Charlie Bruggemann--A Fisherman Who'll Try Anything

How many guys do you know who, while once driving a Ranger boat, would find themselves paddling a kayak like this around today, as Charlie does--and enjoying the crap out of it, too? Probably not many--wouldn't you say? But that's the way it is for this retired Navy STGCS.

I've known Charlie for a lot of years now. The boats we each had at one time (not his Ranger or my Skeeter, though) used to be stored side by side just inside the entrance to West Neck Marina. That all changed the year that Tropical Storm Bonnie blew through the area and felled one of those giant old pine trees right across both of our boats. We each were left with picking up splinters from that call by Mother Nature.

The thing with Charlie is that he's not afraid to try almost anything when it comes to catching fish. For that matter, he's not even prejudiced about the kind of fish he catches. The Charlie I knew back a lot of years ago used to fish for--now hold on to your hat--carp. Yep, you heard me right. I'm talking about none other than ol' "rubber lips" himself, of all things. Furthermore, he made no apologies for going after those bottom dwellers. He just was having one heckuva good time catching those "suckers"--pun intended.

Most times today, Charlie goes after bass, and I've got to hand it to him, he does a darn good job of it, too. He's already recorded a better-than-15-lb. bag of five bass one day this year, and that says nothing of the 300 mark he's closing in on for the total number of bass he has boated since January. In this photo, he's showing off a nice 3-0 largemouth that he boated earlier this year down in Alton's, or as some know it, Albright's Creek--just depends on what map you happen to be looking at.

"So what does Charlie fish with?" you may be asking about now. For the most part, he uses spinning tackle, but he also carries a fly rod in his kayak once in a while. And, in case you haven't already guessed, he ain't fishin' with live bait, either. No, sir. He's carrying a selection of proven fish-catching lures, most of which he has learned to use by none other than good ol' experimentation.

In Charlie's own words, "Experimenting is my favorite thing, even though we all know there is no 'magic bait.' I used to fish a creek off Blackwater a couple of years ago, and it was full of grass and good fishing. The last time I was there, though, I found no grass and no fish. It seems to me like the grass cycle is changing again."

Charlie breaks down his favorite-baits list as follows. In shallow water (less than a foot), he prefers these baits in the order as numbered: (1) 3" green pumpkin tube, (2) 1/4-oz. beetle spin /w/ 3" twister tail and No. 3 Colorado blade, (3) Yo-Zuri SS Minnow, (4) Pop-R. In normal water (1-3 feet), his choices are: (1) Senko 5" green pumpkin /w/ black flake, (2) Strike King 1/4-oz. Bitsy Jig, blue/black, with Yum Craw Papi trailer, (3) Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnow, (4) Pop-R, (5) 1/4-oz. beetle spin /w/ 3" twister tail and No. 3. Colorado blade. In deep water (3-10 feet), his favorites are: (1) Strike King 1/2-oz Swimming Jig, blue/black, with Yum Craw Papi trailer, (2) KVD 1.5, shad color, (3) 1/4-oz. beetle spin /w/ 3" twister tail and No. 3 Colorado blade, (4) 1/2-oz. Bomber Fat-Free Shad.

Now, as I said a bit earlier, Charlie isn't partial to any one species of fish, especially if it's BIG, like this 15-8 gar that he also boated here not long ago. I don't know about anyone else reading this, but for me, I go out of my way to keep my baits away from critters like this. I've seen gar this big coming after my baits before and, more than once, have wrapped braided line around my neck and lots of other places as I snatched my lure out of the water. That, however, is not Charlie's style. He's a man who's all about trying something different for a change.

Back on May 3, Charlie got another big fish in the boat. He had launched his kayak at Lotus Garden this particular morning and was fishing Ashville Bridge Creek when something suddenly smacked his KVD 1.5 with a great deal of authority. To use Charlie's exact words, "It felt like a freight train had slammed into it." Several minutes, one weary angler, and a smoked reel later, a big ol' 7-4 channel cat rolled up alongside Charlie's kayak.

For those of you who don't already know, Charlie is author/publisher of "The Freshwater Fishing Guide to Virginia Beach," copies of which usually are available for sale at West Neck Creek Marina. You can check out his website at http://www.vbfishguide.com and watch his videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/vbfishguide. From his website, you can click on the "blog" button and get all the details of his various fishing trips, in his own words.

I should explain here that it was Charlie, who got me started with this blog. He came to my place and spent one whole afternoon in May getting it set up for me, then has answered every dumb question I've asked since. If it hadn't been for him, I don't know that I ever would have started my own blog. He volunteered, at the start of this 2012 Dewey Mullins Tribute Bass Tourney season, to post our tourney results on his blog. I felt badly, though, about the extra work I was causing him, so I asked if he'd show me how to start one of my own, and I haven't been happier since. It's really nice having friends like Charlie around. And I sincerely hope this article will, in some measure, make up for all the time he has spent helping me become a blogger--and, again at Charlie's urging, a photographer, too, in learning.

As a retired Navy chief journalist, I had to know how to operate a camera in my day, but that camera was an old Speed Graphic that I'm willing to bet very few people are familiar with today. It weighed a ton and, as if that wasn't bad enough, you had to develop the images afterward in a series of trays containing different kinds of fluids. Believe me--it was anything but fun. As a result, I had sworn I'd never hold a camera again, and for the most part, I kept that promise until recently, when I purchased a couple of new ones. I wanted something that would give me decent quality for use on my blog. I'm just now starting to get comfortable with the camera I use for my blog, but note: I said "comfortable," not "good." Those two words are a world apart.

Back to the topic at hand, however--Charlie. I reckon you might say he's a well-rounded fisherman, and I thoroughly enjoy following his adventures on his blog and his videos. If you haven't already done so, please do yourself a favor and take a peek. I think you'll be happy you did.

Epilog: Please note that all photos used with this entry were provided by Charlie.