Thursday, October 11, 2012

My last trip on the lower Neuse, now the Crystal Coast and Belize

I finished up my season on the lower Neuse yesterday, tried for the big drum for a while, but no takers, so we headed to the shoreline and started beating the banks.  With the excellent tarpon/big drum fishing, I had not done much of this light tackle fishing this summer,  so it was nice to make only a couple of stops and start catching fish.  

It wasn't red hot other than a good flury of pup-pups and yearlings that lasted for over an hour. We had a fish on every cast, mostly 16/17 inch pup-pups, but we also had two double headers of 30 inch yearlings, plus a couple more, several flounder, black drum and trout.  We ran into a really good trout bite at Swan Island and saw a school of yearlings.  Everywhere we stopped we caught fish.  

Although this fishing should be good until the water temps get way low, the fishing up the river around New Bern and Oriental is keeping most of the Down East Guides up there.   Capt. Ray had a great day of topwater stripers, trout and yearlings and Capt. Greg had an epic afternoon of topwater stripers this past weekend.  Capt. Joe Ward has been working on the trout in the creeks with nice limits of keepers that are big enough they don't need to be measured.  All of those 12 inch trout that we had last year have grown into nice keepers with several "gator trout" in the mix.  The guides will be running these light tackle trips through the fall, long half days are only $450 and full days are $600, up to 3 anglers.

I moved the boat to Capt. Joe Shute's Bait and Tackle yesterday afternoon,  I have a trip tomorrow out of Atlantic Beach, hopefully getting in on the last of the grouper season.   While we're out there, the plan is to work on those big kings that Capt. Joe Shute got into yestereday, also 5/6 pound spanish on light tackle live bait and plenty of albies and bait balls up and down the beach.  

On Saturday morning, I'll be taking off to Belize, hosting a group of anglers there for bonefish, permit and tarpon.   While gone, I will not be answering the phone.....I do have phone privileges reinstated.....but we will be checking in via e mail and can still get you out on the water with one of the Down East Guides fishing  on the Crystal Coast.   Half days are $500, 3/4 days (recommended) $600 and all-day trips are $800.