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Random Quote: she said "tie me up and you can do what you want'', so I tied her up, and went fishing.
Thinking about draggin my 20ft boat up there to do a little tuna fishing. Waiting for 5 to 10 mph winds, maybe a long wait. Have friends that say I should not bother trying to use that inlet and/or go off 25 miles for tuna.
Have no problem going out of Bouge and 20/25 miles out to fish. Been 10 years since I went out of Oregon Inlet. Trying to pick my days based on wind. Your thoughts please!
25 miles out of Oregon is totally different from 25 out of Bogue. Those are my favorite two inlets. If you want tuna, you'll have to go out of Oregon.25 miles out of Bogue, you'll only be in 90 foot of water and you'll only catch kings on the troll at this time of the year. That being said, on a 20 foot boat, I would be nervous going out of Oregon. Oregon is much more tricky than Bogue. Also, we usually run out 35+ miles to get into the tuna at Oregon. 35 miles out of Bogue, you'll still be in 100 foot of water. One other thing, the farther south down the beach you are, usually the calmer the waters. Ie, wilmington is much calmer than say Oregon Inlet.
It is doable, but you better be very sure of the forecast...especially in fall. The inlet got pretty hosed up last month during a sustained NE blow (blew for a week...never under 30 knots).
Hatteras inlet is also no picnic but you can fish 20 miles from the inlet and be just SE of DST and have a shot at the Tunas. Rock pile is less than 30 miles as well I believe.
Good luck if you go...SW 5-10 or variable less than 10 knots would be the only forecast I'd be going in.
With a small boat you are really at the mercy of the conditions. Even when the forecast appears to be perfect you may come out of the Inlet and find the seas to be too much for that size boat. Make sure you have a backup fishing plan or you may be dissapointed.
If you knew how do dodge the wreck on the north side of the bar, or slip through the shoals on the south side of the bar, you'd be able to bypass the bar entirely.
I've seen it done a couple times, but I've never had the balls to do it in my 23' boat. I don't even know if it's possible anymore after the 3 noreaster's we've had in the past 2 months.
Tuna fishing will require you to go 35-45 miles each way from OI. Make sure you have enough fuel.
I'd be very uncomfortable going in a 20 foot boat in the fall. On a nice spring day, I'd be less uncomfortable, as the weather patterns tend to settle down. In the fall and winter I've seen it turn from forecasted 2-3's in the morning into 5-6 short period in the afternoon.
Glenn is right, only go on a light and variable with a large high pressure centered above the area for the next few days.
That being said, on nice days, I've seen bowriders in the gulfstream, and carolina skiffs 20 miles out at the navy towers. But one wrong forecast and it's going to be a long, wet, ride home with a lot of bailing and white knuckles.
IMHO, the inlet itself is not difficult to navigate if you can follow the markers. Getting to the inlet can be a little trickier so ask around. You are right to be cautious about the weather. People do it 20' boats, but you are looking for the magic forecast of seas 2' or less and winds less than 10. The weather windows are only a day here and a day there in the Fall. Once a blow starts, they generally run about 3 days, then you might find a day or two of doable weather followed by the next blow. Take no chances. You'll need to go about 30 miles out. Be sure to check the forecast for 20-40 nm in addition to the 20 nm forecast. Another option for some great Fall fishing is Striper season in the Chesapeake Bay in the vacinity of the Bay Bridge. Nice big fish. You can trailer up to Little Creek marina and have easy access. Or trailer over the Bay Bridge and launch out of the state park.
Location: Quebec, Canada and Pirates Cove, OBX, NC
Posts: 17,809
Re: Oregon Inlet Fishing
The worst part of Oregon Inlet can be once you go under the bridge is that for about 4 miles or so the waves come at you from different directions and it can be very choppy and hard to navigate
The worst part of Oregon Inlet can be once you go under the bridge is that for about 4 miles or so the waves come at you from different directions and it can be very choppy and hard to navigate
Take care
...... yep.......they can stand up pretty quick from any direction for a few miles thru there....better have your hand glued to the throttle for sure.....
Oregon Inlet Fishing 
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