Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 17, 1994 TAG: 9403170057
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Not that he wasn't elated with the crappie he had been catching in the Bay Rock area of Smith Mountain Lake one day this week.
The crappie had been attacking the minnows that he and three companions were tossing around boat docks and fallen trees. Some were slab-size, a designation given to crappie big enough to delight hearts and fill frying pans.
"I got something on and got it to the top of the water and it was a 5-pound, 6-ounce brown trout that was 26 inches long," said Arthur, who lives in Roanoke.
Arthur and his buddies were having fun speculating where the trout - an unusual catch for Smith Mountain - had come from, but there was no question where it was going: to a taxidermist.
Some of the anglers who have heard Arthur's trout story have said, "That's nice, but tell us more about the crappie."
Well, Arthur and his companions landed 105, releasing a number of them. That's an outstanding early season take for crappie, and it speaks with promise about the kind of spring season that awaits fishermen.
Elsewhere at Smith Mountain, fishermen have reeled in some trophy striped bass. Brian Layman of Moneta caught a 35-pound, 5-ounce striper. Other catches have weighed 25 to 30 pounds.
At Claytor Lake, Tim McCoy of Pulaski caught an 8-pound, 1-ounce largemouth bass. Dick Showalter of Riner landed a 2-pound, 12-ounce white bass on a Rebel plug he was casting to a rocky bluff.
For additional news of catches, check InfoLine: 981-0100 in Roanoke, 382-0200 in the New River Valley, and enter category 3016.
\ TROUT SEASON: State fish officials have had to saw fallen trees and punch holes in ice, but they've managed to reach all but one of the streams and lakes scheduled to get fish in time for Saturday's opening of trout season.
The exception is Peak Creek in Pulaski County, where downed timber from the ice storm continues to block access.
A late addition to the stocking schedule is a three-mile stretch of Wilson Creek below the Douthat State Park dam. The stream will be operated as part of the state's pay-fishing program in the park.
\ TOURNAMENT TIME: The local bass tournament season begins in earnest Saturday with the 15th annual Smith Mountain Ruritan Club Spring Partner's contest.
Registration is 5:30-6:30 a.m. at the Smith Mountain Lake State Park boat ramp, said Russ Carrico, club spokesman. The fee is $60 per team, and there will be a 90 percent payback.
Additional information is available from Carrico at (703) 297-2379.
\ HELP AT THE PEAKS: Gene Parker, a Blue Ridge Parkway ranger, was beginning to think there was no way the Peaks of Otter campground and picnic areas could be cleared of ice-toppled timber in time for the May 1 camping-picnicking season. Then 63 volunteers showed up Saturday.
They weren't just any volunteers, Parker said, but people who knew how to use chain saws and who had backs strong enough to tote truckloads of brush. They were members of the Virginia Houndsmen and Sporting Dog Association, mostly bear and raccoon hunters.
"They just did an outstanding job," said Parker, who called it one of the finest examples of community service he'd ever observed. Another 20-some volunteers showed up Sunday.
Parker figures it saved the government $7,500, and it should mean an on-schedule opening for the Peak's camping-picnicking facilities.
\ BAGGING BIG BUCKS: Bob May of Salem participated in the '94 (Norman) Schwarzkopf Cup, a sporting-clays event during the weekend in Florida that raised $400,000 for the Miami Project, which funds with spinal-injury research.
May got to shoot a round with the famous general, who has been spending considerable time on sporting-clay ranges since his retirement after the Gulf War.
by CNB