Soaking baits in the surf

NC’s southern coast is a hidden gem for surf anglers

While surf fishing along the southern N.C. Coast isn’t generally considered to be as good as at the Outer Banks, a growing number of fishermen pursue it regularly

and with good success. Capt. Stuart Caulder is one of the fishermen. Caulder is much better known for running Gold Leader Guide Service (www.facebook.com/goldleaderfishing, 910-264-2674) in the Cape Fear River area. But he enjoys a bit of his free time chasing pompano, whiting, red drum, trout and more along the beaches from Topsail Island to Fort Fisher.

Caulder said his favorite surf fishing spot around home is the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area. Four miles of beach are open to 4-wheel drive vehicles between the beach recreation area and the site of the former Corncake/New Inlets. This is the longest stretch of drivable beach in southern N.C. without houses. And Caulder said it is usually possible to find a spot without folks immediately beside you and that has the surf features that hold fish. It also helps that it’s close enough for he and his wife to enjoy a few hours of fishing in the afternoon after work. Begging your pardon Captain, but this sounds a lot like a busman’s holiday for an inshore guide.

“We’ve got a lot of variety in the surf and fish are there almost all year,” Caulder said. “At different times of the year we’ll see pompano, whiting, spots, croakers, red drum, black drum, speckled trout, gray trout, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, occasionally a sheepshead or two and more. Earlier this summer, pods of tarpon were moving by just beyond the outside bar and just out of casting range. Most of these fish are here through the fall until the water starts to really chill.”

Baiting up

Caulder said his favorite bait is live sand fleas that he digs from the water’s edge where he is fishing. He added that these don’t have much scent while alive, and many of the fish in the surf zone use their sense of smell to help locate food. So he tips the hook with a little piece of Fishbites or FishGum. These slowly dissolve in the water and give off scent that helps attract fish. He also fishes with pieces of shrimp, minnows and cut bait at times. He said sometimes whiting prefer pieces of fresh shrimp.

“As for where to fish, I look for different things depending on the stage of the tide,” Caulder said. “Many places will hold fish when the tide is high. But I look for a place with an opening in the outer bar. This is a place that will have a rip current and it’s also where larger fish go and come across the outer bar. As the tide gets closer to low tide, I look for a place the outer bar is closer and where I can cast across it.”

Rig it right

Caulder said having the right equipment goes a long way toward making your surf fishing successful. He said that sometimes a long cast is needed to get across the outer bar. And sometimes a short cast works. Adding to that, he pointed out that it is easy to make a short cast with a long rod, but impossible to make a long cast with a short rod. He uses a mixture of TFO Tactical Surf Rods in 10-foot, 6-inch, to 12 foot lengths. These rods have Penn Slammer 5500 reels loaded with either 15- or 20-pound test Spiderwire Ultracast braided line and topped with a 15-foot section of 40-pound test Berkley ProSpec Chrome mono line as a shock leader to absorb the stress of casting.

Caulder believes rigs can make a difference in getting strikes or not, so he makes his own. Most are double-drop rigs with the sinker on the bottom and the drops above. Some are plain, some have small floats to hold the bait up a little and some have beads to help hold the bait down in stronger currents. The drops end in 2/0 circle hooks.

Caulder also makes drum rigs that have short, 3-inch, leaders from the sinker to an 8/0 circle hook. This helps prevent deep hooking and makes for easier and quicker releases of over-slot drum. He keeps at least one rod rigged with a 2-ounce jig so he can quickly cast to schools of Spanish mackerel and bluefish that move up and down the beach just beyond the outer bar.

Prized pompano

“Pompano are one of our favorite fish and many fish, especially pompano, move with the tide,” Caulder said. “At high tide on a calm day, they may literally be just beyond your feet. Many fish feed where the farthest out wave breaks and churns up the bottom as this bounces things they like to eat up in the water. This means that when there are really small waves, they’re feeding really close – sometimes closer than you can imagine. Then, as the tide falls, they move out a little into the trough between the beach and the outer bar. At the lowest tide, they usually move out between the bars and feed where the farthest out wave breaks on the outer bar.”

Caulder said the middle of the tide can be the most challenging time to locate where the fish are feeding. They may be at the base of the slope off the beach or in the deeper water just before reaching the outer bar. They may also be along the edges of where there is an opening in the bar and water is flowing in and out. He said he begins at this tide stage by casting a bait or two to each of these locations and then concentrating on where he receives the most strikes.

While the areas you can drive on the beach in southern N.C. are limited, they hold access to surf fishing that can be surprisingly good at times. Caulder said one of the key skills fishermen can learn is the ability to read the water. Once able to read the water, fishermen can spot the places Caulder mentions that fish are likely to be holding. With baits cast in the right direction, and at the right locations, the number of strikes increases, and so do the number of fresh fish dinners.

Driving on southern NC beaches is limited

Unlike the Outer Banks from Central N.C. to the Virginia state line, driving on the beach is severely limited from Topsail Island to the NC/SC state line. None of the beaches from Cape Fear to South Carolina allow it at all. This includes Bald Head Island, Caswell Beach, Oak Island, Holden Beach, Ocean Isle Beach and Sunset Beach. Pleasure Island (Carolina Beach, Kure Beach and Fort Fisher) allows a little at Freeman Park on the north end in Carolina Beach and on the Fort Fisher State Recreation Area at the southern end of the island. Daily, weekly and annual beach driving permits can be purchased for these areas.

Masonboro Island and the now conjoined Lea and Hutaff Islands have no vehicle access and don’t allow beach driving. Wrightsville Beach and Figure Eight Island, which is private, don’t allow beach driving either. The different municipalities on Topsail Island (North Topsail Beach, Surf City and Topsail Beach) have varying specifics on beach driving. North Topsail Beach allows some limited beach driving during the summer season. But Surf City and Topsail Beach only allow it during the off season and primarily for fishing.

Beach Driving Permits for Freeman Park are available at the entrance to the park on the north end of Carolina Beach. A certain number of vehicles are allowed each day, and capacity is reached many days, especially on weekends and holidays. Four wheelers wishing to access the four miles of beach at Fort Fisher State Recreation Area must purchase their pass from the park office at 1000 Loggerhead Road. More information is available at https://www.carolinabeach.org/visitors/freeman-park and https://www.ncparks.gov/state-parks/fort-fisher-state-recreation-area.

Beach driving permits for Surf City are available through the Police Chief, while permits for Topsail Beach must be picked up at City Hall. No joy riding is allowed on these beaches. Beach access for vehicles is only allowed for those actively engaged in fishing. More information is available at https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/surfcity/latest/surfcity_nc/0-0-0-604#JD_Ch.4Art.II and https://topsailbeachnc.gov/Residents/Beach-Driving-Permits.

North Topsail Beach allows driving on the beach all year, but the area is limited to two access points on the north end of Topsail Island. More information is available at https://www.northtopsailbeachnc.gov/community/page/4×4-permissible-driving-area.