HRTownSquare.com http://www.dailypress2.com/forums This is a discussion forum about the Hampton Roads, Virginia area, powered by vBulletin. To find out about vBulletin, go to http://www.vbulletin.com/ . en Thu, 17 May 2012 15:17:09 GMT vBulletin 60 http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/images/misc/rss.jpg HRTownSquare.com http://www.dailypress2.com/forums The Williamsburg Farmers Market is in Merchants Square every Saturday through Oc http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36552&goto=newpost Wed, 16 May 2012 15:18:17 GMT Buy fresh, locally produced goods from the Williamsburg Farmers Market (http://www.williamsburgfarmersmarket.com). Over 35 vendors will bring cut... Buy fresh, locally produced goods from the Williamsburg Farmers Market. Over 35 vendors will bring cut flowers, spring produce, mushrooms, goats milk soap, crabmeat, cheese, artisan chocolate, and honey. High Country will play from 9 am until 11 am. Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center will have presentation at the Chefs Tent at 9:30 am and 10:30 am. ]]> Calendar Events Williamsburg Farmers Market http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36552 <![CDATA[Fish News from the Peninsula Salt Water Sport Fisherman's Association]]> http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36551&goto=newpost Wed, 16 May 2012 02:40:37 GMT We have two new arrivals to our waters. Both cobia and Spanish mackerel have been caught. It is a bit early for both. It will probably be a couple... We have two new arrivals to our waters. Both cobia and Spanish mackerel have been caught. It is a bit early for both. It will probably be a couple more weeks before the bite becomes more consistent but more anglers will be out looking for them now that first ones have been caught. When conditions have been right, sight fishing for cobia has been good out of the Outer Banks. Both red and black drum continue to be caught. Red drum are being caught in the surf of Virginia’s barrier islands and on the shoals at the mouth of the bay. Black drum are being caught in the “Cabbage Patch” area. Groups of boats fishing for them can be found near buoys 16, 13 and 10. Some nice sea mullet are being caught in these same areas. That is good if you want to catch some sea mullet. It is not so good if you are trying to keep clam on the hook for a black drum. A couple of other fisheries are opening up due to regulations. Sea bass is open as of the 19th of May which opens up our wreck fishery that has been shut down due to both the sea bass and tautog seasons being closed. Striped bass has opened up some more with the start of Virginia’s Bay Spring Season. May 16 through June 15, you are allowed to keep two striped bass per person from 18 to 28 inches long. One of your fish may be 32 inches or larger. Striped bass can be found at all of the areas bridges and small striped bass can be found up on the flats around the grass beds. Some nice croaker are being caught up in the rivers. Big speckled trout continue to be caught in the rivers of the Mobjack Bay. Flounder action picked up a bit this past week with some nice catches coming from the western side of the bay. Offshore fishing was very good this past week with boats from Virginia Beach and Oregon Inlet meeting around the 41700-800 and making some great catches of yellowfin tuna. Some boats limited out. There were also a few bigeyes caught by the fleets. The inpressive run of gaffer dolphin continues out of Hatteras.

On May 21, I will be at the meeting of the Bull Island Anglers Club. There, we will be talking about wreck fishing.

If you missed the Virginia Striped Bass episode of George Poveromo’s World of Saltwater Fishing, you will have another chance to see it. Note the date change (originally scheduled to air in May) Encore Performances: Saturday, June 2 – 11:00 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time). www.georgepoveromo.com

The very popular Flounder Bowl will be held on June 30. It will be headquartered at Dare Marina again this year. www.pswsfa.com/FlounderBowl_12.htm

A couple of weeks after the Flounder Bowl, there will be another flounder tournament that many of our club members fish each year. The Gloucester Boys & Girls Club Flounder Tournament will be held on July 14. www.secureonlinegiving.com/events/site/index.asp?eventID=866

May 12, David Brabrand fished out of Hatteras. They came in with a load of dolphin up to 26 pounds.

May 12, Ric Burnley fished out of Oregon Inlet. They limited out on yellowfin tuna.

May 12, I went drum fishing in the evening with Charles Southall. Slow except for a quadruple bite. There were 4 anglers...perfect, almost. I was the only one that did not stay tight so I got to be net man and photographer. Larry Horne and Charles Southall each caught blacks. Hunter Southall caught a red. That was it for us. Quit about 11 pm.

May 12, Steve Martin fished the mouth of Back River for flounder for a bit. They caught a half-dozen flatfish. They then ran over to buoy 10 where the caught 2 black drum and called it a day.

May 12, Wes Blow fished the buoy 10 area for drum. He caught 2 black drum and 3 red drum plus he missed a couple of other drum bites.

May 11, Capt. Rick Wineman fished close to Fisherman’s Island. They caught 4 black drum to 46.5 inches long.

May 11, Bill Pettigrew fished out of Oregon Inlet. They caught 21 yellowfin tuna.

May 8, Wes Blow went back out and spent most of the night fishing for drum. They caught 3 big reds to 47 inches long.

May 6, Wes Blow fished the buoy 10 area in some rough conditions. He caught two red drum, both 45 inches long. He moved over to buoy 13 and did not have a bite there.

May 6, Capt. Rick Wineman fished Fisherman’s Island in some very rough surf. They caught 3 big red drum to 53 inches long.

May 5, we spent the night at Fisherman’s Island. We caught 7 red drum to 48.5 inches long. Three of the fish were long enough for citations.

May 5, Danny Forehand spent the night at Fisherman’s Island. They caught 4 big red drum.

May 5, Phillip Neill fished 9-Foot-Shoal. The last I spoke to him, they had caught two red drum and one black drum.

May 5, George Wojcik has not had luck on the flats with speckled trout. He went to the HRBT with Eric Wynings where they released striped bass to 27 inches. They also caught plenty of small bluefish. They then fished for flounder, tagging and releasing 18 flounder. They brought the 19th home with them.

May 5, Michael Hurst caught some pretty speckled trout in one of the rivers of the Mobjack Bay.

May 4, Capt. Rick Wineman fished Fisherman’s Island. They caught 10 big red drum to 51 inches long.

May 4, Steve Martin fished for flounder out of Oyster. They did not catch a single flatfish.

May 3, Hunter Southall fished Poquoson Flats. They did not find any speckled trout or puppy drum. They did find small striped bass in the 18 to 20 inch range.

May 2, Wes Blow fished buoy 10 after big seas made him leave Fisherman’s Island Inlet. He caught a 44-inch red drum. He caught the fish on a clam.

April 28, the Peninsula Salt Water Sport Fisherman's Association chartered the Miss Hatteras. It rained on and off all day, it was rough, the fishing was not good, and some of our best catches had to be released due to regulations. We had fun anyway. We are a fishing club. We have our own boats and mostly fish with our own regular crews within the club. We have social functions on land but none of us have a boat large enough to get a big group of us out on the water together. Chartering the Miss Hatteras lets us have a club meeting while fishing with some people we don't normally fish with. Capt. Spurgeon Stowe is a great guy to fish with and his hard-working mates do everything they can to make sure you have a good trip. We never got on a really hot spot but we did manage to catch some fish. Charles Southall brought a high-speed trolling set up for use when running between spots. It got hit a few times and he had something substantial (we think wahoo) on for a bit before the hook pulled. The largest fish of the day was caught by Bill Tice. He got a big sandtiger up the boat. Impressive looking beast. We caught some nice red snapper and sea bass that had to be released due to closed seasons. Probably the best fish brought back to the dock was a gag grouper caught by Martin Freed. Some pretty triggerfish were caught. The big fish pot was won by a jack of some sort.

April 27, Capt. Rick Wineman fished Fisherman’s Island. They caught and released a 50.5 inch red drum.

April 21, I ran over to Fisherman’s Island for a few hours to fish for red drum. The closest I got was a crab bitten in half. Ric and Roger Burnley fished there earlier in the day and caught a big red drum.

April 20, Charles Southall, Danny Forehand, and Brandon Bartlett all fished Fisherman’s Island in different boats. Danny and Brandon each caught a large red drum. Charles did not have any bites.

April 20, Lee Williams fished Fisherman’s Island in his kayak. They ran into large striped bass catching fish up to 43 inches long.

April 15, Capt. Rick Wineman gave the red drum another try at Fisherman’s Island Inlet without any luck.

April 13-14, Friday, after work, I went out after red drum with Charles Southall. We fished until about mid-night without a bite. The next morning, we did some maintenance on my boat and then took all those crabs that the drum did not eat and tried for tautog on the Winthrop. We caught 25 tautog. The largest was 18 inches long. We tagged and released most of them. We caught 2 togs that already had tags in them. While we were fishing, we were getting reports from Ric Burnley on the drum grounds. As of his last report, no drum. With the tog season closing, we will be after the drum a bunch now.

April 13, Martin Freed and Ruta Vaskys fished for tautog in the bay. They had a good bite on the outgoing tide but then the bite shut off. They caught 11 tautog up to 20 inches long.

April 9, we went after tautog again. It was a slow day for us at the Triangles. We did catch some nice sea bass that we had to release and a few tautog. We briefly stopped on the Santore on the way in. That was our best wreck of the day but in total, we only caught 11 tautog. None were large. We came in early as Bernie Sparrer had to go to work. If he was late, it was because he would not stop fishing...not because the rest of us would not bring him in.

April 8, we had 5 boats fish for red drum around Fisherman’s Island. Rick Wineman, Steve Martin, Charles Southall, and Wes Blow did not catch any. Steve Martin did catch a nice flounder at the mouth of Back River prior to making the run to the drum grounds. Ric Burnley was the one boat with drum success. They caught 4 big red drum.

April 7, Capt. Rick Wineman made his first drum trip of the year. They went to Fisherman’s Island and caught two big red drum at 46 and 47 inches.

April 3, I met Wes and Hunter at Messick for my first trip in Wes' new boat. Stiff breeze at the ramp. We went anyway. Big chop in the bay, we kept going anyway. Fisherman's Island Inlet was all messed up with a confused surf with wind and current opposite of each other. We tried to fish anyway, for a little bit. Sitting side-to in those big waves was not fun. Lines got all tangled up, nothing would sit right. Caught a dog shark and a big spider crab that was tangled in about 3 lines. We quit and made the long run back. By the time we got back, there was not a breath of wind. We picked the one rough time of the whole day to try and fish. I think this is about the 4th similar trip on Wes' new boat. He needs a good one soon or he may have to go get another boat.

April 1, Martin Freed and Ruta Vaskys fished up in the bay for tautog. It was very slow until 5:30 pm when it turned on. In an hour and a half, they caught 23 tautog, mostly keepers, up to 22.5 inches long.

www.pswsfa.com ]]> Fishing Spot Ken Neill http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36551 <![CDATA[Lincoln and Citizens' Rights During the Civil War]]> http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36550&goto=newpost Tue, 15 May 2012 21:41:31 GMT How much power should a president have over civil rights during wartime? A modern quandary, but one not unknown in the past. During the Civil War... How much power should a president have over civil rights during wartime? A modern quandary, but one not unknown in the past. During the Civil War Abraham Lincoln used the military to arrest and try thousands of American citizens who were suspected of disloyalty or of aiding the Confederate war effort. Jonathan W. White, assistant professor of American Studies at Christopher Newport University, will discuss the rights of citizens during the Civil War in a free program Tuesday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m. in the Kitzinger Community Room of the James City County Library, 7770 Croaker Rd. The program is free of charge thanks to a grant from Friends of Williamsburg Regional Library and is presented as part of the programming associated with the traveling exhibit, “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War.” For more information visit http://wrl.org/Lincoln or call Program Services at 259-4070.

Professor White is the author of “Abraham Lincoln and Treason in the Civil War: The Trials of John Merryman” (LSU Press, 2011). His talk will explore Lincoln's various internal security policies and discuss several perennially controversial legal and constitutional issues in American history, including the nature and extent of presidential war powers, the development of national policies for dealing with disloyalty and treason, and the protection of civil liberties in wartime.

“Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War,” a national traveling exhibition at the James City County Library from May 17 through July 13, focuses on Abraham Lincoln’s struggle to meet the constitutional challenges of the Civil War. The exhibit is organized by the National Constitution Center and the American Library Association Public Programs Office with the help of a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: great ideas brought to life. The traveling exhibition is based on an exhibition of the same name developed by the National Constitution Center. ]]> Calendar Events Library_Programs http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36550 BSA Flags for Vets Program http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36549&goto=newpost Tue, 15 May 2012 18:25:21 GMT Scouts Honor Veterans on Memorial Day Boy, Girl and Cub Scouts will converge on Gloucester Moose lodge Saturday, May 26th. Their mission: to find... Scouts Honor Veterans on Memorial Day
Boy, Girl and Cub Scouts will converge on Gloucester Moose lodge Saturday, May 26th. Their mission: to find and decorate every identifiable veteran’s grave in Gloucester County and neighboring communities. Scouts and volunteers will receive American stick flags with which to decorate graves and head out from the Moose Lodge to their cemetery assignments after a brief opening ceremony. In doing so, they honor the true tradition of Memorial Day, that in various forms dates back to the Civil War – decorating veteran’s graves.
In past years with the support and coordination of 11 Boy/Cub/Girl Scout units, local veteran associations such as the Marine Corps League, Disabled American Veterans, Veterans of Foreign Wars, American Legion, and volunteers from the community, the group has found over 1,300 veterans’ graves in over 60 cemeteries scattered all over the County, as well as a few cemeteries in Mathews. They’ve decorated veterans’ graves from almost every war and conflict in which the US has participated from the Revolutionary War to the current Global War on Terrorism. On its third anniversary of the event, the group hopes to do that again this year.
Registration starts at 0800, May 26th at the Gloucester Moose lodge with a brief opening ceremony at 0900. For more information, check out www.bsaflags4vets.info. ]]> Community Groups terme http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36549 Go Green Expo Vendor and Exhibitor Call http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36548&goto=newpost Tue, 15 May 2012 12:33:17 GMT Calling all eco-friendly vendors, exhibitors, non-profit & health and fitness organizations, crafters, entertainers, and farmer’s market producers, to Go Green Expo, Hampton Roads Premier Indoor Festival held at Brittingham-Midtown Community Center, 570 McLawhorne Dr., Newport News, Virginia.

This event is sponsored by the Virginia Cooperative Extension Newport News Master Gardeners Association.

Go Green Expo is a one day event for consumers and business leaders featuring eco-friendly products, interesting and educational speakers, and easy ideas for eco-living, no matter what your shade of green. Go Green Expo focuses on going green, by making simple green changes for everyone.

This annual expo is free to the public and had more than 400 attendees last year. An even larger group is expected to enjoy this year’s anticipated 70+ exhibits, vendors, guest speakers, rain barrel workshops, hands-on demonstrations, fitness demos, children’s crafts, farmer’s market, pumpkin patch, and live music in addition to a bake sale hosted by the Newport News Master Gardeners. The day will be filled with fun and educational events for the entire family, and your organization will be introduced to numerous new clients. You certainly will not want to miss any of it. We also will provide free advertising for your organization by including a link to your website on the Newport News VCE website.

A small fee of $25.00 is charged per space for vendors selling items. Non-profit and information only organizations are free of charge. Only one vendor per direct sales company such as Mary Kaye, Pampered Chef, Shaklee, etc. is accepted.

Sponsorship opportunities are available to those whose business or organization is not able to attend, but would still like to be a part of Go Green Expo and its mission.

We invite you to participate in this exciting event to support our mission. Exhibitor/Vendor Agreements are due by August 1st. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

For more information:
Newport News Extension Office
757-591-4838
www.nnmastergardeners.org ]]> NNMGPublicity http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36548 No Mercy! http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36547&goto=newpost Tue, 15 May 2012 12:32:32 GMT Last night there was a big commotion in my back yard. An outsider juvenile Bald Eagle tried to hang out and the resident Eagles wanted nothing to do... Last night there was a big commotion in my back yard. An outsider juvenile Bald Eagle tried to hang out and the resident Eagles wanted nothing to do with him. They had no mercy and dive bombed him relentlessly making contact a couple of times. The outsider finally gave in and flew off. It was another sight to see! They were pretty far off so the pictures are not too clear.















]]> Fishing Spot Jet Ski Brian http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36547 Go Green Expo Vendor and Exhibitor Call http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36546&goto=newpost Tue, 15 May 2012 12:31:07 GMT Calling all eco-friendly vendors, exhibitors, non-profit & health and fitness organizations, crafters, entertainers, and farmer’s market producers, to Go Green Expo, Hampton Roads Premier Indoor Festival held at Brittingham-Midtown Community Center, 570 McLawhorne Dr., Newport News, Virginia.
This event is sponsored by the Virginia Cooperative Extension Newport News Master Gardeners Association.

Go Green Expo is a one day event for consumers and business leaders featuring eco-friendly products, interesting and educational speakers, and easy ideas for eco-living, no matter what your shade of green. Go Green Expo focuses on going green, by making simple green changes for everyone.

This annual expo is free to the public and had more than 400 attendees last year. An even larger group is expected to enjoy this year’s anticipated 70+ exhibits, vendors, guest speakers, rain barrel workshops, hands-on demonstrations, fitness demos, children’s crafts, farmer’s market, pumpkin patch, and live music in addition to a bake sale hosted by the Newport News Master Gardeners. The day will be filled with fun and educational events for the entire family, and your organization will be introduced to numerous new clients. You certainly will not want to miss any of it. We also will provide free advertising for your organization by including a link to your website on the Newport News VCE website.

A small fee of $25.00 is charged per space for vendors selling items. Non-profit and information only organizations are free of charge. Only one vendor per direct sales company such as Mary Kaye, Pampered Chef, Shaklee, etc. is accepted.

Sponsorship opportunities are available to those whose business or organization is not able to attend, but would still like to be a part of Go Green Expo and its mission.

We invite you to participate in this exciting event to support our mission. Exhibitor/Vendor Agreements are due by August 1st. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

For more information:
Newport News Extension Office
757-591-4838
www.nnmastergardeners.org
Attached Images
File Type: jpg GoGreenlogo-colored-1_small.jpg (35.9 KB)
]]> Community Groups NNMGPublicity http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36546 Chum Line http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36545&goto=newpost Mon, 14 May 2012 23:52:29 GMT http://www.pswsfa.com/chum.pdf http://www.pswsfa.com/chum.pdf ]]> Fishing Spot Ken Neill http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36545 Sibling Rivalry http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36544&goto=newpost Mon, 14 May 2012 12:20:29 GMT The two juvenile bald eagles have been flying and hanging around the trees along the waterfront of my back yard. When one of the adult eagles show up... The two juvenile bald eagles have been flying and hanging around the trees along the waterfront of my back yard. When one of the adult eagles show up with some fish all hell breaks loose as the two of them vie for a piece. It is really cool to watch, one of them is the momma's boy and the other is more aggressive. Here are a couple pictures of the aggressive one stealing lunch yesterday. They were in a tree that is far off of my back deck so I could not get a very good clear picture.















]]> Fishing Spot Jet Ski Brian http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36544 Jet SkiHatteras Pullage http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36543&goto=newpost Sun, 13 May 2012 14:54:20 GMT I wanted to take my second fish rigged 2012 Yamaha FXHO (my wife's) on it maiden trip this weekend. So why not chance it and take it offshore the first time!
Todd met me at my house on friday after work and we loaded up my ski on his double trailer. After we took our wives out to dinner we hit the road and got to Hatteras North Carolina after midnight. We got a room at the Breakwater Inn and managed a couple hours of sleep before getting up at 0430.
There was a good crowd of boats putting in at Teach's Lair but not crazy. The weather was an 11 on a scale of 10, near flat seas, 5 mph to zero winds and sunny skies with temps in the mid 70's. This allowed us to run at speeds up to 50 mph all day long.
Being that I had zero hours or minutes on the new ski, I did not want to go too far out. We opted for a couple of wrecks about 20 miles offshore to try for some Amberjacks and bottom fishing. We were not let down jigging up several nice jacks. We also caught several Sea Bass and some Triggerfish. The Jacks were pretty thick and relentless, several times they went for the sea bass as we were reeling them in. Had a couple of buddies from Poquoson show up and get into some jigging, they had just came from the Rockpile and caught some nice Mahi.
We left the wreck around 1230 to go back inshore and look for some cobia. Saw a couple cobia under sea turtles and on the surface but they were small and not willing to bite. I did see one nice cobia being caught in the shoals around the point late in the afternoon.
It was a phenomenal first trip, I covered almost ninety miles and burned about 16 gallons putting the first five hours on the engine. Everything ran and operated well. We were on the water 9 hours. Made it back to Poquoson at 9pm last night after the 3 1/2 drive.
Here are some pictures I took while out.































]]> Fishing Spot Jet Ski Brian http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36543 Drum Last Night http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36542&goto=newpost Sun, 13 May 2012 14:07:19 GMT We went drum fishing yesterday evening. Slow except for a quadruple bite. There were 4 anglers...perfect, almost. I was the only one that did not... We went drum fishing yesterday evening. Slow except for a quadruple bite. There were 4 anglers...perfect, almost. I was the only one that did not stay tight so I got to be netman and photographer. Larry Horne and Charles Southall each caught blacks. Hunter Southall caught a red. That was it for us. Quit about 11 pm. We had Wes Blow on one side of us. Last report was 2 reds and 2 blacks for him. He was still fishing when we left. Steve Martin was anchored on the other side of us (after catching a half-dozen or so flounder) near Back River. They caught 2 blacks. We were in the buoy 10 area. Other boats around us were doing the same, a few drum, mixed colors.

]]> Fishing Spot Ken Neill http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36542 <![CDATA[Dr. Julie Ball's Virginia Beach Sportfishing Rundown]]> http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36541&goto=newpost Sun, 13 May 2012 12:30:20 GMT *Virginia Beach Sportfishing Rundown By Dr. Julie Ball IGFA Representative, Virginia Beach www.drjball.com www.igfa.org Mother’s Day Report 11 May... Virginia Beach Sportfishing Rundown
By Dr. Julie Ball
IGFA Representative, Virginia Beach

www.drjball.com
www.igfa.org

Mother’s Day Report
11 May 2012
A brief break in the weather last weekend allowed boats to get out on the water. The fishing results were mixed, but the best inshore action came from the eastern side of the Bay where drum and flounder stepped up to the plate.

The drum scene is still heating up, with an escalation in black drum activity within Bay waters adding to the momentum this week. According to the folks at Chris’ Bait and Tackle, the larger black drum are now beginning to show in their usual haunts along the Bayside area of the Eastern Shore. Blacks pushing to over 46-inches are taking chowder and sea clams between buoys 13 and 16 along Latimer Shoal and near Nautilus Shoal. This black drum action should continue to improve over the next week or so, providing plenty of opportunities to enter Chris’ Individual Black Drum Tournament, which runs May 1st-31st (www.chrisbait.com).

Big red drum are still patrolling the breakers off of Smith and Fisherman’s Island, with the incoming tide providing the best results lately. Surf anglers are still faring very well on the reds from Smith and Myrtle Islands, with good sized striped bass to over 41-inches also taking offerings. The red drum action is also picking up along the Nine-foot shoal area, especially in the evenings. Both peelers and blue crabs are working well, but bunker will also get the job done.

The Bay’s Spring Trophy Striped Bass season is going well, but be sure to check the regulations closely and note that these fish must be reported. Anglers are experiencing excellent striper action all over the lower Bay when they can get out. Top water action is the most popular method to entice fish exceeding the current 32-inch minimum size requirement, especially along the pilings and islands of the CBBT and the HRBT at dawn. Boats are also reporting catches of rockfish while bottom fishing for drum near Fisherman’s Island, with a few exceeding 44-inches. Kendall Osborne of Virginia Beach earned a state release citation with an impressive 44-inch rockfish caught on the fly while working the CBBT this week.

Flounder action around the CBBT still has room for improvement, and the recent cold front and heavy rain is not likely to help either. But anglers working the various lower Bay and Eastern Shore inlets and shallow backwater areas, are finding some keepers. Both Rudee Inlet and Lynnhaven River are providing some good fish, with a few flatfish ranging up to 23-inches this week. Limits of decent flatties ranging from 3 to 5-pounds are also still coming from the seaside inlets out of Wachapreague and Oyster.

Bluefish are still the word along the Virginia Beach ocean front and inside Rudee Inlet where anglers are experiencing good catches of decent blues to around five pounds. The Virginia Beach Fishing Center reports that anglers are also catching good numbers of speckled trout within Rudee Inlet lately, with any color grub doing the trick. The Elizabeth River is still producing some speck action, and a few fish are also hitting within the Eastern Shore seaside inlets and the back waters of Oyster.

Surf and pier anglers are pulling small spot, sea mullet and medium-sized croaker out of the surf line off Ocean View and Little Creek. Nice-sized sea mullet are also still active on the Eastern Shore seaside inlets and off Kiptopeke. The big croaker continue to come from the James and York Rivers on squid and crab with decent hardheads in the 17-inch range filling coolers from near the Coleman Bridge, York River State Park, and the oyster beds near the James River Bridge.

Although most anglers are more interested in inshore species, the deep dropping scene will attract more attention when seabass become legal again on the 19th this month. As the dog fish begin to move out, more boats will target tilefish, black bellied rosefish and grouper along the Canyon edges once they can get out.

Offshore fishing will begin to improve this month as the action off Carolina moves northward. The fleets out of Oregon Inlet are finding yellowfin tuna, wahoo, and dolphin along with a few billfish in the mix. For more information, go to www.drjball.com. ]]> Fishing Spot rudeeangler http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36541 <![CDATA[Stock up for Mother's Day at the Williamsburg Farmers Market]]> http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36540&goto=newpost Fri, 11 May 2012 14:27:36 GMT Gifts for Mother’s Day and graduation are easy to find at the Williamsburg Farmers Market (http://wwww.williamsburgfarmersmarket.com). Great ideas... Gifts for Mother’s Day and graduation are easy to find at the Williamsburg Farmers Market. Great ideas for gifts are cut flowers, spring produce, ethic baked goods, goats milk soap, oysters, crabmeat, strawberries, cheese, artisan chocolate, and honey. Gift Certificates and bags will be available at the Market Tent. Ron Fetner will play from 9 am until 11 am. The Marine Products Board will have a crabmeat presentation at the Chefs Tent at 9:30 am and 10:30 am. ]]> Calendar Events Williamsburg Farmers Market http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36540 Dinosaur Discoveries http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36539&goto=newpost Fri, 11 May 2012 14:23:18 GMT Everyone loves dinosaurs! Meet live critters that just might be descendants of the dinosaurs. Try your hand at reassembling a set of dino “bones.”... Everyone loves dinosaurs! Meet live critters that just might be descendants of the dinosaurs. Try your hand at reassembling a set of dino “bones.” Walk like a dinosaur and make dino-themed crafts. See and touch real dinosaur bones, coprolites, gizzard stones and footprints. You can even take your picture next to a model of a full-size T-Rex skull. A day filled with dinosaur fun for the whole family. 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Also view the museum's animatronic Dinosaurs! exhibit, which runs May 26 through Sept. 3. Included in museum admission, adults $17, children $13 (ages 3-12). 524 J. Clyde Morris Blvd., Newport News. 757-595-1900. www.thevlm.org/special-events.aspx ]]> Calendar Events Virginia Living Museum http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36539 <![CDATA[Don Lancaster's fishing report for May 11, 2012]]> http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36538&goto=newpost Thu, 10 May 2012 15:19:14 GMT FISHING REPORTS FROM AROUND THE AREA SALTWATER FISHING Buckroe Pier (727-1486): The Buckroe Beach Fishing Pier manager reports although the... FISHING REPORTS FROM AROUND THE AREA

SALTWATER FISHING

Buckroe Pier (727-1486): The Buckroe Beach Fishing Pier manager reports although the daytime bite is fairly slow, anglers continue to catch “eatin’ sized croaker”, short flounder, mullet, and loads of blow toads. At night gray trout are abundant, with fish measuring up to 16-inches being landed, large croakers (weighing up to 2 pounds), and sea mullet, round out the catches. Striped bass have been seen every night, feeding on the baitfish under the lights.

James River Pier (247-0364): Bobby Wharton reports the fishing continues to be very good. The best bite has been croakers at night. We also saw flounder and small spot showing up. Anglers are excited for the spring striped bass season starting May 16th! As a reminder we are open all night Friday and Saturday.

Peninsula Salt Water Sport Fisherman’s Association (PSWSFA): Dr. Ken Neill, III, reports Susanna Musick will be the speaker at the May 15th meeting of the PSWSFA. She will be discussing the Virginia Game Fish Tagging Program and what we have learned from it so far. www.pswsfa.com/meetings.htm

While they have been here for more than a month, this past week the drum bite really turned on. Red drum were caught in the surf of Fisherman’s and Smith Islands, on Nautilus and 9-Foot Shoals and in the buoy 10 area. Black drum were caught at buoys 16, 13, and 10. The striped bass trophy season is open. You are allowed to keep one “trophy” fish, 32 inches or longer. Large striped bass can be found at the CBBT and around the barrier islands of the Eastern Shore. Check the regulations. These trophy fish must be reported and the regulations will change again on May 16. Sea bass will re-open on May 19. This will get us back out on the ocean wrecks where the sea bass are waiting. Interest in offshore bottom fishing will also pick up then as the big sea bass caught out there will no longer have to be released as by-kill while fishing for tilefish and grouper. The grouper and tilefish action has been good. The golden tile bite has been particularly good. Remember that you have to have a Tilefish/Grouper Permit and must report each tilefish and grouper that you catch. Flounder are being caught but the action has not been great. There have been some good catches inside the seaside inlets. This is the prime month for speckled trout fishing in the Mobjack Bay area and the rivers there have been producing some nice speckled trout. Offshore fishing has been pretty good out of the Outer Banks with yellowfin tuna, dolphin, wahoo, and a decent number of billfish all being caught. There have been a few tuna caught out of Virginia but not many boats have been making the run. Small bluefish are biting well inside the inlets and up in the lower bay. Spadefish, sheepshead and cobia are all fish we will start to hear about over the next few weeks. Like our drum fishery, cobia showed over a month ago at Hatteras but did not develop into much until now. The sight fishery from Cape Hatteras to Cape Lookout has really taken off. We should be seeing some fish in the bay in a couple of weeks.

Wilcox Bait & Tackle (595-5537): Tom Wilcox reports anglers are catching flounder around the Oyster area; larger croaker are being caught at both the 16th Street Pier and at the James River Pier.

FRESHWATER FISHING

Beaverdam Reservoir (804-693-2107): The Park Ranger reports the water level is at full pool, the temperature is 78 degrees, and the lake is slightly stained. The Bass fishing is about average for this time of year at Beaverdam. Most of the Bass that are being caught are 1lb to 3lb. Zach Zervakis of Midlothian, Va did catch a nice Bass that weighed 5lb and had three chain pickerel. Chain pickerel are abundant and can be caught on minnows or lures. The sunfish are hitting night crawlers’ and crickets. The catfish can be caught using chicken liver or peeler crab. We are still seeing good numbers of nice size yellow perch being caught. Beaverdam will host the next Big Bash series tournament May 19. For more information, visit our website at www.gloucesterva.info/pr.

Ed Allen’s Boats & Baits (804) 746-2475): Capt. Art Conway of Conway's River Rat Guide Service out of Ed Allen’s Boats and Bait reported that Chickahominy Lake mid-day main lake water temperatures were in the low to mid 70’s on Wednesday. The lake level was about 6 inches above the top of the dam. The water was dark but not muddy. A few crappie were scattered up the major creeks, but most crappies and a few white perch were around the creek mouths and on mid-depth wood cover in the main lake. Crappie and white perch were hitting live minnows, curlytail jigs and tubes, small swimbaits, and crappie scrubs. Some bluegill were in the creeks, but many were around shorelines and wood cover in mid-depths in the main lake. Bluegill were hitting live worms and crickets, curlytail jigs, small swimbaits, crappie scrubs, and small spoons. A few pickerel were around the pad beds at the upper ends of the major creeks, scattered in creek channels down to the creek mouths, and on main lake flats. Pickerel were primarily hitting spoons and live minnows. Bass were scattered, with some next to the shoreline vegetation up the side creeks and others along the shorelines and mid-depths in the main lake. Bass were hitting live minnows, creature baits, soft plastic stick baits, and plastic worms.

Lake Maury – Mariner’s Museum (757-591-7718): Cassi Adams, Museum Shop Manager reports the water temperature is 68 degrees, the lake is about an inch over full pool, and the water is clear. Fishing pressure has been light and there have been no catch reports. Remember that the boathouse will be open 7 days a week starting Memorial Day Weekend!

Little Creek Reservoir (566-1702): The lake manager reports the water temp is down below 70 degrees after a cool weekend. The visibility is 14 ft mid lake. Bass were active last week with several fish over 5 lb. caught. Worms out fished crank baits just slightly, spinner baits worked also. Stripers fell to live Herring for a couple of days then the bait disappeared, but a couple came in on an Alabama rig pulled off the flats. Some very nice catfish showed up along with the ever present Chain Pickerel. The Shell crackers are in the shallows. We saw some at 11 1/2 in. 3/4 lb. NOT BAD! Red worms are the bait of choice. Some small walleyes were caught off the points at the mouth of creeks. Yellow perch were caught on medium minnows and small crank baits.

The Coast Guard Auxiliary, Flotilla 67, Hampton, will conduct the State Boating Course (one session) on Saturday at the Bass Pro Shops, 1972 Power Plant Parkway, Hampton, beginning at 9:15 AM. Call 262-5200.

NOTABLE CATCHES
Wt/Lgth Angler/Hometown Where Caught & Weigh Station
Largemouth Bass
22.5-In.*Don Lancaster, Newport News*Private Lake*Isle of Wight
5-0*Zach Zervakis, Midlothian*Beaverdam Reservoir*Beaverdam Park
Red Drum
53-In.*Heather Wineman, Suffolk*Smith Island*Grafton Fishing
49-In.*Rick Wineman, Yorktown*Smith Island*Grafton Fishing
46-In*Mitch Galloway, Cornelius, NC*Smith Island*Grafton Fishing ]]> Fishing Spot Andi http://www.dailypress2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36538