| |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|||||
|
|||||||
|
|||||||
|
|||||||
|
Bay
Bonanza
Reprinted from Boating Life magazine, courtesy of World Publications By Chris Dummit Photos by John Linn Our hands are full -- and never still -- during an inshore fishing foray.
...North Carolina shores are full of such habitat, labyrinths of spartina and water that are home to redfish and trout, and a succession of tidal bays where bluefish, Spanish mackerel, flounder and other game fish flourish. Local guide Capt. Joe Shute, my ''eyes'' for this outing, knows the blueprint of this region and the techniques. Being a visitor to this area of the coast, I booked Joe's services to narrow my search. There's nothing like listening to an expert to shorten the learning curve. ...At
Joe's direction, I cast a chunk of cut menhaden, an oily silver baitfish
and a main staple for trophy redfish, toward the marsh and waited. I
could feel the tiny pinfish pecking at the bait, and I was sure they
would scare away the redfish. Aggravated, I began reeling the bait on
the surface toward the boat. ...The water welled up in a gigantic boil, like a wave suddenly surfacing from some underwater explosion. I could see a seriously angry redfish closing in on the bait. Joe and I were both stunned as the fish snatched at the bait and missed. I opened the bail on the spinning reel and let the bait drop as if it were live but wounded. Seconds later, the fish was back. It struck with a vengeance and jerked the tip of the light rod toward the water. ...''He's on!'' Joe shouted. I lifted the rod and watched helplessly as the fish beelined for the marsh grass. The fish nearly beached itself before it stopped. I hauled it back slowly.
...We pulled a few smaller redfish from the marsh on our iced pogie baits (guide talk for menhaden), but the bite was not what Joe expected. ...''Ready to catch something else?'' he asked, eager to run outside the mouth of Beaufort Inlet and tangle with some lively false albacore, a tuna-like fish sometimes called bonito. ...''Hey, I'm with you,'' I said, taking my spot next to Joe at the helm.
...Joe stopped the boat near the commotion, way too tempted by the possibilities. ''We'll go out the inlet in a few minutes. There should be some Spanish (mackerel) and bluefish mixed in here. Just cast and retrieve as fast as you can,'' Joe advised. ...We replaced the hooks and leaders with silver spoons that flash like small minnows, attracting the always eager blues. Joe kicked the boat in and out of gear, keeping up with the school, and I fired the spoon time and again. Eventually, I had the hang of the fast retrieve and I snagged first one, then two bluefish from the pod. The blues zigged and zagged from one side of the boat to the other as I circled the center console to keep the line free. The fish weighed just a few pounds but were all muscle and teeth. I carefully unhooked each one before releasing it. ...As I was savoring my success, Joe began tapping the throttles. ...''OK, let's go,'' he said. ''The albies are waiting.'' ...About this time I started wondering just how many species we might catch. Redfish are found almost year-round; trout are more abundant in winter, tapering off in spring; and anglers find false albacore and bluefish through April. May brings flounder, which stay through November. Summer is a time for mackerel, redfish and also kingfish on the beach. ...Our Scout was up to any task, it seemed. Even when we rolled among heavy swells in the inlet, the bay boat stayed dry. We had ventured into frightfully skinny waters only a few feet deep, run along the banks where sandbars erupt on lower tides, and now we were sloshing about, heading a quarter-mile offshore to cast at some football-shaped fish. ...Joe cut the engine and we drifted toward a school smacking at baitfish on the surface. False albacore are in the same family as tuna, even resemble them, but are not prized as table fare. Their greatest attribute is their bullish fighting technique -- especially on light tackle. ...They were a tad skittish and submerged when our boat got near enough for me to cast the silver spoon. Joe rodeoed the bay boat, twisting us into position, one hand on the wheel while holding a fly rod in his free hand. ...Then, slam. An albacore pounced on my spoon, pinning the rod tip to the water.
...The surging fish dragged me all over the skiff. Although the Scout's gunwales are fairly low, the current style for most bay boats, they were high enough that I felt confident I would stay inside the boat even in rolling chop. ...Finally, the exhausted fish came to the surface. Joe grabbed it by the tail and held it upside down -- a trick that seems to quiet even a fish that¿s still green. He dislodged the hook and torpedoed the fish downward, a release method that seems to revive some fish more quickly by forcing water through the gills. ...''What's next?'' I asked, beating Joe to the punch. ...''First, lunch,'' he said. ''We have to wait for the tide to wane to look for redfish on the beach.'' ...Tides are everything in saltwater fishing. A falling tide pushes fish out of shallower ''flats'' areas and into deeper water in channels. Outgoing tides can also sweep the abundant bait from the shallow bays out to sea, concentrating the near-shore action. The charts said we'd have the tide we wanted in a couple of hours. ...On the beach, swells washed in and lifted us high on each crest. Still, I was able to stand on the forward casting platform peering for dark shapes underwater. Swarms of glass minnows colored the water brown just outside of the shore break. I tossed a chartreuse jig-and-worm into the schools, hoping a big red would be sulking under the bait school. ...''They were here the other day,'' Joe said, a little puzzled. He continued to motor east along the edge of the bank. ...Joe radioed fellow captains who confirmed that the redfish bite was simply not happening. A smile broke across his face: ''Guess we'll have to go back and find us a few more albies.'' ...Off to the south, we could see boats gathered in clusters around what looked to be a splashing puddle. Joe pointed the bay boat to sea. ...As we neared the albacore school, Joe pulled out the fly rod. ''I'll drive this time,'' I said. ...For more information about booking your outing with Capt. Joe Shute in Atlantic Beach, N.C., call 252-240-2744 or 800-868-0941 or visit www.captjoes.com. The Reel Deal ...Anglers can tackle most inshore species using a 6 ½- to 7-foot spinning rod with a reel capable of holding 150 to 180 yards of 10- to 12-pound-test line. Drop down to slightly smaller 8-pound-test tackle for trout or to truly experience a light-tackle battle. ...Different species will attack different rigs. We suggest the following: * For redfish you'll need a strong, clear 30-pound fluorocarbon leader tied to a 4/0-size circle hook. Use 18 inches of leader attached to your main fishing line with a swivel. Bait with a piece of cut, dead pogy or mullet. * Trout are caught on artificials such as plastic grub tails or hard-bodied plugs like MirrOlures. If you use live bait, finger mullet or shrimp work best. Use about 18 inches of 20-pound monofilament leader tied to the plug or to a No. 2-4 Kahle hook. * Bluefish and Spanish mackerel require about 6 inches of 13-pound plastic-coated wire leader fastened with a knot to your plug, spoon or hook. Also, try small mullet or shad on a No. 4 Eagle Claw 374 hook. * Flounder fall for live finger mullet. Use No. 2 to 4/0-size Kahle hooks, depending on the size of quarry, tied to about 18 inches of 30-pound-test monofilament leader. Put a 1-ounce egg sinker above the swivel between your line and leader.
Species:
Seatrout Species:
Redfish Species:
Flounder (inshore) Species:
Spanish mackerel Species:
Bluefish Creel Limits/Seasons: 15 per day/12 months Originally
Published: March 2002 © 2005 World Publications, LLC |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
...The
marsh edge just off Morehead City's Bogue Sound looked like the perfect
redfish alley, a length of oyster bed next to protective grass, where
bait would spill on an outgoing tide.
...I
battled the redfish from the forward casting deck. Joe stepped into
the Scout's cockpit and prepared to leader the fish as I brought it
alongside the boat. It was a chunky, legal-size red drum, but we had
already decided to release our catch. So after some photographs, we
placed the red back in the water and watched it swim away.
Gettin'
It On