Keith, who operates the Shad Taxi guide service, relates that he likes to concentrate his efforts in the Roanoke River arm, and the section from the dam to Hardy Bridge has been productive for him.

"This area has traditionally produced bigger fish, especially stripers over 20 pounds," he explained. "The area is also an especially good place to fish from December through early March. It has a lot of standing trees in deep water; some of the depths are between 45 and 60 feet.

"At this time of year, stripers can turn on -- or off -- at the snap of a finger. Sometimes all it takes is the water temperature rising or falling a few degrees."

Within that area, Keith said he finds fish in a number of types of places in addition to what he calls the "forests." Those locales include underwater islands, humps and points. Still, one thing trumps all forms of structure and cover.

"Stripers won't be somewhere if no baitfish are present," the guide emphasized. "Stripers don't strictly associate with structure or cover nor do they stay still for long. In their makeup, they seem to have to be on the move. Don't ever count on these fish to stay still or be in the same spot day after day. Stripers follow the baitfish and so should anglers."

HOW-TO TIPS
Wilson said that striped bass fans use a variety of fishing methods, such as drifting or slow-trolling live shad, trolling plugs and bucktail jigs, and casting topwater lures and bucktail jigs. Anglers use live shad throughout the year, trolling is most popular during the warmer months and casting topwater or shallow-running plugs is most productive during the spring at night.

One of Todd Keith's favorite tactics, especially from early December through February, is to use a 3/4-ounce Hopkins Shorty Spoon.

"During the winter months, I won't throw the spoon until I find a school of fish," Keith said. "I can't emphasize enough that during this time of year, fishermen have to use their graphs to locate schools before they can even think about fishing.

"Water temperature is also a big factor. If the temperature is on the rise, even into the upper 30s or low 40s, the fish can turn on. Once I locate a school, I will drop the spoon down into it and then begin the vertical jigging process."

Articles have been written on how to vertically jig correctly. It is a tactic that I have consistently failed to master. However, if a fisherman can learn how to keep in touch with the lure and develop the concept of the proper way to yo-yo it through a school, vertical jigging can be an extremely efficient way to entice cold-season stripers.

Some anglers like to use 5- or 6-inch soft-plastic jerkbaits at this time of year, but they must be weighed sufficiently so that they descend to the depth that a school is holding. On a previous wintertime junket to Smith Mountain, a friend and I caught our limits by alternating between jerkbaits and live shad.

On that outing, the lure and live bait both were effective, and ineffective, at various times. A good way to use the jerkbait is to attach it to a 1/2- or 3/4-ounce jighead, obviously leaving the hook exposed.

Keith will also use soft-plastic jerkbaits, especially if the fish are not holding very deep or if he witnesses surface activity. For surface activity, his favorite lures are hard-plastic jerkbaits, such as Storm Thundersticks, Cotton Cordell Jointed Red Fins and Rapala X-Raps.

Keith maintains that one way to find this surface activity is to "follow the birds." Indeed, on my trip, we observed several scattered flocks of ring-billed gulls, the most common species of gull on Smith Mountain. They typically arrive sometime in late autumn and linger until early to mid-spring. Ring-billed gulls (and their close relative the herring gull) are vicious and deadly winged predators, and they miss very little concerning what is happening on the surface of the impoundment.