Generous commie bastards gave us 2 weeks in September. Sep 1 through Sept 14. 1 fish per person per day - 15" min.
This really pisses me off - flounder are fricken pests around here they are so plentiful - but good thing the commercial guys can harvest them and sell them to use while we’re not allowed to keep them.
Call your rep - this is a disgrace.
Here’s a copy of my note
For More Information
Contact: Patricia Smith
Phone: 252-515-5500
You just guaranteed that the recreational folks will organize - Let me explain why you all are driving people to completely disregard the regulations:
So - I am trying to feed my family of 7 a nice fish dinner - Do you know how many trips it takes to feed my family.
You have sold MY fish to the commercial lobbyists so they can CHARGE me to buy them from them.
Go to hell and get ready for a fight. We’re done.
Rec. has been getting the shaft for as long as I’ve been alive. And the inshore fishing has gotten worse and worse. I’m seriously considering fishing SC just to stop supporting this corruption in NC.
NC has the absolute worse recreation fishing laws period. VA is horrible as well. The commercial fishing lobby owns both state governments. Look at how they allow commercial gill netting, complete bullpoop, the harvest of speckled trout in VA as a by catch has a huge impact on recreational fishing. Redfish and striper are in serious trouble in those states. Stop voting anyone that supports commercial gill netting.
Disgusting.
Just another example of why I left NC.. Smh..
The ■■■■ that really got my goat, was putting an issue on the ballot, the people voted, and the politicians said oh well, we’re doing it anyway. I watched that happen on 3 separate election cycles. I could go on for hours about some of the dumb ■■■■ I witnessed over the years there, but it’s pointless. Only thing NC has going for it, is the people. Literally some of the nicest folks I’ve met, but of course the northern infiltrators are ruining that as well. Atleast in the area I was in.
Not that FL is perfect by any stretch, but atleast we’re Red and present the illusion of “freedom” 
Yep NC has great people and beautiful landscapes… but my god they need to get rid of the first in freedom license plate… goddam gestapo out here. Dont get me started
How often do yall run into the game wardens at the boat ramps or get stopped while on the water?
It’s been 10 or so years since I was in NC fishing, but I never encountered a Marine Fisheries agent on the water. Now them survey takers, thats another story. They were camped out every major ramp 7 days a week.
I have only been fully checked once - and the irony is that, just prior, I had one extra redfish in the livewell because we had a big fish fry planned and I was short of fish. About 10 minutes after putting the fish in there, my conscience gnawed at me amd I released it. Within 15 min of that, I see this boat approach and got irritated when they pull right up on my spot . . . But of course it was a game warden. He checked every cooler, livewell and compartment on my boat. Never been so glad to be short of fish for a fish fry!
Outside of that, was only pulled up to one or two other times but neither time was I actually checked.
Sounds the the old red snapper filet and release strategy may be necessary. I would never condone that though..
I’ve been checked probably 3-4 times over the last decade. Growing up we’d get checked at least a few times a year. Enforcement is a big issue in NC.
It’s similar down here in SC. Growing up we got stopped at least once or twice a year. My dad usually knew every warden who stopped us because they used the auto shop he worked for to service their trucks. Probably for the last ten years or so, you only see a warden on busy weekends and they are usually just riding around looking for drunks and or bikinis. I can’t remember the last time one stopped me to check for fish.
Friend and his wife do just that….pack up the boat and head to the border. It just sucks.
I did find a new channel on the U-Toob…good info on some plastics they were using.
Ha - @Hogprint - I literally just watched that same video yesterday. Man, those guys rip lips off when they set the hook, don’t they? Fun video to watch, though.
Yeah, both VA and NC share the same state flower same songbird and same bad politics. I drive 5-6hrs to the coast and camp/fish my way down and a 1 fish 2 fish limit won’t get you far. What am i supposed to do with the fish i intend on keeping? I have a 150qt cooler on the back to pack my fish on ice and a 110qt on the front mainly for bait and recent catch. Am I supposed to get them processed and date on packaging (not realistic)so i can continue to fish. Or once i catch one slot drum is that it even if i fish two more days? Dove and other game you have a daily bag and a possession limit possession being double daily limit. How could i prove that the two slot reds packed in the big cooler are from the previous two days and the third in the front cooler was from the day of? The only law I’ve seen that makes some sense is the 3 bluefish per person because you really need to eat them right away. Anyway, these days now are the good ole days ,believe it or not, because it’s not going to get any better.
@Muddywaters you bring up a good point. I was watching one of those TX law game warden shows a while back, and that’s exactly what happened. These guys were fishing off a pier at night. They caught their before midnight, and then continued to fish for their next day limit after midnight.
The LEOs advice was to have to have two coolers. One cooler for before midnight, he then advised them to seal it with tape, date it and put in the truck, then use the second cooler out on the pier after midnight. Just crazy what this world has come to IMO.
It really depends on their mood it seems with each encounter. There is a tremendous amount of officer discretion that can be used for most given scenarios. I do my part when it comes to conservation and also do my part buying license/permits and such. Then there’s the pittman-robertson and dingell-johnson acts that tag on additional taxes that are supposed to be used appropriately by our trusted leaders. Oh and off road vehicle permits in obx. My point like others have mentioned is that after all i pay please don’t make me pay $30+/# for not so fresh fish at some seafood market.
Latest update.
Aug. 22, 2025
MOREHEAD CITY – The N.C. Marine Fisheries Commission increased this year’s flounder allocation for the recreational fishery at its business meeting this week, adopting Amendment 4 to the Southern Flounder Fishery Management Plan.
Amendment 4 expedites a 50/50 quota allocation shift between the commercial and recreational fisheries so that it occurs in 2025 rather than 2026, as prescribed in Amendment 3. This would result in a 25% increase in recreational total allowable landings compared to the 60/40 allocation by shifting an additional 53,000 pounds from the commercial sector to the recreational sector allocation in 2025.
The additional recreational quota will not increase the length of the 2025 recreational season, scheduled for Sept. 1-14. Rather, it will reduce the risk of recreational catch overages in the fishery this year, which would be subtracted from the next year’s quota.
The N.C. Department of Environmental Quality’s Division of Marine Fisheries is currently exploring more comprehensive management measures through the development of Amendment 5 to the Southern Flounder Plan. The Commission discussed several measures it would like to be considered, including decoupling Southern Flounder management from Gulf Flounder and Summer Flounder management and allocating quota equitably between commercial gears and management areas.
Additionally, the Division of Marine Fisheries staff presented an analysis of the Striped Bass harvest closure and gill net closure above the ferry lines in the Neuse and Tar/Pamlico rivers within the Central/Southern Management Area. The data show that the closures have not resulted in increased striped bass abundance in these rivers despite continued stocking efforts.
Based on the adaptive management in place under Amendment 2 to the Striped Bass Fishery Management Plan, the Division will develop harvest management measures that allow access to, and protection for, the resource. The harvest management strategy will focus harvest on stocked fish in the Neuse and Tar/Pamlico rivers but limit harvest of Albemarle-Roanoke Striped Bass that occasionally occur in these rivers.
Per Amendment 2, the prohibition of gill nets above the ferry lines through 2024 sunsets. Gill net restrictions will revert to those in place prior to the prohibition, including tie-down and distance-from-shore requirements. The Division of Marine Fisheries will present a harvest management plan to the Commission in November that allows access to stocked fish in these rivers but also protects enough mature fish to spawn should there be favorable environmental conditions.
The Division will hold a public meeting on the Striped Bass harvest management plan prior to the November meeting. Details of the public meeting will be announced at a later date.
The Commission also received a presentation on current trends in the state’s Sheepshead fishery, emphasizing concerns related to increased fishing pressure. The Division highlighted potential next steps that include exploring management changes, beginning with a series of public meetings to gather stakeholder input this fall.
In other business, the commission voted to:
Ask the Division of Marine Fisheries to draft proposed rule language for a 5-fish per person recreational bag limit for Atlantic Bonito for the commission to consider at its November quarterly business meeting.
Set the annual cap on the number of commercial fishing licenses available in the Eligibility Pool at 500.
Draft a letter to the General Assembly highlighting the importance of financial resources to the Department of Environmental Quality and Division of Marine Fisheries to ensure the long-term viability of North Carolina’s marine fisheries resources, including the importance of long-term sampling programs.
Elect Commissioner Sarah Gardner as vice chair.
A video recording of the meeting can be found on the Marine Fisheries Commission Meetings webpage.
For More Information
Contact: Patricia Smith
Phone: 252-515-5500