Fishing News

Despite higher-than-normal river flows and cooler weather temperatures this week, anglers on the Roanoke River continue to catch good numbers of striped bass.

Kevin Dockendorf, a fisheries biologist with the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, said they collected about 300 stripers on Monday – double what they collected the previous week. These fish were on the smallish size, ranging from 15 to 17 inches, with a few in the 18-to 22-inch range. The largest one was 37 pounds, an indication of good things to come.

Although catching striped bass can be sporadic to slow during the months of March and April due to variable flows and water temperatures, anglers fishing during the striped bass season (March 1 to April 30) typically catch the majority of striped bass during the last two weeks of the season. So, Dockendorf anticipates better striped bass fishing over the next couple of weeks.

Besides water temperature, river flows are also important cues for striped bass migrations to the spawning grounds. With the increased flow over the last week, striped bass in the lower river may have quickly moved up to the spawning grounds. Striped bass that may be milling around in the sound may also respond to the change in flow pattern and begin there migration from the Albemarle Sound to the spawning grounds.

Dockendorf said he saw plenty of fishermen using different tactics and they were all catching good numbers of fish. The majority of anglers were doing one of two things: drifting between “Big Rock” and the power lines or tied up at or near feeder creeks or “guts,” including Troublefield Gut.

Bobby Colston, of Colston’s Tackle Box on Hwy. 48 south of Gaston, said he’s heard reports of anglers up to 100 fish each, mostly in the afternoon and particularly between the boat landing and the first bend in the river. Two fishermen drifting and bouncing bucktails on the bottom caught 100 stripers each earlier this week.

That seems to be the trick to catching fish this week – throwing something that can get to the bottom, whether it’s a bucktail, a fluke or live bait. It doesn’t seem to matter because the stripers are biting just about anything.

Downriver, however, it’s a different story. Ricky Mobley from the Roanoke Sportsman in Williamston, said the fishing was slow – particularly for this time of year. Higher water flows wreaked havoc with the fishing earlier in the week, although it picked up somewhat yesterday and today.

“Anglers will probably do very well between Weldon and the 258 bridge,” Dockendorf said. “The lower river could be sporadic depending on where the fish are, so the best bet for this weekend is to fish at Weldon.”

Striped Bass Season and Regulation Information

The entire Roanoke River Management Area is open to striped bass harvest from March 1 through April 30.
The Roanoke River Management Area includes the Roanoke River and tributaries from Roanoke Rapids Lake Dam downstream to Albemarle Sound, including the Cashie, Middle and Eastmost rivers.

The daily creel limit within the Roanoke River Management Area is two striped bass per person. The minimum length limit is 18 inches, and no striped bass between 22 and 27 inches may be possessed at any time. Only one striped bass larger than 27 inches can be included in the daily creel limit.

The Commission also encourages striped bass anglers to use small, non-offset circle hooks, preferably ones with the least amount of distance between the hook point and shank.

Studies show that striped bass caught on small, barbless circle hooks are usually hooked in the jaw, which means they have a much greater chance of survival after being released than fish hooked in the throat or gut.

Keep in mind that whether you use circle hooks or regular "J" hooks, regulations only permit the use of a single barbless hook in Roanoke River upstream of the U.S. Highway 258 bridge each year from April 1 through June 30.