You sound like youre good to go. The water is usually stained so gold is a good choice along with a ned rig. l got my citation bowfin there and there are some trophy bass and cats to be found too. The water gets really muddy like chocolate milk at times too. Also, you might want to get your NC license as lots of good fishing in Tulls Bay. if you like chasing gar, there's plenty of those bad boys in there too. Good luck!
