Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, June 8, 1995 TAG: 9506080075
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The cobia have been delighting boat fishermen and are giving pier fishermen their money's worth.
Weekend anglers landed 17 of the large, strong game fish at Grandview Pier. The largest was a 50-pounder. Buckroe Beach pier accounted for three, including a 371/2-pounder.
Several marinas have weighed a season's worth of cobia in a matter of days. During a three-day period, Wallace's Marina counted 84 cobia that were pulled across its dock. The largest was a 75-pounder caught by Charles Bryant of Hampton, who was fishing off Buckroe Beach. It is the leader in the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament, which awards citations for any cobia 45 pounds or heavier or for some catch and releases.
Marine operator Donnie Wallace called the action ``cobia mania.''
Jack Warman of Vanasse Bait and Tackle had 35 cobia weighed at his shop. Three were citations. Connie Barbour of Bubba's Marina weighed a 68-pounder landed on Latimer Shoals.
Through Wednesday, Ann Burnett of the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament had registered 48 cobia. That is nearly one-third of the total take in 1994.
``It is amazing,'' Burnett said. ``I couldn't believe all of the citations, and they were a beautiful size, too.''
One troubling trend, nearly all of the citations are for catches. Few fishermen appear to be looking out for the future of their sport by releasing their cobia.
The black drum have been bowing rods along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. Ruth Cobb of Cobbs Marina called the fishing tremendous.
The peak of the black drum action has centered around the first and second islands of the bridge-tunnel, where the fish have been hitting a variety of baits and lures, everything from squid to yellow bucktails, said Lewis Gillingham of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission.
The black drum run off Cape Charles has declined and probably is nearing its conclusion, said Otis Asal, a charter boat skipper at Kings Creek Marina.
Asal recently guided a party that had its drum fishing disrupted by cobia. The anglers baiting with clam from Asal's boat took five cobia while fishing the C-10 mussel beds for drum. The largest weighed 62 pounds.
A couple of other inshore battlers, amberjack and red drum, also have been contributing to some of the best saltwater action in recent memory.
Dr. Jim Wright and his fishing parties have been hooking up with hard-fighting amberjack at the Southern Tower for two weeks.
``In three trips, the fish have gotten bigger each time,'' he said.
Just the journey to the amberjack grounds can be exciting for Wright and his companions. One day they stopped at 4A Buoy and landed two cobia. On another outing, they ran into jumbo-size bluefish.
STOCKING OVER: The spring trout stockings will end this week. Tinker and Glade creeks were among the last streams to get trout. Both were stocked Tuesday.
The releases will resume in the fall, when streams are suitable for trout life, according to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries.
by CNB