Special 9-hour Offshore Bottom Fishing Excursion

A special 9-hour Offshore Bottom Fishing Excursion targeting Red Snapper is being offered on the Fish Screamer 3 for October 22nd out of Little River. This 41-foot custom fiberglass fishing boat is approved for up to 18 passengers, but this special trip will only be taking 10-11 anglers, so apply early! The 30 to 35 mile travel time out and back will be spent dry and relatively comfortable in an area under cover and partially enclosed. All tackle and bait are included as is Captain Danny’s multiple generations of local experience.Captain Danny’s run a first class operation and provide different types of fresh bait. Individual fishing rods are permitted.The discount cost will be $180 per person. 

Sea Trail Fishing Club members will be given first priority but non-members will be considered on a space-available, first call basis. Tips to the crew are not included.

Please call Andrew at 410-404-0972 for reservations or more information.

Where have all the Fish Gone?

Although I usually refrain from political issues, its the fishing issues that concern me and probably ls the most concern to our members.

In the recent September 17th issue of The Brunswock Beacon Coluimnist Tom Campbell wrote “Time to fix our ‘fishy’ regulations”. It is a great article and, yes, if you hurry, copies are still available on the newsstands!

Here are a couple of key points that I found interesting:

  • NC has 322 miles of ocean shoreline and over 12,000 miles of rivers, bays, sounds and wetlands -the second largest in the U.S.
  • Until the last quarter century NC fisheries were so abundant that overharvest was seldom a concern.

So what happened? Basically, commercial fishing started putting enormous pressure on the coastal fisheries and fueled a blame game between commercial fishing and the growing recreational sport fishing interests.

In the 1960’s the Division of Marine Fisheries (DMF) evolved within the umbrella of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and led to the establishment of the Marine Fisheries Commission (MFC). The mandate of thse agencies is to preserve our Constitutional right to fish and harvest fish and to keep our fisheries from harm and destuction. But with all of this bueaucracy and all of these acronyms is it any wonder that recent evidence shows that not one of our state’s 13 ‘managed’ coastal fisheries is viable in the long-term.

Now what? As a result of a six-year law suit filed against the state by citizens and supported by the NC Coastal Carolina Association, it was concluded that the state has completely failed to meet the long-term vialbility standard needed to preserve our fisheries. The court directed the parties to meet, to prepare reports, and to schedule further proceedings. There were no new restrictions placed on over-fishing, no changes in policy, and no actions taken that stop further damage to our fisheries.

Our state still has the most lax regulations on the entire East Coast and that”s a damn shame.

Court rules North Carolina violated legal duty to protect coastal fisheries190-page decision describes “overwhelming evidence” presented during six-week trial proving state coastal fisheries management

failuresThe Wake County Superior Court has ruled in favor of the Coastal Conservation Association North Carolina (“CCA NC”) and 86 individual citizens in their lawsuit to hold the State accountable for failing to protect North Carolina’s coastal fisheries. The Court’s 190-page ruling, which followed a six-week trial earlier this year, held the State liable based on “overwhelming evidence” that the State breached its legal obligations to North Carolina citizens. Further proceedings addressing remedies needed to cure the State’s management failures and restore North Carolina’s once-abundant coastal fisheries are expected to follow.The lawsuit was filed in 2020 by CCA NC and 86 citizen plaintiffs, including 5 former members of North Carolina’s Marine Fisheries Commission. Through six years of hard-fought litigation, CCA NC was able to prove that by allowing North Carolina’s coastal fisheries to deteriorate and collapse, the State violated the legal rights of North Carolinians to fish and harvest fish—rights guaranteed to them under the public-trust doctrine and the North Carolina Constitution.The six years of litigation included proceedings before the Court of Appeals, which unanimously ruled in favor of CCA NC and the individual plaintiffs in 2022. In that ruling, the Court of Appeals held that the State has “an affirmative duty” under the public-trust doctrine and the North Carolina Constitution to “preserve the people’s right to fish and harvest fish,” which includes a “duty to preserve fisheries for the benefit of the public” and a “duty to keep fisheries safe from injury, harm, or destruction for all time.” In the Wake County Superior Court’s ruling yesterday, the Court applied that decision as binding precedent, finding that the extensive evidence at trial, including comprehensive expert testimony, “overwhelmingly established” that the State has failed to meet those standards. As one of many examples of the State’s extensive failures, the Court cited undisputed evidence that not a single one of North Carolina’s 13 state-managed coastal fish stocks is currently viable.CCA NC Executive Director David Sneed praised the Court’s ruling as “an opportunity,” urging North Carolina’s fisheries managers and elected officials to bring about fisheries management reforms to rebuild our overfished and collapsed coastal fisheries, and then keep them sustainable once restored. “With this ruling, we are calling on the general public, our elected officials, our scientific community, and state fisheries managers to join together with us, roll up our sleeves, and commit to doing the hard work necessary to restore our coastal fisheries resources for the benefit of all citizens and future generations. Coastal fishing in our great State could have such a bright future, and we owe it to our children and grandchildren to make it a reality.”Sneed and Donald Willis, the Chair of CCA NC’s Board of Directors, added their sincere thanks to the many witnesses and fisheries-management experts who testified at trial and played a significant role in supporting the litigation, as well as CCA NC’s General Counsel, Dr. Tim Nifong, and the legal team at Poyner Spruill who took the case to trial.Read the Full Ruling Here

August 2026 Stated Club Meeting at the Pink Palace

August Club Stated Meeting at the Pink Place …

– August 20th – CLUB MEETING @ 6:30-8:30pm –

Captain Aaron Medlin of Salty Southern Adventures will share his fishing experiences and outings from Holden Beach. Captain Aaron has a total of 30+ years of fishing experience off the shores of Brunswick County. This is a Veteran owned and operated family business. When booking a trip with Captain Aaron you will have a fun-filled time on the water!” https://www.facebook.com/SaltySouthernAdventures

CHARTER TRIP DRAWING – A raffle for a chartered fishing adventure hosted by Captain Bob Strange will be held at the September meeting. Tickets are $10.00 for each opportunity to win a seat on the boat. The tickets will be on sale at the August 20th and September 17th meetings. Only 50 tickets will be sold and three winners will be drawn to participate on the Captain’s boat.

ELECTION TIME – We all know that some important elections are coming up! So please send your nominations in for the following Sea Trail Fishing Club votes!

The following Board Positions are open:

· President — currently Mike Shannon

· Secretary — currently Jim Baumgartner

· Member-at-Large — currently Buddy Wilder

Current Board Members have indicated that they will not run again!!! New blood is needed to guide our club activities! Usually only six hours of facetime per month are required – so volunteer or make a nomination.

ALSO: Please nominate the “Member of the Year”. The nominee should be a person that supports the Club through his/her actions, including frequent participation in Club meetings, frequent participation in Club-sponsored events, and demonstrated fishing prowess. (Current Board Members cannot be nominated).

August 2026 Stated Club Meeting

Your SeaTrail Fishing Club next stated Meeting is August 20th at the Pink Palace, beginning at 6:30 PM. Arrive early to register and socialize as we have a full agenda.

After our brief opening Business Review, Captain Aaron Medlin of Salty Southern Adventures (https://www.facebook.com/SaltySouthernAdventures) will share his fishing experiences and outings from Holden Beach. “If fishing in Holden Beach is on your bucket list, look no further than Salty Southern Adventures. With Captain Aaron at the helm, you’ll benefit from years of knowledge and experience. Captain Aaron has a total of 30+ years of fishing off the shores of Brunswick County. This is a Veteran owned and operated family business. When booking a trip with Captain Aaron you will have a fun-filled time on the water!”

After the Captain’s talk, Club members share “fish tales” about the fish caught or not caught since out last stated Club Meeting.

Your Club typically holds a raffle for a chartered fishing adventure hosted by a local charter Captain. Tickets are $10.00 for each opportunity to win a seat on the boat. Three tickets will be drawn at the September 17th Member’s Meeting for three winners to participate on the Captain’s boat.

Door prizes and a 50/50 event are also featured at our Club meetings!

Trout Fishing

Why Pocket Water Is the Coolest Place to Catch Summer Trout

When pocket water runs high in summer, tie on a simple nymphing rig and don’t be afraid to get soaked

FROM THE BANK, I pulled the knot tight on my dropper fly and looked out over the river, which sent a quick shiver of fear knifing through my excitement, like the feeling you have before you get on a carnival ride. The river was up, hurtling foam over the boulders after one of those long summer rainstorms that leaves wisps of steam spiraling above the fields—exactly how it looked when my grade-school buddy Jo and I first fished the spot, years ago.

https://fieldandstream.com/stories/fishing/freshwater-fishing/trout-fishing/how-to-fish-pocket-water-summer?utm_source=newsletters.fieldandstream.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=is-it-too-hot-for-trout&_bhlid=4cce579472ef3272fc405ea7fef3072fd8e023d3