Mixing it up – The waters north of North Carolina’s Bald Head Island are a winter inshore hot spot

Scrappy, slot-sized red drum are part of the allure of the marshes and bays between Fort Fisher and Bald Head Island, which are full of fish during the winter.

For a mixed bag of trout, reds and black drum, there’s no place better this month than the bays, creeks and marshes north of Bald Head Island

Running through the Basin and Second Bay to the creeks beyond Buzzard Bay, Christian Wolfe of Seahawk Inshore Charters weaved his bay boat around submerged mud and oyster rocks and through marsh islands like there were highway markers and a dotted center-line.

Wolfe wanted to start the morning in the back of the creeks behind Bald Head Island because the water would be warmer there, explaining that a big part of winter fishing success was finding fish in water warm enough they would be feeding. Starting into a sweeping turn, he chopped the throttle to set the boat down quickly and not push a wake up the next section of the creek. Stepping forward, he slipped the trolling motor over and said it would be stealth mode from here in.

Two turns later, Wolfe eased to one side and set the Power-Pole. He passed out medium-light spinning outfits rigged with 3-inch Gulp shrimp and said to cast up the creek to just off the far bank, to let the bait settle and then lightly twitch the rod tip and let the falling tide push the bait down the creek.

After several casts, Wolfe’s rod tip twitched ever so slightly, and he set the hook. The rod pulsed and after a short fight, he led a speckled trout to the boat, lifted the fish in, quickly popped the hook and slipped it back over the side.

“Well, it doesn’t appear they have grown any since I was in here a few days go,” Wolfe said, chuckling. “Cast up where that little piece juts out off the bank and let your bait settle all the way to the bottom, then twitch it real lightly. There’s a hole there, so it takes a second to get to the bottom. Let’s see if this was a single or part of a school.”

The shrimp landed right on target and a trout grabbed it as it sank. This speck was a keeper at 16 inches, but it wasn’t on the dinner menu and was quickly released.

The trout were feeding but weren’t energetic in the cold water. Their bites were just slight ticks, and none had taken more than a couple of feet of line, even with the light drag Wolfe was using to avoid pulling hooks. Suddenly, one of the reels squealed as a larger fish surged down the middle of the creek, pulling line.

“If that’s a trout, it’s a nice one,” Wolfe said. “It’s probably a drum that came to check out why these trout were getting fired up, but maybe not. We’ve caught a few nice trout during the pretty weather lately.”

The fish flashed, and stripes shone a few inches below the surface. Wolfe identified it as a black drum, grabbed his net to scoop it up, quickly unhooked and released it.

The drum scooted away and Wolfe said it is unusual to catch black drum on artificials. He said they will sometimes pick up a soft plastic, especially a scented one, but he had brought shrimp and planned to use them for black drum at another spot later in the morning.

When the trout bite slowed, Wolfe moved to another spot to see if the puppy drum had arrived. He scanned the water and didn’t see any telltale pushes of drum lunging after baits, but he was confident in the area and felt drum were there or would arrive soon.

“There should be drum somewhere along this grass line back into that pocket,” Wolfe said, pointing to a marsh corner a hundred yards behind the boat. “Sometimes they are out here, and sometimes they are along that back grass line. We’re going to start out here and work our way in slowly and try not to spook them.

“Throw again and fish it just like for the trout,” Wolfe said. “There isn’t much current here, so you’ll control the retrieve speed. Move it slow. These baits have scent, and letting that spread in the water helps, too. Even though the sun is out and the day is warming up, the water is cold, and the fish are moving slow, so don’t rush. I’m pretty sure there are drum here, and they’ll bite when we locate them.”

Wolfe positioned the boat so casts could reach the back of a pocket, then he leaned back into a hookset, and a small wake peeled off his line as it raced down the bank. Twenty yards down the bank, the fish rolled and flashed the deep copper hue of the redfish that winter in the marsh. Another short run and several rolls later, Wolfe led the tired pup to his landing net, scooped it up, slipped the hook from its jaw and leaned over the side of the boat to release it.

“Let’s see who else is home,” Wolfe said, firing another cast to the same spot. “They aren’t always in schools here, but when you find one, there are usually a few more.”

Several casts later, Wolfe connected again, and the scenario repeated itself. The drum weren’t spooky and provided tight lines for a while as the tide continued to fall until he had to leave the area or risk getting stuck.

Leaving the reds, Wolfe headed for a spot to try for black drum. He worked through a creek to a corner that looked like most of the others, but he said had a deeper section and should be holding black drum. Wolfe switched everyone to medium-action outfits with Carolina rigs and wide-gap circle hooks.

The baits were cast to the outside of the creek bends, and reactions came quickly. There were black drum, a couple of red drum and one hearty croaker in that hole. None of the black drum were huge, but several were in the upper half of the slot. They fought well, too, pulling drag and bending rods deeply.

Wolfe watched the bank closely as the tide fell and announced it was time to go one more place before calling it a day. He had been waiting for the sun to shine on the edge of an oyster bar and get the fish moving, with trout the primary target but reds and maybe even a flounder a possibility.

Wolfe’s timing was excellent; the falling tide was running, and the big oyster rock showed a rip across the front and moving down one side.

“Cast right up there to where the water pushes off the forward edge,” Wolfe said. “The current rolls off there and tumbles down this side, carrying any bait unlucky enough to be caught in it. There isn’t much bait during the winter, so the fish gather here to feed. Let your shrimp drift all the way down it as there are several places the fish hide out of the current to watch and grab something they want.”

The fish were there and were feeding, leading to a steady bite for specks from about 12 to 16 inches. The fish had warmed enough to be feeding, but they weren’t attacking the baits. The bites were little ticks like those first thing in the morning, but they were there when the hook was set.

When the day finally ended, everything caught had been released, but limits of trout and reds had been released, along with a few black drum. The fish in the marshes and creeks off the lower Cape Fear River often get active and feed aggressively when warm weather arrives for a few days. Wolfe knows their favorite bars and invites himself and friends.


DESTINATION INFORMATION

HOW TO GET THERE — The lower Cape Fear River is most-easily accessed from a public boat ramp at Fort Fisher at the end of US 421, a public ramp at Carolina Beach and a public ramp on Fish Factory Road in Southport. I-40, US 74, US 17 and US 421 will get you in the immediate area from most parts of North Carolina.

WHEN TO GO — Red drum and speckled trout are in the marshes and creeks of the lower Cape Fear River year-round. In the winter, drum will typically be on the flats and trout in deeper water. Try to fish sunny days and fish later in the day when the sun has had a chance to warm the water and make fish more active.

BEST TECHNIQUES — Light- to medium-action spinning tackle is the typical go-to tackle for reds and trout. Spool reels with mono or braid in 8- to 15-pound test, with a 15- to 18-inch leader of 15- to 20-pound fluorocarbon. By February, mud minnows are the only live baits available. They and pieces of shrimp can be fished on Carolina rigs; black drum will hit shrimp. Fish will also respond well to soft-plastics, especially scented ones. The 3-inch Gulp shrimp in white, pearl or glow colors are local favorites.

FISHING INFO/GUIDES — Christian Wolfe, Seahawk Inshore Fishing Charters, www.seahawkinshorefishingcharters.com,  910-619-5053; Island Tackle and Hardware, Carolina Beaach, 910-458-3049, www.islandtackleandhardware.com; Tex’s Tackle, Wilmington, 910-791-1763, www.texstackle.com. See also Guides and Charters in Classifieds.

ACCOMMODATIONS — inMainStay Suites, WIlmington, 910-392-1714, www.mainstainwilmingtonnc.com; Sleep Inn, Wilmington, 910-313-6664, www.sleepinwilmingtonnc.com; Pleasure Island Chamber of Commerce, 910-458-8434, www.pleasaureislandnc.org

MAPS — Capt. Segull’s Nautical Charts, 888-473-4855, www.captainsegullcharts.com; Sealake Fishing Guides, 800-411-0185, www.thegoodspots.com; GMCO’s Chartbook of North Carolina, 888-420-6277, www.gmcomaps.com.

About Jerry Dilsaver 1168 Articles
Jerry Dilsaver of Oak Island, N.C., a full-time freelance writer, is a columnist for Carolina Sportsman. He is a former SKA National Champion and USAA Angler of the Year.

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