neuse still on fire

[tammeej]

went again on wednesday night and the cats are still hitting good on live eels.My friend caught another flathead bigger than the first one.My scales dont go that high but guessing it was about 55 or 60 pounds.It almost spooled the line off.We had tp pick up anchor and chase him.lol it was a blast.We release all fish we catch.We also caught a lot of blues in the 10 to 15 pound range.We were also in same spot.here is a pic

[JAYNC]

Thats awesome, I went last night and ended up fishing for only 1/2 hour. The storms came in so fast we had to go on shore and wait them out until 530 am, what a night. At least we didnt get skunked though. Did you catch that flathead near that same steel structure. Are you going out tonight, I might have to go alone.

[tammeej]

yes caught him right by the platform.not sure about tonight because of the weather but want to go tommorow for sure.if forcast changes may go tonight.Can u go out tommorow if weather is good

[JAYNC]

Had a pretty good night last night, caught 6 blues totalling roughly 150lbs or so. One was almost 41#s and a 30# the rest were under 30#s but it was a great night. Surprisingly we didnt catch any flats but we did loose 2 fish so maybe one of them was a flat.

[JAYNC]

were you parking right next to the platform and casting towards the shore or were you parking from the left and right of it and casting towards the platform. I went there one morning and all we caught was about a 5# blue. Have you went up into that small creek in front of the platform or just doing all the fishing right there at the mouth. Thanks Jason

[tammeej]

if u are coming north on the neuse we fished just before u get to platform (about 30 feet from it)and casted towards bank on left side.U will see were it drops form about 5 feet to about 12 in channel.we fished right on edge of drop off.hope i explained that ok

[JAYNC]

So if you are coming from new bern you are fishing just before you get to the platform on the right side of it, and you are casting towards that point where the creek meets the neuse.

[tammeej]

yes thats right jason.we have had good luck everytime in that spot.hope u have good luck to,let me know how u did.

[bufryda1]

Sounds like you guys are really wearin' em out in the Neuse. I fish the Neuse up in Smithfield every once in a while with some friends. It is a very under-rated river with alot of nice size catfish. I wouldnt doubt it if the next state record was from the Neuse. I've seen plenty of flats in the 40-50lb range come out of there, and if there are ones that size then there should be ones bigger. Are you guys still using live eels? And what type of hooks are you using, circle or J ?

[tammeej]

i think there are still some bigger ones in the neuse to.I am still using live eels.i am also using the circle hooks.seems to work good for me.i have never been up in smithfield, is the water very deep there?

[Kittyhunter]

Neuse in Smithfield is very shallow right now tammeej. I wnet 3 weekends ago and it was up high and moving so fast even no-roll weights wouldn't stay put. I wound up fishing up in a creek (Swift Creek) and we caught a 12 flat and a 9 blue. Not much to talk about. The next weekend my buddy went and almost had to call someone to help him get out it was so low. Neuse has been low alot this year around here. We have been down to Elizabethtown a couple of times and fished the Cape.

[JAYNC]

Went out this morning after the rain stopped, the wind didnt stop though. I had one bite but didnt catch anything. It was probably more the weather than anything else.

[Matth2083]

Hey Jay...If you ever want any company out on the river sometime, Id be more than happy to accompany you. I live around the NC State area and am still struggling to find that quality night of catfishing without a boat. Ive noticed that some of the guys on here organize outings and gatherings and what not. I just notice you go out alone a lot. Just throwing it out there too. Hope the Neuse keeps treating you well before it gets too cold out there. Good luck

[JAYNC]

Went out of glenburnie in new bern on saturday night, went upriver about 17 miles and caught one 10# channel cat. Water temp was about 56 degrees. Left before the morning bite because other people in the boat were cold. It was about 34 degrees that night, almost too cold when going 40mph but it looks like this weekend will be a lot warmer at night and during the days. Hope everyone has good luck.

[JAYNC]

Went out last night out of new bern and went upriver 16 miles. I was going to put in at ft barnwell but the river is so low and the water level is below the end of the ramp. Caught 2 flatheads, one 31 lbs and one 18lbs. Caught 3 blues, one 25lbs and 2 under 20lbs a bowfin and a 7lb striper. River is still producing some good fishing. Water temp was 58 degrees.

[Katmaster Jr.]

Good report :)

Glad to hear your still getting them. Here at gaston lake the blues and stripers are on too. I posted the report and pics under the post.......
"new member here from gaston lake"

And Im going again tonight. :D

[tammeej]

jason did u catch them with live eels?havent had a chance to go out for a while but may get a chance this week

[JAYNC]

I caught the flats on live eels and the blues on cut eel. I use four rods with 1/2 live and 1/2 cut, that way I catch something no matter where I fish. Hope you get to go out soon, the water is going to cool down soon and the flatties wont bite. Water was 58 degrees. I hear once it reaches 50 all you will catch are blues.

[bigblaze]

Jason, Thanks for the offer to fish with you...I wished we could have made it down there.

When you find a spot where you are marking fish on you fish finder, how long will you fish that spot?



Are you fishing holes or structure.... :confused: :confused: :confused:

[JAYNC]

to tell you the truth I dont really use the fishfinder too much except for speed, distance, and depth. The river is normally so shallow where I fish that the fish normally hang near the shores in the cover. So when I am riding along I look for trees in the water, or feeder creeks with a lot of cover nearby. Normally fishing this way I catch a lot of fish of good size. Hope you get out soon.

[bufryda1]

Jason what is the average depth of the Neuse where you fish?, and from what depth have you normally caught your fish at?

[JAYNC]

I would have to say the average depth of where I fish is about 3-5 feet and most of the fish are coming out of the water the same depth. Down towards new bern is where you will find the deep holes of 20+ and some over 30 but I havent fished there. I will fish there later on in the fall and winter when the blues go to the holes.

[JAYNC]

Fishing report from last friday, temp 28 degrees by morning. only caught 2 blues and missed 2. One was 15 and one was 25 so they are still biting. Water temp started out at 59.6 degrees in the evening and ended up at 54.3 by morning. Caught both of them on cut eel at about 3 AM in the mouth of a very small feeder creek. Now with this rain it should be a lot easier to get the boat in at ft barnwell instead of running all the way up there from new bern.

[C_wernett]

Hey, just wanted to get in here and say,"Hey!"...I've been fishing cats my entire life, and after being in the state for more than 7 years now, and just starting to catch on to a few fishing techniques and places to catch something around here. In fact, I caught my second flathead this year, which also qualified for the biggest catch of my life coming in at 48lbs. on 30# gear, and then a 22 on 12# gear...which was awesome! Since then, in roughly a months time,I've caught a couple of 10's and a tiny little 7. I'M ADDICTED!!! I'm really looking to diversify my catfishing abilities, but really don't know the water except for a couple of areas. Being in the Jacksonvile/Richlands area, I'm really tossed slam between the Neuse and Cape fear. With the winter season coming on, what kind of suggestions would you guys make for me to try. I'm also trying to make another first for me and catch a blue cat over 30. The catfish around here react a lot different then the fish I grew up with in Iowa...plus the inaccessability to fishing good waters makes having a boat a must it would seem! To put it in prespective, I've caught more flatheads this year, than channels in the past 7! I've only caught three channels in NC since I've been here...amazing huh? Anyway, anthing would help thanks...I'd have some pictures up, but they are all over a 1mb, and this site would support them...but I can e-mail them to anyone.