Jacks are wild, amberjacks that is. They go wild at the end of a fishing rod. No fish alive - pound for pound - fights harder, and they are fighting fishermen right now from the wrecks off Nags Head to the towers along the Virginia Coast. The Brewer Family, Jimmie, James and Virginia (my son, grandson and granddaughter), tried their luck with amberjacks while fishing with Ace Captain Reese … [Read more...]

The rivers are low and clear, which makes things a little tougher for a smallmouth angler, but a lot easier for a carp fisherman. Yes, carp are gaining in popularity as worthy opponents and especially on a fly rod. Carp primarily feed by smell, but they will also pick up a bait if it looks good, then spit it out if it isn’t. A fly fisherman has a brief opportunity to set the hook when that … [Read more...]

  It’s been a while coming, but the flounder bite is on and catches are on the increase. Some of the larger fish are being caught by anglers jigging bucktails tagged with strip baits or Gulps near the CBBT. Captain Craig Paige, Paige II Charters has been putting his clients on the flounder as shown above. This is really the peek fishing season in Virginia. There’s a nice class of Spanish … [Read more...]

  Capt. David of the High Hopes Charters took a father and two sons on a trip and caught some nice Spanish mackerel. They also caught some ribbonfish – lots of ribbonfish, about 30 in all. After making occasional appearances, ribbonfish showed up in force last summer in Virginia waters. The ribbons are hitting spoons intended for Spanish mackerel. The ribbonfish schools hang near the … [Read more...]

They say - whoever “they” is – that if you have black snakes around, you won’t have copperheads. They are natural enemies. Better to have a harmless black snake or two than a nest of poisonous copperheads. Recently, I heard just the opposite, that copperheads and black snakes co-exist. This source said that the black snake/copperhead myth was just that – an old wives’ tale. So which is it? My … [Read more...]

(DWR photo of a 60-pound flathead)   Smallmouth Guide Brian Bodine posted a short video on Facebook that got my attention. Brian had caught a 20 pound flathead catfish on the James River with the tailfin of a smallmouth bass extending from its gullet. Despite mighty objections from the live catfish, Brian extracted the partially digested smallmouth. Brain measured and it  was a 19-inch … [Read more...]

While demand for saltwater recreation is surging, the number of charter boats available for trips is diminishing -  not because of labor shortages but because of a parts shortage for engines. As many homeowners are discovering, it is hard to get parts these days. Most come from China and that overseas highway is filled with potholes. So if you are thinking about an offshore or even a nearshore … [Read more...]

  Two new arrivals in the Chesapeake Bay have created quite a fishing stir. Spanish mackerel along with some big spadefish have made their presence known. Add to that, cobia, red and black drum, croakers, whiting, flounder, bluefish and stripers – and what’s an angler to do? Go fishing. The charter boat Knot Wish’N found lots of Spanish ready to bite while Paige II Charters put limits … [Read more...]

By Alex McCrickard, DWR Angling Education Coordinator Every spring, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) stocks channel catfish at various urban impoundments across the state. This effort is part of DWR’s FishLocalVA initiative and is aimed at creating exceptional angling opportunities in urban metropolitan areas. It’s an effort that has a lot of moving parts, from acquiring the … [Read more...]