Fall Fishing Frenzy on the NC Coast - 15 to 25 Knot Winds, Red Drum Rallying, and Offshore Reef Riches

Artificial Lure here with your Atlantic Coast North Carolina fishing report, Friday October 31, 2025. Our fall is holding strong—let’s get into the details for today and what’s happening out on the water.

First off, the weather’s got a west wind rolling at 15 to 25 knots with seas running 4 to 6 feet nearshore according to NOAA’s Wilmington desk. That Small Craft Advisory sticks until about 2 PM—so the morning bite’s gonna be bumpy unless you’re on bigger water, but after lunch, things calm down. Air is crisp, the pressure high, and high pressure will take over fully by the weekend, bringing calmer seas and benign conditions. If you’re heading out, check your gear and watch for wind gusts.

Tides today along Oak Island show a low tidal coefficient: that means the tidal swing is minimized, so currents will be gentle early, picking up a notch midday, ending with a moderate swing. Not huge water movement—a prime set up for inshore bite windows. Sunrise checked in at 7:28 AM, and you’re looking at sunset around 6:18 PM. With slow tides early, best action should be midday through the evening.

Let’s talk fish activity. October’s abundance means coastal anglers have been reporting great numbers of **red drum**, **speckled trout**, and **Spanish mackerel**. Reports from Carolina Sportsman and local podcasts like Atlantic Ocean, North Carolina Daily Fishing Report say reds are especially active, stacking up in the marshes and at ocean inlets. Trout have moved shallow, hitting hard on moving tide over grass beds and dropoffs. Spanish macks are blitzing bait balls just off the beach.

Recent catches show boaters pulling five to eight keeper reds per trip near Wrightsville and Topsail, with trout limits caught from Little River north to Bald Head. Nearshore, Spanish and a handful of blues are being nabbed; offshore, grouper and snapper are finally coming over the rails with high success on deep reefs, especially south of Cape Fear. The OBX piers have seen black drum, puppy drum, and spot—the fall run is full on.

For bait and tackle, here’s what’s working:
- **Inshore reds and trout:** Soft plastics—especially paddle tails like Gulp Shrimp and Strike King’s Swim’n Caffeine Shad in new penny or electric chicken. Topwaters are still drawing early morning strikes—try a spook or Rapala Skitterwalk near grass beds and oyster shoals.
- **Spanish and blues:** Gotcha plugs and Stingsilvers, especially chrome and chartreuse, are hot off the piers and beaches.
- **Offshore reefs:** Live menhaden, frozen cigar minnows, and jigs tipped with cut squid pull up grouper and snapper. Carolina Sportsman suggests braided line for grouper—to muscle them out fast.
- **Pier bite:** Live shrimp and cut mullet are consistent, tossed under a popping cork or bottom rig.

Best bait shops are slinging plenty of fresh shrimp and mullet—get ‘em while they’re cold. And word is, Berkley PowerBait Crash Craws and DOA shrimp soft plastics have been running out the doors.

Hot spots today:
- **Masonboro Inlet:** Reds schooling on the outgoing tide; trout moving up creeks with cleaner water.
- **Oak Island piers:** Mixed bag—trout early, reds midday, and maybe a shot at a nice black drum as the sun drops.
- **Little River jetties:** Flounder and slot drum on live mullet.
- **AR-425 artificial reef:** Grouper and snapper for those who get offshore.

A couple of reminders—flounder season closes today, so get your last legal keeper before midnight. And as always, stay safe in rough seas and watch for fast-approaching squalls late afternoon as that ocean temperature drops.

Thanks for tuning in to your local fishing report—remember to subscribe so you don’t miss a bite or updated rig tip. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Artificial lure. Here with your Atlantic Coast North Carolina fishing
report Friday, October thirty, first, twenty twenty five. Our fall
is holding strong. Let's get into the details for today
and what's happening out on the water. First off, the
weather has got a west wind rolling at fifteen to
twenty five knots with seas running four to six feet
near shore. According to Noah's Wilmington Desk, that small craft

(00:21):
advisory sticks until about two pm, so the morning bite's
going to be bumpy unless you're on bigger water. But
after lunch things calm down. Air is crisp, the pressure
high and high pressure will take over fully by the weekend,
bringing calmer seas and benign conditions. If you're heading out,
check your gear and watch for wind gusts. Tides today

(00:42):
along Oak Island show a low tidle coefficient that means
the tidal swing is minimized, so currents will be gentle early,
picking up a notch midday, ending with a moderate swing
not huge water movement, a prime set up for inshore bite.
Windows Sunrise checked in at seven twenty eight am and
you're looking at sunset around six eighteen pm with slow tides.

(01:06):
Early best action should be midday through the evening. Let's
talk fish activity. October's abundance means coastal anglers and now
six red drums pointed to a single red drum pointed
speckled trout and Spanish mackerel. Reports from Carolina sportsmen and
local podcasts like Atlantic Ocean, North Carolina Daily Fishing Report

(01:28):
say reds are especially active stacking up in the marshes
and at ocean inlets. Trout have moved shallow, hitting hard
on moving tide over grass beds and drop offs. Spanish
macs are blitzing bait balls just off the beach. Recent
catches show boaters pulling five to eight keeper reds per
trip near Wrightsville and Topsail with trout limits caught from

(01:51):
Little River north to Bald Head near shore. Spanish and
a handful of blues are being nabbed offshore. Grouper and
snapper are finally coming over the rails with high success
on deep briefs, especially south of Cape Fear. The obx
peers have seen black drum, puppy drum, and spot. The
fall run is full on for bait and tackle. Here's

(02:12):
what's working minshare reds and trout. Soft plastics, especially paddle
tails like gupe, shrimp and stripe kings, swim and caffeine
shad in New penny or electric chicken. Top waters are
still drawing early morning strikes. Try a spook or rapalla
skiterwalk near grass beds and oyster shoals, minshore reds and spooks,

(02:34):
sanish and blues. Gotcha plugs and sting silvers, especially chrome
and chartreuse are hot off the piers and beaches. Offshore reefs,
live men, hayden, frozen cigar, minnows and jigs tipped with
cut squid. Pull up grouper and snapper. Carolina sportsman suggests
braided line for grouper to muscle them out fast. Peer

(02:57):
bite snapper, live shrimp and cut mullet are consistent tossed
under a popping cork or bottom rig. Best bait shops
are slinging plenty of fresh shrimp and mullet. Get them wild,
they're cold and word is Berkeley power bait, crash, cross
and d away shrimp. Soft plastics have been running out
the doors hot spots today, b states crashes, red schooling

(03:22):
on the outgoing tide. Trout moving up creeks with cleaner water,
Red States South, B States Crashes, Oak Island Piers, fixed
bag trout early Red's midday, and maybe a shot at
a nice black dramas the sun drops. B Slash Crashes,
Red States Slash, Flounder and slot drama on Live Mullet,

(03:45):
Oak Island South a R four two five artificial reef,
grouper and snapper. For those who get off shore. A
couple of reminders. Flounder season closes today, so get your
last legal keeper before midnight, and as always, stay safe
in rough seas and watch for fast approaching squalls late
afternoon as that ocean temperature drops. Thanks for tuning into

(04:07):
your local fishing report. Remember to subscribe so you don't
miss a bite or updated rid tip. This has been
a quiet please production. For more check out Quiet please
dot ai