It Can Be Done

Well I can't say I haven't tried. I have been fishing for shad on the Neuse the last 3yrs. I have caught Hickory Shad on the Roanoke River in Weldon, NC but never anything on the Neuse. What I have really been looking for is an American Shad. The Americans are larger than Hickory Shad growing over 5lbs. This year was the first time I really focused on it. I'm at a disadvantage because I don't have a boat. These shad can be caught from land if you know where to look. I contacted our state biologist who studies androminous fish. He gave me info on where fish were being shocked. My first three attempts were shadless. It was really strange I'd catch one fish like a crappie or bass then nothing else. I gave it a break for a couple weeks. Then the reports started rolling in from my friends that spinfish.

"The shad are here!" They exclaimed.

Shad are amazing creatures to me. I doubt when many people catch them they appreciate the journey these fish make. I got to the river and geared up. I went with an intermediate line and two flies I tied. The flies were really for crappie but I figured they should work for shad to. I spent the first 20 minutes casting and just trying to enjoy the river. Splashes from fish were here and there. Most likely gizzard shad. Then I felt a tap.... tap... tap.... BAM! A fish was definitely on and it was a good one. I put pressure on the fish and it seemed like it did a 180 and swam right towards me. The rod went limp and there was no tension on the line. Was it a shad? I hadn't caught one from land before so I had nothing to reference. It was a good fish whatever it was. I had wondered if that was going to be my only chance. I played around with different retrieves. Slow strips, 2-3inch quick strips, fast short strips.. FISH ON!

I was using an 8wt rod mainly because I wanted the backbone in case I ran into a bowfin or carp.  It was a good thing I had it. This fish turned in the current and used it to perfection. I kept massive pressure on the fish and I just wanted to see what it was. C'mon, c'mon, the fish would get near the surface then dive down again. Then after what seemed like an eternity I got a glimpse. It was a shad! A big one! The next thing that rushed through my mind were all the comments about how easy it is to rip the hook out of a shads mouth. I got the fish close pleading, "please stay on, please stay on." The fish was done or so I thought. I had it next to me and while I fumbled with my camera it started to flop back towards the water. NOOOOOO! I did my best and most gentle combination of almost body slamming the fish and securing it. I got it into position and seriously every time I went to push the shutter it started to flop around. I finally just took one like this

Not the best picture. At least I got one though. It was surreal. Did I really do it? Was this really a shad? A fish that spends the majority of its life in the ocean was right here under my hand 150miles from saltwater. Pretty Cool! To top it off it was caught with a fly I tied and the fish qualifies for a North Carlina Citation. All I can think about is catching another one now. I think I have what some people call a shaddiction.

 

Chasing the Southern Salmon

I have been trying to catch a shad on a fly rod for about 2yrs. The main run heats up around mid March and the best fishing is at Weldon, NC. A boat is pretty much mandatory if you want to get one on a fly rod. My shad fishing luck hasn't been that great. I've tried some local spots with no luck. This year a friend auctioned off a striper/shad trip as a fund raising item for our fishing club. His name is Jim Burchette a.k.a. (Pipes) and he knows the Roanoke River as well as any guide. I've fished with him before for striped bass at Weldon and he always put me on fish. I decided to purchase the trip figuring it would be a great trip as well as a nice donation for the club. The weather lately has been cold and raining. Jim called me and asked if I wanted to go fishing at the end of the week. I wasn't sure how conditions would be since we had a recent rain and the local waters were high and muddy. I decided to chance it and say I'd meet him at the boat ramp at the end of the week. On the drive over I listened to the radio and realized it was April 1st. The theme of the day was talking about different pranks people have done to one another. I started to think about Jim and wonder would he make a prank and say we're going fishing as an April fools joke? It would be pretty much one of the worst jokes ever. First off the location is an hour and a half drive, plus I was taking time off work. I knew Jim wasn't that kind of a person and when I got the call from him that he was at the boat ramp waiting for me it further verified that. When I got there some light rain had started to fall and the temp didn't seem to want to rise above 43 degrees. I wasn't dressed properly for that kind of weather but I tried to make due. One of the guys joining us was name Troy and his nickname was LYM. This stood for Lucky Young Man. I didn't realize how true this was until we fished awhile. Literally two minutes from leaving the boat ramp Jim had us on fish and Troy was wearing them out. He caught fish after fish and I kept getting what I thought were bumps here and there but I wasn't sure. I watched Troys retrieve and the way he was fishing and tried to copy it. I wasn't getting the same results. Troy eventually asked me if I wanted to switch rods. We obviously knew his set up was working. So I cast out now with new confidence knowing I have the right set up. Then I hear, "hey this works...." Troy had on a fish instantly with the set up I WAS JUST USING!!!! I knew then it was about retrieve and not what set up or flies we were using. I was intent on figuring this out and I started to watch everyone else on the boat like a hawk. I quickly became "that guy". Everyone was catching fish but me. Even the guys with me couldn't understand it. I started to feel kind of like I was cursed. The decision was made to move to a new spot, I tried to figure things out and get a new plan of action. Right when we pulled up to the new spot Troy casts out and hooks a fish on his first cast. I launched my flies over in the vicinity of his cast and instantly felt a hard bump. I thought for sure it was a snag or log until the line started to pulsate. I started to pressure the fish and I was afraid I was going to lose it any second. The fish came close to the surface, it's a SHAD! The fish wasn't coming easily though. it dove several times and showed off why it's called the southern salmon. I eventually reeled it in and Jim netted it. I think everyone breathed a sigh of relief the skunk was off the boat.
I started to catch shad at a decent pace after that. We were all fishing a small clouser type pattern with a dropper that was a different color. Troy was still catching fish one out of every six casts. I would hook or catch a fish maybe one out of twenty-five casts. Everyone on the boat was hooking up and several times we had multiple hook ups. Jim even landed a double, catching a fish on both flies. The icing on the cake was hooking up with the largest shad of the day for me, caught on a fly I tied.I wanted to stay and keep playing but I have a pregnant wife and daughter at home. I called it a day early but stayed long enough to eat lunch with the guys and enjoy the company for a little longer. I look forward to fishing with them again. The day was pretty much perfect.

At Least I'm Fishing....

I finally had my Weldon Shad Fishing Experience. I have heard about this place for years and was eager to try it. Preston recently got a sweet flats boat and this was it's maiden voyage. It's been out on a lake a few times but never on an official fishing trip. We got on the water at about 11in the morning, apparently the water was about 15ft or so above normal.The Roanoke River reminded me of the Neuse. It's color was a murky brown with a visibility of about 2ft. We started hitting the banks casting here and there. We talked to fisherman as we passed. A few had caught some, but more said they had been skunked. We came to a spot where we saw one boat catching fish consistantly. We threw various flies but Preston was the only one who managed to hook up. We started to try a different spot when the boat sputtered then died. I saw the look on Preston's face that said it all. Our fishing trip was most likely over. After several attempts to restart the boat we decided it wasn't gonna start, dropped anchor and waited for someone to give us a tow. We ran into a Guide we had previously used to for a Red Drum fishing trip. His name was Dean Lamonte. He was nice enough to get contant another boat with a big engine to tow us up stream. It was a dissapointing way to end the day but I'm glad we got to fish for a couple hours.

The Quest for Shad

Ever since I've moved to Raleigh I've heard about this fish that swims all the way from the ocean up into the nearby rivers and small creeks in the surrounding area. They call them the Southern Salmon or poor mans tarpon. More commonly known as just "shad". They can get up to 5lbs and are supposedly really fun to catch. I wouldn't know. I've been trying to catch these things for 2yrs. I've been reading about them and from what I've found your best bet is to have a boat and to fish up near Weldon on the Roanoke River. They also come to the Tar River and Neuse that flows from Raleigh's, Falls Lake.

This year I decided to really target them. The hot season for the shad run is in March, I recently finished my first fly tying class and I've found some flies that are supposedly great for shad. I tied some up and went out to a small creek near Tarboro. It had just rained a couple days before and the water was really high. I heard from a local that it was about 4ft higher then normal. Needless to say I was skunked. I really wanted to avoid driving anywhere far from Raleigh. My family has planned a small vacation and I'm leaving for the west coast in a couple weeks so time is shrinking on me. I tried again last weekend on the Neuse right down from the dam. Again I was skunked. The weather was beautiful and I read reports of people catching shad in Weldon and the lower Neuse where it hits the sound and goes into the ocean. I think maybe it is still early. I'm going to try to coerce my brother-in-law into going fishing with me probably the last time I'll have this Saturday. The last shad attempt. I've found a stretch of the Neuse that they have to go by. Unless we get a torrential down poor. It could happen, rain is in the forecast for tonight. Either way I want to try. This has been the hardest fish to catch, and what makes it worse is to hear the stories and reports of other people catching up to 30-40 fish.

We'll see what happens this weekend, my fly arsenal is listed below. I will definitely update the site with pics, whether I finally get a shad or come home empty handed.