STRIPERSPACE.COM LOGO



Oregon Inlet - Striped Bass Fishing





Oregon Inlet


Oregon Inlet

The Oregon Inlet Bridge crosses Oregon Inlet and connects Bodie Island on the north with Pea Island on the south. The road over the bridge is Route 12, which is the way south to Cape Hatteras. Surf fishermen fish for striped bass along the Outer Bank beaches. Boat fishermen fish for striped bass from boats out of Oregon Inlet marinas.



About Oregon Inlet


Oregon Inlet, located on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, connects the Atlantic Ocean with the second-largest estuary system in the United States. It is the only inlet along a 95 mile stretch of the Outer Banks coastline. Millions of visitors enjoy the surrounding beaches of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore each year and, the inlet supports important commercial and recreational fishing fleets.

Oregon Inlet

Oregon Inlet Map

Oregon Inlet was formed when a hurricane lashed the Outer Banks in 1846, separating Bodie Island from Pea Island. One ship that rode out the storm in Pamlico Sound was named the Oregon. After the storm the crew of this ship were the first to tell those on the mainland about the inlet's formation. Hence, it has been known as Oregon Inlet ever since.

The Outer Banks experience one of the highest wave climates on the east coast, with over 20 storms per year in which significant wave heights exceed 6 feet.

Since opening in 1846, Oregon Inlet has migrated south at an average rate exceeding 1 mile per century. By 1989 this southerly migration threatened to sever the southern abutment of the bridge that provides the only land route to the communities south of the inlet. In 1990, a 0.6 mile-long rubble mound was constructed to stabilize the south shoulder of the inlet. So far it has operated as designed; but constant monitoring of the erosion and migration situation is required.


Striped Bass Fishing


Oregon Inlet Fishermen

Oregon Inlet Fishermen

The Oregon Inlet sees a lot of striped bass traffic going into and out of the Pamlico Sound. Surf fishermen fish the Outer Banks beaches that extend for miles on both sides of the inlet. However the inlet itself is difficult to fish because the current is very fast, and on the outgoing tide the water can be muddy and loaded with grass and debris.

The Oregon Inlet is home to the largest and most modern fishing fleet on the Eastern Seaboard. This fishing fleet is within range of that part of the ocean where many migrating striped bass winter over. It is the great ocean fishing for striped bass, outside the inlet, that make Oregon Inlet well known for striped bass fishing.

Surf fishing is usually outstanding along the Outer Banks beaches somewhat south of Oregon Inlet, around Buxton and Cape Hattteras. Follow this link to see: Cape Hatteras Surf Fishing .






      



Link back to the top