By Derek Lionberger
“Country roads, take me home.”
This is the song I had running through my head as I took my first trip into the Virginia wilderness. Growing up, outdoor activities have been the focal point of my family’s bonding experience. Some of my first pictures as a child are me in a high chair, being fed s’mores by my aunt on a camping trip in Yellowstone. My earliest memories as a child were camping trips to Cherry Creek near Rawlins, WY, with my dad and siblings while my mom slept after her night shifts. Since then, my dad and I have a yearly trip we take into the Wind River mountain range near Farson, WY where we spend a couple of days fishing and hiking in a few of the thousands of lakes in the range. All of these memories and experiences made me the person I am today.
When I came out to school in Virginia, I was so excited to have new experiences and be able to go back home and tell my dad about what I did here. When I first enrolled and was accepted, my mom and dad had very different reactions. My mom took a deep dive into the dorms I would be staying at, the majors I would have to choose from, and the team I would be competing on. On the other hand, the first thing my dad did was take a look at the fishing regulations and rivers or lakes I could visit during my time here. Finally, after a long semester of setting in and getting started at my new school, I finally got the chance to go out on a few fishing trips and experience new areas and fish I’ve never seen before.
Wyoming fishing is very different from Virginia fishing. Early springs and late falls in Wyoming are the best times to fish because the water is cold during these times. In Wyoming, the main species of fish you are going to catch are trout. I’ve caught more trout in my lifetime than I could ever even try to count. These wonderful species are:
- Lake trout — The biggest of the family and are found in deep lakes.
- Rainbow trout — The most common fish you are going to catch and are a beautiful pink and green color.
- Brown trout — Another common fish to catch, though they are much less visually appealing than the Rainbows.
- Brook trout — The smallest in the trout family but make up for that in their number and looks. This is the main fish we catch in our Wind River trips. They are usually very small, but have beautiful blue and yellow dots covering their bodies.
- Cutthroat trout — My personal favorite, and the official state fish. They are super fun to catch and are characterized by a red marking going across their neck.
- Golden trout — The most elusive and rare fish in the state. I’ve never caught one and have only seen one in person. These fish are rare because they only exist in mountain lakes above 10,000 feet elevation.
Of course there are more fish present in Wyoming than just Trout, I have caught a couple Kokanee salmon and a Smallmouth bass in my lifetime, but trout are the main prospect in Wyoming fishing.
Virginia is much more diverse when it comes to the species of fish that are present. Largemouth and Smallmouth bass are much more common in this state. There are also fish like crappie, bluegill, sunfish, perch, pike and catfish. Although these are not native and have to be stocked every year, Virginia does have Brook, Brown and Rainbow trout. The fish species here in Virginia are more of a mystery to me, but I do know that most of the fish in Virginia lakes and streams are warm water fish and are much easier to catch in the late spring and summer when the water is much warmer. However, outside of that information, everything is new to me. This is very different from the species of fish that I am used to.
I believe the major upside that Virginia has in regards to fishing is the opportunity for ocean fishing. The ocean is something many people in Wyoming have never seen, but it’s another fishing opportunity that Virginia residents have. You can spend some money for a guided tour and have the chance to catch fish like Amberjack, tuna, marlin, speckled trout, sea bass, and countless other ocean fish. Virginia might beat out Wyoming for all around fishing opportunities with so many areas available to cast your pole. While I’ve never been ocean fishing, it is a top item on my bucket list and I am foaming at the mouth waiting for the opportunity while I’m here.
While there are some similar species of fish in Virginia and Wyoming, the state records for each fish are vastly different. State record fish are very cool. These awards are reserved for the best of the best anglers, and there are some very strict rules that must be followed to submit a state record fish. First, you must contact your state’s Department of Wildlife within 60 days of your catch. Once contacted, they will run you through some necessary procedures like how you caught it, where you caught it, and an inspection of the whole fish. After those steps are done, they will weigh the fish on a department qualified scale and only one of those scales. If the weight of your fish is at least one whole ounce bigger than the current state record, then you can fill out an application and congratulations, you have a state record fish.
Now that you know a little more about state records, let’s compare the common species in Virginia and Wyoming. In Virginia, the state record largemouth bass is a whopping 16 lbs 4 oz. This beats out Wyoming’s state record largemouth, which only comes in at 11 lbs 8 oz. The Virginia state record smallmouth bass comes in at 8 lbs 1 oz, while Wyoming’s largest is 5 lbs 1 oz. In all honesty, it might not be very fair to compare these state records because these two states are so different in their species. However, it is still fun to look at the difference in numbers (especially because Wyoming wipes the floor). The Virginia state record for Brook trout is 5 lbs 15 oz. This is quite impressive when you know that brook trout mainly come from rivers and streams, but Wyoming comes in with a staggering 9 lbs 11 oz Brook trout. This difference in trout is even more evident in the remaining similar trout species. Virginia’s state record Rainbow trout is an impressive 14 lbs 7 oz, but Wyoming dwarfs that large fish with a massive 23 lb Rainbow trout. Finally, Virginia’s state record Lake trout is a mere 5 lb 6 oz fish caught in 1966. I don’t know if this was the only lake trout caught in Virginia or what the deal is, but that size blew my mind. Wyoming’s state record Lake trout comes in at a gargantuan 4 feet long and 50 pounds caught in 1995. As you can see, the species of fish in both of these states may be the same, but the fish themselves are so vastly different. I was ecstatic to get out here in Virginia and test my luck in a brand new area.
In Wyoming, the two most common lures we throw are jakes and kastmasters and they absolutely tear it up. Jakes are a square shaped lure that come in many different colors and sizes. We use a larger red and gold Jake and we have caught many huge Rainbow and Lake trout with it. Kastmasters are also a very good lure, they also come in many different colors and sizes, but they are shaped more like a fish. We use a brown one with red and green dots and it works wonders. In the mountains, streams, and in lakes, we throw flies and a bobber. This keeps the fly afloat and allows you to watch the fish jump up and strike above water. This is what we use to catch Brook and Cutthroat trout. However, I knew those wouldn’t be effective here because bass prefer soft plastics. These lures are made of a soft resin material that come in any color you could imagine and a few different shapes. Crankbaits are also another common lure for bass. Those are light, plastic lures that are painted to look like a fish. They also have a flat lip on the head that makes them shake in the water and look like they are swimming. These also come in many different colors and are made to look like smaller fish that are often preyed on.
Let’s travel back in time to the story I started this article with, which happens to be my first fishing trip here in Virginia. It was a chilly morning on November 12, 2022 at 6:30 a.m. My good friend Tommy Skidmore (who is also from Wyoming) and I decided to try our luck at some Virginia fishing. We had an extensive talk with Southern Virginia’s track coach MJ Nelson about where to fish and what to throw. He gave us three lakes to hit that were all within 15 minutes of each other. The first lake was called Mill Creek Lake; he told us this one would be the best one. The other two lakes were Thrasher Lake and Stone House Lake. He also gave us the insight that dark blue or purple plastic worms (the soft plastics I talked about earlier) would be the best shot at catching something.
Armed with that insider information, our poles, and joyful hope, we made the 30 minute drive southeast on I-60 towards Amherst. We have both grown up on the fact that the best fishing is at first light, and boy oh boy we could not have timed our drive any better. We got there around 7, right when the sun was coming up. We raced to set up our poles and get a few casts out before the other could get set up. He had just got a new pole so I was able to set up mine and get out before he did. My heart was racing with pure joy and excitement as I whipped out my first cast. I slowly reeled it in, expecting something to bite on my very first cast (which is quite common when I fish in Wyoming). I slowly reeled in until it got back to shore and I tossed another cast out, dying for my first bite from a Virginia fish. As I slowly reeled into shore, I was met with the same result. By this time, Tommy had got his pole set up and started to cast a few feet down the bank. I’m sure he was going through the same feelings I was as he ripped his first cast out into the calm water, but his first cast was also a dud. We kept up the fishing in this area for a good 30 minutes with no results before we decided to move.
We made our way across the boat ramp, along a trail that led to a beach area. On the other side of this beach area was the holy grail of all fishing spots. I shed a small tear at the gorgeous smooth, deep water that was turning up small ripples from fish jumping out further in the bay. We hurried to find spots where we wouldn’t interfere with each other and began to excitedly toss our bait out once more. I thought that this bay was way too perfect not to have any fish, but my confidence was misplaced as we clocked in another hour of no results. At this point, the weather was getting much warmer and we felt our time had come to finally catch a fish. We saw a trail that led back to a small, undisturbed cove of water. We hiked back there and tried our luck once more. But after another discouraging 30 minutes of not a single bite, we begrudgingly made our way back to our “holy grail” area in hopes that we might even catch a fish on accident. However, after another hour of aimless casts and reeling in, we decided this lake must not have a single fish and that we should try our luck elsewhere. We made the decision to head over to Thrasher lake, which is the smallest of the three.
We drove for 15 minutes through a beautiful area and finally made it to our last hope for catching a fish. We stopped to eat lunch, as it was now around noon and hoped our full bellies would somehow coax a fish into eating our lure. We got set up and trekked to opposite ends of this much smaller lake. It was much warmer now and my hopes were still crushed from our earlier, unsuccessful plunder, but I still cast out there dreaming of landing any fish at this point. As I was slowly reeling in what felt like my millionth cast of the day, I felt a slight tug on my bait. I tensed in excitement and slowed down in hopes of setting the hook on my first Virginia fish. As I slowed and reeled in, I felt another stronger tug and decided to go for it. I set the hook strong like you see in the pro fishing tournaments and was met with my hook stopping dead in its tracks. My excitement was misplaced and I had got my lure stuck in a tree branch at the bottom of the lake. After unsuccessfully trying to free my bait, I cut my losses and broke the line. Across the lake, Tommy had seen my valiant effort and hurried across to fish in my spot. He was more disappointed than I was when he heard I had only caught the common Tree Bass.
I fixed my line once more and decided to head over to where Tommy had previously been fishing. However, after a long day of nothing but broken dreams and lost lures, my fishing attempts on that side of the lake were subpar at best. Finally at 2 p.m., we decided we had had enough of the failed attempts so we packed up and headed home. On the drive home we went through all the stages of grief and settled on the idea that we are just bad fishermen. However, my favorite saying is “the worst day of fishing is always better than the best day of work.” Even though we were skunked, we still had a great time enjoying the great weather and each other’s company.
We got home and talked to MJ once more about our fruitless venture and he laughed and informed us that it was common around this time of year. The weather is getting to be too cold for the common fish species here and we would have the best luck in the late afternoon or next Spring. Since that unsuccessful trip, we have made two more trips out and have actually had some bites but still no landed fish. I’m glad I got to experience this hobby I love with my great friend, and I can’t wait until next Spring when we go together and I get to watch the look of unbridled joy on Tommy’s face as he reels in his first Virginia fish.
I was surprised to learn that I am not the only one on campus who loves these activities as well. Professor Covington introduced me to the Hunting and Fishing club here on campus (I swear that guy knows everyone alive). This is a wonderful group run by Jaydon Arnold. Jaydon is from Colorado, and is a senior on the lacrosse team. This group was created to bring people together with varying levels of experience, and create a community that does these activities together. There are 43 members in this group and they go on trips together on weekends or whenever they have free time. Anyone is welcome to join, whether you are a professional outdoor enthusiast or have no experience and are interested in getting started. Next semester, the group will pick up more fishing because it will be warmer and will have better opportunities for catching the many species of fish here in Virginia. I am looking forward to next semester with this group and I’m glad there is a community of people like me that love the outdoors. As I said in the beginning, the outdoors have been such a vital part of growing up. Because it has shaped who I am, I want to share that experience with anyone who has interest in it. I think the most important thing to me about the outdoors is getting to experience and partake of this beautiful world God has created for us. Getting out into the world is a great way to thank God for this wonderful creation.
Trout, Bass, and Crappie, Oh My! was originally published in The Herald on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.