Volume 14 Number 6 - June 2007

FEATURES:

	Bugged by Stripers Theories are rampant as to what caused a major decline in N.C.’s winter striped bass fishery. North Carolina Sportsman asks some experts in this story. “This was the worst striped bass fishing ever.” “The water was too warm.” “It's because of global warming.” “The menhaden boats took all the baitfish.” “The stocks are collapsing.” Bob Goldstein

	Doormat Daze Want to catch big flounders offshore at reefs or at inshore structures this month? Try the waters of the Crystal Coast. Like swallows to Capistrano, flounder return to the Cape Lookout area every year. Sometime in mid-May, a few fish begin showing up near reefs and wrecks a few miles off the beach. ... Dan Kibler

	Jerking Perch White Lake is a favorite venue for Carolina vacationers, but it’s also a major undiscovered raccoon perch hole. It’s no small wonder White Lake is one of the state’s most popular tourist and pleasure boating destinations. Named the “Nation’s Safest Beach,” the white sand and clear water offer swimmers boaters, scooter riders, sailors and ... Mike Marsh

	Paradise at Phelps Only one lake in North Carolina offers fly casting for lunker bass and tons of panfish in crystal-clear summer water. If you don’t live in the northeastern part of North Carolina, Washington County’s Lake Phelps may seem to be a long ride just to go fishing. ... Mike Marsh

	Speck-ulation Fishing for speckled trout at the lower Neuse should be good this month, no thanks to some strange N.C. netting policies. Good and bad news exists for speckled trout — and anglers — in the creeks near Oriental and perhaps at other tributaries of the lower Neuse River. ... Craig Holt

	Topwater Mark Lake Wylie has undergone changes to clear its water that have altered the eating habits of its largemouth bass. To say Lake Wylie has undergone a tremendous transformation during the past half-dozen years isn’t to take away from the transformation it underwent about 80 years ago. ... Dan Kibler

	Two-Front War When spring arrives, Bogue Banks anglers don’t mind king mackerel invading their waters from the east and the south. It’s a terrible thing to be invaded on two fronts, especially if you’re a soldier. However, it’s a wonderful thing if you’re a fisherman. ... Dan Kibler

	Wrapped Too Tight? Are you missing out on a really good bass rod that’s been around since Noah was a pup -- just to be stylish? No one knows who first described B. Everett Jordan’s largemouth bass as “swimming footballs,” but the depiction is an accurate one given the short, stocky nature of the fish that meander throughout the lake’s underwater gridiron. ... Tony Garitta

	Yaupon Diner You can get anything you want at Alice’s Restaurant, as well as Oak Island’s most popular nearshore reef. The dark shape, slowly circling the live pogy suspended beneath a balloon, suddenly whirled and streaked toward the surface. ... Jerry Dilsaver