The winning Widespread team. Photo from the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament.
The 63rd annual Big Rock Blue Marlin tournament wrapped up this past weekend, and a boat based out of Oregon Inlet ended up landing the top spot, as well as the tournament’s largest cash prize for a first-place marlin in history.
The winning Widespread team. Photo from the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament.
The vessel WideSpread, with local Captain Jay Watson and a team of anglers from Raleigh, won the first-place prize of $1,678,250 for a 656.5-pound blue marlin that was reeled in by 19-year-old Cole Pirrung on Friday evening, June 18.
The other winners in the Blue Marlin Division for 2021 included the boat Natural, which landed a 521.6-pound marlin on Tuesday and a prize of $453,700, followed by Outnumbered, which reeled in a 512.4-marlin and a $301,800 cash prize.
The largest prize for a gamefish went to Fin Print, which landed a 48.3-pound dolphin on Thursday and took home $529,125 for their efforts.
The North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries is hosting a series of public outreach meetings to train fishermen on the Observer Trip Scheduling System ahead of its launch next year. The OTSS is an automated system that will be used to schedule observer trips for Estuarine Gill Net Permit holders in North Carolina. NCDMF has [...]
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The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries’ Artificial Reef Program sank a 55-foot trawler at AR-305, off Cape Lookout, last week. The FV Alexandria Dawn, was constructed in 1984, but has been out of use for around a decade. Before sinking, the vessel was cleaned extensively in accordance with EPA requirements. Purchase [...]
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The North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries is hosting a series of public outreach meetings to train fishermen on the Observer Trip Scheduling System ahead of its launch next year. The OTSS is an automated system that will be used to schedule observer trips for Estuarine Gill Net Permit holders in North Carolina. NCDMF has [...]
Fishing | Full Article
The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries’ Artificial Reef Program sank a 55-foot trawler at AR-305, off Cape Lookout, last week. The FV Alexandria Dawn, was constructed in 1984, but has been out of use for around a decade. Before sinking, the vessel was cleaned extensively in accordance with EPA requirements. Purchase [...]
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The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission this week chose preferred management measures for the N.C. Spotted Seatrout Fishery Management Plan Amendment 1 that merged recommendations from its advisory committees, as well as public comment, with proposals from the Division of Marine Fisheries. Most notably, the Commission’s preferred management options do not include a proposed seasonal closure. [...]
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The North Carolina Coastal Federation is set to begin its 11th year of the Lost Fishing Gear Recovery Project in January 2025. But before the effort can get underway, the Federation needs the help of commercial watermen and women along the northern and central coast to sign up to help us find and collect lost [...]
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The Cape Hatteras Anglers Club 66th Annual Invitational Surf Fishing Tournament was held on November 6-8, 2024. 120 teams participated in this year’s tournament and caught a total of 813 fish. This tournament is the largest of its kind in the world. Each year, 120 teams (720 fishermen and women) are invited to participate. Including [...]
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At its May business meeting, the North Carolina Marine Fisheries Commission voted to approve new, more restrictive management rules for the striped mullet fishery. Six months later, bait and tackle shops are feeling the effects of the day-of-the-week commercial closures on their businesses. With Hatteras Island’s fall fishing season in full swing, mullet is harder [...]
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The Outer Banks Association of REALTORS® (OBAR) hosted its 27th Annual Surf Fishing Tournament in Nags Head in October. The event is part of OBAR’s “Surf, Turf, and Roll” initiative, a series of three fundraising events, including a Surf Fishing, Golf, and Bowling tournament, which invites the community to donate and support OBAR’s charitable funds. [...]
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The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries Artificial Reef Program is soliciting public input and project advisers for the next five years of ocean reef enhancements. The Artificial Reef Program plans to complete one project per year, for a total of five projects, one in each coastal region (see map): Outer [...]
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National database aims to pinpoint locations of ADVs, track removal, provide clearer picture of the national problem In an effort to clean up the nation’s coasts and Great Lakes and rid our shores of abandoned and derelict vessels (ADVs), the nonprofit BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water is creating a new national ADV [...]
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By Mike Regan, NCBBA Red Drum Tournament Chairman Just after another King Tide event, the 2024 Red Drum Tournament brought 551 anglers and their families to the beaches of Hatteras Island. The event is growing each year as word gets out, with anglers hailing from 23 states and three countries ranging in age from six [...]
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The 15th annual North Carolina Beach Buggy Association (NCBBA) Red Drum Tournament began at midnight on Wednesday with a record-breaking 550 anglers participating in 2024’s event. “It was much more than we expected, and we had a rush of about 60 different anglers added [on Wednesday],” said NCBBA Committee Chairman Mike Regan. “We have anglers coming [...]
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