When Spring arrives in North Carolina the waters around Sunset Beach are the usually the first to warm up. This is the time that a strong bite will pick up for red and black drum as well as some hold-over speckled trout. According to the calendar the first day of Spring is March 20^th but with the global climate sceneria – who knows? The winter may come early here. Regardless, we have been blessed with runs of several days of warm climate throughout January and early February. In my kayak, I haven’t seen water temperatures less than 53 degrees yet. We can expect that the water may well begin to warm by early March. That means that red and black drum in particular, and trout to some degree will begin to feed more aggressively.

Austin Kerr of Fellowship Charters in Ocean Isle Beach fishes from the Shallotte River to Little River lnlet. He believes that as the water warms and the fish are not yet “Summer-active” that the best times to fish are a few hours around the change of tide when the current isn’t running strong. Our guess speaker last month, Captain Jacob Frick of J&J Inshore Charters, voiced the same opinion. Kerr believes that water clarity is an advantage and likes to concentrate on oyster beds and docks in the creeks and waterway and sometimes the jetties in the Little River lnlet. Both red and black drum like pieces of shrimp on jigheads. Red drum are more aggressive and will chase down mud minnows, so mud minnows fished on Carolina rigs work well too. Scented artificial baits are often successful but sometimes the fish get very particular about the color. Kerr has everyone on the boat begin with a different color and keeps changing them until they find the right one (the ‘Couleur du Jour‘ if you will). Different days – different colors. Kerr recommends 3 and 4-inch paddletails fished slowly with light jigheads.

If you are interested in charter fishing, feel contact anyone of our contributors:

Captain Austin Kerr, Fellowship Charters, 336-941-7292

Captain Jacob Frick, J&J Inshore Charters, 803-315-3310

Captain Tim DeSano, Tideline Charters, 910-279-2020

Captain Tripp Hook, Capt’n Hook Outdoors, 910-540-7332

Captain Forest David, Follow Me Charters, 910-612-5343