Fish from a Tent

For anglers who don’t own boats or lakeside property, the answer to extended summer adventures is camping.

Outdoorsmen who enjoy fishing often dream about owning a cottage or second home on a fish-filled lake where the front walkway serves as the yellow-brick road to a pier or boathouse where adventure begins.But with the high cost of lakeside property, not many fishermen and their families have the means of enjoying lakeside summer living.

An inexpensive alternative can place a fisherman and his family within casting distance of some of the best waters in North Carolina for much less than a monthly house payment — the only difference being the front portal to a piscatorial paradise is a tent flap instead of a storm door.

Many state- and privately-owned campgrounds provide access to quality fishing waters at little cost. The following selected lakes and campground sites are a sample of what’s available across the state for cheap access to fun-filled fishing.

High Rock Lake

High Rock Lake Marina & Campground is the oldest campground at High Rock Lake. Located on a peninsula, it has 2,000 feet of waterfront on a lake that harbors excellent numbers of largemouth bass, crappie, catfish, and striped bass.

Owners Lynn and Stephany Farquhar operate a family-oriented campground, which offers family-related holiday activities, plus a playground, swimming pool, basketball court, snack bar, game room and recreational field.

However, they doesn’t offer primitive or wilderness campsites. Instead, the community-like campground features 74 sites, the majority having full hook-ups (sewer, electricity, water), with the remaining providing only water and electricity. All RV sites have cable TV, and wireless internet access is available.

The tent area has five waterfront sites, while 10 cabins complete the campground. All sites are within walking distance of the lake, and occupants of tent and cabin sites need only walk a few steps before making their first casts.

High Rock Lake Marina & Campground is an established campground, and reservations should be made well in advance of a

A campground fishing pier is situated a short distance from the store/office.

Stephany Farquhar said the waters around the pier have been sweetened with Christmas trees to hold fish, and guests at the pier have caught crappie, catfish and bass.

For those with boats, the campground has docks, trailer storage and a boat ramp to accommodate camper/anglers. Pontoon boat rentals are available, and some pontoons are equipped with depthfinders, fishing seats, and rod holders. The campground also sells fishing licenses and bait.

As for the fishing, High Rock’s Abbotts Creek is known as the “Crappie Capital of the Piedmont,” and it’s also a great place for largemouth bass.

The time of year dictates fishing success. In the spring or fall, campers can catch crappie, plus an occasional largemouth bass. from the campground pier or from the docks that line the pocket on one side of the campground.

Boaters can catch quality bass and crappie from the numerous docks at Abbotts Creek. They can also slow-troll for crappie or striped bass.

During the summer, bank and pier fishermen can fish at night for the lake’s flathead catfish, which often top 30 pounds. A Carolina rig baited with live or cut shad is the ticket.

A fishing treat of a different nature may also occur at the campground.

Guests might encounter a well-known fishing pro camping near them. Each year, major fishing tournaments are held at High Rock, and pro anglers have rented sites at the campground while practicing and fishing in tournaments.

Don Black of Tamarac Marina & Campground recently opened his High Rock Lake campground behind Tamarac Marina on Second Creek. The campground area consists of a children’s playground, bath house, picnic tables and 46 sites, ranging from primitive to full hook-up. The nearby marina has a boat ramp, trailer parking, indoor-outdoor eating area and carries fishing supplies.

Campers have fishing privileges along the bank near the campground and at the point jutting out near the outdoor shelter at the marina. Boaters have access to Second Creek, one of the lake’s best creeks for crappie and largemouth bass, from the marina ramp or from the public access area across the road. Tamarac Marina is also the site of many bass tournaments. Weigh-ins take place behind the marina where campers can watch big bass being brought to the scales and released into the lake.

Lake Tillery

Morrow Mountain State Park, nestled in the rugged Uwharrie Mountains six miles east of Albemarle in Stanly County, covers 4,742 acres, including camp sites.

A local group initiated the development of Morrow Mountain State Park in the 1930s. By 1937, some 3,000 acres had been acquired for the project, most of the land being donated by the citizens of Stanly County. The park was opened to the public in 1939.

The family campground consists of sites for tent or trailer use, but no hook-ups are available. They are rented on a first-come, first-served basis. Group tent camping also is available.

Each of the six group camp sites has a picnic table, fire circle and grill. A shower house with flush toilets and water spigots is nearby. Reservations are required at least one month in advance.

Backpack camping also is available for those who enjoy wilderness camping. Four camp sites are south of Sugarloaf Mountain and west of Tater Top Mountain. Up to six people can camp as a group; a permit is required.

None of the camp sites is at the water’s edge, although most are within walking distance.

Six fully-equipped family vacation cabins are available on a weekly rental basis in the summer, and on a weekend rental basis for a minimum of two nights in the spring and fall.

Park activities include swimming, canoeing, picnicking, hiking, horseback riding, boating, touring historic sites and attending educational sessions.

Fishing is a major attraction at Lake Tillery, which has largemouth bass, striped bass, white perch, white bass, crappie, catfish and bream.

For campers with boats, a ramp at the end of the park leads to more fishing adventures on Tillery. Campers must trailer their boats back to their campsites. There are no boat slips or storage at the park.

From the launch site, a bridge walkway leads to a paved parking area and a fishing pier. The pier hasn’t been sweetened with brush, but it’s opposite from where the Uwharrie River empties into Lake Tillery and a short distance from Falls Dam.

Several picnic tables are in the area, and rental row boats and canoes are available.

Crappie, largemouth bass, schooling white perch and an occasional striped bass frequent the waters near the pier. During fall and its clear-water conditions, this section is excellent for fly fishing.

The park doesn’t sell fishing licenses or bait, but several tackle shops are adjacent to N.C. 24/27, which leads to the park.

Park hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. from November to February; 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. from March to October; 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., April to May; 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., June to August. The park office is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. The park is closed Christmas Day.

For more information, e-mail morrow.mountain@ncmail.net, or visit www.ncsparks.net.

Badin Lake

Badin Lake Campground is in the Uwharrie Mountains, amidst pine and hardwood trees.

An upper and lower loop are dotted with lakeside campsites open year-round for tent or trailer camping. Each site has a picnic table, grill and tent pad with nearby water spigots and restroom facilities. Many campsites provide easy access for bank fishing.

Another option is Badin Pier, a 75-foot long, T-shaped structure with wooden bench seats built by the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. It’s near a paved parking area with picnic tables and grills and a restroom facility. At the rear of the parking lot, a handicapped area features a shelter. The pier is universally accessible.

To reach the pier, instead of turning left into the campground, go straight past the Group Camp area. Signs point the way to the campground and to pier.

The Commission has placed fish attractors near and underneath the pier for crappie, sunfish, catfish, bass and carp. Schooling white perch and white bass often frequent the area.

Fishing licenses, bait and tackle should be purchased before entering the campground.

For launching, Cove Boat Ramp is located off Forest Road 597B near the Arrowhead Campground.

Also at Badin Lake is Whip-O-Will Campground, a family campground at New London near the Commission’s Lakemont Access. Whip-O-Will is open year-round and owned by Bill Ackerman and his wife, who reside at the campground.

The campground has 65 camp sites, six of which are for overnight use. The remainder are for full hookups. A bath house is available as well. Full hook-up sites are available on a yearly basis.

Reservations for the holidays should be made two to three months in advance.

Campers with boats may launch at the Lakemont Access, which also serves as the weigh-in site of many bass tournaments. Dock slips for boats are available.

Campground fishing is permitted and popular at the boat docks, except at the swimming area.

Ackerman has sweetened the dock area with brushpiles. He said largemouth bass, crappie, catfish and large carp have been taken by dock anglers. In the evenings, striped bass may bust shad near the docks.

Ackerman sells crappie minnows and nightcrawlers but not fishing licenses. There are no boat rentals.

Kerr Lake
(Buggs Island)

Kerr Lake State Recreation Area features 648 campsites on the 50,000-acre impoundment, one of which is the J.C. Cooper camp area off Satterwhite Rd. (SR 1319), accessible from I-85 just north of Henderson.

The campground is adjacent to the Satterwhite Point boat ramp and features 104 sites with electric hookups at sites 23 and 25, 27-45, 49-65 and 89-103. The H1, H2 and H3 sites are handicapped-friendly. Some sites remain open year-round, while others are open from late March to late October.

Campsites are limited to one RV and one or two tents or one pop-up tent. Reservations may be made at the Park Office at Satterwhite Point from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

The J.C. Cooper Campground has showers, restroom facilities, phones, a boat ramp, shelter, playground and a campground host.

This camping area features easy access to bank fishing at Nutbush Creek, noted for its largemouth bass, striped bass, and crappie. Boaters have access to the lake from several nearby ramps. Satterwhite Point is also the site of many national bass fishing tournaments.

During normal spring weather patterns, Kerr Lake may be subject to flooding, forcing the closure of some campgrounds and boat ramps.