Tag: guide

Team NC did it again…and with plenty of weight to spare this time! As always, despite the weather there was a great turnout, great sponsors, great prizes, great food, and great people! It’s been really fun to be a part of this tournament every year and to watch it grow just as the sport of catfishing is doing on the local and national level. Thanks to everyone who helped out with the tournament, and congrats to the winners! This year also marked a record breaking Ice Bowl, with a monster 79 pound blue taking first place! Second place was 59 pounds, which is also bigger than any fish previously weighed in at this tournament. These big fish are a testament to the fact that we have a healthy and thriving fishery in Kerr Lake….and also a testament to the fact that us NC boys are getting pretty sharp when it comes to catching them!!! Tight lines

This has been the best November of fishing that I can remember since I started fishing the lake. Not sure why, but the fish sure do seem to be putting on the feed bags this year! Does this forecast a cold winter? Do the fish know something that we don’t? Only time will tell…but in the meantime I will keep reaping the benefits of these hungry fish! I have caught a citation fish almost every time I have been out lately, with a couple of days producing numerous citations. I have also been able to pattern the flatheads a little better this year as they move out of the rivers and down the lake to deeper water where they will hunker down and become inactive for the remainder of the winter. November is probably your last shot at landing one of these beasts until next spring! Finally, the striper fishing is still hot, particularly on days when the barometric pressure is falling. With the new 24 inch limit, we have seen alot more keepers this year. And I have heard rumors of a 44 inch monster striper caught this month. Could this mark the start of the return of the trophy striper fishery that once existed on this lake? I like to think so, but again…only time will tell! Come fish with me and perhaps we will find out!

Fished the Fall Brawl this year, a tournament ran by Chris “Bearcat” Milliner of VA. Had a great turnout of 41 boats, which was pretty impressive considering this was the first year of the tourney….and ran very smoothly in my opinion! As always, I met alot of great folks, and we even managed to land a couple of decent blues which gave us a second place finish. Congrats to everyone else who caught fish that day, because conditions were tough! Sustained 15-20 mph winds most of the day, with gusts up to 30 mph…makes it hard to fish effectively. I would also like to say many thanks to the sponsors who helped to make this a great event. I won a nice tackle box, and my partner won a Yeti cooler. I still don’t think he has wiped the smile off of his face yet! Lookin’ forward to fishing this one again next year.

Thought I would check in with a quick fishing report since I haven’t updated the site in a while. The fishing has been getting better and better as the water temps are dropping into the 50’s. The drift bite has been producing good numbers of blue cats in the 5-15 pound range, with a couple citation fish in the mix as well. If you want to fill up your freezer with tasty catfish nuggets, NOW is the time to do it! The striper are also actively chasing baitfish this time of year, which can make for some action packed fishing. Most of our striper are being caught on suspended live baits. If you haven’t done much fishing this time of year, I highly recommend it. The boat traffic is minimal, the lake and leaves are beautiful, and the weather is perfect.
Come and see what it’s all about for yourself!

 

I would argue that there is nothing more relaxing than sitting on a boat in the middle of a river on a warm summer night. The stars and the moon shining down on you….the crickets and the frogs singing a chorus while the bait tank fills the silence in between with it’s quiet steady hum…..and then ZZZZZZZZZ!!!! A rod bends over and line starts to peel off. You spring to action but you find yourself struggling to get the rod out of the rodholder. You already know that this is the fish you’ve been waiting for all night. By the time you finally get the rod in your hand good, the fish is already 30-40 yards away, thrashing and splashing on the surface of the water like a scene out of Jaws. You engage in a tug of war with the beast, keeping your fingers crossed that your tackle and your angling skills are up to the task. After a few minutes, you feel the fish start to give a little and you think you might have him whipped…but little do you know, the fight is just getting started.

Suddenly, he is coming straight at the boat like a torpedo! You reel in line as fast as you can, but by the time you catch up with the fish he is underneath you, threatening to wrap your line around the prop, anchor, or anything else he can find. Your rod is literally bent in half at this point, and you are certain that if you pull any harder the rod will break. This is the first time that you can really feel the weight of the fish, and you begin pondering just how big he might be. After another five minutes of pulling and head shaking, the fish finally comes to the top to make his first appearance. You barely catch a glimpse of him before he turns and makes another run for it. Drag peels off the line once again, and your heart drops out of your chest. Is your knot tied good enough? How well is he hooked? Is your drag set right? After all, it would only take one mistake to make this just another story about the one that got away.

But you persevere, and a few minutes later you are letting out a sigh of relief as you slide the net over the behemoth fish. As you pull him out of the water, you realize that you barely have the strength left in your arms to hoist him into the boat. You begin to wonder who is more tired…you or the fish? You look at your watch and realize it has only been 15 minutes, but you would swear it has been at least an hour. Time has been slowed down temporarily. Adrenaline is pumping through you so hard that you can feel your heartbeat in your little toe. You take a moment to celebrate, and to pay respect to this fish who could very well be as old as you are. After a few pictures and a quick weight, it is time to get the fish back into the water so he can return to his business. As you slide the fish over the side of the boat and into the murky river water, you realize how overcome with excitement and emotion you are. Your hands are still shaking, your eyes watery, your breathing heavy…but you feel good. You feel alive.

As the fish recovers, you can feel his muscles begin to tighten. Then with a swift swish of the tail, he let’s you know that he is ready to go. You let go and watch as he swims off, seemingly waving goodbye to you with his tail. You take a deep breath and a good look around….the stars and the moon are the brightest you’ve ever seen. The bait tanks hums, and the crickets and frogs sing on into the night.

That’s right….it’s that time of year again. The flatheads have awoken from their winter slumber and they are hungry!!! The flathead fishing should remain good through the summer and into the fall, save for the short period in late June/early July when the fish spawn and become difficult to catch.  So get on the water and bury your hook into one of these brown beasts! If you’ve never caught one, you don’t know what you’re missing! Below is Brett Meager with her new PB, a 40 pounder taken in late May. Congrats!

Everyone knows the old saying, “April showers bring May flowers”….but did you know that April showers also bring something else??? You guessed it….striped bass! And some nice one’s at that. To the left is Brett Meager holding a 30 inch striped bass caught drifting with live bait. If you’re looking for a good fight and an even better meal, come on out and stretch a line with me!   

–