Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, November 27, 1995 TAG: 9511280048
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
December 2
Many anglers give up fishing too early, considering December can be the finest month to catch striped bass. That holds true for both the Chesapeake Bay and Smith Mountain Lake. And there's a new hot spot this season, the surf and piers of the Outer Banks of North Carolina.
Fishing success along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel this fall has been the best it has been in a couple of years. It is the best in two decades along the Outer Banks. Slower to start has been Smith Mountain Lake, but the time is right.
The Bay fishing should be productive through Christmas. The Coastal Conservation Association of Virginia has scheduled a $63,000 tournament Saturday at Kruse's Wharf (804-776-6200) in Deltaville. The Outer Banks fishing holds promise into early January, and the same can be said of Smith Mountain Lake.
9 - It is your forest to manage
What would you like from the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests? More hiking trails? Hunting? Fishing? Bird watching? Camping? As one of the owners of the forest's more than two million acres, you have a say in its management, and a good time to present your views is during the annual public involvement conference. It is scheduled Dec. 9 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Virginia Tech's Litton Reaves Building.
The session will include an update from the new forest supervisor, William Damon Jr., followed by breakouts where there will be opportunities for one-on-one interaction with district rangers. This is the first such conference since the merger of the George Washington and Jefferson national forests earlier this year. Much of the emphasis will be on the Jefferson section of the forest, where management plans are being revised. But discussion on the George Washington section won't be excluded. If you need more information, the forest headquarters are at Valleypointe in Roanoke County, 265-6054.
Busing to the ski slopes
The ski season in the Southeast is off to one of the best starts in memory, and the Roanoke Ski Club is poised to take advantage of it with its ``Kick off the Season Ski Bus Party.'' On Dec. 9, members and guests will climb aboard a bus for a trip to Snowshoe, where 21 runs are open. This is the first of several bus trips scheduled into March. Destinations, in addition to Snowshoe-Silver Creek, include The Homestead, Masanutten, Canaan Valley and Timberline.
The club trips offer advantages from reduced group rates to fellowship with other skiers, to leaving the driving over curvy roads to somebody else. Smoking on the bus is prohibited.
The ideal way to keep abreast of the bus schedule is join the club. It is cheaper that way, too, since discounts go to members. The membership director is Gordon Hamilton, 989-4370. Jim Beamer, 884-2659, is the trip director. The next club meeting is 7:30 p.m. Dec. 6 at the Holiday Inn Tanglewood.
The club has trips scheduled for January and February to Taos, N.M., and Big Sky, Mont. Those trips are by plane.
16 - Holiday with the birds
Participants in the annual Christmas Bird Count will be out to catalog everything that chirps, flies or flutters, and it could be a dandy of a count this time. Cold weather has brought many northern species to the region earlier than normal, said Mike Smith, president of the Roanoke Valley Bird Club. Included are red-breasted nuthatches, purple finches, evening grosbeaks and numerous species of ducks. ``It looks as if this may be a very interesting winter,'' Smith said.
The club has scheduled its Roanoke count for Dec. 16; Fincastle, Dec. 17; and Peaks of Otter, Dec. 19. The compiler, and source of information is Barry Kinzie, 992-2743.
Similar counts will take place across North America, following a tradition that started on Christmas Day, 1900. They are a prime means of keeping tabs on bird populations.
17 - Taking aim at archery leagues
Archery clubs that have indoor ranges will be organizing winter indoor leagues. The Sherwood Archers will organize its leagues Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. at the club range near Hanging Rock. More information is available from David Keith, 473-3466. Several commercial ranges in the region also offer indoor leagues.
Before its league season begins, Sherwood will sponsor its annual, indoor Toys for Tots shoot, beginning 1 p.m., Dec. 10. The entry fee is a new, unwrapped toy to be donated to needy children. For information, call Jimmy Brugh, 254-2490, or Audray Shumate, 389-3369.
by CNB