After a long illness, the Sea Trail Fishing Club has lost one of their most cherished and respected members. Larry Hershoff was one of the first members in our organization and a member of our Finance Team. Larry has fished with more than a few of you and was also active in the local government in Sunset Beach, the Sea Trail Men’s Golf Association and several other ad hoc groups such as Thursday Evening Bridge. A loved and respected member, Larry will be missed.
MOREHEAD CITY – The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries will close all Coastal and Joint fishing waters in North Carolina to both commercial and recreational Spotted Seatrout harvest at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, due to widespread cold stun events.
Cold stuns are natural events that occur when there is a sudden drop in water temperature or prolonged periods of cold weather that makes the fish sluggish. Many fish will die from the cold. Others fall prey to birds and other predators. Studies suggest that cold stun events can have a significant impact on Spotted Seatrout populations.
The Division has confirmed significant Spotted Seatrout cold stun events in 10 waterbodies, from Hyde County to Pender County. The Division is still receiving and verifying more cold stun reports and collecting associated environmental data. These efforts will continue regardless of the closure so the Division can measure the magnitude of the cold stun event to evaluate how to protect the stock.
Amendment 1 to the N.C. Spotted Seatrout Fishery Management Plan specifies that if a significant cold stun event occurs, the Division of Marine Fisheries will close all Spotted Seatrout harvests through the spring.
The intent of the closure is to allow the surviving fish a chance to spawn in the spring before harvest reopens. Peak spawning occurs from May through July.
The Spotted Seatrout season will remain closed through June 30, when it will reopen by proclamation.
Commercial seafood dealers have until 3:30 p.m., Friday, Feb. 13, 2026, to sell, offer for sale, transport or otherwise dispose of any unfrozen Spotted Seatrout that remain in their possession from purchases made prior to the closure.
The Sea Trail Fishing Club Board of Directors welcomes its new members:
Sergeant at Arms – Sanford “Sandy” Herman
My background includes past owner of a Financial Services Company and Real Estate Broker of New York and No. Carolina; with many years of a community service National Scholarship Program. I’m an Army veteran, proud husband to Beverly, father and grandfather. Upon becoming semi-retired we moved here to Sea Trail, Sunset Beach in February 2022. I learned fishing as a Boy Scout and has been one of my joys in life since. My favorite is big game fishing and most enjoy offshore trips. Upon learning of the Sea Trail Fishing Club I joined that month, as I wanted to learn about the 5 major fish that thrive here in the Intercoastal Waterway. I look forward to working with the STFC Board and help make the club flourish over the next few years. I’m excited to learn and fish this area, while making new friends and fellow anglers.
Member at Large – Mike Sutton
I was born in the foothills of western NC and grew up fishing the Yadkin River, Wilson’s Creek, John’s River and countless smaller creeks from Caldwell County to Asheville NC.
I spent decades as a firefighter at Patterson Fire Department, rising to the level of Assistant Fire Chief. I joined the Lenoir Police Department where I served as a patrol officer. I retired after being shot in the line of duty.
My wife and I owned and operated a horse farm for many years before selling it and moving to the beach. We love surf fishing and taking our 18′ bay boat out on the ICW.
I look forward to serving on the Sea Trail Fishing Club board.
If you recognize one of these guys, please offer your thanks for their efforts to make Sea Trail Fishing Club a success!
A Seafood Potluck and the 2nd Annual Seafood Challenge were both held jointly at the Pink Palace in the Sunset Beach Sea Trail Plantation on November 15th.
About 45 members and guests of the Sea Trail Fishing Club enjoyed the potluck and provided side dishes, entrees, and desserts. The Club also provided a shrimp boil.
In addition, seven members provided entries to the Seafood Challenge. Recipes of several of the entrees are listed below. The competition was won by Alan Trojan for his ‘Okra Gumbo’, who was awarded the Golden Spoon. The Golden Spoon award was conceived by Laurie Thomas Vaas and as a perpetual award for years to come.
I squeezed out second-place finish with a Shrimp Slider entry, but judging was close and all of the entries were superb!
At our October monthly meeting Jesse Bissett discussed the Mandatory Reporting Program of NC Division of Marine Fisheries. Here is a synopsis of the presentation.
Please plan to attend our monthly meetings.
Jessie began by explaining the background behind the upcoming NC mandatory requirement to report all fish harvests (catch and keep) of the five targeted species including Red Drum, Speckled Trout, Striped Bass, Flounder, and Weakfish in coastal, joint, and shared NC waters. He explained that while the program may not please the sport fisheries / fisherpersons, it was intended to help the State establish programs to ensure sustainable populations of the targeted species are maintained.
Key points to Jessie’s presentation include:
✴ The program will be phased in starting in December 2025. Any harvests of the 5 targeted species must be reported before leaving the dock via cell phone and failure to do so may result in a verbal warning if cited. Starting December 1, 2026, the warning will be written, and starting December 1, 2027, a fine of $35 plus court costs may be levied.
✴ If a cell phone is not available, a paper form must be filled in upon returning home and hand delivered to NC DNR. There are no provisions to mail in the forms and there is currently no app available to facilitate reporting.
✴ Required reporting only includes identified species that are kept, not those returned to the water.
✴ If landing in NC, all fish, regardless of State where caught, must be reported.
At the conclusion of the presentation, a brief question and answer session was held with many members expressing their doubts around the feasibility or reasonableness of the Mandatory Harvest Reporting Program. While the members appreciated the reasoning behind the Program, as structured, they questioned the accuracy of results and the sustainability of the Program.
—- Thanks to our Secretary Jim Baumgartner for recording these salinet points!
Sea Trail Fishing Club 