By Peter Brookes When late February rolls around, most anglers have had about as much of being stuck indoors and away from their favorite fishing hole as they can stand. “Cabin fever” among anglers ranks right up there with the flu as an unwelcome winter illness. This year’s bone-chilling polar vortex only made it worse. But letting cabin fever get to you isn’t the answer. Instead, put on … [Read more...]

Not Bengal Tigers. Tiger trout. They are now lurking in Virginia trout waters and if you are a minnow or a stone fly, you’re in trouble. They are vicious predators. According to the DWR, a tiger trout is a sterile hybrid created with a female brown trout and a male brook trout. Although rarely, tiger trout do occur in the wild where both wild brown trout and wild brook trout occur. Tiger trout … [Read more...]

  It’s slow going on the saltwater scene. Bay water temps have plunged into the 30’s, but so far, so good. No fish kills have yet been reported because of cold water. A few speckled trout are biting as they can tolerate the cold water better than most species. Some puppy drum have also bundled up and are hitting. Some very nice sized specks are being tugged out of the Elizabeth River … [Read more...]

When I found out that my daughter Laura had rented a cabin in the western corner of Virginia and wanted to trout fish, I had one piece of advice. If it’s near Whitetop Laurel, fish there. It’s Virginia’s finest trout stream. Period. Whitetop Laurel Creek is in Washington County and runs through the small town of Damascus. It is the longest trout stream in Virginia and one of the richest … [Read more...]

  Skates and dogfish. That’s what will be biting in the surf for the next couple months, not a very exciting forecast. Skates, yikes! What exactly is a skate? Is it a sting ray or what? Though similar in many regards, skates and rays are two different creatures. Both are cartilaginous fish, meaning – like the sharks – they don’t have bones, but rather cartilage. Also, they don’t have … [Read more...]

  One day, a rather inebriated ice fisherman drilled a hole in the ice. He peered into the hole and a loud voice said, "There are no fish down there." He walked several yards away and drilled another hole and peered into the hole and again the voice said, "There are no fish down there." He then walked about 50 yards away and drilled another hole and again the voice said, "There are … [Read more...]

An 8-pound 9-ounce Atlantic tripletail caught on July 14, 2021 by Hayden Head of Yorktown has been certified as the initial Virginia State Record for the species by the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament. The record-setting tripletail measured 23 inches and had an18.5-inch girth. Hayden, his dad and four other anglers were primarily searching for cobia but spotted the fish hanging below a … [Read more...]

  That’s the Virginia rockfish season, and it’s almost gone. Virginia’s striper season ends next Friday, New Year’s Eve. December 31st. After that, it’s all catch and release. The Bay water temp at the CBBT is now 50 degrees and most of the large rockfish are being caught on the east side of the Bay. Some are coming from areas near the mouths of the Rappahannock and Potomac rivers, and … [Read more...]