Blewett Falls is a mystery lake to many North Carolina anglers, if only because, well, it's out in the middle of nowhere. The dam is not far from the South Carolina border, and there are no major metropolitan areas nearby, so fishing pressure is relatively low.

Joe Aldridge, who runs a tackle shop in Albemarle, the closest "big city" to Blewett Falls, said that the fishery has been great "the past few years, especially for big crappie." But fishing pressure remains relatively low, because many fishermen aren't willing to drive an extra 30 minutes from other Piedmont reservoirs to tackle Blewett Falls.

And Waters said that the nature of the lake keeps a lot of fishermen away.

"It's not your typical Piedmont reservoir; you can't just get out and run on it," he said. "There are shoals, and there is standing timber, so it can be treacherous. I guess fishermen take that into consideration, along with how long a drive it is from anywhere else."

Aldridge, who has a house on Lake Tillery, said that crappie fishing on that reservoir has turned around for the good in the past year, after several down years he attributes to drawdowns that left the water well below full pool.

COASTAL RIVERS
Biologist Chad Thomas of Elizabeth City said there are several do's and don'ts when it comes to crappie fishing the coastal rivers.

Such as: Do fish the Cashie River. Do fish the lower sections of the Roanoke River. Don't worry about fishing the Neuse or the Cape Fear. Do fish the Tar River, or maybe fish the Tar River.

One of the big variables in all fishing along the coast -- not just for crappie -- has been the damage inflicted by Hurricane Isabel in September 2003. Widespread fish kills wiped out species in a number of rivers in the northeastern corner of the state. The commission tried to jump-start their return by stocking in many areas.

Thomas said, "We're in the midst of trying to evaluate some of our new crappie regulations, including the 8-inch size minimum, but the hurricane (Ophelia in September 2005) delayed those plans.

"From what we're hearing, the Cashie River seems to be the hotspot up there," he said. "I'd point people to the lower end of the Cashie as being better. I think the lower Roanoke is coming back (from Isabel), but it will probably be a year or two before it's back to being like it was. People are catching fish, but they seem to be very scattered.

"I'd recommend the Cashie. You can probably say that fish aren't as abundant as they were, but the growth rates continue to be pretty good there -- and in the lower Roanoke.

"The Neuse doesn't have much of a crappie fishery. On the coast, especially in the blackwater rivers, there is so much woody debris. The shorelines are just lined with cypress knees, tupelos and blowdowns. There are so many places they can be. If you can find snags in water that's a little deeper, the fish will be there. Many guys will get back and float down the creeks with minnows until they find a school of fish."