Fishing report from East Coast

Here is the weekly fishing report from Chris at East Coast Sports

Piers
Surf City Pier = Spots and Spots a few spanish and a few blues
Jolly Roger = Spots and a Few Mullet , Flounder and a few Blues
Sea View Pier = A few spot and Mullets. Couple of Flounder and afew Sheepshead.
Reisley (camp Lejune) . Big Chopper Blues and big Pompano , a few Sea Mullet , and a few small Trout.

Surf
Sand Fleas are now readily avalible
New River Inlet to Surf City A few god sized Mullet
Surf City to Topsail Beach lLots of Lady fish and a few Blues
Topsail Beach To New Topsail Inlet A few Pompano and some big Reds
Lee island North end Lots of Reds and tons of lady fish

Waterway / inlet
Big sheepshead at the draw bridge and ton of Ladyfish at night
Inshore 0-20 miles
Tons and Tons of schoolie kings around X-mass rock and afew
Cobias just off the beach some biguns too.

Conclusion
A few Dolphin have moved inshore but no great numbers yet

Offshore 20 mile- 200 fathoms
A few Sails are starting to show up scattered so it wont be long and they will be inshore

Weekend Marine Forecast Inshore
TonightS winds 15 to 20 kt becoming SW 10 to 15 kt after midnight. Seas 4 to 6 ft. Showers and tstms likely this evening... then scattered showers and tstms after midnight.

ThuSW winds 5 to 10 kt becoming S in the afternoon. Seas 3 to 5 ft subsiding to 2 to 4 ft. A chance of showers and tstms.
Thu NightSW winds 5 to 10 kt. Seas 2 to 3 ft. A chance of showers and tstms.

FriSW winds 10 kt. Seas 2 to 3 ft. A chance of showers and tstms.
Fri NightSW winds 10 to 15 kt. Seas 2 to 3 ft. A chance of showers and tstms.

SatSW winds 10 to 15 kt becoming NW 5 to 10 kt in the afternoon. Seas 2 to 3 ft. A chance of showers and tstms.
Sat NightNE winds 10 to 15 kt. Seas 2 to 4 ft. A chance of showers and tstms.

SunNE winds 10 to 15 kt. Seas 2 to 4 ft.

MonE winds 10 to 15 kt. Seas 2 to 4 ft.

Water temp on the beach
80 degrees F

Conclusion
All weekend looking good No NO really it is

Offshore Marine Forecast
TONIGHT...S WINDS 15 TO 25 KT...EXCEPT 10 TO 15 KT E OF 74W. WINDS BECOMING S 15 TO 25 KT E OF 75W AND SW 10 TO 15 KT W OF 75W LATE. SEAS 4 TO 7 FT. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND TSTMS.
THU...S WINDS 15 TO 25 KT...EXCEPT SW 10 TO 15 KT W OF 74W. SEAS 4 TO 8 FT...HIGHEST E OF 74W. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND TSTMS. .
THU NIGHT...WINDS BECOMING SW 10 TO 20 KT THROUGHOUT. SEAS 4 TO 7 FT. WINDS AND SEAS HIGHEST E. SCATTERED SHOWERS AND TSTMS MAINLY E PORTION. .
FRI...S WINDS 10 TO 15 KT...EXCEPT 15 TO 20 KT E PORTION EARLY. SEAS SUBSIDING TO 3 TO 5 FT. ISOLATED SHOWERS AND TSTMS. .
FRI NIGHT...SW WINDS 10 TO 15 KT. SEAS 3 TO 5 FT. .
SAT...NW PORTION...WINDS SHIFTING TO NE 10 TO 20 KT LATE. SE PORTION...SW WINDS 5 TO 10 KT. SEAS 3 TO 4 FT THROUGHOUT. .
SUN...WINDS BECOMING NE 10 TO 15 KT THROUGHOUT. SEAS 3 TO 4 FT. .
MON...E WINDS 15 TO 20 KT. SEAS BUILDING TO 4 TO 7 FT.

Conclusion
Not horrible but not great
Weekend General Forecast
Wednesday= High of 80 Low of 73 Thunder Storms
Thursday= High 86 Lows of 75Chance of Thunderstorms
Friday = High of 91 Lows of 74 Chance of Thunderstorms
Saturday = High of 88 Lows of 74 Chance of Thunderstorms
Sunday = High of 81 Lows of 69 Partly Cloudy
Monday = High of 81 Lows of 68 Partly Cloudy

Capt. Chris Medlin
East Coast Sports
409 Roland Ave
Po Box 2689
Surf City NC 28445
(910) 328-1887
www.eastcoastsports.com
ecsports@earthlink.net

Didn't fish over the weekend

I heard spots were biting on Surf City Pier over the weekend, along with the regular bag of mullet, spanish, croakers, and of course sharks. Oh yea, BIG sheephead at the turning bridge.

No Luck in the Surf

Caught enough seaweed to have a meal. If I were a vegeterian, I'd have it made. I used sand fleas for bait. Didn't get a bite. Ok, heres the thing. I didn't go out until after 12 noon. Donna wanted to get some sun and I tagged along, but I'm not one to just sit on the beach. So,,,,,I carried my surf rod and hand dug some fleas. As I keep saying, early morning is the time to catch fish. Heard blues, mullet and a few spanish were caught on the Surf City pier today, but I didn't see them. Will probably finish glassin' the floor in my boat tomorrow, then just paint and it will be done. Measured for the transom support brace, and when I get it, I will raise the motor, and I'm done.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSE!!

Hope to see you soon! Prayin for Matt.
Tight Lines!

East Coast Tackle Fishing Report

Didn't fish today. Worked on my boat. Here is the fishing report that I get from Chris at East Coast Sports. Thanks Chris
www.eastcoastsports.com
ecsports@earthlink.net
Surf City Pier = Reports Chopper Blues and 2 kings , 2 Cudas , Spanish. A few Spots and Mullet
Jolly Roger = Spanish lots of blues a few spots and mullet , 1 Tarpon jumped. Big cobia. Lots of Cudas.
Sea View Pier = 3 king a few blues and a couple trout and a mixed bag
Reisley (camp Lejune) . Big Chopper Blues and big Pompano , a few Sea Mullet , and a few small Trout.
Conclusion
Kings at Sea view

Surf
Sand Fleas are now readily avalible
New River Inlet to Surf City Mullet and reds
Surf City to Topsail Beach lots of blues and a few big mullet and some big pompano
Topsail Beach To New Topsail Inlet big Pompano and some big Mullet
Lee island North end Lots of Reds
Conclusion
Mixed Bag
Waterway / inlet
Big sheepshead at the draw bridge
Conclusion
Sheepshead yummm
Inshore 0-20 miles
Tons and Tons of schoolie kings around AR-362 and 7-11and ar-355.
Cobias just off the beach some biguns too.

Conclusion
Try Cobia with live Blues just off the beach AR-360 would be good
The kings love the Manns stretch 25's and the Deep diving Yo-Zuris

Offshore 20 mile- 200 fathoms
Dolphin Dolphin everywhere but not a tuna to be found

BIG RED on Surf City Pier

Hooked a big red from Surf City Pier last night about 1am. Using a 5' boat rod, Penn Peerless 9 bait caster, 15 lb stren, 10', 30lb shock leader, 4/0 circle hook, and a spot head. I have been loosing the big ones, two last night, so I changed my stradegy. When the clicker started, I picked up the rig, but just let it go until the clicker stopped. Then after a second, the fish started it's second run, still with the clicker on. Pulled out probably about 50 yards of line and stopped again. This time I clicked the drive lever and slowly cranked in. As soon as the fish felt pressure, he took off for deep water. My drag was set tight, but he spooled me as if it were nothing. After probabaly a hundred yards, he stopped and I was able to retrieve some line. The fish made three more runs, shorter each time, before I had him at the side of the pier. The fish looked to be over 3 ft long and fat. I had no one to man the net, so I tried to walk him to the beach, hoping to get a mesurement before releasing the big fish. Rough surf and wind made it hard to control him from my perch on the pier. After about 50 ft, he got around a piling and that was that. BUT WHAT FUN!!!

I caught two other puppy drum, under the 18 inch limit and released both unharmed. The two smaller ones hit shrimp and a bottom rig I was using for mullet in the suds near the surf line.

By the way, I caught a dozen nice mullet and croakers, but now that seems not so important.

Most of the anglers were catching a few mullet if they were persistant. There were also a few spanish, and lots of blues. The spanish were caught before dark. And of course, the sharks and the rays are ever present.

Learning to speak Spanish

Spanish are plentiful from the piers. A 16 inch spanish was caught only a third of the way out the pier. They are in really close. I saw a school tearing up bait fish just behind the breakers, but out of reach of my gotcha. At the same time, there were two other schools boiling the surface farther out. I am pretty sure they were spanish, because occasionaly one would break the surface and come completely out of the water. Still, most are being caught early morning or late evening. Blues are still in the water, and are biting most of the day, but better early and late. There are a lot of blues being caught on bottom rigs.

Most anglers are catching their share of mullet in the surf as well as on the pier. The mullets are biting shrimp and sand fleas equally well. There have been some big mullet mixed in with the medium to smaller ones.

I bought my shrimp at One Stop Bait just before the bridge on the right. Really good looking shrimp. Fat and white. Their shrimp is caught daily and really fresh. After you catch your limit, take the cleaned fish to One Stop Restaurant, where you can get it cooked, along with two veggies, for only about $4.00.

If you are hungry for shrimp, check out Batt's Grill. one of the oldest restaurants on the beach. Their shrimp plate is only $4.99 with two veggies and the shrimp are falling off the plate! MMMMMM Good!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!

Another Day, Another Shark

Man, If I could sell those sharks, I could buy me a new penn. Went fishing on the Surf City pier today with my friend Ken. I almost got skunked. I was fishing right beside Ken. I caught one shark. Ken caught 5 mullet, a spot, a hog fish, and 12 sharks. Ain't it funny how that happens?

When you catch those mullet, clean them and take them to One Stop Restaurant. They will cook your catch, furnish two veggies, (I always get French Fries and slaw..good slaw) for 3.99 plus tax. http://www.onestoprestaurant.com/

Got a fishing report today from Capt. Chris Medlin at East Coast Sports. I copied it here for everyone. Go by and see Capt. Chris. He can help you with any thing you need. Tell him FishinTopsail sent you.

Capt Chris says.........Piers

Surf City Pier Reports Chopper Blues and 2 kings and 2 Cobias

Jolly Roger = a few kings lots of blues a few spots and mullet , Tarpon Big cobia.

Sea View Pier = 1 king and a mixed bag

Reisley (camp Lejune) . Big Chopper Blues and big Pompano , a few Sea Mullet , and a few small Trout.

Conclusion

Kings at Sea view



Surf

Sand Fleas are now readily avalible

New River Inlet to Surf City Mullet

Surf City to Topsail Beach lots of blues and a few big mullet

Topsail Beach To New Topsail Inlet big Pompano and some big Mullet

Lee island North end A few Reds

Conclusion

Mixed Bag

Waterway / inlet

A few Sheepshead showing up at the Draw bridge and a few Black drum and a fe Croakers

Conclusion

Sheepshead yummm

Inshore 0-20 miles

Tons and Tons of schoolie kings around AR-362 and 7-11.

Cobias just off the beach some biguns too.



Conclusion

Try Cobia with live Blues just off the beach AR-360 would be good

The kings love the Manns stretch 25's and the Deep diving Yo-Zuris



Offshore 20 mile- 200 fathoms

Wahoo bite has been on at WR-2

East Coast Sports
409 Roland Ave
Po Box 2689
Surf City NC 28445
(910) 328-1887

ecsports@earthlink.net

www.eastcoastsports.com

Maintained By Capt. Chris Medlin

Capt. Chris Medlin
East Coast Sports
409 Roland Ave
Po Box 2689
Surf City NC 28445
(910) 328-1887
www.eastcoastsports.com
ecsports@earthlink.net

Blues, Spanish, Kings, Tarpon

Big fish are biting on surf city pier. An 8 lb and an 11 lb blue. A 17 lb king and a 30 lb king. Another tarpon, 35 lbs. Lots of 1 to 2 lb blues are being caught early morning and about an hour before dark. These blues are hitting gotcha plugs.

Note: I got some gotcha plugs from a friend, and they have red hooks. My friend takes old gotcha's and rebuilds them. The red hooks are really hot, seem to produce more than just regular trebbles. You might give the red hooks a try. Let me know if they work for you.

If you are looking for mullet, they are kinda scarce. But on a good note, the ones being caught are really nice. Up to two pounds! There are a few flounder being caught, but most are too small. Usually by about a half inch. Ain't that the way it goes? Hog fish are plentiful, but not really preferred by most anglers.

So if you want to catch fish from the pier, then go early, fish often, stay late, and fish for the really big ones!


Some nice flounder are being caught in the backwaters off the Intracoastal Waterway. Most biting finger mullet or mud minnows while drifting. I have heard of a few that bit a live shrimp. A young boy fishing near Becky's Creek with a finger mullet missed what I think was a nice blue. His bait was bitten cleanly in half, leaving just the head.

All in all, not so bad for 94 degree days.

Haven't fished in a couple of days

Sorry I haven't posted, but I haven't fished lately. Had some chores to do. Blues are biting on the piers along with a few spanish early, early morning, and about sunset. My friend K caught a nice stringer of mullet Thursday night on the Surf City Pier. Friday night was a bust.

Note: Got to fish early to get'em.

Huge Mullet in Surf

Fishermen are landing huge mullet, 17 to 20 inches long in the surf with sand fleas (mole crabs). You have to find the deep holes and fish the high tide to low. Peel the sides of the sand fleas for the best results, but keep in mind that they don't stay on the hook long if peeled, so check bait often. Early morning fishermen are still landing blues and a few spanish. Mullet along with a mix of blues, hog fish, small croakers, and a few small black drum are showing up at night.

Fish the deep holes in the surf early morning with sand fleas for best results.

55 lb Cobia

A 15 year old fisherman landed a 55 lb cobia on Surf City pier yesterday. The fish was longer than the young man who caught it. There were a couple of spanish caught from the end of the pier, along with several one to two pound blues. Spanish were caught early, just after first light. Blues bit off and on all day, mostly with gotcha plugs, but also on bottom rigs. I caught a few blues, a couple of croakers and a bunch of hog fish. My fishin bud Ken caught blues croakers and hog fish. Everything was on the small side. Weather was sunny and warm. Sea was calm. Winds out of south west.

The One That Got Away...Episode II, Attack of the Unseen Sea Monster.



It happened again. Reel screaming and bent double! Broken line. Didn't see the culprit. I was using a flounder setup with an ounce and a half egg sinker, baited with a spot head. I have added a 10 ft 30 lb shock leader to my penn bait caster. Maybe I'll get him next time.

Grandma is slow..........

But not as slow as the action was tonight on Surf City Pier. Folks were catching a few very small mullet and croaker. I got cut off once, lost my favorite gotcha plug. Cut through my 30 lb leader like it was warm butter. A kid caught a small spanish, too small to keep. "THROW IT BACK"!!!!! I saw one 6 inch black drum, and lots of small sharks. Oh, almost forgot the skates. Wish I could forget them. Rain today, very high humidity. Light wind out of the south-east.

Surf City Pier Fishing Report

SHEEPHEAD

Water is really muddy and full of seaweed following the storm. I saw several big sheephead landed, and 4 more that never made it into the net. There were some small blues, but not many and no spanish or kings. I only saw a couple of small mullet, about 6 to 8 inches long, and one giant pompano. It seems the only thing biting much was hogfish, about hand size.

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY.....



I was using a 6 inch long live bait fish rigged with a slider rig, on my penn baitcasting reel and short, 5 foot, boat rod. The bait clicker on the reel screemed, and I flipped the switch to set the hook. The fish(?) took about 30 yards of line with the drag set strong, then the line snapped. Never saw it, don't know what it was, but must have been big to swallow a 6 inch live fish!

I may go out tonight, high tide is about 6 pm. Check in later.

Blues? Mullets? Not here!

Fished on Surf City pier tonight. Four hours and nothing, not even a nibble. I did see a few, very few crokers, and one blue. But I didn't catchem! Might have been the storm that came through last evening. Water was muddy, and seaweed was everywhere. I guess I can make seaweed salad!

Big "CHOPPER" Blues Everywhere

Lots of blues and lots of Spanish in the morning, mullets off and on. Heard of 1 Cobia and a King. If you want to catch fish, fish early morning. Same on Jolly Rodger pier in Topsail Beach. If you are looking for kings, go to Sea View in North Topsail Beach. They caught 5 this week along with a cobia. There are some big "CHOPPER" blues being caught in the surf on cut bait. Also a few mullets and some big pompano on sand fleas (mole crabs). Heard unconfirmed rumors of trout being caught in the New River and some creeks along the ICW. Everywhere, morning is the most productive time.

Huge Blues on Surf City Pier

Up to 8 lbs. Also a few spanish. Keeper flounder are biting mud minnows. One fisherman caught 5 keepers along with some throw backs. A few mullet at night, but not the numbers one would expect for this time of year. Water temp is 72, today was clear and warm, mid 80's. Wind South at 10-12 knots.

I got the Blues

Everyone is catching early morning blues on got-cha plugs. My friend Bill got cut off four times this morning. Blues are going up to about two pounds. Today is the first time this year I have seen finger mullet schooling near the shore in Becky's Creek. Would have been easy to get with cast net. Some mullets at night. Let's go fishing!

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Back in Action

I haven't posted recently due to the illness and passing of my beloved sister, Cindy. God Bless you Cindy, Rest in Peace.

Blues are everywhere on the beach. Surf City pier fishermen are catching tons of them early in the morning. I heard a king was caught yesterday. Spanish are being caught in good numbers early morning. Mullets are in most every day, but they are streaky. Is "streaky" a real word? Jolly Rodger fishermen are catching lots of blues and spanish, also in the morning. Mid day and afternoon fishermen are catching some mullets. And of course, sharks and skates are everywhere. Haven't seen much from the surf, but I haven't fished the surf a lot. I have heard of some large mullet and a few huge pompano in the surf.

Spring has Sprung

MULLETS ARE EVERYWHERE! BLUES ARE IN! FIRST SPANISH OF THE YEAR CAUGHT AT JOLLY RODGER!

New Restaurant

Be on the lookout for a new eating establishment scheduled to open in May. It will be owned and operated by my good friend Yogi. You may know Yogi from Paliottis in North Topsail Beach. Believe me, there is no better steak than one cooked by Yogi. Yogi's new restaurant will be located in Holly Ridge on Highway 17. Check it out, you won't be sorry!

Monday night fishing

The mullets were biting really good on the Surf City Pier tonight. They started about dark. My friend K and I fished until after 11pm. We caught half a five gallon bucket of nice mullet. Most were about a pound I think. Don't have a count. I will have one tomorrow when I clean them. I have them on ice. They were biting shrimp about half way out the pier. One light pole past the drink machine to be exact. There were several fishermen and fisherladies and all were catching their share.

where did they go

Been fishin several times since I caught the mullets. Nothin but sharks and skates. I did see a few blues, small, but at least they are coming back. Water temp still 60 with winds out of the north and north east. High was about 70 today. Water was cloudy, not muddy or clear, just cloudy. Too dirty for blues, not dirty enough for mullet. Till next time......

They're here! Mullets are back.

After a week of fishing, catching nothing but sharks and skates, finally there is dinner on the table. I caught 10 mullet today from Surf City Pier. Six were real nice, about a pound each. I cleaned 'em and put 'em in the freezer. I gave the rest to another fisherman who wanted the smaller mullets. I used shrimp for bait, and had to throw way out. Didn't bite for me in close. I fished on the north side about half way out. The tide was almost full high when I started fishing. Not sure about the temp, but it was chilly. I wore a sweat shirt to keep warm. Water temp acording to WECT was 59 degrees today. Barometer was 30.24. A kid on the pier had a bucket full of sand fleas. The first I have seen this spring. Next time I fish, I will have a few for bait. There were sharks, and a lot of skates caught.

Tuesday Night

Fished about a half day today. Caught plenty of skates, a couple of stingray, slicks, (I believe they may be cod) and a half dozen sharks (dog fish). Didn't see any fish except the above. Beautiful day, wore t-shirt until about 6:45, then put on sweatshirt. Supposed to be sunny tomorrow.

Tuesday

No fishing last few days. Storms, wind, and rain. Much rain. Today is nice and sunny, no wind. GOIN' FISHIN'
Johnny

Saturday

Water temp 50 degrees. The first mullet of the year on Surf City Pier was caught yesterday by a 15 year old boy. Reports are he caught 6 more! Fishin is coming, but water is still too cold for good numbers. Beautiful day today. High in 70s and clear. Calling for rain tonight and early Easter Sunday. Worked on my fishing rods today. I have many that need work.

TGI Friday

Didn't get to fish today. To busy with honey-do's. Will post report when I get one. Temp today was 72 with clear to partly cloudy skys. Weather for Saturday from WECT-TV Chanel 6. "Hi all from George Elliott at WECT-TV. Here's my weekend outlook... Mostly to partly cloudy tonight; low 53. Wind becoming N-NE 6-12 mph. Mostly cloudy Sat., slim shower chance late; high mid to upper 60's. NE wind 6-12 mph. Cloudy, chance of rain developing Sat. night (esp. late); low 54. Rain with a possible thunderstorm Sunday; high mid to upper 60's."

Found a used tiller handle for my boat in excellent condition. Installed it this morning. Works great. The boat is about ready to go. Just need to hook up the lights.

Thursday at Surf City Pier

Did not fish or post Wed. as I had a bad migraine. I fished Thursday morning at Surf City Pier, caught a huge skate. No other bites. Some folks were catching sharks and skates near the end of the pier, We were fishing in the suds. Thought maybe the water was a touch warmer. Last report I got was 56 degree water. Looking for Sun and South wind to warm the water. Left the pier about 12:30, first mullet still has not been reported from pier.

Tuesday

Didn't fish today, got reports of skates and small sharks taken from Surf City Pier. No reports from surf.

Monday, Monday

Didn't fish today. Reports of small sharks and skates. Nothing in the surf. Small puppy drum in the creeks.

Lost Sunday

Did not fish today. Had a migrane. Maybe tomorrow

Saturday's gone with the wind

Didn't fish today. Helped my neighbor work on his camper. I heard that as of noon the first mullet had not been caught on the pier. I did hear that a couple of skates had been landed. Wind was much better today, at least off the beach.

First Mullet? Not today

Surf City Pier opened today. Went out about 10 am and stayed until 1 pm. There were about 20 fisher-persons out there, all looking for the season's first mullet. The first one wins a season pass! I had intended to stay all day, but the wind and the cold won out. I found myself thinking, "I wish someone would catch that mullet, so I can leave." Man it was cold, with a few sprinkles. Not enough to get wet. May try again later this afternoon.

Rain, Rain

Raining today at Surf City. Normally I would don my rain gear and hit the beach. But it is also cold and windy. No one is at the Surf City Pier or on the beach. Temp is in the low 40's. Water temp is 47, still rather low. Come on SOUTH WIND! Wind out of the south will warm the water, and that is what we need. This will be a good day to go to East Coast and talk to Capt Chris and browse their new fishing lures for this season. Capt. Chris says we now have money to dredge ou least twce. Check out Frying Pan Towers for thier report. http://www.fryingpantower.com/modules.php?name=Save_The_Inlets
East Coast Sports http://www.eastcoastsports.com/index2.ivnu

Be patient. Spring is coming!

Plugging the day away

Went fishing on the Surf City pier today. Plugged with a red head gotcha for about an hour. Also had a bottom rig with shrimp in the water. Nothing on eigher. Met another fisherman, Hal from Stuart VA. and he had the same luck, nothing. Winds out of the east were cold and gusty. But it felt good to have a line in the water again.

New Carolina Skiff

Went boating with my friend K today. Maiden voyage for his new boat, a 19 ft Carolina Skiff DLX. Plenty of room and the Suzuki 80 hp pushed her at a nice clip. Handles like a dream, really well for a flat bottom skif. Weather was clear and winds were calm when we launched her at the Surf City Park ramp. By the time we made it back to the ramp the winds had picked up and the ICW was quite choppy.

Stay tuned for more.

M index 3 am and 6 pm

March Winds

So far this March has been so windy that launching the boat is next to impossible. Don't even think about fishing. Maybe the winds will die down before I forget HOW to fish!

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