Redfish has been the main shot lately for my trips.  On some of the warmer days, the bite has been good to even great! Here are some tips that will help you catch inshore winter Reds.  Take your time when looking for winter Reds, they are less likely to get up and move when there cold.  You want the lure to get to them before they know you are close by.  Check every hole and oyster rock edge; we have found Reds in some of the smallest holes this year because of the cold waters.  You have got to cover area to find winter inshore Redfish; it takes time and patients to find and catch winter Redfish.  

Lure’s that seem to do the trick have been, Saltwater Assassin grubs in colors 10w40 & lime-tail, Chicken on a chain and copperhead.  In Berkley Power baits; 5” jerkshad in colors new penny and pearl white have worked well.  We rig the grubs on ¼ Red jig heads with Stren’s 20# tinted fluorocarbon in tint “tannic”.  When the fish are spooky this floro is the trick!  When we rig the Berkley jerkshads, we rig them Texas style, with a bass worm hook and a bullet weight.

The Redfish are schooling in the surf and we are always looking for a nice day to get out and chase them.  They are pretty easy to catch; you just got to find them. That part can be a bit harder, trust me! A sunny, light wind day and good polarized sunglasses are the keys to catching these Reds.  Try to keep your boat as far form the school as you can!!!  If you can’t cast real far; learn to or get a better casting rod & reel, try a PENN Conquer 2000.  Trust me this will help you catch these Reds.  I’ve seen a lot of boats running over the schools lately because they don’t know what they are doing.  Take your time don’t get in a hurry the fish are not going anywhere but they will stop biting if pressured!  Grubs seem to be the easy go to bait for surf Reds.  Lures we are using are SWA 10w40/ Lime-tail and Berkley Powerbait’s Ripple shad in colors New penny and Smelt.  You need to use heavier jigs heads, 3/8 and ½ oz plus for casting.

Speckled trout fishing has been more miss than hit lately but, it should get better with the warmer weather we have coming.  We have caught a few specks lately while we are Drum fishing.  The best bet for the trout this time of year is mud minnows and working artificial baits very slow.  MirrOlure’s 17MR and 52M are a good bet this time of year.  I like the colors 11, 51, CFPR and EC.  SWA grubs in colors chicken on a chain, chart-diamond and silver-ph & chart tail.  Berkley Powershrimp in colors Pearl and Natural; using 1/8oz jig heads have caught a few two to three pound trout lately.  I use twenty pound Stren tinted fluorocarbon leader; I prefer gun smoke tint for clear water applications.

On some of the windier days when it’s been hard to get out on the coast to fish we’ve been doing a little bit of fresh water fishing.  The river fishing should pick up as long as we don’t get to much rain.  Lake fishing has been OK to good and should get great in the next few weeks. On good trips we are catching nine to over fifth teen bass a day.  The size of the Bass are running one to over five pounds, most fish are two to three pounds.  Bass are hitting Bass Assassin rubber worms in colors black and red shad “red and black”.  We are also catching some of the bass on Powerbait senko worms.  Rigging the worms Carolina style seems to work the best.  A very slow presentation, is working the best on cooler days.

Fishing Gear we use:

Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.

In Other Fishing News:

Don’t forget; there are some great boat and fishing expos coming to North Carolina.  If you like fishing and boats you don’t want to miss these shows and fishing seminars!  Here are the one’s that myself as well as other Ranger boats pro staff members will be at this winter.

March 20-12, 2010  Cape Fear Wildlife Expo, at the Coastline Convention Center.   http://www.capefearwildlifeexpo.com   Outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy two days of hunting and fishing exhibitors, wildlife art, decoys, boats and accessories, truck and ATV displays, Hunter Safety Certification Class, fly fishing demos, camping, guides, outfitters, sportfishing simulator, contests, archery demos and fun for the entire family.

April 23-25, 2010  Tex’s Tackle Spring Tackle Sale and Show.  I’ll be there with PENN Reels and Pure fishing.  We will have some of the new Tackle from Penn and Pure Fishing, if you have any questions about any products from Penn or Pure fishing we’ll be happy to answer them for you.

June 5-6, 2010 “In the Water Fishing School” Myself, Capt. Rick Bennett and four other of the best local guides are putting on this school on.  This school will be real-time hands on fishing experience!  There will be one day of hands on classroom instruction and the next day on the water, real-time fishing experience.  The school is limited to the first 24 participants!  If you want to learn from the best local guides and see how we do it, take the time to check it out; http://www.rodmancharters.com/inthewater-fishing-school.htm  I’m really looking forward to being part of this school!

Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.  Don’t forget that special winter rates end on March 31st, so if you have cabin fever and want to get out on the water; give me a call.  Book now for this coming summer fishing season.  Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Hello folks, I hope all is well with you and I hope you got through the snow “storm”.  It was nice to see some snow around the area; but I’m ready for spring now.  Sunny days, warmer weather and of course FISHING!!!  With that said, it is now time to get the tackle, rods, reels and line ready for spring fishing.  Not to say that we are not catching any fish now, (we are) you just have got to work for them a little bit!  To the Fishing report>>>

Redfish has still been a good bet lately, but the dirty waters from all the rain, snow and wind are making it a bit tough.  It looks like we have a dryer pattern of weather coming soon; this should help the bite pick up some.  I lure patterns that we are using are the same as the last report.  These colors seem to do well for us most winters.  I always try new colors and patterns all the time, just to see what works or work better.  I always recommend you do the same on any kind of fishing trip.

Saltwater Assassin grubs in colors 10w40 & lime-tail, Chicken on a chain and copperhead are still working well.  Also Berkley Power baits; 5” jerkshad in colors new penny and pearl white have worked well.  We rig the grubs on ¼ Red jig heads with Stren’s 20# tinted fluorocarbon in tint “tannic”.  When the fish are spooky this floro is the trick!  When we rig the Berkley jerkshads, we rig them Texas style, with a bass worm hook and a bullet weight.

 With all the rain, wind and snow the water has been cloudy to down right dirty lately in the ocean.  The good news is that we are starting a dryer tend for the next few days; this should start the process of the water clearing up.  With this said the schooling surf Redfish should be a target soon again.  A sunny, light wind day and good polarized sunglasses are the keys to catching these Reds.  Grubs seem to be the easy go to bait for surf Reds.  Lures we are using are SWA 10w40/ Lime-tail and Berkley Powerbait’s Ripple shad in colors New penny and Smelt.  You need to use heavier jigs heads, 3/8 and ½ oz plus for casting.  Pick a very nice day when looking for these Reds and always be careful in the surf.

There are still a few Cape Fear River stripers biting. The water has really been up and down with water temps; because of all the rain and wind.  When the water is warmer due to warmer and sunny days the fishing seems to be better.  Most of the fish are in the four to twelve pound range, with a few bigger ones mixed in as well.  We are catching the stripers on hard and soft baits.  In the hard bait range; X-raps and mid-water crank baits are working well.  As far as soft baits; Berkley Powerbait jerkshads in Pearl color and Saltwater Assassin (Blurp) jerk shads in colors pearl and electric chicken.  We are rigging the jerkshads Texas style, with a large bass worm hook.

On some of the windier days when it’s been hard to get out on the coast to fish we’ve been doing a little bit of fresh water fishing.  The large mouth Bass have been biting well. Most trips we are catching nine to over fifth teen bass a day.  The size of the Bass are running one to over five pounds, most fish are two to three pounds.  Bass are hitting Bass Assassin rubber worms in colors black and red shad “red and black”.  We are also catching some of the bass on senko worms.  Rigging the worms Carolina style seems to work the best.  A very slow presentation, is working the best on cooler days.  On one of our last trips a Carp around fifth teen pounds got in the way of a crank bait; and the fight was on!

Fishing Gear we use:

Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.

In Other Fishing News:

Don’t forget; there are some great boat and fishing expos coming to North Carolina.  If you like fishing and boats you don’t want to miss these shows and fishing seminars!  Here are the one’s that myself as well as other Ranger boats pro staff members will be at this winter.

February 20, 2010-Cape Fear Christian Sportsman Fish Fest.
http://www.capefearsportsmen.org/Events/FishFest10Registration/tabid/719/Default.aspx  I will be speaking on Shallow water Redfishing and working MirrOlure’s.  For all the info on this day of seminars, take a look at this link.

March 20-12, 2010  Cape Fear Wildlife Expo, at the Coastline Convention Center.   http://www.capefearwildlifeexpo.com   Outdoor enthusiasts will enjoy two days of hunting and fishing exhibitors, wildlife art, decoys, boats and accessories, truck and ATV displays, Hunter Safety Certification Class, fly fishing demos, camping, guides, outfitters, sportfishing simulator, contests, archery demos and fun for the entire family.  I’ll be there with Cape Fear River Watch and will be doing seminars on local inshore fishing.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats Pro Staff
PENN Reels Elite Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Redfish has been the main shot lately for my trips.  On some of the warmer days, the bite has been good to even great!  The main tips I can give you is get out there and look, lately we’ve hit four to six spots and have not got a bite.  The next spot we check, boom cast after cast; Redfish.  You have got to cover area to find winter inshore Redfish.

Lure’s that seem to do the trick have been, Saltwater Assassin grubs in colors 10w40 & lime-tail, Chicken on a chain and copperhead.  In Berkley Power baits; 5” jerkshad in colors new penny and pearl white have worked well.  We rig the grubs on ¼ Red jig heads with Stren’s 20# tinted fluorocarbon in tint “tannic”.  When the fish are spooky this floro is the trick!  When we rig the Berkley jerkshads, we rig them Texas style, with a bass worm hook and a bullet weight.

The Redfish are schooling in the surf and we are always looking for a nice day to get out and chase them.  They are pretty easy to catch; you just got to find them. That part can be a bit harder, trust me! A sunny, light wind day and good polarized sunglasses are the keys to catching these Reds.  Grubs seem to be the easy go to bait for surf Reds.  Lures we are using are SWA 10w40/ Lime-tail and Berkley Powerbait’s Ripple shad in colors New penny and Smelt.  You need to use heavier jigs heads, 3/8 and ½ oz plus for casting.  Hold on tight, they fight great even in cold water!

There are still a few Cape Fear River stripers biting. The water has really cooled down.  Most of the fish are in the four to twelve pound range, with a few bigger ones mixed in as well.  We are catching the stripers on hard and soft baits.  In the hard bait range; X-raps and mid-water crank baits are working well.  As far as soft baits; Berkley Powerbait jerkshads in Pearl color and Saltwater Assassin (Blurp) jerk shads in colors pearl and electric chicken.  We are rigging the jerkshads Texas style, with a large bass worm hook.

Speckled trout fishing has been more miss than hit lately but, it should get better with the warmer weather we have coming.  The best bet for the trout this time of year is mud minnows and working artificial baits very slow.  MirrOlure’s 17MR and 52M are a good bet this time of year.  I like the colors 11, 51, CFPR and EC.  SWA grubs in colors chicken on a chain, chart-diamond and silver-ph & chart tail.  I use twenty pound Stren tinted fluorocarbon leader; I prefer gun smoke tint for clear water applications.

Fishing Gear we use:

Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S and ASR845S.

In Other Fishing News:

The second annual Cape Fear River Watch Striped Bass Tournament was held Saturday Jan 16th.  This Tournament is an effort to raise awareness of the declining number of striped bass and other fish native to the Cape Fear River and to tag CFR Stripers for fishier studies on rebuilding the stocks of native fish.

Winners of this year’s tournament were:  Capt. Jamie Rushing, along with fishermen Robert Bungard, and Kevin Bloom caught 10 Stripers winning most tag fish award.  The largest fish of the day was a 27.5-inch striped bass caught by Capt. Jot Owens and fisherman Duane Auman, followed closely by a 26-inch striped bass wrangled in by Capt. Owens and fisherman Todd Byrd. First aggregate honors (meaning total length of collected fish) went to Capt. Owens, Auman and Byrd with a collected length of 53.5 inches. Second aggregate went to Capt. Stu Caulder and fishermen Phil Metz and Bruce McGunahan, with a collected length of 50 inches.

Don’t forget; there are some great boat and fishing expos coming to North Carolina.  If you like fishing and boats you don’t want to miss these shows and fishing seminars!  Here are the one’s that myself as well as other Ranger boats pro staff members will be at this winter.
February 12-14, 2010 - Raleigh Convention Center Boat Show - Raleigh, NC. www.raleighconvention.com/boatshow/ This is a great show with lots of the “top of the line” boats form around the world.  I’ll be there with other Ranger Pro’s to show you all the great benefits to the Ranger Saltwater line of boats.

February 20, 2010-Cape Fear Christian Sportsman Fish Fest.
http://www.capefearsportsmen.org/Events/FishFest10Registration/tabid/719/Default.aspx  I will be speaking on Shallow water Redfishing and working MirrOlure’s.  For all the info on this day of seminars, take a look at this link.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats and
Pure Fishing Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Hello form “finally starting to warm up” Southeast North Carolina!  It has been cold; to cold, we did have some local fish kill.  It was a little worse north of us, but it s not good for anybody!  We are very happy to see warmer temps for the next five plus days.  The good part of all this is we have been doing pretty good fishing lately.  Let’s go over that in this weeks fishing report>>>

When the weather or more important the wind has been right, we have done very well on the winter Redfish.  These large schools of Redfish hang in the ocean around bars, inlets and shoals.  We have seen schools as small as ten fish to over 1000 fish; and some times more!  It’s a really cool thing to see, but you need to be careful; these fish can be hard and dangerous to get too.  A good par of polarized sun glasses and a reel that you can cast a country mile will help to catch these winter Reds.

We are catching the Reds in the surf on Saltwater Assassin sea shad grubs; in colors 10w40 with chart tail and chicken on a chain.  We rig the grubs on ¼oz and 3/8oz; red or new penny color jig heads. We have caught them on MirrOlure’s as well; 17MR and 27 MR, in colors 26, 808 and BNSBO are working for us.

The Cape Fear River Stripers are biting from time to time; it got a little cold for them as well.  The Stripers are hitting Berkley gulp jerk shad in colors pearl, new penny and electric chicken.  We rig the jerk shad Texas style, with a large bass hook.  Rapala X-raps work too, in colors glass ghost and green back.

Speckled trout fishing has been more miss than hit lately but, it should get better with the warmer weather we have coming.  The best bet for the trout this time of year is mud minnows and working artificial baits very slow.  MirrOlure’s 17MR and 52M are a good bet this time of year.  I like the colors 11, 51, CFPR and EC.  SWA grubs in colors chicken on a chain, chart-diamond and silver-ph & chart tail.  I use twenty pound Stren tinted fluorocarbon leader; I prefer gun smoke tint for clear water applications.

Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S “Best Trout rod I ever have fished”

In Other Fishing News:  Don’t forget; there are some great boat and fishing expos coming to North Carolina.  If you like fishing and boats you don’t want to miss these shows and fishing seminars!  Here are the one’s that myself as well as other Ranger boats pro staff members will be at this winter.

February 12-14, 2010 - Raleigh Convention Center Boat Show - Raleigh, NC. www.raleighconvention.com/boatshow/ This is a great show with lots of the “top of the line” boats form around the world.  I’ll be there with other Ranger Pro’s to show you all the great benefits to the Ranger Saltwater line of boats.

February 20, 2010-Cape Fear Christian Sportsman Fish Fest.
http://www.capefearsportsmen.org/Events/FishFest10Registration/tabid/719/Default.aspx  I will be speaking on Shallow water Redfishing and working MirrOlure’s.  For all the info on this day of seminars, take a look at this link.
Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats and
Pure Fishing Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Well Folks, the rain has slowed down a little but; now here comes the COLD weather!!!  Welcome to southeast North Carolina fishing and weather, everyday is different and the fishing will be different as well!  You can catch fish during colder weather and/or winters; you just have to change your style a little.  I think this is going to be a little colder winter than the last one.  So here is the fishing report>>>

The speckled trout have been hit and miss lately, some days we catch them good some days not as many.  When we do get them; live shrimp has worked, as well as grubs have.  Just lately I’ve had a few friends catch some bigger trout around the Masonboro jetties.  When I’m looking for bigger trout, I turn too the live shrimp, not to say that big trout will not hit lures; they will!  But for ease of fishing with charters; live shrimp do the trick time and time again!

When we are using grubs these are some of the patterns that are catching trout.  Grub colors by Saltwater Assassin’s that have really done well are chicken on a chain and chart-diamond.  Some other colors that are producing well are salt & pepper, space guppy and pearl.  We rig the grubs on jig heads in colors black and red; in sizes 1/8 and ¼; with a twenty pound fluorocarbon leader.  I don’t use a lot of floro, but I do for speckled trout fishing; trout have very good eye sight.

We are catching some small trout, Redfish and Striped bass in the Cape Fear River.  These fish are hitting grubs, jerk shad and hard baits.  The grubs and jerk shads that are working for us is.  Saltwater Assassin and Berkley gulp in colors pearl, new penny and chartreuse.  We use red and white jig heads in weights 1/4, 3/8 and ½ oz for the grubs.  When we use jerk shads, we rig them Texas style with a 4/0 to 6/0 wide gap bass worm hook.

Redfish are schooling in the surf, we are always looking for a nice day to get out and chase them.  They are pretty easy to catch; you just got to find them. That part can be a bit harder, trust me! A sunny, light wind day and good polarized sunglasses are the keys to catching these Reds.  Grubs seem to be the easy go to bait for surf Reds. Saltwater Assassin “Blurps” in pearl and molting color work very well.  We’ve also had good luck with Berkley gulp alive in jerk shad pattern; in colors new penny and pearl white.  You need to use heavier jigs heads, ½ and 5/8 plus for casting. Color of the head is not a big deal Red, white and black all work just fine. Hold on tight, they fight great even in cold water!

There have still been good by-catches while we are trout fishing; these include some Tautogs, Sheephead, Flounder and Black & Red drum.  These by-catches are hitting the grubs and live shrimp we are using for the trout.  The great thing is they are all good eating!  My favorites are the Tautogs and Sheephead.  If your bait gets close to the bottom, you’ve got a good chance at picking up one of these guys.

Remember when the water gets cold, slow down your presentation.  This will greatly help you catch more fish during the winter mouths!

Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S “Best Trout rod I ever have fished”

In Other Fishing News:  Don’t forget starting in early January; there are some great boat and fishing expos coming to North Carolina.  If you like fishing and boats you don’t want to miss these shows and fishing seminars!  Here are the one’s that myself as well as other Ranger boats pro staff members will be at this winter.

January 8-10, 2010 - Raleigh Bass & Saltwater Fishing Expo   NC State Fairgrounds - Raleigh, NC. www.ncboatshows.com   This is a GREAT show, with over 160 booths offering everything from the latest lures, plastics, jigs, custom rods, apparel, knives, product sample booths, hard-tops, saltwater fishing guides, fresh water guides, cast nets, gaffs…..by far one of the best shows of its kind in the Carolina’s and Virginia.  I will be there along with other Ranger pro staff members who include; Capt. Jeff Cronk and Capt. Mike Taylor, as well as many others fresh and salt water pros!  I will speak on Cobia and Tarpon fishing during Saturday’s seminars. 

February 12-14, 2010 - Raleigh Convention Center Boat Show - Raleigh, NC. www.raleighconvention.com/boatshow/ This is a great show with lots of the “top of the line” boats form around the world.  I’ll be there with other Ranger Pro’s to show you all the great benefits to the Ranger Saltwater line of boats.

Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats and
Pure Fishing Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Hello form a wet Southeast North Carolina, boy we’ve have had some rain lately!  The good thing is the fish are still biting well to great some days!  I talked with a few other fishermen lately and a lot have asked what to do about dirty water Speckled trout fishing.  That is what I’m going to go over in this weeks fishing report>>>

The Speckled trout fishing continues to be pretty steady most days but we have had to change up a few things in our presentation for dirtier waters.  What grubs do I use in dirtier waters; colors (Chicken on a chain), (10w 40/lime tail), (S&P SLV.PH/Chart.TL), (Blurps Rootbeer) and (Space Guppy) all of these are Saltwater Assassin colors in sea shad pattern. If you like to use Gulp Ghost shrimp (Chart Belly), (New Penny) and (Natural with sparkle).  Now I’m not real big on scents for Speckled trout fishing, but when the water is dirty it can help bring a bite or two.  Of course Gulp already has the scent but if you like none scented grubs try some BANG shrimp and/or BANG Texas tea spray scents.  I don’t really change the color of my jig head; I use a little more red then black when the water is dirty.  One thing I always do when the water is dirty is slow down my presentation; work the grub a little slower!

To the hard baits we use in dirtier waters.  MirrOlures are great dirty waters bait; because you can work them so darn slow!  This gives the trout longer to see and eat the MirrOlure.  So which MirrOlures; 17MR, 27MR and S52MR all of these MirrOlures have rattles one more thing to draw in a bite! MirrOlure colors I like in dirtier waters; EC, 11, 26 and 808.  One trick that has worked for me in the past is; steeping up in lure size when the water is dirty.  Try a 27MR or a S52MR instead of a 17MR; this gives the trout a bigger target to see.  Rapala’s X-rap in chartreuse is a good dirty water lure too. 

Let’s not forget those good ole’ live shrimp; they work in clear or dirty waters. But I have seen lures work well when the water is dirty and sometimes better then live shrimp, I still don’t leave the dock with out them (shrimp).

There have still been lots of good by-catches while we are trout fishing; these include some Tautogs, Sheephead, Flounder and Black & Red drum.  These by-catches are hitting the grubs and live shrimp we are using for the trout.  The great thing is they are all good eating!  My favorites are the Tautogs and Sheephead.  If your bait gets close to the bottom, you’ve got a good chance at picking up one of these guys.

I hope some of these tactics help you catch more Speckled trout this season.  Remember slow down your presentation, go with a little bigger lure and have some patients; you’ll get’em!

I’m going to offer a VERY GOOD but limited offer for the next few weeks or until they sell out.  ½ price (50% off) 1/2 day (4 hour) charter gift certificates.  That’s right; $150.00 for four hours of fishing; yes you can buy them for yourself or as a gift.  This rate is for the boat and up to three people.  They are good for all of 2010.  E-mail captainjot@yahoo.com or call 910-233-4139 for details of to purchase.  We take all major credit cards.  Also my special winter rates are in affect till the first of April. 

Fishing Gear we use:

Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S “Best Trout rod I ever have fished”

Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats and
Pure Fishing Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Hello from southeast North Carolina!  I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving, I enjoyed mine!  The fishing has been quite good for the last two weeks, with lots of Speckled trout and a few other species mixed in as well to keep things fun.  The big speck this week was six pounds and three ounce’s; we also caught a few over five and many more over four pounds.  This is no doubt this going to be another big trout year!  To the fishing report>>>

Not much has changed as far as how we are catching the Speckled trout.  We are still catching quite a few nice Gary trout mixed in with the specks.  The grays are hitting grubs and jigging spoons.  Saltwater Assassin grubs in colors Chart-diamond glitter and Salt-pepper with chart-tail have worked well for the grays.  The specks are hitting chicken on a chain, 10w-40 with chart tail and Salt & pepper with chart tail.  The body shape that has worked for us is the sea shad in four inch size.  In the last few trips we have got a few nice specks off Saltwater Assassin Blurp in shrimp pattern.  The colors in blurp that are working are molting, good penny and rootbeer.  We have also caught some trout on Berkley gulp new ghost shrimp in new penny color.  This is the first gulp shrimp to have some real leg action; check’em out!  We are using jig heads in colors pink and red; in weights 3/8oz and ½ oz for the grays and 1/8oz and 1/4oz for the specks.

We have started to use live shrimp as well for the specks.  At this time on Tuesday 12-1 the water temp around Wrightsville Beach was 58` to 60` inshore and the inlet was around 60` to 62`.  With this said it’s still warm and the trash fish are still eating up a lot of our live shrimp.  This is going to change very soon with a good shot of colder air coming in this week.  When we are using live shrimp, I rig them two different ways.  We use float rigs and light Carolina rigs.  On the float rig we use a #6 red or brown treble hook, for the Carolina rig we use a #1 L42 eagle claw hook.  For both of these rigs, I prefer Stern’s tinted fluorocarbon leaders in 20# (Gunsmoke) tint.  This stuff really works for our super clear water around the area!

There have been a few good by-catches while we are trout fishing; these include some Tautogs, Sheephead, Flounder and Black & Red drum.  These by-catches are hitting the grubs and live shrimp we are using for the trout.  The great thing is they are all good eating!  My favorites are the Tautogs and Sheephead.  It your bait gets close to the bottom, you’ve got a good chance at picking up one of these guys.

There still has been some False albacore fishing when the ocean is calm enough for us to get out. Marie jigs have been the best bet for the albacore.  We are using a forty pound mono leader with a loop knot tied to the Marie jig.  Colors and size’s; color green and pink in sizes 7gram and 14 gram.  These albacore are a lot of fun on light tackle and fly; they are real drag screamers!  Keep your eyes peeled for breaking fish and birds!

Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S “Best Trout rod I ever have fished”

Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats and
Pure Fishing Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Well folks it is Trout Time and I love it!  With cooler water temps and a little lighter winds fishing has been pretty good this last week and the start of this one.  We did gat a lot of rain but, the water is in good shape for the most part.  We are really starting to see some very nice Speckled trout around the area.  We caught a 7.2, 5.5 and a half dozen over four pounds this week so far.  It was nice to see the 7.2 in the net; the biggest trout I’ve seen in my boat this year.  Let’s talk about how we have caught some of these nice trout lately in this weeks fishing report.

Grays and Specks are feeding well around in creeks, channels and inlets.  The grays are hitting grubs and jigging spoons.  Saltwater Assassin grubs in colors Chart-diamond glitter and Salt-pepper with chart-tail have worked well for the grays.  The specks are hitting chicken on a chain, 10w-40 with chart tail and Salt & pepper with chart tail.  The body shape that has worked for us is the sea shad in four inch size.  In the last few trips we have got a few nice specks off Saltwater Assassin Blurp in shrimp pattern.  The colors in blurp that are working are molting, good penny and rootbeer.  We are using jig heads in colors pink and red; in weights 3/8oz and ½ oz for the grays and 1/8oz and 1/4oz for the specks.  Colors for the jigging spoons that have worked well for the grays are Pink, Green/blue, and gold.

My charters have caught specks on a wide range of “hard” lures this season; some new and some good ole’ timer’s.  Mirrolures that are working well for us are the Catch 2000 Jr, 52M and the 17MR.  The best Mirrolure colors that are catching the trout are; pink, white on white, chartreuse and silver.  Rapala’s X-rap in colors glass ghost and pink have all so been a hit this season.  And of course don’t forget those live shrimp; they really do catch the trout!  I rig all live bait, grubs and hard lures with fourteen to eighteen inch’s of twenty pound fluorocarbon.  Trout have good eye sight and with the mostly clear water around this area, this seems to help us get more bites out of the trout.  I really like Stren’s new tinted fluorocarbon leaders, we use gunsmoke tint for clear water apps.

We have caught some nice Flounder while Flounder fishing and also caught some while trying to catch trout lately.  The Flounder are running about thirteen to twenty inch’s with a few bigger ones as well.  The Flounder are hitting grubs in colors morning glory, chicken on a chain and molting in the blurp grub.  When we are just targeting Flounder we are using live bait on Carolina rigs.  Finger mullet and mud minnows are doing the trick for those flat fish.  Most of the Flounder we are catching are in the creeks and around the inlets.

The red and black drum are showing around the area too.  We’ve seen reds and blacks in the waterway (ICW) around docks and oyster rocks.  There have been a few reds and blacks around the jetties as well lately.  These drum are hitting scented grubs and live bait on the bottom.  This week we caught a few black drum over seven pounds around the inlets on blurp grubs.

The trout fishing will only get better; we had lots of fish over four pounds last year.  It looks like its going to be another great trout season, I believe that some body will catch a Speckled trout over ten pounds in the Wrightsville beach area this season!  Let’s go Trout fishing>>>!

Fishing Gear we use:

Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S “Best Trout rod I ever have fished”

Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats and
Pure Fishing Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

I hope everybody is enjoying the fall weather; it did get a little warm for a couple days.  I think that is over for the most part, I’m ready for more fall weather!  Now that the weather is getting back to normal; fishing has really picked up in the last couple of days!  With that said here is the fishing report!

Trout has been the story for the most part lately.  Grays and Specks are feeding well around in creeks, channels and inlets.  The grays are hitting grubs and jigging spoons.  Saltwater Assassin grubs in colors Chart-diamond glitter and Salt-pepper with chart-tail have worked well for the grays.  The body shape that has worked for us is the sea shad in four inch size.  We are using jig heads in colors pink and red; in weights 3/8oz, ½ oz and 1oz.  Colors for the jigging spoons that have worked well for the grays are Pink, Green/blue, and gold.  Going with bright colors is a good “go too” choice when fishing for gray trout.

The Speckled trout fishing is really getting good and will continue to pick up.  We have already caught some very nice trout in the four and five pound range on live and artificial baits.  My charters have caught specks on a wide range of lures this season; some new and some good ole’ timer’s.  Let’s start with the hard baits.  Mirrolures that are working well for us are the Catch 2000 Jr, 52M and the 17MR.  The best Mirrolure colors that are catching the trout are; pink, chartreuse and silver.  Grubs and soft baits; in the grub style baits colors chart-diamond, silver mullet and chicken on a chain.  Yes that is the real name of this grub color.

In the shrimp style grubs the colors we are using; Arkansas glow, clear and bone-diamond.  We are rigging the Saltwater Assassin shrimp with worm hooks and Texas style worm weights.  We are also using Berkley Gulps new ghost shrimp in New penny color.  To the live bait; it’s hard to beat the good ole’ live shrimp, they just work!  Rigging the live shrimp on float rigs has worked for us.  Don’t forget all you Fly fishermen out there, trout are fun and pretty easy to catch on a fly.  Try shrimp and clouser patterns in natural colors and chartreuse & red/white.

False albacore fishing has been good on days when the ocean is calm enough for us to get out. Marie jigs have been the best bet for the albacore.  We are using a forty pound mono leader with a loop knot tied to the Marie jig.  Colors and size’s; color green and pink in sizes 7gram and 14 gram.  These albacore are a lot of fun on light tackle and fly; they are real drag screamers!   Red fishing is starting to change around the area; the Reds are starting to move around some with the cooler weather.  On lighter wind and sunny days we’re finding fish on the oyster flats.  When we find these fish we are using rattling corks with finger mullets to catch them.  We’ve also caught some Reds in the ICW around docks and boat landings.  Carolina rigs with finger mullet are working well for the dock Reds.  On days when I’m using just using lures to catch Reds, we’ve caught Reds on Saltwater Assassin Blurp grubs in the shrimp pattern, color good penny and pearl.

My charters have caught lots of bluefish while we have been Trout fishing; there really has been all the bluefish you can deal with lately!!  If you like catching blues; Go Fishing!  Flounder are biting as well, we’ve caught a good number while trout fishing. Some of the flounder are in the three to five pound range; a nice bonus while trout fishing.

Fishing Gear we use:
Reels Penn Conquer and Sargus spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Fire line crystal braid in 10 and 20#.  Rods: Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy and the All Star ASR spinning rod ASR844S “Best Trout rod I ever have fished”

Thanks for reading this report, if you would like to go fishing drop me a line.   Don’t forget to take a kid fishing!

Good Luck,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger Boats and
Pure Fishing Pro Staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139

Hello from very cool Southeast North Carolina!  I said it last week but, I really mean it this week; fall is REALLY showing this week!  Very cool temps and lots of wind, but Fishing is good and getting better every day with the fall weather!

The Speckled trout are really starting to show and we are seeing some bigger fish around the area.  The best trout bites lately have been on hard baits.  Mirrolures in patterns 17MR in colors; pink, chartreuse and bone have been very productive for us.  We are also catching some of the trout in deeper water with grubs.  The best grub colors for us have been; chart-diamond, greenback shiner, chicken on a chain and silver mullet.  In the Shrimp pattern colors; clear, bone-diamond and root beer.  Rig the grubs and shrimp patterns on a red or black jig head for best results.

Red fishing is starting to change around the area; the Reds are starting to move around some with the cooler weather.  On lighter wind and sunny days we’re finding fish on the oyster flats.  When we find these fish we are using rattling corks with finger mullets to catch them.  We’ve also caught some Reds in the ICW around docks and boat landings.  Carolina rigs with finger mullet are working well for the dock Reds.  On days when I’m using just using lures to catch Reds, we’ve caught Reds on Saltwater Assassin Blurp grubs in the shrimp pattern, color good penny and pearl.

We are still catching Flounder around the inlets and in the creeks.  Most of the fish in the creeks are running a little smaller but there are some keepers still.  The Flounder around inlets are running a little bigger than the inshore fish.  Most of the Flounder are eating Mullet and Mud minnows on light Carolina rigs.  We have caught some Flounder on Artificial baits as well.  We have had the best luck with Saltwater Assassin Blurp grubs in molting and pearl colors.  In none scented grubs; colors like chicken on a chain, chart-diamond and morning glory are working well for the Flounders.

Gary trout have been biting well this last week.  We are seeing the grays around the inlets and just off the beach on live bottom and small ledges.   We are catching most of the Grays the same way we’ve been catching the Flounder; Carolinas rigs and live bait.  My favorite live bait for Grays is finger mullet.  If you would rather use lures, small jigging spoons and grubs will work just fine.  I like to put a shot of scent on my grubs; “Bang’s” shrimp, crab, and Taxes tea are some of my favorites.

Lots of Bluefish are showing up all most everywhere; creeks, ICW, inlets and the ocean.  Blues are easy and fun to catch; bright lures, silver, gold and pink are my favorite colors “go bright”!  We are casting jigs and spoons around the inlets and/or when the birds are working the surface.  They are also fun on a light fly rod and one of the few fish that are easy to catch on a fly rod!

The Fishing gear we use:

Reds, Trout, Blues and Flounder: Reels Penn Sargus and Conquer spinning in sizes 2000 and 4000. Rods: All Star ASR inshore series 7’ med action and Ugly stick lites 6’6” and 7’ Med & Med-Heavy. Fourteen pound Berkley Fireline Crystal.

In other fishing news: The 2009 Cape Fear Red-Trout Celebrity Classic to benefit Cystic fibrosis was held this last weekend 10-15 to 10-17.  I really enjoy fishing this tournament year after year.  It’s fun and there are a lot of very talented guides that fish this tournament.  I had the pleasure fishing with Adam Meyer and Liz Bielski with Charter Lakes Insurance group again this year.  I’m very happy to announce that team Charter Lakes took: Runner-up Grand Champion Angler, Lady Angler Grand Champion and the Largest Trout divisions.  Liz caught more fish than Adam again this year,   congrats Liz, great job!  I look forward to fishing this tournament again next year.

Don’t forget take a kid fishing and good fishing to ya,

Captain Jot Owens
Ranger boats and
Pure Fishing Pro staff
www.captainjot.com
910-233-4139