Just got back from a week of fishing around Harkers. We trailered my friend's boat down from Worcester in 13.5 hours which really wasn't a bad drive at all. We stayed in Atlantic Beach at a great little motel (Fisherman's Inn) with boat slips just outside the rooms and a nice porch for postgame cocktails.
For the first 3 days of the trip, the conditions were FAC and about 80 degrees. Shorts and T-shirts weather the week before Thanksgiving! We never had to stray far from the west side of the shoals due to the incredible amount of bait and fish. The albies had 2 inch anchovies balled up so thick you could see the orange stain on the water from 100 yards away. They were eager to whack clousers and big crease flies ripped across the edges of the bait, making for some exciting visuals. Some of the blitzes were nearly a mile long :Eyecrazy:
The seas built over the next couple of days and the fishing died off on the west side. We poked through the shoals to the east and eventually found great action offshore. Very few boats made the long run through 4'-6' seas so we were fishing in relative solitude. There were 4'-8' sharks mixed in with the albies here, many cruising right through the bait ball on top. When we could get the bait ball hiding under boat you could see layers of anchovies, albies and many sharks of various sizes all the way down - very cool. Many of our fish got whacked by 6' sharks on top near the boat - right on the surface. At times it was sketchy reaching down to tail your fish in the big swell with sharks lurking below.
The last two days of the trip the temps dropped by 30 degrees and the wind howled 25+ from the north. We went out and looked but could not get across the shoals and returned wet and frozen early in the day.
Overall it was an incredible trip. If you go bring plenty of backup rods with you. We went through 3 rods, a reel and 2 lines over 7 days of fishing. Big thanks to Nat Moody for the gear loaners and tequila cocktail recipie.
For the first 3 days of the trip, the conditions were FAC and about 80 degrees. Shorts and T-shirts weather the week before Thanksgiving! We never had to stray far from the west side of the shoals due to the incredible amount of bait and fish. The albies had 2 inch anchovies balled up so thick you could see the orange stain on the water from 100 yards away. They were eager to whack clousers and big crease flies ripped across the edges of the bait, making for some exciting visuals. Some of the blitzes were nearly a mile long :Eyecrazy:
The seas built over the next couple of days and the fishing died off on the west side. We poked through the shoals to the east and eventually found great action offshore. Very few boats made the long run through 4'-6' seas so we were fishing in relative solitude. There were 4'-8' sharks mixed in with the albies here, many cruising right through the bait ball on top. When we could get the bait ball hiding under boat you could see layers of anchovies, albies and many sharks of various sizes all the way down - very cool. Many of our fish got whacked by 6' sharks on top near the boat - right on the surface. At times it was sketchy reaching down to tail your fish in the big swell with sharks lurking below.
The last two days of the trip the temps dropped by 30 degrees and the wind howled 25+ from the north. We went out and looked but could not get across the shoals and returned wet and frozen early in the day.
Overall it was an incredible trip. If you go bring plenty of backup rods with you. We went through 3 rods, a reel and 2 lines over 7 days of fishing. Big thanks to Nat Moody for the gear loaners and tequila cocktail recipie.