Jeff Wolfe of Seahawk Inshore Fishing Charters of Carolina Beach said red drum action in shallow water currently is a hot item at the southeast coast.
“We’re catching redfish at the bays on the flats,” said Wolfe (910- 619-9580, www.seahawkinshorefishingcharters.com).
And these aren’t small “puppies” but upper-slot (18- to 27-inches long) fish and bigger drum.
“We’ve been catching a lof of 26- to 27-inchers, a few 28s or 29s,” Wolfe said. “I caught a 32-inch red on a topwater plug last week.”
Lures of choice have been Zara Spook Jrs. and Super Spooks.
“The bite has been going on most of the day,” Wolfe said. “The weather is hot and windy, but we’ve even been catching them on top in the middle of the day.”
Wolfe’s 15-year-old son, Christian, also has been guiding redfish clients. Novice anglers who can’t properly handle a topwater lure have been using grubs with soft-plastic tails and “wearing them out,” Wolfe said.
A lot of baitfish (mullets) are present, and their presence has caused the reds to be extremely aggressive.
“Christian has seen fish jumping out of the water, attacking schools of baitfish,” Wolfe said.
Flounder fishing also remains hot while speckled trout fishing has tailed off a little.
“September is usually a good month for speck fishing when the water cools down,” Wolfe said.
During a recent trip, Wolfe’s clients caught 12 red drum, four flounder and four trout, he said.
“Tarpon fishing still is going on in the creek channels, particularly Muddy Slough north of Bald Head (Island),” Wolfe said. “But you have to do a lot of waiting (for a tarpon bite) and I’d rather be catching reds. Twenty-plus fish days are hard to turn down.”
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