The Lower James River in Virginia

SUMMARY OF GILL NET REGULATIONS

GILL NET LAWS & REGULATIONS FOR VIRGINIA TIDAL WATERS

Report Form
The above link is the form provided by VMRC for the annual report.
4VAC20-670-50. Reporting requirements. Any person using recreational gear, other than recreational fish cast net, recreational fish dip net or recreational eel pot, described in 4 VAC 20-670-20 shall report annually, on forms provided by the commission, the weight and species harvested, location of harvest, days fished, and amount of gear used.

Now please remember to get your Gill Net License. As far as your license go's you can get it at Dances Sporting Good Store, they are $9.00 for the year. From January to December.

Directions to Dance's Sporting Goods

For most catfisherman that are fishing for the trophy size blue catfish use 12-14 inch shad.

These pics are me in action with the smaller floats on the other net that is 2 x 4" stretch....I have 4 flat floats on that net. Yep that's a huge tub I have... most guys use a 5 gallon bucket....the tub makes it a little easier....these were taken at Trespass Pit first choice on the Photo....the 5 gallon bucket in front of the cooler has my cutting board in it that fits over the bucket....I have a bunch of wash clothes I keep on the boat...when cutting up my shad I have a wash cloth wet and folded in half on top of the cutting board and place the shad on top of it....then after cutting up each shad I just lean out on the water and rinse out the wash cloth...that keeps the mess down a little....those were 12-14" shad in the cooler:

In reviewing my records I find before day break and the last 2 hours of outgoing tide is the very best time to catch bait but not always able to catch that combination. My understanding shad will be deeper after sun rise. During the day, it's much easier to catch bait the last 2 hours of outgoing tide, on high tide the bait is scattered.

Scott Cannon of James River OutDoors near the James River also sales gill nets and usually has them in stock. A 100 footer sells for $150. They are 3 1/2" stretch, made with heavy mono to prevent tearing when they get hung on logs or from excessive usage. They have been a favorite for many of the James River Guides and a good number of the fishermen on the James.
Email Scott : info@jamesriveroutdoors.com or give him a call :804-690-3875 . He will do his best to get that net to you in time for your next trip.

OS Nets out of King George, VA is off and running with their new website up. Many fishermen off the Catfish Nation are using Oran's nets. He will make you a custom net and have heard some guys are now going with a 8' x 100' net. Email Oran : osnets1@yahoo.com or give him a call :(540) 903-0433 .

I would think you would be better off with sticking with a 50ft net. If you go out a lot by yourself a 100' net would be hard to pull in your self, but this past year many have switched over to a 100' net when shad were hard to find in early fall.

Also you have to order your floats separate. I forgot the stock # for my floats, just ask Billy what he recommends. Virginia regulations require that you use at least a 3.5 diameter float on each end of the net and painted a florescent/reflective orange.

Also remember Virginia regulations require the last 4 numbers of his/her social security number or driver's license number (at least 1"high), preceded by the letter "R" on each end float.

Note: I am now using an orange in color (much better than painting), 5-1/2" diameter x 14" long bullet floats I purchased from The Fish Net Company. The reason being I have heard of guys loosing the gill net by getting in deeper water or a catching large fish in the net. Of course with the larger floats on each end it's a little added insurance that the net will stay afloat in these situations.

Boater's World also sells an orange, 5" diameter x 11" long bullet float made for Crab Pots.

You will also notice I have a looped knot at the end of the float rope so I can hook the loop when retrieving the net. The loop needs to be larger just to make it easier and I also had to add the 1/2" flat washers since the holes were so large in the center of the floats. The washers keeps the knot from pulling through. Some guys just use their landing nets to grab the float also.

Here is a video off of YouTube that has Tim Hagan in it. He's a guide on the Potomac River and Catfish Nation President

This video shows a gill net already out and being taken back in after soaking for a while. Some people will get confused about the floats across the top of the net. Some nets have the floats and some nets have a float line rather than a float every 12-18 inches.

Both have advantages and disadvantages. I use the net with out the floats across the top and that's what Fishnet sells that I have listed. 2 advantages is it takes less room in a bucket or tub and you can adjust the floats on each end by adding an extension to the float line so the net can be used in deeper water if the bait fish are deep rather than shallow. With floats across the top every 12-18 inches that would be unpractical to try.

The one advantage of the net with floats would be less chance of a large fish taking the net under.

One thing I might mention I also put the shad in a 5 gallon bucket lined with a 30 gallon trash bag as they come out the net. When I have enough shad I just pick up the bag and place in the cooler on ice. That keeps the shad off the melting ice and water and also makes it much easier to clean the cooler.

Some of the catfishermen use a 2" Mesh x 4" Stretch but that net is illegal January- March.

SEASON AND TIME RESTRICTIONS

* From January 1 through March 25, it is unlawful to set or fish gill nets with stretched mesh size between 3 3/4" and 6" within the restricted areas described below, except that during February any legally licensed fisherman may set or fish gill nets with stretched mesh size from 5" to 6" within the restricted areas described below. From March 26 through June 15, it is unlawful to set or fish gill nets with stretched mesh size greater than 6" within the restricted areas described below except as described by 4 VAC 20-252-135.

James River: Upstream of a line connecting Willoughby Spit and Old Point Comfort

SUMMARY OF GILL NET REGULATIONS

GILL NET LAWS & REGULATIONS FOR VIRGINIA TIDAL WATERS

Report Form
The above link is the form provided by VMRC for the annual report.
4VAC20-670-50. Reporting requirements. Any person using recreational gear, other than recreational fish cast net, recreational fish dip net or recreational eel pot, described in 4 VAC 20-670-20 shall report annually, on forms provided by the commission, the weight and species harvested, location of harvest, days fished, and amount of gear used.

Most use 5 lb weights on the bottom of each end of the net to hold it in place....while looking for eyebolts and hardware to make the weights for each end at Walmart....I run across 5 lb Neoprene incased hand weights for I'm thinking $5 ea which worked great. Just remember the bottom of the net has the lead line and the lead line will be smaller in diameter

I just wrapped a rope around the middle section about 4 times and tied a knot with about 2 feet left over....then tied a a looped knot on the other end.
and tied a looped knot in the weighted net line and ran the shackle through both loops. So now if I need to take the weight off.....no problem.

Ok here's where the user of the net has to use discretion in the time the net is in the water or the term used "soak". Many times a guide will let a net soak 15 - 20 minutes, but you have to remember he may have 2, 3, or even 4 clients, sometimes a second boat for the day. When putting out the net, a mouth of some creek right off of A flat can be a good place. Just start dropping it around 4 to 5 feet of water then back your boat up straight. When you drop off your other end hold the LEAD line & the float rope some what tight Then drop the LEAD LINE then pull the float rope tight, taking rest of the slack out. At this point a suggestion is made to hold on to the float line/rope.....then you can feel when the shad are hitting. When the net is pulled in try to position the boat so that the current is pushing the boat away from the net, therefore keeping the boat a safe distance away as not to get the net tangled in the boat.

If you don't hold on to the float rope....watch for the float rope jumping then go pull it in. Don't let it soak over 5-10 minutes before checking.....when shad are thick 5 minutes could be long enough. If you feel the shad hitting the net as you let it out.....you may need to pull it back in as soon as you have it out. Regulations state you must stay with in 100 yards of the net if you do decide not to hold on to the float rope.

One thing the guys were telling me was don't be afraid to stretch the net and also if I use a fish pick it helps.

It may be a good idea to use gloves when handling shad in the gillnet while you are learning. The first time my hand's got pricked pretty bad. A fish pick helps BIG TIME in getting them out. The Fish Net company has them for about 3 bucks - they're really just a hook with a handle to help you get hold of the net and pull it off.

It is a bit of a problem getting them out of a 4" net. On the smaller ones shad you can just grab them by the head (stick you thumb in the gill for grip) and pull the through the net head first. The bigger shad often have to be backed out which is where the pick helps.

Thought I would mention this...we had a guy from this area that was fishing the James a couple of years ago. He was using a gill net and just had it laying on the deck of the boat as he let it out. His feet got tangled up in it and pulled him off the boat. He could not get his feet loose in the water and if his fishing buddy wasn't with him that day he would have drowned. This was in the winter and they were close to the truck to change clothes.

With that in mind I would think using some type of a container to let the net out....would be a wise and safe thing to do...instead of having it loose.

Below is something I copied from a board tried to find the source.....but didn't run across it. I usually have the link with the copied material...to give credit where credit is due...but it's a good reminder and also may give you some ideas to keep a cool head just incase:

Guys please read this and follow the rules of cold weather, we lost an angler this past year from not doing what he needed to do and died from hypothermia.

Cold weather Catfishing

As the year comes to an end and the thoughts turn to the holidays, I find myself looking at the days off from work and working the family schedule to create time to go catfishing. As many of you know there are prime fish to be taken in the colder months. This is the prime big cat weather. They are stacked in their winter holes and laying there feeding and gearing up for the spawn that is only a few months away now.

The first thing to look at when catfishing in these months is SAFETY!!!!! I can not stress this enough. The water, wind, and air temps all combine to make a very real danger of hypothermia and death if just one of the major rules of cold weather are ignored. I will talk a little about this but highly stress that you do your homework for your area and on your body and mind to condition your self for this endeavor. First, watch the weather and do not venture out during times of wet weather. The wetness will zap your energy and drop your core temp so fast you will not be able to help your self.

Second, dress for the weather, layers and several of them, work best. Visit a military outlet store and ask about the "cold weather gear set up" this is a multi-layer clothing system that is designed to keep the wearer warm in the worst of weather. It starts with a silk layer close to the skin to help it breath and wick away moisture. Then two layers of insulating poly to make a barrier from the wind and cold. Then a layer of wool that prevents the body heat from getting out, all this is toped with a layer of water resistant Gore-tech to help stay dry. Seems like a lot but it isn�t and the cost is very little when weighted against your life.

Third, feet and hands, keep them warm and dry, feet are the first to loose feeling in the cold and they are the most important in getting you out of a jam if something happens. Your hands need to be cared for with some lotion to keep them from drying and cracking, get a good pair of mitten gloves. The kind from Dick�s that have the mitten cover over the fingers are lined and warm. They also allow you to slide the mitten cover off to tie hooks and bait up. And best of all. They are machine washable.

Fourth, your head. 90% of body heat is lost through your head. A simple ball cap is not enough in this weather. A good stocking hat with a ball cap over it is good but here again the military has the answer. It�s called a jeepers hat or watch hat. This style has a flap that will cover your ears and has velcro on the strap to cover your cheeks and chin. With this set up you can stay warm and dry.

Always wear your PFD weather it be the vest or inflating type it will save your life in this weather. Just remember that on average you have only 2 minuets to get your self out the water and start the drying process. Which brings me to the next issue........... Survival tactics 101.........a small zip lock bag with a few items will save your life. In a gallon zip lock bag you will need 3 small hand flairs the 5 min type will do and can be picked up almost anywhere. A box of strike anywhere matches (preferably in a water proof case, also available at military outlet stores or wal-mart camping section), a whistle, and an easy open pocket knife. These items will save your life.

First the rivers and lakes all over provide us with lots of good fire making material all pilled up close to the waters edge. A 5 min. flair dropped in one of these piles and you have instant camp fire. I give you this from having had to use this very thing while trapping the northen territories in Canada. I fell in a creek with the air temps at 17 deg and almost could not function. A quick rip of the bag and with in three min I had warmth and with in 5 min. I had a good fire going.

The other items will help but the fire is the most important thing you will need. If you do fall in, the order of survival is simple. Out of the water, start fire, STRIP all wet clothes off ASAP. Wet clothes will hurt more than help when trying to dry out. Hang the wet clothes far from the fire, they will freeze, then shake the ice off and then warm by the fire. This is the quickest way to dry wet clothes in the winter. All the survival skills needed to live is a cool head and a few things in a pocket. Well worth your life to take along.

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