Fishing in Sounds

The famous Outer Banks of North Carolina is a sandy strip 175 miles long that runs from the Virginia line south to Cape Lookout and then curves back to the mainland. This open-beach barrier reef encompasses 2,000 square miles of sounds or shallow bays that hold great fishing potential, and which offer a potpourri of freshwater, saltwater, and brackish water angling. This is the ideal situation for light-tackle anglers. Even though the bigger sounds can get rough, they have an abundance of sheltered water that can be fished from a small boat or by wading.

In North Carolina, enormous volumes of freshwater daily enter the upper sounds. This water piles up and, depending on volume, creates a lot of brackish water that supports some freshwater species, especially largemouth bass. Currituck Sound, an upper sound that begins at the Virginia line, was once one of the greatest bass factories and shallow-water fisheries in the nation, but the salinity of Currituck has increased greatly since the mid 1980s due to lower freshwater inflows. Bass cannot tolerate it when the salinity becomes too high, and such species as speckled trout, flounder, croaker, and white perch become more prevalent. A good deal of the fishing for these species takes place in the Currituck before it meets up with Albemarle Sound at the Wright Memorial Bridge in Kitty Hawk. This is a very shallow body of water that will not accommodate large boats. Most of the fishing is done from prams or skiffs, or from shore. Albemarle Sound is deeper and larger than Currituck with a greater variety of fish. Striped bass are a primary catch here and found throughout the year, but strict regulations keep the season short and the bag limit low.

Croatan Sound and Roanoke Sound surround Roanoke Island before emptying into Pamlico Sound. Speckled trout are taken from the shallow edges of both waterways on live bait, jigs, and plugs. Striped bass are common at the Mann’s Harbor Bridge over Croatan Sound, where plugs, jigs, and bucktails take fish all year. Weakfish, flounder, blues, croaker, and spot keep bottom bouncers happy.

Pamlico Sound is a huge inland sea stretching from Roanoke Island in the north to Cedar Island in the south. It is wide but shallow, seldom reaching over 20 feet in depth. Weedbeds are common along the shoreline, and speckled trout find this a suitable home. The water is 3 to 5 feet deep and usually clear, requiring a careful approach to avoid spooking fish. Live shrimp or mullet will fool even the biggest fish, but many anglers prefer to use jigs, plugs, and flies.

In recent years more anglers have taken up wading in Pamlico Sound, using spinning, baitcasting, and flycasting tackle. Speckled trout are the pri-mary target, but bluefish, channel bass, flounder, croaker, and spot are also caught. It takes experience or an experienced guide to consistently find productive weedbeds or deep holes in the sound, but the action can be fast and exciting with lures or bait.

Tarpon range as far north as Hatteras, and the best action for them in North Carolina is in Pamlico Sound during the summer. They can be difficult to find, however. Most are caught on dead or live bait fished on the bottom in sloughs and holes known to be tarpon hangouts. Local guides have the best idea of where the tarpon hotspots are. Tarpon in the 100-pound class are usually taken each year.

Core Sound runs behind Core Banks from Cedar Island to Cape Lookout, and Bogue Sound begins at Cape Lookout and runs behind the Bogue Banks to Bogue Inlet at Swansboro. Core Sound doesn’t see the fishing pressure that Bogue Sound gets because Cape Lookout National Seashore has protected the barrier islands of Core Banks. This is a very shallow sound, but trout, flounder, blues, croaker, and spot are caught in the deeper holes and sloughs.

Bogue Sound lies between the well-developed Bogue Banks barrier island and the equally populated mainland. Morehead City and Atlantic Beach anchor the east end with Cape Carteret and Swansboro at the western end. In spite of the heavy boat traffic, good fishing is found throughout the sound. Speckled trout take refuge in the shadow of bridges crossing the sound. Gray trout are caught in the turning basin at Morehead City, with croaker, spot, and flounder taken in the channels.

From Bogue Inlet south, the narrow Intercoastal Waterway separates the mainland from the barrier islands. Speckled trout, flounder, croaker, and spot are caught here but boat traffic is always a problem. There are boat ramps located on both sides of the sounds and along the Intercoastal Waterway. Few charter boats work these shallow waters but guides with skiffs are found in most waterside communities.