Northern District: Dare, Hyde, Currituck and Beaufort Counties Contact: Brian Melott
For the 2012 fishing year, all owners/operators of vessels recreationally fishing for and/or retaining regulated Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) (Atlantic tunas, sharks, swordfish and billfish) in the Atlantic Ocean, including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, must obtain an Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) Angling permit. This permit has replaced the Atlantic tunas Angling category permit. In North Carolina, additional HMS harvest reporting requirements are also in place. To obtain a permit go to: http://www.hmspermits.gov.
Report a tagged fish Please Note: Anglers sometimes confuse small king mackerel with Spanish mackerel. King mackerel and spanish mackerel have different size and catch limits. Make SURE you properly identify the mackerel you are catching. (Tips here) A recreational Recreational Fishing License went into effect Jan. 1, 2007 for all of the state's coastal and ocean waters. |
Click here for the latest seasons, size and bag limits.
For the week ending May 19
Ocean: Offshore anglers caught limits of dolphin and yellowfin tuna. Blackfin tuna, wahoo, amberjack, skipjack tuna and little tunny also contributed to the offshore catch. Boats out of Ocracoke and Hatteras that bottom fished had nice catches of blackbelly rosefish, vermilion snapper, blueline tilefish, triggerfish, and assorted groupers. Improved billfish catches were reported. Midrange anglers reported catching a few king mackerel. Striped bass and red drum were caught from Oregon Inlet northward to the Virginia line around four miles offshore. Rough seas near shore continued to challenge boaters, but anglers did catch some large bluefish.
Inlets/Sounds/Bay: Anglers fishing inside continued to target spotted seatrout, striped bass, and flounder. Flounder were caught throughout the shallows and near shorelines. Striped bass fishing was limited to the Manns Harbor area. Keeper-sized stripers were reported about half the time. Anglers in the Roanoke Sound and Oregon Inlet’s Green Island Slough reported a few spotted seatrout landings. The best times for fishing were in the early to mid morning, and just before nightfall.
Piers/Beaches: Despite the rough surf along the beaches, large bluefish were caught in abundance – some weighing up to 12 pounds. Anglers caught numerous large sea mullet. There were also fair catches of spot, croaker, striped burrfish, pigfish, gray trout, spotted seatrout, flounder, silver perch, skates, rays and sharks. Anglers on Hatteras Island reported nice catches of pompano and red drum.
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