Share your catch
US

Cape Fear River Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

North Carolina’s working river: the Cape Fear runs catfish, stripers and shad from Fayetteville to the sea.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Flow
871 cfs
Air / High
67 / 71 F
Wind
NE 10 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 02105769, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Cape Fear River lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. The river is running 871 cfs, dropping and clearing. Today brings clear skies, wind NE around 10 mph, steady pressure near 1022 hPa and a high of 71. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:49 AM-11:49 AM and 10:17 PM-12:17 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassExcellent

Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

Largemouth bassGood

The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

CrappieFair

Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Tomorrow: Similar at 72 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

North Carolina requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $32.00 for residents. What a North Carolina licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with NCWRC before you keep anything. The season dates for North Carolina, read off the agency, are on the North Carolina seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Cape Fear River at Lock 1 near Kelly.

Flow, last 30 days

USGS gauge 02105769.

8551,0311,206871 cfs09/2310/0310/1310/23

Today’s flow against 57 years of October 23

At 871 cfs, the flow at USGS gauge 02105769 (Cape Fear River at Lock 1 near Kelly) is at the 16th percentile for the date: below normal. In half of the 57 years of approved record the daily mean on October 23 was below 1,390 cfs; the highest was 17,500 cfs and the lowest 320 cfs.

p10 772median 1,390p90 11,160

Percentiles of the daily mean flow for this date, from the USGS Water Data Statistics API for gauge 02105769; today’s reading is the latest instantaneous value. Classes follow the ones the USGS used on its WaterWatch maps (retired at the end of 2025): below 10th, much below normal; 10th–24th, below; 25th–75th, normal; 76th–90th, above; over 90th, much above.

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp67 F
High / Low71 / 41 F
WindNE 10-16 mph
Pressure1022.1 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:26 / 18:29
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~74 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Cape Fear River this week

The best day on Cape Fear River this week looks like Sunday Oct 25, at 5 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Sunday, Oct 25 — excellent at 5/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 — Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
9:49 AM-11:49 AM and 10:17 PM-12:17 AM
Minor period
4:10 AM-5:10 AM
Sun
07:26 to 18:29
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Partly cloudy, 11 mph
Rain chance
0%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Cape Fear River: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

When to come: the Cape Fear River calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Striped bass
Catfish (blue, channel)
Crappie
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 74 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Cape Fear River today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 72 F, wind to 9 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 73 F, wind to 12 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 77 F, wind to 12 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used if we need to ask you about your report. No mailing list, no spam.

Before you go

License

North Carolina requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

North Carolina license, with coastal rules in the tidal reaches. Striped bass rules are specific and restrictive: check current NCWRC and NCDMF regulations.

Access

Ramps at Fayetteville, Elizabethtown, Lock and Dam 1 and downstream toward Wilmington.

About this water

A 200-mile river through central and southeastern North Carolina to the Atlantic at Wilmington.

Fishing Cape Fear River: the full guide

A river to Wilmington

The Cape Fear River flows about 200 miles through central and southeastern North Carolina to the Atlantic at Wilmington, the state’s largest river system entirely within its borders. Locks and dams break the middle river into pools, and the fishery reflects that: blue and flathead catfish in large sizes, striped bass, largemouth bass, American shad in spring and, in the tidal lower river, redfish and flounder.

Catfish and stripers

Blue catfish have established in numbers and reach very large sizes in the deeper holes and below the locks: cut bait fished on the bottom is the standard. Striped bass hold the lock and dam tailwaters and the deeper river, with restoration efforts ongoing and rules specific: check current regulations before targeting them.

Shad and the tidal river

American and hickory shad run in spring, concentrating below the locks where light-tackle anglers fish darts and small spoons. Below Wilmington the river becomes tidal and brackish, holding redfish, flounder and speckled trout, giving anglers a genuinely different fishery within the same system.

Southeastern NC logistics

Ramps serve the river at Fayetteville, Elizabethtown, Lock and Dam 1 and downstream toward Wilmington. Flows respond to upstream rain and can rise quickly. The locks concentrate fish and are the most productive spots for most species, drawing steady local traffic.

Common questions

How big do the catfish get?

Blue catfish reach very large sizes in the deeper holes and below the locks: the river’s most reliable trophy fishery.

Where do fish concentrate?

At the locks and dams, which hold shad, stripers and catfish and draw most of the local fishing effort.

Is there saltwater fishing?

Yes: below Wilmington the river turns tidal, holding redfish, flounder and speckled trout.

Is fishing good at Cape Fear River right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Wilmington40 miCarolina Beach51 miMyrtle Beach61 miMurrells Inlet73 miNeuse River74 miJordan Lake86 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 02105769 — Cape Fear River at Lock 1 near Kelly
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 15:45 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 34.5300, -78.5500 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written guide was drafted with AI assistance. Unlike our newer pages, it does not yet list the official pages its facts were checked against: that audit is under way, and anything it cannot verify will be taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.