Summer pier fishing can be a feast or famine proposition, but if you know what you are doing you can snag some nice fish during your vacation or extended beach stay right here on southeastern NC’s piers.
The best pier fishing will generally be during the morning hours and the hours before and after sunset, although the tides will play a role as well. A moving tide in the morning or right at sunset is a summer pier fishing condition not to be missed.
Most anglers on the piers are fishing for bottom fish like pompano, spot, and sea mullet, and the best bait for summer bottom fishing is cut fresh shrimp. Fish it right in the whitewater breakers for pompano or further out on the pier for sea mullet and spot. Live sand fleas are also a terrific summer bait that you can dig for yourself from the ocean below. Bloodworms and artificial bloodworms will catch spot if they are around.
Some days the best action going is for tasty pompano on shrimp or sand fleas in very shallow water, but you’ll miss this action if you go too far down the pier. Don’t be afraid to try the breakers! On the other hand, there are some very deep holes at the ends of the piers and nighttime sea mullet action can be terrific out there.
Early morning and late afternoon are great times during summer for throwing pencil plugs at bluefish and Spanish mackerel. Lots of blues and Spanish are taken every summer from our ocean pier by folks throwing Gotcha or other brand pencil plugs. A traditional favorite is the red head, white bodied Gotcha plug but other color combos will do as well or better at different times.
Spanish mackerel will also hit gold hook rigs. Click here for an article about using these rigs: Secret Rig Catches Loads of Spanish Off of Ocean Fishing Piers.
Flounder strike in the shallows during the summer, and anglers catch them with live minnows fished around the pier pilings. Flounder fishermen use mud minnows to catch the tasty flatfish on bottom rigs. You can also work Gulp or similar synthetic artificial lures around the pier pilings slowly in the summer for flounder, and they will hit strips of cut or synthetic bait.
At times redfish (red drum) and speckled trout can be caught along the piers by anglers using live shrimp under floats. Redfish and black drum will also hit fresh cut shrimp near the pilings on some summer days.
Here are the addresses and phone numbers for the southeastern NC fishing piers:
Oak Island Fishing Pier
705 Ocean Drive, Oak Island
(910) 278-6464
Ocean Crest Fishing Pier
1411 E. Beach Drive, Oak Island
(910) 278-6674
Holden Beach Fishing Pier
441 Ocean Boulevard West, Holden Beach
(910) 842-6483
Ocean Isle Beach Fishing Pier
7276 Seashell Lane, Ocean Isle Beach
(910) 579-3095
Sunset Beach Fishing Pier
101 West Main Street, Sunset Beach
(910) 579-6630
For more information on southeastern NC pier fishing and lots of other fishing tips and links see my blog A Dash Of Salty.
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