How about a nice close-up of a little largemouth bass caught in a rural Knotts Island pond. Caught it while crappie fishing there a coupla weeks ago. Your chances of catching some bass, crappie or plenty of other species is super good right now, as fishing is red hot. Freshwater fishing in lakes, ponds and tidal waters is on fire,…
Fall, at least in this mind, means fish with spots all over them. You know, speckled trout and crappie. Got a chance last week to join a few long-time buddies on Knotts Island to fish a small pond off one of the creeks that extend from where Back Bay and Currituck Sound trade waters. The target was crappie, or as…
Camden County Sheriff Kevin Jones held up the cake for a picture, then jokingly commented on slipping away to his office with it. Deputies and other staff members laughed, but were having none of such nonsense. That cake was going to be a nice finisher after a meal of barbecue, slaw, beans and fried chicken. The idea of feeding the…
He stood on the end of a small floating dock, watching a bobber dance and move as the minnow underneath is pulled and tugged. With one eye on his live bait, he cast an artificial bait into different parts of a small pond in northeastern North Carolina, hoping with every cast of the lure that a strike would result. He…
Isn’t this a great close-up of a dolphin (Mahi Mahi)? It was sent to us by Capt. Bill Pappas Jr. of Playin Hookey Charters. It’s nice to see people trying different approaches other than the standard “hold your fish up in front of you” photograph. Fish such as dolphin, speckled trout, puppy drum and others all offer creative opportunities. And…
The announcement came last week that the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission had approved Virginia’s plan on how to disperse allocated CARES Act funds among the state’s fishermen and women. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act set aside about $4.5 million to three segments of Virginia’s fishing industry – Commercial Fishing and Aquaculture, Deal or Processor, and Charter-for-Hire.…
The region’s creeks, tidal rivers, inlets and sounds could be pretty crowded for the next week or so. It’s gonna be pretty snotty in any kind of open water. It’s a shame that most if not all boats will be staying in port, because the offshore scene off the coast of both states has been fantastic. Blue marlin, sailfish, swordfish,…
Every year, for about four decades, staff at First Colonial High School in Virginia Beach would get a simple, yet thoughtful, gift from one of their peers. Quite a few students got one, too. A red pencil, unsharpened, embossed with the words “Fred Britton.” Nobody who ever spent more than a second or two with the man needed anything to…
We’ll get to the fishing forecast in a minute, but first there are a few thoughts that need, for whatever two cents is worth, to be shared. There are four months left in this, what has been, the strangest year in as long as most of us can remember. Rioting, looting, violence, ignorance, political stupidity – on yeah, and a…
Day 1 leader Sea Toy maintained its first day lead after the second day of fishing in the 17th annual Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament, making it extremely difficult for the rest of the fleet to catch them during today’s final day of fishing. Sea Toy, captained by Bull Tolson, leads the field with 13 billfish – one blue marlin and…
The team on the Evelyn Kennedy – posing with the winner’s “big” check – won last year’s 16th annual Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament held out of Rudee Inlet. After tonight’s party, registration and captains’ meeting, teams in the 17th annual event will hit the water on Thursday for three days of fishing, as the big-money bluewater tournament fishing season arrives…
That’s Meredith Barrineau with a nice cobia caught on a recent trip along the coast with family and friends. Full disclosure, she is married to my wife Ellen’s nephew Paul. Not sure what that makes she and I, but she’s a great gal, new mom and she wears a leetolliveroutdoors facemark when required. And to David Bunn, give her a…
