Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, December 22, 1994 TAG: 9412230053
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
``As far as I could see after the fog lifted I could see fish breaking,'' said Wilson. ``My locator lit up like a Christmas tree. These fish broke for 3 hours. They ran baitfish up on the bank.''
A couple of days before, Wilson got the feeling something was about to happen. He found fish on the surface, while most of the fall he'd had to go deep for them. Then on Tuesday he hit the blitz. Wilson caught a 211/2-pounder. His partner took a 17-pounder. Both anglers had their fishing lines broken.
Wednesday morning, Wilson was back with high expectations.
``I never saw a fish on the surface, and never graphed one above 30 feet,'' he said.
OTHER CATCHES: Leon Hancock of Bassett landed a limit of smallmouth bass weighing 171/2 pounds at Philpott Lake. Charles Pugh of Dublin caught a 15-pound, 7-ounce muskie at Claytor Lake.
In addition to stripers, Smith Mountain Lake has produced several large white bass that have weighed just under 3 pounds.
Trout anglers are finding fish in streams most recently stocked by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. These include the Jackson River (at Hidden Valley and Virginia 623) and Spring Run in Bath County; Big Stoney Creek and Dismal Creek in Giles County; and Maury River and Mill Creek in Rockbridge County.
ESCAPING THE AX: The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries apparently has escaped the massive personal cuts faced by many state agencies in the wake of Gov. George Allen's proposal to slash state spending
There is no new money in the governor's budget for the agency, however, which means most game, fish and boating programs likely will continue to be funded by license and registration fees. Outdoor groups, as well as the department's board members, have been campaigning for the agency to receive a share of the general fund money to carry out conservation projects. However, that appears unlikely at this point.
SALTY STRIPERS: Virginia's saltwater striped bass fishing season has been a dandy, with numerous catches in the 20- to 30-pound class reported, along with a few 40-pounders.
A couple of Chesapeake Bay hot spots have been the Bridge-Tunnel and the Deltaville area. The fish appeared to average heavier this season than last.
The bay striper season is over (catch and release can be practiced), but the ocean season continues through March.
Stripers have been caught along North Carolina's Outer Banks; in fact, a school delighted a group of drum fishermen at Cape Point one day, resulting in a catch of more than 60 stripers as large as 25 pounds
On Wednesday, trout were keeping surf fishermen busy at Hatteras.
As for big bluefish along the Banks, anglers have seen little more than a single-day's flurry of catches. A report that blues still are being caught in New Jersey has the Banks fishermen looking for a late run. Christmas week wasn't bad last season.
A TRAIL TO TRY: A new trail in the Nadia Place State Forest in Craig County offers hikers a brief winter walk through rhododendron and laurel thickets that are attractive to wildlife.
The six-tenths of a mile trail can be reached by traveling southwest on Virginia 42 from New Castle for about 20 miles to Virginia 658, and then north for 2.2 miles. The trail was an Eagle Scout project, headed by project leader Matthew Senger and Troop 13 of Bethel Church in Augusta County
by CNB