Striper fishing still active at Weldon
May 17 at 4:31 pm It may be late in the season for striped bass spawning runs at the Roanoke River near Weldon, but anglers continue to have tremendous catch-and-release days.
Some erstwhile saltwater guides remain in the area to offer uninitiated “rockfish” chasers a boat and the knowledge to avoid the river’s large stone impediments and make a trip productive, safe and less expensive (lower units add up after a while).
Harris Lake bass jumping on lures
May 10 at 1:51 pm If bass anglers want a good chance to catch a lunker largemouth, the best place to go right now is Shearon Harris Lake in southern Wake and northern Chatham counties.
“There’s a good bite at Harris,” said Jeff Thomas of Broadway, a guide and tournament angler. “They’re biting just about everywhere — shallow and deep.”
Chopper blues appear at central N.C. coast
May 03 at 8:58 am Three years ago Hatteras (chopper) bluefish once again began appearing at North Carolina central coast venues.
Thirty years ago these large toothy creatures made dependable October and November appearances at the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, most prominently at Ocracoke Island. Anglers would catch them by the truckloads, wastefully stacking them like cordwood on the Ocracoke beaches (they’re not very tasty but fight like a shark). And they’d hit any kind of lure from Hopkins to, famously, a strip of flannel shirt impaled on a J-hook.
Anglers must have true grit for bonito
April 27 at 11:55 am SNEADS FERRY – One of the most elusive but hardest-fighting/best-tasting saltwater gamefish is available right now off the N.C. coast.
But bonito (not bonita) are almost like ghosts because anglers can neither predict with much dependability the exact nor proximate locations where they'll appear in the ocean. And they are a totally ocean-going species. One thing is certain: when they appear, the ocean explodes boils and roils as they savagely attack glass minnows and baby menhaden and just about any lure an angler can cast to them.
Yadkin lakes see start of striped-bass spawn
April 12 at 1:08 pm With late spring-like weather spreading over the state a month earlier than usual during March, higher-than-normal water temperatures apparently triggered striped bass false migration runs in many piedmont rivers.
The migration attempts are false because stripers have only two rivers (Dan and Roanoke) inside North Carolina long enough to successfully hatch fertilized eggs — yet rockfish are hard-wired to make whoopee anyway each spring no matter where they are.
Hot striper bite ignites up and down Pamlico
April 05 at 11:17 am Although many Tar Heel anglers believe the Roanoke River is the state’s top spring spot for catching striped bass, the best venue actually may be up and down the Pamlico River on either side of Little Washington — but particularly to the east toward Albemarle Sound.
Seven tips for turkey hunting success
March 28 at 11:20 am Joey Murphy developed a passion for hunting turkeys when he was 14, and the passion has morphed into an obsession for hunting longbeards. The 41-year old furniture maker and a NorthCarolinaSportsman.com moderatoralso builds his own turkey call named the “Spursuader,” a sweet-sounding, wood-friction pot call.
And of course he hunts every opportunity he gets.
April 7 is 2012’s favorite date for mountain trout anglers
March 22 at 12:48 pm The spring date Tar Heel State (and other states) mountain anglers mark on their calendars each year is the first Saturday in April. That’s when hatchery-supported waters trout season opens.
Reds, flounder, specks provide good action
March 15 at 1:42 pm Red drum, flounder and scattered spotted seatrout are providing typical early-spring action for southeastern N.C. anglers, particularly at the bays across the Cape Fear River from Southport.
Largemouth prespawn just a few days away
March 08 at 11:28 am “Booyah” time is almost here — meaning an expression that shows excitement and doesn’t necessarily refer to spinnerbaits or buzzbaits — although it could, if that’s your favorite brand of spring bass lures.
Lunkers abound as spring arrives
February 29 at 12:55 pm Knowledgeable bass anglers understand late February and early March are the best times to seek lunker largemouths.
Shad runs begin on eastern North Carolina rivers and streams
February 17 at 4:46 pm The first fish migration of spring is underway on North Carolina coastal counties and, although these creatures aren’t much to write home about nor do they provide eye-popping photographs to send the local newspaper, they provide excellent and numerous light-tackle thrills.
Easterners also have no trouble popping them into a hot skillet.
