Bald Head Island/Southport Fishing Report - April
Fri, 04/16/2010 - 19:30 | 
chasintailchar
April is upon us, and with it comes a conundrum… with many species shaking off the cold and becoming active again, where should we start? Red Drumwill be transitioning from days of inactivity spent laying up over dark bottom flats and oyster bar margins in and around Buzzard Bay and Lockwood Folly River to actively cruising the grass edges, open flats and creek banks. Large schools often numbering in the hundreds will still be common as the water warms past the 65 degree mark. These large schools can be both a boon and a bust to sight fisherman, however. If there is any mistake you can make in the early season, it’s sloppy positioning and presentation. Hundreds of pairs of eyes and sensitive lateral lines are ever vigilant for signs of danger, and an errant cast or cycling the trolling motor on and off will easily spook these wary fish. Long casts made to the perimeter of the school using unweighted soft plastic jerkbaits or weedless spoons will likely be your best bet. Once located, plan on letting the fish “rest” at frequent intervals, and you can often count on cooperative fish being there throughout the season at similar tidal stages. April also heralds the first of the “tailing tides”, pushing hordes of upper slot reds deep into the marsh to feed on Fiddler Crabs. The higher evening flood tides around the New and Full moons this month will offer shots at tailing fish high in the grass. The key to locating productive tailing areas is to look for shallow depressions in the interior of the marsh that are fed by small guts coming off the main creek. These fish will readily eat a fly or bait that is quietly cast head high and just beyond the fish before allowing it to settle to the bottom right in front of their nose. Many times they are so engrossed in trying to root a crab from it’s hole, that you can pole the boat mere feet from a tailing fish without worry spooking. Weedless spoons, Gulp! Peeler crabs pinned to a weedless tube bait hook or crab patterns and spoon flies will result in hookups. Look for 5 foot plus tides leading up to the Full and New Moons for best success. Trout are also about this month. Anglers with access to the myriad of creeks around Bald Head, Southport, and Oak Island will have a good chance of catching Speckled Trout of gator proportions. Sows laden with roe will be fattening up on juvenile pogies and getting ready for the first of several spawning attempts this year. Top baits include suspending twitchbaits, soft plastic shrimp, dark colored curly tails, and Clouser minnows or Big Eye Flies fished on sink tip lines. Working these baits slowly and methodically(sometimes making repeated casts to the same area) is critical. Look for deep holes on outside creek bends during low or slack tides. Eddies created by vertical structure like the down current side of an oyster rocks, secondary creek mouths, and dock pilings will hold Trout during falling tides. We should see good numbers Trout taken on Mirrolure MR17’s in Big Bluff and Cedar Creeks. Bites usually will come on the pause during the twitch – pause – twitch retrieves that make these baits effective. If needed, add some lead tape to the belly to assist in getting down to suspended fish in a current. Handle those big girls with care, and keep them off the dinner table, and we should have good fishing for years to come. Moving out to the mouth of the Cape Fear, chopper Bluefish will be plentiful along Jay Bird Shoals and the edge of the Western Bar Channel. Fast moving topwaters like Mirrolure Popa Dogs or flashy flies like deceivers rigged with a short section of nylon coated wire will be the ticket. Flounder on the nearshore ledges and hard bottom will start to pick up. Bucktail jigs sweetened with a mud minnow or Gulp curly tail will work just fine. Spanish Mackerel will crank up toward the end of the month once the glass minnows and greenies arrive in numbers. 00 Clark Spoons and Pink Maria Jigs should put a few on the grill for you. Spring on the Cape Fear… it’s the only time I don’t mind a tough decision!
