
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 13, 1990                   TAG: 9004130074
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: C3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN OUTDOORS
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

ADVICE TO RIVER ANGLERS: GO WITH THE FLOW IN APRIL

One of the good things about river fishing is you don't need an $18,000 bass boat to succeed. A pair of old sneakers and some cut-off jeans will do nicely, but it remains a tad too early for that garb.

Frequent rains, and even melting snows, have been sending an unruly slug of water down the state's major rivers, causing a hardship for anglers eager to cast for smallmouth bass and other stream species.

Stream fishing has gotten off to a sluggish start because of high water and low temperatures, but fishermen need to be aware that April is a month when there can be a swift turn toward improvement.

Here's what's happening along the state's major rivers:

\ STAUNTON: By mid-week, this section of the Roanoke River in the Brookneal area was clearing up from the red-mud color of the past weekend. Most of the spawning walleye appear to be gone, but replacing them are vanguards of small, male striped bass.

The stripers have arrived early, the first being caught in late March, which is a couple of weeks before anyone really expects them to show up. Most are 6 pounds or less, but they are heavyweight fighters in the river's current.

Beginning Monday, Appalachian Power Co. is scheduled to start a regulated flow of water from its Leesville Dam to enhance spawning conditions for the stripers. The peak fishing for the run out of Kerr Lake usually occurs the first couple weeks of May, when the river holds impressive numbers of large female fish.

\ NEW: Smallmouth-bass fishing has been tough, due to water that is high, discolored and cold. A few channel cats have been landed.

The good news here is a reciprocal fishing-license agreement recently signed by Virginia and North Carolina. What that means is that, beginning May 1, a single license from either state will be all that is necessary to fish the section between the confluence of the North and South forks in North Carolina and the confluence of the New and Little rivers in Grayson County. Virginia's senior-citizen license will be honored by North Carolina.

The two states also will share in the management of this section of the New.

\ RAPPAHANNOCK: Much of the fishing has been for white perch on the lower river, where several citation catches have been taken on bloodworms.

The upper Rappahannock is high and muddy, and 50 degrees, but that's where Willie Sedoris of Fredericksburg landed a 45 1/2-pound blue catfish, which tied the state record. Sedoris was bottom fishing with cut bait. The record is a Rappahannock blue taken about a year ago.

\ JAMES: The upper river has a heavy flow, some of it snow water off the Alleghenies. The fishing pressure is light, success poor.

Well downstream, white perch are being taken on bloodworms, small minnows and jigs. Large minnows are enticing catfish in the tidal section below Richmond.

\ SHENANDOAH: The river has been high and muddy, which is fine with catfish angler Jeffery Foster of Luray. He landed five that weighed a total of 69 pounds. The largest was 19 pounds.

Decent bass fishing is at least a couple of weeks away.

\ POTOMAC: In the upper river, anglers are locating some smallmouth bass early in the day along the banks where the sun warms the water. Spinners, plastic grubs and crankbaits have been hooking them.

Farther downstream, herring fishing has been productive, and white perch are thick well down the river.

\ The Bass Anglers Sportsman Society will be bringing one of its major tournaments to Virginia during its 1990-91 season. Scheduled for Oct. 17-20 on Kerr Lake is the Virginia Top Super BASS Pro-Am, which will have a field of 100 professionals and 100 amateurs.

BASS officials and the pros were impressed last October when it took more than 63 pounds of largemouth for Randy Blaukat of Joplin, Mo., to win a tournament there.

\ Fishermen recently have registered some outstanding catches, including a 6 1/2-pound smallmouth bass from Smith Mountain Lake by Don Johnson of Roanoke. The fish was hooked on a Bomber lure. James England of Vinton landed a 3-pound, 3-ounce white bass from Smith Mountain.

Bobby East of Martinsville caught a 2-pound, 7-ounce crappie from Philpott Lake.

by CNB