Another Installment of Southern Style Fishing

 Flounder season started the first of September and it only lasted 2 weeks, so we have been making the most of this short season.  Keith went fishing with Russ, Shea, and Trafton (Russ's brother) one of the first days of the season.  They had a respectable catch with a dozen or so flounder and a blue fish.

Keith, Russ, and Trafton with their catch of the day.

A few days later Keith, Shea, and I went with Russ for an afternoon on his 25-foot Parker center console.  We had been frequenting the new inlet on Portsmouth Island.  It seems like there are some nice sized flounder in this area.  We did well with several flounder that afternoon.

Keith throwing the cast net behind Russ's house to try to get some fresh bait

Heading to the inlet.  Shea and Keith in the bow with Russ up top

We had a fun day fishing with them and caught a few more flounder.  Then Keith and I went just the two of us in the dinghy one day.  We got there at just the right time of the morning.  The tide was perfect and we drifted along the inlet channel with the current.  We were catching some really nice flounder as well as drum and trout.  We released many of them and kept just a few to put in the freezer.  

Our catch from the dinghy flounder excursion.  Two nice red drum, a speckled trout, and 4 flounder.

This was my prize flounder of the day; it weighted in at 4 lbs

You may remember my flounder description from last year.  There are left eyed and right eyed flounder.  This is determined by which side of this flat fish faces up as they lay on the bottom.  The top side also has both of the eyes of the fish.  The flounder found in NC are southern flounder and summer flounder and these are all left eyed.  90% of the flounder caught inshore are southern flounder.  Summer flounder tend to be found in deeper water off shore.

So the two weeks of flounder season went really fast, but of course we have not only been fishing for flounder during that time.  When the weather is good you have to take advantage.  Keith and I are definitely fair weather fishermen (people).  We enjoy it when the weather is nice.  There just is no point for us to be out if it is rough or nasty.  Coming back from our last day off shore, we had a port engine filter get clogged which was not a big deal.  We likely got some fuel with debris in it, but we did have to switch the filter on our way back in the afternoon.  We also had an oil sensor on the starboard engine go bad.  This made it bothersome as the engine had to be repeatedly shut down then turned back on.  Luckily it happened just before we got to the inlet on our way home so there was not far to go.  These issues have put Southern Style out of the off shore fishing game until our new sensor arrives this week.  Keith was able to go with friends off-shore one day and they did come home with two nice wahoo.

One of the wahoo caught 

Keith cleaning wahoo

I was interested in smoking some more fish and so one day Keith and I took the dinghy in search of something to smoke.  We no longer have our friend's center console "Lab Cab" so we trolled with the dinghy.  This must make a funny sight.

Trolling for Spanish mackerel with our dinghy (3 rods out)

We did not have any luck finding Spanish, so we went to plan B.  The wind was very quiet and there were no waves in the Ocracoke Inlet; so we snuck around the point by the beach where the bigger blue fish often hang out.  We found some birds working bait fish and sure enough we got into a bunch and before long had a nice pale full of blue fish for smoking.

Our blue fish from the inlet (A Nice Dozen)

I had two rounds to smoke which took from 6:30 AM to 5:30 PM before I was finished.

The effort is worth it however as it makes for some very nice smoked fish.

In addition to our fishing, charter boats have been seeing and catching quite a few bill fish the last several weeks.  Marlin, sailfish, and swordfish have been showing up recently.  Marlin and sailfish are a catch and release fish, however swordfish are an eating fish and several nice sized ones have been brought in.  We walked over to see them weigh in a 302 pounder from the "Cap'N B" one day.

Captain Marty and first mate Nick unloading the swordfish

Over the rail and on the scale (the swordfish was so long they couldn't weight it straight up)

Shrimping season in the NC sounds is also in full swing.  Shrimp spawn off-shore and then small larval shrimp make their way into creeks and rivers where they grow in these brackish waters (mix of salt and fresh water).  By later summer the shrimp have matured and they migrate back down the rivers into the sounds before heading back off-shore.  End of summer and early fall are peak times to harvest shrimp in the sounds here in NC.  So this time of year it is common to see shrimp boats dragging nets for these tasty critters.  There are three species of shrimp in the NC fishery.  They are brown, pink, and white shrimp.  The most recent 10 year average harvest calculations are that about 7.8 million pounds of shrimp are harvested yearly in NC.  Most of these are caught by commercial otter trawlers that drag nets to capture the shrimp.  

Some of the shrimpers we have been seeing this season near Ocracoke.  This one has his nets up out of the water as he has not started fishing for the day.  This trawler was actually anchored in the sound.

This shrimper has his nets down and is dragging

And these are the product, sorted by size, heads removed and ready to cook from the seafood store

So there you have it.  We certainly will not starve out here on the outer banks as there are plenty of options provided by the waters around us.  The weather is getting slowly cooler and the days shorter.  We are hoping this will bring some tuna around to the off-shore fishing grounds.  This is one species we have not had the chance to put into our freezer yet this season.

Fishing with Friends

Since the family left Ocracoke two weeks ago, things have been generally quiet.  We did a little boatwork/housework and fished a few times with the dinghy.  We caught some grey and speckled trout which was nice.  Nothing too dramatic.  Just the other day however, our friend Shea Trainer called and asked if Keith would like to fish off shore with he and Russ Reynolds.  Keith of course said yes.  I let them have a boy's day fishing.  I stayed home and did stuff on the boat.  They caught some sand tilefish, vermillion snapper, and trigger fish.  All these are good eating fish.

Below is their catch for the day.  roughly left to right several sand tilefish, some reddish colored vermillion snapper, and a trigger fish at the right.  There is also one mahi and some additional triggers at the top of the cleaning table.

Russ and Keith on Shea's boat, " One Horse" with the sun coming up on the horizon.

There are many species of tilefish, 40 actually.  The sand tilefish are elongated greyish fish, and they are  good to eat.  More on tilefish in a moment. 

Triggerfish also have many different species.  Most triggerfish live in tropical and subtropical waters around the world, preferring the warmer waters of the tropics.  These tropical fish often have vibrant colors and live on and near coral reefs.  The most common triggerfish found in NC waters is unfortunately fairly plain with a grey color hence its name the grey triggerfish.  Their flavor is anything but plain however.  They are a mild white fish with a dense texture and delicate somewhat sweet meat.  They are very popular in restaurants along the east coast.  Their body is compressed laterally giving them an upright, flat appearance.  The skin is very rough and they have small, hard, scissor like teeth that help them crush the crabs, mollusks and crustaceans that they eat.  The most forward spine on the top of the fish's body can be locked in place.  This allows the fish to hide in coral or rocky crevices and lock the spine against the rocks so predators can not easily pull them from their hiding place.  The grey triggerfish is generally found off shore in 80-350 feet of water along the bottom near structures such as rocks or reefs.  Trigger fish are known to have higher mercury levels than some other fish and it is recommended to eat trigger no more than once a week.

Vermillion snapper are very similar to red snapper but smaller (usually maxing out at 6-7 pounds) with a pale belly.  Also known as beeliners they are good to eat and can be sold in restaurants as red snapper.  They are called beeliners because they are very fast fish that use their speed and precision to chase down other fish and prey when feeding.

So I was quite excited to get some different types of fish for the freezer.  As I was packaging up the fish from their catch, we got another call about fishing.  The same group of fellows got a call from a charter boat captain we all know.  He was interested in doing some swordfish fishing and asked if all of us would like to go.............aaaaahhhhh YES!  I was not going to let the guys leave me at home this time.  Plus one of the other charter boats had just caught a 325 lb swordfish the day before.  So the next morning Shea, Russ, Keith and I met Captain and friend, Stevie Wilson and his first mate Josh Beamer on "Dream Girl". By 6:10 AM we were heading to the Gulf Stream.

A picture of "Dream Girl" from another day taken from Southern Style as we passed them on the way to the Gulf Stream

We gave it the best try we could, but the current was not in our favor on this day to catch a swordfish.  This fish is a very deep water fish living in as much as 2000 feet of water.  You drop your bait down over a thousand feet with a weight and LED lights along the fishing line to help attract the fish.  Swordfish are very light sensitive that is why they prefer the very deep water during the day.  They do come closer to the surface during the night to feed, but we were not interested in doing night time fishing.  In spite of our best efforts, we did not get any bites after several hours.  Time to go to a plan "B".  We had seen several billfish jumping around us, so we decided to try for a marlin or sailfish.  It took some patience, but eventually we got a bite and Russ was up to the task ofreeling it in.  It was a sailfish.

Russ reeling in his sailfish

Russ'  sailfish jumping out of the water as he worked it in toward the boat.

Russ' sailfish alongside the boat ready for release

Sailfish are not an eating fish and generally released, so that is what we did.  It is still quite an accomplishment to land a sailfish and Russ was very excited for his first sailfish.  This catch will give him a citation for his wall.

For the end of the day we went to do some bottom fishing.  With this type of fishing, you drop into relatively deep water around structures (rocks, small ledges, etc.) for types of fish that live around these structures.  It is a vast ocean and finding a small spot with some structure on the bottom can be challenging.  Our friend and charter captain, Stevie Wilson has lived here for years and has his own "numbers" (places he knows to have good bottom fishing).  These numbers are closely guarded secrets to many fishermen.  It is said that you have a better chance of sleeping with your neighbor's wife than getting a look at his little black book of proven deep drop numbers.  A weight and multiple hooks with bait are dropped on each line.  Once the weight hits the bottom you real it up just so it is off the bottom then start jigging.  When you feel a fish biting, jerk the rod to secure the fish and reel him up.  The line can be reeled in by hand or by electric reel.  We had both on Dream Girl.  I got to do two drops with the hand reel and I got three fish on the one drop and two on the other drop.  Good for me!

Here is Keith securing the belt on me  so I can reel in my fish.

This was my triple catch.  There were two blueline tilefish and one rosefish.

The bottom fishing was very productive.  We caught our limit of tilefish and plenty of rosefish.  It was getting late, so we headed for the barn (home).  I even agreed to take part in the fireball shots to commemorate a good day fishing with the guys.

Keith then crashed in the beanbag for a cat-nap on the ride home.  First mate Josh hangs out on the transom.

As is the tradition, Russ hung a sailfish flag indicating he had caught and released one this day.

The flag is hung upside down from the starboard outrigger  signifying the release of a live fish.

Once back at the dock we layed out our catch of the day.

The tilefish we got today were blueline tilefish.  This is a slightly different species than the sand tilefish Keith got two days earlier.  These blue line tile are also very yummy.  They are not as elongated as the sand tile with a meatier filet.  Their habitat is deep water (250-800 feet) near structures off shore from as far north as Virginia and all the way to the Campeche Banks of Mexico.  These fish also have a fair amount of mercury, so they are not to be eaten several times a week.  Blue line tilefish can live up to 26 years, although this is only half the age of their cousin the golden tile which can live to 50 years old.  Keith had the largest blue line tile of the day.

Keith with his blueline tile

The orange color fish we caught are called black bellied rosefish or "rosies".  These are some unusual looking fish, but none-the-less tasty as well.  They are usually 1-3 pounds and make for a nice fillet.  They get their name because they have a jet black stomach lining (visible when you clean them).  This helps conceal what they have eaten otherwise it could show through their light outer belly making them more likely prey to other fish.  I should have included a picture of the black stomach, but did not take one.  It probably would not have grossed-out most of our readers.

Close up of two of our rosies

It was a "sea-riously"  good day fishing with freinds.  Hopefully there will be more like today before the end of the season.

Dream girl at the dock that evening with our sailfish flag flying.

 Another day in paradise.