Weekly Fall Fishing Reports

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Every year in the fall, a change in the Gulf Stream blesses North Carolina’s coast with a bounty of fish, giving fishing enthusiasts a great opportunity to cast their lines in our waters.

Here Capt. Gary Dubiel holds a largemouth bass that came from the same spot on the Neuse River near New Bern as red drum and striped bass.

Our fall fishing reports have wrapped up for the year, but we'll be back in September, 2010 to keep you up to date on where the fish are biting. In the meantime, enjoy North Carolina's other great seasons.

Fall 2009

November 19th Report

Ida certainly made things difficult for fishing this past week and fishing reports have been hard to come by. Prior to all the rain and wind, fishing was excellent up and down the coast and should return to normal within the next few days. All your fall favorites will be available for weeks to come, including red drum, spotted and gray seatrout, flounder, bluefish, striped bass, spots and sea mullet from the inlets, beaches, piers and estuaries. King mackerel and false albacore will be found near shore and tuna, dolphin and Wahoo offshore.

 This weekend on the Neuse, speckled trout were reeled in the creeks near and up river from Oriental. We caught some very nice sized trout including a 5-pound fish. Puppy drum, flounder and striped bass were also in the mix. The Neuse near New Bern continues to produce plenty of stripers, especially on top water.

 A few reports from the Crystal Coast indicated that false albacore were still near the beaches of Shackleford and Atlantic Beach and the trout were biting along the Cape Lookout Jetty.

 North Carolina will continue to have great fall fishing well into and through much of the winter. Keep your favorite fishing pole ready and come on down to the coast. Thanks for checking on my reports. Calm seas, good fishing and tight lines!

November 10th Report

Mother Nature smiled on us this past week and the fishing was as wonderful as the weather.

 At the Crystal Coast, false albacore fishing was a described by fellow Guide Capt. George Beckwith as “epic!”

In Beaufort Inlet and the Turning basin, bluefish and specks were caught along with plenty of spots.

 The Neuse and Pamlico Rivers had good trout fishing with fish around the ten-pound mark. Striper fishing remained good near New Bern with plenty of exciting top water action.

 From the Outer Banks, TW’s Bait and Tackle reports fishing being a little slow from the beaches and piers but there were still blues, specks, sea mullet and black drum tightening lines.

 Wrightsville Beach reported large sea trout wetting lines and offshore boats out of Oregon Inlet racked up yellow fin tuna along with black fins, dolphin and Wahoo. Tuna, dolphin, Wahoo and sailfish dominated the rest of the coastal offshore reports from Morehead City to Wilmington.

 King mackerel season is still hot and boats fishing closer to the beaches scored up and down the Carolina Coastline.

 Wet a line, the fishing has been fantastic!   

November 3rd Report

The weather once again blew up this past weekend interrupting excellent offshore fishing. Yellow fin tuna catches off Oregon Inlet were outstanding. Wahoo and sailfish were the dominant catches further south of Morehead City and big boats in the Wilmington area reported wahoo, dolphin and sailfish.

 Closer to shore, king mackerel fishing remained good up and down the coast. Puppy drum fishing was excellent along the beaches of the Outer Banks and TW’s Bait and Tackle in Nags Head reported the first of the year striped bass caught off the surf. Sea mullet was plentiful on most of the piers.

 The spot run out of Beaufort Inlet and Swansboro is close to peak with good catches reported in both areas. Upcoming cooler weather should cause fishing to peak during the next few days. Just outside the inlets, bluefish catches were plentiful with a few false albacore tightening lines.

 On the Western side of the Pamlico Sound and in the Neuse, Bay and Pamlico Rivers, speckled trout fishing had moments of greatness. The weather made for scattered catches on some days while others saw plenty of fish snapping at the end of the line. The striped bass fishing near New Bern has been improving and this fishery had very good catches of fish over the week with a nice mixed bag of specks, puppy drum and largemouth bass.

 Waters near the Cape Fear River also reported specks, puppy drum and flounder.

 Looking forward to a week of lovely calm fall weather!

October 27th Report

Gorgeous fall weather dominated much of the week. Crisp starts to the day and calm seas made for a great fall feel. Unfortunately, a front blew in just in time for the weekend but hopefully that didn’t keep you off the water. There were great fall fishing reports from up and down the coast.

 The western sounds and rivers produced good reports of seatrout fishing. Specked trout were caught in big numbers in the Neuse, Pamlico and Bay Rivers and in Oriental large numbers and sizes of trout were reeled in. Good reports of specked trout and stripers tightened lines in New Bern while flounder and puppy drum were caught near Swan Quarter, Belhaven and Bayboro.

 The marshes near Morehead City, Core Creek and the rock jetty produced great trout and puppy drum fishing near Cape Lookout. Puppy drum and speckled trout were also caught along the beaches of the Northern Outer Banks and to the south at Wrightsville. Ocracoke surf fishermen reported good catches of puppy drum with the arriving weather front.

 King mackerel and false albacore will dominate the fall fishing reports for near shore anglers through much of the remainder of fall. The Crystal Coast reported good catches of king mackerel, however false albacore were scattered. The waters near Wilmington/Wrightsville and New River also produced good numbers of near shore king mackerel.

 Offshore fishing improved this week with TW’s Bait and Tackle in Nags Head reporting dolphin, tuna and Wahoo from Oregon Inlet with a few billfish caught. Great Wahoo fishing was also reported in the Crystal Coast and Wilmington with a mix of tuna, dolphin, billfish and grouper. 

We are looking forward to the return of calm seas and continued tightened lines!

October 20th Report

Windy cool weather swept in the East this week, but that shouldn’t keep you away from the coast and your favorite fishing pole. Much of the Western Pamlico Sound remains protected from breezy days with the area’s miles of tree lined rivers and creeks. Places like New Bern, Oriental, Washington and Belhaven will all have very fishable water. The cooler nights and cooler water temperatures led to good catches of speckled trout near Oriental along with puppy drum and flounder. I received similarly good reports from throughout the area.

 Capt. Charles Brown reported excellent gray trout fishing from the waters near Harkers Island. Charles also caught an abundant of Spanish and king mackerel just outside of Barden and Beaufort Inlets by the near shore wrecks and reefs. Specked trout and redfish are in the marshes and spots are tightening lines in the Turning Basin.

 Puppy drum were the big story along the beaches and inlets on the Northern Outer Banks. Bluefish, spots, flounder and stripers were also taken in along the beaches, piers and inlets.

 To the South, Swansboro, Wrightsville and Carolina Beach all had great spot fishing. These small but mighty fall favorites are great fun for the whole family. Puppy drum, speckled trout and flounder were caught from the surf and the Cape Fear River while near shore water continues to produce plenty of big fall king mackerel.

 Many of the offshore boats had trouble getting out, but don’t give up on the Wahoo, tuna and dolphin fishing. There’s plenty more action in store for the rest of the fall.

 Keep on wetting a line. The fishing is fine even if the weather may not be perfect!

October 13th Report

Fall took a little side step this past week as we had a touch of summer, but don’t let that keep you off the water.  

My trips on the Neuse River reeled in gray and speckled trout, flounder and puppy drum – which was also caught by my fellow captains, Dave Stewart and Mark Hoff. The water near New Bern produced a good amount of stripers and flounder as well as striped bass on the Pamlico River.

 Just to the east along the Crystal Coast, Captain Joe Shute reports some great inshore fishing. Spanish mackerel are plentiful and large – some up to six and seven pounds – as well as King mackerel. The piers are landing spots, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and flounder while redfish and specks are being taken in the marshes. Offshore fishing continues to produce Wahoo and yellow fin tuna.

 The offshore reports are good from the Northern Outer Banks as well. Limits of yellow fin tuna were the norm out on Oregon Inlet. There were also several white marlin and sailfish caught. Closer to the beach, bluefish and spots tightened lines while from the beaches and piers Spanish mackerel, trout and sea mullet were caught.

 Tradewinds Tackle on Ocracoke reported some good catches of both black and red drum with some of them 54-inches long. Bluefish, gray trout, trout and pompano were also good catches.

 To the south, Wrightsville Beaches and piers reported good catches of black and red drum as well. Bluefish, Spanish mackerel, flounder and pompano were also caught. Spots and croakers are also starting their fall run. The Cape Fear River produced an increasing amount of specks and near shore anglers landed some beautiful king mackerel, amber jack and grouper.

 Cooler fall temperatures have returned and the fishing is great, so head out and wet a line. 

October 6th Report

Cool fall nights this past week has kicked the autumn fishing into high gear and I've got some great reports from up and down the coast.

Fellow fishing guide, Capt. George Beckwith of Down East Guide Service, scored a big day of speckled trout and striper on the Neuse River New Bern. The Neuse River Backwater Tournament was held this past weekend with great catches of fish, specks, puppy drum, flounder and stripers.

From the Northern Outer Banks, TW's Bait and Tackle reports a lot of great surf fishing for pompano and blues and Spanish from the piers and near shore boats. The offshore boats had great catches with big yellow fin tuna, Wahoo, sailfish and marlin.

At Hatteras, great bluefish catches on the beaches are making for plenty of fall fun. Spots, sea mullet and flounder are making fine fare and are being reeled in from the beaches, piers and inlets.

The spot run has also heated up along the Crystal Coast; this fall favorite always brings hundreds to Morehead City, Beaufort and Swansboro. Capt. Joe Shute told me that redfish fishing is improving as well as speckled trout fishing in the coastal marshes. Spanish, blues and kings round out the near shore bite with Wahoo and dolphin offshore.

The word from Tex's Tackle in Wilmington is plenty of red and black drum, pompano and Spanish are being caught from the surf. Pier fishermen have done well on the falls first spots and croakers and the backcountry and inlets have produced trout, puppy drum and flounder. Spanish, kings, albacore and amberjack have been taken from near shore waters and Wahoo and dolphin round out the offshore action.

So whatever your pleasure, enjoy the fall fishing!

September 29th Report

Fall has arrived and it is time to head to coastal North Carolina for some of the finest fishing of the year. Giant red drum are moving from their late summer spawning grounds on the Neuse River to the inlets and beaches along the coast. The waters near Oriental are still producing a few fish in excess of 40 pounds and the numbers of catch and releases of these monsters is on the rise near Ocracoke and the Southern Outer Banks.

Smaller two- to twenty-pound red drum or “redfish” fishing has really picked up along the beaches and in the marshes from the Outer Banks to Southport. In addition to the red drum fishing, TW’s Bait and Tackle in Kitty Hawk reports bluefish, black drum and pompano along the beaches and piers, while Tradewinds tells of sea mullet and blues closer at Ocracoke. Redfishing has been excellent along the Crystal Coast and near Oriental on the Neuse River with a few specks and flounder thrown in. King and big Spanish mackerel with a nice mix of false albacore have been right off the beaches near Morehead City according to Capt. Joe Shute. At Wrightsville and Southport, flounder, Spanish and gray trout are being taken along with red drum.

Speckled seatrout, another fall favorite, have been snapping near Sneed’s Ferry according to Capt. Ricky Kellum.

Windy conditions have made the offshore fisherman work to get out, but when they do so, the dolphin, Wahoo and grouper have come to the boat. With plenty of great fall weather on the way, look for the big game fishing to get cranked up.

Grab a pole, grab a friend or grab the kids and head east. Silver, blue and gold are a few of the fall colors that await you along the North Carolina Coast.

added: September 8, 2009

updated: November 20, 2009

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