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Cape Fear Fishing Forecast: Stripers, Reds, and Trout Biting Strong in Wilmington, NC
Published 5 months, 3 weeks ago
Description
Artificial Lure here, bringing you the Wilmington, NC fishing report for Saturday, November 8, 2025.
We’ve got a textbook autumn setup this morning. The cold fronts are just starting to push through, so expect clear skies and mild conditions according to MarineWeather.net, with temps in the low 70s and light southern winds. Water temps are cooling off, but fish are still plenty active if you time the bite right.
Today’s **tides are falling early**, with low around 6:37 AM and high swinging back in at 11:57 PM per US Harbors. That means your best fishing window is on the outgoing tide this morning and, for night owls, again just before midnight. **Sunrise was 6:18 AM** and sunset will be at 8:19 PM, giving you a long day to get your line wet.
Striped bass are cruising the Cape Fear and Northeast Cape Fear rivers, with some good catches reported at dawn and dusk. Use soft plastic **paddletails** or a suspending jerkbait—both have been producing. If you want to bump bottom, try a white-and-chartreuse bucktail.
**Redfish** action is heating up along grass edges in the creeks off the ICW. Early morning popping corks with live shrimp or mud minnows are your best bet, but artificial lures like the Gulp! Swimming Mullet will also draw strikes. Schools of slot reds have been reported from Bradley Creek down to Masonboro.
**Speckled trout** are a real November star. Recent catches have been strong all week, especially just after sunrise on the falling tide. Small MirrOlure MirrOdines and Z-Man soft plastics in electric chicken or opening night colors have gotten the bites. Some bigger “gator” trout were landed around Wrightsville’s docks and along the jetty at Masonboro Inlet.
**Flounder** are still lingering too, especially around dock pilings and the sandy flats. Try a live finger mullet or throw a white Gulp! grub. Note that flounder regulations remain tight, so check the latest limits before keeping any fish.
If you’re heading offshore, bottom fishing has been steady. Recent charters out of Masonboro have reported good limits of black sea bass and some keeper gag grouper on cut squid and cigar minnows. King mackerel are hanging around the nearshore wrecks—try slow-trolling with dead bait or big spoons.
For freshwater, Lake Middleton has offered up steady bass action on shad-imitating crankbaits and the occasional topwater bite at first and last light, according to Fishbox.com.
**Hot Spots:**
- Masonboro Inlet: best for specks and reds, especially at first light.
- Bradley Creek: your go-to for redfish and the occasional big trout.
- Dram Tree Park: stripers on the falling tide right under the bridge.
With the high tidal coefficient today—meaning more water movement—fish should be feeding well around those prime current breaks. For bait, nothing beats fresh live shrimp, mud minnows, or finger mullet, but if you’re working artificial, keep it natural looking and err on the side of something with a little flash to stand out in that moving water.
Thanks for tuning in to the report! Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss what’s biting along the Cape Fear coast. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.
We’ve got a textbook autumn setup this morning. The cold fronts are just starting to push through, so expect clear skies and mild conditions according to MarineWeather.net, with temps in the low 70s and light southern winds. Water temps are cooling off, but fish are still plenty active if you time the bite right.
Today’s **tides are falling early**, with low around 6:37 AM and high swinging back in at 11:57 PM per US Harbors. That means your best fishing window is on the outgoing tide this morning and, for night owls, again just before midnight. **Sunrise was 6:18 AM** and sunset will be at 8:19 PM, giving you a long day to get your line wet.
Striped bass are cruising the Cape Fear and Northeast Cape Fear rivers, with some good catches reported at dawn and dusk. Use soft plastic **paddletails** or a suspending jerkbait—both have been producing. If you want to bump bottom, try a white-and-chartreuse bucktail.
**Redfish** action is heating up along grass edges in the creeks off the ICW. Early morning popping corks with live shrimp or mud minnows are your best bet, but artificial lures like the Gulp! Swimming Mullet will also draw strikes. Schools of slot reds have been reported from Bradley Creek down to Masonboro.
**Speckled trout** are a real November star. Recent catches have been strong all week, especially just after sunrise on the falling tide. Small MirrOlure MirrOdines and Z-Man soft plastics in electric chicken or opening night colors have gotten the bites. Some bigger “gator” trout were landed around Wrightsville’s docks and along the jetty at Masonboro Inlet.
**Flounder** are still lingering too, especially around dock pilings and the sandy flats. Try a live finger mullet or throw a white Gulp! grub. Note that flounder regulations remain tight, so check the latest limits before keeping any fish.
If you’re heading offshore, bottom fishing has been steady. Recent charters out of Masonboro have reported good limits of black sea bass and some keeper gag grouper on cut squid and cigar minnows. King mackerel are hanging around the nearshore wrecks—try slow-trolling with dead bait or big spoons.
For freshwater, Lake Middleton has offered up steady bass action on shad-imitating crankbaits and the occasional topwater bite at first and last light, according to Fishbox.com.
**Hot Spots:**
- Masonboro Inlet: best for specks and reds, especially at first light.
- Bradley Creek: your go-to for redfish and the occasional big trout.
- Dram Tree Park: stripers on the falling tide right under the bridge.
With the high tidal coefficient today—meaning more water movement—fish should be feeding well around those prime current breaks. For bait, nothing beats fresh live shrimp, mud minnows, or finger mullet, but if you’re working artificial, keep it natural looking and err on the side of something with a little flash to stand out in that moving water.
Thanks for tuning in to the report! Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss what’s biting along the Cape Fear coast. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.