The last few years have been terrific for sheepshead fishing, and this year looks to be more of the same. Some giant sheepshead have already been caught in the lower bay and that action should peak in June. Use fiddler crabs for best results. Inshore wrecks are giving up sheepshead, tautogs and sea bass. Black drum have spread out across the lower bay and some big stripers are  being … [Read more...]

I don’t know why, but I’ve always been fascinated by yellow perch. Maybe it’s because they are beautiful or perhaps it’s because they are among the first fish to bite each spring or maybe it has to do that there is no finer eating fish that swims – I’m just a big fan. Yellow perch, sometimes called ring perch, are cousins of walleye – considered the finest eating of all freshwater fish. They … [Read more...]

The big news on the OBX (other than catching bluefin tuna from a kayak) is bluefish. Nice blues and lots of them. Capt. Reese Stecher of Beach Bum Fishing says his parties have been hammering the bluefish – some up to 5-6 pounds and more. The fish have been schooling under the birds and are hitting top water plugs. Catching these warriors on light tackle is a thrill and Capt. Stecher’s clients’ … [Read more...]

If the dogwoods have begun to blossom, the shad are in our rivers. The blooms are there and so are the shad – one of the feistiest fish fighters on the planet. It is unclear if a shad snaps at a bait because he’s hungry, or if it’s just something that gets in the way. But twitch a shad dart in the path of an American or Hickory Shad and you’ll likely have a fight on your hands. The shad are … [Read more...]

At a fishing tournament at Smith Mountain Lake last week, two anglers weighed in their catch of 5 bass totaling 36.88 pounds. That’s an average of over 7 pounds per fish. The big one went 9.49 pounds. Wow! Crappie are biting everywhere as they move shallow to spawn. Buggs, Gaston, Anna, Smith Mountain, and the Chick are all hotspots. The shad run is improving daily with warming weather and … [Read more...]

The commercial guys are like the canaries in goldmines. Their haul nets are the first signs of things to come. They are beginning to net spot and croakers, so they are on the way. It’ll be several more weeks before they bite on hook and lines, but it will happen soon. Flounder are also beginning to make their presence known off the Eastern Shore. The water temps are hovering around 50 degrees and … [Read more...]

A Lake range crappie Angler’s Landing, the marina and bait shop at Lake Orange, is open again for business - just in time for the crappie and yellow perch bite, Angler’s Landing rents jon boats and sells bait and supplies for one of the most productive lakes in Virginia. Owned and managed by the DWR, Orange gives up trophy bass in addition to channel cats, redear sunfish, walleye, … [Read more...]

Specks are biting - look out! The water temperature in the Chesapeake Bay is now 44, but rapidly rising. When it hits 50 degrees, things happen. In the meantime, speckled trout are becoming more aggressive and are no longer in danger from frigid waters. They’re biting and so are puppy drum and the cold-water-loving tautogs. To catch tautog, the flowing 3 baits are recommended. Crabs: … [Read more...]

A 3-pound crappie Buggs Island Lake, also known as Kerr Reservoir, is easily the best crappie fishing impoundment on the East Coast. Crappie experts say that you have to go to Texas to find fish as large and as plentiful. A 1-pound crappie at Buggs is a baby and 2-pounders are “ho-hum.”  At Buggs Island they catch 3 and occasionally 4-pound crappie. Now those are true slabs. In a … [Read more...]

The perch are running The snow melt has caused the James to rise 5 feet. Lakes are also experiencing muddy waters, but that hasn’t stopped the bass bite at Anna and Smith Mountain. Another 30-pound bag won a recent bass tournament which included a whopping 10-pounder. Smith Mountain tourneys are yielding 25-pound bags for 5 bass.  Buggs Island is stained but giving up some nice stripers … [Read more...]