Fishing

Summer is in full swing and the fish are well aware. The fishing over the past couple of weeks has been excellent, particularly for king mackerel, but as the heat has continued, the fish are beginning to push back offshore to deeper, cooler water. The king mackerel bite was nothing short of spectacular at the 65-foot hole and Shark Hole all last week.

Inshore fishing continues in its hot-water summer pattern, meaning fish are being caught, although not much is happening in the heat of the day. The best bets now are early morning speckled trout, feisty pompano in the suds or flounder inside.

Speckled trout are staging runs, mostly before noon or around sunset. They can be caught from the piers, around the bridges and jetties or near the creek mouths. The best bait for the specks is live shrimp, which you can gather with your cast net from shore in many places. You can also catch finger mullet for use on the trout.

Samuel Rees and crew members Preston Nowell, Chad Malpass, Samantha Nowell and Jessica Rees of the Reel Time arrived to the Jolly Mon weigh-in at the Ocean Isle Fishing Center on Sunday afternoon with a smile on their face. Capt. Samuel Rees deferred from taking the fish out the fish bin for pictures, citing he “knew it was going to be close.”

Wes Knox, of Bolivia, finished first in the 26th annual Sudan Daredevils Flounder Tournament. He caught a 29.77-inch flounder that weighed 11.14 pounds. He won $1,500.

The Sudan Daredevils of the South Brunswick Islands Shrine Club put on the tournament, which took place Friday and Saturday. Awards were handed out Saturday night at the Shallotte Point Volunteer Fire Department.

Twenty-eight county children are receiving free care from the Shriners, who dedicated this tournament to Vernon Ward.