I can’t get enough of the coast. So, a week after coastal camping with my wife, I headed back to join my brother-in-law David on a different type of adventure: a King Mackerel tournament based out of Little River, SC. This was my first fishing tournament, and also my first time targeting King Mackerel. David was our literal captain (of his 23’ Mako) and also the figurative captain of team “Big Macks,” which included me, David, and David’s friends Anton and Daniel. Although we didn’t win the tourney, we had a great time on the water for the better part of two full days. The first day was a wild adventure, and the second was a good day fishing.
Preparations
A lot goes into pulling off a trip like this. David handled most of the boat logistics before the rest of us got to Little River. Once we joined, we made some last-minute minor repairs on the boat (trim system, lights) under the moonlight. Then it was grocery shopping, frozen pizzas, tying tackle, and strategic planning over a marine map. Eventually, we went to bed.
Day 1: “The Jungle” and Nearshore SC Waters
We woke up early, loaded up the boat, and hit the water around dawn. We cruised for about 3 miles up the Intracoastal Waterway, then hit the Little River for 3 more miles until the Little River Inlet (which is basically on the SC-NC border). Sunrise over the marsh near the inlet was spectacular, and the combination of salt spray and 40-something degree temperatures quickly woke us up!
Our first task was acquiring bait. We saw a bunch of boats gathered off the beach just south of the inlet, all on a similar search. We pulled up, and within minutes, David netted a couple dozen Atlantic Menhaden and a small Bluefish. We must’ve looked like real pros to the other boats, who weren’t having as much luck. (Unless those other boats looked at me—I did not give off pro vibes as I fumbled with a second net.)
The name of the fishing tournament is “Rumble in the Jungle.” This didn’t make sense to us until we studied the marine maps, and noticed an offshore feature called “the Jungle.” It was about 20 miles offshore, but the conditions seemed good enough for us to make the pilgrimage and see what the hype was about. The conditions started off decent, with 3- to 4-foot seas. However, our high-speed journey offshore got progressively rougher. Although none of us got seasick, I certainly didn’t feel good. Beer helped.
By mid-morning, we arrived at a patch of ocean that looked much the same as the rest, with one notable difference: lots of boats. This was the Jungle. As soon as we got to the Jungle, one of our two motors went out. This wasn’t a big deal for the time being, since our kingfish strategy already involved trolling with only one motor. The bigger issue was the high seas; it took some effort to keep our 23’ boat perpendicular to the 5’ swells.
After an hour or two without success, we headed a few miles away, then trolled some more. We eventually saw some bait moving, and someone (I forget who) got a strike on an artificial. That one got away. Pretty soon thereafter, one of our trolling poles bent over, and I got the honors of bringing in a Little Tunny (aka False Albacore, or Bonita). The fight was tougher than expected, due to the seriously rocky seas and a bad hookset. It was a pretty fish, and a first for me. This small tuna species apparently doesn’t make good eating, so we let this one go back.
Given the rough seas and lackluster fishing at the Jungle, we decided to move closer to shore. This is where having only one motor was debilitating. We limped along at about 15 mph for what seemed like forever. Rocking and rolling, rolling and rocking. The misery made the adventure even more memorable.
The miserable monotony was eventually interrupted by an explosion. To our relief, the lone motor was still chugging along. It didn’t take us long to figure out that the noise came from a military jet breaking the sound barrier directly above us. That was another first for me. This shook us out of our funk and gave us some energy for the remainder of our journey.
Once we got about 10 miles from shore, the seas calmed down, and we picked back up cell service. With remote help from friend Robert, David was able to get motor #2 back to life. Big win!
We made a beeline to some underwater features relatively close the inlet: “Sherman’s Reef” and “Little River Rocks.” Again, we were joined by dozens of other boats. This scene was even more chaotic than the Jungle, and one boat ran over one of our lines (they paid the price, as it wrapped around their prop). We saw a couple boats bringing in fish, but we didn’t have any luck ourselves. Unless you count sharks, that is. As the afternoon wore on, we finally got a big strike on one of our baits. Daniel fought the monster for what seemed like forever (even to me), and we all entertained delusions that this was a prize-winning king. Eventually Daniel hauled the big 6 or 7’ Sandbar Shark next to the boat, where we cut him loose.
I had expected to see some interesting pelagic birds while offshore, but basically struck out all day. The conditions were generally too rough, and nothing out of the ordinary came close to the boat. But we still encountered some interesting wildlife. The highlight for me was a Loggerhead Sea Turtle, which approached our boat right as we arrived at the Little River Rocks area. This was a lifer for me, and the only time I scrambled to grab my DSLR camera from the boat’s hold. We also had a couple Monarchs fly by.
We eventually headed back empty-handed, pausing at the inlet for David to net some more Menhaden. I tried too, and managed some decent fish-less throws—until the entire net slipped from my wrist and plummeted to the bottom. I still feel terrible about this.
On our river cruise back to the marina, we were joined by a handsome adult Bald Eagle and some Wood Storks. Back at the slip, we commiserated with other fishermen and women, who all seemed to have similar luck on Day 1 (none). All were impressed—not sure if that’s the right word—that we made it out to the Jungle, given our relatively small 23’ boat and the rough seas. Even David admitted this was one of his rougher journeys, and that’s saying something!
After the long day, we grabbed Mexican food, mapped out the next day’s itinerary at the condo, and called it an early night.
Day 2: Nearshore NC Waters
We got an early start on Day 2. The sun didn’t break the horizon until we were out on the ocean. This was another first for me, and a sublime experience.
Unfortunately, the bait that David caught the day before didn’t survive overnight, due to either cold or stagnant waters at the marina. So, our first task was, again, to find bait. We joined some other boats just south of the inlet, but had no luck. The Menhaden flocks (I mean, schools) apparently move around quite a bit.
We headed north, leaving South Carolina waters and trying our luck off of Sunset Beach. En route, we saw multiple groups of Atlantic Bottlenose Dolphins. We kept our eyes peeled for Brown Pelicans, who eventually led us to some small schools of bait. After a considerable effort, David netted about 8 Menhaden, and we decided that was good enough. I was unsuccessful with the net, but I did manage some more reef-building, this time knocking a rod holder into the sea. I have a lot of guilt about this, too.
We all got varying degrees of soaking wet on our high-speed journey to a point about 5-8 miles offshore of Shallotte Inlet (between Ocean Isle and Holden Beach). Once there, conditions were relatively calm, and we even saw a pontoon boot (!) fishing nearby while we trolled. We didn’t get any strikes, but I saw a few Wilson’s Storm-Petrels flying across the bow. So, not a total loss in terms of seabirds.
By late morning, we headed a few miles closer to shore. Here came the highlight of the trip. It was really a series of highlights: a chaotic hour or two of incredible fishing.
It started with a large flock of terns foraging. We knew from the terns that there would be lots of small bait near the surface, and we suspected that predator fish would be driving them up from below. So, we moved closer to check it out. It was a scene straight out of a nature documentary: terns diving, baitfish scattering, and a score of False Albacore darting to-and-fro—erratic muscle torpedoes wreaking havoc on the bait. The False Albacore didn’t discriminate between real and fake prey, and we got nearly instantaneous hookups with each cast of the spinning rod. This was a ton of fun. Three of us landed one; this may have been the only fish I personally reeled in all day (we rotated).
We could’ve caught the miniature tuna all day long, but as David reminded us, we weren’t here for “fun fishing.” We were on a mission: King Mackerel. So, as we casually followed the mobile feeding frenzy, we kept our trolling lines active. Our first hit was a small Atlantic Sharpnose Shark. Another one followed later in the morning. Shark fishing is interesting, but generally counterproductive, especially since the first shark decommissioned two of our trolling lines. Not to worry! During our hour or two of nonstop action, we managed to hook not one—but two—big kingfish. Anton and Daniel took the honors on the reel, bringing the fish to boat in good time. David handled the gaff with expertise. Each fish measured a solid 36” from head to fork, and we kept both. Success!
Eventually, some other boats arrived on the scene, and we exhausted our meager supply of bait. We headed in closer to shore, scanning for pelicans that might lead us to a fresh catch. This time, it didn’t take much effort. David’s first cast was perfect, landing about 20 more Menhaden. I was feeling more confident about casting one of David’s oversized nets (I’m used to casting a small net from shore, so this was a learning experience). I once again struck out on baitfish, but didn’t come up entirely empty-handed: trapped were a half dozen shrimp (either Northern White or Northern Brown Shrimp), a Southern Kingfish, and a juvenile Weakfish. The shrimp were keepers, and the other two went back. All were new species for me.
With our replenished supply of bait, we spent the rest of the afternoon trolling a few miles off Ocean Isle Beach and Sunset Beach. No luck; the fish had moved on. But it was a gloriously sunny, warm, and calm afternoon, so we enjoyed the cruise.
Although we knew our 11-pound kings weren’t prize-winners (this year’s champion was >40 lbs), we headed to the official tournament weigh station just for fun. This was a memorable experience. We pulled up at the dock, hopped out with our fattest prize, and walked past at least a hundred people hanging out, eating, drinking, and cheering. We enjoyed our minute of “fame” at the weigh-in table, and even made the tournament’s video highlight reel (see 2:46 below). It was an awesome way to finish off the trip.
We donated the bigger fish and kept the smaller one. This gave each of us a couple pounds of King Mackerel meat, which turned out delicious in the smoker. My fresh shrimp were also better than store-bought.
Overall, this was a great trip, with a lot of action spread across our two days on the water. To recap the wildlife highlights: I saw one lifer reptile (Loggerhead Sea Turtle); 8 species of fish, including 5 lifers (Little Tunny, Atlantic Sharpnose Shark, King Mackerel, Southern Kingfish, Weakfish); and a handful of mammals, birds, butterflies, and other marine invertebrates. There’s a lot going on below the surface!
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