Out of State Destinations: Swansboro, North Carolina

A trip to North Carolina should include fishing

The White Oak River flows 48 miles through eastern North Carolina, passing some cypress trees more than a millennium old, until it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Swansboro in Onslow County.

Queens Creek flows into the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. The Waterway connects several streams and bays along the Crystal Coast. These include Bogue Sound, Bogue Inlet and Onslow Bay. Several inlets open to the Atlantic Ocean.

“The estuary has a lot of marshland, little creeks and sandbars,” said Jeff Cronk with Fish’n4lLife Charters (336-558-5697, www.nccharterfishing.com), who runs out of Dudley’s Marina (www.dudleysmarinanc.com) in Cedar Point. “Below the Emerald Isle Bridge, we have 10 to 12 miles with many little tributaries, creeks and big bays.”

As the crow flies, we fished about a half-mile from the Atlantic Ocean and a half-mile to 1.5 miles from Bogue Inlet. We concentrated on redfish, or red drum as the locals call them.

“We have red drum 12 months out of the year, but during the winter, many larger fish move out to the ocean,” Cronk said. “Our slot is 18 to 27 inches. Most of the slot redfish stay in the backwaters and at the surf zone.”

Finding schools of redfish

Bigger reds, those in the 20- to 60-pound range, tend to move offshore or closer to the Atlantic. The captain searched the marshy inshore bays and backwaters for schools of redfish. When he found what he wanted, Cronk rigged modified Carolina rigs. With a stiff wind blowing, he used sliding weights and 3-foot leaders between the swivels and the beads.

Cronk sweetened the hooks with dead menhaden for bait. He uses large menhaden to keep the pinfish from taking the bait so quickly. Almost immediately, all three rods doubled over for a triple.

“The schools move around, so we need to find them,” Cronk said. “There are always some schools of slot fish that stay in the rivers. Around April, good numbers of menhaden come in from offshore and fill our backwaters. As those fish push into our sounds and rivers, reds follow them. We also throw a lot of artificials for reds.”

When fishing for reds, Cronk allows about 18 inches of slack in the line. That way, the fish can grab the bait and turn away from the boat. When the fish swims away with the bait in its mouth, the circle hook slides into the corner of its mouth.

“When I have a lot of bait, I use the heads,” Cronk said. “With the head, I can take a 3/0 or 4/0 circle hook and pin its mouth closed. The nose and head of a menhaden is very tough. If we just pushed a hook through the soft body, it would fly off the hook.”

Sheepshead and more

After catching some reds, we shifted our attention to sheepshead. Under the Emerald Isle Bridge, the Atlantic Beach Bridge, rock piles and other hard structures, anglers might find sheepshead, black drum and other species. Before fishing for sheepshead, Cronk needed to catch bait. He walked along a marshy creek shoreline scooping fiddler crabs. Some people call fiddlers “sheepshead candy.”

“All these hard structures have barnacles and small black mussels attached to them that sheepshead eat,” Cronk said. “Sheepshead eat any crustaceans or mollusks. They love crabs and shrimp. They can crush the shells of fiddler crabs, barnacles and small mussels.”

Just off the beaches, anglers could find bull redfish, speckled trout and other fish species familiar to Mississippi anglers. Farther offshore, the catch might include king mackerel, Spanish mackerel, sea bass and other species. Tuna, wahoo and sailfish prowl the deeper waters of the Atlantic.

Where to go

While in the area, visit Hammocks Beach State Park (www.ncparks.gov/state-parks/hammocks-beach-state-park) near the mouth of Queens Creek. Try kayaking among the islands and beaches.

For a taste of farm life, visit Mike’s Farm (www.mikesfarmnc.com) in Beulaville. Also pay respects at the Lejeune Memorial Gardens (jacksonvillenc.gov/648/Lejeune-Memorial-Gardens) in Jacksonville. Look for the Beirut Memorial honoring Americans killed by terrorists in Beirut, Lebanon, in 1983. Explore the African American Heritage Trail (jacksonvilleonline.org/community/african-american-heritage-trail).

To find out about more adventures in Onslow County, see www.onlyinonslow.com.

The post “Out of State Destinations: Swansboro, North Carolina” first appeared on LouisianaSportsman.com.