On Saturday, November 5, I only had a few minutes late in the day to fish some close-in oyster bars on the White Oak River but it was spectacularly beautiful as you can see from the marsh grass picture. I also managed to catch and release another sixteen inch drum and bring home a sixteen inch trout for dinner.
On Tuesday, November 8, I had almost two hours to fish the oyster rocks in my kayak and I caught four red drum and one black drum. I brought home one nineteen inch drum. In the last ten days, I have landed ten red drum, the best around twenty inches and another at nineteen inches. I have only kept one red drum but I have kept two trout, one sixteen inches and another eighteen inches and also one black drum at fifteen inches. We have feasted on fish these last few days. Baked browned-butter, panko-encrusted drum is one of my favorites.
Last year, 2015, we did not have a fishing season like this one. I blamed it all on the early October rain we got. It is hard to miss a fishing season when fall fishing on the coast is such a tradition. This year we have been lucky. Since Mathew dropped three inches of rain on us October 8, we have only had two-tenths of an inch on October 22, and another two-tenths of an inch on November 4.
The nearly unbroken string of wonderful clear skies and calm waters have been great for any outdoor activities. Since Mathew's Wind & Waters on October 8, the dry weather we have enjoyed has been great for farmers and fishermen. This is very unlike last year's fall. Aside from a couple of windy mornings, most of the time it has been truly beautiful out on the White Oak River.
The beach has also been pretty nice as the waters have cleared but it is the time of year when trucks are allowed to drive on the beach so the walking is a little harder for us hikers. My last trip for a long hike over on the beach was October 20, and the water was as crystal clear as ever. The beach picture was taken at the Point on Emerald Isle. I was standing just north the western most piece of sand on Bogue Banks. This is a map of a beach hike in early September and another of my October 20 beach hike. While the beach was closed to driving just east of where I entered the beach. I still do not think the Point and the rest of Emerald Isle's beaches were damaged by Hurricane Matthew.
A little over two weeks later we are lucky when temperature gets to seventy or above. Most days in early November are in the sixties during the day and around fifty at night. The surf temperature is down to 62F and the sound and river water temperatures are at 59F. Hopefully the those temperatures will hold for another few days because I would love at least another couple fishing trips before the kayaking season ends for me.
It has been a late season with even the spot fishing season starting a month later than most years (pictures taken November 3, 2016 and October 8, 2011 and October 8, 2014). Still there will be people fishing for at least another month unless we get a real cold snap. I am pleased to report that we are still waiting for our first frost even over on the mainland part of Carteret County. We usually see frost sometime from the middle of November until the third week in November but we have seen it as early as November 12. I still have tomatoes, lettuce, onions, pepper, beans and broccoli growing in our fall garden.
We have only a tenth to a quarter of inch of rain in the forecast for the second week in November. The high temperatures look to remain mostly in the mid to upper sixties with only a couple of days just reaching the upper fifties. We have one night this weekend where the temperatures will drop into the upper thirties but to balance that there are two days when we break seventy degrees. That is not bad weather for the middle of November.
Our five star-rated 142 page 2016 travel guide continues to sell well. It is only $3.99 for the Kindle version (free if you have Kindle Unlimited) and it works on practically everything including the iPhone and iPads. Paperback versions are also available. If you are in the area and want to have a look at a paper copy, stop by the Emerald Isle tourist bureau or drop by the bookstore in Emerald Plantation to purchase a black and white copy. The color version is available at the Emerald Isle Town Office. For more information on our books click on this link. This is a recent review of A Week at the Beach The Emerald Isle Travel Guide. The black and white paperback is $7.95 and the full color version is $19.99. Both are Prime eligible from Amazon. We released the book updated for 2016 on May 27.
If you just need some quick information about the area head for our free online guide to Emerald Isle. Either way, remember this is a great area to visit even late in the fall. Lots of visitors get hooked and end up put down some roots along our sandy beaches.
Why we love it here?
While no place is perfect, the Crystal Coast presents us with many options besides beaches that make life here very appealing.
Living by the water is not for everyone, but we really enjoy everything from waves on the beach to the warmth of an evening on the beach or even the power of the ocean you feel standing in the surf.
The magic of the river or our other waters is never far away. Sometimes the big water calls and other times I get seduced by the river and the fog. There are few places where you can have such wonderful November days on the beach.
In the summer there are times when the heat will not seem to go away but there are ways to deal with the heat or humidity and even escape our paltry crowds.
We typically have plenty of summer weather, but we do have four seasons here including some cold weather every few years. That just makes the other three seasons besides winter seem even nicer.
My Crystal Coast, Salt Water on Your Feet site also has a number of articles for people considering a move to the Crystal Coast.
To make life even better here on the coast, I would recommend a visit to our wonderful church home at Cape Carteret Presbyterian Church. We love to have visitors especially during our monthly fellowship luncheons.
Our quiet spot sheltered by Bogue Banks, the Croatan National Forest, and the Cape Lookout National Seashore is a very friendly and scenic area with a great future. Right now it is the spot for us and sometimes I think I am living in a time and place that cannot survive the pressures of the modern world forever. I am just happy to be here now and able to share it with my children and grandchild.
This is a link to a simple map of the area. There are more detailed ones in our Emerald Isle Travel Guide.
