The Outer Banks is famed as the Billfish Capital of the World. Though other fishing destinations debate that point, the Outer Banks waters are home to an incredible number of billfish-white and blue marlin and sailfish. These fighting fish are caught from spring through early fall, with peak catches for blue marlin in June and peak catches for white marlin and sailfish in August and September. To protect the species, billfish are almost always caught and released. You still get bragging rights for your released fish, though; the mate flies one flag per released billfish on the outriggers of the boat so everyone at the dock sees how many your party reeled in that day.

Next to billfish, some of the most pursued Gulf Stream fish are the yellowfin tuna and bluefin tuna. Other fish you're likely to catch are bigeye tuna, blackfin tuna, dolphinfish (mahimahi), king mackerel, wahoo, and mako shark.

The majority of Outer Banks captains who lead the way to offshore fishing grounds have been working these waters for years. Many are second- and third- generation watermen. They generally choose the daily fishing spot depending on recent trends, seasons, and weather. Occasionally, when there's a slow spell, a captain moves away from the rest of the fleet to play out a hunch. If the maverick meets with success, it's common for him or her to share this find with the rest of the fleet. In other words, the area fleets have a brother- or sisterhood that visiting anglers say they've experienced nowhere else. This camaraderie enhances the fishing experience, plus, fishing together is safer.

Anglers fishing offshore for big game fish generally troll (drag bait behind the moving boat). If you run into a school of fish, such as mahimahi, the captain stops the boat so the party can cast into the water that's been primed with chum, or fish bits. Chumming also is used on bluefin tuna trips. All these techniques are explained the day of the trip. Expect to pay $800 to $1,400 for six people to charter a fishing excursion. Bluefin tuna trips cost a bit more. Gulf Stream charters leaving from Hatteras marinas tend to be less expensive than those near Oregon Inlet.

Beginning January 1, 2007, a fishing license will be required to fish anywhere on the Outer Banks, including up to 3 miles offshore. If you are younger than age 16, you are exempt. July 4th is a free fishing day in North Carolina. No license is required, but recreational size and possession limits are still enforced.

One offshore area frequented with great regularity is called The Point (not to be confused with Cape Hatteras Point). Approximately 37 miles off the Outer Banks, this primary fishing ground for local boats is rich in game fish such as tuna, dolphin, wahoo, billfish, and shark. Blue marlin, wahoo, and mahimahi show up at The Point in April and May. Yellowfin, bigeye, and blackfin tuna are the anglers' mainstay year-round. A significant population of yellowfin inhabits this area in the winter, providing a tremendous seasonal fishery. You have to be patient to fish in the winter because plenty of bad weather days make traveling offshore a waiting game.

The Point has unique characteristics that give it a reputation for attracting and harboring a great variety and quantity of fish, from tiny baitfish to massive billfish. Deep-swimming reef fish, such as grouper, snapper, and tilefish, also inhabit The Point. Because of the strong current, however, you must travel a little bit south of The Point to fish effectively.

What also helps set this spot apart is its proximity to the edge of the continental shelf. Where there's a drop-off, baitfish concentrate because of the nutrient-rich waters and the currents playing off the edge, stirring things up. Anglers don't have to travel far to get to The Point since the continental shelf is particularly narrow off Cape Hatteras. The Point is the last spot where the Gulf Stream appears near the shelf before it veers off in an east- northeasterly direction. Weather permitting, some days the Gulf Stream entirely covers The Point. Other days, prevailing winds push it farther offshore.

Always dress in layers for an Outer Banks fishing trip. Cold mornings have been known to transform into a warm afternoon on many fall and winter days. Of course, the opposite is also true, and gales and thunderstorms notoriously appear out of nowhere.

At about 50 miles wide and a half-mile deep, the Gulf Stream's temperatures rarely drop below 65 to 70 degrees, providing a comfortable habitat for a variety of sea life. The Gulf Steam flows at an average rate of 2.5 mph, at times quickening to 5 mph. This steady flow carries millions of tons of water per second, continually pushing along sea life in its path, including fish, microscopic plants and animals, and gulfweed. Gulfweed lines the edge of the Gulf Stream when winds are favorable, creating a habitat for bait- fish. You can pull up a handful of vegetation and find it teeming with miniature shrimp and fish. Anglers fish these "grass lines" as well as the warm-water eddies that spin off from the Gulf Stream. These warm pockets, which vary in size from 20 to 100 miles long by a half-mile to a mile wide, are sometimes filled with schools of dolphin, tuna, and mako shark. The Gulf Stream is about 30 miles off the Outer Banks. It takes about two hours to get there from Oregon Inlet, and about an hour and a half from Hatteras Inlet, depending on the prevailing winds and the speed of your boat.

Catch-and-release fishing for bluefin tuna has anglers from across the globe traveling to Hatteras Island to partake in a bonanza that revived winter offshore charter fishing along the Outer Banks. In 1994, captains began noticing a massive congregation of bluefin tuna inhabiting the wrecks about 20 miles from Hatteras Inlet. The quantity of bluefin available and the frequency with which they bite are phenomenal. Bluefin fishing takes place on the southern Outer Banks, with trips leaving from Hatteras and Ocracoke marinas. Charter boats that ordinarily dock on the northern Outer Banks make their home base on Hatteras during the bluefin months. Many motels on Hatteras Island gladly stay open year-round to accommodate bluefin anglers.

Bluefin tuna weighing 200 to more than 800 pounds have been caught in these waters. These giants are a federally protected species, so anglers almost always must release them. Restrictions state that during bluefin tuna season anglers may keep one fish from 27 to 73 inches per boat per day. The length of the tuna season is determined annually by the National Marine Fisheries and is contingent on overall poundage caught.

Reeling in a bluefin of any magnitude makes the blood of an avid angler run hot! The bluefin seem to strike with less provocation on the choppy days-plus there are fewer boats present during rougher weather. On days when the fish are spooked by excessive boat traffic or simply aren't biting for whatever reason, mates chum the water to increase the chance of a strike. These giants often jump 4 feet out of the ocean to bite bloody bait.

Local anglers troll, chum, and use live or dead bait. Many anglers even catch bluefin tuna and other game fish on a fly. We've seen great success with 130-pound test line. Some folks like to use lighter tackle for the sport of it, but the heavier the line, the better the condition of the fish when it's released. Circle hooks are also recommended, for they tend to lodge in the mouth cartilage rather than in the fleshy gullet or gills.

Even though most of the fish are caught on heavy tackle, carefully handled, and subsequently released, recreational charter boat captains are contemplating a self-imposed quota for catch and release to protect the fish even further. When there are large groups of boats present day after day, it's likely the same fish will have to do battle over and over.

You can enjoy offshore fishing year- round, but for bluefin fishing off Hatteras, book a trip from January through March. Some fish may show up earlier, and there are bluefin available in early April, but by then, captains begin concentrating on yellowfin again. Bluefin boats leave the dock between 5:30 and 7:00 A.M.

Offshore fishing charters accommodate six people. If your party is shy of six, many times the booking agents or captain can hook you up with another small party.

Anglers are expected to bring their own food and drinks on the trips. Coolers for any fish you want to take home can be left in your car at the dock to save room on the boat. Fish-cleaning facilities are available at all docks, and fish-cleaning services (for a fee) are available at most. Bring sunscreen and seasickness remedies. All bait, tackle, instruction, and advice are included in the price of your charter. Mates work for tips, so be sure to tip them at least 15 percent and up to 20 percent of the cost of your trip.

If you really love offshore fishing, consider entering one of the fishing tournaments listed in our Annual Events chapter. If you're not up for Gulf Stream fishing but want to see the fish, show up at these docks at about 4:00 P.M.to watch the boats unload their catches. You'll see mahimahi, tuna, wahoo, cobia, and others, but no billfish since those are catch-andrelease species.

A variety of inshore opportunities strike the fancy of the novice or expert angler. Inshore generally refers to inlet, sound, lake, river, and some close-range ocean fishing on a boat.

Inshore captains generally book half- day trips but also offer intermediate all- day trips to take you farther out. If you're interested in bluefish, Spanish mackerel, cobia, king mackerel, bonito, trout, flounder, croaker, or red drum, book trips from virtually any marina. Half-day trips are a little easier on the pocketbook.

Spanish mackerel are a mainstay of the area. Ocracoke Island captains begin looking for them in late April and typically enjoy catches through late October. Farther north on the Outer Banks, Spanish mackerel usually arrive the first or second week in May, depending on the water temperature. Casting is the most sporting way of catching them. We suggest that you use eight-pound test on a medium to medium-light spinning rod with a pink and white Sting Silver. Other colors work well also; if the people next to you are catching fish and you aren't, see what lures they are using.

If it's flounder you're after, you can find these flat fish in both Hatteras and Oregon Inlets, in clear water. Anglers drift bottom rigs on medium-light spinning tackle.

Croakers are found in the sounds around deep holes, oyster rocks, and sloughs.

You can dine on almost all inshore species. Tarpon, a bony fish with little food value, cannot be overlooked. A release- category fish, the tarpon is probably one of the strongest fighting fish inshore. While the Outer Banks is not a destination spot for tarpon, a handful of locals fish for them around Ocracoke in Pamlico Sound and south to the mouth of the Neuse River. We recommend fresh-cut bait, such as spot or trout, and very sharp hooks to penetrate the tarpon's hard mouth. Remember, it's one thing to hook up and a whole other to bring a tarpon to the boat. Good luck!

Outer Banks anglers enjoy fishing for rockfish (also called striped bass or stripers) year-round. They are fun to catch and make a great-tasting dinner. Though stripers are a regulated species, they've steadily been making a comeback during the last decade or so. Each year stripers spawn inland, and the young live in estuaries for several years before joining the Atlantic migratory population.

The ocean season for stripers is open year-round, but limits vary according to season. Though stripers are present in our waters year-round, the sound inhabitants are protected by restrictions. Since the sound fishing season fluctuates, call a tackle shop for up-to-date regulations. If you want to catch and release, go at it anytime.

When a cold snap hits the Chesapeake Bay area, stripers migrate down past Corolla into Oregon Inlet. November is one of the best months to fish for them around the Manns Harbor Bridge that connects Roanoke Island to the East Lake community. Anglers also fish in the winter for stripers behind Roanoke Island in East and South Lakes.

Stripers tend to congregate around bridge pilings. They cluster near these nutrient-covered supports that entice smaller baitfish. You can troll, use spinning tackle with lures, fly-cast, or surf fish. Stripers are bottom feeders, so a planer can be used to catch them. Insiders suggest using a butter bean with a white bucktail on the end or Rat-L-Traps. You can catch these fish on slick calm days and in rougher weather, but a little current seems to help.

Summertime finds Outer Bankers fishing the sounds from Manteo to Ocracoke for speckled trout. Insiders suggest you move to the surf or a pier to catch them in fall. The speckled trout fishing is excellent in early fall around Oregon and Hatteras Inlets. They are best caught on light tackle with artificial lures or on a fly rod. Light spinning tackle is another good choice. Artificial lures are the norm. Insiders suggest using a lead head jig with a soft plastic twister tail for sound, bridge, and inlet fishing. For the beach, try Mirrolures. Currently a keeper must be a 12inch total length minimum. Call your local tackle shop for more information.