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N.C. Regional Saltwater Fishing Reports
 
Northern District  Dare, Hyde, Currituck, & Beaufort Counties
Contact: Eddie Chessick
August 17, 2003
For the 2003 fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional HMS harvest reporting requirements are also in place.
Charterboats: Yellowfin tuna fishing picked up this week along with some good dolphin catches. Several large hammerhead sharks were also taken. Several cobia were caught inshore.

Headboats: Fishermen had good catches of croaker and keeper flounder. Some triggerfish were reeled in from deeper water.

Private Boats:Good mackerel and bluefish catches were reported this week with some cobia catches reported as well.

Piers:This week saw mostly small bottom fish. Plenty of throwback flounder were taken from the piers. Water temps have risen slightly this week.

Shore: Croakers have been the most abundant for surf fishermen. There were some small sea mullet beached as well. At Cape Point several cobia were reported and one large red drum.

Central District  Pamlico, Craven, Carteret, & Onslow Counties
Contact: Suzanne Hill
August 17, 2003
For the 2003 fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional HMS harvest reporting requirements are also in place.
Headboats:The fishing has slowed a bit and I am not seeing large catches. However, there is a big assortment of fish coming in - grouper, snapper, porgies, grunts, triggers, jacks, mackerel, sea bass, spottail pinfish , dolphin and shark.

CharterBoats:Billfish are again the hot item. Most boats hooked up to several sailfish and also released blue marlin. Catches consisted of large tuna, wahoo, bluefish and Spanish mackerel.

Private Boats: There are still plenty of Spanish mackerel in the Beaufort Inlet as far out as the first buoy. Spanish are off the beaches. Some reported up to 3 pounds. There are flounder in the Turning basin along with croakers. Sneads Ferry has croakers and black drum.

Piers: Piers report sea mullet, bluefish, sheephead and one spot.

Shore: Nice kingfish and bluefish caught off the beaches at Fort Macon.

Southern District  Pender, New Hanover, & Brunswick Counties
Contact: Dennis Trowell
August 17, 2003
For the 2003 fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional HMS harvest reporting requirements are also in place.
Headboats:Fishing really picked up this week on area headboats. Fishing has been slower this year with the cool/dirty water conditions we have been experiencing this year. Catches consisted of triggerfish, grunts, red porgy, along with some scamp, red, and gag groupers.

CharterBoats:Gulfstream fishing is very hit or miss right now. The water has cleared up offshore, and is about 5 degrees warmer then last week, but catches were down still, with most boats reporting a couple tunas and a few wahoo's and some king mackerels being the norm right now. They also reported a good many sailfish releases on stream trips this week. Bottom fishing charters saw the most improvement this week with the better water conditions, with limits of grouper being reported, along with an assortment of other bottom fish. Full/day charters are finding a good many king mackerel, along with some sailfish, and inshore charters reported sheepshead, black and red drum, a few spanish.

Private Boats: Lots of school size king mackerel were reported this week around 23 mile rock and the Wr4 wreck. Good catches of gray trout were reported at Ar378 along with some nice flounder. The spanish mackerel fishing improved a little this week, but is still day to day depending on water conditions. Inshore fishing has been slow, with the best bets being sheepshead and red drum. There were some large flounder caught this week, with one fish weighing over 10 pounds, but they have been few and far between.

Piers: New Hanover and Pender counties report much the same, slow fishing. The dirty, cooler then normal water conditions has hurt the pier fishing this year, with sheepshead and flounder fishing being you're best bet right now. There have been at least 5 flounder last week, each weighing over six pounds, caught on carolina beach pier, last week. Oak island piers are still doing good on speckled trout, with ocean crest pier having them up to six pounds. They also reported there second good week on flounder as well.

Shore:Some sea mullets were reported this week along with some pompanos. There are a good number of drum in the surf right now, with the best catches coming along the areas barrier islands.

 

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