DATE: Tuesday, August 19, 1997              TAG: 9708190262

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA 

COLUMN: Fishing on the Outer Banks

SOURCE: Damon Tatem

                                            LENGTH:   84 lines

PIER FISHING WAS GOOD OVERALL SATURDAY BUT SLOW SUNDAY

Pier fishing along the northern beaches generally was good Saturday, but slow Sunday.

Kitty Hawk Pier reported a 49-pound king mackerel and a 33-pound cobia decked late Friday. Fishing was slow Saturday, and only a few small bottom fish were taken Sunday.

Anglers on Avalon Pier caught good numbers of Spanish mackerel early Saturday morning. Spot, small croaker, scattered bluefish and some pompano were landed during the rest of the day. A few spot, pompano and small bluefish were decked Sunday.

Fisherman on Nags Head Pier caught a few Spanish mackerel, bluefish and bottom fish off and on Saturday. Sunday's fishing was slow, with only a few small spot landed.

Spot, croaker and sea mullet were taken from Jennette's Pier at a fairly steady rate Saturday morning. A few small pompano and small bottom fish were landed during the afternoon. A handful of spot, croaker and a few pompano were decked Sunday.

Outer Banks Pier reported lots of spot and croaker taken early Saturday. Only a handful of bottom fish and small gray trout were taken later in the day. Small bottom fish were caught occasionally Sunday.

South of Oregon Inlet, a few sea mullet, spot and croaker were landed during the weekend from Rodanthe Pier.

Small croaker, a few mullet and several small gray trout were landed during the weekend from Avon Pier.

Some nice bluefish and sea mullet were taken from Frisco Pier early Saturday morning. Little action was reported Saturday afternoon. Fishing was slow Sunday because of strong southwest winds.

Surf fishermen hauled small croaker, spot, scattered mullet and a few pompano from the surf along the northern beaches early in the morning and late in the afternoon Saturday and Sunday.

Small bottom fish, tailor blues and a few trout were taken around Oregon Inlet during the weekend. Some sheepshead were caught by anglers fishing around the supports of the Bonner Bridge.

Croaker and a few sea mullet were landed in the surf from Rodanthe to Buxton Saturday. Plenty of small croaker were caught Sunday, but fishing was difficult because of gusty winds and blowing sand.

A few Spanish mackerel and bluefish were beached early Saturday evening at Cape Point. Spot and croaker were taken during the day.

Spanish mackerel and bluefish were landed Saturday evening and Sunday morning. Gray trout were taken at Cape Point and along the north beach during the day.

Spanish mackerel fishing was good in the Hatteras Inlet surf early Saturday morning. Bluefish were landed in the area during the afternoon.

Sea mullet were taken on bloodworms and shrimp from Ramp 55 to the inlet during the day. Spanish mackerel and bluefish were caught in the Hatteras Inlet surf again Sunday morning.

Inshore trolling was good for Spanish mackerel along the beach south of Oregon Inlet Saturday. Headboats in the area caught croaker, blues, a few trout and some sea mullet. Bluefish trolling was good on Sunday just outside the inlet.

Dolphin fishing was good off Oregon Inlet Saturday. A few tuna and wahoo were taken near the point.

Several billfish were released, including two blue marlin each by the Hooker and the Hog Wild. Most of the billfish action was around the 40400 Loran line.

A few dolphin, tuna and wahoo were landed by charters off Oregon Inlet Sunday. Several billfish were released, including blue marlin by the Smoker and the Phideaux.

Spanish mackerel and bluefish trolling was excellent around Hatteras Inlet Saturday. Dolphin fishing was good off Hatteras in theGulf Stream. Scattered wahoo and a few yellowfin tuna were taken. A sailfish was released by the Fish Wagon.

Inshore trolling was good for bluefish in the Hatteras Inlet area Sunday. Scattered dolphin, wahoo and king mackerel were taken in the Gulf Stream. A white marlin was released by the Albatross III.

The winner of the 14th annual Pirates Cove Billfish Tournament was the Wet Floors, with 740 points. The Surfside was in second place, with 350 points, followed by the Huntress, with 280 points.

Some 109 billfish were released and four blue marlin boated during the tournament. The largest blue marlin in the tournament, weighing 670 pounds, was landed by the Wet Floors.

Small bottom fish should be plentiful in the surf all along the Dare coast this week.

The water temperature was 69 degrees Monday at the Army Corps of Engineers Pier in Duck, and 79 degrees at Frisco Pier on Hatteras Island.

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