A Walking Tour of West Neck Marina Today in Pictures

When I arrived there at 12:30, the launch ramp looked like this.

This is what the water looked like leading up to the boat basin in front of the marina store.

I'd have to say the wind did "make it happen," as evidenced by the fact two cleats pulled out in last night's blow, allowing this craft to swing against the opening to the boat barn. There didn't appear to be any damage, so the horseshoer and I got it remoored close to the way it had been originally.

This photo by Skip Schaible shows a boat tarp that is in even worse shape than usual after the wind that passed through the area last night. Anyone familiar with the marina likely will recongize this canopy.

Only one of the port-a-johns was left standing upright this morning.

The "balloon effect" on this Nitro's boat cover was created when the cover slipped off one side and got hung up in the boat's seats.

During my stroll, I noticed that this new entrance sign has been damaged. Someone appears to have broken out a roll of duct tape and a tube of some kind of glue to try and repair it, but only achieved a half-a... job. The sign isn't even a year old yet.

It's not very clear in this photo I took at the back corner of the boat barn, but the water is on its way out.

In support of what I said in the previous caption, I went back down to the ramp before leaving and captured this shot of the new gauge just starting to reappear. Two hours had elapsed since my arrival.

West Neck Water Level Report

When Charlie Bruggemann sent me yesterday's report, the water stood at 3.3 feet. I took this photo at 12 noon today, and as you can see, it then stood just a tick below the 3.9-foot mark--and it's still coming, courtesy of those strong southerly breezes.

The water easily will clear the top of the gauge before nightfall--of that, I'm certain.

With the water at this level on the marker, it lacks 25 inches on the high side of the ramp (the left side) of reaching as far as the tip of the catwalk on that side.

The only trailer in the parking lot today was one for a Nitro boat. I didn't catch a glimpse of whoever was out, but this much I know: He/she/they (whatever the case may have been) definitely were earning any fish being caught. That wind really was whipping up the creek.

At 3:48, I received an email from Skip Schaible, who told me the water is completely covering the water-level gauge now. He aptly pointed out that, while the catwalks aren't underwater yet, it's just a matter of time.

West Neck Water Level/Fishing/Work Report

Charlie Bruggemann launched his kayak at West Neck Marina about 11 o'clock this morning, and he fished until 2:30 or 3 o'clock. I'm not sure at what point within that time span he took this picture of the new gauge, but as you readily can see, the water level is showing approximately 3.3 feet.

One thing is for sure: With those 25-35-mph southerly winds I saw predicted for tomorrow, the level is going to rise a good bit more. Bottom line: Nobody has to worry about being able to launch tomorrow--if you plan to try your luck, that is.

For those wondering what kind of day Charlie had on the water, be assured he doesn't seem to have missed a beat in his catching ability, despite the fact he missed a few days because of the recent cold spell. He finished the day with 10 or 11 bass (won't know the exact number until he checks his video). His best two were a 1-12 and a 1-6. All the others were dinks.

Charlie's 1-12 bass fell for an X-Rap Shallow Shad, and one dink went for a Jig 'n' Pig. Everything else, though, succumbed to the action of a black and gold Yo-Zuri SS Minnow. Most of the fish were in deep water until about 2 o'clock, when the water temperature hit 50 degrees. At that point, the dinks started moving into shallow bays.

Before coming off the water, Charlie talked to a couple older guys fishing in a boat at the bridge. They told him they didn't have a thing. He also had a conversation with a fella having just come off the water in a bass rig, and he, too, had been skunked. Charlie summed up his day like this: "Great day and beautiful weather."

Charlie's day wasn't complete, though, until he snapped this photo of Jim Bauer, doing some much needed repairs on the catwalks at West Neck. As result of Jim's self-motivation, we now have catwalks with some new cleats installed, which will greatly improve our ability to tie off our boats while backing our trailers down the ramp. As anyone who ever has tried to recover their boat during a busy weekend in recent years can attest, it was difficult--at best. Those days, however, should be behind us now, and let's hope patrons take better care of these cleats than they did the original ones.

Whether or not you hear it from another soul, please know I thank you, Jimmy. And if Dewey still was here, I'm sure he would thank you, too.

I had thought I'd be trying to find a few fish tomorrow, but given the predicted strong winds, I don't think I'll go after all. If any of my readers hit the water tomorrow, please send me a report--along with a photo or two, if you like--and I'll post the results here on my blog.

Area Water Level Reports

Charlie Bruggemann was out today, driving around and photographing conditions at various launch sites. When he got back home, he downloaded the photos and emailed them to me for posting here on my blog. Here's what he found.

Old Pungo Ferry Road--no ice, good to launch. Oxbow also clear.

Mill Landing Road, VDGIF Ramp--low but OK to launch. Some ice on Nanny Creek but OK. Some work has been done on the VDGIF ramp--it's much improved.

West Neck Marina--3 feet of water at end of ramp, but...

 You can't launch, because the ice still is 2 inches thick.

Lotus Garden--too low to launch.

Beggars Bridge Creek--very low, some ice.

West Landing Marina--some ice, too low to launch.

Final Update: Bandit Lures Fiasco

I sent a carefully worded email to Bandit Lures last night and, within minutes, had a response from the company CEO, assuring me he would get on my complaint this afternoon and work it out to my satisfaction.

He and I just had a phone conversation, in which I learned that the khaki/brown back/scales color (as depicted in the top lure, a Bandit 100) has been discontinued in the Footloose series because of a lack of sales. The CEO also confirmed my suspicions that they have a lot of Bandit Footloose lures (see bottom lure) mistakenly labeled as that color, when they should be labeled as pineapple. He told me they already are fixing that problem.

And, finally, the CEO told me they were crediting my credit card for the three pineapple Footloose they sent me but that I could keep the lures. When asked if that offer would resolve the matter for me, I said OK, and that concluded the matter.

Here's How West Neck Looks Today

 

West Neck Water Level Report

At 12:30 today, the level stood nearly exactly as it did Friday, when Charlie and I installed this gauge. While I was at West Neck with my camera, though, I took some pictures of the local scenery, showing how Mother Nature dressed it up with the snow we had Friday. I'll be posting those shots as soon as I finish this entry. Hope you enjoy.

Update: As I Suspected, I've Been Duped by Bandit Lures

If you read my blog post titled "A Little Dock Talk: Fooled by the Color Chart" from Saturday, Jan. 19, you know the story about how Bandit Lures sold me the middle lure here, a Bandit Footloose, as being in the khaki/brown back/scales color, which actually is the color you see in the top lure, a Bandit 100. Even though the packaging on the middle lure indeed read "khaki/brown back/scales," I knew it wasn't, and now I have ironclad proof.

While talking to my friend, Jimmy Bauer, on the phone today, he mentioned a Bandit lure he had found that was identified as being in a "pineapple" color. The bottom lure here, a Bandit 200, is in that pineapple color, and it doesn't take but a quick look to realize that it and the middle lure are identical in color.

I don't have a clue as to what is happening within Bandit Lures, but there's no doubt in my mind they have a problem. Otherwise, they would own up to their mistake and make me whole by sending me three Bandit Footloose in the khaki/brown back/scales color as I originally ordered. Thus far, however, no one from the company even has admitted any culpability.

The West Neck Water Level Gauge Is in Place

As I promised yesterday, Charlie and I met up at the West Neck ramp this afternoon and installed this marker on the righthand bulkhead (as you're facing the ramp). Air temp at the time was about 32 degrees, and I don't know what the water temp was, but let's just say I was feeling "cool," standing there in my waders, getting this gauge secured.

The level showing here--approximately 2.5 feet--is about the lowest anyone with a bass boat or something of equivalent size probably ever would want to try and launch. At 2.5 feet, the water on the high side of the ramp (the left side, facing it), is approximately a foot below the joint in the ramp. Some might be willing to gamble on a lower level, but not yours truly.

I want to point out here that Charlie came up with the idea for this gauge. He also gathered the materials and got the gauge ready. My only contribution was wading out and mounting it to the bulkhead.

From this point forward, I'll be publishing photos of this gauge for all the water-level reports on my blog.

Be watching sometime tomorrow--probably in the afternoon or evening--for a video of today's project installation. Charlie had one of his video cameras trained on the whole evolution from a tripod. I'm not sure, but there even may be a shot of the one moment I dunked my "caboose" in the water. Let me assure you it didn't take me very long to straighten up.

Anyway, we hope everyone will enjoy.

West Neck Water Level Report

Thanks to my friend Skip Schaible, I received the accompanying two photos this evening, which show pretty much what I would expect to see after the kind of wind we had last night and today.

With any luck, my kayaker buddy, Charlie, and I plan to meet up at West Neck tomorrow and install the water-level ruler that he put together this week. Once that's in place, we'll be able to give you a better idea of launch conditions with the lens of our cameras. If our plan works out, I'll be posting the first photo of that new ruler tomorrow evening. Stay tuned. And, as if I really had to tell you, try to stay warm.

A Little Dock Talk: Those "Toothy Critters" (Part 2)

I'll always remember that day back in the '80s when I boated my one and, to this point, my only citation fish--a 10-lb. 12-oz. grindle.

To appreciate this account, you first have to understand a little bit about the gentleman who owned and was running West Neck Marina at the time. His name was Bill Brown. Some probably still remember him as "just a crusty old man who liked smoking big cigars and hollering at people." I personally never--well, almost never--had any problems with him. Why? Because I quickly recognized how he was and didn't give him any reason to jump in my crap. I had plenty of training in this area, because until he became a born-again Christian, my pop was a lot like Bill Brown. And despite the fact he changed, I never forgot those early childhood lessons. They've actually served me well throughout my nearly 70 years.

The one time I raised the hackles on Bill's neck was the day I caught that citation grindle. Before I explain, though, you need to understand that I once previously, while backing down that chute beside the West Neck marina store to get gas, had backed too far and broken a piece of the wooden railing that Bill had erected there. I was sweating bullets as I climbed out of my old station wagon that day because he was standing behind the broken railing, chewin' ever so hard on that familiar cigar in his mouth. I just knew he was going to rip my head off and hand it to me.

To my great surprise, though, once I was standing directly in front of him, he took the cigar out of his mouth, and a big smile spread across his face. He then slapped me on the shoulder and said, "I figured someone would break that thing someday." I quickly offered to pay him for repairing the broken railing, but he wouldn't have any part of it. He simply told me to forget it.

That situation actually proved to be to my detriment the day I caught the citation grindle. I had gotten the feeling that I might be able to "clown around" a little with Bill--a big mistake, indeed.

The grindle I weighed in that day had been dead for hours after being dragged around on an old stringer and laying in the bottom of my boat off and on all day. Bill had happily hung him on the scales to register his weight and measure him so his wife, Veradell, could write up the paperwork for my citation. When that was all done and I had started walking toward my car, Bill hollered and asked me what I planned to do with the fish.

The devil must have been sitting on my shoulder because I jokingly shot back, "I think I'm going to toss it in your dumpster." When I turned and looked at Bill, his face was crimson, his cheeks were puffed out, and that cigar was circling the corners of his mouth like it had a motor on it. Afraid what he might do or say next, or that he perhaps was going to have a heart attack, I quickly changed my tune and assured him I only was pulling his leg. I'm here to tell you, though, that he watched me like a hawk until I left the parking lot that day with fish in hand.

Fortunately, my friend, Charlie Bruggemann, didn't have that kind of experience the day he caught his citation-size grindle. That happened back on Nov. 24, 2007, when he boated a 10-8 bowfin in Straight Creek. Charlie simply brought the "toothy critter" aboard his kayak to check it's weight, shoot this picture at right, then turn it loose. When I asked why he didn't do the paperwork to get a citation, he reminded me that he had no way of getting the fish to a weigh station in a kayak.

My earlier posting about "toothy critters" also talked about a couple photos I had found on the Internet, showing Charlie with a huge gar. He had this to say when I asked for the story behind that catch, which occurred on May 21, 2012, while he was fishing the oxbow at the mouth of Abright's Creek:

"It had been a rather uneventful day until about the time I was going to pack it in. One more cast with the Yo-Zuri SS Minnow, and something slammed the bait, and the battle was on. A monster gar, the second of the day, was well-hooked, and now I was trying to figure out how to get the thing off my $10 lure. A couple of whacks with the anchor pole (hmm, so Charlie uses a "taming tool," too), and he was calm enough to handle. He (the fish in this picture) weighed in at 15-8," which also qualified as a citation fish. As Charlie noted, though, he just released the fish, "did my closing video, and headed to the launch site."

One thing Charlie does differently these days when handling "toothy critters" is to use the special glove pictured here. The description for this glove--sold only as one each--says it originally was developed for medical personnel to protect them from hypodermic needles. The puncture-resistant fabric in these gloves, however, also "will protect your hands from cuts that come from handling sharp-spines fish." As Charlie noted, "You pay through the nose for that single glove--$30 a crack--but I figured my body would appreciate the effort."

Here's hoping you've enjoyed these two articles about "those toothy critters" we all catch from time to time in the local waters and maybe even picked up a safety tip or two to help ensure they don't take a bite out of your fingers the next time you boat one.

A Little Dock Talk: Those "Toothy Critters"

One of my earliest recollections about chain pickerel wasn't very pleasant. It involved a young guy who, without taking a good look at a pickerel's mouth, rammed his thumb inside to hold it open. The only way I can describe the results is that the fish basically skinned his thumb. That incident left me with a sour taste in my mouth for the fish known as pickerel. It doesn't take a lot of imagination to understand why I decided to lump everything like pickerel, gar and bowfin under the category of "toothy critters."

As I lay in bed last night, thinking about how cold the weatherman had said it was supposed to get for the next few days, I started thinking about something I could put together for the blog to take up at least a few of those hours today. An idea came to me in no time, thanks mostly to the incident I just identified, as well as some things I remember my kayaker buddy, Charlie Bruggemann, having shared with me over the past few months.

If you follow Charlie's blog or maybe recall a story I did about him a few months back, you know that, while he catches his fair share of bass, he doesn't shun anything with fins and gills. Case in point: As I was checking the Internet this morning for photos of Charlie, I came across several of him with some real nice bass--also a couple showing him holding up a H-U-G-E gar. There even was one in which he was all smiles as he held up none other than "ol' rubber lips" himself in front of the lens. Say what you will, but Charlie Bruggemann just truly loves catching anything and everything that swims.

One accomplishment he points to with pride is this citation chain pickerel he caught back on Jan. 7, 2008, in West Neck Creek. According to records of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, it tipped the scales at 4-2.

And 2012 was a banner year for numbers of pickerel that Charlie caught. They weren't all as seemingly docile as the one laying across his boots here, either. "I got bit a lot last year," he said. Those sore fingers, however, didn't slow him down.

As a result of all those bites, Charlie eventually decided to take steps to put an end to them. He went out and bought a gripper tool (similar to the one at far left), as well as a long-nosed hook-removal tool (seen next to it).

I, too, carry a gripper tool in my boat, as well as a couple of different hook-removal devices. Anytime I have a pickerel, gar or bowfin alongside the boat, you can bet those tools will be in my hands. Also at the ready, especially for bigger specimens, will be a "taming tool." I don't use the club unless I absolutely have to, but I don't plan to fall victim to a rowdy "toothy critter."

If you've never visited Charlie's blog, I urge you to check it out. Here's the link: http://vbfishguide.blogspot.com/. He posts video of all his trips, so it's really neat.

West Neck Water Level Report

Skip Schaible emailed this photo to me this morning to show that the water has dropped about another foot since 4 o'clock yesterday afternoon. As of 10 o'clock this morning, when Skip took this photo, the level was about 2 feet above the joint in the ramp--still plenty of water to launch if anyone wants to venture out in these current temperatures. I wish anyone who should go today nothing but the best, because you deserve it. As Skip said, "You're my hero if you go out today." If it's all the same to you, though, I'm just gonna stay home by the fire.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

Patience really is a virtue. If you don't believe me, just ask Steve Bailey the next time you see him.

Steve launched at West Neck today around 11 a.m. He described the water as "muddy, but not too bad," and the water temp was about 45 degrees.

When Steve left the dock, his game plan was to hit 'em with plastic craws. He did get four hits with these baits but no hookups. That situation all changed at 3 p.m. In the next hour, he caught 5 keeper bass--the biggest the 2.01-lb. bass pictured here. Said Steve, "I caught four on a deep-diving crankbait--dragging the bottom in about 4 to 5 feet of water--and one on a black-with-blue-claw plastic craw.

"All in all, not a bad hour," he noted--"with four hours of peacefulness."

When Steve returned to the West Neck ramp at 4:30 this afternoon, his boat's temperature gauge showed 51 degrees.

Also had an email from Skip Schaible, my water-level watcher, who said, when he checked the ramp at 4 o'clock, the water was approximately 3 feet above the joint in the ramp. That means any hearty soul who's willing to tackle those predicted chilly temps in the morning should have plenty of water to launch. As always, if anyone does go and wants to share their day's results with me, I'll be more than happy to post it here on the blog.

Hook, Line & Sinker...

Muddy water--anglers had it yesterday on the Northwest, and it was the same story today on the North Landing. I was at West Neck Marina a little earlier checking conditions, and it didn't take but a quick look around the ramp area to tell me that those fishermen who had gone out today likely weren't catching a lot of fish. Four trailers were in the parking lot when I arrived, and one more showed up while I was there.

Three boats came in while I was standing around, and I managed to talk to the anglers in two of them. Two fellas in a Nitro told me they hadn't even had a bump today. I learned, however, that one of these two had been out during one of those real foggy days we had recently and had boated a lot of nice fish.

Another fella in a blue Tracker today had found three fish: 1 bass and 2 pickerel. He said they all had hit a rattlin' crankbait. (If you're the retired Marine I'm talking about here, will you please email me at kenneth34@cox.net with your name? I'm sorry, but for the life of me, I cannot remember what you said it is--one of those "senior moment" things.) The fish he caught came from 47-degree water, which was a couple degrees warmer than most he had found in the creek.

And my kayaker buddy, Charlie, went to Oakum Creek today, picking up 2 bass and 2 pickerel. His biggest bass weighed 1-9 (as best he remembers, before checking his video footage). He, too, had muddy water, but the temperature range was a tad better than what the anglers found in West Neck. Charlie said his gauge showed a range from 48 to 51 degrees. Incidentally, just want to remind you that Charlie always posts video of his fishing trips on his website--usually in the late afternoon or evening of the next day. Here's the link to his blog: http://vbfishguide.blogspot.com.

There was plenty of water to launch at West Neck today. I'd estimate it extended about 8 feet above the joint in the ramp. If you want to avoid that Arctic blast headed our way, you'd better plan to get your licks in tomorrow--provided, of course, you believe the local forecasters. Good luck, if you go. Drop me an email with your day's tally if you do, and I'll be happy to give you a little exposure here on the blog.

Results of Saturday, Jan. 19, 2013 Tourney

"I think I had one bite all day," is how John Goodman described the outcome of his fishing in today's tournament out of Bob's Fishing Hole. Anglers in five boats braved the frosty elements that greeted them this morning to launch their rigs on the Northwest River. And then, as if the cold temperatures weren't enough of a turn off, the participants also had to deal with muddy water.

Winning today's contest was the team of Eddie Sapp and Paul Celentano. Eddie caught a bass this morning that tipped the scales at 3.50 lbs. during weigh-in. Only two other fish were brought to the scales. Eddie's fish fell for a crankbait. As Paul noted, the water temp never warmed past 48 degrees all day.

Having fished several tournaments out of West Neck Marina last year with Paul, I came to know that he has a strong passion for bass fishing. He admitted to me this evening, though, that he wondered, for at least a few minutes early this morning, why he had let his friend, Eddie, talk him into fishing a tournament under such "brisk" conditions.

My hat is off to all those who ventured out early this morning. I know how cold it was because I, too, was up and moving around outdoors before daybreak, although not near any water.

A Little Dock Talk: Fooled by the Color Chart

One of the baits that has been productive for me since colder days moved into town has been a Bandit 100 in a color the lure maker describes as "khaki/brown back/scales." I've caught several fish with the only one in that color I possessed until yesterday, when an order for some spares arrived by way of UPS.

This particular color has worked well enough in recent weeks I decided to spring for three of the Footloose models in the same color when I placed my order. I always try to cover different water depths with a color that I find to be successful. However, I'll be the first to admit that, more often than not, this theory proves to be nothing more than that: a theory. It's no wonder I have multiple tackleboxes sitting in my garage filled with lures I no longer ever take fishing with me. The only satisfaction I derive from this admission is knowing that I'm not the Lone Ranger here--a lot of other folks out there are in the same boat with me. And, yes, I've known for a long time that lures are made to hook the fishermen, not the fish.

All that being said, imagine my surprise yesterday evening when I opened my box from Bandit Lures and discovered what you see in this photo. The top lure here is the Bandit 100 in khaki/brown back/scales--the color I've come to like. The bottom lure is a Bandit Footloose, also supposedly in khaki/brown back/scales. At least, that's what is printed on the lure packaging.

My first move was to go online to Bandit Lures and check their color chart to see if they had anything in their lineup that matched the Footloose you see here. They don't. And, yet, when you check the Footloose color chart for khaki/brown back/scales, what you see matches the color of the Bandit 100 above.

I sent an email to Bandit Lures last night, noting my dissatisfaction, and will be anxiously waiting to see if I get any kind of response. If I don't, I'll likely give 'em a call, because I want to hear their explanation for how they could possibly try to pass these two colors off as being the same. This "fish" isn't biting this time.

Since posting this item, I've learned that customer relations isn't one of Bandit Lures' strong points. John Goodman shared details with me of an incident he also had with them. Sometime last year, he emailed them, asking why their hats had been "temporarily out of stock" for about 18 months. Six months passed without a response, so he called them, and the receptionist indicated they probably had deleted his email, thinking it was junk mail or something.

Four weeks ago, he again emailed Bandit about the hats--and, again, he has had no response to this point in time. He urges me to call them, but he's betting they'll likely tell me they thought my email was spam or junk mail. He describes their actions, or in this case, the lack of them, as a "hell of a way to run a business," and I'm afraid I have to agree with him.

I called Bandit Lures on Monday, Jan. 21, and talked to a lady who chalked up the difference in colors to the fact they have a new painter. She assured me that if the packaging said "khaki/brown back/scales," that's what it was, whether it matches the color with the same title in the 100 series or not. As for why my email hasn't yet been answered, I was told the person who takes care of such things recently had a death in the family and hasn't been himself--a possibility that I can't really challenge. However, I will think long and hard before I place another order with Bandit Lures, and I would encourage everyone else to do likewise.