Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 2, 1995 TAG: 9503030071
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It was tempting to tell him: ``Haven't you heard? Michael Rogers caught a 45-pound, 10-ounce potential state record there on February 18. You take a fish that big out of the lake and the level is certain to fall.''
The real reason is because Appalachian Power Co. lowered the water level by about six inches in anticipation of spring rains.
But that doesn't mean Rogers' fish hasn't made an impact on the lake. It gave early-season fishing a jump start by drawing scores of boats to the upper, Blackwater River arm.
"I probably saw 50 to 75 boats," said Fulton Jones, who operates Magnum Point Marina.
Many were filled with anglers dunking bait, casting plugs, jigging spoons, throwing bucktails and trolling for striped bass.
You might think that going after a striper where the record was caught a few days earlier is akin to locking the barn after the horses have escaped, but Jones said that wasn't the case.
"The past weekend, nearly every boat had fish."
Good fish, too, for anglers like Jeff McGee of Rocky Mount, who caught a 32-pound, 10-ounce striper on a Big Mac lure. Tim Hulon of Greensboro, N.C., got a 22-pound, 10-ounce striper on live bait.
But don't think the stripers are a pushover. Like the weather, they are impacted by that puzzling, transition time of the year that is part winter and part spring. Some days they are holding to their deep-water wintering areas; other days they are drawn shallow by the magnetism of spring. That's why you find anglers scoring with a wide variety of lures, baits and techniques - or not scoring at all.
"The fish aren't all shallow," said Dale Wilson, who has guided on the lake for nearly 30 years. "I've caught a few shallow. I've also caught them suspended over the [deep-water] trees, too.
"If we have three or four days of sunshine and the nights stay in the 40s, that will change things a whole lot."
The warming trend would move both the baitfish and the striped bass to the shallows, where they are easier to locate, Wilson said. "It won't be long."
OTHER CATCHES: Briery Creek Lake is beginning to turn out trophy bass. Recent largemouth catches have included an 81/2 and 7 pounder.
James Hylton of Moneta landed an 8-pound, 2-ounce largemouth at Smith Mountain Lake.
Bass are hitting crankbaits at Gaston Lake, and spinnerbaits are hooking them at Kerr Lake.
Crappie also are being caught at Gaston, Kerr and Smith Mountain. One of the largest of the season is a 2-pound, 10-ounce crappie caught at Smith Mountain by Eddie Updike of Wirtz.
Big brown trout have grabbed the attention of Lake Moomaw fishermen. Larry Shaefer of Iron Gate caught several trout Wednesday, the biggest weighing nearly 6 1/2 pounds. Others in the 5- to 7-pound class have been weighed at the Bait Place. One fisherman reported catching and releasing 10.
Most are being hooked on minnows fished 30 to 35 feet. The trick is to use a small hook and just enough split shot to get the bait down, said Larry Andrews of the Bait Place.
BIG BUCKS: The Blue Ridge Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation netted $32,885 at its fund-raising banquet in Roanoke. That makes a total of $105,000 the chapter has raised the last four years for habitat enhancement and other programs that benefit elk, said John Rokisky, a chapter spokesman.
TOP 100: Rick Morris of Virginia Beach placed third in the Bassmaster Top 100 on Lake Seminole, Ga. The tournament was won by Claude ``Fish'' Fishburn of Canton, Ga., who entered a four-day catch of 14 bass that weighed 59 pounds, 2 ounces. Known as a comic and cutup on the tournament trail, Fishburn earned $46,000, not to mention the respect of serious fishermen..
In second place, even through he didn't catch a keeper the final day, was David Fritts of Lexington, N.C. Woo Daves of Spring Grove placed 52nd.
PLAYING A SPADE: The 38th annual Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament opened Wednesday with one change in its format. Spadefish have been added to the list of species eligible to earn a citation. The minimum weight is 9 pounds.
"We decided the time was right to add spadefish because they have been abundant in recent years, and interest in catching them has increased dramatically," said Claude Bain, tournament director.
by CNB