Fishing in North Carolina surf

North Carolina offers the surf caster more fishing opportunities than most are able to use. Most of the North Carolina beach between Virginia and South Carolina is open to surf fishing, and a good deal of that is accessible by beach buggies. The fishing is so good that even a beach with poor structure can produce good action.

Corolla provides the northernmost access point for beach buggies. Anglers can drive north from here to the Virginia line where access is denied at False Cape State Park. The beach is natural, with no bulkheads or other manmade structures, and fishing can be good for drum, bluefish, speckled trout, and croaker. The beach south of Corolla is developed and vehicular access is restricted.

Development really becomes a problem from Duck to Nags Head. Walk-on fishing is possible but beach buggies are restricted to fall and spring. Special permits to drive on the beach are required in each town, but the fall run of big blues and striped bass can be worth the cost and trouble of obtaining a permit.

Oregon Inlet has a variety of surf fishing possibilities. The beach north of the inlet has good structure with deep holes and sloughs where drum, trout, bluefish, and mullet are caught. At the mouth of the inlet, an old trawler went aground and its bones attract big blues and striped bass in the fall.

Pea Island from Oregon Inlet to Rodanthe is closed to vehicles due to beach erosion. Walk-on access is allowed but parking alongside Route 12 can be a problem. This is a great stretch of beach for big blues in the fall, especially around an old boiler left over from one of the many shipwrecks along this dangerous coastline.

Beach buggies can be used from Rodanthe all the way to Buxton, and from the Hatteras Lighthouse south to Hatteras Inlet. A small section of beach behind the motels in Buxton is set aside for walk-on fishing. Those who stay in one of the motels and walk to the beach often do as well if not better than their motorized brethren.

The Point at Cape Hatteras is the greatest surf fishing location in the world. The Labrador current hits it on the north side and the Gulf Stream hits it on the south, resulting in a mix of bait and gamefish found nowhere else.

Big red drum drop by in the spring and fall, and are often joined by big blues and stripers. Most are caught on chunks of cut bait fished on rods designed to handle big fish in rough water. Known as Hatteras Heavers, the rods have pool cue-size tips and enough backbone to tip over large boulders. Matched to a big conventional reel filled with 30-pound line, the combination can throw 8 ounces of lead and a big hunk of bait into a gale.

Ocracoke Island across Hatteras Inlet has a wide beach that is open to vehicles. This is a quiet outpost that can only be reached by ferry, and the fishing is as good as found anywhere along the coast.

Portsmouth Island was once a busy seaport but is now part of the Cape Lookout National Seashore. It, too, may only be reached by ferry. Known for a good run of red drum in the spring and fall, the island still attracts a hardy band of surf casters.

Cape Lookout National Seashore also protects all of the Core Banks. Surf fishing is allowed here but access is difficult. Small boats can travel across Core Sound to the barrier island, where anglers can walk over the sand to the surf. This is too much work for most people, but those who make the effort are pleased with the quality fishing experience.

A private ferry from Harker’s Island will carry anglers and their vehicles over to the beach above Cape Lookout Lighthouse. Primitive camping is allowed, so anglers may enjoy an extended stay.

Bogue Banks is highly developed but most of the beach remains open to vehicles. Speckled trout, bluefish, flounder, and croaker are the most common species here, with an occasional puppy drum and Spanish mackerel caught from the beach.

Bear Island at Bogue Inlet can only be reached by boat, but red drum are taken here on a regular basis in the spring and fall. Fresh cut bait is the best choice, but the heavy tackle required at Cape Hatteras is not needed here.

The federal government controls the beach from Bogue Inlet to New River and they do not let surf anglers on the property. The rest of the coast from New River to the South Carolina line is open to fishing. Vehicle use may be restricted in some locations by local ordinances, but the walk to the surf is usually short.

Big fish are rare here but spot, croaker, flounder, speckled trout, weakfish, and Spanish mackerel provide good action. The best fishing for trout and flounder is in the fall and winter when they stage in the deeper sloughs and around inlets.