“GOOD-BYE,” Old Man Winter and “HELLO” Spring. Man, what a February we’ve had, with two major winter storms dumping snow, freezing rain and sleet from the mountains all the way to the Crystal Coast. We usually have a pretty mild winter, but not this year, plus we’ve had some extremely cold days. But now we’re into March and the first signs of spring are happening. Along with that, the days are getting longer and the water is starting to warm up.
March is still a slow month for fishing along the Crystal Coast, but we do start to see some action. The red drum will begin to get more active as the water warms up. The schools will start to move back in from the ocean and other deeper water areas. The bays along Core Creek and around the Haystacks are great places to look for fish. They’ll still be bunched up in schools, so if you locate them, it will be more than one and could be up to a thousand in the school. Also, all around Carrot Island is a good spot, since it’s the closest marsh and flat area to Beaufort Inlet. Baits to consider: Berkley Gulp, new Live Target Shrimp, Vudu Shrimp, Savage Shrimp, bait shrimp, cut mullet and live mud minnows are always good choices this time of year.
As for the jetties, they all will be a good holding areas as the fish start to move in. In March, we have caught hundreds of fish at the Cape Lookout Jetty and along the Cape Lookout Shoals, where they can school up by the thousands. If you donât have a boat, the Fort Macon Rock Jetty can be very productive as well. Red drum have been holding there all winter long, and those anglers fishing have been catching them. For jetty fishing live minnows are a âmust,â along with some bait shrimp and cut mullet. Along with the reds, there will be some black drum in the mix to be caught also.
Usually by late this month, we’ll start to see our first signs of sea mullet moving into the area. The Shipping Channel will be a prime location to fish because of its deeper water. The sea mullets could move as far in as the Turning Basin, but it is usually into April when that happens. But itâs all about how warm the weather gets, plus how many fish show up early. Spec rigs tipped with bait shrimp fished along the bottom will be the best choice for action.
The pufferfish will move in before the mullets, and if you donât know already, I can tell you they’re some of the best-eating fish you will find in the ocean. They’ll mostly be along the beachfront at Cape Lookout; and you can also have action off the surf and on the piers. Bait shrimp fished along the bottom on a bottom rig will get the job done. You also might hook-up some hogfish, but it all depends on how soon the water warms up.
As the water warms in the Neuse River, we’ll begin to see speckled trout come out of their winter pattern and start to feed again. Last March, some anglers experienced some great action in the Neuse River. March can be a great month to get some trout action. Just remember, because of the harsh February we had, the season is closed until June 15. But that doesn’t mean you can’t fish for them you just can’t keep them. You must release them to swim another day. A good spawn this spring that should help us in the fall.
The MirrOlure 17MR and MirrOlure Soft Dine will be very productive this spring. The Yo-Zuri 3DS Minnows will be another lure to try. All these lures are jerkbaits that suspend, which work great in the spring. We now have in-stock one of the best-looking jerkbaits I have ever seen hit the market. The new Live Target Bait Ball looks just like a small bait ball coming through the water with multiple fish. I just cannot imagine any reason this lure will not be extremely productive on speckled trout!
Keep your eye out for the first schools of albacore to start moving in from offshore. During late March they’ll start to show up around AR330 and the other reefs. If the water warms up quickly, they’ll move right in along the beach. But most likely, they will be out in the three- to five-mile range during most of March. We have stocked the new Glass Minnow Epoxy Jigs in the shop now…they are going to be a killer, along with the new Glass Minnow Sting Silvers.
The spiny dogfish action will be good along the beachfront. Because they can put up a good fight and because they’re usually plentiful in March, they are a good fish to shake off some cabin fever. They aren’t very hard to catch…either fish some cut mullet or cut squid right along the bottom to get their attention. Some anglers have told me they have pretty white meat and are pretty good to eat, but I can’t say that I’ve ever tried them.
Just remember to keep in mind that the water is still cold so fishing’s going to be a bit slow until later this month. But is warming up, and what we have beats what we’ve been dealing with all winter. Just donât get discouraged if you go out and donât fill the cooler up. Trust me, things are really going to start to heat up as we get into April.