Lm jan 2016

A Reflection of Life on Lake Gaston and Roanoke Rapids Lake

History of the Roanoke RapidsDam dedication

Builder constructs castle on Lake Gaston

2 | Lake the Magazine

2 | Lake the Magazine Lake the Magazine | 3

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Copyright 2016 Lake the MagazineNo portion of Lake the Magazine may be reprinted in any form or posted on the Internet without the permission of the publisher.

On the cover: Historical photo of the construction of the dam. Turn to page 7 to read about the dedication of the Roanoke Rapids dam.

Cover design by Hope Callahan

On the cover...

Contributing writersJenny Gray, Khai Hoang, Erin Carson,

Carol Moseley, Nick Sitzanis, Jane Teasley and Christina Wells.

Contributing photographersKhai Hoang, Jenny Gray

and Erin Carson

Graphic Artist Hope Callahan

Like us on Facebook, search Lake the Magazine

For more Lake Country events, stories and where to pick up future editions, visit RVLakeMagazine.com

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Dedication of Roanoke Rapids Dam

On April 1, 1956, the Sunday Herald reflected the mood of the Roanoke Valley when it published an aerial photograph and story about the dedication of the Roanoke Rapids Dam, on which construction ended the previous December.

The dedication was planned on April 4, with North Carolina Gov. Luther Hodges making the principal address. The newspa-per said Virginia Electric and Power Company’s $32 million dam took two years and nine months to build, and created a 4,900-acre lake with a 47-mile shoreline.

The Herald said 3,000 people would come to the dedication, and they would be entertained by the Roanoke Rapids High School Band. At the event, a bronze tablet would be unveiled memorializing former Virginia Electric and Power Company president Jack G. Holtzclaw, who unexpectedly died just as construction ended. A facsimile of the tablet was presented to Holtzclaw’s widow at the ceremony, and the original is mounted on a boulder on the south side of the dam.

The dedication would end with a barbecue and tour of the facility.

During construction, a covered building was erected on pil-ings where visitors could gawk at the project. VEPCO officials said 100,000 visitors came during construction and signed the

guest register. Some came from as far away as India, Russia, China and Indo-nesia.

The Daily Herald at-tended the dedication and reported, in minute detail, Gov. Hodges’ speech. He said, “This development should serve the present and future industrial, com-mercial, residential and farm populations of North-eastern North Carolina.”

The dam that created Lake Gaston was complet-ed in 1963 near Thelma, creating a 20,000-acre body of water 34 miles long with more than 350 miles of shoreline. The lake joins the counties of Warren, Halifax and Northampton in North

Dam under construction.

STORY BY JENNY GRAY

JAck G. HoltzclAw


A view of the powerhouse area looking northwest.

Carolina and Mecklenburg and Brunswick in Virginia.The four generators of the Lake Gaston Dam can produce up to

55 megawatts each. The creation of the Roanoke Rapids and Gas-ton lakes drew dozens of subdivisions on which year-round and part-time residents built homes. One of those residents is Henry Moncure, who said he lives on Roanoke Rapids Lake and remem-bers the creation of the lakes.

“I was really small when they backed up the Roanoke Rapids Lake,” said Moncure, who will turn 90 in 2016. “I think I was 9 or 10.”

He said the lake system has improved the economy of the Roa-noke Valley.

“It brought an awful lot of changes, a lot of people to the area,” Moncure said. “It’s been a real boon and a big help to the whole area.”

While many people visited the construction zones to watch the creation of the dams, Moncure said he was not a frequent visitor.

“I didn’t see so much of the construction of Lake Gaston, but I saw a lot of the clearing,” he said. “The area to be flooded almost looked like a cow pasture. They cut down all the trees and pulled the stumps. They picked up the brush until it was clear. They cleared it right down to the ground.”

New residents flocked to the lakes to build homes, Moncure recalled.

“Everybody was excited about it and excited to get it open, Looking down into the power station of the north end of the dam. [Foundations for the four turbines, with the rotary section of number one turbine in place, is the center near top of photo.] Portions of the non-overflow section can be seen in the upper left.


A view of the powerhouse area looking northwest.

Carolina and Mecklenburg and Brunswick in Virginia.The four generators of the Lake Gaston Dam can produce up to

55 megawatts each. The creation of the Roanoke Rapids and Gas-ton lakes drew dozens of subdivisions on which year-round and part-time residents built homes. One of those residents is Henry Moncure, who said he lives on Roanoke Rapids Lake and remem-bers the creation of the lakes.

“I was really small when they backed up the Roanoke Rapids Lake,” said Moncure, who will turn 90 in 2016. “I think I was 9 or 10.”

He said the lake system has improved the economy of the Roa-noke Valley.

“It brought an awful lot of changes, a lot of people to the area,” Moncure said. “It’s been a real boon and a big help to the whole area.”

While many people visited the construction zones to watch the creation of the dams, Moncure said he was not a frequent visitor.

“I didn’t see so much of the construction of Lake Gaston, but I saw a lot of the clearing,” he said. “The area to be flooded almost looked like a cow pasture. They cut down all the trees and pulled the stumps. They picked up the brush until it was clear. They cleared it right down to the ground.”

New residents flocked to the lakes to build homes, Moncure recalled.

“Everybody was excited about it and excited to get it open, Looking down into the power station of the north end of the dam. [Foundations for the four turbines, with the rotary section of number one turbine in place, is the center near top of photo.] Portions of the non-overflow section can be seen in the upper left.

Visitors from all over the world came to supervise construction and this special ‘lookout’ was provided for them.


Stage one: Rock fill began for the downstream cofferdam.


and right away they started building houses on it,” he said. “There was a lot of construction that came in here, and a lot of people, and they put a lot of people to work.”

Moncure said he lived for a time in the old town of Gaston, before the dam put the small town under water.

“They had a railroad station from Emporia (Va.), and a hotel, the Wainwright,” he said. “You can see the remains of it, but you have to go by boat.”

Before it was Gaston, the settlement was called Camp Store, Moncure said.

“Old Gaston — it was nothing more than an old trading post, and a little town developed,” he said, adding fishing in the Roanoke River was a big draw to visitors. “They came down from Virginia on horseback and wagon to get the big fish.”

The “big fish,” Moncure explained, wasn’t rockfish — it was sturgeon.

“Gaston was on both sides of the river,” he added. “There wasn’t a whole lot of anything here.”

Weldon was the big town in the area, and Roanoke Rapids developed because of cotton mills.

“Five cotton mills moved here in 1953,” he said.Editor’s note: See February’s edition of Lake the Magazine

for a look at VEPCO’s president Jack Gilbert Holtzclaw, the man behind the Roanoke Rapids Dam. To read about how the Roanoke River played a part in the settlement of the Roanoke

Valley, see December’s edition.

Lake Gaston Dam, Interstate 95 dedicated on same dayLake Gaston Dam was dedicated on June 26, 1963, and The

Daily Herald reported the event. North Carolina Gov. Terry Sanford addressed 4,000 guests, and told them Lake Gaston was a significant step toward the advancement of the area, and would help the region catch up with the rest of the nation.

Sanford described the new dam “as a facility needed to meet one of the region’s basic needs. It is a significant step toward advancement of this area and will help the state generally in the progress which is needed to catch up with the rest of the nation. ... The South is a region that has quit feeling sorry for itself.”

On the same day, on the same front page, The Daily Herald also related a story about the opening of Interstate 95 connect-ing Virginia and North Carolina. Gov. Sanford also attended that event. The highway would eventually link Florida to Maine, but on that day, it did not.

FACTOIDSJohn H. Kerr lake: Built in 1952; 50,000 acres of surface

area, 800 miles of shoreline.Roanoke Rapids Lake: Built in 1955; 47 miles of shoreline.Lake Gaston: Built in 1963; 20,300 acres, 350 miles of

shoreline.


Dinner date gone

wrong


With the beginning of the New Year, I thought it would be nice to do something a little different. I would like to share with you stories and recipes from around the world.

My first story from around the world comes from a good friend, Kate Dol, living in Weert, Netherlands. She was also kind enough to share her grandma’s meat-sauce recipe. I hope you enjoy the story as much as I did.

“My family is filled with experimental cooks,” Kate said. “My mother and grandma were always making new dishes. I discovered a love of food while spending time with my family in the kitchen experimenting with differ-ent recipes. I would spend hours watching and helping

prepare food, always try-ing to learn new recipes and hoping I would one day be as good as my mom and grandma.”

She said at age 18 she wanted to prepare a meal for her first boy-friend.

“I invited him over for dinner, excited to show off my skills.

I spent hours deciding what I would cook. After a lot of research I decided to go for one of my grandma’s special-ties, spaghetti with meat sauce.”

She said on the day of the date, she took her time to prepare everything.

“My mom was not around, so all the cooking was up to me. I prepared the food according to the recipe and it was nearly finished and simmering on the stove,” she said. “I left the kitchen to prepare for my big date. As I was freshening up, I heard a smashing sound com-ing from the kitchen. As I rushed down, I saw little paw prints in a red color going up the stairs.”

She said when she reached the kitchen her worst fears had become reality.

“The cat had gotten up on the counter and had spilled the pan with my hard work all over the floor,” Kate said.

“Everything was ruined; it was one huge mess. I wouldn’t be my mother’s daughter if I didn’t try to salvage my din-ner date. I cleaned the kitchen as quickly as I could and started a simpler recipe for spaghetti sauce from scratch. It seemed everything that could go wrong actually went wrong the second time around. I burned the onions, meat and the mushrooms; there weren’t enough toma-toes anymore and the lid from the pepper mill was loose so all the pepper dropped into the sauce. I scooped out all the pepper I could see, hoping it would do, and after a lot of tears and frustration, I finally finished the sauce.”

She said when her date arrived she had set the table and when she served dinner she was really nervous.

“At this point, I just hoped it wouldn’t taste too bad,” she said. “I was in such a rush I hadn’t had a chance to taste it. My date was the first to actually taste the sauce. When the moment came I held my breath waiting for his response. He started to tear up almost immediately when he took a bite, but as a polite person he didn’t say a word. I told him that if he didn’t like it, I could fix us something else or order a pizza. But he just kept eating. When I tried the sauce, I nearly spit it out immediately; there was way too much pepper.”

She said she ended up throwing everything away and ordering a pizza. It took her a couple of years before she found the courage to cook spaghetti sauce again.

SpAGhETTI SAuCE7 ounces bacon, cut up1 pound ground beef1 large onion2 cups beef broth1 cup thick tomato puree 1 1/2 cups red wine1 cup celery1 teaspoon fresh nutmeg2 small carrots, diced

Cut the bacon in small pieces and sauté it with a little olive oil.

In the meantime, cut the onion, carrot and celery into very small pieces and add them with the bacon until a little brown. Take the bacon and veggies out of the frying pan and brown the ground beef on high.

Add the veggies with the beef broth, wine, tomato puree and nutmeg. Keep on low and simmer for about 5 hours. Add some beef broth if the fluid evaporates too quickly.

Serve it with fresh pasta, fresh Parmesan cheese and a nice salad on the side.

Bon appétit!

Nick Sitzanis is the chef de cuisine at the Kennon House Restaurant in Gasburg, Va.

LaFamigLia Cooking

BY niCk SiTZaniS

Lake the Magazine | 15 14 | Lake the Magazine

Getting healthy at the lake

The Lake Gaston region offers not only wonderful quality of life but also many ways to live with a focus on health and well-being. The majority of people decide to begin something anew in the new year — developing a skill, taking time for

oneself, stopping a bad habit, eating right, and, most often, exercising.

There are three fantastic options for exercising here in the Lake Gaston region. Lake Gaston Fitness Center, 362 Lizard Creek Road in Littleton, N.C., has more than 2,000 square feet of space, offering a large variety of exercise equipment including commercial-grade LifeFitness treadmills, Precor and Matrix elliptical trainers and LifeFitness recumbent and up-right bikes, as well as a workout circuit and a great selection of free weights. Lake Gaston Fitness, which will be expand-ing in 2016, is open daily from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. The center is designed with a special membership security system allow-ing member entrance during this time. If you’re interested in becoming a member, call 252-776-0156, stop by Monday or Wednesday between 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., or Saturday from 9-11 a.m., or email [email protected].

Lake Gaston Fitness now offers members personal training

services through Absolute Fitness LLC, with trainer Maribeth Hodge. She has a Bachelor of Science in Recreation Community Leisure Services from Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania. She is also a certified personal trainer with the American Council on Exercise and a senior fitness special-ist with the National Association of Sports Medicine. She has been a personal trainer since 2009 and will receive another certification in TRX suspension training in January. Hodge also offers personal training sessions and small group workouts on her own.

WHaT’S HaPPEning in LakE CoUnTRY

BY CHRiSTina WELLS


Contact Hodge at [email protected] to schedule your ap-pointment today.

A neighbor to the north, the Greensville/Emporia YMCA has fantastic fitness offerings for the entire family and a 27,612 square foot full-facility operation. Currently, the Y offers a well-ness center, group fitness studios, cycling studio, conference room, school-age childcare, pre-school, a teen leaders program, childwatch, full-size gymnasium, indoor walking track, outdoor climbing wall, playground and athletic field. Fulfilling it mis-sion, “To put Christian principles into practice through programs that build healthy spirit, mind and body for all,” the Y is a place where people of all ages, races, economic levels and abilities can interact positively while improving their health. Call them at 434-348-9622.

Interested in improving your nutrition and leading more of a stress-free, chemical-free life? Contact Carol Steel, president/CEO of WealthTREO, who represents the Shaklee products. Steel says, “People come to me when they are stuck with a specific health issue and want to get healthier with the help of supple-mentation. For example, many people have come to me about brain health because they are having a problem remember-ing names and having a hard time focusing. Our new product, MindWorks, improves memory and focus.” Shaklee offers spe-cialized solutions for specific and individual needs and health concerns: Stress, weight loss, woman’s and men’s health, heart health, arthritis, sports nutrition, brain health, children’s health, toxic-free cleaning products and nu-trition for the skin. Steel will do small group events on several topics as well meeting with people individually. Contact her at [email protected].

Lake Gaston’s beautiful natural setting and relaxed atmosphere are keys to a relaxed life. To make your days even more soothing, take time for yourself.

Visit Nancy Gruenich and her team of Healing Kneads Therapuetic Massage & Day Spa, 167 Stanley Road in Henrico, N.C., for a variety of massage and body work services, including reflexology, hot stone massage, Swedish massage, trigger-point therapy, deep tissue massage, Reiki, craniosacral therapy, somoto emotional release and manual lymph therapy. There is also a large menu of relaxing day spa services, such as a variety of facials, manicures, pedi-cures, ion cleansing, waxing, body wraps and polishes, hand paraffin and ear candling. Visit the website at www.healingkneadsmassage.com or call 252-586-7552.

Karen and her team at Fresh Faces, 1196 River Road in Henrico, N.C., offer a variety of professional skin and body care. Enjoy basic, back and par-affin hydrating facials. Treat yourself to specialized skin-care treatments, such as glycolic acid facials, intense Vitamin C treatment, and intense col-

lagen treatment. Fresh Faces also performs hair removal services. For total body care, have a detoxification and hydration body wrap or massage. Nail care at Fresh Faces includes manicures, pedicures, fill-ins and acrylic nails. The hairstylist offers Brazilian Blow-Out smoothing treatments and retail products, corrective color and foil highlights using Redken color and retail products, special occasion hair, brides and bridal parties. Contact them at 252-537-7504.

Do you need a fresh look? Are you looking for top-notch, professional hairstylists? Then look no further than Shannon & Company Hair Salon, 1987 River Road in Henrico, N.C. Shan-non Navarro and her team of stylists offer haircuts, styles, colors, treatments, unwanted hair removal and more to make you look and feel brand new! You can reach Shannon at 252-533-4994.

If your fresh look involves skin care and makeup, contact Janice Thompson of Mary Kay. Mary Kay provides the ultimate in anti-aging and skin-care products as well as a wide variety of cosmetic products. Thompson’s services include complimentary facials, skin-care consultations, product orders and delivery, and great customer service. You can reach Thompson at [email protected].

To relax and take good care of yourself, take two trips to Lake Gaston and put your calls on hold in the morning.

Christina Wells is the Lake Gaston Chamber of Commerce ex-ecutive director. For more information about the chamber and Lake Country, visit www.lakegastonchamber.com.


Building a dream

Local builder puts a castle on Lake Gaston

STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY ERIN cARSoN


Local builder puts a castle on Lake Gaston

Tucked away down a narrow winding road off of Weaver’s Chapel Road sits the dream house Tommy Daniel designed for his family by hand. Someone else calls his Lake Gaston castle home now.

Daniel owns TCD Construction and designs and con-structs homes in the area. He said when he and his wife, Elizabeth, were working on the house, they never dreamed they would sell it.

“We didn’t want to sell it, but we built it too nice,” he said as he gave a tour of the home the day before turning over the key to the new owner. “We built it so nice, we thought our little boys would tear it up. It gives me anxiety when they come to the house. If they were older, we prob-ably wouldn’t have sold it.”

The couple has three boys all under the age of 5. Dan-iel said the $2.8 million home, which took three years to design and build and features custom woodwork and ornate details throughout, is better suited for a family with older

children. The new owners purchased the 7,000-square-foot property as a second home and don’t have children as young as the Daniels.

“When you put your heart and soul into something and want it so bad, you don’t want to come in and you want to keep it nice. I know these are good people and they’ll keep it nice,” Daniel said of the new homeowners.

At just 35, Daniel is a young builder and said this home is his magnum opus so far. But, he added, he hopes to continue to have opportunities to build projects of this magnitude.

The three-story home, designed to look like a castle on the outside, has built-in bookshelves, custom ceilings in the master suite, large picture windows overlooking the Poe Creek area of the Lake, two kitchens, a home theater room, a handcrafted wine cellar, Restoration Hardware furniture, vibrant Einstein bulbs in many of the light fixtures, a boat house and a stone shower Elizabeth Daniel designed with a sharpie sketch on the unfinished walls.

STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY ERIN cARSoN



“We built this for us. It just evolved into this picture-perfect house,” Tommy Daniel noted.

The house is also a “smart house,” connected to the grid through built-in electronics, Wi-Fi and tablets for con-trolling various systems in the home.

Realtor Brenda Thompson said she has been at Coldwell Banker at the Lake for eight years, and this was one of her favorite homes to have helped sell.

“I’ve been selling for 17 years and it has been enjoyable watching this,” she said of seeing the house come together. “This is the fun part of life.”

Building a house like this has been a dream of Daniel’s since he started working with his father at 14, who was also a builder. He said he built his first house at 18 while juggling other responsibilities. He remembered it was a three-story home for a preacher, nothing like the Lake castle he recently finished.

Lake the Magazine | 2120 | Lake the Magazine

“That’s how we got to this point, by challenging ourselves each house, and stepping fur-ther and further until we could build something like this,” he said. “(At the start of my career) I had a full-time job doing engineering and worked nights and weekends building. It was a long road. It was very strenuous, but nothing is easy. It was worth it. I put in the time to get here.”

He said regardless of the size of the home or the price tag, he works hard to create something of which he can be proud.

“No matter what size the house is, $200,000 or $2 mil-lion, I put the same amount of love in it because I’m living my dream right now building houses,” he noted. “I’m very happy with where I am. It’s a dream come true.”



Boxwood — A southern gem


Boxwoods (Buxus) are tough plants that have graced Southern gardens for years. They are prized for their densely packed green leaves and rounded, compact growth habit. Boxwoods are elegant when used alone or as com-panion plants; they offer versatility in any garden. Another added bonus, deer don’t usually eat them which is a big plus in lake country.

Growing boxwood in your landscape allows you to create a formal hedge, founda-tion planting or focal points. I grow them in containers for an English garden look. This method allows me to move the pots for added interest in different areas of the garden as needed. It is important to choose the best selection to fit your vision and growing conditions.

English boxwood (Buxus sempervirens ‘Suffruticosa’) was by far the most popular and widely-used selection for years. It developed a disease called boxwood decline. Because of this disease and the work of dedicated growers, we have selections that are better suited for our Southern gardens. Each of these varieties has boxwoods that are best used for accents and tall hedges, low hedges or edging, foundations or containers.

Five of the newer varieties are American or Common Boxwood (Buxus sem-pervirens); Japanese Boxwood (B. macrophylla japonica); Little leaf Boxwood (B. macrophylla); Korean Boxwood (B. sinica insularis) and Sheridan hybrid Boxwood (Buxus hybrids).

When planting, locate them in an area that is protected from winter wind to avoid a condition call winter bronzing. Win-ter bronzing doesn’t kill boxwood, but is unsightly. Normal green should return in spring on new growth. Plant them in well-drained soil at the same level they were planted in the container. Boxwoods are shallow rooted and benefit from a 2- to 3-inch layer of mulch. Start mulching at the trunk, and work your way about a foot outwards, around the whole circumference.

Fertilize only if you want plants to grow bigger. Do so only in October or November with a 10-10-10 product. Never plant Eng-lish boxwood where one has died. It likely had boxwood decline.

Garden tasks• Acid-loving azaleas, boxwoods, hollies and camellias will benefit from an added

layer of pine straw or finely shredded pine bark mulch. Place mulch around base to a depth of two inches.

• January is a good time to plant camellias while they are in bloom.• Using a garden rake fluff the mulch. This is a good way to remove winter weeds

before they set seeds and will tidy up your beds.• Perk up pansies and violas by removing spent blooms and trim leggy discolored

leaves with scissors. Give them a dose of liquid plant food (10-15-10) to boost flow-ering.

• With a few days of warm weather you may see spring bulbs breaking ground way too early. Add a little compost and a thick layer of mulch to protect the tender growth.

• Cut a few stems of Forsythia to bring inside the house for forcing. Place in a vase, add water and wait for the warmth to bring them into bloom.

Carol Moseley learned the love of gardening from her mother and father. Both were avid gardeners; his focus was vegetables and hers were flowers and shrubs. Carol has been gardening since 1969, and in 1999 completed the Master Gardening Training Course through the N.C. Cooperative Service. She said she was very fortu-nate to learn how to grow and use herbs from her dear friend, the late Diane Morris, the Herb Lady.

PRaCTiCaL gaRDEnERBY CaRoL moSELEY


oUR aDVERTiSERSTo Join US, CaLL

252-537-2505 EXT. 266

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WEATHER

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We have all heard the phrase, “If you don’t like the current weather, just wait awhile; it will change.” True ... true! It’s those changes that we need to pay attention to.

Not many years ago weather-forecasting was inaccurate, slow and not very localized. No longer! With some exceptions, weather forecasting is very accurate, especially violent bad weather conditions. Radio, TV, the Internet, our newspapers all have weather information vital to our enjoyment of boating. All we need to do is pay attention. If you have a marine radio, it has special channels for local weather that is very accurate, up-to-date, and localized for our area.

Let’s look at a weather scenario on our lake. It’s Monday and you and your crew think it is a great idea to go on a daytime cruise on the lake next Saturday. Since the trip is recreational, there is no compelling reason to do it if the weather is bad. Here’s a technique you might want to use.

Set up a series of times to make go-no-go decisions. On Monday, you look at the long-range weather forecast for the next weekend. You note there is a warm front approaching from the west. Warm fronts mean cloudy, humid days with possibility of rain. This one should hit our lake by Thursday. Then we know that front will be followed by a cold front — just as sure as God makes little green apples! A cold front is often preceded by a very windy leading edge (called a roll cloud)

You decide the trip is still a go. On Wednesday, the warm front is still on its way and predicted to arrive on Thursday and depart by Saturday — it’s a fast one! So the trip is still a go.

On Thursday the warm front arrives, and the forecast is still for it to depart on Saturday. You can still give this a go signal but tomorrow will tell the tale. Friday evening the warm front is about through and the forecast is for the cold front to arrive on Saturday. Go ... or no-go? It’s iffy, but looks like a go. It’s the usual cold fronts wind that is the question. You awake Saturday morning to a beautiful clear day — with winds approaching 30 mph! Being

prudent and not self-destructive, you declare a no-go. BUT Sunday looks perfect so you simply delay your “cruise” for one day.

Making a go-no-go decision also helps us once we are on the water. Often we have a perfect day, but with the threat of wide-spread thunderstorms. You do NOT want to be on the water with one of those things! If you see one coming — you can hear the thunder and see dark clouds approaching, usu-ally out of the south or west — make a beeline for shore. Any shore! If you can’t get back to your dock, just pull ashore anyplace and wait out the storm. Thunderstorms are usually quick. If you are caught in your boat, put on your life jacket and stay low in the boat. Put out the anchor or, using power, head into the wind and waves at a 45-de-gree angle. Prayer helps!

Learn more about weather and other boating topics by attending one of the Coast Guard Auxiliary’s boating safety classes.

Our boating safety classes are taught the third Saturday of each month from March to September. For information about enrolling in this class, call the Lake Gaston Chamber of Commerce at 252-586-5711.

Jane Teasley is former Flotilla commander and current Public Affairs officer and treasurer of Flotilla 93 on Lake Gaston. Teasley has been in the Coast Guard Auxiliary for nearly 15 years. For more information, contact Teasley at [email protected].

WEATHER

WaTER SaFETYBY JanE TEaSLEY


It’s a new year, which means new opportunities to go fishing. Throughout my time writing, I’ve learned a few tips and tricks after meeting and speaking with various fishing experts around the Roanoke Valley, and now I’m ready to condense that information.

• Ride along the waterWalter Young, a Durham resident, said he learned the

“Santee Cooper” side-drifting style of catching catfish from Lake Marion and Lake Moultrie in South Carolina, but the method can be applied anywhere.

He described the side-drifting style as a “lazy and old man’s method” of fishing, involves slowing down a boat to move at 3/10 of a mile to 1/2 a mile an hour, recom-mended using a drift sock to slow the speed of the boat, and having multiple fishing rods hanging off of the boat on rod holders.

“When I come back at night, I’m not worn out,” Young said.

Young said to use a 4 to 7 foot medium-to-heavy rod and reel, as well as a 20 to 25 pound monofilament line. The fishing line is connected to a 1/2-to-3/4 ounce pencil-style drift weight, then connected to a two-way swivel, which then ties into a 2 1/2 inch crappie foam cork and then finally the hook. After throwing the line as far as possible, and when the catfish bites, the fisher manually reels in the line, and the bait can also be whatever the catfish eats within the body of water fishing in, he said.

• Fishing in salt waterWilmington resident Zakk Royce, who’s managed to get

numerous gigantic catfish in Lake Gaston, said he usually uses the same type of rod and reels in both fresh water and salt water fishing. The only variable is how big of a fish he’s attempting to catch. For example, he uses a lighter fishing rod when catching bait fish and heavier rods when going after underwater giants.

One thing he did recommend was Accurate-brand reels, which he noted allows him to go after king mackerel and sharks.

“...What i really like about them is I can use them here in fresh water, but at the same time, they’re heavy-duty enough where I can take them in salt water and use them for various fish in salt water as well,” he said.

As for bait he uses, in salt water fishing, he said it de-pends on what the fish in that specific area feed on. Some of the bait fish he’s used include menhaden, blue fish, pin fish and mullet.

Royce also shared a few personal secrets for beach fish-ing on the surf.

“On the pier ... I just like to fish off the end of the pier because it’s farther out in deeper water, but if I’m surf fish-ing, a lot of times I’ll walk along the beach, and you can look at the way the waves are crashing along the ocean front, and where there’s the tide has dug out holes in the surf, you can tell because the waves will crash farther into shore. They wont be crashing as far out,” he said. “So spots

where you see where there’s a difference in how the waves are crashing, those are normally pretty good spots if you’re surf fishing.”

• Just try new thingsWhenever Halifax resident Mike Shearin, 51, likes to go

catching bass, he prefers to use live bait, though he said some of the more “hardcore” fishers prefer plastic worms and jerk baits. Another fun tip Shearin gave about fishing was to experiment. What works for one person may not be the same for another, he said.

For example, a friend visited him, and they fished rock fish together, he said. His friend couldn’t catch a fish, so Shearin joked about using one of his rods because his friend’s rods weren’t good.

It turned out that was the case.But then when he went to visit his friend near the Outer

Banks, the opposite occurred, Shearin recalled.As it turned out, there was one distinct difference be-

tween his and his friend’s fishing rods; the color of the line. Shearin said sometimes, a certain fish prefers a clear line whereas other times they prefer a green colored one. But he stressed again he’s just offering what works for him, so even purchasing a line or rod is simply up to the person buying it.

Another tip Shearin gave, which applies to both the young and the old, is to simply ask for help.

“If you’re trying to learn, there are a lot of good people everywhere,” he said. “One important tip is ask. Ask people. Talk to people.”

General tips for fresh-water fishing (taken from http://takemefishing.org/):

• For lake and river fishing, go where the water turns from shallow to deep. Fish like to congregate and look for food in this area.

• Shiny fishing lures can attract certain fish, but the reflection of the sun can blind them and cause confusion.

• Use a matted metal fishing lure instead if possible, to avoid too much reflection.

• Cast close to the shoreline for more bites.• Look for mossy areas, as fish prefer to swim in these

areas to forage for food.• A lot of people use worms as bait, but locusts are also

a great choice. Larger fish such as bass really enjoy these insects.

• Check the local fishing reports that day for updates on areas where they’re biting.

• Sunrise is an excellent time to fish; try to go out early in the morning.

• Pay close attention to the movement of your line. Learn how to understand the difference between a curious fish and one that is biting so you can hook and reel it in.

• Research the region you will be fishing in to find out what kinds of fish live there and the things they like.

• Be patient. Patience really is the key to good fishing. Bring a book or radio if you plan to out for a long time and remember that all good things come to those who wait.

STORY BY kHAI HoANG

Fishing tips for the new year



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