Discover Smith Mountain Lake
SUMMER 2016
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When I was about 8 yrs old , my brother would take me hunting, fishing, trapping,
etc. He was 5 years older then I and he was my best friend, my pal.About a year
later, I lost him to a tragic accident. My life changed in an instant. He was not there
to show me how to do things, and I no longer had my pal, my buddy. My mother
had a nervous breakdown, and suddenly I was the oldest. I had to learn to cook, do
the wash, and clean, and look after my two younger sisters.At 9 years of age, my life
had a new direction and meaning; I had to grow up quickly. But, I did what I had to
do. My father did not take me fishing or hunting.As a matter of fact, we did not do
anything together until I was old enough to go to work (12 yrs.), and he taught me a
trade.
I got married young.When my kids where growing up, I decided that I needed to
do some of those things that I had missed while growing up after losing my brother.
We started fishing in ponds and streams. It was all trial and error, experimenting
with different types of gear, learning how to go about this sport that we all seemed
to love, but we had only “hit and miss” success. But like school, and my job, I wanted
to be good at this, so I thought about it.Where can I learn about how fish live and
survive… what do they eat and when… how does weather affect them… and what
Almanac
Fisherman’s
Think
About
It
by Bob King
December 11th - NewMoon
December 25th - Full Moon
January 9 th - New Moon
January 23rd - Full Moon
February 8th - New Moon
February 22nd - Full Moon
March 8th - New Moon
March 23rd - Full Moon
April 7th - New Moon
April 22nd - Full Moon
May 6th - New Moon
May 21st - Full Moon
June 4th - New Moon
June 20th - Full Moon
July 4th - New Moon
July 19th - Full Moon
August 2nd - New Moon
August 18th - Full Moon
September 1st - New Moon
September 16th - Full Moon
September 30th - New Moon
October 16th - Full Moon
October 30th - New Moon
November 14th - Full Moon
November 29th - New Moon
December 13th - Full Moon
December 29th - New Moon
MOON PHASES
FOR 2016
about moon phases? I kept hearing about solar tables…What is that, I wondered?
I talked to people, I read, and I watched.There was a lot to learn.
When I was on the water, I did not have reference material at my fingertips, so
when I ran into a situation, I would think about it: where are the fish?What would
make them bite? How would I react to the presence of a person or a boat if I were
a fish? I have often solved these riddles by imagining myself in the place of a fish.
For example: One day when I was bass fishing, I noticed a boat pull up to a
shoreline to fish there… instead of easing in toward the shore, he came in fast
and then shut it down, causing a lot of turbulence on the bank. If I were a fish, I
thought, I would be upset and likely not be attracted by the lure that the fisherman
may present. I would probably hide.
Another example:This time, I was bass fishing in the Spring, and I was worm
fishing. I was retrieving very slowly, and I was catching fish. I then saw bass chasing
bait on the surface vary fast. I decided to try and mimic the bait.What I finally
came up with was a blue “Rattling Rogue”, casting it into the bait on the surface. I
let it sit for a very short time… and then, from a raised position, I would “whip”
the rod down and pull the lure rapidly towards me, wind up the slack, and repeat
this until the bass would attack the lure. Now whenever I’m bass fishing, I always
have a blue “Rattling Rogue” tied on another rod, ready to cast.When I’m Striper
fishing, I always have a “popper” tied on for the same reason.
One more example: I had been Striper fishing at night when the alewives were
spawning.This occurs on the banks at night, between April 21st and July 1st. I like
to start at around 9 p.m., and fish until the action stops, at around 2 a.m. I have
found that the best action happens between midnight and 2 a.m. on a dark night.
On a previous night, we had counted the number of strikes during that time
period, and it was a total of 27. But this night was a moon lit night, and we only
drew about 4 strikes.
What was different?The MOON. So I thought about it.
On a dark night I would cast toward the shore, and very slowly retrieve a plastic
minnow (6” Redfin, a spoonbill Rebel,A jointedThunderstick,A Long A, etc.).To
get the best action keep your rod tip down near the water.As you retrieve the bait
back toward the deep water, keep the lure on the surface, and it will make a little
“V”-shaped wake on the surface as you retrieve it.The light on the boat should be
reflected up off away from the surface of the water.Allow your eyes to adjust to
the dark.Wheen the fish strikes, it will be like an explosion on the water surface.
You will see a lot of white water! Fishing this way on a moon-lit night did not
work as well.
After 2 a.m., I found that casting a surface minnow parallel to the shore, bumping
