yes Berto can catch billfish in NC

Fishing with Capt. Wade on the charter boat The General.   2 sails, a white and the gaffers

my day yesterday

Capt. Justin

got his today and I stopped a couple from their northerd migration.   Got a couple of days in the office while this blow passes by .

what I was doing when the drum blitz was firing off

 

Drum Blitz!!!!!

Couple acres of these crashed the bait balls for several hours today, along with some big cobia.   I am very sorry to say that I missed it while playing with baby sea bass and amberjacks.   We did catcha  70 pound cobia on the way in.   Good for Capt. Greg, his photo and Capt. Roy who both got their cobias and all they wanted of these.

ocean flounder fishing with Capt. Chris Kimrey

Give us a ring to book your on the water seminar and catch some flatties.

Offshore with Capt. Greg on the Contendor

Cobia bycatch

That's right, a 26 pound blackfin in the bait balls.   Photo courtesy of Capt. Roy Heverly.   I have had the pleasure to fish a lot around Capt. Roy and share information.  He is based out of Emerald Isle and is one hard working dude who is extremely knowledgeable about the nearshore fishing of the Crystal Coast.   We will be more than happy to book a trip for you with Capt. Roy.......if he has any openings which are rare when you have a reputation of working for your customers as hard as Roy does.

Offshore dolphin bite on the big boats.

Photo courtesly of Capt. Brian and Marty on the Run Off

One cold tico

This is one of the ones we released yesterday in the CCA cobia tournament.   Biggest fish wins and none of ours were in contention so we kept a couple of the smaller, better eating ones for dinner and released this 35 pounder.   Of the dozen or so boats competing, 11 of them weighed in their cobia.   Biologist with NC State were standing by to remove otoliths and sex the fish.   Hopefully we'll learn a little more about cobia that will lead to reasonable regulations that don't have "bad science" penalizing anglers. 

New cobia regs

http://portal.ncdenr.org/web/mf/proclamation-ff-25-2016

Summary:

This proclamation supersedes FF-9-2016, dated February 24, 2016.  It implements a recreational minimum size limit of 37 inches fork length.  It also implements a three-day per week harvest allowance of two (2) fish per vessel (or one (1) per person per day whichever is more restrictive) for the Private Vessel fishery.  It implements a four (4) fish per vessel limit and a seven (7) day per week harvest allowance for the For-Hire Vessel fishery.  It also implements a one (1) fish per person per day harvest limit for the shore-based fishery, including pier and surf fishing.  It closes the recreational cobia season on September 30, 2016, unless the season is closed earlier by proclamation.  It maintains a 33-inch fork length minimum size limit and a two (2) fish per Standard Commercial Fishing License holder per day limit for the commercial fishery.

Greg and I poked our head out the inlet and looked around.......

.....this is what we found

Berto from the Dragin fly

I got mine yesterday.  Going to pick up Berto from the Dragin Fly at RDU, he's going to be in town for a couple of weeks.

Roanoke Report

Bait and jig fishing is spectacular if you are in the right spot, tied up in the trees with the squirels.   The water is really high but there are a lot of fish in the river.   Very tough to get a fly to them.  

"The crowds have left but the fish have not. Flow has been high and steady for almost two weeks and water temp has not budged from 66 or 67 in a week. Fish have spawned and are chewing.  Good numbers and quality fish.  I am here through June 1st with available dates, but if the water stays high, they will stay here longer than me!"  ---Capt. Rod

This one really liked my bucktail

streak continues

Got mine 5 days in a row, at least 1 or 2..  Giving them a break for a couple of days to mess with the stripers which are still biting up on the Roanoke.

Mini Streak

Got mine two days in a row.  

As the water was coming up, two days ago

photos courtesy of Capt. Greg

report

The water is high on the Roanoke, but not too high, we have had some great fishing, especially this time of year, with water levels like this.  I will have an updated report tomorrow. 

For me at the coast, I might have seen a couple of cobia, but not long enough to get a cast at them, there is bait around and the water temps are right there.

Offshore, really good dolphin and wahoo bite with Capt. Wade on the General

Groundhog days with the wahoo and dolphins, plus an occasional minisail

95 and rain

The greatest generation.   Thanks Mr. Ralph

Got what we asked fro

Just hope it's not too much of it.   Plenty of water in the river now and the levels may keep climbing.   Fortunately, rising water makes better fishing than falling water, but it moves them around.   The Down East Guides put up good numbers with good fishing and a lot of fun with the top water action the past few days.

There is now enough water that every striper in the Roanoke is coming to Weldon......or Gaston if the water gets as high as predicted.   They are going to be bunched up.

Costa Rica tarpon report

Just thought you'd like to know the fishing is absolutely on fire at Silver King for the last two weeks. Eight guys fishing with bait and lures jumped more than 200 tarpon in three days and brought more than 90 to the boat. The fly guys are getting 3 to 11 to the boat per day. Hope you're doing well.

Close to epic

They bunched up this afternoon and for a couple of hours and it was really, really good with expectations of a fish on every cast.....for a couple of hours.   It doesn't take long for double headers on the fly to get a bunch of bait fishermen anchored up in your drift.  Oh well, got what we needed and got off the water before the storms came.

Reminder

Justin Haddock wanted to remind everyone that he has openings May, 4, 5, 9, 10 in case anyone wanted to get out on the riva......oh and he says that he has the best bait 

Two hoos on one line

One was hooked, the other was wrapped up in the wire..Pretty cool!

From the Run Off

Top Water has fired off on the Roanoke

 Although the fishing has not been as stellar as years past with spectacular numbers, a bad day on the Roanoke is better than most days on other rivers.

When you can get dozens of topwater bites, you don't have to catch as many to have a lot of fun with them.  The water is low and warming fast and the motherload is due to arrive in Weldon anytime.   For now, we'll take what we're getting and smile while the 100 fish days are very close.