[dropcap]W[/dropcap]e’ve made it through August into September and fishing is getting better and better. This month can be one of the best months to fish of the year. Everything is starting to get into the fall pattern mode, fish schooling up and feeding like crazy as the bait is thick.
I think September is the best month we have for Spanish Mackerel fishing in our area all year long. Yea, May and June can be great when the fish first start to show up in our waters but now the fish are so much bigger. Just in the last few weeks, the waters have started cooling down and the Spanish bite has already been great. The best areas will be anywhere along the beaches, inlets and up around the Cape Lookout area, especially the Cape Lookout Shoals. What’s happening, the North Winds are bunching up the mullets that have been in our backwaters all summer and they’re starting to pour out the inlets and Spanish are taking full advantage of the mullet run. Look for feeding birds working the surface that’s usually a good sign of feeding mackerel. Casting small lures like Sea Striker Jig Fish Lures, Kastmasters, StingSilvers or Glass Minnow Jigs will all work good. Also, you can put out Clarkspoons, Squid Rigs and Mackerel Trees to troll for some action. If you’re going to be trolling this time of year put out a larger spoon in your spread because there’s been a lot of Kings around too. So, you might have a chance of hooking into a King while Spanish fishing. Now for the larger Spanish and when I say larger I’m meaning 5lbs or more. To find this class of fish head to the AR reefs like 315 and 285 with some Live Mullet or Dead Cigar Minnows. Toward the end of the month is when we will see the larger Spanish caught into early October. While Spanish fishing you’ll also run into some Bluefish action, same thing they’re schooling back up for the fall and taking advantage of all the bait starting to come out of the inlets, along with all the glass minnows along the beach.
What we’ve seen so far, the King Mackerel fishing should be great this fall, an early group of fish showed up this summer. It’s not that often we start to see fish in the 40lb range in August but this year that has been the case a few times so far. Best areas to look will be AR 315, Beaufort Inlet, Dead Tree Hole, Shipping Channel, Cape Lookout, AR 285, 1700 Rock and the Atlas Tanker all will be good choices. Most of the action has been from anglers Live Bait fishing, but as the water starts to cool down Cigar Minnows will start to play a big role. As the schools of Kings get thicker and the bait’s harder to find they hit them just as good especially in the fall. It’s a must to put them on the right rigs, Blue Water Candy Dead Bait Rigs, Bluewater Candy Wedgie and Pirate Plugs are what you’re going to need to troll the Cigar Minnows properly.
Albacore fishing has been good so far, we had some schools of fish show up last month which was pretty early for them, but this is the month to really get on them. It’s pretty easy fishing, best way to find them is look around the inlets and along the beaches for birds working the water. When you see this you’ll know something is going on, usually there’s large groups of birds so it’s hard to miss if you’re looking for them. If you can find the birds, it’s a sure sign of feeding Albacore. Now, they can be tricky to catch at times but the key seems to be keeping your lures small, the same size of the glass minnows they are feeding on. One of best lures I’ve seen is the Glass Minnow Epoxy Jigs, it doesn’t get any closer than the real thing and the Albacore love them. Also, Sea Striker Jig Fish Jigs in the 1/2oz size along with the P-Line Glass Minnows Jigs will work great. Also, if you’re into Fly Fishing this can be some of the best action you’ll ever experience.
Sea Mullets and Spots are starting to make their fall run, we have already seen some good action but as the month goes on it will get better and better as more fish will start to move down the beaches. When fishing for Sea Mullet fish from the Inlet back to the Turning Basin area. Sam’s Gitter Spec-Rigs, Betts Spec-Rigs and C&H Spec-Rigs will all work fine tipped with Bait Shrimp and Fishbite Shrimp. Toward the end of the month we should start to see the Spots come back in, most years the last week of this month is when they start to show up in good numbers, then; through the first week of October will be the peak of it. Beaufort Draw Bridge and in the Turning Basin will be the best areas to fish. When I say the Beaufort Draw Bridge, start looking as soon as you come into Gallant’s Channel. The schools of fish could be anywhere in that area, Live Bloodworms, Fish Bite Bloodworms and Bait Shrimp fished on the bottom will be the best for action.
Old Drum fishing has been great so far this year, last year it was off a bit but this year is making up for it. The Neuse River is full of bait which has the fishing good. We have been seeing good artificial fishing for them so far. Popping Corks rigged up with DOA Airheads, Z-Man 7” Jerk Shads and 7” Berkley Gulp Jerk Shads all have been working well. What you want to look for is bait schools and along the banks where the fish come up to feed. Now, fish have been caught as far up as the Adams Creek area so really anywhere right now in the river you could come across them. If you aren’t into riding and casting for them, the bait fisherman have been having just as good luck, all in all probably you’ll catch more bottom fishing than any other way. The mouth of South River, mouth of Adams Creek and down toward the bombing range all have been holding fish. Really, if you can find a good drop or ledge and set up you have a chance of catching some fish. Mullet or Menhaden fished right on the bottom will get the job done. Rule of thumb in the past years, once we get our 2nd hard Northeaster the fish will move back out toward the ocean. So, we should still have a few more weeks of good fishing left.
Flounder fishing still remains good, as we have seen some great action this year. Most of the better fishing has been out in the ocean around the AR Reefs like 315, 320, 330 and 285. It’s been kind of up and down but we’ve seen some really good days. Jigging Spro 2oz Bucktails in the White and Glow colors tipped with Berkley Gulp 4” White Shrimp has been tough to beat. But it’s always a good idea to take some Live Minnows when you go. For the inside waters the Port Wall will be the place this month, once the Flounder start to group up plus in the fall the Port Wall acts like a resting spot for them until they move to the ocean. It’s not going to happen every day, but if you can catch it at the right time you can load up. Live Minnows fished on a Flounder Rig will be the best bait of choice.
August was a bit slower than what we were seeing back in July on the Sheepshead but September has always been a good month. Once, the water temps start to drop like they’re doing the Sheepshead go back into a feeding mode before they make their way offshore to the reefs for the winter. We have been weighing 10lb plus fish since May so this month should be no different. I have to say, we have seen the biggest class of fish we have ever seen in the area this season. Port Wall, High Rise Bridges and ICW Docks all have been the hot spots to be fishing. Live Sea Urchins and Live Fiddler Crabs will be the go to bait. We still have both of them in stock at the shop ready for action.
It’s that time to start thinking about Speckled Trout, our 8th Annual Speckled Trout Challenge has kicked off and hopefully; it’s going to be bigger than ever. So far, we have seen some tough fishing with the kill off we had in the Neuse River last winter. But all summer we’ve been weighing some nice trout in, with most all around the 5lb mark. So, in our area we still have some fish and like every year when it gets late September earlier October the trout just seem to show up overnight. So of what, I’ve seen and heard I’m thinking the trout fishing is going to be better around our area than the Neuse River area. But who knows, it’s still early for them to really turn on so only time will tell.
If you ever have any more questions about fishing in our area feel free to stop by the shop or give us a call (252-240-FISH (3474). For weekly fishing reports go to www.chasintailsoutdoors.com to stay more up to date on what’s going on with the fishing – Inshore and Nearshore in the Atlantic Beach/Morehead City area.
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