Fall Fishing Frenzy on North Carolinas Coast

Artificial Lure here with your fishing report for October 23rd, bringing you the latest straight from the docks and surf of North Carolina’s coast. We’ve got a crisp, breezy fall morning ahead. High pressure sat offshore last night, but a quick cold front came through and winds are now out of the west at 10 to 15 knots, knocking up a steady 2-4 foot sea state out to 20 nautical miles, and the inshore waters are a light chop. Look for things to calm a bit tonight as winds lay down after sunset, but you’ll still want to check conditions if you’re heading out midday. According to the National Weather Service, we’re right in a fall transition pattern—classic for putting fish on the move and sparking serious feeding windows. Sunrise was at 7:19 AM, and sunset will drop behind the pines at 6:22 PM. Tides are running big today—there’s a low around 2:33 AM, a strong high at 8:58 AM topping out over 4.6 feet, and another low at 3:29 PM. That means the best action is firing off on that morning flood and again mid-afternoon on the falling tide, so time your trips accordingly if you want your line tight. Tide-Forecast.com notes the tidal coefficient today is a whopping 111, meaning big water swings and a lot of movement—that’s when fish prowl the structure and banks hard. On the fishing front, this week’s reports on the Atlantic Ocean, North Carolina Daily Fishing Report and PointClickFish.com show an uptick across the board as these cool mornings kick the inshore bite into gear. On the beaches and near the piers, anglers have been decking slot red drum, speckled trout, and a mess of bluefish. The topwater bite at dawn is still on for redfish, but as the sun gets up, most are switching to soft plastics and paddle tails in natural bunker and mullet patterns. MirrOlures and gold spoons are still drawing reaction strikes, especially along the surf’s first trough and around jetty rocks. Out a little deeper, those running the nearshore wrecks are finding sea mullet, flounder, and the first signs of black drum working edges, especially up around the Cape Lookout shoals and the AR reefs. Offshore, the king mackerel bite has been steady on slow-trolled live menhaden and drone spoons, while the bottom boys are picking up grouper and some surprise cobia. Plenty of citation Spanish mackerel have been coming over the rails on Clarkspoons and small planers for those pulling the rip lines at 6-12 miles. Best bait for inshore right now is still fresh finger mullet or lively mud minnows under slip floats or Carolina rigs, but don’t sleep on pink or opening night DOA shrimp, especially for trout. In the surf, cut menhaden or shrimp is money if you’re fishing for drum or bluefish, and sand fleas are hard to beat if you’re after sea mullet. Artificial action has been prime for bass with finesse worms and swimbaits, if you slip into the brackish backwaters or river mouths. Hot spots today include the Atlantic Beach surf south of the Oceanana Pier and Bogue Inlet—both have This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.