In an effort to give everyone an equal shot, the Game Department announced it will publish several particular bodies of water in advance that will be stocked this spring, and the dates of that stocking. The exact times are not known but will likely be between 10 AM and 2 PM. Check out the streams and lakes below.
Lake Thompson (Fauquier Co.) April 17
South River – Ridgeview Park & Grottoes Park (Augusta/Rockingham Co.) March 29
Jackson River – Hidden Valley (Bath Co.) April 19
North River – Upper & Gorge (Augusta Co.) March 27
Mint Springs Lake (Albemarle Co.) March 23
Rural Retreat Pond (Wythe Co.) April 13
Barbour’s Creek (Craig Co.) March 30
Middle Fork Holston River (Smyth Co.) May 25
South Fork Powell River (Wise Co.) May 4
Roanoke River (Roanoke City) May 4
Pigg River (Franklin Co.) March 23
Liberty Lake (Bedford Co.) April 13
Saltwater Report
The best saltwater action is coming from Hatteras on the Outer Banks. Last weekend, charters offshore returned with nice catches of Blackfin and Yellowfin Tuna. There were also some big shark hook-ups. A nice Big Eye Tuna was reported out of Wanchese and a 65-inch bluefin was caught out of Oregon Inlet. No action is reported on the Carolina beaches, while a few hardy tautog fishermen scored near the CBBT.
Be patient. Spring is coming.
Freshwater
Who knows when the rivers will be fishable again? Normally, some big smallmouth are caught this time of year on rivers like the James, Shenandoah and Staunton, but this year the rivers are at or near flood stage.
At Lake Anna, the first bridges to the dam will have the clearest water, and the most baitfish concentrations. At Buggs Island, the best bet is going to be the Nutbush Creek area. At Smith Mountain, down lake areas are best.