The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1959-05-29
BIG BLUEFISH CATCHES ON
LONG COASTAL STRETCHES
AROUSE ANGLERS ABROAD
Hundreds 7rekking to The Dare Coast AS Reports
Are Broadcast About Unusual Luck With MANY
Varieties OF Both Fresh and Salt Water Fish;
Looks Like A Good Season Ahead, in All
Respects
By AYCOCK BROWN


fabulous runs of ''Hatteras Blues"
hitting North Carolina coastal
waters in 1886, and the Wimble
Shoals appearance of the whop-
pers in 1858, are again being
caught in the Dare Coast-Outer
Banks region this year. Ed Boyd
of st. Michaels, Md, trolling in
the vicinity Of submerged hulk
OF World War II-torpedoed mer-
chairman near the Outer Diamond
Shoal last week boated 16k
FOUNDER
His bluefish is believed to be an
all-time record for the species
along the North Carolina coast to
be taken with rod and reel. His
blue measured 81 inches from tip
to tip and Is inches around the
girth.
During the past week end sew
eral more of the giant blues were
taken by anglers off Cape Halter
as. Guests of DR.. J. C. Overbey,
Norfolk dentist and president of
Cape Hatteras Billfsh Club,
aboard his cruiser Snapper H."
10 of the whoppers were taken on
Friday and Saturday by Arthur
Price, Portsmouth, Va, Wesley
Harrington, Jr. and Wesley Her
rington, Sr. Capt. Clam Stowe,
skipper of Snapper II, stated that
these fish weighed from IL to Ia
pounds each. Other Hatteras skip
pers also reported catching big
blues.
RAINY Jennette of Buxton report
ed that l. F. johnson, Townsville,
using cut bait and surf casting
near Cape Hatteras Lighthouse on
May % reeled in a 61s pound blue.
This is believed to be the largest
taken from the surf on the Dare
Coast this year.
Mack Etheridge of Wanchese re-
ported that Bill Merritt, neigh
Dor, had reeled in a yard-long blue
fish on Tuesday, had it in the dip
net but lost it before it could be
landed. This whopper was hooked
in lower Roanoke Sound near Wan
cheese. Elsewhere - in all Dare
waters, many thousands of blues
from snapper size to three pound
ers are being landed daily.
Bottom Fishing Begins
With one party of three boating
10 bluefish and 40 founders in a
half day of boat casting, bottom
fishing was off to a good start
from Mack's Fishing Center at
Wanchese this week. To get the
fishing conditions first hand, Mack
Etheridge, operator of the Center,
went with Randy O'Neal, one of
his guides and Bill Merritt, retir-
ed educator of Long Island now
living in Wanchese as his guest,
fished in lower Roanoke Sound
waters to make the catch. The 10
blues average one and half to two
pounds each The founders ranged
from y pound to five pounds each.
Shrimp, cut mullet and founder
was the bait used to make the
catches.
Dykstra Reports Trout
George Dykstra whose fishing
center at the west approach to
Mays Head Roanoke Island bridge
near Manteo reported this week
that anglers trolling with bucktails
from cupboard powered boats in
the vicinity of the bridge were
catching speckled trout, occasional
striped bass and bluefish. For the
1859 season Dykstra has all of his
rental skiffs newly painted.
Shallowbag Bay
Jack Shannon of Manteo trolling
with bucktails landed % striped
bass going to three pounds each
in Shallowbag Bay here at Manteo
harbor last week end. 1t was the
first large catch of stripers or
rockfish reported this Spring, from
Roanoke Sound waters. He used
bucktail lures.
100000 Bluefish
With parties aboard charter
boats catching on an average from
100 to 500 bluefish daily the total
catch by anglers trolling in Ore
gon Inlet waters during the past
three weeks is estimated at more
than 100000 fish, according to HI.
A. Greet, official weighmaster and
operator of Oregon Inlet Fishing
Center. "Best bluefishing in years, |"
he said. Similar catches have been
made at Hatteras Inlet.
Biggest Blue Marlin
Hatteras.-Bill Wilkins Of Nor
folk, skipping bait from his fa-
theirs private cruiser "Jon-Lee III
boated a 406 pound blue marlin on
Saturday, the fourth giant blue
taken of Hatteras and Oregon In
let this season. His fish measured
IL feet, four inches in length and
Sc inches around the girth. His
father, Walter wilkins, Is vice
president of the newly organized
See FISHING, Page Eight