Catchem beachbumfishing. That’s all you need to know if you want to “catch ‘em” on the Outer Banks. This is the web site for Capt. Reese Stecher who – out of Nags Head – has been putting his clients on fish for over 25 years. Last week, Capt. Stecher caught the above two huge trout within 10 minutes back in the sound. He said they were the largest he had ever caught.
Reese also said the cobia are off the coast, but the weather has been awful. Instead, he has fished back in the sound for drum, specks, sheepshead, and some big blues. The drum are running large this spring, many well over the slot – but what fighters!
The thing I enjoy when fishing with Beachbumfishing is you don’t have to spend an entire day on the water, getting up at 4 AM and spending several hours boating to and from the Gulf Stream. With Capt. Stecher, you can often be on nice fish with 15 minutes of the dock. And he fishes light tackle – truly sporting equipment. The boat doesn’t catch the fish, you do,
If you are heading to the OBX, remember catchem beachbumfishing. That’s all you really need to know.
OBX
On the surf side, anglers are catching a variety of fish, including puppy drum, speckled trout, bluefish, and sea mullet. The northern beaches have more sea mullet, while the southern beaches have big red drum and pompano. The piers are pulling in sea mullet, speckled trout, and bluefish. Spanish mackerel and bluefish are also running well since the water cleared.
Offshore, the crews are having a great time with dolphin and tuna. Blue marlin are also showing up.
Virginia Saltwater
Red drum catches are increasing in the Chesapeake Bay. Anglers fishing fresh cut mullet, crab, or fresh clam on the bottom are having success from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel area to the Windmill Point area, near the Rappahannock River. Black drum are also available in the same areas.
The sheepshead bite slowed this week but that will change. Look for them feeding on structures inside the Bay, such as artificial reefs and rock islands and pilings of the CBBT. The best baits for them are fiddler crabs, sand fleas, or clams.
Flounder catches were slow last week. It will pick up in early June. The minimum size limit for flounder is 16 inches and the daily creel limit is four per person.
Speckled Trout catches continue to increase in many areas. The Hampton area, Mobjack Bay, the Piankatank River, and Lynnhaven and Rudee inlets are some of the hotspots for the specks. The minimum size limit for speckled trout is 14 inches and the daily creel limit is five per person.
Puppy Drum are being caught in the same areas.
The black sea bass season runs through July 6, and then again from Aug 9 through Dec 31. The Triangle Reef is a popular spot with plenty of sea bass. The minimum size limit for black sea bass is 12 inches and the daily creel limit is 15 per person.
The first Spanish mackerel arrived along the Virginia Beach oceanfront last week. As water temperatures continue rising their numbers will increase.
The first schools of cobia have also reached Virginia waters. The official season doesn’t open until June 15th. Until then it’s catch and release.
Freshwater
At Lake Orange, water temperatures are in the low to mid 70s. The lake is slightly stained with bass and crappie schooling up on small baitfish. Bass can be caught on a variety of baits. Topwater baits early in the day as well as soft plastics during midday seem to be the best choices for the bass bite. Crappie are being caught on small minnows and jigs in and around brush. A few walleye have been caught on live bait. Catfishing has picked up for anglers using chicken livers and nightcrawlers. The bream are finishing up their spawn and can be caught on red wigglers and nightcrawlers.
The Rivers
All are in good condition and the smallmouth bite is on. Hopefully, this spring will be productive for a successful spawn and put lots of fingerling smallies back in the water.