Might pound an acre of river on Sunday

Question up front - should there be a river group? So many things overlap that I hesitate to suggest it. I almost posted this to NC group but others from all over could have relevant input. Anyway...

Heavy rain today and tonight, less but still rainy tomorrow, dry and slightly warmer Sunday. This stretch of river is a few miles below a large reservoir so it should get moderated but will still be up. Because of my location, this is no big secret because there is only one low head dam on a river around Raleigh; it's Milburnie on the Neuse and this is the last dam before the sea over 100 miles downstream (only a few stripers and shad are caught here, but it happens).

It is also known as one of the better spots around town for bass and panfish on the river. Still not as heavily fished as you might think though and the population is constantly bolstered by "Houdini's" that pass through Falls Dam.

That's a low water shot. It's likely that only a few rocks will be above the surface and the sand bar island may be under. Air temp is likely to be around 50 or a little over; water likely in the mid 40s.

So, curious to get a few opinions on what tackle you might try in what area? I will be in the yak with an anchor.

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Permalink Reply by Andy is OptiMystic on January 23, 2015 at 9:01am

A couple of forgotten details. Above the dam is almost never fished because it is awful. It's a silt trap; one of the reasons this one hasn't been removed yet is concern about what it will do to the stretch below for a couple of years if they tear it down and let all that wash downstream. Plus there are some wetlands created by it. Right at the bottom of the picture there is a riffle or small rapid depending on water flow. I am not running a shuttle down to the next access and don't want to wade to get back, so I am staying in the picture. Probably will only be there a couple of hours early afternoon.

Another edit - even if it is high, it will be reasonably clear. Not completely as there are a few small side creeks, but most of its flow is from the dam of a large lake. Just a few miles downstream a large creek will bring in the run off from about half the parking lots in Raleigh and it will be a muddy mess from there to the ocean for a few days.

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Permalink Reply by Slip Sinker on January 23, 2015 at 9:25am

gotta love fishing the tailrace... caught alot of jumbos at the dam bases. however like you say they do attract alot of fishing traffic.

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Permalink Reply by Andy is OptiMystic on January 23, 2015 at 9:44am

Not as much as you might expect. It is not safely wadable more than a few feet from shore and you have to carry a boat down to the water. The little mini cove on the right where the tree's shadow is will likely have bank fishermen pretty much claiming it. But it is unusual to see more than one or two kayaks or canoes fishing it even in good weather.

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Permalink Reply by Andy is OptiMystic on January 23, 2015 at 10:02am

if the area is over run with people (I doubt it), Plan B is the next canoe ramp, about a 5 mile drive, that is just above the muddy creek confluence and has a decent stretch of flatwater above it.

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Permalink Reply by carl hendrix on January 23, 2015 at 10:36am

hopefully you will have some kind of depth -fish finder;; that can help you. looks like a hunt to find them tho!! if a drop off-- is close to shallow water;; I would start in that area.

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Permalink Reply by Andy is OptiMystic on January 23, 2015 at 10:57am

My depth finder will be a weight on a Dock Demon; my Humminbird should have arrived in Eufala yesterday but is still in the capable hands of the USPS...

I have seen it at really low water. Deepest is near the shoals below the dam. Water will likely be running over them, but they probably won't be submerged.

Poking around a little, I may have changed my mind. It does get muddier than I thought.

http://www.ncangler.com/forums/threads/30631-Milburnie-Dam-4-8?p=25...

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Permalink Reply by Andy is OptiMystic on January 24, 2015 at 7:18am

and maybe it is a good idea still. See this blog post for an explanation.

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Permalink Reply by Andy is OptiMystic on February 7, 2015 at 4:06pm

It is supposed to be mid to upper 60s tomorrow and I am headed here, at least for a few minutes. A friend and I are going to float from here to the next access. Flow is low but should be good enough. We will certainly try for a bit below the dam before starting down.