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While other charter services claim
to be the areas # 1 fishing service, only "YEAH RIGHT CHARTERS" has the proof we are # 1 with our induction into the Better
Business Bureau.....
FRYING PAN SHOALS BUOY
    5-9-08
Todays winds were a bit much I thought for todays trip so I cancelled to be on the safe side.
Tomorrows trip has been cancelled as well, weather is looking real windy.
Thinking at this point Saturday may be "do-able", time will tell, but until then here's a summary
of what's happening now..
The Spanish Mackeral are starting to show up on the beaches now. Your #1 and # 2
planers trolled around 6 to 7 knots with 00 Clark Spoons will catch the Spanish Mackeral. Also, a trolling weight with a Clark
Spoon behind it will draw bites as well. Pull a "mackeral Tree" on a trolling weight and/or "Bird" and you may get
multiple hook up's. Find a school feeding and break out the lite tackle and cast small lures to the Spanish like Got-Cha Plugs
or the Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnows and you can have a great time catching some great fish dinners and have a blast doing
it!!
The King Mackeral are making their first spring run feeding on the
heels
of the Spanish. Live bait such as menhaden (pogys) will get the job done here. Slow troll live bait as slow as you can
go. Around 1 knot or less is preferable. If conditions warrant, drifting can be better yet. If you can't find any live pogys,
get in the "tide rip" at the mouth of the river and catch some Bluefish, a deadly bait for King Mackeral!!!! Anchoring
and chumming while drifting baits on ballons works well. Another technique not used much in our area is kite fishing. This
is a real effective way to fish and something different.
Whiting (Virginia Mullet) continue to bite in
the Cape Fear River and off the beach.
Your double dropper bottom rigs baited up with the freshest shrimp you can find on some small hooks will catch these very
tasty panfish.
Some speckled trout have showed up on the OCP using live shrimp. Also on OCP have
been some blues, Spanish Mackeral, Whiting, and even a few Flounder!! The kings continue to bite on the Pier as well..
Bluefish have been working the "tide rip" at the mouth of the Cape Fear River. Watch for the
terns diving on the baits the Blues run to the surface then try casting small spoons such as a Hopkins spoon on lite tackle.
You will have a blast and maybe even pick up a few Spanish Mackeral that are in the mix as well. Be careful here, you can
wind up "Grounded" if the tide is falling, pay attention to water depth and how fast you are being pulled out towards
the Jay Bird Shoals!!
Red Drum, Speckled Trout, and
even a few flounder are biting in the creeks
and ICW. Live bait such as mud minnows are great baits for the Drum and Flounder and live shrimp and live mud minnows
are great baits for the Trout, and the Berkley Gulp Baits will catch them all!!
Offshore,
the King Mackeral are biting in the Tower and Horse Shoe
areas. Frozen Cigar minnows as well as "jigged up minnows"
with Sibiki Rigs are catching the Kings. Trolling 3 1/2 Drone Spoons on Planers is a deadly technique to quickly get your
limit of King Mackeral as well!
Grouper and Bottom Fish are doing real good on the rocks and
ledges in 100+ feet
of water. Live baits such as cigar minnows and sardines as well as dead bait, cut baits, and squid are producing
plenty of Grouper and bottom fish. Some of the Black Bass this year have been big ones. keep your eyes on the water around
the boat while out in the grouper/bottomfish waters. There are some big Cobia out there checking you out right now. Last
week we had 5 come up behind the boat but could not keep one hooked up!!!!
A great way to catch these big Cobia is with a "bucktail Jig rigged with a whole
squid on it". Most of the time they can't resist this one!!
I have been seeing a few of the "Flying Fish" in the areas around the Tower and Horse
shoe lately. This can only mean that the Mahi-Mahi should be showing up soon
in the Tower and Horse Shoe areas. Mahi
love to feed on the flying fish, it's one of their favorite if not their favorite foods so they will follow the flying fish where
they go!!! The same baits for King Mackeral, cigar minnows will also get the Mahi-Mahi. I like to pull the dead cigar
minnows on a lead head rig, it makes them look more natural.This week last year the Mahi- Mahi were at the
Frying Pan Tower thick, they may be there again now!!!
Gulfstream action off Southport has been slower than normal this
year. The
Wahoo and Mahi- Mahi are biting in the stream, (some have been pretty big) on trolled ballyhoo's with your
favorite colored Blue and White "Blue Water Candy Lures" Skirt in front of the 'hoo's!! Wahoo's have also been hitting
trolled lures.
Yellowfin Tuna have been slow showing up in the stream. I expect they may be
there
now as you are reading this. The "Blue Water Candy lures" skirts, the one's you have confidence in, with the Ballyhoo
will entice strikes from the Tuna. I personally like the small ballyhoo for the Yellowfin Tuna. I feel I get more hook
ups and strikes on the smaller hoo's. Only problem with the smaller baits though is that the smaller Mahi-Mahi will have a
tendency to hit your baits more. Now that I think about it, I wouldn't exactly call that a problem!!!
Don't overlook the "Cedar Plug" lures, one of the "all-Time" best lures for the Gulfstream!!
Good luck and God Bless!!!!
FISH ON!!
Capt Butch
5-6-08
Rarely anymore does me, my wife, and my son Chris have the same day off at the same time.
But today all the planets and stars lined up just right and it happened!!
So we loaded up the 16' deep v'ee and headed to one of our favorite fresh water lakes for
some bream fishing.
This type fishing has always been one of Capt Chris's, his mom Barbara and my favorite types
of fishing.
It is a casual, slower paced and more tranquil type fishing than offshore saltwater fishing
and brings back memories of yesteryears.
We were hoping to get in on the spawning run of the big blue gills, but just like last year,
the full moon in April, when the spawn occurs, I was out chasing Grouper and Snappers offshore.
So, we rigged up the ultra lite rods with our favorite colored "beetle spins" and started
working the structure where we, as we say offshore, were "picking at 'em".
As we worked our baits I was watching Capt Chris and I let myself be taken back to the days
when he and I started our journey through this life together side by side on our fishing and hunting adventures that would
all to soon be pushed aside with lifes harsh realities!!
It was a day I won't soon forget, for once more I was on the lake with my most prized accomplishments,
my wife and my son, both who I love very much and can't imagine what I would do without either one!!
I was swept back to the days at Fontana Lake where Capt Chris took his maiden voyage out in
the boat fishing by himself.
He had learned very well!! When he came back to our houseboat, he had a fish box full of Walleyes,
small mouth bass, and a IGFA World Record Rainbow Trout in which was verified by the IGFA as a world record!!
I thought about all the days we spent fishing and hunting with our trusty retriever Buddy
"Bud" the Black lab. Our first Goose hunting trip Capt Chris and Bud both were so young, they both had to drag the geese,
they were too heavy for them to pick up.
I remembered the first deer Capt Chris took one evening and how we were in the tree stand
the next evening and all of a sudden Capt Chris started shaking real nervous like he did the day before when he saw his first deer,
and I ask him, do you see a deer? His reply was no. Then I asked. Well then why are you shaking? He said, it's time for
them to come!!
Oh my what a day it was for me, why do we have to "Grow up" and move on to what we think are
better things.
I could go on and on but I won't. I just thank God for the times I had with Capt Chris.
Although he has moved on now to make his mark in this world I will continue on even though
a big part of me is missing now.
I still have my memories of times past and this is what helps keep me going at times. Son
it has been too long between fishing trips, lets try to do it more often in the future if we possibly can
I really do enjoy my moments now of fishing with Capt Chris.
How could I have ever known that what I once took for granted, would turn out one day to be
my little piece of "Heaven On Earth". I LOVE YOU CHRIS, Fish on and God Bless you always!!!! Dad.
5-3-08
Todays trip was with Ryan Hambleton, Eric Olsen, from Raleigh,NC David Saurler, Dale Baker,
from Washington,DC, and Conrad Schatte, and Jay Nestlerode from Arlington,VA.
We started the morning off trying to convince a shark to bite. We had the baits deployed from
top to bottom with a good chum line.
We got one good hit but had no solid hookups. It's tough when a shark won't bite.
Finally we decided to finish up the morning with trolling for some Spanish Mackeral. The terns
were working some bait but it was being driven to the top by some bluefish, not Spanish.
In a last ditch effort I ran down the beach to the cleanest water I could find, still no Spanish
Mackeral.
I did hear one boat captain say he had picked up two Spanish. So, some are here, it's just
a little slow just yet.
The water is still dirty from all the winds lately. Just as soon as it clears up I expect the
Spanish and King Mackeral bite on the beach to turn on!!!
The King Mackeral bite this time of year usually only last a few weeks as they move onto the
beach to feed on the blues and Spanish, but it's a great time of year to catch yourself a real "smoker" as these early fish
can be rather large.
Then later your more mixed sizes of Kings will invade the near shore structures.
The bite on the King Mackeral offshore, (according to the radio talk), is still doing good
starting about 20 miles out SE of the Cape Fear river. There have been some decent 20+ fish mixed in with these fish as well.
There are no bad fishing trips. We had a great trip and everyone got away from the real
world for a little bit and had a relaxing few hours out on the water.
The catching or lack of, was the only "fly in the ointment" but sometimes there's a lot more
to a fishing trip than how many fish you catch.
You may ask why I report a trip with so few fish, and if you do ask that question then
you do not know us here at "YEAH RIGHT CHARTERS" and if that's so, then welcome to the source for fishing reports
that tell it like it is. That's also known as the truth, something that's sometimes hard to find anymore!!!!
You will always get the truth, because whether I like it or not, it is what it is and and I
hope I have earned your trust and respect by telling you the truth about fishing!!
We will be heading back offshore next week where the hungry fish live, weather permitting,
so hope to have some better "catching" reports for you then.
Talked with James this morning on the boat "Final Approach" he went to the Gulfstream yesterday.
No Wahoo or Tuna, but some nice Mahi-Mahi. I would consider that a successful trip!! BTW if
you want to get into offshore fishing, here's a great boat to do it with!!
Butch,
I wanted to let you know that I am selling my 3070 CC Pursuit.
(Final Approach) It is priced right ! Please tell anyone interested.
If I were a little older, I would use it for chartering. It has allot of fishing
space, good on fuel, good nav, and nothing broken. $95,000 or best offer.
James Demyan, 910-690-2128
Till next time Fish On and God Bless!!!
P.S. Just look at the pic, we didn't catch a lot of fish, but the smiles say it all about the trip.
Thanks guys, this is what it's all about!!!
Capt Butch
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| click on pic to enlarge the smiles |
5-02-08
Today we were offshore with Roy Cartrette, Dwayne Carter, Ronnie Tayloy, from Clinton,NC
and Richard Reed from Whiteville,NC.
It was a little "bumpy" heading out so I switched directions and headed south instead
of east so when everyone was give out from catching all the fish we would have a great ride in with a following sea, and it
worked out as planned.
Or nearly everything worked out as planned. I'll explain in a moment!!!
But the ride back worked out perfect. I looked back at one time and everyone was taking
a nap on the bean bag recliners I have on the boat for everyone to ride on.
If you haven't ever ridden in a boat on one of these things, you don't know what you
are missing!!!
The bottomfish were biting good in the 300's and the King Mackeral bite was good in
the area of the Horseshoe.
The Spanish Mackeral are biting some on the beaches around the inshore reefs and so
are the bluefish.
The piers have reported King Mackeral being caught so the Kings are here now feeding
on the Spanish and Blues.
Whiting (Virginia Mullet), are biting in the Cape Fear River near the mouth, and heading
out yesterday morning and the terns were working the tide rip at the mouth of the Cape Fear. This is a good place to cast
small spoons and catch Spanish Mackeral and Blue Fish.
I am starting to see more and more flying fish offshore, so look for the Mahi-Mahi
to start showing up in the areas like the Tower and Horse Shoe before much longer.
With the winds blowing from one direction and the current in another, the "Power Buoy"
earned its keep again today.
Simply dropping it off to the side of the fish for a reference point proved most helpful
today allowing us to pin point our anchoring right on the fish.
If you do not have one of these markers and are trying to bottomfish, why are you making
it harder than you have to?
You can get you own "Power Buoy" by calling Mike @ (843) 665-5613. Tell
him I sent you and save $50.00.
Todays fishermen loaded up two 100+ quart coolers with some very large Black Bass,
some of the biggest triggerfish I have seen in a while, good sized Vermillion Snapper (B-Liners), nice Silver Snappers (pinkies),
Big ole' Grey Snappers, some large "Joltheads", decent Gag Grouper, a nice King Mackeral, and of course sharks.
Speaking of sharks, be careful with these predators as I found out today one stupid
mistake or drop your guard for one second and these creatures can hurt you real bad.
Roy hooked and fought to boat side a big Bull Shark. Looking at him we were quite
sure it was keeping size of 54 inches but not real sure.
So the plan was for everyone to get clear and we would bring it on board alive to measure
to be sure it was legal so if it wasn't we could release it alive.
This will never happen again on my boat!!!! If I am not absoulutely sure it's a keeper
I won't kill it, and it will only come into my boat again after it is subdued.
We got it into the boat and everyone was safely out of harms way,except for me where
I thought I was in control of the situation.
Then all of a sudden, this animal turned and "jumped" just like a dog attacking and
in a split second my left hand was half way down his throat and those razor sharp teeth had a death grip on my left hand.
God was with me though, for the creature laid still and didn't thrash around
and didn't spin, had he done that, my hand would have been gone.
He laid still long enough for me to pry his mouth open and get my hand out, I was
extrermely lucky coming out with only some major cuts, but it could have been much worse.
Yeah, I know bringing a shark like this into the boat alive was stupid, but out of
respect for the resource, I didn't want to kill it if it wasn't legal.
My philosophy from this point on is that if I can't tell it's legal size so I can
dispatch it before coming aboard then you will just have to be satisfied with "in water" pictures and Grouper/bottomfish to
eat for dinner!!!
So, let this be a wake up call for you as it was for me, we tend to get 10 feet tall
and bullet proof, or so we think, and drop your guard for one second, make a stupid mistake and things can get bad real
fast!!
But we all still had a great trip, I didn't loose my hand plus I got to file
away a little more education that will prevent major accidents and make our charter trips even safer in the future and
these guys are in for several tasty fish dinners with a fish story to tell about how the hunter became the hunted!!! Till
next time, Fish On and God Bless!!!
Capt Butch
4-29-08
Talked to a man yesterday and he told me while I was offshore Saturday, they wore out the
Spanish Mackeral on Yaupon reef.
Also, the whiting are still biting in the river. The best baits for the whiting are
the freshest shrimp you can find, and if you catch a spot, use cut bait from that.
Sometimes the whiting will bite fresh spot better than shrimp.
Spanish Mackeral can be caught by trolling your #1 and #2 planers with 00 Clark spoons. Be
sure to run plenty of leader 30, 40, even 50 feet is not too much. I use 17 to 20 pound Berkley Vanish Flourocarbon line
for a leader.
Spanish Mackeral are very terminal tackle shy so tie the spoon directly to the leader.
Do not use any swivels at the spoon!!
To avoid line twist of the leader, what we do is hook several, 3 to 5 quality ball bearing
swivels together then hook to the planer then tie the leader to the swivels.
This will prevent your leader from twisting up as the Clark spoon spins in the water. When
you get a Spanish Mackeral on and wind the planer to the rod tip, hand line the leader to the boat but be sure to let the
leader stay in the water.
This will prevent tangles in the leader as it does when you allow it to stay in the boat.
With the Spanish Mackeral at boat side, make one smoothe lift or swing, placing the Spanish Mackeral in the boat, that
way you will loose far fewer fish than by trying to quickly jerk them in.
With the leader in the water now, just unhook your fish, be careful of those razor sharp teeth, and
toss the lure back in the water. Reset the planer, do a count of about 5 and you are back to fishing.
I like to count one planer down at a count of 5 and the other at a count of 8, this
puts your planers at different depths covering more water.
Plus, it helps keep the lures from tangling when you make a turn. Also, you can run another
spoon down the middle on a trolling sinker and I like to run a "Mackeral Tree" behind a "Bird" rig on top water from a rod
in the hard top rod holders.
You can get the Bird rigs and Mackeral Tree rigs at Dutchman's Creek Bait and Tackle, beside
the airport, or at Oak Island Sporting Goods on Oak Island.
Another note on leaving the leader in the water when hand lineing the fish in.......
When the bite gets hot and heavy and you are letting the leader fall in the boat, eventually
you will hastily go to throw the lure back in and you will be standing on the leader.
When that happens this will drive the hook home into your hand or finger, this I know from
experience.
But if this does happen, just place your hand or finger on something solid, press down hard
on the spoon and you can push the hook right out. It really does work, it hurts a little, but works!!
Troll around 6 to 7 knots and if the bite is slow, I will make slow "S" curves and note which
side the boat the bites are coming from. If more bites are on the inside of the turn, then that dictates to slow the troll
speed down, ditto for the outside faster.
Even though Spanish Mackeral are not the sportiest fish on trolling gear, they make up for
that on the table.
But, find a school and break out the lite spinning tackle and cast some small lures
like a Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow or a Got-Cha plug, etc; and immediately they bring on a whole new meaning of "lite tackle
sportfishing".
You have been working hard, it's time to reward yourself with a little rest and fun, no better
way to do that than go catch a mess of Spanish Mackeral.
They are here, go have some fun and God Bless!!!
FISH ON!!!
Capt Butch
4-27-08
Sorry for the late reports, seems like there isn't enough time to get it all done anymore.
May be the fact that the older I get, the slower I get but I try to stay consistent!!
The weather and winds have given us a few days of calmer seas and we took advantage of it
and went fishing. And the catching wasn't bad either.
The Gulfstream trips were traded off for bottom trips, and it was a good trade as the fish
were co-operating pretty good.
Yesterday's trip was a great time. The pictures are posted of the fish, the fisherpeople asked
to remain anonymous and their wishes have been granted.
Today's trip was with Mike Neighbors and his future son in law Denver Compton. Both
are from Goode, VA.
We had a very eventful trip today. These guys caught a little of everything. They had Black
Bass, Grey Snappers, Triggerfish, Grouper, Vermillion Snapper, Sharks, Silver Snapper, King Mackeral, and Flounder.
Looks like the next few days are going to be blown out. I have already cancelled tomorrow's
trip and most likely will have to call off Tuesdays as well.
Oh yeah, they are still catching King Mackeral off the piers and I got a report of a Spanish
mackeral caught off the pier two days ago.
Also, the Blues are biting. Talked to some guys at the boat ramp this evening and they had
caught some big whiting in the river today using shrimp for bait.
It is fishing/catching time in Southport, NC.
Hope I see you on the water, till next time, Fish On and God Bless!!!!
Capt Butch
4-25-08
Today's trip was scheduled to be a Gulfstream trip but was changed this morning to a bottom
trip because that's what they decided they wanted to catch.
I was fishing today with local Doctor James R. Forstner and his son's "Jim" and Phil.
Also with them was Dr. Mark Kaley, Mark Oglesby, and Matt McGiven.
We had to work hard today to get the fish, the bite was slower than usual, but we kept moving
and hitting the little overlooked spots that nobody fishes and in the end it paid off.
Other captains on other charter boats were reporting a slow grouper bite today, but If you
attend my seminars on grouper fishing then you know what I was looking for and what and how I was fishing them.
That technique paid off very well, we had ten keeper grouper today to go along with several
limits of reef complex species that included Grey Snapper, Joltheads, Trigger Fish, Almaco Jacks, with them were some Big
Black Bass, Silver Snappers,Triple Tails, and Vermillion Snappers. There were plenty of sharks today as well, but we released
all those.
Dr. James Forstner is pictured with his Big and very colorful Queen Trigger Fish, Mark Ogelsby
was tagged the "Trigger Man" today as he caught most all the rest of the Trigger Fish. Phil Forstner landed the Almaco Jack
after a long hard battle and all had a time today cranking in fish till their arms were sore.
I tried to go fishing with these guys last year but the weather would never let us go, but
today was just as nice as it was rough last year!!!
The King Mackeral bite is here and there. Sounded on the radio this evening that there was
a evening bite happening in the area of the Tower.
Hope you can get down to enjoy one of God's great gifts he has made available to us all.
For Jesus said, Come and I will make you fishers of men.... Till next time Fish On and God Bless!!
4-24-08
Just got a call that the King Mackeral are being caught from the pier.
Things are starting to happen here in Southport,NC
Come on down and catch some fish, It's time!! FISH ON and God Bless!!!!
Capt Butch.
4-23-08
Looks like the winds are going to start calming down by the last of this week.
This is the time of year when it all starts coming together and the calmer winds with the
warm temps should cause great fishing!!
Look for the fishing to shift into high gear any time now. With the temps getting into the
80's towards the end of the week, I look for it to break loose this weekend.
It's the last of April, It is Time to go fishin' and do some catching!!!!
Got gulfstream trips and bottom trips this weekend, I predict some good reports coming, I
can just feel it !!! FISH ON and God Bless!!! Capt Butch
4-21-08
Today we were on a Bottomfishing trip. We were fishing with Otho C. Lyon,Sr, Otho C.
Lyon,Jr, Eddie Johnson, from Butner,NC, David Riley, Efren Daniel, from Creedmore,NC and Willie Hodges from Raliegh,NC.
The conditions and winds were a little more than were predicted so we worked our way
from the Tower area around to the east side to take advantage of the "trough ride" returning to the dock.
These guys caught a pile of fish but several hundred did not meet the legal size restrictions
that are required to be legal. But a lot of them did!!
We had Big Black Bass, Huge Grey Snappers, Big Ole' Red Grouper, Strawberry Grouper,
Large Bluefish, Big Vermillion Snappers, Great tasting Joltheads, Nice Silver Snappers, and of course, all the Sharks
you could want and then some!!!
With the windy and full moon conditions we were blessed well for our efforts today
and this fishing trip with these guys would have been considered a success if not a fish was caught!!!
Till next time FISH ON and GOD BLESS!!! Capt Butch & "Admiral Bodie" the fish
dog says, I am semi retired now, But I'm still thinking about those fish scales and slime everyday, I sure do miss it...
4-20-08
Sorry this report is a little late. Had some equipment repairs
I had to get done today so I would be ready for tomorrows trip.
We left South Harbour Marina yesterday morning with Ricky Jones
and his son Joey, Michael Pruitt (aka "fuzzball") Ray Wallen and Adam Wallen. All are from Asheville,NC, but Adam now lives
on Oak Island.
We went towards the 100/400 but later decided to go to the
Black Jack instead. The first Line in was rigged with a Blue/White Blue Water Mini Jag over a ballyhoo. I ran the
bait back around 100 feet and I had just set the rod in the holder when the clicker on the Penn International
50TW "lit up"!!! FISH ON!!!!!!
It was a nice Skipjack Tuna about 15 lbs. I figured it was
show time finally in the stream at last, but we trolled on until around noon before the next reel went off with another Skipjack
Tuna.
The "hot bite" today was at the 100/400, just where I was planning to go first but we changed
and went to the Blachjack. What's that commercial that used to be on about "Almond joy Candy Bars", Sometimes you feel
like a nut, sometimes you don't. Hey, that's part of the mystery of fishing!!!
I don't care who you are, you can't be a "Hero" all the time!!!
Around 1PM everyone at the Blackjack was reporting a
very slow bite. Never heard any reports from the 100/400 until after we got back to the dock!! Guess everyone was to busy
catching fish.
One boat at the Blackjack said he had two small Blackfins and
another said he had not gotten a bite and another reported a couple of "knockdowns" but no hook up's.
We felt pretty lucky with the reports from the other boats
so we made the call to go bottom fishing.
With not having much time left to bottomfish, I pulled out
my log book and punched in some of the numbers I found many years ago on the edge of the break.
I was confident with these for I have not fished these rocks
in years. and not fishing them for a long time paid off.
These guys put some pretty fish in the boat. Big grey snappers,
Silver Snapper, Large Vermillion Snappers,(b-liners), Big ole' Triggerfish, Knot Head Black Bass, A Pile of Grouper's,and
Joey showed his dad how to land a Big Shark, which there was no shortage of!!!
If you didn't make it out yesterday to fish, I am sorry you
couldn't make it. The day was beautiful and I was able to spend it on one of God's Beautiful Creations with some Great
Guys!!!! Till next time, FISH ON and God Bless!!! Capt Butch.
4-18-08
I'll make this one short and to the point. It's late
and I am going to try to get to the stream tomorrow.
Fish today with Darryl Bell, James Hunter,Sam Cole, Sam Stewart
Reuben McNair, and Clifford Stone from Washington,DC.
We were fishing the areas around the Tower for bottom fish
and despite the rough conditions we did fairly well!!
The word from the other boats that were King Mackeral fishing
was not very promising. In fact reports were from a couple dozen fish to as few as just one.
But as usual, the bottom fish are willing to bite if you find
and set up on the right spots. Until next time, FISH ON and GOD BLESS!!!! Capt Butch.
4-14-08
Let's try this again!!! I typed it in once today and just as I went to publish
it to the website the internet lost connection and I lost it all, so here we go again!!!
Yes, believe it or not the winds did let up enough to get offshore today although
I was a bit paranoid to the point where we cancelled first thing but an hour later the seas were getting better so we
gave it a shot.
As the day progressed we were rewarded with a beautiful day offshore with hungry
fish and great fellowship from Jeff Russell, Tom Gardner,Charles Matthews, Melvin Wilcox, Mark Bishop, and Kris Churchill
from Oxford,NC.
Once we made it to our first stop we got the "Yeah Right" in position on the structure
and the "games began".
The bottom bite was hot with Black bass, Grey Snapper, Silver Snapper, Vermillion
Snapper, Triggerfish, and sharks.
There were some big fish hooked up today, the first big shark was hooked up by
Mark Bishop and for a while there we all thought that the shark was going to win this fight, but Mark finally landed
the knock out punch and was rewarded with a nice Black Tip for a photo shoot!!
Everyone got their limit of one Atlantic Sharpnose Shark for the grill and all
the rest (that we got in the boat) were photographed and then released alive to fight again another day!!!
Tom Gardner had something happen to him twice today that hardly ever happens,
especially twice in the same day.
He hooked up on two big fish and both times the hook broke. Usually it's the line
that breaks or the fish justs gets off, not the hook breaks!!
The king mackeral bite that had been happening in the Tower area must have slacked
off. We never trolled for any Kings but the lite line never produced a king all day.
But what it did produce was sharks!!! I don't ever recall seeing as many atlantic
sharpnose sharks, Blacktips, and Bull sharks as we had around the boat all day. It reminded me of the way the Spiney dogfish
sharks are in the early spring.
I mean it was nothing to have a whole heard circling the boat, 50, 60, possibly
100+ sharks in a school, it was awesome.
Had a big schol of AJ's to come under the boat as well, but none were interested
in eating our baits, and that's sorta unusual, but that's fishing!!
But nothing seemed to bother the bottom fish though!! I bet I know a few guys that
hit the "Ben Gay" hard last night!!!
It was great to fish with these guys, and it was great to finally get some calmer
winds so we could go fishing!!
Sometimes I ask myself why I do what I do, and today I was reminded why I do it.
As I have said before, Fisherpeople are the greatest people in the world, and spending a day fishing with people like
these guys is surely my "Heaven on earth"!!! Till next time, FISH ON and GOD BLESS!!!!
4-11-08
I hope someone will email or post a fishing report
for today in the "Forum" .
I also hope this is the last time I do this this year!!
Todays charter wanted to go offshore but didn't want
to drive down from Charlotte/Monroe area if it was going to be rough. And I can understand this especially with the fuel
prices the way they are!!
I was told it was supposed to be a good day, but all
I had to go on was the weather report that was up yesterday for today and it was "15 to 20 knot winds seas 5 to 7 feet", so
for safetys sake and the fact that 5 to 7 foot seas are miserable, it was decided not to take the chance!!
Well, I probably just sat on the hill today and watched
the ocean be as calm as it will ever be again for the rest of my life, or even maybe till the end of time, but I
had to make the call on the information that I had to work with.
I could and really want to make some comments about
the weather forecasting we have in this area, this is not the first time this has happened and I am sure it won't be
the last!!! But I will just keep what I think to myself...
But to clearify to some of my charters why this happens
sometimes, well here is a sample of what we Captains here in Southport see at times for a forecast or something
similar (Winds SW 5 to 25 knots and variable, seas 2 to 11 feet), now I ask you, what would you say the seas would be
like for the day?
I hope I have the "Bad Calls" out of the way now for
a while and after this front gets out of here in the next few days we can get down to some serious fishing!!!
I know the fish had to bite today, so go ahead and
add insult to injury and let us know what we missed besides a flat calm day on the water!! Till next time, FISH ON and GOD
BLESS!! Capt Butch
4-10-08
This is one of those "It is what it is" fishing reports.
Fished on the beach out to Lighthouse Rocks and a mile
or two beyond and the fishing was TOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!
With me was James Braswell, Phillip Turner, and Thomas
Cutler, Yeah Right's new 1st mate this year.
We marked plenty of fish but they just were not wanting
to bite today.
Talked to Scott Blevins, he is a very good fisherman,
one I believe is as good as there is in Southport, and he was having the same bad luck as we were.
He fished for the Atlantic Bonito's and never got a
bite so I didn't even bother to try for them. Didn't see any telltale sign that some were around anyway.
Scott and we both jigged up a few fish mostly Grey
Trout, Blues, and Black Bass. We caught a lot of Black Bass but the biggest of the bunch was just over 11 inches, short of
the 12 inch size limit.
Want to get an idea just how tough the inshore fishing
was yesterday, think about this, we never caught the first shark, can you believe that!!!!!????
Offshore is a different scenerio though. The King
Mackeral continue to bite in the Tower area and so does the bottom fish.
So your best bet now is offshore at least until the
inshore waters clear back up. They are pretty "sandy" due to all the winds we have had lately and the sand mixed in with the
water works on the fishes breathing mechinisims in their gills and causes them to become lethargic, therefore are reluctant
to feed.
Weather that is actually true or not is negotiable,
but it sounds good and is the best educated guess I can come up with at this time as to why I am having to post a report that
the fish didn't bite.
I am sure somebody slammed them somewhere inshore,
but we didn't and I'm not going to say we did.
In fishing "it is what it is" and reporting anything
else would just be a lie, and lie's are not what you come to my fishing report site to read.
i was going offshore today, but I listened to the
weather man again today and so far it looks like I made a wrong call today.
It is tough trying to make the right calls with the
kind of weather reports we get down here. It's not as critical if you are going out to commercial fish, we are used to and
expect rough seas!!
But it is a different when you are taking people out
on charters that are not used to doing this all the time and so you don't want to take any chances with them and you want
them to have an enjoyable trip in calm seas so sometimes when I am not sure I won't take the chance and I miss call
the weather.
But at least this way, you can be assured that if
you live, there will be another day to go fishing!!!!
Thanks everyone for your continued support, Thank you
for visiting "our" website. Thanks to everyone that attended our seminars and the humbling and very kind comments you wrote
to me about them, all you guys and gals are the BEST!!!!!
Looks like we have another weather pattern coming
through the next few days, in fact it's going to drop into the low 30's, "ouch".
Hopefully this will be winters last charge to stick
around and spring will finally take over.
Surely the next fishing report I have here will
be an improvement over this one, but if not, just remember, "IT IS WHAT IT IS" and that's what you will always see here and
you can believe that!!!
Till next time, FISH ON and God Bless!!! Capt Butch,
1st mate Thomas, and "Admiral Bodie" the fish dog says, I knew the fish wern't going to bite, that's why I stayed in bed,
and we are known as "dumb dogs" YEAH RIGHT!!!!
4-7-08
Keep your fingers crossed, it looks like at this time just maybe the winds are going to start
letting up some and we just might be able to go fishing offshore towards the end of the week!!!
Got a report this morning of some American Bonito's being caught, I won't tell where due to
"Professional courtesy" but they should be here off Southport,NC real soon. Possibly out there now!!!!
If you have the chance and time you need to fish the MAD (Military Apprecition Day) tournament.
This is for a great cause, for if not for the men and women of our Military, you or I would not be going fishing, Period!!
Midnight Wind will most likely send me some info. on the Tournament and as soon as I get it
I will post it up here!!
The Red fish, Speckled Trout, Black Drum, and even a few small Flounder (on the dark mud
areas)continue to bite on the inside.
On the beach the Blues are here and some whiting are being caught.
When the winds lay down, King Mackeral, Bottomfish and Gulfstream action should be
waiting for you offshore!!! Till next time, FISH ON and GOD BLESS!!! Capt Butch.
4-6-08
Don't forget, if you can make it Tuesday around 7PM to the
Hanes Mall Golden Corral I will be doing a seminar on Grouper/Bottomfishing/anchoring/chart reading/etc;
If you would like to have a meal first come out around 6PM.
Hope you can make it!!!! We will have free samples from some
of my sponsors(until we run out) but I have a bunch.
Come on out and join the fun and bring your questions.
Is it possible????
Am I reading the forecast right???
Do you think that the winds just might be going to ease up
a little???????
I sure hope what I am reading on the weather forecast is true!!!!
Time will tell, FISH ON!!! Capt Butch
4-3-08
I just returned from a very enjoyable evening at the "MEMBERS
CLUB" in St. James.
I and my wife were hosted for dinner by John and Bill
of the "ST. James Fishing Club" at the Members Club restaurant. Thanks guys, it was an honor and we both Thank You very much!!!
From there we went to the meeting room and we talked about
various types of fishing from flounder to grouper.
We covered chart reading, what types of structure to look
for for grouper and where and how to target flounder in our area.
We also discussed various rigs and tackle to use for both flounder,
grouper, and bottom fishing in general.
Areas to locate grouper and flounder were also discussed.
Different baits were discussed for flounder and grouper and
the advantages and disadvantages of braid vs mono.
A demonstration on how to tie grouper/bottom fishing rigs
and the benefits and various ways to keep them out of the rocks and an effective way to get a grouper out of the rocks (most
of the time)when he gets back in them was presented.
The benefits of the "Pabco Power Buoy" and a demonstration
of the power this unit has was covered as well and everyone got a free "SWIV-L-STOP" from Pabco just for being there.
The benefits of using electric reels was covered and a demonstration of the kind of power the "PRECISION
REELS" we use on the "Yeah Right" was shown.
Other sponsor door prizes consisted of hats from "Precision
Reels", "Big Bone Grubs" from Boneyard Baits, various lures, skirts, and rigs from Blue Water Candy Lures, CW Crab
lures from Chuck at CW Crab lures, and some King Mackeral live bait rigs tied up by yours truly from"Yeah Right Tackle
Supply."
I hope everyone had as good a time as I did. My wife and I
were treated extremely nice and everyone there was first class and made us feel very welcomed.
What can I say but again Thank You for inviting us and hopefully
you liked the seminar good enough that we can do it again sometime!!
If any of you guys have any more questions just give me call
or email and I'll do my best to help you out.
The offshore fishing lately has been put on hold because of
the winds. My charter calender has so many X's on it from cancellations, it looks like I am counting the days off for something.
Actually, I am, I am counting them off for the winds to settle
down some. I thought last year was bad, but according to the "Archives" from last year this time we were fishing fairly regular
with several Gulfstream trips already made.
This year so far, we can't even get out on the beach its been
so rough and the weekend doesn't look any better with predicted strong thunder storms and 20+ MPH winds in the forecast.
I know, I hate to sound so negative, and I would love to tell
you what you want to hear, but it is what it is, and if I told you different, I would be lying to you. And I have always tried
to be "straight up" with you!!!
But it is April, and the windy weather will be calming soon
as the "transition period" gets completed and then we will all forget about this bad weather. look at the good side of this
though, at least we are getting rain this year.
I guess if we have to have winds to get the rains then it's
OK, for we need the rain some kind of bad!!!
Someone said the weather was looking good for Saturday, I
wonder where they were talking about? Surely it was not the South Facing beaches of Brunswick County, doesn't look good to me, but hey, what do I know, I have only been doing this for nearly 50 years now!!
Till next time, FISH ON!! Capt Butch
3-30-08
The winds will soon let up so hang in there!!! If they do in the next week or so I would expect
some Atlantic Bonito to be in the area off the beaches.
Here is an article I wrote for a couple of magazines on some tips to help you catch some.
In case you don't see it or it doesn't get published (sometimes they don't), here it is for you on this website.
SPRINGTIME ATLANTIC BONITO FISHING
It is getting time for the Atlanic
Bonito (Sarda Sarda) to appear, and someone may have already seen or caught some. But, usually sometime in April is when they
show up off the Southport beaches and are then usually gone on to where ever they go in a few weeks!!! These are not to be
confused with the Tuna that is known as a “False Albacore”. The Atlantic Bonito is much more desirable for Sushi
and the grill.
The most distinguishing marks that separate it from the “False
Albacore” are the straight black lines that run from head to tail on the upper back. The “False Albacore”
have “squiggly“, worm type marking on its back.
Here are some tips and techniques we have found that help put
more fish in the boat here at Yeah Right Charters in Southport,NC. For more fishing information go to www.yeahrightcharters.com
I like to look for Atlantic Bonito chasing bait from the water
around the inshore reefs like Yaupon and McGlammery in the early morning ( up to around 8AM). I have found that they prefer
the "low light" times of day, but, this is not written in stone, as with all fishing!!
A good way to catch Atlantic
Bonito is to circle the school, which can sometimes be rather large, use your regular #1 or #2 planers and Clark spoons as
you are Spanish Mackeral fishing. I like to troll around 6 to 7 knots and I will often use a larger Cla
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