July 2014 Archives - Page 2 of 7

Insecticide treatments are often necessary to protect wildlife food plots.

Check plots for insect damage

Warm-season food plots are challenged every day from weedy invaders, over-grazing and insects. Everything wants a piece of a field full of nutritious soils and palatable plants. […]

Red drum aren’t shy about crashing topwater plugs, but the position of their mouth on the bottom of their head often results in misses instead of hookups.

Fishing Topwaters

Jerry Dilsaver

Nothing in fishing compares to an aggressive strike on a topwater lure. Fish lunge at them, swipe at them and sometimes even knock them completely out of the water. […]

Bass pro Davy Hite tends to use extremely large baits when he’s bass fishing at night.

While fishermen have equated big baits with big bass for years, bass pro Davy Hite of Ninety Six takes this to a different level by using worms and soft plastics that start at 10 inches when he takes to Lake Murray’s waters after dark. […]

The New River’s fishery is among the best along all of North Carolina’s coastline for redfish, trout and flounder.

New River is a unique coastal estuary

Jerry Dilsaver

There are two New Rivers in North Carolina; one wanders through the mountains in the northwestern corner of the state, and the other begins and ends within the boundaries of Onslow County on the coast. […]

Good electronics are essential for navigation and keeping tabs on baitfish during after-dark bass-fishing expeditions.

After-dark electronics are particularly important

Pete Rogers

Good depth-finding equipment is critical to bass fishermen who spend time on lakes at night. […]

A big circle hook and a length of heavy, monofilament leader are standard on shark rigs used by kayak fishermen.

Rigging for sharks

Phillip Gentry

Brad Knight has a pretty standard setup for rigging for sharks when fishing from his kayak. It works, and it’s strong — strong enough that he boated a 140-pound class tarpon three years ago while fishing for sharks. […]

Small spinning lures such as Beetle Spins are deadly on Edisto River sunfish, especially redbreasts. Ultralight spinning tackle makes casting easier and makes the fights memorable.

Dance a jig for Edisto bass

Brian Cope

One of Billy Garner’s favorite ways to catch largemouth bass on the Edisto River is a dying art that many of today’s anglers have never heard of, much less tried. […]

Billy Garner’s jiggerpoling technique catches plenty of Edisto River largemouth bass, and his wood-strip boats are perfect vessels for that style of fishing.

A vote for wooden boats

Brian Cope

“You can do anything out of an aluminum boat or fiberglass boat that you can do from a wooden boat,” said Billy Garner of Ridgeville, “but the nostalgia anda beauty of a wooden boat are what attract most people to strip boats.” […]

Wes Barbour catches plenty of speckled trout along spoil islands, created by a dredging the Cape Fear River shipping channel.

Spoil island specks

Craig Holt

It seems odd to find spotted seatrout 10 miles north of the mouth of the Cape River and approximately 3 miles inland from the Atlantic Ocean, but that’s possible near Carolina Beach. […]

Redbreast sunfish seem to be recovering on the Edisto River after a few down years, according to fishermen and the SCDNR.

Redbreast comeback in full swing

Brian Cope

The S.C. Department of Natural Resources stocks redbreast sunfish in several rivers, including the Edisto, which has been stocked annually since 1995. […]