Great spring fishing for speckled trout in the Neuse River usually gets cranked up in April.
Capt. Joe Ward of Pollocksville has a special relationship with the Neuse River and the creeks that flow into it. He has been fishing the area since childhood, and during a long career in civil service at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, he often towed his boat to work to get in a few hours of fishing in the afternoon. He knows most of the holes and flats in the creeks around Cherry Point and has a good understanding of when fish should be in what areas.
When April arrives, he’s most concerned with how the spring weather is progressing and how the sun is warming the waters on a daily basis.
“The last couple of years have been tough on the trout in this area,” Ward said. “We have had a couple of freezes that had fish kills, and last year … it was pretty tough over here, but we didn’t have the bad kills. One of the biggest local problems was that winter didn’t want to let go, and cold fronts kept rolling through late into the spring. We had fish, but the constantly changing weather had them confused; they might be out in the creeks one day and then back to the headwaters a few days later.”
Ward said fishing was actually pretty good, but the ever- changing weather made the fish difficult to pattern and occasionally tough to locate. However, when he located a school, they were usually hungry and ready to bite. Speckled trout season was closed during last spring until June 1, so any trout caught had to be released. This left larger trout to spawn and contributed to the excellent fishing during the fall of 2014 and the winter of 2014-15.
“This water is still a little cold, but with this sunshine, it should warm pretty well,” Ward said while running through Hancock Creek. “We’ll come back out here and fish some of these shallower areas later in the day after the sun has been on them for a while, but this morning we’re going to run farther into the creek and fish some deeper water. The deeper water will be a little warmer, and the trout there will be a little more active and more likely to be feeding.”
A few minutes later, Ward dropped his trolling motor in the water, and a hundred yards later, he stopped off the elbow of a bend and deployed his Power-Pole.
Ward explained there was a shelf a few feet off the bank that might hold some drum, but the trout would be closer to the boat, in deeper water.
“The water here is about 6 to 8 feet deep, so we’ll use jigheads and soft plastics to get down to them,” Ward said. “There isn’t any current here, just a little water moving with the wind, so we can use 1/8- and 1/4-ounce jigs. These trout will be right on the bottom, so let the bait get down to them or you won’t catch anything.”
Brian Saunders, Ward’s guest and host of the Victory Fishing television show, was the first to get a strike, from a little spike trout that was quickly unhooked and released.
Then, Ward reared back to set the hook and his rod bent pretty well. Ward said the fish felt bigger than Saunders’ but didn’t feel like a trout, but then a striper flashed just below the surface and started taking line. A few minutes later, Saunders slipped the landing net under the tired striper and lifted it into the boat, popped the hook out and slipped it into the livewell, saying he wanted a few for supper.
Several more holes gave up a mixture of specks and stripers, but nothing was as large as Ward has expected. The fishing wasn’t hot, but it was slow to steady.
“I believe it’s time to begin working our way back out,” Ward said. “The sun is overhead, and the water has warmed three degrees. We’ll fish our way out, and when we get back to the flats near the mouth of the creek, it should be warm enough to catch some fish that have moved to the flats to feed this afternoon.
Ward and Saunders picked up a few more trout and stripers working out the creek, and when it widened, Ward headed for a flat where he had caught specks on a few days earlier. A few minutes later, Ward stopped and pointed towards a point and small cove, describing a flat that began inside the creek and ran out a ways, holding trout on the outside edge.
Ward switched to a suspending MirrOlure MR 17, and he hooked a trout on the first cast. Several casts later, Saunders caught one, and they each caught a couple more trout and a striper over the next hour.
“That’s an issue with late winter and early spring trout,” Ward said. “The water is just warming up, but isn’t quite to where they are always active and feeding. Some days they are on fire and you never leave the first spot, and some days you pick at them like we did today. Still, it really wasn’t a bad day, it just wasn’t outstanding.”
DESTINATION INFORMATION
HOW TO GET THERE — The lower Neuse River is most-easily accessed from New Bern and Morehead City via US 70, and from the Pamlico County (northern) side from NC 55. Those two highways intersect in New Bern. The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has free ramps between New Bern and Cedar Island that are easily accessed from US 70 and four free ramps between Bridgeton and eastern Pamlico County off NC 55. For a complete list, visit www.ncwildlife.org/Boating/WheretoBoat.aspx.
WHEN TO GO — Speckled trout are in the Neuse River and its tributary creeks most of the year, but April is probably the best time to run into a big speck, with trout following warming waters out of the backs of creeks; most come with an appetite.
BEST TECHNIQUES — Medium-light spinning outfits in 6 1/2- to 7 1/2-foot lengths with matching reels spooled with 8- to 15-pound braid. A short piece of monofilament leader is often tied in. Specks will hit a variety of live baits, soft baits and hard baits.
FISHING INFO/GUIDES — Joe Ward, FlyDaddy Charters, 252-229-4656, www.flydaddycharters.com; Custom Marine Fabrication, 252-638-5422, www.nccustommarine.com, 252-638-5422. See also Guides and Charters in Classifieds.
ACCOMMODATIONS — Hampton Inn, New Bern, 252-637-2111; Hampton Inn, Havelock, 252-447-9400; Holiday Inn Express, new Bern, 252-638-8166; Holiday Inn Express, Havelock, 252-447-9000; Candlewood Suites, New Bern, 252-638-8166; Comfort Suites, New Bern, 252-649-1717, www.choicehotels.com; Quality Inn, Havelock, 252-444-1111, www.choicehotels.com; New Bern Convention and Visitors Bureau, 252-637-9400, www.visitnewbern.com.
MAPS — Capt. Segull’s Nautical Charts, 888-473-4855, www.captainsegullcharts.com; Sealake Fishing Guides, 800-411-0185, www.thegoodspots.com; GMCO’s Chartbook of North Carolina, 888-420-6277, www.gmcomaps.com.
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