Reds schooling back in creeks; trout being caught around bridges
Redfish and speckled trout are biting well in the creeks along the Intracoastal Waterway from Ocean Isle Beach across the state line to Dunn Sound. Limits are being filled daily, with fishermen typically also releasing several dozen keeper-size fish and a few undersize yearlings.
Capt. Mark Dickson of Shallow Minded Guide Service said the inshore fishing was great the first week of December and doesn’t look to be slowing anytime soon. Unless there is a major change in the weather, there is no reason to expect the good fishing to slow any time soon.
“I thought our summer fishing was good, but this fall, the trout and redfish have been biting really well,” Dickson said. “Sure, some days have been better than others, but most of them have been good. The main catches are redfish and trout, but we are still catching a few flounder.”
Dickson (843-458-3055) said redfish are still being caught from backwater creeks all the way out to the Little River jetties, but they are starting to gather more in schools in pockets back in the marsh. Reds have been biting best when presented with a struggling live minnow or shrimp, but they are hitting a variety of soft plastics as well.
“There are trout around most of the bridges, along the jetties at Little River Inlet and along many of the banks with good structure,” Dickson said. “One of the popular places is along the riprap at the entrance to Coquina Harbour Marina, but there are other similar spots in the Calabash River and around Tilghman’s Point.”
Dickson said a surefire way to catch trout has been to suspend a live shrimp just off the bottom under a float. Trout will move up and down the bank or around the pilings, but they always seem to find that struggling shrimp. Trout are also hitting scented soft-plastic baits; MirrOlures aren’t producing as many fish, but they’re fooling bigger ones.
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