We ran out today near Southport in search of a few winter redfish and came home happy! The redfish seem to have changed from biting on the low or falling tide and are now feeding on the higher tide stage and a good part of the rising tide. They are more in the spring pattern with all of the warm weather we have had. We marked 55 degree water the past 2 days. To our suprise when we launched the boat we saw a ton of finger mullet at the ramp, this is pretty rare for this time of year. After two throws of the net we had more than plenty. As luck would have it the redfish would not have anything to do with the live bait! All they would bite were dark colored red fish magc spinner baits and Berkley Gulp! The shrimp pattern Gulp! in the molting color seem'd to work best. The reds are holding tight to structure and weedlines and ocassionaly you will see a large school wake out in the open water. There have been some nice 30" reds in the shallow water pusing some extremely big wakes. The key to hooking up is being as quiet as possible. On the flats a noise travels a long ways. Try to put the wind to your back and allow it to blow you into the fish. Lots of them are trolling motor shy right now and will wake out when you spook them. If you spook them give them 15 minutes and circle back around. They will usually stage back up where you saw them last. Work your baits slowly and tight on the grass lines for best results. Use these tips while the water is warm and you should come home happy as well!
Once the water cools back down I will post again with a very specific description on how to target the reds when the water is cold!
Offshore the king bite is doing well at Frying Pan Tower. Check the water tower buoy online before you go. If the water temp is around 64 or higher you should have a box full of kings! The sea bass and grouper bite has been great 10 miles and further out. The bigger ledges are not always the best. Key in on the smaller ledges and humps for best results. The bluefin tuna bite has been phenomenal further out. The Ocean Isle boats have been doing great with them.
Hope this helps! Go get em!
Capt. Matt Wirt
www.reel-adventure.com