Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, March 6, 1995 TAG: 9503070010
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN OUTDOOR EDITOR
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It's not because he hasn't wanted to. Blount is an owner of Foxsport XIV Marina on Smith Mountain Lake where business takes off the same time the trout season opens.
"But I'm not going to miss this one," Blount said. "I want to be a part of the last one."
When the season opens at 9 a.m. March 18, it will be the final first day. After that, trout fishing will take on eternal life. The season will have no beginning and no end. It will be a year-round affair.
That's what 73 percent of the anglers want, according to a survey of license-buying fishermen conducted by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
Even so, it is not difficult to find fishermen who lament the loss of an event that, for them, is Christmas morning, the last day of school and the circus coming to town all wrapped into a tantalizing package and tagged with a "Do Not Open Until the Third Saturday in March" seal.
"This is the end of Christmas," said Lacy All, a tackle maker who lives in Salem.
Gary Martel, chief of the fish division of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, prefers to see it as the beginning of an exciting era.
"Hopefully, by the time the date of what would have been the 1996 opening day rolls around everyone will be happy," Martel said. "Even the doubters will be saying, 'Hey, this isn't too bad. I got to fish through the month of February and the first half of March on the nice days.'''
Steve Hiner of Christiansburg believes Martel's prediction will come true.
"In a couple of years, nobody will remember this stuff," he said. "The only fond memories I have of opening day is as a kid. That's it. When I got older, I hated it."
One of the major selling points of backers of the year-round season is increased fishing opportunities. You go any time you get the itch. There is no holding back on a February day that hits 65 degrees. Or even one that barely reaches 30.
Fish officials expect the year-round season to level out the crowds, and that will mean higher-quality sport for everyone. Anytime you go, they say, you should find fish as well as some solitude.
"There are a lot of people who will miss the opening day ritual and the anticipation that goes with an opening day," said George Duckwall, the trout cultural supervisor for the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. "But, by and large, I think most of the trout fishermen, once they get accustomed to this, will be a lot happier with it. I think they are going to see a higher-quality experience. I am sure there will be a lot higher-quality put-and-take fishing in Virginia with this program."
One thing for certain, said Duckwall, fishermen - pro or con - are going to like the size of the trout being stocked this season. A mild winter has maximized growing conditions in state hatcheries, he said.
"A couple of hatchery managers have commented on the quality of their fish this year. It is the most growth they have seen in many years. There are beautiful fish going into the water this year."
That should become a tradition. The year-round season will mean that hatcheries can be operated in a more efficient manner, Duckwall said. The production in the past has been geared for the huge release of fish before opening day. Now, eggs can be taken over a longer period, and fish can be held in different growth cycles, which should mean less crowding and better size. And more fish, too.
"The initial year of this program, we should see an increase of what we put out of approximately 100,000 fish," said Duckwall.
Preseason and spring stockings should be about the same this year as in the past, but anglers can expect a beefed-up fall program, he said.
"We are talking several times the number that has been stocked previously in our fall program," he said.
One thing that surprised fish officials, the survey participants said they would be willing to give up some of the numbers of trout stocked in the spring if the fish were spread out, particularly if there were more stockings in the fall.
"Some of the waters we have programmed to stock three times in the fall, then once in the period of January and February and then maybe twice in March and two or three times in April and one or two times in May," said Duckwall. "We will be stretching the stocking out considerably. There will be more discretion by the hatchery managers. If they get a run of good weather, they will be able to get the trucks on the road and put the fish in the water."
But few trout will be stocked from early June to late September, when streams often run low and water temperatures are high. The season will be year-round in name only during periods of hot, dry weather.
by CNB