Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 12, 1995 TAG: 9501130036
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
That combination netted Gray, who lives in Bedford County, a 31-pound, 3-ounce striper this week.
For Gray, this was no once-in-a-lifetime catch. In December, he wrestled a 28-pound, 7-ounce striper from Smith Mountain. Back in April, he got one that weighed 35 pounds, 4 ounces.
``I had four over 20 pounds last year,'' Gray said. ``I hope I can catch the 50-pounder. That's what I am looking for.''
Gray and other experienced fishermen have had enough lines stretched past the breaking point to feel confident that the 20,000-acre lake holds a 50-pound-plus striper. The state record is a 44-pound, 14-ounce Smith Mountain fish taken in 1992.
As a bait fisherman, Gray prefers to entice a big striper with a big mouthful. If he can nab a shad for bait that is a foot long, it is going onto his hook.
When he made his catch this week, Gray was fishing a large shad at 15- to 20-foot depths in the upper Roanoke River arm of the lake. He had been sitting on a main-channel point for about two hours when the striper hit around 7:30 p.m.
Gray believes big stripers, like trophy deer, live a lone-wolf existence, away from smaller specimens of their kind.
``I have a couple spots that you can go to and know they will come through,'' he said. ``It takes patience to get onto the big ones. You've got to know that they will come through sooner or later.''
Gray's fish was one of several outstanding catches recently by fishermen who didn't let cold weather keep them at home.
Rusty Spangler caught and released an 8-pound, 8-ounce largemouth bass at Smith Mountain Lake.
Scott Harris of Lynchburg caught a 43-pound, 9-ounce muskie from the New River. The record is a 45-pounder taken from the river in 1989.
Joe Skinner of Lynchburg caught a 36-pound, 8-ounce striped bass from Leesville Reservoir.
Jerry Krebs of Pulaski weighed two catfish he caught from Claytor Lake that tipped the scales at 39 pounds, 1 ounce and 26 pounds, 12 ounces. Tommy Brown landed a 4-pound, 8-ounce smallmouth bass from Claytor.
BETTER THAN BLANKS: Waterfowl hunters who have been forced to use steel shot often have wondered if they were shooting blanks. They have fired at ducks only to watch them keep on trucking.
Now there is a new shot choice. It is called bismuth, and the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have approved it for use through the remainder of the waterfowl season.
Studies have show that bismuth-tin is nontoxic to waterfowl. Hunters hope it also will be more effective than steel. Lead shot has been outlawed for waterfowl hunting use.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: The Hunters For the Hungry program has processed about 100,000 pounds of venison donated from the 1994-95 deer season. That represents an increase of more than 40 percent from the previous season, according to David Horne, the program's executive director.
Next season has the potential to be better. Philip Morris U.S.A. has presented a $20,000 check to the program. Horne estimates the money will help feed more than 125,000 people.
CLAYTOR COUNT: Hunters bearing bows and muzzleloading rifles killed 34 deer during the special hunts at Claytor Lake State Park. Many of the deer were light in weight, evidence of the overpopulation the hunt was designed to correct. The take included two 10-point bucks.
MARK YOUR CALENDAR: The Optimist Club of Cave Spring has scheduled its annual fishing tournament May 5-7 on Smith Mountain Lake. The tournament's format will be changed little from last season.
Memo: ***CORRECTION***