The annual spawning run of striped bass up the Roanoke River is in full swing this month. Here’s how to show up and have plenty of fun.
Striped bass are one of the success stories of fishery management, and their spring spawning run up the Roanoke River is the jewel in North Carolina’s crown.
Stripers haven’t gathered in the ocean off the Outer Banks for a few years, but when Mother Nature starts whispering sweet nothings in their ears, they appear and begin a trek that carries them through the inlets and coastal sounds to the Roanoke River at the inland edge of Albemarle Sound. From there, on a cue undiscovered by biologists, they head upstream in waves to deposit eggs in the river just below the rocky shoals at the US 301 bridge in Weldon.
Guide Joey VanDyke of Fingeance Sportfishing intercepts them early on the trip. He starts looking for them in the upper Albemarle Sound during the winter and follows them into the lower Roanoke River as the spawning run begins. He believes water temperature tells them to begin, but some fishermen believe they are following herring and shad up the river.
VanDyke said stripers stayed in the lower Roanoke River well into April last spring. He concentrated on the section from Jamesville downriver to the sound and found good numbers of fish in multiple locations, out of the stronger currents, resting and feeding as they make their way upstream to spawn; the deeper holes in the river bottom fill the bill.
“I typically position the boat about casting distance off the bank and slowly work my way upstream,” VanDyke said. “My fishermen are blind casting to the bank, and I’m watching the fishfinder. When we run over a good mark, I stop the boat and we begin casting to it.”
VanDyke sometimes trolls several deep-diving Yo-Zuri lures at different distances and depths behind the boat, keeping them close to the bottom, trying to locate stripers. When he gets strikes, he pulls in the trolling lures and his fishermen begin casting as he works back across the area.
“The lures we cast must get to the bottom, too,” VanDyke said. “I use a 1/2-ounce Meat Hog jighead and pair it with either a chartreuse and pink, 5-inch Z-Man StreakZ jerkbait or a chartreuse Hawg Jawz jerkbait. The retrieve is slow, while occasionally jigging it up a foot or so off the bottom. It must look pretty good, as we catch a few bass and catfish, too.”
VanDyke expects a strong river current this spring, since this past winter matched 2015, when overabundant rain kept the river flowing strong. The strong flow doesn’t help anglers keep their lures and baits close to the bottom, and if you’re casting and not occasionally feeling the jig hit the bottom, you’re not fishing deep enough.
“We also have a second run of excellent striper fishing when the stripers head back downstream after spawning,” VanDyke said. “This begins in May and runs through most of June.”
Stripers don’t get a free pass through the middle of the river, but they are chased more by individuals than by guides with clients. Stripers are spread out in this section, and while catches are often good, the fish aren’t as thick as when they first enter the river or when they reach the spawning grounds, and the action isn’t as consistent.
Once stripers near the spawning grounds, they become concentrated and their numbers increase. The prime spot is between Halifax and Weldon, and the river can get crowded. There are slow days, but 100-fish days happen with surprising regularity.
Mike Shearin of Roanoke River Rentals and Guides is unique in using a pontoon boat, but it works well. He locates the console, baitwell, coolers and all the storage on the starboard side of the boat. He drifts and positions the boat so the port side is upriver. Fishermen stand along the rail on that side, lifting in smaller fish and walking larger fish to the bow to be netted.
Shearin, a Roanoke Rapids native, fishes the river during the summer when the water is much lower, and he has learned where the few rocks are and fishes the slower-moving pools immediately behind them during the striper run. There are days this local knowledge is the key to filling limits.
“Fishing has been pretty consistent this year,” Shearin said before a 2015 spring trip. “It hasn’t been on fire like in some years, but we shouldn’t have any problems catching limits and releasing a bunch.”
Shearin thought the bite was a little better a few miles down river, and after a short run, he checked his landmarks and swung to the south side of the river to begin a drift about 20 feet off the bank.
He passed out medium-light spinning outfits with a No. 2 Eagle Claw L042 wide-bend hook tied on — barbs pinched flat as required by law — and a 1/4-ounce split shot crimped about 12 inches up the line. He sometimes uses the bucktail/soft plastic combination locally known as a hairy worm, but he had a tank full of small “shad” minnows and was threading the hook though the lower jaw and up through the nose. He wanted enough line out that his anglers could feel the split shot bumping lightly across the bottom.
“If anything feels different than the split shot bouncing along the bottom, set the hook quickly,” he said. “This is to avoid deep hooking fish. We’re going to be releasing fish today, hopefully a lot of fish, and we don’t want to leave hooks in any of them. You’ll occasionally grab a snag or something, but that’s part of fishing here. Set the hooks as soon as you feel a bite.”
The first rod bucked before all the lines were in the water. A second fish was hooked before Shearin scooped the first one one into the net, and the fishing was on.
After the first two fish, it was another hundred yards down the drift before another fish struck. It was quickly followed by several others.
After a while, Shearin ran back up the river and began another drift, repeating the drift several times, with the catch averaging 10 to 15 stripers per trip.
On the fourth drift, one of the fishermen hooked up immediately after dropping his bait in, and it was obviously a fish bigger than anything else hooked. After struggling a few minutes, the fish came to the surface and rolled about 20 yards off the boat. Shearin had the angler guide the big fish to the bow, and he stepped through the railing gate with the net.
The fish measured 31 1/4 inches; Shearin said it was the largest caught on his boat that year. After taking a few pictures, it was hefted into the cooler.
Shearin’s group fished for several more hours at different stretches along the river, with fish caught steadily, many in the 22- to 27-inch release slot but most between 16 and 20 inches until the day’s total was close to 100.
DESTINATION INFORMATION
HOW TO GET THERE — The Roanoke River begins at the base of Roanoke Rapids dam and runs downstream to the Albemarle Sound east of Plymouth, on US 64 in Washington County. The lower river and upper sound are best accessed from two public ramps in Plymouth. Mid-river areas are best accessed from ramps in Jamesville, Williamston and Scotland Neck. The primary access for the upper section is Weldon, south of Roanoke Rapids and a few miles downstream from the dam. For directions, visit www.ncwildlife.org and open the Boating tab.
WHEN TO GO — A few stripers are scattered throughout the Roanoke River and Albemarle Sound most of the year, but the spawning run usually begins sometime in March and lasts into June. The peak is from mid-March to early April on the lower river and late April into May on the upper river. Keeper season on the river is March 1-April 30. The daily creel limit is two fish, with an 18-inch size minimum and a 22- to 27-inch slot. Only one fish can be kept that exceeds 27 inches.
BEST TECHNIQUES — Most stripers will be in the 3- to 6-pound range and can be handled on medium-light to medium action spinning or baitcasting tackle. Spool up with mono or braid in the 10- to 20-pound range. In the lower river, casting heavy jigs or trolling diving lures are favorites. In the upper river, hairy worms — a combination of bucktails and soft-plastic baits, are extremely popular, along with fresh cut gizzard shad fished on a Carolina rig. Live herring are the preferred live bait; they can be caught with a cast name at the base of Gaston or Roanoke Rapids Dam. Check regulations for catching and possessing baitfish at www.ncwildlife.org.
FISHING INFO/GUIDES — Capt. Joey VanDyke, Fingeance Sportfishing, 252-475-0402, www.outerbanksfishing.org; Mike Shearin, Roanoke River Rentals and Guides, 252-578-4859; George Beckwith, Down East Guide Service, 252-671-3474, www.pamlicoguide.com. See also Guides and Charters in Classifieds.
ACCOMMODATIONS — The Sportsman’s Inn, Plymouth, 252-793-3095; Washington County Tourism, 252-793-4804, www.gowildnc.com; Days Inn, Weldon, 252-536-4867, www.daysinn.com; Halifax County Convention and VIsitors Bureau, 800-522-4282, www.visithalifax.com.
MAPS — DeLorme North Carolina Atlas ant Gazetteer, 207-846-7000, www.delorme.com.
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