[Mustang]

Just transferred to NC from Japan. Looking for some advice on the best bait to use for fishing from the beach. We are currently living in North Topsail, I have seen a couple of Reds landed since moving here.

 

[EverSoDull]

What kind of fishing did you do in Japan?

Thanks & Good Luck!

 

[Fireline20]

You can never go wrong with cut salted mullet,,,comes in a frozen fillet from your local bait shop. Cut them in 2 inch square pieces.

Shrimp is also a good bet,,,,but it is hard to keep them on the hook unless you brine them before you go.

Whole finger mullet on a single or double bottom rig. Use a long shank J hook and hook through the eye socket and again back near the tail.

 

[Drumboy]

Depends on what your fishing for, but for mainly go with Fireline on the mullet. There are also sand fleas in season which you can catch with a sand flea rake. Those are sold in most tackle shops.
Another way of getting bait and knowing you have fresh bait is a cast net, those are also sold in almost every tackle shop. Takes some time to get good with one, but once you do it really pays off in the long run.
Fresh shrimp is also a good bait it will catch you just about anything, but if not fresh it will be soft, and fly off the hook when you cast.
that's my opinion

 

[medicdav66]

Everything in the water eats shrimp. We just got back from 4 days of fishing on Portsmouth Island and went through 10lbs of fresh shrimp between 3 people. We took 20lbs of fresh mullet with us but brought back 10lbs of it. Make sure the shrimp is fresh (not frozen) and that should keep your hands full of fish for a while. Fish were also hitting fresh cut bait a little

 

[DrumintheSuds]

This time of year:

FRESH shrimp
FRESH cutbait. I like finger mullet heads for puppy drum

You can still find sandfleas on warm days and IF you do find them they are to be treated like Gold Bullion. BIG sea mullet LOVE sandfleas and red drum and black drum tear them up too. You have to lighten up your gear to fish with them effectively. #2 bronze longshank hooks, hand tied bottom rigs and a rod with a light to medium action

 

[MacPE6]

If live bait is not around our you can't get to it you can ALWAYS fall back to Gulp which catch's everything.

 

[RuddeDogg]

welcome to the family.

 

[FISHBGY]

Best Bait

most of my brag about Drum were caught on spot or mullet,but i agree with MacPE6 wife picked up the wrong size Gulp Mullet in pumkinseed color we caught the [email protected]#$ out of everything last weekend, had freash caught bait and it caught 15 to 1! i,ll tip everything with it from now on,

 

[trapperken]

Mustang, were you the young man fishing beside me on Seaview pier Sun. and using a gotcha plug for the first time? I was using a gotcha and you saw me catching bluefish?