Cape Fear Early Summer: Topwater Dawn and Dusk Bites on Reds and Trout

This is Artificial Lure with your Wilmington, North Carolina fishing report. We’re working a muggy early-summer pattern along the Cape Fear coast. Air temps are climbing into the mid to upper 80s this afternoon with light southwest winds around 5–10 knots and a slight sea breeze near the beaches. Humidity is high, so expect that sticky, glassy feel early and late, with a bit of chop mid‑day. Skies are partly cloudy, with a decent chance of a brief pop-up shower inland later. Sunrise hit a little after 6 a.m. over Wrightsville, and sunset will be just after 8 p.m., giving us a long low-light window for topwater work. Those first two hours after sunrise and the last two before dark are your best bet for surface action on trout, reds, and bluefish. Tides around the Cape Fear River and Masonboro area are running a typical 5‑foot swing. Look for a morning high around mid‑incoming and an afternoon low pushing hard. In the river and inlets, that last of the incoming and first of the falling tide have produced the best bites, especially around creek mouths, docks, and shell points where the current breaks. Inshore, anglers this past week have been picking off **slot red drum** and a nice class of **speckled trout**, with a mix of **flounder** and **bluefish**. The reds are showing up in the marsh creeks off the Intracoastal and along flooded grass edges; a handful of upper‑slot fish and the occasional over-slot have been reported. Trout catches have been scattered but steady, mostly eater‑size with a few fish over 20 inches. For lures, work: - **Topwaters** like Spooks and Skitter Walks in bone or mullet patterns at first light along grass lines and oyster points. - **3–4 inch paddle tails** on 1/8–1/4 oz jig heads in natural or new penny colors around current seams. - **MirrOlures and smaller twitchbaits** over shell and drop-offs for trout when the sun gets up. For bait, live **mud minnows** and **finger mullet** under a popping cork are hard to beat right now, especially along the ICW. Cut mullet on a Carolina rig is boating reds around dock pilings and deeper bends. For flounder, slow-drag live minnows or Gulp shrimp along the bottom near inlet channels and rock walls. Nearshore, a couple miles off the beach on the AR reefs, folks have been into **Spanish mackerel**, small **kings**, and a mix of seabass. Troll small Clarkspoons or mackerel trees behind planers early, then switch to jigging when the sun gets higher. A couple of hot spots to circle on your map: - **Masonboro Inlet & the south jetty** – Working the rocks on a moving tide has been producing trout, blues, and the occasional flounder. Throw paddletails, bucktail jigs tipped with Gulp, or live minnows on the edges of the rocks. - **Snow’s Cut and the nearby ICW docks** – Good current, deep holes, and plenty of structure. Fish the ends of docks and riprap with live bait or jigs on the last of the incoming and first of the outgoing. Expect reds tight to structure and a bonus trout or two on the edges. Overall fish activity is classic early summer: slower mid‑day, but very alive at daybreak and dusk, especially when the tide lines up with those low‑light windows. Scale down leaders in clear water, and keep an eye out for bait flipping—if you find the mullet and glass minnows, the fish won’t be far. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you don’t miss the next report. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn