Sept 03, 2007 - Upper Cape Fear

[Jeffonc]

Fearless adventurers Lefty and I set out early on the cape Fear this morning. I braved the steep drive down to the waters edge, but Lefty chose the path of wisdom and left his car at the top (not sure if the pic will do it justice).
http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0014_Medium_.JPG


A cool and crisp morning with lots of fog rising from the base of the Buckhorn Dam.
http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0007_Medium_.JPG http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0006_Medium_.JPG

We started fishing in the spillway. Nothing doing on crankbaits, 1 blow up on a horny toad, but finally a smallish (but lip-able!) LM on a finesse worm. (I hope lefty was using his zoom from back there!)
http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0008_Medium_1.JPG


Nothing else doing at the spillway so we headed downstream toward the rocks. I went through my entire arsenal of shallow crankbaits without a single bite. Lefty was having similar luck. Lots of nibbles on the finesse worm though. Finally, I missed a good fish on the worm, then got this unlucky fellow - he was foul hooked in the worst way, but plenty wiggly when he left. Had to be the smallest bass I've ever "caught".
http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0009_Medium_1.JPG


We headed back up to the spillway around 11am where I had the brainstorm to go even smaller and bust out a small Rooster Tail. I unlocked one secret of the Cape Fear - caught at least a dozen more of the little bass and one sunfish (greeny?).
http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0010_Medium_.JPG http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0011_Medium_1.JPG



Most were unbelievably small like this guy - I put him in a can to show some little kids who were kayaking around with their parents (released after a minute).
http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/SANY0013_Medium_.JPG


So, when Hisheirs says he's been catching fingerlings, he really means fingerlings. You can sit under the spillway and catch these little guys all day long on a rooster tail. They fight at least as good as lake fish twice their size, for what that's worth...

[Jeffonc]

The key to unlocking the upper Cape Fear's quality fish is still a closely held secret (from us, anyway). They are in there, but pretty tight lipped so far.

(consolidated all the individual posts into one, but left this one because it had the thanks)

[backlash]

Thanks for the report.

[Dave B.]

Good goin Jeff and Kevin, great pix! (the toe pix kinda scary though...):eek:

[Jeffonc]

Good goin Jeff and Kevin, great pix! (the toe pix kinda scary though...):eek:

Yeah, sorry about that. They're becoming the most recognizable feet in angling. That spray-on sunscreen mixed with the water is probably not going to make the cut for my self-foot-photo art show...

[Hisheirs]

Hey .. sorry I missed you guys this AM.
Sounds like an "entertaining" day ..
The wife and I were out there Sun eve .. we have been planning a trip down the river to Lillington, but not knowing the river wanted to check out the rapids beneath the rocks .. one thing about rapids .. it can be a one way trip .. we went as far necessary to see the clear water below then I hauled her back upstream walking through the rocks .. (something you REALLY have to want to do ...:eek:)
Unfortunately the bed felt just a bit more comfortable this AM.
I know where some nice holes are though .. I ended up with 2 1Lb LM (-2 Shad/Crank)and maybe a 5Lb blue cat (-2 Bass/Crank)..
The river was higher .. things were quite different .. also my most productive lure had been lost to my being intimindated by a tangled gar ..
The tackle monkey hasn't been able to find me a replacement .. though it sounds like Jeff may have ..
Got to find out where the bigger fish are holding out ..

[Hisheirs]

oh .. one other thing about the rapids .. smack dab in the middle I found an outboard motor .. :confused: .. opps ..

[backlash]

Guys here's a pic of LM I pulled out of that stretch of water many years ago. This one weighed about six pounds and my biggest from that area was 8 1/2. I've caught several 5 pounds + LMs and one Hybrid about 6 pounds. All of my bigger fish were downstream of the dam though. I don't think the Hybrids are there anymore since they're no longer stocked at Jordan but that used to be one great place to go.

http://www.ncangler.com/photopost/data/500/medium/Cape_Fear_Bass.jpg

[Hisheirs]

...I don't think the Hybrids are there anymore since they're no longer stocked at Jordan...

Their there ... I've seen one exit the water twice .. very clearly a striper / hybrid ..
your experiance w/ the LM .. live/artifical ... shoreline/mid river ... closer to rapids/dam ???
Realize their there .. just haven't found where their holing up ...

[lefty]

C'mon up and show us where to find him! :D

[Bread Man 1]

I have caught them there on soft plastics. It has been about ten years since I made it up that way. I waded out under the dam, and fell in a deep hole, this deep hole is where I caught my fish.

[Hisheirs]

before or after ..:)

[Bread Man 1]

I almost drown!

[lefty]

I have caught them there on soft plastics. It has been about ten years since I made it up that way. I waded out under the dam, and fell in a deep hole, this deep hole is where I caught my fish.

Oh OK, we'll look for your footprints! :-)

Glad you made it out of there OK. From the looks of that dam, I wouldn't want to be too close to it on foot. I was a little concerned a couple of times when I realized that the wind and current were conspiring to pull me closer to it -- I guess I was in an eddy of some sort...

[Bread Man 1]

You guys keep trying. I am sure I left a few fish there for seed:). I also caught some Hybrids there while catfishing with chicken liver. I don't know the whole truth, I was only 3-4 years old when Jordan was built, but some old timers(NO OFFENSE TO ANYONE:D) told me that there were stripers and hybrids there before Jordan was ever built. They were down on this end of the river before Jordan. Here is another weird little thing. I used to go to Harris on the weekends and fish. I have caught one striper out of there, several hybrids, and one white bass. Makes you think a little. I have never heard anyone else mention anything like that coming out of Harris. I caught all of them at night while croppie fishing. I also saw a school of popeye mullets below Buckhorn. Threw the cast net on them and used them for bait. Strange.

[Hisheirs]

Bread Man .. thank the water fowl ..
that's one of the reasons waters you wouldn't think would hold fish, hold some lunkers ..