Merchants Millpond Fishing in Gates County, North Carolina
Merchants Millpond Area

The lake itself is beautiful, a classic blackwater cypress swamp, very still and lush, stands of swamp trees rising from the water in between clear areas and lily patches. The average depth was probably around four feet. Awesome canoeing, and the woman was in heaven with her camera. There were herons everywhere, and otters, so there must usually be plenty of fish. Unfortunately, when we went, they had just had a fish kill, and there was almost nothing in the water but the tiny fry that had been stocked to replace the dead fish. I caught nothing in three days. Some cheese and hot dogs I left overnight for catfish got nibbled off the hook. On the last day just as we were leaving, we did see a couple of jumps in a section I hadn't tried before, but my rods were already packed up. That was around four pm, near the southern shore, maybe 10 minutes paddling from the canoe launch.