Other NCWRC ramps accessing the Northeast Cape Fear are Sawpit Landing at SR 1512 near Burgaw and Kenansville Landing off N.C. 24 at Wildlife Landing Road.

Of the smaller catfish species, only the channel catfish moves into the game fish category. Sadly or happily, depending on viewpoint, the native Cape Fear system catfish are being displaced by introduced big-game catfish -- flatheads and blues. Blue catfish attain enormous sizes, with documented records from the Mississippi River during the 1800s of fish weighing over 300 pounds. There is the potential for a 100-pound blue catfish from the Cape Fear, according to angler reports of huge fish that couldn't be landed. Blue catfish can be confused with channel catfish, but lack spots on their sides. The anal fin is long and straight rather than rounded like that of the channel catfish. Flathead catfish are easy to identify by the flattened appearance of the top of the head.

The state-record flathead catfish was caught from the Cape Fear Sept. 17, 2005, by Brian Newberger. He was fishing above Lock and Dam No. 3 in Cumberland County. The flathead weighed 78 pounds and was released, so anyone catching it again will be able to break the record. The previous state-record flathead weighed 69 pounds and was caught from the same waters by Edward C. Davis in 1994. While Davis used a live panfish for his catch, Newberger used a live eel.

Flathead catfish are voracious predators. They are more solitary than other catfish and defend territories. They spend the day inside heavy cover such as logjams and cruise into the shallows to chase prey by night. Their favorite prey is a live bullhead. But a panfish, eel or any other live bait will do for catching them.

Most flathead catfish anglers use live panfish, which must be caught on hook and line for legal use as bait. Panfish can be fished successfully for flatheads in deep holes near logjams and at eddies where streams enter the river during the day. But as night falls, the best bet is to fish them with float rigs beneath overhanging limbs and back in the oxbows.

Blue catfish are also predators and their favorite prey in the Cape Fear River system is shad. While some baits, such as liver, cut fish or shrimp will entice any of the catfish species including blues, cut shad seems to be the best bait for blues. Cutting a shad fillet into 1-inch squares and dropping them into a zipper bag with a few drops of anise oil is a great way to create a bait for specifically targeting blue catfish.

A former state record for blue catfish was caught at the same stretch of river as the new flathead catfish record. Blue catfish are more free-swimming than flatheads. They strike baits fished at any depth in the water column. But the best luck will come with baits fished at deep holes in the channel during the day and on ledges upstream of the deep holes at night.

Walk-in fishing below Lock and Dam No. 1 can be accessed at the Federal Paper ramp off Riegel Club Road. There is a fishing pier at the ramp as well as a free launching facility.