How to troll for Carolina Beach Spanish Mackerel is one aspect of fishing that Capt. Mike Dennis loves to share with the inexperienced anglers and fishermen that have boats and just need some help learning to troll.
Rods And Reels used for trolling for Spanish Mackerel should be as light as possible. but be able to take a lot of cranking. I use a pair of 20lb. test trolling rods for my primary setups. The reels are Penn 12 H International series, these are no longer in production. I spool my reels up with 30 lb. Ande Premium monofilament line, the 30lb.test line allows me to charter fish for about 3 seasons of trolling. The 30lb. test also helps when a big cobia or king-hits the small ClarkSpoon 00-RBMS, on several occasions we have landed good size fish while trolling for Spanish Mackerel. A Penn Senator 112H2 3/0 reel would be a good reel to use for Spanish Mackerel this reel has a beefy handle and has plenty of line capacity.
Addition to Sea Striker Planer
A # 1 Sea Striker Planer works extremely well for me, I have used this planer for over 25 years. I just add what I call a pigtail to the planer.
I take a piece of 200lb. test mono run in threw the hole in the back of the planer (picture above) and crimp it. Then I attach a good ball bearing swivel to the other end and crimp it. The reason for this setup is to be able to quickly attach a new leader line and ClarkSpoon on. Plus this allows for a smoother attachment point to the planer itself and aids quite a bit when a bigger fish is hooked-up. This allows the fish to move from side to side without binding on the planer. I learned this while commercial fishing for King Mackerel for over 10 years this really makes it easier when handling bigger fish, try it helps eliminates a lot of tangles.
Long leaders will help you catch more Spanish Mackerel when using planers 20′ to 25′ works well. Ande Premium 30lb.test is my choice for a leader when trolling for Spanish Mackerel. This being a how-to troll for Carolina Beach Spanish Mackerel report boat speed is also an important factor. My starting boat speed is usually 51/2 to 6 knots to start with, Spanish Mackerel like a fast speed. You have to adjust the speed of the boat to the sea conditions and adjust your trolling speed to the speed the fish like best.
Boat etiquette is also something to keep in mind here at Carolina Beach the charter Captains make all turns to the right. This procedure will allow the boats to form a circle around a school of Spanish Mackerel or a bait ball. Do not cut behind the back of a boat trolling slow down let the boat pass, this will keep you from being scolded over the radio!
I fish for Spanish Mackerel on days when Carolina Beach Inlet will let me get out safely, inexperienced boaters should use caution going out this Inlet when waves are breaking all the way out across the bar, wait for a calmer day. I am fishing a 20′ Pathfinder Bay boat it has an 8′ 6″ beam wide, which makes it a stable fishing platform for a 20′ boat. I mostly fish only 2 planer rods with the starboard rod fishing about 20′ back, this allows me when turning to the right not to have crossed lines with the port line which is fished way back.
Hope this information will help the young and old anglers just starting out.
Carolina Beach fishing has started with the arrival of the Spanish mackerel and bluefish just in time for Memorial Day weekend. Spanish mackerel can be caught just outside the inlet, the most productive method is trolling. The last two days of fishing has produced good numbers of fish with quite a few four-pound fish, weather has really been ideal, light winds have made for an excellent condition for trolling.
Spanish Mackerel at CB Inlet
Cape Fear Guide – Capt.Mike Dennis – 910-619-0928
210 Peninsula Drive Carolina Beach, N.C.28428