BALDHEADED BOBBY
GUIDE SERVICE 

April 2018 Fishing

....don't let the big one get away
Press the button to send Capt. Bobby an email
Call 919-349-6112 to book a trip
FINALLY SPRING HAS ARRIVED

This has been an unusually slow start to spring but it has finally arrived. This is a screen shot from a recent trip showing the water temperatures in the 60's. The marks on the screen are trout. Note the water depth. Trout like a little deeper water than reds and flounders. As April passes, the trout will begin to leave the creeks for the river to spawn. When you're fishing for trout, whether in the creeks or river, look for the slightly deeper holes. Early results are mixed on trout. Good numbers are getting caught but the gators we saw last fall are more scarce.
IT'S TOPWATER TIME

With the water temperature in the 60's and advancing toward the 70', its time for topwater. So what lure or fly do you use? Here are 4 lures that I have in my tackle box. The Blopper Whoppers and the Yo Zuri prop have spinning tails that creates action. The Heddon is my go to lure for walking the dog. And MirroLure has great chuckers. Don't forget poppers for your fly rod. Topwater on the fly is a blast and often overlooked.
SOMETIMES SMALLER WORKS

We all get hits that we don't hook up. After time, this can become frustrating. The answer might be to downsize your bait. This is particularly good advise in colder water when the fish aren't as aggressive. But it's also a good strategy anytime. Some say, bigger bait equals bigger fish and that has its merit. But what if the bigger fish aren't around? I would rather catch some smaller fish than no fish at all. So if you're getting short strikes, downsize your bait to see if that works. Two of my favorite smaller baits are the ZMan Slim Swimz and the Zman Trick Shotz. Give them a try. This trout liked the Trick Shotz.
WELDON - STRIPERS - MAY 6-8

The shad are biting strong in Weldon and the stripers are starting to arrive. If you have never fished Weldon during the striper spawn, it can be like fishing in a parking lot of boats. It is very crowded and for good reason. You can catch a boatload of stripers. Keeper season stops at the end of April and 2/3 of the boat traffic is gone for May even though the striper bite is still great. That's when I like to go up. I'll be there May 6-8 and am available for some half day trips with live bait or on the fly. 3 fishermen / boat for spin fishing and 2 / boat for fly. And don't forget to eat some bbq at Ralph's while you're in town.
COBIA ARE COMING

Mother's day is an honored day for a great reason, our mothers. But it's also when cobia start arriving around Beaufort and Morehead City. Cobia season opens May 1. There have been some regulation changes this year. Check both the NC Marine Fisheries regs (inside 3 miles) and the South Atlantic regs. (outside 3 miles) for a better understanding. Recreational fishermen and "for hire" guides have some different regulations this year. Both have the same fork length requirement of 36". Recreation creel is 1/person with a boat creel of 2 from May 1 to May 31. Beginning June 1 the rec boat creel drops to 1/boat. The "for hire" regs are 1/person or 4/boat and doesn't change.
WE'RE GOING BACK TO THE TENNESSEE MOUNTAINS FOR TROUT - OCT 14-16

We're returning to the rivers in the East Tennessee mountains for some wade fishing and drift fishing for trout. It will be a 2 night trip with 1 day of fishing in drift boats and the second day of wade fishing. We have cabins on the river and most meals are included in the package, including our trout and turf dinner. We caught some nice rainbows last year. Hopefully, we can add some nice browns this year. Call me for more details. We have 6 slots available.
IT'S NOT TOO EARLY TO BOOK YOUR GIANT REDFISH AND FALSE ALBACORE TRIPS

The August and September spawn season brings world class redfish to the Neuse and Pamlico Rivers and the Pamlico Sound. This is our busiest time of year so don't procrastinate and think about booking your trip tomorrow. This is a world class fishery with people coming from many states away for a shot at these trophies. Once the bulls have left, we'll take a quick break to the mountains for some rainbow and brown trout fishing and then head to the coast for some false albacore fishing. The Albies start arriving mid-October and hang around thru mid-December. Just because the big reds have left the backwaters doesn't mean they aren't still around. In October and November we see them cruising the beaches while we're albie fishing. Catch them both and tell me which one pulls the hardest. I use the same set-up for both.
SEASONS
I'm booking trips for all of these guys now, give me a call
Shad

Feb thru March
Striper

Topwater: Spring - Fall
Deepwater: Winter
Speckled Trout

Spring thru Fall
Old Drum

August and September
Redfish

Year Round
Flounder

June thru Sept.
False Albacore

Oct thru Dec
Cobia

Mid May thru Mid June
Spanish Mackerel

Spring and Fall
Waterfowl

Oct thru Jan
Baldheaded Bobby Guide Service
PO Box 961
Oriental, NC 28571
919-349-6112  
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