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Anyone who carefully examines data compiled for the Virginia Trophy Angler recognition program will notice inconsistencies.

For example, the smallmouth bass Angler of the Year had a 6-pound, 8-ounce fish. Yet in the general listings there’s a 7-pound, 2-ounce smallmouth listed. What’s up with that.

And what about the year’s largest yellow perch, which is an ounce heavier than the existing state record? Why isn’t it a new state record?

Same goes for that 15-pound brown trout, another fish that exceeds the state record.

Then there are those confusing length measurements, some of which clearly don’t collate to the fish’s weight.

The inconsistencies stem from the basic structure of the program, for which the application process is, shall we say, flexible.

An angler can take a trophy fish to a tackle shop or other location with a certified scale, and have an objective witness verify the weight and measurements. But an angler also can print off an application from the Internet, have a buddy sign as a witness and also be awarded a citation.

Having to process more than 6,000 of those applications per year, the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries simply can’t verify inconsistent or confusing information. As long as the $4 fee is included with the application, the catch will go in the database.

But there are certain standards.

That weight of that 7-pound, 2-ounce smallmouth bass may very well be accurate. But it wasn’t a certified weight, so the fisherman isn’t eligble for an Angler of the Year award.

The yellow perch weight apparently was certified — although the fish’s listed length of 14 inches is strangely short. But angler Spencer Musick of Speedwell, whom I could not reach for comment regarding the catch, didn’t pursue the necessary steps to apply for a state record, a process that requires, among other things, that a Department of Game and Inland Fisheries biologist personally verify the fish. Does that mean Musick simply didn't realize the fish was a state record? (And that has happened.) Or was that weight not accurate? (And that has happened, too.)

The answer is simpler for Will Helmick’s 15-pound brown trout.

The fish, like 126 other trout Helmick has registered for citation awards over the past three years, came from a fee fishery. And while the DGIF will happily send an angler a certificate for a big fish caught at a commercial operation, those fish are not eligible for record consideration.

What it comes down to is that while the awards go on a public list, a citation is really just a piece of paper. The true measure of the trophy is something the angler knows best.

Scott Dishon of Christiansburg sent in this shot of a great rainbow he and his son Nathan teamed up to catch Monday while fishing at Toms Creek.

Dishon said they saw the fish and had to work two hours before it finally hit their PowerBait offering. The fish was 24 inches long and weighed just a touch over 5 pounds.

"Nathan was so excited to see a big fish," Dishon wrote. "I think I've created a fishing buddy for life."

I hope so.

Matt Wimmer sent in this shot of the great brown trout he caught Sunday while fishing at Potts Creek in Craig County. The fish was 22 inches long and weighed 5.2 pounds.

The creek was stocked on Friday, and Wimmer said some locals told him it was like "opening day" on Saturday. But they must have put plenty of fish in because it was still loaded on Sunday. Wimmer said he caught nine, releasing all but this one, and his brother caught five. They were using Trout Magnet jigs.

Sounds like others had some good fishing, too. In a comment to an earlier posting, blog reader Jim Basham said he had good fishing for bluegills and crappies in a pond near Stewartsville. On Friday my friend Tom Maynard went back to the Claytor Lake, where we had caught some nice yellow perch a few weeks ago, and he said they caught a bunch more.

I was hoping to get out Sunday but got caught up working on a project at the house and couldn't get away. A warm stretch this early in the season is always nice, but we all know that the best fishing is yet to come.

On June 1, the special regulations that have been in affect on Virginia's Delayed Harvest trout waters shift over to regular regulations. Like Trout Heritage Day, this is something of an opening day because everyone knows which streams are in the program and can feel confident those waters have some fish due the catch-and-release-only regs that have been in place since Oct. 1.

Crowds can be a bit heavy the first few days but quickly thin out.

The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries has a detailed list of the state's Delayed Harvest waters on its Web site, and the list also includes pinpoint directions for the waters.

Anglers at Delayed Harvest waters need a trout license in addition to a regular fishing license through June 15.

Randy Whittaker of Newport spent the night next to Tinker Creek on Friday so he could get his preferred spot for Trout Heritage Day. His reward? This 11.5-pound brown trout, which Whittaker hooked on his third cast.

Usually, to catch a monster trout like this gorgeous 22-inch long brown on a fly rod, you have to pull out the big guns -- a big streamer.

But Stephen Hiner tricked this big female with a size 18 blue-winged olive (BWO) dry fly, while fishing on the South Holston tailwater in Tennessee earlier this month.

For those of you not too familiar with fly fishing, a size 18 BWO is only slightly bigger than a piece of lint. Or this "X". He was also using 6X tippet, which was probably around 3-pound-test.

Hiner said the only way he was able to get his hands on the fish was because Bruce Wankel of the Virginia Creeper Fly Shop helped him net the thing.

If you want to fish for some of the biggest (and toughest) trout in the country, do yourself a favor and head to the South Holston tailwater.

A friend just called to tell me he saw the trout truck at Tinker Creek this morning.

This worked out well. I'm actually working on a piece about wintertime trout fishing and thought I might head up to Pandapas Pond, which was stocked yesterday. This saves me a trip.

What a great day for fishing, huh? It's going to be beautiful. Maybe I'll see you out there this afternoon. I'll be the one with the camera.

Fellow sports department staffer Katrina Waugh just called in to say hordes of anglers were on the Ronaoke River at Wasena Park, a sure sign that the river had been stocked recently with trout. It actually got fish yesterday, which means today will probably be the best day for fishing.

Because of the drought, the Roanoke River is among a fairly small number of waters that actually is in good enough shape for fish. Other streams, even those top-level "Class A" waters, are just trickles. They're probably cool enough for trout, but there's just not enough flow for a decent fishing experience.

Trout stocking crews have had to focus on the decent waters. The question is, what will they do when they've hit all those streams and ponds once? Gary Martel, head of the Fisheries Division at the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, said his team is working on possible solutions. One option includes veering from the normal stocking protocol and hitting the better waters again.

Adding to the dilemma, water levels are also suffering at hatcheries. So it's not like the agency can just put stocking on hold and keep the fish. They have to get rid of some of them.

An easy option would be to dump the excess fish in a big reservoir. That wouldn't do anything toward the program's mission of spreading fish around to provide fair and equitable recreation.

With rain in the forecast, we can only hope low water becomes less of a concern in coming weeks.

The DGIF stocked the Roanoke River's two delayed harvest sections with trout today.

One section runs adjacent to Green Hill Park just outside Salem. The other section is in Salem between the Colorado Street Bridge and the Apperson Road Bridge near the Apperson/Electric Road intersection. HERE's a basic map of the sections. If you don't know exactly where they are, you'll need a city map or need to use an Internet mapping service to locate the stretches.

Delayed harvest waters are catch and release only (until the end of May), and anglers must use artificial lures. And, no, Power Bait, as artificial as it may be, does not count.