As 2012 winds down many fishermen are saying 2012 has been the best year they have seen! Seatrout have bounced back! Some are saying the seatrout bite has never been better. That said, seatrout are mercurial. The bite can be hot one day and cold the next. This time of year bite depends a great deal on the tides as well fronts passing through. Nonetheless, the seatrout bite has been good! Its still possible to see some of the best fishing of the year yet to come! Don Adams, owner of Adams Bait House said fishing is a little up and down. This is probably the best way to describe the bite.
One fisherman recently said he was unable to find seatrout but found a very good whiting bite! It’s possible for fishermen to struggle catching a few fish or find a good bite. Clean water, currents that are not too fast or too slow are typically what fishermen look for as well the ideal depht fish are holding. Drops that produce a good bite one day can be cold a few day latter. In general it’s best to keep fishing deeper until finding fish. A carolina rig on the bottom can be very effective! Live shrimp are still available in some of the bait shops but it best to call ahead to make the shop will have bait on hand.
One report of a good striper bite! Fishermen are typically using live baits, hard baits or soft plastics. Smaller stripers and hybirds are biting as well. When fishing areas where fresh and salt water meet, when you find a good striper bite its likley you wont find seatrout in those waters. Stripers like seatrout are mercurial. Either they are biting or they aren’t. When stripers are present the bite can be good. Favorite tides are the last of incoming, the first of the outgoing. Most stripers will be around some kind of structure: for example pilings, rocks and rip rap.
Fishermen reporting nice schools of reds on the flats but so far these fish have been tempormental and not easily caught. Schools are large trophy red drum can be around near shore wrecks. Sheephead are starting to bite on inshore and offshore structure! As water temperature cools the sheephead bite will be heating up!
Hope this of interest and help! Keep what you want to eat and release the rest!
Fish On! Capt. Jack McGowan, Coastal River Charters