If you’ve waited until late July to take your summer vacation at a Nags Head cottage – your timing is very good. Capt. Reese Stecher of Beach Bum Guide Service says his parties have been catching lots of fish and a wide variety. Just offshore, Stecher has been putting clients on hard fighting amberjacks and the Mahi-Mahi are also close in. Some near shore Mahi’s have been gaffers. The amberjacks … [Read more...]

There’s a lot of gray going on at the Eastern Shore. Not gray skies - gray trout. Brent and Angelin Ham from Greensboro are enjoying some dynamite trout action while vacationing this week at Cherrystone Campground in Cheriton. Breaking in a new 17’9” center console, the Ham family is catching lots of gray trout up to 16-inches, plus whiting, croakers, puppy drum, spot and sea bass. High tide … [Read more...]

Eastern Shore Chris Bait & Tackle reports: Sea Mullet/Roundhead: Good catches are being reported off Kiptopeke, the Cabbage Patch/Bouy 18 area, Latimer Shoals and outside the Concrete Ships. Sea Trout: Pan trout to 14-inches have been caught outside the Kiptopeke Concrete Ships and out of Oyster in the Sand Shoal Inlet. Croakers: Medium size croakers have been showing in the bay … [Read more...]

By Dr. Julie Ball Summertime is well underway, and the saltwater fishing scene is following suit as catches escalate. The flounder action continues to rebound from the recent stormy weather. The bite is mostly steady this week, although some days are better than others in. Plenty of keepers are available in the usual flounder spots for those willing to work for them. Anglers drifting baits … [Read more...]

By Dr. Ken Neill, III The tuna bite slowed this week. The yellowfin are still out there, but not at the “boats coming in early with limits” level that we had the previous week. The mako sharks have thinned out also. They have been replaced by more dolphin and billfish and the wahoo have also arrived. It is a good mix-bagged fishery offshore of Virginia right now. Offshore, bottom fishing is … [Read more...]

By Dr. Julie Ball As Memorial Day rapidly approaches, the spring saltwater fishery continues to escalate with catches improving most everywhere. Weather is still a challenge, so anglers are taking advantage of any break to investigate this trend. The biggest news is the early arrival of the highly anticipated and controversial cobia. Not expected until closer to June, the cobia showed in … [Read more...]

In late spring, the cobia begin moving up the Atlantic Coast after wintering off Florida and Georgia. Capt. Reese Stecher with Beach Bum Guide Service in Nags Head said the cobia are now in Carolina waters. Most boats are catching cobia in Hatteras, Stecher said, but they showed up this week at Oregon Inlet where only a handful of boats have been fishing. That should change soon, as the big red … [Read more...]

From Nags Head, TW’s reports: Surf Fishing:
 We had fair fishing this side of the Inlet catching Bluefish. The most exciting news we have had in a while would be a 40-lb. striper caught from the Nags Head surf. John Payer from Forked River, NJ weighed in yesterday at our Nags Head store. The winds are NE at 9 and the water temp is 63 degrees. Water is clear. Good Bluefish water. Bluefish … [Read more...]