The river left put-in is at a concrete ramp off Route 637 (Guard Hill Road) via Route 340. The put-in is actually on the North Fork of the Shenandoah, but this is not a bad thing for wintertime anglers after largemouths. The water flows very slowly in the North Fork through here and where the river meets the South Fork of the Shenandoah to form the Main Stem. Plenty of downed trees and shoreline wood cover hold largemouths.

Some three miles of slow, deep water exist from the put-in to the Warren Hydropower Dam. Much of this slow water is because of the power pool, but some is also because of the nature of the river in this area. To take out, you will have to motor upstream to the Riverton access point.

Well upstream on the South Fork of the Shenandoah is another power pool worth checking out for wintertime largemouths. This pool is found below the Massanutten access point, which is a river left concrete ramp off Route 615 (Egypt Bend Road) via Route 211.

I despise taking the Massanutten float for warm-weather smallmouths, but the two miles of slow-moving water between the access point and the Luray Hydropower Dam offer quality sport for cold-weather largemouths.

That's because much of the river right bank is fairly heavily wooded with plenty of downed trees and brush piles. The river left shoreline offers quite a few docks and areas where wood cover exists. John Tipton, who now lives in Christiansburg but used to dwell near the South Fork, once told me that a 10-inch worm is an outstanding bait for trophy Shenandoah power pool largemouths. Work crawlers around woody debris in 10 to 20 feet of water.

"Then you'll find the Chick's bass on dropoffs anywhere from a few feet to 20 feet deep," he explains. "And once you locate one bass, you'll find a whole lot more. Much of the time the bass on those dropoffs will relate to a deep-water bank or a ledge coming out from a bank. To further define this pattern, if the dropoffs are on an outside bend or if a feeder creek enters nearby, then you really have an ideal pattern.

"A second major wintertime pattern is a mouth of a creek, again in water anywhere from a few feet to 20-feet deep. Usually, when a creek enters another creek or the Chickahominy, a deep hole forms. A current break is also usually created. Look for the bass to be holding around that current break waiting for baitfish."

Jones also maintains that the Chickahominy has three characteristics that define it as a wintertime fishery.

First, he describes the Chick as a "dark river." The waterway is often stained and naturally has a dark bottom; those two factors help the river to retain heat and warm up faster than some bodies of water. Second, the Chick is known as a numbers fishery - hosting great numbers of largemouths in the 12- to 16-inch range. Because of that fact, anglers have more of an opportunity to score.

And, third, because the Chick has moving water, 40 degrees seems to be the magic temperature when fish can be caught. The Richmond guide explains that on other Virginia lakes and rivers, a temperature of 40 degrees often means inactive fish - but not so on this Central Virginia fishery.

Jones lists Yarmouth and Deep creeks and the Brickyard area as three prime wintertime areas. Two- to three-pound bucketmouths are likely on any given trip with five- to six-pounders possible.

Regarding lures, the Richmonder says that a 1/2-ounce lipless crankbait rates highly as it can descend deeper more quickly than many other lures. Also effective is a 1/4- to 3/4-ounce Silver Buddy. For both of these baits, the guide likes to retrieve them in an up-and-down fashion. He also will retrieve both the lipless and drop baits like crankbaits. A third choice is a 3-inch grub on a 1/4-ounce jighead. Jones swims this lure very slowly. The guide also offers this final tidbit of advice.

"In the wintertime, the tides are less important than any other time," he says. "The fish are almost always deep, and they don't move all that far even on warm days. Do try to fish, though, on either an incoming or outgoing tide. The only time that's not good is a slack tide."

For guided trips with Roger Jones, contact him at Hook, Line and Sinker: (800-597-1708). For trip planning information, contact the Richmond Metro Convention and Visitors Bureau: (888-RICHMOND); www.visit.richmond.com.

Butcher attracts bass because it contains numerous stump fields as well as plenty of deep water in the 20- to 30-foot range. Grassy Creek features a number of small, shallow tributaries that constantly pump in warmer water. Nutbush is a very wide, flat tributary and has a tendency to warm faster than other entering streams. And Eastland is on the north side of the impoundment, which means it naturally receives more sunlight.

"When the bass are out in the main channels of those tributaries and suspending in 50 to 70 feet of water, they are almost impossible to catch," explained Jones. "But after a few relatively warm days, they will move out of the main channels onto flats in 5 to 20 feet of water. At Buggs Island, a water temperature of 45 degrees seems to be the magic figure.

"Then, a good spot to fish is a long rocky point. Rocks retain heat well, and a point gives the fish the option of moving back and forth between deep water. A rocky point can become a prime place to fish if it has a few stumps on it."

The Richmonder says that as is true during all seasons on Buggs Island, a good wintertime bass will run 3 to 4 pounds and any fish over six pounds is noteworthy. At this time, the bass tend to group by size, so if, for instance, one three-pounder is caught, chances are that other fish of the same size are in the same area.

The guide employs the same three artificials that he does on Chickahominy, but on Buggs Island he adds another bait to his lineup. Jones likes the traditional 1/2- to 3/4-ounce jig and pig with a plastic trailer. This lure has the advantage of descending quickly, and its weight helps an angler detect strikes better. A retrieve can easily take a minute or more.

• Wear a life jacket at all times. A fall overboard from anything from a canoe to a bass boat could prove fatal.
• Tell someone exactly where you are going and what time you should arrive home.
• Know the dangers and symptoms of hypothermia.
• Bring raingear and a change of clothes. Return home immediately if weather conditions worsen.
• Bring a cell phone.