Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 6, 1994 TAG: 9401060013
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
That's when a hearing is scheduled in Manteo to examine a proposal to protect baby gray trout and other juvenile fish by reducing trawling for shrimp and crabs.
Bob Lucas, chairman of the state's Division of Marine Fisheries, is calling it the most important fishery meeting ever in North Carolina.
The state has been behind in fisheries management, Lucas said, and it's time to catch up.
"We need all the help we can muster to get some restrictions imposed on the commercial sector," Tatem said. "This isn't about commercial vs. recreational fishing. It's about our natural resources and how to protect them for everyone."
Catch limits are expected to go from the current 15 a day to as few as three a day.
Virginia has a role to play in the gray trout issue. Written comments are important and should be directed to the Marine Fisheries Commission, P.O. Box 769, Morehead City, N.C. 28557 no later than Jan. 14.
\ TWO KEEPERS: Jeff Wingo, a graduate student at Virginia Tech, was getting edgy waiting for his wife, Dawn, to give birth. So he decided to go fishing at Smith Mountain, where he landed a 31-pound, 9-ounce striped bass, then drove back to Blacksburg in the snow, took his wife to the hospital at 2 a.m. and watched the birth of his 8-pound daughter, Lauren.
\ CHANGE THE DATES: Mark a couple of major changes on your calendar:
The Southwest Virginia Boat Show is March 25-27 at the Roanoke Civic Center, one month later than in past years. The change was made to accommodate the Roanoke Express hockey team's schedule, said Ed Graves, boat show chairman.
The dates of the 1994 BASS Masters Classic, based in Greensboro, N.C., have been switched to July 28-30. The traditional August time frame was abandoned when B.A.S.S. officials learned that several potential Classic contenders were obligated to participate in a national tackle show during that period.
\ NO ROOM AT THE INN: The biggest challenge facing skiers in the next several weeks will be finding lodging at many resorts. Bookings are heavy on weekends.
At Massanutten, every room on the mountain is booked for weekends through March.
"Every program that we have going that we normally sell for the rest of the year is sold out: Our Learn to Ski Program, our Monday Night Madness," said spokesman Steve Showalter.
Booking dates are well ahead of last season's pace, said Mark Glickman of Wintergreen.
To avoid a January lull, Snowshoe-Silver Creek has launched a special promotion in the Roanoke Valley - two nights' lodging and two days' skiing for $94.
The Homestead is promoting a Ski Free/Sleep Free package designed to boost business through early March.
\ HAWK WATCHING: Roanoke Valley birders have spotted a rough-legged hawk on the trees and telephone poles around the UPS building and along the median of Interstate 581 in the airport area.
"This is a beautiful high-country raptor that we normally go to Highland County to see," said Mike Smith, president of the Roanoke Valley Bird Club.
\ TUNA BEEFED UP: So many tuna were caught last season off the Eastern Shore by anglers employing a new chumming method - called chunking - that officials of the Virginia Saltwater Fishing Tournament have made changes in the 1994 contest.
To help protect the species, bluefin tuna have been put into a separate category, with a 90-pound minimum required to earn a citation. The minimum for Yellowfin and bigeye remains 70 pounds.
by CNB