Nov 20 Atlantic NC Fishing Report: Trout, Drum, Macks and More

This is Artificial Lure with your November 20, 2025, Atlantic Ocean coastal fishing report for North Carolina, bringing you boots-on-the-dock news from Morehead to Hatteras and the inlets between. Weather’s kicked off mild this Thursday—mid 50s at dawn, expected to push mid 60s by afternoon. The wind’s steady north 10–15 knots, with seas running 3 to 5 feet. There’s a Small Craft Advisory in effect through noon, so keep it tight on the nearshore if launching out early, especially smaller boats. Clouds are thin, with scattered drizzle in the forecast, but it should clear up toward midday based on the National Weather Service marine outlook. Today’s tide at Atlantic Beach has low water at 12:28 AM, with a strong morning high at 6:58 AM just after sunrise, reaching a solid 4.5 feet. The next low falls at 1:13 PM. That sunrise came up at 6:52 AM, and you’ll lose that last light around 5:01 PM—so you’ve got a tight prime window for both surf and boat action running through early afternoon, with solunar peak activity overlapping that mid-morning tide swing, according to Tide Forecast and Tides4Fishing. Water temps are holding in the upper 60s, a sweet spot for inshore species like speckled trout and red drum. Plenty of trout have been hauled in around Bogue and Core sounds this week, most falling to soft plastics in MirrOlure 17MR or Z-Man MinnowZ, bright chartreuse still king after that last front churned up the water. Topwater bite is soft, but popping corks rigged with live shrimp or Gulp! are working for those fishing deeper grass flats and docks. On the beaches, drum reports have been strong from Surf City, all the way south to Oak Island, with several 30-inchers landed yesterday on fresh cut mullet and Carolina-rigged blue crab. Speaking of crabs, commercial fishers near Currituck say blue crab pots are still hot, bringing in 50–60 bushels a day, though ongoing noise about management changes is keeping everyone’s eyes on next year’s regs, per National Fisherman and the Coastal Counties Fisheries Coalition. Nearshore, a few boats have trolled up late-season Spanish mackerel and false albacore out past the Cape Fear shoals; Clarkspoons and small glass minnow jigs are still producing, but the bite’s tapered off. Offshore, king mackerel action has been reliable, especially on slow-trolled live menhaden or blue runners over structure, and there are scattered reports of wahoo (up to 60 lbs) deeper beyond the break. Most folks focused on the kings are slow slow—tepid bite, but patience brings the bigger fish this week. This week’s top baits and lures: - **Speckled trout:** MirrOlure 17MR, Z-Man MinnowZ, Gulp! Shrimp - **Red drum:** cut mullet, peeler crab, blue crab - **Striped bass (upper sounds and rivers):** bucktail jigs with white trailers, Yo-Zuri plugs - **King mackerel:** live menhaden, blue runners, Drone spoons - **Surf zone:** fishbites, salted clams for black drum and puppy drum Hot spots you’ll want to try: Fort Macon jetty (rocks ho This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.