LakeAnna 2017/2018

angler’s paradise|feature
Get Your
Fishing
License
The best part about crappie fishing is
that these are great angling fish for kids—
once you find them, the action can last
for hours in just one spot!
back to the bridge pilings, but most will just suspend over
deep water and follow the bait balls around. However, I do
fish for them at this time of year.
STRIPER
The striper fishing on Lake Anna has gotten better
over the past several years and many more anglers are
pursuing them. Though we do not see many trophy
class fish caught, we do see many in the 10-pound plus
range, but most are an average of five to seven pounds.
For a landlocked, fresh water striper to be considered a
trophy in Virginia, they have to be at least 20 pounds or
37 inches. In order to keep a striper on Lake Anna, the
minimum length has to be 20 inches, and the creel limit
is four per day, per angler.
There are several ways to catch them, such as trolling,
live bait, vertical jigging and casting artificial lures to
them. Out of all these different ways, my favorite way is
to cast to them, with vertical jigging coming in second.
If you plan on using live bait, plan on getting out of bed
very early and trying your luck at attracting bait to a light
hung under a bridge and throwing a net on them. Storebought
bait will work on occasion, but native bait—
Gizzard Shad or Blue Back Herring—is by far the best.
In March you can find me chasing striper up in the
two river arms of the lake. They are usually feeding heavy
on small black crappie at this time of year, so my bait
of choice is a suspending jerkbait that I have painted
especially for me in a color we call “tuxedo purple.” The
only place you can buy one is at Fish Tales.
As April rolls around, I have turned my attention to
bass and crappie, but you can still catch striper. If you can
locate the schools of fish up lake in shallow water, try
casting a broken back redfin to them, and be sure to fish
the bait all the way back to the boat. I have had several
heart-stopping strikes only a couple of feet from the boat.
Summertime striper fishing can be really great at first
light; the fish will be aggressively chasing bait in the
midlake area until the sun gets high enough to penetrate
the water. Once the sun is up and the feed is over, you
can still catch them by using your electronics to locate
the deep schools, vertical jigging blade bait, such as a
Damiki Vault, or using a jigging spoon.
Another popular way to catch summertime striper is by
trolling artificial lures. Deep diving redfins with a bucktail
trailer seem to be the most popular; although a deep
diving crankbait designed for bass fishing works well, too.
As we head into fall, the striper will begin to follow
the bait movement up lake where you can use birds to
give away the location of the schools. Once you have
located the fish, be sure not to run your outboard into
the school—this will shut them down. Instead, start
casting a minimum of 100 yards from them while you
move into position with your trolling motor. A 4-inch
paddle tail swimbait rigged on a one-fourth-ounce jig
head is my all-time favorite lure; the color depends on
the mood of the fish. A sensitive rod is a must for this;
most of the strikes will be very subtle and a too heavy of
a rod will hide these strikes from you.
You can chase striper like this all the way through the
winter as well. Once the water temperatures drop below
40 degrees, the bite will be very slow; that is, if they are
feeding at all.
Another species to stretch your fishing line is the
“wiper”, this fish is a hybrid between a Striped Bass and a
White Bass. These hearty fish were stocked in Lake Anna
three years ago, and are now being caught on a regular
basis. They are strong and plentiful, but like the Striper
they must be 20 inches long to keep. The daily creel
limit is four per person per day, this is combined with the
Striper. You cannot have four wiper and four striper in
your possession. They can be caught on a variety of baits
from top water to jigging spoons to swim baits. Look for
them schooling just as you would striper.
If you’re planning to do
some fishing while at Lake
Anna, be sure you get
your Fishing License taken
care of ahead of time. The
Virginia Department of
Game & Inland Fisheries
want to make the process
as simple as possible.
Please note, if you are
fishing with a guide
service, contact them in
advance to see if you need
a license during the trip
as they may have other
licenses in place.
Licenses can be purchased
by phone, online or in
person from a license
agent.
By Phone:
Call 1-866-721-6911,
Monday–Friday during
business hours.
In Person:
Go to www.DGIF.Virginia.gov/
Licenses. Here you can
choose from hundreds
of license agents located
throughout Virginia.
Online:
Go to www.DGIF.Virginia.gov/
Licenses. Click “Buy Online
Now.” Here you can create
a customer identification
and purchase your license.
Fees:
Virginia Resident
One-Year: $23
Non-Resident
One-Year: $47
Non-Resident
One-Day: $8
Non-Resident
Five-Day: $21
For more information, visit
DGIF.Virginia.gov/Fishing
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