Thursday, January 03, 2008
Wow! A 50-pound striper on a 2-pound line
Bill Cochran
Recent field reports
Dr. Julie Ball
Jim Sheffield with pending world record striped bass.
It can be challenging enough to land a 50-pound, 9-ounce striped bass on hefty tackle. But on 2-pound line? Unbelievable!
That is what Jim Sheffield of Richmond did Sunday morning, and his catch is a pending world record for 2-pound line, according to Dr. Julie Ball, an International Game Fish Association representative from Virginia Beach.
No stranger to light-tackle fishing, Sheffield, a member of the Virginia Angler’s Club, was out to break the current striper world record, which is 21 pounds, 7 ounces on 2-pound line. He didn’t just squeak by the record, “he blew it out of the water,” Ball said.
Sheffield was fishing out of Kiptopeke on the southern end of the Eastern Shore, where schools of huge stripers have been enticing anglers as the Dec. 31 season’s end approached.
The method Sheffield used was drifting an eel in less than 30 feet of water. He was fishing alone.
“When the fish took the eel at 9 a.m., he knew it was the one he was looking for,” said Ball.
The battle had its moments of high excitement. Like when a drifting Wal-Mart bag encompassed his cobweb-size line and when the line wrapped around his trim tabs and lower unit of his engine.
He followed the fish for about an hour, the last 20 minutes with only two clicks on his drag, he told Ball. When the fish turned belly up from fatigue he wrestled it into his boat.
Ball has begun the process of registering the catch for world-record status.
BILL
NEW RULES FOR ANGLERS
The New Year ushered in a number of regulation changes for anglers, the most far-reaching one requiring that once a trout is caught it must immediately be released or it becomes part of the angler’s limit. This is designed to prohibit the practice of releasing a fish from a stringer or other holding device should a larger trout be caught, a practice called culling.
In reality, culling has been frowned on in the past, but the new law helps clarify that it is an illegal practice for trout anglers.
Other new regulations:
>Establish a minimum-size limit for walleye in the Middle and South Forks of the Holston River.
>Remove the special 2-trout per day limit from Philpott Reservoir, which means the lake would revert to a 6-per day limit; however, be aware that the state no longer stocks trout in the lake.
>Allow the use of dropper flies (a second or third fly fished in a series) in special regulation streams that call for single-hook lures.
>Allow the use of multiple-hook artificial lures on the special regulations section of the Jackson River above Moomaw Lake, where single hook regulations have been enforced. The daily limit is two trout and the minimum size is 16 inches.
BILL
DGIF HOUND STUDY IN THE NEWS
For the most part, newspaper coverage of issues pertaining to the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries is relinquished to the back pages of the sports’ section, if reported at all.
But that hasn’t been the case for the DGIF the past couple years or so. Stories of misuse of state funds, firings of top officials and criminal indictments have been front page news, and the subject of comment on editorial pages.
Most recently, fodder for editorial pages has come from an ongoing study of hound hunting by the DGIF and Virginia Tech. Editorials in the Richmond Times-Dispatch and The Roanoke Times recently have embraced this subject that has pitted landowners against dog hunters and sometimes hunters against hunters.
A Richmond Times-Dispatch editorial generally was favorable to the sport of hound hunting. It said that people who move from urban to rural areas should not be surprised to find hunting with hounds. It also said that hunters need to respect landowners who don’t want to be bothered with hounds and hunters.
The Roanoke Times editorial said hunters should see the DGIF study as “the best chance to ease tensions between hound hunters and other residents,” and that hunters need to get involved in the process.
BILL
RAIN JUMP STARTS TROUT FISHING
Trout fishing on the Rose River oin Madison County received a jump start the past couple of weeks with 3 inches of badly needed rain.
“We now have deep water and good current for dead-drifting nymphs,” said Douglas Dear, who operates a pay trout fishing program on the river called Rose River Farm.
“Fishing Saturday morning, I caught a number of bruisers on nymphs and then switched over to dry flies during a late morning midge hatch and caught a bunch more,” Dear said.
“We did a full stocking with some of the most beautiful big rainbows we have ever received, he said. “These fish, on top of the many fish that were already in the river, have created ideal conditions.”
BILL
OUTDOOR BRIEFS
>>The House of Representatives has approved $150,000 for predator control in Virginia, with an eye toward dealing with a growing population of coyotes. The money is aimed at Southside and Southwest Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley. The funding is channeled through the Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).
>> A bill that would provide tougher penalties for animal fighting is being introduced in the General Assembly by Sen. W. Roscoe Reynolds, D-Martinsville. Animal-rights groups promise that they will be a greater lobby this year in the wake of the Michael Vick dog-fighting case. Look for their efforts to go beyond the dog fighting issue.
>>Legislation before Congress would drop the term “navigable waters” from the original Clean Water Act and insert the phrase “waters of the United States.” Advocates of property rights, such as Steve Henson of the Southern Appalachian Multiple-Use Council, say this would give the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authority to regulate any practice on private land that has to do with water. This includes ponds, ditches, springs and intermittent streams.
>>Hooked for Life, a Roanoke-based organization that supports Christian faith and fishing, has plans to organize a kid’s club in the Roanoke area in March. Trevor Ruble, founder and executive director said the organization had an excellent year in 2007 and now has ministries in 17 states.
>>Remington Arms of Madison , N.C., has acquired Marline Firearms of North Haven, Conn. Marlin has produced guns since the late 1800s. This acquisition also adds H&R 1871 single-shot rifles and L.C. Smith shotguns to the Remington line.
BILL
VIRGINIA SALTWATER TOURNAMENT
The standings of the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament:
BLACK DRUM: 95 pounds caught by James Tran of Virginia Beach in Lynnhaven Bay.
BLUEFISH: 21 pounds, 5 ounces, Julie Ball, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
BLUELINE TILEFISH: 20 pound, 7 ounce, Robert Holtz, Virginia Beach, ocean off Virginia Beach.
COBIA: 99 pounds, 8 ounces, Richard Norman, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Coast.
CROAKER: 8 pounds, 11 ounces, Norman Jenkins, Portsmouth, off New Port Light.
DOLPHIN: 53 pounds, 9 ounces, Greg Welch, Charlotte, N.C., ocean off Virginia Beach.
FLOUNDER: 13 pounds, 7 ounces, Dennis Curcio, Philadelphia, Pa., lower eastern Chesapeake Bay.
GRAY TRIGGERFISH: 4 pounds, 10 ounces, Geoffrey Filer, Chesapeake, ocean off Virginia Beach.
GRAY TROUT: 9 pounds, 9 ounces, Claude Shifflett III, Chesapeake, off Virginia Beach.
KING MACKEREL: 63 pounds, 1 ounce, state record, Susan Smith, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
KINGFISH: 2 pound, 2 ounces, Ben Justis, Parsley, Bradford Bay.
POMPANO: 3 pounds, 5 ounces, Shane Walker, Virginia Beach, lower western Chesapeake Bay.
SEA BASS: 7 pounds, 7 ounces, David Howard, Leesburg, ocean off Virginia Beach.
SHEEPSHEAD: 14 pounds, 8 ounces, Harry Garrett, Newport News, lower-eastern Chesapeake Bay.
SPADEFISH: 14 pounds, Mark Ottarson, North, lower-western Chesapeake Bay.
SPANISH MACKEREL: 6 pounds, 13 ounces, Emmett Boyd, Jr., Charles Town, W.VA. upper-western Chesapeake Bay.
SPECKLED TROUT: 14 pounds, 2 ounces, Michael Whittaker, Chesapeake, Elizabeth River.
SPOT: 1 pound, 14 ounce, Lawrence Tanksley, Chesapeake, off Virginia Beach.
STRIPED BASS: 67 pounds, 6 ounce, Donald Riesgraf, Cross Junction, lower-eastern Chesapeake Bay.
SWORDFISH; 233 pounds, Walter Clark, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
TAUTOG: 22 pounds, 2 ounce, Lester Johnson, Newport News, off Virginia Beach.
TRUE ALBACORE: 53 pounds, George Wilkinson, Edgewater, Md., off Virginia Beach.
BLUEFIN TUNA: 573 pound state record, Bo Haycox, Virginia Beach, off Virginia Beach.
TUNA: 241 pounds, Eric Kuester, Ashland, off Virginia Beach.
WAHOO: 96 pounds, Robert Manus, off Virginia Beach.
MEETINGS/EVENTS/SEASONS
Smith Mountain Striper Club meeting, Jan. 4, 7 p.m., Moneta Community Center, program on fish finders by Gregg Brown of Sportsman’s Warehouse.
Mid-Atlantic Rockfish Shootout, Jan. 10-12, Virginia Beach, entry fee $499 per team, $100,000 guaranteed payout based on 175 teams, MidAtlanticRockfishShootout.com.
Mac Events Boat Show, Jan. 11-13, Greater Richmond Convention Center, information from MacEvents.com.
Reopening of western zone Canada goose season, Jan. 15-Feb. 15.
Virginia Boat Show, Jan. 18-20, The Showplace, Richmond, information from agievents.com.
Mid-Atlantic Boat Show, Virginia Beach Convention Center, Jan. 19-27, vaboatshow.com.
Board meeting of Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, 9 a.m., Jan. 22, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond.
Richmond Fishing Expo, Jan. 25-27, Richmond Raceway Complex, www.RICHMONDFISHINGEXPO.com.
Meeting of Smith Mountain Striper Club, Feb. 1, 7 p.m., Moneta Community Center, speaker Stu Tinney on the art of the jig.
Fredericksburg Outdoor Show, Fredericksburg Expo Center, Feb. 8-10 Info@woodsandwatersmagazine.com.
Richmond Boat Show, Feb. 14-17, Richmond Raceway Complex, information from agievents.com.
Western Virginia Sport Show, Feb. 15-17, Augusta Expoland, Fisherville, westernvasportshow.com
The Greater Virginia Sports and Big Game Show, Feb. 15-17, 2008, Rockingham County Fairgrounds, Harrisonburg, vasportsshow.com.
The Virginia Outdoor Sportsmen’s Classic, Feb. 22-24, Roanoke Civic Center, vaoutdoorsportsmensclassic.com.
Dixie Deer Classic, Feb. 28-March 2, North Carolina State Fairgorounds, Raleigh, dixiedeerclassic.org.
National Capital Boat Show, March 7-9, Dulles Expo Center, information from agievents.com.
Smith Mountain Striper Club meeting, April 4, 7 p.m., Moneta Community Center, program by Dan Wilson, Department of Game and Inland Fisheries biologist.
Youth spring gobbler day, April 5
Spring gobbler season, April 12-May 17.
Seventh Annual David H. Horne Memorial Hunters for the Hungry Golf Tournament, May 7, Birkdale Golf Course, Richmond, contact Braxton Bell, 804-739-3010.
Twenty-fifth annual Bluefish Derby, June 13 & 14, Reedville, information from Jett’s Hardware, 804-453-5325.
Roanoke Valley Friends of NRA banquet, Oct. 18.
Got an event? Let us know: xtrails@earthlink.net.
