Neuse River wade

Fished with my son Luke again today. We tried a stretch of river that we had not fished before.  As always it produced great.  The Neuse river in Raleigh is a prolific fishery a true hidden gem when it comes to flyfishing and light tackle fishing.  Some caddis flies are around and I fished Elk Hair Caddis in size 16 that produced well getting consistent bluegill and redbreast bites.  The best fish of the day were a small largemouth on the EHC fly and my first Redear Sunfish also known as a shellcracker.  In a slower stretch of river I made a 60 ft cast deep in a logjam and got the fish to hit on a size 14 flashback prince nymph.  They are impressive fish strong and neat to look at. You can never really fish too small here but too large will cost you bites and hook ups.  Longer casts will help too with the more weary fish.  Tandem rigs like a hopper and a dropper or a streamer and a nymph or wet fly give the fish options and you will get better size fish.  I generally walk the middle of the river and fish the shaded areas under trees and by logs in the river. Working upstream helps to add a more stealthy approach when the river is low.  You know when you deliver a great cast in a likely spot it will surely produce. Get out and fish it's primetime!

Fly Tackle: 3 or 4 weight fly rods, 9 ft tapered leader to 5x tippet
Dry flies: Elk Hair Caddis, Humpies 14- 16, 
Terrestrials: Hoppers, Ants, Beetles, Crickets 8- 14
Nymphs: Beadhead caddis, Prince, Zug Bug, Estaz Stone flies 12- 16
Streamers: Muddler Minnow, Wooly Bugger in black, peacock or white Size 6- 12

Spin Tackle: Ultralight rod and reel rigged with 4 to 6 lb test line.
Berkly Power Bait Pre Rigged Atomic Tubes in white, green and pearl.
Gulp Cricket
Johnson Beetle Spin
Roadrunners

Fish Species(I have caught): redbreast sunfish, bluegill, green sunfish, largemouth bass, white bass, white perch, crappie, yellow perch, chub, catfish, Redear Sunfish.

Conditions: USGS Water data says the Neuse was flowing 116 cfs today at the spillway in Wakefield. It was a sunny, warm day and 80 degrees.  The water is low and ideal for wet wading.  Sunscreen and or sun protective clothing was necessary such as UPF clothing and a UV Buff. 

Wildlife: Great Blue Heron, Red Shouldered Hawk, heard a Great Horned Owl hooting loud close by but didn't see him, Ticks(ugh), River Cooter turtle, lots of Dragon Flies and Damsel Flies by the river. 

Neuse River wade

I do most of my local flyfishing on the Neuse River usually between the dam at Falls Lake and the Milburnie Dam. Today I fished with my son Luke age 12.  We targeted Bluegill and Redbreast Sunfish near Capital Boulevard.  The action was great we managed 40+ fish from 11:00am - 1:00pm. I fished with a hopper and a dropper.  I used a size 10 rubber legged foam and deer hair hopper pattern and a size 14 gold beadhead caddis pupa as the dropper.  I tie 18" of tippet to the bend of the hopper for the dropper.  Both flies produced many takes on the surface and subsurface.  Luke did well too using a spinning rod fishing a Berkly Pre Rigged Atomic Tube in pearl, and later had success with a Gulp Cricket on a jighead. This is a great time of year to be on the water and teach someone to fish.  The catch rate is high and it is safe and warm enough to wet wade many parts of the river.  In addition, the dry fly action is heating up and has the fish are eager to take.  Here are some recommendations for success on the Neuse River.

Fly Tackle: 3 or 4 weight fly rods, 9 ft tapered leader to 5x tippet
Dry flies: Elk Hair Caddis, Humpies 14- 16
Terrestrials: Hoppers, Ants, Beetles, Crickets 8- 14
Nymphs: Beadhead caddis, Prince, Zug Bug, Estaz Stone flies 12- 16
Streamers: Muddler Minnow, Wooly Bugger in black or white Size 6- 12

Spin Tackle: Ultralight rod and reel rigged with 4 to 6 lb test line.
Berkly Power Bait Pre Rigged Atomic Tubes in white, green and pearl.
Gulp Cricket
Johnson Beetle Spin

Fish Species(I have caught): redbreast sunfish, bluegill, green sunfish, largemouth bass, white bass, white perch, crappie, yellow perch, chub, catfish

Conditions: USGS Water data says the Neuse was flowing 167 cfs today at the spillway in Wakefield. It was a sunny, hot, and humid 89 degrees.  The water was perfect for wet wading.  Sunscreen and or sun protective clothing was necessary such as UPF clothing and a UV Buff.

Wildlife: Black Racer Snake, Great Blue Heron, Five Lined Skink, Kingfisher, Red Shouldered Hawk, lots of insects out like Beetles, ants, and Dragonflies.