wire. It had left a wide scar and it really didn't seem to be having much of a negative affect on this fish's life at all. It was amazing and a testament to the toughness and survivability of this species.... I'm sure Elvis can tell us more about it when he steaks up this otherwise healthy King Mackerel! Total Catch for the Day: 1 King Mackerel at 22 lbs 

****Here are a couple of pictures that Elvis sent me. They clearly show that this was a ballyhoo rig that was rigged on single strand wire. A "Wahoo" rig. How it ended up in a King Mackerel's stomach before the wire was even uncoiled will forever be a mystery!

Sept 17- Gloomy and Windy, Decent Casting in the Surf

The Jeremy and I went up the Shackleford Beach today at low tide. Scouring and Scouting for schools of Red Drum. I forgot one little piece of pretty significant equipment though.... My polarized sunglasses. Duhh Huhh. Needless to say, I did not find any Red Drum. With Jeremy and Emma unpatiently tapping their paws, I did find school after school of frenzied action in the surf and just beyond. Slinging stingsilvers brought quick action. Emma did her best Grizzly imitation. Ripping the fat rich skin off the Bluefish and also devouring the velvety brains...... Pretty sick really and "bad bad girl" could be heard up and down the Shackleford Beach. Total Catch for the Day: 9 Spanish Mackerel, 4 Bluefish, and 3 Crevalle Jack

Sept 16- Tough Fishing

Today was a pretty day. Fairly light winds, partly sunny/ mostly overcast. Favorable Tide Cycle all day. And, finally, there were hundreds of thousands, hell, hundreds of Millions! How can you tell the difference! Let's just say, "millions of Finger Mullets" from Cape Point to Beaufort Inlet. Unfortunately, the wind was stronger than forecasted (10 kt vs 15+ kts) no big deal, BUT, the wind was from the Northeast. 10 kt NE Wind is fine. Northeast wind at 15 kts sucks and kills most all inshore bites and it makes it rough as hell offshore....  Always has, always will. 2015 or 1984, no different. Catching live Menhaden might have helped, but we didn't see a single flip in the 45 minutes we spent out front of Harkers Island. So, no live Menhaden for King Mackerel baits... Also, Albacore traditionally like the Northeasters, but we never saw the first Albie bust bait.... Double Dammit!  We went to Cape Lookout praying for clean water and maybe a few bait balls.... It was here we found the mother lode of Mullets, and caught 5 dozen in the cast net.... We also saw 2 fat Kings jump inside the Bight but we could not coax a bite, despite our best efforts! Much later, in Beaufort Inlet, we had a screamer that dumped half a spool in 10 seconds. Dropped the hooks as I lifted the rod out of the rod holder...... Crappy end to a beautiful, but unsuccessful day. Capt Marty's worst year ever continues........Great effort by Joe and Dan. Joe is a great client and catching fish is "not that important" to him. He enjoys time on the water. Thank Goodness for that Miracle! Total Catch for the Day: 8 Crevalle Jacks, 2 Spanish Macketel, 2 Bluefish, 1 Atlantic Thread Herring, and 3 Jumping Mullets

BIRDS

Random thought from Hatteras Inlet...... Capt Marty's two favorite birds are:

Black Skimmer

Northern Gannet

They are cool as hell.....

July 25- A Different Kind of Bad

Beautiful weather but "fishing killing" NE WIND blew at 15 to 18 knots All Day Long and the Fishing Sucked.  At least, we didn't have to worry about living or dying today. Lightning,  60 kt Wind, and Waterspouts were not a factor today!  We started our day in the Beaufort Inlet Bouy Chain live bait fishing for King Mackerel.... For some reason, it was un-satisfying...... We went looking for an "inshore" Grouper because "offshore" was out of the question because of wind and storms.... 100 fricking miles later, it was OVER, and I say, "We should've stayed where we started"..... But I felt sorry for the crew and the crew was unhappy.... By the way, These boys were in town to fish a King Mackerel Tournament but their Boat was broke down..... Desperate to go Fishing, they called up Top Water Charters..... I wish they had just entered my boat..... We would've never gone on such a wasteful boat ride and we probably would've pulled a nice King out of Beaufort Inlet..... Oh Well, the crappy year continues.... Total Catch for the Day: 1 King Mackerel, 1 Spanish Mackerel, 1 Barracuda, and 2 Atlantic Sharpnose Sharks

July 23- More Horrible Weather and Mssion Accomplished

What I wouldn't do for ONE PRETTY DAY to go fishing! This morning, Tom and gang from Maryland went with Tuggy and I. The morning's weather was pretty good, but everyone knew that a very very strong line of Storms would ruin our day if we stayed out too long..... The challenge was, to catch some pretty fish early. And the inshore fishing has been slow. So we went looking for a Big Fish early. Rigged up with 2 packs of Ballyhoo and 4 dozen live Shad, we decided to troll from the Sea Bouy area over towards Big 10 Fathom.... The trolling was slow and a waste of time for the first 90 minutes. As we neared out destination, we missed a bite.... Then we hooked a smoker! Ripped 100 yards of line. As TBone pulled the rod from the holder, the line went limp! What the hell! The rig had been bitten off.... The discussions began..... Inshore Wahoo? Large King Mackerel? Barracuda? Who knows? 100 yards seems like a lot for a "ballyhoo King". An "inshore Wahoo" is always rare. And Barracuda on Ballyhoo is a little odd. They are usually smarter than that..... Well, 5 minutes later it happened again.... Only this time it ended quickly. I must say, the rod was bucking wildly. The drag was bouncy at best and the fish cleared the air 50 feet off the stern! But, no one could identify it..... It was gone and it was over..... As we soaked in our disappointment of 2 potential Wahoos lost, the realization that the entire horizon to the north had became dark and scary looking. We sat 15 miles south of Beaufort Inlet. No fish in the box. Two rigs bitten off..... Sad. Bleak. Scary. We needed action and we needed it quick! Together, we made the decision to try livebait. Live bait can draw a quick bite, but you have to be in a good spot. As Tuggy deployed the 3rd live bait, I looked up from putting up the trolling tackle. A quick check of my GPS Plotter and I didn't like where we were. It was fine for fast trolling, but slow trolling here raised too many questions. We were running out of time. The wind had increased and a SE Chop had developed...... I knew that one of my favorite places was 3/4 of a mile away. Slow Trolling would take too long. We SHOULD'VE been headed home. Instead, we were still trying to "save the day". I quickly cranked in our baits and gunned the throttles to the East. As we came off plane and dropped speed, I tossed out a fresh menhaden. Within seconds I felt a tug. I quickly turned the clicker on my Avet Reel and as my crew was still rising from their seats, I announced "hooked up". Tom quickly claimed the rod. In the next 10 minutes, we landed 3 Amberjacks from 18 to 38 lbs, and broke off 2 others. Without even wasting a minute to take photos, we turned the Top Water Boat towards Beaufort Inlet and raced for home. Menacing black clouds spewed thunderbolts from the heavens as we got closer and closer over the next 30 minutes. Cloud to Ground Lightning was intense a shade west of our destination. We literally beat the storm to Beaufort Inlet by 5 minutes. That was huge. Getting "caught" in the Ocean changes everything. breathing a sigh of relief, but it was still a race to the Landing. We ran "hooked up" to Lennoxville Point and entered Taylor's Creek. You could feel the temperature drop and see the rain approaching. Now, safety was no longer a real issue, it was about staying dry! With Tom and family making a run for it, Tuggy and I worked in perfect unison, we literally beat the rain by 20 seconds and got the Top Water Boat on the Trailer. Tuggy and I got soaked at the House. Perfect. I needed a shower anyway. Total Catch for the Day: 3 Amberjacks from 18 to 38 lbs

July 20- Swinging for the Fence

This week, I am hoping a little harder than normal, for some great weather.... Why?
i
Because for the first time in my long long FISHING LIFE that I know where a big school of jumbo Rainbow Runners has taken up residence. This, my friends, is a "Bucket Lister" if there has ever been one. One of my fishing pals has brought home Rainbow Runners on his last 2 trips out there. Last Saturday, he brought home an incredible 6 Rainbow Runners up to 9 lbs. And hey, this ain't Panama. This is out of Morehead City, NC. They are a long way from home, but if given a crack of opportunity, the Top Water Boat will be running Southeast. Long and Hard.

Anybody wanna go?

July 16- Slow Fishing

Capt Tuggy took the Top Water Boat today and went live bait fishing for King Mackerel. He fished out to 12 miles and back to the Beach. Tuggy finished up a slow day in the Bouy Chain. Dirty water, from the torrential rainfall that we've been having killed Tuggy's fishing. The guys did tie up some bottom rigs and catch 40 Black Sea Bass. They also caught 2 Spinner Sharks in close to the Beach. They missed the one King bite that had. Tuggy reported a sky-rocketing 25 pounder that screamed off 100 yards of line then escaped. Lucky King Mackerel. Unlucky Fishermen. Enough bad fishing dammit...... Time to turn this crappy 2015 around! Total Catch for the Day: 40 Black Sea Bass and 2 Spinner Sharks

July 13- Rain, Wind, and Lightning

Brock's 25th Anniversary Fishing Trip turned into a wild race for survival! That's an exaggeration, but not by much...... I allowed my crew to get caught in open water, in 50 kt winds, a deluge of pelting rain and hail, and a fricking "strobe light frequency" of Ground Stroke Lightning Bolts....... We got hammered straight out Beaufort Inlet, probably 4 miles offshore and it was a struggle in the high winds and zero visibility to get home. Not to mention the wind driven rain felt like 20 gauge #8 birdshot! As for the Lightning? All we could do is Hope we didn't get Struck....... and we didn't.  We spent 2 hours pulling live Menhaden around the Beaufort Inlet Bouy Chain trying to catch a King Mackerel. It sucked from the very beginning because my every move as Boat Captain was to stay dry. There was pockets of rain and small developing thunderheads in every direction, all morning long. I was never working a bait school or working a tide line, or anything of that sort. Every move was an effort to stay dry..... And when the main line of storms approached, I was a good 10 minutes late in pulling the plug on fishing. We paid dearly. It was terrifying. I'd guess one of Brock's friends will NEVER EVER set foot on a Boat again..... Epic Captain Fail. The only thing I did RIGHT all morning was that nobody got hurt. Thank God. My sincere apologies go out to Brock and friends!. Total Catch for the Day: Nothing 

July 11- Two New Species

After driving across Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Virginia. And fishing my way South. Catching nothing....... Finally, back in NC, in Mt Airy in the Arafat River, I scored! On the 3wt Fly Rod. And they were NOT LARGE! But, I landed 3 Redbreast Sunfish. Beautiful little fish for sure. I may or may not have caught this species before back in the 1980's. I caught a similar fish on the Brook Valley CC Golf Course in Greenville, NC. Anyway, I'm sure these were Redbreasts. I also caught a tiny Sucker on a fly too. Best I can tell, it was a species of Redhorse. I'll call it a Carolina Redhorse for now. I wanted a Northern Pike or a Musky in Pa and WVa. I fished "Musky waters"......Instead I caught a fricking Redhorse....... Great! Total Catch for the Day: 3 Redbreast Sunfish and 1 Carolina Redhorse

July 10- Steady Walleye Bite

On my second day of Ohio Walleye Fishing the weather was much much prettier. We got a much earlier start and fished a LONG day. We pretty much caught 2-3 Walleye per hour of Trolling and at the end of the day we had caught 22 Walleye. We had three over 28". I was lucky enough to land 2 of those. These were my 5th and 6th "Ohio Award-Winning Walleyes" in 4 days of Fishing over 2 years. Not bad! Timmy's dad also caught a trophy Walleye. Ohio gives out Fish Pins in recognition of catching Trophy sized fish. It is their equivalent to North Carolina's paper certificate that we refer to as a "Citation". We also caught a little bitty Walleye that was released, maybe in the 7" range. Smallest one that I've seen so far. Aggravating us was 1 Drum and 2 White Bass. I kept the Bass to eat because I've never tried them. I know they are pretty popular when caught in waters that don't contain Walleye. The ridiculous deliciousness of the Walleye shames all other fish! Anyhow, my 2015 Walleye season is over. I landed app 14 Walleye and had 3 fish between 28" and 29". I will call one of my FAT 28 1/2 incher a TEN POUND WALLEYE. I tried to get my Bogagrip on today's trophy but Tom had already put the steel blade to him. I would really truly like to THANK Tom and Timmy for their hospitality and kindness in allowing me this opportunity. They have rolled out the Red Carpet for me for 2 years in a row. So far as to even vacuum seal my fillets. Thanks again guys! Total Catch for the Day: 22 Walleye up to 10 lbs, 2 White Bass up to 12", and a 23" Freshwater Drum

July 9- Lake Erie Fishing

Day one on the Lake. Late start due to pouring rain. We launched at 2pm and we picked up at 730pm. The score was 11 Walleye up to 9 lb 8oz. We also caught 2 Freshwater Drum and 3 White Bass. It's funny, in most places the White Bass are a highly sought after species. On the Walleye grounds, they are some serious trash fish. Some doom them to the same fate as Pinfish meet down in NC....... Trolling for Walleye is fun. Very different than trolling in the Ocean. Planer Boards and Worm Harnesses. Seeing the Board "fall back" is exciting. Big Walleye might pull it under. The real fight begins after the Board is unhooked. Tensions run high because the Walleye are SO VALUABLE AS A FOOD FISH. (shocking to come home the other night and Jennifer was feeding Mr Tumnis Walleye Fillets)......... Ten Pound Walleyes are True Trophies anywhere on Earth except Lake Erie. It takes a 12 to 13 pounder to turn a head here.... I've been Walleye Fishing now a few times and I have three Walleye to my credit at 28". These are 9+ pound Walleyes. Not bad for a beginner and good for Ohio Fish Pins, which is the equivalent to an NC Fishing Citation. Total Catch for the Day: 11 Walleye up to 9 lb 8oz, 2 Freshwater Drum up to 24", and 3 White Bass up to 12"

July 9- Rainy Day in Ohio

Of course........ I'm in Ohio and I'm looking to go Walleye Fishing, and its raining its ass off. just my fricking luck. 2015 is the "Summer of No Fishing"..... Here I go again. drive see 10 hours to watch it rain. Suck  Ass.....

Also, today is my Dad's birthday.  Happy Birthday Dad, I Love You. Thank You for letting me pursue my dreams, even if they were all Fishing Dreams!!!!!

You were THE BEST FATHER I could've hoped for. I never remember you spanking my brother or me, but we were scared of your voice. That  was the greatest deterent ever and in my opinion, YOU were The Greatest Dad Ever!

The 2000 Big Rock Tournament, The Gale Anne, and Sonny's Restaurant

Man I'm having a flashback this morning! 15 years ago, Gerald Currin and I sat at this very booth (Sonny's Restaurant in Hatteras Village) in preparation to head offshore with Capt David Allen for a day of trolling for Blue Marlin on probably the slowest boat in the History of Sport Trolling! I can only be talking about Scott Whitfield's historic charter boat, Gale Anne. Adding to our drama was what seemed like Def Leppard's "Pour Some Sugar on Me" playing on a continual loop. Over and Over an Over! In those days I was a huge Def Leppard fan, but I honestly never listened to them again after this Tournament Fiasco! To this day, I REFUSE to play ANY MUSIC while fishing, under NO CIRCUMSTANCES! Needless to say, No Blue Marlin rose on that day to David Allen's carefully crafted Squid baits... I can remember many great things about this trip.... The fishing was NOT among them. I remember Gerald and several of his "wake county home builder" cohorts, they were basically bragging about how much money they were making! At this point about 6 of them pulled out $100 bills and threw them in the ditch. Well, Capt Marty was an unemployed bum at the time, so I tossed pride aside and waded in after the money! Now wet (and rich) I looked for a shortcut from the Hatteras Marlin Club back to the Hatteras Harbor Motel. I found myself confronted by Mr Barry Austin, whose back yard I was sneaking through! Two years later, Barry would become one of my favorite people. He owns most of this Island and he still wants to be a Night Watchman at the Hatteras Ferry Terminal.....great times.. I also remember going home. I met several young Mennonite boys on the Hatteras Inlet Ferry. They asked me a million questions..... Beer, Pot, Girls. Where are they..... I told they "damn if I know, you're headed to Ocracoke. You can find it ALL there"..... Imagine my surprise when they boarded the next Ferry with me headed to Cedar Island. Those boys got excited when they saw me! Then I informed them that Cedar Island was "the end of the road"..... Imagine their disappointment when they asked about the girls.... The pot..... Even the Beer at Cedar Island. Poor guys. They wanted to go to Beaufort with me, all they got was misquitoes!  Looking back, the fishing was bad. I fished 2 days and we never had a bite. I went home and a few days later went Offshore with my fishing buddy back then, George Frazier. George was in his mid 70s and he drove the boat and I did everything else. He had ole Charlie Wilkins with him and Charlie was a boat rider too.... First thing that morning, up on the 800 line. Right rigger popped.... I missed him. A second later the right transom clip popped....gone! "Dammit, what's going on! Then in rapid succession left transom, left short rigger, right short rigger, bridge pole. All mauled. All missed, all gone. I was thinking "peanut Dolphin?" Didn't add up. I pulled in a rig to investigate. Then I realized, I got my Left Long Rigger still out there. As I stared out at that bait, way back there, I thought I saw a black sickle waving behind the bait. As I stared and recovered from being stunned at my 0 for 6 start, suddenly a saw a BILL RISE UP AND HAMMER THE LONG RIGHT RIGGWR BAIT. I quickly jumped over to that reel and free spooled. 10 seconds later I engaged the reel, we came right, and Capt Marty was into his very first Blue Marlin

To be continued.....

Also, Sonny's served me possibly the best Corn Beef Hash, 2 Eggs fried hard, Hash Browns, and Wheat Toast that I've had since...... Well, since Momma last cooked it for me! No...

June 3- Hatteras Fly Fishing

Shocker for Hatteras! I was Fishing for Carp..... Long Story, here's the Short Version!  I made 2 casts with a big, mostly useless, white fly. This fly has one practical purpose. To imitate a piece of bread floating on the surface of the water.... You guys starting to figure this out yet? Fishing in a Pond that has a few Grass Carp and a few huge landlocked Jumping Mullets, I first gauged their interest with an old hamburger bun. Hungry and aggressive is what I'd call it! The first Carp ate the fly but didn't get hooked. It's funny, they are SO SMART, it seems like you get One Chance and that's it. Luckily, his partner didn't get the message! After a short search, I found a second Carp and after working in and around about 10 turtles, I finally got my fly in front of the cruising Carp. As soon as I saw this Carp do a headstand (ala Mr Cobia) I knew I was getting bit. Two long strips and WHAM! All of HELL BROKE LOOSE! This guys smoked my 3wt down to the backing. After several 180 turns and 2nd and 3rd runs, I finally slid my Carp up on the shoreline. Three years ago I caught a nice Grass Carp here and held him out to long trying to get a picture. Not taking any chances with this guy, I snapped a quick pic beside my fly rod and quickly slid him back into the water. Total Catch for the Day: a 14 lb Grass Carp

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"