THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 31, 1994 TAG: 9407280203
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 46 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Ford Reid
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
Inshore, saltwater fishermen are always looking for something that stirs things up a bit.
Tides, currents and the obstructions in the water that they run against provide feeding opportunities for fish and catching opportunities for anglers.
There are few places on the Outer Banks where things are regularly more stirred up than Oregon Inlet.
Because Oregon is the only true inlet between the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and Hatteras, a lot of water runs under the Herbert C. Bonner Bridge.
Formed by a hurricane in 1846 and named for the first boat that passed through it, Oregon Inlet is an active and treacherous opening to the sea. The constantly shifting channels and bars have claimed the lives of many good men and long been the bane of the existence of commercial fishermen working out of Wanchese.
For recreational fishermen, the inlet provides a variety of opportunities hard to match on the East Coast.
Bridge and small boat anglers can fish in the inlet itself, where the hard running currents sweep baitfish along whether they like it or not. Where there are bait fish, there are game fish laying in wait.
Boaters with small craft need to be forever vigilant in the inlet. You could be swept onto a bar, or out to sea, before you know it.
The shore-bound angler has several choices around the inlet.
On the north side are miles of beach facing either the ocean or the inlet. With a beach buggy, fishermen can explore a wide variety of territory and find a fishable spot on almost any wind or tide.
The north side is an especially productive, and especially crowded, spot for the runs of big bluefish in the spring and fall. In the summer, it is often good water for small bluefish, flounder, bottom fish and, beginning usually in August, puppy drum.
But those limited by the two-wheel drive family car can find fishing spots, too.
On the south side, you can park in the lot next to the bridge and walk over to the shore on the sound side of the bridge. One day last week, I saw bluefish, flounder and a few small speckled trout being caught there.
A word of warning. Although people do it, this is not a safe place to wade. Drop offs and currents can, in fact, make it a very dangerous place to walk out into the water. Cast from the shore and you'll do about as well anyway.
If you want to surf fish, you can park on the old road that once led to the now closed Coast Guard station. Follow a path over the dunes and you'll be at the ocean and, quite likely, have a long stretch of beach to yourself.
A warning is in order here, too. For some reason, this area always seems to me to be one of the buggiest places on the Outer Banks. Once you get in the surf it isn't so bad, but walking through the dunes can be murder. A dose of insect repellent is in order.
If you can't find somewhere to fish around Oregon Inlet, you ought to rethink your choice of hobbies.
So much water. So little time. by CNB