36 Great North Carolina Fishing Trips
JULY
Trout
Linville River When hatchery-supported trout waters open, anglers head to the Linville River above Lake James.
Lots of stocked rainbows are caught by anglers wading the river edges, while some anglers use small boats. Ultralight rods and fly rods have their following, with small spinners taking most fish. Public game lands allow good access.
Black Drum
Southport The largest black drum are caught near Southport. The state-record fish weighed over 100 pounds and was caught from beneath an industrial dock at the Cape Fear River mouth.
Anglers use heavy bottom tackle to keep big drum away from pilings. Mole crabs, blue crabs, clams and shrimp make good baits.
Best fishing is near high and low tides and near the full moon.
Panfish
Lumber River Lumber River State Park has many launching points. Anglers ply the Lumber River in canoes, kayaks and johnboats to sample the excellent fishing for redbreast sunfish, bluegills and other panfish.
Most anglers take along a cane pole for dangling worms and crickets among the treetops. They also take along a spinning or spincast rod to toss beetle grub spinners into likely cover like cypress knees.
A spring limb-hook or slipknot tied around a limb works better than an anchor when fishing the Lumber.
AUGUST
Tarpon
Pamlico Sound The tarpon are rolling at Pamlico Sound. Anglers head to Oriental to try their luck. When tarpon are spotted on top, anglers motor quietly ahead of the school. They then fan-cast a half-dozen baited rigs on the bottom, hoping a tarpon will pick one up on its way past.
Live and dead spots, croakers and menhaden are used as tarpon bait. Cut chunks are tossed into the water to give tarpon incentive to follow the scent trail to the boat.
Red Drum
Pamlico Sound The biggest red drum begin to show up at Swan Island as they head into Pamlico Sound to spawn. These fish exceed 40 inches in length.
The fish are caught using large circle hooks and dead or live spots and croakers fished on the bottom. Baitcasting tackle and lines of 20- to 40-pound-test are used to catch the big red drum. The best bite is at dusk.
Striped Bass
Lake Norman Anglers can beat the heat by night-fishing for stripers. Trolling is a common way to catch Norman stripers, with the tops of submerged hills good bets. Trolling lures capable of running 15 feet and deeper are best.
Electronic depthfinders are vital to trolling for stripers. The best trolling runs have lure-eating structure.
SEPTEMBER
White Bass
Badin Lake At Badin, white bass show up on top during fall, making for fast light-tackle action. Spoons, jigs and flies all work well for sight-casting to fish.
Catfish
Lake Jordan While overshadowed by other species, the catfish at Lake Jordan are plentiful and big. Anglers can fish from the bank while camping at night or fish from a boat in deep water. A depthfinder is useful to locate big catfish in submerged stumps.
King Mackerel
Morehead City King mackerel show up right on the beaches at Morehead City and are the biggest fish of the year. Live baits and trolling lures will catch kings along the eastern side of Cape Lookout Shoals and at reefs and ledges near shore.
OCTOBER
Muskellunge
French Broad River The French Broad River has a heart-stopping number of muskies, yet few anglers give them a try. Large fish of over 20 pounds are caught by anglers tossing large stick-minnow lures, spoons and spinnerbaits in the thickest cover they can find.
Wahoo
Morehead City October is wahoo month at Morehead City. The Big Rock comes alive with some of the fastest action of the year. Trolled ballyhoos work the best for wahoos and yellowfin tuna, dolphin and other big-game species.
Largemouth Bass
Upper Tuckasegee Lakes The upper Tuckasegee River lakes have good bass fishing. The lakes vary in size from 175 to 500 acres and include Wolf Creek, Bear Creek and Cedar Cliff. These lakes have deep, clear water and good boating access areas. They have populations of smallmouth and largemouth bass. Bear Lake is probably the best, with many fish over 12 inches.
NOVEMBER
Lake Phelps
Largemouth Bass The best bite with Lake Phelps largemouth bass occurs in November. The bass are located along shoreline trees and grassbeds. Topwater action is hot, with poppers and walking lures great choices.
Striped Bass
Mann's Harbor At Mann's Harbor, lots of striped bass are at the bridge pilings and nearby waters. Anglers cast bucktail jigs and crankbaits to the pilings or watch for birds and cast poppers to stripers chasing baitfish.
Bluefish
Beaufort Inlet The Fort Macon rock jetties attract many species of fish. But bluefish are ravenous in the late fall. Anglers use cut baits, spoons, jigs and topwater baits to catch them.
Trolling or anchoring and casting to the rocks are good tactics.
DECEMBER
Striped Bass
Nag's Head At Nag's Head anglers use four-wheel-drives to access the beach. Driving along, they watch for birds feeding on baitfish that indicate stripers.
The fish are big, consistently above 20 pounds. Cut baits, spoons and surface lures work the beach.
Black Sea Bass
Wrightsville Beach Black sea bass are abundant offshore of Wrightsville Beach. Artificial reefs and natural ledges hold large numbers of them from three to 20 miles offshore in December. Shrimp fished on bottom rigs catches them.
Spotted Seatrout
Morehead City Morehead City anglers casting lures around oyster beds in the Newport River will catch some of the biggest fish of the year.
Discover even more in our monthly magazine,
and have it delivered to your door!
Subscribe to North Carolina Game & Fish
|
OUR NETWORK: IMOUTDOORS WEBSITES
