Shad fishing sizzles at Roanoke River

Last week’s heavy rains swelled rivers in the north-central piedmont, including the Roanoke River.

Normally that’d be gloomy news for anglers who enjoy spring spawning runs of anadromous fish species. But even the cold rain didn’t halt the upstream migrations of thousands of shad and striped bass.

“There’s a lot of shad in the river right now, even with the river (level) up,” said Bobby Colston of Colston’s Tackle Box at Gaston (252-537-6485). “People are catching 4- to 5-pound white (American) shad at the (N.C.) 48 bridge near my store, and there’s plenty of hickory shad in the river near Weldon, especially upriver to Chockoyotte Creek.”

Chockoyotte Creek is upstream from the Weldon launch area about 1 mile toward Roanoke Rapids near the town’s sewage treatment plant.

“If you go up there (Chocoyotte), put in at Weldon and stay on the left side (of the river),” Colston said. “Even though the water flow is 15,000 cfs (cubic feet per second), which is a lot, you could hit rocks if you don’t watch.”

Anglers who want to try for white shad need to launch boats at the N.C. 48 bridge. But there’s also plenty of bank fishing up and down the river.

Most of the large striped bass haven’t arrived yet, but there are plenty of stripers of all sizes in the Williamston area downriver.

“The little (male) 12-inchers have followed the shad up the river,” Colston said.

N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission striped bass regulations permit using any type of lure until March 31. Starting April 1 and upstream of the U.S. 258 bridge at Scotland Neck, only single barbless hooks (on lures or used with live or cut bait) will be allowed until June 30. During the striper season, anglers may keep only two fish daily; fish can’t be less than 18 inches in length; and only one of the two in the daily creel may be more than 27-inches long. No stripers from 22- to 27-inch inches in length may be kept. Anglers may fish for Roanoke River stripers outside the legal March 1-April 30 keeper season, but all those rockfish must be released alive.

Bucktails, Rapalas, topwater lures and live or frozen shad work well for stripers.

Best shad lures include 3-0 silver spoons, Nungesser Pig Spoons and 1 1/2-inch long Tony Acetta Pet spoons, along with shad darts, sometimes fished in tandem with a spoon.

“The shad also are hitting the 1/32-ounce pink-and-white curly-tail Mr. Twisters,” Colston said. “The white body with the pink head seems to work good.”

Colston said largemouth bass fishing has been good, as well, with anglers catching a few 10-pounders from the river.