THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 6, 1996 TAG: 9610030209
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 20 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Damon Tatem
LENGTH: 101 lines
BLUE WATER action along the Dare coast is improving as fall brings cooler water temperatures.
Wahoo fishing has been exceptional off Hatteras recently. Plenty of wahoo weighing 25 to 60 pounds were landed Sept. 25-27 by charters fishing the area between the 39800 and the 40100 Loran lines in 25 to 50 fathoms of water.
The aggressive fish were taken on ballyhoo and red Drone spoons. Yellowfin tuna also were plentiful off Hatteras Sept. 25.
Little action was reported Sept. 28 and 29 because of rough seas, but fishing resumed Sept. 30 with scattered wahoo, tuna and a few dolphin taken.
Yellowfin tuna catches off Oregon Inlet have improved during the past few weeks.
Boats fishing around the 40480 Loran line Sept. 26 landed nine or 10 fish each.
Tuna fishing was good the following day, with bites reported around the 40500 Loran line and also in shallow water between the 40750 and the 40800 Loran lines. The yellowfin were of mixed sizes, weighing between 20 and 90 pounds.
Tuna fishing was fair Sept. 28 and 29. A few good catches of dolphin also were reported from near the point Sept. 29.
Tuna fishing was excellent Sept. 30, with charters landing between 19 and 24 each. Quite a few of the tuna taken were citation size, which is 70 pounds in North Carolina.
Inshore trolling around Oregon Inlet has been spotty. Good catches of bluefish were reported Sept. 27, but subsequent action was slow.
Some small king mackerel and a few nice Spanish mackerel have been landed a few miles offshore by anglers using planers and spoons.
Headboat action around Oregon Inlet has been generally slow.
Stripers, flounder, croaker and gray trout have been taken regularly by anglers fishing around the Manns Harbor bridge.
Recent pier fishing action has been sporadic.
Kitty Hawk Pier reported plenty of spot landed throughout the day Sept. 25. Fishing was slow Sept. 26 and 27, but resumed for several hours around midday Sept. 28. Action was nil Sept. 29, but improved Sept. 30, with spot landed two at a time.
A few bottom fish and Spanish mackerel were landed Sept. 25 and 26 on Avalon Pier. Some bluefish and Spanish mackerel were taken Sept. 27, and scattered spot were caught Sept. 28. Fishing was slow Sept. 29, but improved the following day with some spot and bluefish taken.
Fishermen on Nags Head Pier caught lots of sea mullet Sept. 25 during the afternoon. Fishing was slow the next several days, but improved Sept. 30, with Spanish mackerel and albacore taken in the morning and bottom fish landed during the afternoon.
Spot, croaker, sea mullet, Spanish mackerel and bluefish were landed from Jennette's Pier Sept. 25. Little action was reported from the pier Sept. 26, but a few spot and Spanish mackerel were landed the next afternoon.
Fishing was slow on Jennette's Pier the following two days, but improved Sept. 30, with plenty of bottom fish, bluefish and Spanish mackerel taken late in the day.
Outer Banks Pier reported slow fishing Sept. 25-27. A few Spanish mackerel, bluefish and spot were taken Sept. 28. Little action was reported Sept. 29, but spot became plentiful Sept. 30 late in the day.
South of Oregon Inlet, fishermen on Rodanthe Pier caught a few bluefish, spot and fair numbers of sea mullet Sept. 25 and 26. A few croaker, spot, mullet and bluefish were landed the next several days. A 6 1/2-pound puppy drum was decked the afternoon of Sept. 29.
Spot, sea mullet, gray trout and a 7-pound puppy drum were landed on Avon Pier Sept. 25. Plenty of small blues were taken Sept. 26. Fishing was slow Sept. 27-29, but scattered spot, croaker and gray trout were landed Sept. 30.
Small bottom fish and a few pompano were landed from Frisco Pier Sept. 25 and 26. Fishing was slow Sept. 27, but a few nice flounder were landed Sept. 28.
Some spot were landed from the pier Sept. 29 for several hours around noon. Small pompano, Spanish mackerel, bluefish and a few flounder were taken Sept. 30 during the afternoon.
Surf fishing along the northern beaches has been fair, with some spot, sea mullet and small bluefish taken from deeper sloughs. Pompano and speckled trout have been scarce.
Stripers weighing as much as 10 pounds have been plentiful around the Oregon Inlet bridge. Anglers fishing on the north side of the inlet have caught good numbers of bluefish, scattered bottom fish and a few puppy drum.
Fishermen have taken bottom fish and blues from the revetment and the catwalk on the south side. Some nice 14- to 18-inch gray trout have been landed in the area at night.
Small bottom fish, bluefish and puppy drum have been fairly abundant in the surf from Rodanthe to Buxton.
A 39-pound drum and fair numbers of puppy drum were beached at Cape Point Sept. 27 at night. Puppy drum were landed Sept. 28 both during the day and at night. Scattered keeper flounder also were taken.
A good run of yearling drum developed at Cape Point Sept. 30 during the morning. Some bluefish and croaker were landed later in the day.
Fishing has been good around Hatteras Inlet at night with bluefish, trout and puppy drum taken. Bluefish, sea mullet and a few puppy drum have been taken in fair numbers along the beach from Frisco to False Point.
Drum fishing around False Point and Cape Point should improve as water temperatures drop. MEMO: Damon Tatem covers Outer Banks fishing for The Carolina Coast. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by DREW C. WILSON
It isn't magic. Charlie Lawrence, 50, left, and Pete Guthrie, 47,
used a rod and reel to land a fish at Avalon Pier. Both are from
Salem, Va. by CNB