Wilmington, NC Fishing Report: Reds, Trout, Spanish Mackerel Highlight Early June Action

Good morning anglers, Artificial Lure here with your Wilmington, NC fishing report for Wednesday, June 4, 2025. We’ve got a classic early June setup along the Cape Fear coast—warm mornings, light winds, and summer species firing on all cylinders. Today’s sunrise hit at 6:00 AM and sunset will be at 8:19 PM, giving you plenty of daylight to wet a line. Tidal swing is moderate: look for a high tide around 4:15 AM and 4:48 PM, with lows near 10:50 AM and just after 11 PM, according to Tide-Forecast.com. Plan your inshore moves around that midmorning falling tide, and your surf and nearshore action just before or after the highs[6]. Inshore, the red drum bite is steady, but the schools are scattered up and down the ICW and out to the inlets. Slot-sized reds are showing along oyster points and grass edges—especially on the rise—so get out early. Fresh cut mullet or live baits rigged Carolina-style are top choices. There’s also a healthy mix of flounder and speckled trout; the trout have been most active at first and last light, smashing small soft plastics and topwater plugs. If you’re hunting flounder, try slow-rolling a white Gulp! Shrimp or fishing live mud minnows along creek mouths. Sheepshead are tight to structure for those soaking live fiddler crabs[1][4][7]. Out nearshore, it’s all about the Spanish mackerel run—they’re thick over the reefs and just off the beaches. The hot ticket is trolling Clarkspoons behind #1 planers, or sight-casting with Big Nic Spanish Candies early when they’re busting bait on the surface. Mixed in, you’ll find bluefish and the occasional small king mackerel. A few cobia are still hanging over the nearshore ledges—live menhaden is your best bet if you want a shot at one of these brutes. Offshore bottom fishing is producing solid catches of red grouper, scamp, vermilion snapper, and black sea bass. If you can make the run, deeper ledges are seeing mahi and even a few blackfin tuna[1][3][4]. On the piers and in the surf, anglers are catching plenty of bluefish, Virginia mullet, pompano, whiting, croakers, and the occasional black drum. Gotcha plugs and small metal jigs are solid choices for the bluefish and Spanish on runs, while bottom rigs with fresh shrimp or sand fleas will get mullet and pompano. Want a couple of hot spots? Give Wrightsville Beach’s north jetty a shot before sunrise for specks and reds, or drift the cut at Masonboro Inlet for flounder and sheepshead. Carolina Beach’s nearshore reefs (AR-372 and AR-378) have been red hot for Spanish and blues. Thanks for tuning in, anglers. Don’t forget to subscribe for your daily fishing fix. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.