Category Archives: Fishing Reports

Kids Fishing Charters have been HOT

We are well into our 2021 season and the fishing has been great! We have taken more Family and Kids fishing charters this season than a typical year and its great too see. There is nothing like spending quality time on the water with your family on a fully guided fishing trip.

Flounder season is only two weeks this year, feel free to give me a call anytime to book your special flounder fishing trip. We have a reef that is very productive very close to the Blockade Runner, Wrightsville Beach.

As we approach our Fall Fishing Season (my personal favorite time of year to fish) be sure to call early to book your trip, if you miss your chance this season, think about purchasing a Christmas Gift Certificate for next season.

Looking forward to the rest of the 2021 fishing season, see y’all on the water!

Capt Trevor Smith/ ProFishNC Charters

Sea Vee Charter Boat

2020 Fishing Season is in Full Swing

2020 Fishing season is here and we are excited to offer two fishing charter boats for you to choose from this season. We have a brand new 28′ Sea Vee CC equipped with a new Cummins 370 Diesel and have our trusty inshore/ nearshore McKee Craft CC.

We look forward to fishing with many of you again this season and meeting new clients and friends as we always do.

Call me directly to book your fishing charter at (910) 547-0000

Thanks,

Capt Trev

ProFishNC Fishing Charters Booking Spring Fishing 2018

Happy New Year everyone and hope y’all had a great Christmas Season!

We have been busy at ProFishNC Charters wrapping up the late fall fishing season, booking charters for spring and prepping for March 2018 Fishing Kickoff.

Spring Fishing is almost here; however, in the mean time and in the inevitable instance of “cabin fever”, give us a call and we can go winter fishing

Early Spring Action

anytime.

 

Note: The best bottom fishing for Black Seabass in NC is January through April.    We typically find limits within 5 miles of the beach in the winter with a mix of tautog (black fish) and porgies.

Once April arrives we have the monster bluefish and Atlantic bonito show up in our local waters.  Both Atlantic bonito and bluefish in April are respectable in their fight and is great fun on light tackle (these fish are hungry and actively feeding on the migratory baitfish).

We offer hourly trips for families fishing with small children (typically around 2hrs) that would like to introduce fishing to their family in small doses.  This was very successful in 2017 as many families with kids under 5 years old found this charter option the best for their family.

Thanks and Tight Lines,

Capt. Trevor Smith/ ProFishNC Charters

 

Wrightsville Beach Fishing Charters Report- ProFishNC Charters

ProFishNC Charters Fishing Report 3/3/2017 *We now have a GPS Electric Anchor*

Im starting this report with a side note:   Those that know me know that I love taking people that have never fished or haven’t in so long that they needed to know how to cast a reel, then teaching them and seeing the smile when they feel the excitement of fishing.   That was my charter group today and makes me reflect on my younger years as a kid feeling that same joy that makes me remember that my job is not fishing, its to bring people happiness through fishing.

Ians biggest fish EVER! Nice 22 inch inshore Black Drum

Fishing Trip Details:  I had the pleasure of taking an awesome family from Ohio out for an early march fishing adventure.  We decided early to bottom-fish first then fall back to inshore as the winds were predicted to increase throughout the day (which it did).   The greatest feature of charter fishing out of Wrightsville Beach is the ease and comfort of navigating into the open ocean via Masonboro Inlet.  Masonboro Inlet is not only deep (35-40 ft), but also is a great habitat for fish as the rock jetties are a sanctuary for fish to feed.

Today we decided to fish for Black Seabass and Tautog; therefore, we made a bearing for what I’ve found to be an active “live bottom” with small ledges and rocks.  After a short 15 – 20 minute ride we arrived at our first fishing spot (as we captains call “first drop”).   I use shrimp and shrimp heads exclusively when targeting fish this time of year as the chances of landing a Tautog are now in the cards.  *Note:  We have UPGRADED to the newest and most advanced electric anchoring system (Minnkota Terrova).  We had four rods in the water with nonstop action.  After having our fill of constant action landing around 70-100 black seabass (2 were big) and decided to head inshore to fish for drum.

Once in the inlet we made our bearing north and fished the waters in and around Figure Eight

Red Drum “17 1/2 inch Schooie” Tally’s First Ever Red Drum

Island.   I personally love running Figure Eight Island Fishing Charters because the waters are pristine clear with many schools of wintering black and red drum this time of year.   We located the schools after checking a dock or two and had some fun.  We landed  5 drum (3 reds & 2 blacks) with the reds being 17 1/2 inch “cookie cutter” schoolies.

*WE UPGRADED TO A GPS “Spotlock” ELECTRIC ANCHOR (When we find fish offshore in 65ft of water we STAY ON THE FISH).  In all honesty, the non stop rod bending on all four rods today for two hours straight was EPIC.

Fishing Charter Details:  6 hr 3/4 Day Fishing Trip | Air Temp: 39-55  |  Water Temp:  57-58 Degrees Offshore/ 61-63 Degrees Inshore

Tight-Lines and remember to Take A Kid Fishing!

-Captain Trevor Smith | ProFishNC Charters | FishingChartersNC.com

North Carolina Fishing Charters & Fishing School Update

Hey Folks!

We are seeing drastically warmer temperatures compared to years past leaving us with an awesome fishery providing year-around North Carolina Fishing Charters!    Water temps in the mid 50’s and lots of schooling inshore and nearshore fish to catch.

We have updated our main fishing vessel “No Bananas” with state of the art trolling motor and electronics to really put you on the fish!

We are teaching this saturday at the Fishermans Post Fishing School here in Wilmington again this year.  With first class NC Fishing Charter Guides instructing all classes, I hope you got your tickets early :).

Call us anytime to book your fishing charter (910) 547-0000

Check out our Topsail Beach Fishing Charter page here.

-Captain Trevor Smith/ ProFishNC Charters:

Topsail/Wrightsville/Carolina/Figure Eight/Wilmington Fishing Charter Boats

Winter Fishing Charters / Fishing Gift Certificates

ProFishNC Charters Fishing Update : Fishing Gift Certificates

I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful fall and had a great Thanksgiving!  Hopefully you are getting out and wetting a line.christmas-gift-certificates

Fishing Charter Gift Certificate Time is here again and we have them fresh out of the print shop just in time for Christmas.

Our fishing charter options include 1/2 day (4h), 3/4 day (6h) or full day trip (8h).

Give me a call or email for further details.

Fishing Report:  Topsail Beach and Wrightsville Beach inshore waters still have good numbers of trout that are feeding on shrimp and glass minnows.  Find the fast moving tidal water and trow your favorite green or white grub.  The flounder are still inshore in catchable numbers (more toward the back of the creeks and estuaries).With our water temperature still at 60 there are plenty of both nearshore bottom fishing and inshore trout fishing through January.

Nearshore Bottom fishing has been excellent with huge numbers of large black seabass, grunts and porgies.  We are also targeting nearshore Grouper in the 7-12 mile range.

 

We charter fish year-around, so if you cabin fever this winter give us a call!

Capt Trevor Smith: ProFishNC Charters

ProFishNC Charters: Wilmington Fishing Charters Report

ProFishNC Charters: Wilmington Fishing Charters (and surrounding beaches) report through mid July:

The sun is HOT and the water temps are UP providing opportunities to “Buffalo Hunt” for big fish.  The current inshore water temps are between 83 at high tide and 87 at low tide.  For our offshore waters I am seeing temps steady around 84 degrees.

Up to the minute fishing report:   (Water temps above observed 7/7/15)… Fishing out of the Wrightsville Beach Inlets the small glass minnows are there in the billions pressed up in so close there were “red clouds” of barely bigger than plankton flowing like a well orchestrated dance as the the spanish mackerel crashed through.   Out to three miles there were albies and spanish jumping in what seemed to be a constant feeding frenzy (in reality we saw a topwater “washing machine” about every quarter mile which provided fun topwater action.  Cobia are still around as Captain Shawn’s charter boat caught a 40 pounder today inshore!   Its “go big or go home” time right now as there are too many big creatures lurking not to put out a BIG LINE anywhere you fish, especially with all the bait and the water temps up in the 80’s.

**Shark Fishing is Awesome Right Now!

Capt Trev / ProFishNC Charters

Wilmington Fishing Charters Spring Fishing Report

Spring Wilmington Fishing Charters Report | ProFishNC Charters | Spring 2016 | Capt Trev

ProFishNC Charters

Wilmington Fishing Charters | Spring Bonito Blitz!

in short, its Time to Book your Fishing Charter.

Well folks we are in the North Carolina annual coastal baitfish migration, the Atlantic Bonito are here as is the Wilmington Fishing Charters Spring Fishing Season!

Currently, the nearshore waters are between 60 and 67 degrees from 1 mile out to 10 miles as the warm days are rapidly bringing the temps up.   The inshore waters are between 64 and 75 degrees depending on the tide (lower outgoing tide is the warmest water in the estuaries right now and is helping the fish become more active and thus more hungry.

Nearshore Fishing Charters this week:

The Atlantic Bonito have showed up and as most locals know, one of our best eating tuna and the only edible one most folks get a shot at each year (since the other edible tuna are at the Gulf Stream 55 miles offshore).  We are seeing a healthy class of Bonito so far in this seasons run with many having that desired “football” shape.  We are catching them both with deep divers and sight fishing with diamond jigs and casting jigs.  Note: Be sue to have your drags loose and have the net ready!Wilmington NC Fishing Charters

Bottom Fishing is a popular choice this time of year for many of our Wilmington Fishing Charters clients. Bottom Fishing is picking up swiftly with many keeper Black Seabass, Silver Snapper, Flounder, Grey Trout and Sharks this week.   We are using fresh cut bait, live baits and jigs this time of year that match the current baits in the area.  Right now we have a run of silverside anchovies that are between 2 and 3 inches; therefore, our jigs and strip baits are to the same specks.  .

Inshore Fishing

Our Inshore Fishing Charters are picking up as we are catching flounder, red drum, black drum and speckled trout.  The Flounder are coming from the very backs of the creeks and estuaries where they can lay in the warmer waters and sun-heated sands.  The Red Drum are coming from both the warm flats and the deepwater docks in the creeks as they are feeding on the bait that is flooding our estuaries currently.  Most of the bait inshore right now is the spring hatch from a month or two ago which means the smaller sides bait the better right now, whereas later in the season the opposite is true.  Black Drum are feeding on the edges of oyster bars and dock pilings on crustaceans and shrimp.   Trout are in the swifter moving waters feeding on baitfish rapidly moving through the water column.  Basically, our inshore fishery is about as good as it gets right now for our Spring fishing season.

Don’t forget to Fish with Your Family | Check out our Family Fishing Charters

Capt. Trevor Smith | ProFishNC Charters | 2016 | (910-547-0000

 

 

 

Flounder Fishing Guide - Wilmington NC Fishing Charters

A “How To” Flounder Fishing Guide

A “How To” guide on Flounder Fishing: ProFishNC Charters/ Captain Trevor Smith

-Part 1: Understanding the Flounder (habits, habitat, tendencies and evolutionary instincts and Traits)

To understand how to fish for flounder you first need to understand the flounder itself and its “evolutionary makeup”.

  • Flounder are a Demersal Fish:  A species of fish that feeds on or near the bottom of their aquatic ecosystem.  Many species of fish that fall in the demersal category live in not only the deep ocean but also the backwater esteruaries and inland bays as the flounder does.   On the flip side, the pelagic fish feed in the mid to upper water column.  Note: I have caught flounder in the mid to upper water column areas on rare occasions notating that their feeding habits are not 100 percent exclusive to the demersal zone.
  • Flounder are a Benthic Fish:  A species that requires no effort to lay on the ocean floor due to the dense nature of its body and unique genetic makeup.   Additionally and greatly assisting the flounder to fall in the benthic category is its lack of an air bladder (which adds bouyancy) and its abnormal vertical laying ability.   The absence of the flounders air bladder makes it a very unique fish that does not need to be “vented” when releasing back in deep water due to the lack of the need for decompression!
  • Flounder Vision/ Eye Migration: Most anglers know that the flounder (including all in the “flatfish species”) have both eyes on one side of its head.  Many anglers do not know the flounder started its young life looking like a normal fish.  During the larval stage of the developing young flounder, both eyes are on either side of its head; however, a metamorphic transformation occurs during this larval stage in which a migration occurs and one of its eyes moves over the fishes head to to join the opposite eye.  This evolutionary trait enhances the flounders ability to be a top demersal ambush preditor and enables the fish to have excellent vision from the sea floor.
  • Flounder are Ambush Feeders: Flounder are a very stealthy, quick and instinctive feeders that use the method of surprise to fill their stomachs.  They do this utilizing a few ingenious and advantageous evolutionary traits:  Flounder have the unique ability to change their body color depending on the color of the ocean bottom they are laying on.  For example, I have caught flounder that are almost white in pigment when fishing clear water with white sands; conversely, I have caught founder that are dark brown and some even black when fishing water tinged dark with tannins coupled with a dark muddy bottom.   Flounder have the ability to cover their bodies with sand and essentially bury themselves on the seafloor to hide and then “ambush” their pray.  Flounder do not actively chase schools of bait in the water column; instead, they lie in wait for the the instinctive moment to strike.
  • Where and How Flounder Lay on the Sea Floor:  Flounder are unique in terms of what bodies of water they lay in and what waters they can adjust to.  I have caught flounder 55 miles out in the ocean grouper fishing, in the heat of the summer in 97 degree water of the creeks and in brackish water rivers and fresh water lakes (near saltwater)!  The genetic code of a flounder is to survive in ever-changing environments of varying salinity levels, temperatures, depths and currents.  Here are the “typical” patterns of where and how flounder lay (in no specific order):
  • Offshore Flounder: If there is current, they will bury themselves with their head facing into the oncoming current.  Offshore, flounder typically lay on sandy bottoms immediately surrounding structures (artificial reefs, rocks, ledges, sunken anything) as this is where the smaller prey will be lurking.  If they are holding on a ledge in the ocean, you will typically find the flounder on the bottom deeper side of the ledge).  
  • Inshore Flounder: I find most of the feeding flounder to be in the moving water current directly in the mouth of inlets with their head facing into the direction of the water flow.  Along deep marsh banks closest to the marsh drop off (i.e. where the marsh grass meets the water in channels along the intracoastal waterway.  Laying under docks and bridges specifically when the sun is at its highest in the sky.  In the backwaters we find many flounder within the first 3 feet of a submerged oyster bar and in deep holes surrounded by shallows.  On the outskirts of any structure inshore where they have a sandy or muddy bottom to hide in with moving water flowing.   Flounder like moving water as they do most of their feeding waiting prey to find them (find moving water with any of the above mentioned elements and you will find the flounder).
  • What Flounder Eat:  I have cleaned thousand of flounder and have come to the conclusion they eat anything they can get their mouth around!  That being said, flounder are a carnivorous fish and their typical diet here on the North Carolina coast consists of all species of fish that are between 1 inch and 8 inches (depending on the size of the flounder).  They also frequently eat crabs, sea worms, shrimp, squid, and any artificial soft bait that is fished correctly in front of them.  In short, a flounders diet will change seasonally as the fish and bait migrations change (being an ambush predator that is not picky, it literally eats whatever swims or drifts by).

 

Topsail Beach and Wilmington Fishing Charters Report

Topsail Beach Fishing Charters Report: (Including Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Surf City and Figure Eight Island Fishing Charters)

Speckled Trout Fishing Charters

Speckled Trout Fishing Charters

-ProFishNC Charters/ Capt. Trevor Smith

Well folks our winter fishing season is in full swing even though the water temperatures are that which we see in spring and late fall.

Lets start with our local beaches and what we are seeing on our inshore fishing charters.   Inshore we are still catching good numbers of speckled trout; though, most are the smaller “hammer handle” variety with a few big ones mixed in the catch with many of the lager ones over 4 lbs. The speckled trout are eating Z-Man grubs and swimbaits scented with ProCure scent and artificial shrimp on popping corks along the reeds and deep banks.   The Black Drum are feeding heavy right now in the docks and pilings, we are catching most on cut shrimp; however, we are getting many of our larger ones on half of a fresh blue crab on a circle hook and Carolina rig.

Bottom-fishing Charters Topsail Beach

Bottom-fishing Charters Topsail Beach

Offshore Bottom Fishing is on Fire! This time of year we have the migration of big Black Seabass that moves in toward our shoreline within 3-5 miles of the beach. We are focusing our fishing efforts on the nearshore ledges and artificial reefs that are currently holding the bigger fish. Most of the big Black Seabass are coming on artificial jigs and cut mullet.   There are also a winter/ cold-water fish called a Tautog that moves in as well (they have migrated from the northern waters off of New York and New Jersey to winter in the Carolina waters).

In addition to fishing the saltwater, we are also fishing the Cape Fear River in Wilmington. We are currently catching lots of Striped Bass in the old Warf Docks and pilings by throwing swimbaits and grubs. The stripers are also

Cape Fear RIver Fishing Charters

Cape Fear RIver Fishing Charters

coming on the troll using divers and Rapala lures.   The big Catfish are also chewing right now further up river and are a lot of fun.. We are catching the big cats on cut shad and shrimp.

Feel free to give me a call anytime to talk fishing or to book your next fishing charter.

*Providing Complementary Dock Pickup for Fishing Charters in Figure Eight Island, Wrightsville Beach and Downtown Wilmington, NC

Tight-Lines and Good Fishing in 2016!

Capt. Trev

ProFishNC Charters/ (910) 547-0000