Capt. Art Conway of Conway’s River Rat Guide Service (804-746-2475) out of Ed Allen’s Boats and Bait reported that Chickahominy Lake mid-day water temperatures were in the high 40’s to very low 50’s in the lower main lake and a few degrees lower in the upper lake on Wednesday (11/23/2016). The lake level was about even with the top of the dam. The water was light to medium brown and slightly cloudy in the central lower lake, with more murky water on downwind shorelines and in some creeks.

Most blue cats and bullheads were on flats and channels in the main lake and scattered in creeks and hitting live minnows and cut bait. Most crappie had accumulated along drop-offs and in channels in the main lake. Active crappie were hitting live minnows, Wright Bait Co. and Southern Pro curlytail jigs, small tubes, Kalin crappie scrubs, and small swim baits. Small to medium yellow perch and white perch were scattered or in loose aggregates on some main lake flats and channels and were hitting live minnows, small swim baits, and small jigs. Most bluegill and shellcracker had moved to channel edges in the main lake and were hitting small jigs, Nikko nymphs on drop shot rigs, small swim baits, and live worms. Most bass, pickerel, and bowfin were along drop-offs or in channels in the major creeks and the main lake. When active, bass and pickerel were hitting live minnows, spinnerbaits, swim baits, stick worms, crank baits, jerk baits, jigs, and topwater baits.

Fishing with Capt. Conway, Pat Bruzzese and J. Ray Journigan had 1 bluegill, 60 crappie, 2 yellow perch, 1 white perch, 3 pickerel, and 3 bass. John Smith had 25 crappie and 2 pickerel.