45 F
Wrightsville Beach
Friday, March 29, 2024

Hook, line and sinker

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Just when the fishing was getting good and even outstanding for some anglers, a tropical system, eventually named Bonnie, threw a wrench into the official start of summer. While it wasn’t a complete washout, the offshore fishing was pretty nonexistent due to rough conditions and the upcoming weekend doesn’t look like it will be too productive, either, due to storms rather than ocean conditions. Prior to Bonnie, there was some fantastic fishing being had by many anglers, both in offshore and inshore waters, however the weekend and early weekdays were limited mainly to the inshore guys and gals. Water temperatures are reading in the mid-to-upper 70s, and are prime for some fantastic fishing if Mother Nature decides to cooperate.

Late last week, those fishing for cobia were rewarded by some outstanding fishing with anglers fishing good-sized fish along the beach as well as the near-shore wrecks and reefs. Some anglers elected to use natural baits soaked in or near the bottom around the inlets to entice them while others preferred to seek out bait pods and sight cast large bucktails and jigs. Both tactics worked and there was a flurry of cobia action had by many. Unfortunately, with rough sea conditions it may take a few days for the water clarity to recover enough for the sight casting to resume but there should still be plenty of fish hanging around right into the mid-to-latter part of June, provided the season stays open that long.

The Spanish mackerel fishing was also outstanding right up to the arrival of Bonnie. That fishing should resume as soon as boats can make it out to the inlets, which I would expect has already occurred by the time this report hits the press.

Offshore, there were some very good reports of dolphin being found around the 30-mile mark with even better fishing in the areas closer to the Gulf Stream. There were even a few reports of some dolphin being found as close as 10 miles and although those reports have been few and far between, the further we get into the month of June, those reports of near-shore dolphin will increase dramatically. King mackerel fishing has been good in the 10- to 20-mile range and some fish are starting to show along the beaches.

Inshore, the fishing has been relatively good for this time of year and is only showing signs of getting better. While a lot of the flounder being reported are undersized, there are quite a few keepers being reported in the 2- to 4-pound range with a few larger ones mixed in. While that’s not unusual, there does appear to be more quantity of larger fish being caught for early summer than in years past. The red drum fishing has been fantastic in the creeks and around the docks and even the surf fishermen have been catching some over slot fish from the beaches. Those fishing for sheepshead have reported some excellent days with quality fish coming from the pilings of the area bridges and docks as well as the piers. From reports of past years, there are either more fish being caught or there are more anglers fishing for and catching them, or both.

As conditions settle down, the fishing should continue right where it left off and quite possibly get even better than what anglers have seen so far. Should that be the case, it’s going to be a wild summer of fishing!

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