Mark Taylor

Mark Taylor's Outdoors column and notebook appears regularly in The Roanoke Times.

Recent columns

• Dealing with buck fever
• Fortunes vary during hunting season
• Trout action hot on coast

• Column archive

Lakes

Night bass fishing has slowed at Smith Mountain Lake, reports Rick Tilley, who organizes the Tuesday night tournaments out of Camper's Paradise. Just one team had a five-fish limit Tuesday. The bass are reportedly pulling away from deep brush and there have even been some early signs of schooling. Striper fishing remains good, with fish still holding in big schools around major creek mouths.

Night bass fishing has been excellent at Lake Moomaw, reports Larry Andrews at The Bait Place. Most fish are still deep. Trout fishing has been slow.

At Cedar Cove Market at Claytor Lake, Peggy Hemmings said a customer brought in a 24-pound channel catfish, which hit a gob of nightcrawlers. Bass fishing has been fair with finesse rigs still the most popular choice.

Streams

Smallmouth bass action still is just fair on the New River, reports John Zienius. Muskies continue to get a lot of attention.

James River smallmouth are starting to get more active. Flukes are taking fish, as are topwater lures and fly rod poppers. Terrestrial flies remain the best bet for stream trout.

Saltwater

Spanish mackerel action has been good along North Carolina's Outer Banks. Small bluefish also are available and can show up any time and anywhere along the beach. Travis Patsell of Vinton had good action for sheepshead around the pilings of Bonner Bridge at Oregon Inlet. Kyle St. Clair of Hardy and his brother Cabe of Fort Belvoir caught about 30 bluefish trolling spoons around Oregon Inlet. Offshore action has been fairly slow, but tuna action should start picking up in the next few weeks.

Trollers continue to pull big flounder from around the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, reported James Duval at Cobb's Marina at Little Creek inlet.