Fishing

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Outer Banks Angling: The downside of technology

Fishing columnist Rob Alderman has written about the wonders of the Internet and how it helps fisherman get the latest news of what’s biting instantly.

However, in this column he reflects on how the Internet and what is being said about the Park Service’s new off-road vehicle plan could hurt us all. ....Read more
Outer Banks Angling: Fishbook

Fishing columnist Rob Alderman says that he is constantly asked which website he likes most for fishing information. You might think he would say his own, FishMilitia.com, but that isn’t necessarily the case.

He’s an avid fan of Facebook for his fishing reports. ....Read more
Outer Banks Angling: Technology’s huge impact on when and where and how we fish

The world of communications has changed fishing forever by allowing a lot of information to reach millions at lightning speed.

Word of a good fish bite that once spread by word of mouth or CB radio, now travels to anglers in real time via the Internet, cell phones, and social networking sites.   ....Read more
Bill to reserve three species, including red drum, for recreational anglers is back

Red drum, the official North Carolina saltwater fish, could soon be among three finfish that won’t be available to consumers in the state’s fish markets. Whether that is bad or good is a question that has re-energized a spitting match between the state’s recreational and commercial fishing interests over conservation, livelihood and who should have access to the public resource.

Legislation introduced last session in the General Assembly that would designate striped bass, speckled trout and red drum exclusively as gamefish is now being reconsidered by the Marine Fisheries Study Committee, which had its first meeting last week. ....Read more






Catch-share ‘study’ bid reunites old ties

It was back in 2004 that Jane Lubchenco — then an entrepreneurial scientist, now President Obama's administrator of oceans and atmosphere — was wooing the Intel founders' foundation to help finance one of her projects, a pan-university research organization known by the acronym PISCO.

The Partnership for Indisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans, which she co-founded in 1999, has prospered — with grants estimated at more than $100 million, primarily from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the Lucille and David Packard Foundation — and links dozens of researchers from multiple West Coast campuses.

Now, the Moore Foundation — patriarch Gordon Moore helped found the processing giant Intel — has decided to reach its own conclusion about the efficacy of catch shares in practice.

Read the article in The Gloucester Times.
Outer Banks Angling: The Grand Finale

As 2012 ends, fishing columnist Rob Alderman looks back on the season, which many anglers say was a slow one, hampered by beach closures and weather.  ....Read more 




Outer Banks Angling: Tuna Time

Christmas is rapidly approaching and 2011 is almost over, but the tuna fishing seems to just be getting started.

Our intrepid fishing columnist, Rob Alderman, tried to get in on the action in an offshore trip on Saturday.  However, instead of pulling in fish, he was on the floor of the cabin with a terrible case of seasickness.

The trip was successful, and the columnist is recovering.   ....Read more 

Jones requests action on fisheries reform bills

In two separate letters sent last week, Congressman Walter B. Jones, R-N.C., urged the House Natural Resources Committee to quickly move several fisheries reform bills through the committee and on to the House floor.  ....Read more 




UPDATE: North Carolina watermen will benefit from expanded bluefin season

A revised rule expanding the winter commercial bluefin tuna season by up to two months was filed on Tuesday, Nov. 29, by the National Marine Fisheries Service. The rule, which will be effective in 30 days, allows bluefin to be caught off North Carolina through March 31, or until the January sub-quota is gone.  ....Read more 


North Carolina watermen hoping for a share of the winter bluefin tuna quota

Bluefin tuna have been plentiful during February in recent years off North Carolina. But unfortunately for Outer Banks watermen, the commercial season has been over at the end of January. This winter may be different.

A pending rule change in the Atlantic bluefin tuna fishery is expected to extend the season to allow more of the quota to be caught off the state’s coast.  
....Read more
Outer Banks Angling: A mixed bag

The weather has not been all that fantastic since my last report. Most of the time, the wind has been hard and the current has been strong.

However, when conditions have allowed, the fishing has been fair. And lately, weather conditions have improved a little.  ....Read more
U.S. Senate stops Jones’ bid to stop catch shares

Members of a U.S. Senate conference committee have blocked an extension of the Jones amendment through the rest of fiscal 2012, setting aside a measure that would have barred the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from converting more fisheries into commodities markets, multiple sources said Wednesday, Nov. 16.

Supported by 100 votes on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives last February, the amendment by Congressman Walter Jones, a North Carolina Republican, was not added to an appropriations bill for Commerce, Justice and Science.

The spending bill was approved initially by the Senate without the Jones amendment. Jones' measure would have blocked any NOAA funding for expanding its catch share management policies, which have drawn fire and are blamed by many fishermen and Massachusetts lawmakers for forcing fishing industry consolidation and job losses.

Read the story in The Gloucester Times
Annual Anglers Club Tournament yielded few fish….WITH SLIDE SHOW

Participants in the Cape Hatteras Anglers Club 54th Annual Invitational Surf Fishing Tournament on Nov. 3-5 faced difficult weather conditions as severe wind and waves battered the coast from a deepening low pressure system that eventually became Tropical Storm Sean.

The storm system gave contestants every weather condition possible during the three-day competition -- huge waves, ocean overwash, gale force winds, strong undertow, torrential rain, and lightning.  ....Read more
Outer Banks Angling:  A Legacy

The drum fishing on Hatteras and Ocracoke has been good. The North Carolina Beach Buggy Association’s annual Red Drum Tournament drew 235 anglers who caught 42 red drum – 32 of them citation size.

The second-place overall winner in the tournament was a young angler, 15-year-old Logan Sheriff from Palmyra, Pa., with a 50-inch drum. Despite this win by an angler in the tournament’s junior division, columnist Rob Alderman is wondering if there are fewer young anglers in the sport and in the chase for red drum.  ....Read more

235 anglers catch 41 drum in NCBBA annual Red Drum Tournament

The North Carolina Beach Buggy Association’s third annual Red Drum Tournament, hosted by Frank and Fran’s tackle shop in Avon, had 235 anglers fishing on Thursday, Oct. 20, through Saturday, Oct. 22.

They caught a total of 41 drum, 32 of which qualified for the minimum 40-inch length needed for a North Carolina release citation.   ....Read more

Rogers rules big trout bite at Jennette’s Pier

Before sunrise Sunday, Oct. 23, Rick Rogers caught more speckled trout than most people catch all year long.

Inside a dome of light under Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, he reeled them in two at a time.   ....Read more
Outer Banks Angling: The beat of a different drum

Fall weather is pumping up the red drum bite. There has been a good red drum bite from both pier and surf, with Avon Pier producing numerous citations over the past week and the surf producing red drum of all sizes.   ....Read more
Jones cosponsors fisheries rebuilding flexibility bill

Congressman Walter B. Jones, R-N.C., has joined New Jersey Congressman Frank Pallone in introducing bipartisan legislation to give federal fisheries managers increased flexibility in rebuilding U.S. fisheries.    ....Read more
Outer Banks Angling: Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.

Highway 12 has reopened, and fall fishing is in full swing. It’s time to get those rods and reels ready and head on down.

And for those fishing the Capitol City Four Wheelers tournament this weekend or the North Carolina Beach Buggy Association Red Drum Tournament next weekend, the reopening of the road and the start of some good fishing couldn’t have come at a better time.  ....Read more
Outer Banks Angling: Love and Loss

It seems like the fishing world had come to a stop on Hatteras and Ocracoke islands since the Aug. 27 arrival of Hurricane Irene. To an extent, it did -- like no other time in the recent past. With Highway 12 washed out and several villages severely damaged, fishing was not on the top of most people’s mind, unless that was their primary form of income.

Now a few visitors are returning, and they are catching some fish.  And we are looking forward to a repaired highway for the fall season.  ....Read more
Hatteras Pinfish Tournament is all about catching the biggest smallest fish

“We picked the smallest fish you could catch and turned it into the biggest smallest fish!” say the organizers of the second annual Pinfish Tournament that just concluded at the waterfront in Hatteras village.

Last year, Kelsey Aiken of Hatteras, a senior at East Carolina University, and his former roommate, Greg Nachman, a Richmond native and graduate student at Virginia Commonwealth University, decided it was time for a genuinely fun tournament, one that didn’t require an expensive boat, lots of equipment, or a hefty entrance fee.  ....Read more
Hatteras-based Citation ‘disinvited’ to Big Rock Tournament, still appealing last year’s decision

The Hatteras-based charter boat that gained worldwide notoriety last year for being disqualified from more than $1 million in winnings thanks to a lapsed $15 fishing license, won’t be fishing in next week’s Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament.    ....Read more
2010 commercial and recreational landings inch back up

North Carolina commercial seafood harvests rose slightly, by 4 percent, in 2010 to the highest level since 2005. The same was true for recreational harvests, which inched up 6 percent after a 15 percent decline in 2009.

“The increase is a surprise considering increased regulations, including many seasonal closures, imposed by the federal councils and the National Marine Fisheries Service, as well as restrictions from the sea turtle lawsuit settlement,” said North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries Director Louis Daniel. “Additional increases in fuel and commodity prices might have been expected to actually cause the numbers to decline.”  ....Read more


The very best guide to charter fishing on the islands….WITH SLIDE SHOW

If you’ve never been fishing off Hatteras or Ocracoke, it’s definitely worth looking into.  The variety of trips, boats, captains, and species of fish available is quite impressive, and there are options that can accommodate almost any budget or interest.

That said, with so many options available, choosing the right charter can be a daunting task, especially for first-timers. To make it a little bit easier, The Island Free Press has compiled a guide to Hatteras and Ocracoke charter fishing.  With answers to frequently asked questions, information on everything from choosing a boat to cleaning your fish, advice on making your trip more enjoyable, and pictures to rouse your inner angler, this guide is designed help get you off the docks and on the water.  ....Read more