NE Wind Stacks the Beach — Week of September 7

Just got back from checking the Point and the wind is doing exactly what we want. Steady NE 17-21 with 3.9ft groundswell at 6 seconds means dirty water, cut troughs, and Red Drum starting to think about fall. Water's still 81.5°F — a hair warm for the big cows but the puppies are already prowling. Fish the incoming push from the noon low at 12:49 up through dark. Fresh mullet or bunker chunks on a Fish Finder Rig, 6-8oz to hold in that current. Pompano are still mixed in on the bar — Hi-Lo with fresh shrimp or sand fleas on the drop.

Avon Pier is going to fish best early before the wind cranks. Spanish were still around end of last week and the mullet schools coming down the beach will keep them honest. Casting jigs off the end on the morning high around 06:00 — small white bucktail or a Stingsilver. Kings have been sporadic but worth a live bait on the Kingfish Wire Rig off the T while the water holds above 80. Bluefish should chew all week in this NE wind.

Hatteras Inlet is running hard with this wind against tide setup — be careful in a small boat. Flounder are staging on the channel edges, and the Flounder Carolina Rig with a live mud minnow or finger mullet is the play. Work the slack windows around the 12:49 low and the 18:37 high when you can actually keep bait on bottom. Sound-side flats holding some Red Drum on the yellow/chartreuse bucktail worked slow.

Oregon Inlet water is already down to 78.6°F — coolest on the island. That's going to trigger the fall bite first up there. Flounder in the cuts on the outgoing after the 05:13 high, and keep an eye out for the first false albacore push nearshore any day now. Sound side flats fishing well for Red Drum at first light before the wind gets up — topwater stick bait 4" walked slow across the grass edges.

Down in Murrells Inlet the water is 85.1°F and the creeks are alive. Redfish tailing in the spartina on the top of the 17:03 high — weedless soft plastic or a live shrimp under a popping cork. Speckled trout are holding in the deeper holes on the outgoing, work the drop after high with a chartreuse bucktail. Flounder on the channel edges same program as up here.

Folly Beach got the worst of the Labor Day weather with thunderstorms in the forecast and NE 20+. Once it settles mid-week the surf trough is going to be loaded — 86°F water, mullet running, and redfish cruising the wash. Fish Finder Rig with cut mullet on the incoming to that big 6.4ft high at 17:43. Whiting and pompano on the Hi-Lo with shrimp all day. Nearshore Spanish will be there when the wind lays down enough to get out.