Yes it was!

Was that in the AR? We popped over there after the bonito bite shut off at divers. Lots of Albies out wearing us out though. Next time say hi, definitely won’t be bothering us! Thanks for watching, tight lines!

@@TopsailFishing Yes it was, we were a little late for the bonitos and so Mr Coffman (who was with me) wanted to go try some bottom fishing around some structures. Got a few black bass. Didn’t get anything at all on Monday. I’m new to fishing this part of the NC coast. I have always fished in the Ocean Isle Beach area. So your videos have definitely helped out!

Nice - that AR always seems to have a surprise in it. I’ve pulled Triggerfish off it, big king mackerel, huge flounder, etc. but it is fished a lot since it’s a popular spot. It’s a little warm for the near shore BSB, you’ll find them out deeper now. Christmas Rock is a pretty good spot that’s easy enough to get to for most boats and the quality of fish jumps up pretty high. I’ve pulled Mahi and Cobia there, Kings, AJs, snapper, triggers, etc. off that rock. When it gets later in the day during this time of year, we try jigging for the bonito. For some reason, they are far more sensitive to the sunlight that the Albies, who don’t seen to care either way, so try deeper for them past 10AM. Still 90% of the time, it’s going to be an Albie- someone needs to come up with a way to make them taste good, I swear they are the bane of my existence when trolling, nothing ruins a spread faster than a pack of albies!

@@TopsailFishing I appreciate that advice and I will definitely use it! We almost went to Christmas Rock and decided on the AR instead. I will be back the last two weekends of the month and definitely want to make it out there!

Thanks for watching! I head out of New River inlet. It’s a little dicey at times, especially since they dredged it and changed the channel. I’m not overly concerned with wind direction as much as someone who’s heading to the stream, or trolling more than me. Bottom fishing 95% of the time for me, and I haven’t found it plays that big a difference. Wind against tide can definitely make it sporty chop, so it’s more a comfort thing for me. There are lots of public numbers out there to fish, but you’ll find them overfished a lot, so I look at relief maps and find my own bottom spots. 2-3 foot ledges can hold a lot of fish. Seasonality and water temps plays more a part in what I fish and where. Right now, we’re looking for Atlantic bonito, and soon the Mahi will start showing up as it warms up off shore. Near shore spanish mackerel can keep you busy all day. Once grouper season opens, we’ll bottom fish for them some, but most important advice I can give is time on the water trumps everything. You’ll learn your own spots, tricks, and keep a fish journal for what you caught, where, what bait, water temp, etc. - you’ll find patterns year over year. That’s basically how guides do it, they know where the fish should be and 90% of the time they are right.

Thanks for watching! SCP = Surf City Pier? If so, I haven’t fished it, only the Sea View, but I’m definitely around Surf City a lot, especially Shaka Taco and The Peak. Probably see me grocery shopping too, ha! Anytime you see me, feel free to say hi!

They were within 5 miles of the beach when they were here. Really they chase the bait, you can find them pretty far out, too.