I found this during a google search of the "James River barge pits"....


LOWER JAMES COLDWATER DESTINATIONS
Veteran guide Roger Jones of Richmond relates that there is little mystery concerning where the best coldwater largemouth bass fishing occurs on the lower James.

"The best places are really community holes," says Jones. "The Barge Pits near the power plant at Dutch Gap are especially well known. At the Barge Pits, what you have are a number of old wooden barges that were placed there years ago and that have become great bass cover. The water discharge from the nearby power plant just adds to the appeal because the water in the pits may be as much as 10 degrees warmer than the water upstream from the plant. And in the winter, that is a very significant temperature difference.

"Fishing the Barge Pits is like fishing a small lake, and the same is true at several major gravel pits: the Meeks, Working and Canal pits. These gravel pits retain heat much better than other places do on the tidal James. All it takes for the fish to turn on in the gravel pits is one or two days of relatively warmer weather."

Meeks Pit is near the Dutch Gap and Osborne landings, while the Working Pit is close to the Curls Neck area. The Canal Pit is so-called because a long canal leads to it; this excavation is also situated in the Curls Neck area. Another favorite haunt of Jones' is the Deep Bottom area, which is right above Curls Neck. This locale comes by its name naturally as numerous deep holes exist, many of which are choked with laydowns that rest on pea gravel.

The guide explains that this combination of rock and wood draws shad and bluegills, and the bass know quite well how to take advantage of the forage. Jones also guides for catfish, and this past winter he netted several good-sized largemouths, which were of course immediately released, when he was employing a cast net for shad. Some 30 to 40 deep holes dot the Deep Bottom area, and any of them can produce impressive catches during a winter warming trend.

The common denominator for all of these lower James hotspots is that they are not out in the current of the main river. In fact, Jones emphasizes that main river structure and cover holds few fish at this time of the year, and the same is true concerning the many small creeks that dump into the waterway.


HOW-TO WISDOM
Regarding lures, the guide says that one of his favorite artificials is a 1/4-ounce spinnerbait with a single No. 3 Colorado blade and a chartreuse or chartreuse-and-white skirt with a 4-inch trailer. The Old Dominion sportsman likes to slow roll this lure across wood cover, and he stresses that the bait must be inched along - the bass will rarely chase any lure now. Return a spinnerbait just fast enough that you can feel the blades turning. The large Colorado blade is crucial because of the extra vibrations it emits in the frequently stained water.

Another effective lure is a 3/8-ounce jig-and-pig in any crayfish color. Jones likes to slowly lift and drop this bait, so that the fall is very tantalizing. Interestingly, the guide also utilizes a crankbait for cold-water bucketmouths.

"I like to ease a . . . crankbait over any cover that the lure comes into contact with," says Jones. "I retrieve this lure very slowly, and add a little stop-and-go motion. This crankbait only dives about 6 to 8 feet, which is perfect for the submerged wood that I am fishing. I also like a really long rod, an 8-foot medium-action one, with a lot of tip action."

Finally, Jones emphasizes that wintertime anglers should be very safety conscious. He recommends that sportsmen wear proper clothing, which may mean snowmobile-type suits, as well as the need to dress in layers. Modern-day materials that protect against precipitation are also worth considering. The guide also strongly recommends that people wear lifejackets at all times. Falling out of a bass boat or raft or capsizing a canoe can lead to fatal consequences.

Jones also suggests that a fisherman always go with a friend or two and that clear messages be left with loved ones concerning where the angler is going and what time he should return home. Furthermore, the winter is not the best time to explore sections of the upper and lower James that the individual is unfamiliar with.

Something that bugs me about this article is this statement:

"Another favorite haunt of Jones' is the Deep Bottom area, which is right above Curls Neck. This locale comes by its name naturally as numerous deep holes exist, many of which are choked with laydowns that rest on pea gravel."

I started thinking about the Deep Bottom area and realized THIS IS WHERE I FISH ALL THE TIME! There's only one shoreline in the Deep Bottom area with pea-gravel and it's that shore line with the really long dock structure and the wooded shoreline. I fish that section a lot. Never caught a bass there lol :)

Guess I'll have to keep on trying!

I also would like to find this "canal pits" in Curls Neck

I think he has some of the names in their different then what most of us know them as. Like he says Meeks pit, but on any maps it is Meades Pit. For Curles Neck I am guessing he is referring to Curles Neck Swamp...If you have the GMCO map these are on there.

Jeff

Yea I have one, I'll have to look it up.

Email all the info on the article like where it was, etc... would like to put it under the James articles as it is pretty accurate even though some of the names are off...

Jeff

Dang, I didn't bookmark it..

It was just a google search of "james river barge pits" or something along those lines.

It was a pretty recent article, December 2005 if I recall correctly....

something like virginiagameandfish.com or something..

It was in VA Game and Fish magazine, I believe Nov. issue.

Rich is correct, it is actually a piece of a much longer article. If you go to the FISHINGVA.COM homepage and then go to the Lower James River section under the articles is a link to the page where are all of that magazines James River articles are. It is there under one of the winter bassin articles.

Jeff