"The aggressive fish will be more easily caught, and this is the method I use to catch fish year round. Start on the surface with a Case Salty Sinkin' Shad in white pearl or hologram, then work the high middle column with a Case Magic Stik in pearl hologram, green pumpkin, natural or watermelon gold. The lower mid layer of the water column can be worked with a Yamamoto grub on a darter jig head. Tubes in a smoke/red flake or a green with purple flake are excellent bottom bouncing lures."

Rorrer, who hails from Patrick Springs, suggests that tubes be rigged with 2/0 hooks and internal weights from 1/16 to 1/4-ounce, depending on the current. Those choices are based on relatively clear liquid.

"With muddy situations or off color water, I tend to use noisy, wide wobbling crankbaits or large Colorado blade spinnerbaits, like those made by Butch Neal of Abingdon," said Rorrer. "A lot of anglers favor white spinnerbaits as search tools, and white buzzbaits as adrenaline baits, both for the smallmouths as well as for the smallmouth angler. Regardless of the spinnerbaits you choose, fish them slow and deep."

Frank Cox offers another approach for luring May smallies.

"I have several favorite rigs that I use with Case Hellgrammites," said Cox. "The first one is to put a hellgrammite on a 1/4-ounce Charlie Brewer slider head. This is a very snag free rig that works well around rocks, which the New has in abundance. The second one is a Carolina rig with a 1/16-ounce bullet weight attached a foot or so up the line."

The third, continues Cox, is to position the fake hellgrammite on a jighead and swim the getup through the water column. Anglers may also choose to impale this soft plastic bait on a light wire hook and free spool the offering downstream, as if they were working a live hellgrammite.

Marty Shaffner, who operates the High Country Flyshop, maintains that May means jumbo smallmouths for fly fishermen as well.

"The New River below Claytor Lake in my opinion is the greatest smallmouth fishery I've ever fished," he proclaimed. "The New is a moody river that sometimes makes you work hard for success but her rewards can be great. May is a month of transition as far as weather is concerned in the Blue Ridge Mountains, so be prepared for anything in both water and weather conditions. The fish are also transitioning in May. According to the water temps and other factors you could be fishing pre-spawn, spawning or post- spawn fish, so be versatile in your fishing techniques. Although my clients and I do a lot of spin fishing, I love to fly fish if conditions are favorable.

"Fly fishing in May can vary from great to down right tough as heck depending on water conditions. Since the river is dam controlled, you may face multiple water conditions during a day on the New. Be prepared with both a floating line and a sinking or sink tip line. I prefer a sinking shooting head for my sinking line. I like big flies so I use a fast action 8 weight rod and a quality reel with a good disc drag.

"As far as leaders, I like an 8 to 9 foot leader with the floating line and a 3 to 6 foot leader with the sinking line so your fly stays closer to the bottom. If using a sinking line, don't over weight your flies or you'll lose more than you'll keep. The New eats flies and lures. Being hung-up on rock ledges all day is frustrating but there's a fine line between getting down to where the fish are and losing every fly/lure you have."