Bill Cochran is a Roanoke Times outdoors columnist.

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Bill Cochran's Outdoors

Recent columns

• Drum fishing on Virginia’s Coast comes in two colors
• Elk advocate finally gets his day
• Turkeys are plentiful, so why are hunting regulations so tight fisted?
• Anglers say closure of the point of Cape Hatteras is for the birds
• Column archive

Bill's Mailbag

• Putting down a bear cub brings complaint
• Recommendations for Virginia’s Wild Turkey Management Plan
• Mail archive

Bill's Field Reports

• A. Willis Robertson great name for new DGIF headquarters
• Big striper smashes Optimist tournament record
• Field reports archive

Resources

• Trout stocking schedule

Most everywhere turkey hunters gather to talk, the conversation quickly turns to how weird the spring season has been. Hunters probably say much the same thing every season, but this one has, indeed, has been different. And difficult.

A common complaint is that the gobblers aren’t doing much gobbling, maybe sounding off a time or two then going mute. Success also seems to be down. The new phone-in check system has accounted for only about 4,000 birds, and the season ends Saturday.

I have heard a number of accounts of hunters killing a gobbler without hearing it sound off a single time. Spring hunts are becoming more and more akin to fall hunts. Hunters no longer can rely on the traditional spring method of hearing a tom gobble at first light then calling it in. That still happens, but many successful hunters are simply going to where they know the birds hang out and dealing with untalkative toms by stalking, ambushing, setting up blinds and decoys and calling in gobblers that don’t say a word. Some hunters have done exceptionally well using these techniques.

Even so, I look for the kill to be down, fewer than the about 14,000 killed last spring, which was a 20-percent drop from the previous season and way off the mark set by the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. But who knows? By Monday, one eastern check station had registered a record 83 turkeys.

TROPHY STRPERS DOING WELL

“Trophy Stripers are jumpin' in the boat!” That’s the word from Capt. Ferrell McLain, who runs BAYFISH Sport Fishing Charters in the Chesapeake Bay. “Most area anglers are catching their limit of 32- to 40-inch trophy stripers every day,” he said.

The fish McLain is after are holding in the area north and south of Smith Point along the western channel edge in 40 to 65 feet of water. Weather can be a challenge. Like last weekend, when there was a persistent north and northwest wind that just didn't want to stop. This wind combined with a flood tide produced some rather nasty waves.

The trophy season lasts through May 15 in Virginia waters. Starting May 16, stripers over 18 inches may be kept.

Fishing for tautogs has been excellent, especially along the Chesapeake Bay and around some of the ocean wrecks. This reflects the fact that water temperatures remain cool. The low temperatures have slowed action for certain other species, but good saltwater fishing is beginning to break out all over.

Big black drum are hitting off Cape Charles. One weighed 93-pounds, 6-ounces. Croakers are thick, especially in the river systems. Founder fishermen are reporting limits that include big fish. The hot spot is Wachapreague.

Red drum are hitting at Cape Point along the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

FRESHWATER FISHING NEWS

>The Staunton (Roanoke) River upstream from Kerr Lake contains large numbers of spawning striped bass. Officials at the Vic Thomas Hatchery in Brookneal say they spotted more fish this week than any time the past 10 years. Hatchery workers have been bringing off fry for the past four weeks and angling pressure has bee heavy. Farther down the river, in the Weldon, N.C., area, is another major spawning area where fishing has been brisk.

>While fishing the James River in the Richmond area, James Jamerson of Washington, D.C., landed a 14-pound blue catfish. A fish that size won’t get you a second look. So Jamerson kept on fishing. His next cat weighed 33 pounds. That’s a big fish, but it takes a 50-pounder to merit serious attention in the James. Jamerson’s next fish weighed 74-pounds. Now that will draw a crowd. His final fish was 80.5 pounds. That’s about one-quarter of a pound short of the river’s record. Some observers are saying Jamerson’s outing may have been the best of fishing for cats in the history of the river.

>If you look at the forest of teeth in the mouth of the gar that Fred Cousins of Richmond landed form the Chickahominy River you wonder how he landed the 16.5-pound catch on cobweb-size, 2-pound line.

>Time was when you would find striped bass in the tailrace of Kerr Dam, now it has become catfish country. The frothing water has been providing excellent catches of blue catfish up to more than 40 pounds. Imagine tangling with a cat that size in the swift water of the tailrace.

>Noted blue catfish guide Chris Harris (gottheblues.net) was guiding Bill Hilton of Shepardstown, W.Va., when something really big hit on the James River. It wasn’t the 100-pound blue cat everyone has been looking for It was something even bigger and stranger, an Atlantic sturgeon. Harris estimated that it weighed 125 pounds. It measured more than six feet and was released alive.

>The past week Briery Creek Lake produced largemouth bass that weighed 10-13, 9-8, 8-12 and 8-7 pounds. Only at this public lake near Farmville would anyone look at such catches and ask, “Wonder where the big bass are this spring?”

>Tom Pate of Hopewell had one of those memorial outings in the mountains while fishing Lake Moomaw. One day he landed nine trout while trolling, the biggest a hefty 6.33 pounds. The next day he caught three more keepers.

>Some anglers have been complaining over what they see as a downturn in the number of bass in Lake Anna. But during spring electrofishing surveys, biologists found that largemouth bass are more abundant than anytime time in recent history. Here’s a tip: The middle reservoir area is the most productive and contains what biologists say is an “incredible bass abundance along water willow beds near the splits.”

OUTDOOR BRIEFS

>There’s still time to take advantage of the Hunters for the Hungry ATV raffle. Tickets are $10 and the money will go for funding this worthy organization efforts to provide meat for the needy. Check the organization’s website for details: h4hungry.org.

>Four Virginians are scheduled to compete in the Roley/IGFA Offshore Championship May 15-21 in Cabo San Lucas Mexico. Joining anglers from 31 countries will be Buddy Sowers, Richmond, Gene DuVal, Richmond, Dave Wentling, Lanexa and Bob Kosman, Clifton.

>The NRA is urging its members to register for the June 14 primaries. The deadline is May 16. “As one of only two states holding statewide elections this year, all eyes will be on Virginia,” said an NRA spokesman. In next week’s field reports I will have information on endorsements made by the Virginia Hunting Dog Owners’ Association.

> Leonard Atkins will be signing copies of his books, including his two newest: “50 Hikes in West Virginia From the Allegheny Mountains to the Ohio River” and “Wildflowers of the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains.” Look for Leonard:

May 20, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Barnes and Noble Booksellers, Christiansburg.

May 21, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Ram’s Head Book Store, Roanoke

May 21, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Barnes and Noble Booksellers, Roanoke.

SALTWATER TOURNAMENT

The first croaker of the season has been entered in the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament, a 3-pound, 8-ounce Elizabeth River catch by Russell Owens of Virginia Beach. Here are the standings:

CROAKER: 3-pounds, 8 ounces, Russell Owens, Virginia Beach, Elizabeth River.

FLOUNDER: 11 pounds, 7 ounces, Michael Behe, Sr. Franklin, Pa. Bradford Bay area of Wachapreague.

SEA BASS: 6 pounds, 14 ounces, Chad Stoker, Chesapeake, caught off Virginia Beach.

SPECKLED TROUT: 11 pounds, 3 ounces, Brain Pomije, Chesapeake, Elizabeth River.

STRIPED BASS: 63 pounds, 8 ounces, state record, Paul Leckner, Greenbackville, Bradford Bay.

TAUTOG: 15 pounds, 10 ounces, John Scappari, Monroe Township, N.J., ocean off Eastern Shore.

MEETINGS/EVENTS/SEASONS

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s American Outdoor Experience, Bristol Motor Speedway, May 13-15, information from americanoutdoorexperience.com.

Wilderness First Aid, May 17-18, Blacksburg, an 18-hour, two-day class that results in a two-year certification, $160, registration/information from wfa.net.

Migratory Bird Festival, Mountain Lake Hotel, May 20-22, $15 single day; $30 three days, information and registration at mountainlakebirding.com.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries public meeting on hunting, fishing, nongame and boating issues, 6:30 p.m. May 23, Holiday Inn, Suffolk.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries public meeting on hunting, fishing, nongame and boating issues, 6:30 p.m. May 25, Halifax Counth High School, South Boston.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries public meeting on hunting, fishing, nongame and boating issues, 6:30 p.m. May 26, Augusta County Government Center, Verona.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries public meeting on hunting, fishing, nongame and boating issues, 6:30 p.m. May 31, Izaak Walton League Building, Centerville.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries public meeting on hunting, fishing, nongame and boating issues, 6:30 p.m. June 2, Virginia Highlands Community College, Abingdon.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries public meeting on hunting, fishing, nongame and boating issues, 6:30 p.m. June 6, DGIF headquarters, Richmond.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries public meeting on hunting, fishing, nongame and boating issues, 6:30 p.m. June 7, Northside High School, Roanoke.

Western Division of Virginia Big Game Contest, Sept. 10 and 11, Rockingham County Fairgrounds near Harrisonburg, see vpsa.org for details.

Eastern Division and state finals of Virginia Big Game Contest, Sept. 24 and 25, Southampton County Fairgrounds, Franklin, see vpsa.org for details.

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