While we were interviewing the fisheries team in the region, we also spoke to Scott Herrmann. Herrmann pointed out that Chickahominy Lake has turned out to be a great prospect for anglers over the past year with things looking to be at least as good for this year. He surveyed the lake last March and averaged 82.33 bass per hour. That is the highest catch rate VDGIF has had on the lake and that figure doubled the 2006 survey. After taking a closer look at the fish sampled, Herrmann found that he had an abundance of bass in the 2- to 4-pound range and some in the 4- to 5-pound range. His largest specimen weighed just less than 7 pounds and measured just shy of a citation length of 22 inches.

Anglers who fish the lake know that there are plenty of baitfish and bluegills for the bass to feed upon. The larger bass swipe a gizzard shad or herring when they feel the urge. Anglers who use artificial lures can mimic baitfish to improve their catches.

Herrmann had a few tips for visiting anglers.

“The action warms up quickly on the northern arms of Johnston and Lacey creeks. The majority of the bass we found were staging along the deeper edges of these creeks. It appears that the bass prefer to hold along the cypress trees instead of the shallow flats. The cypress trees provide better habitat for bass in terms of building a spawning nest. Chickahominy Lake has several small creek arms that will warm up fast during the early spring.”

This is valuable information for anglers and will cut down on the time they spend casting and looking for fish. Herrmann also pointed out that the near future looks good for bass fishing at Chickahominy Lake. There are plenty of 10- to 14-inch fish that will move into the preferred catch size in the next year or so.

Bass fishermen should also be aware that the lock on Walker’s Dam failed last spring. The lake at press time was subject to tidal fluctuations of a foot or so and is down 3 feet from full pool at low tide. Herrmann told us that Newport News has begun to repair the problem and with luck, the lake will be back to full pool by the time this issue goes to print.

SOUTHERN PIEDMONT
When we traveled to the southern Piedmont, we had a number of lakes to choose from for our annual roundup. We first spoke to Dan Wilson, who works the western portion of the region. We asked about Smith Mountain Lake, as it is a popular destination for bass anglers. The mammoth 20,600-acre lake can be tough to fish because it is so clear, but there are great bass angling opportunities at the lake.

According to Wilson, the bass numbers at Smith Mountain have been increasing since 1994 and fishing was better this past season than the previous few years. Successful spawns in 2003 have contributed to a number of fish over 13 inches. Fishing pressure has dropped some at Smith Mountain, but that has been the case at other large reservoirs as well.

A look at the data from sampling at Smith Mountain shows a good size distribution of bass: 32.4 percent of the bass were between 8 and 13 inches, 35.7 percent were between 13 and 16 inches and 30.5 percent were between 16 and 19 inches.

Be sure to fish tributaries and coves for bass in the early spring. Boat docks in shallow water offer spawning areas for bass and can be fished effectively with accurate casts. Move quietly and slowly to avoid spooking bass.

Farther east, the bass angling tends to focus on three other reservoirs. Buggs Island is famous as a fishing destination and offers good bass angling. Vic Dicenzo is the fisheries biologist who is responsible for this wide swath of Virginia. Dicenzo is very enthusiastic about his work and has plenty of data about the top three lakes in his region.

At Buggs Island, the average size largemouth is a solid 14 inches, with a number of 3- to 5-pound fish. Buggs is 55 years old and has topped out as a bass fishery -- but it is incredibly stable. The catch rate for bass at Buggs is about one for every three hours of fishing. The bass at Buggs Island feed primarily on alewives and shad, so anglers should key lures in that coloration. Dicenzo offered a tip about Buggs that will be useful.

“Buggs is big enough that several tournaments may be occurring on any given day. Sometimes this overwhelms anglers and when they look at a map of the lake, they study it too much and spend so much time running all over. My advice is to pick a creek or a tributary, stick with it, and learn it. Then slowly add more water to your knowledge base.”