Monday, May 18, 2015

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.








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