Welcome to Paradise Pascagoula Paradise Paddlers

CELEBRATING 10 YEARS OF PADDLING IN JACKSON COUNTY

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INNOVATIVE

RESTORING

the SAILFISH

For the better part of 70 years, the Sailfish has been a fixture of the Biloxi tourism industry offering visitors and locals alike the opportunity to experience Mississippi’s maritime culture firsthand. The Sailfish is a 41-foot excursion vessel based in the Biloxi Small Craft Harbor that is either a tour boat that catches shrimp or a shrimp boat that shuttles tourists. Either way, the end result is just plain fun!

Constructed locally in 1950 for the original owner and operator, Louis James Gorenflo, the Sailfish and the tourism company passed through the possession of Captain Joe Scholtes, to Captain Peter Skrmetta, to his son Louis Skrmetta and eventually to its current owners Mike and Brandy Moore with the Biloxi Cruise Company, LLC. The vessel is powered by an inboard diesel engine and has a large, enclosed cabin with interior seating for passengers. There is an upper deck that can provide a sea breeze and greater views on fair weather days and acts as a platform for sojourning anglers. On the stern of the boat is the kangaroo rigging and winch used to deploy and return the 16-foot trawl net that rakes in the bounties of the sea to the delight of the onlooking crowd.

It is only logical that after some seven decades in service, the Sailfish would need a little repair and restoration from time to time to maintain its seaworthiness and continue its storied history plying the waters of the Biloxi shoreline. In early 2021, Mike and Brandy, acting as good stewards of the renowned vessel, knew that it was again time to drydock the Sailfish and undergo a major renovation to the vessel’s hull to continue to keep this legend afloat. Years of faithful service and exposure to the elements of wind and sun and pounding sea had taken their toll, and it was time to make a major investment in the Sailfish.

For anyone who has ever owned a boat, the truism persists: There is nothing cheap about boats. This repair was going to be a major financial investment for Mike and Brandy at a time when revenues were down for all tourism-based

businesses due to the continuing effects of the global COVID pandemic. Fortunately for Mike and Brandy, their Biloxi Cruise Company had years prior chosen to partner with the Mississippi Gulf Coast National Heritage Area (MSGCNHA) and seek membership to the MSGCNHA Outpost Business Recognition Program. The Gulf Coast Outpost Business Recognition Program is part of the 2016 Nature-Based Tourism Plan for Coastal Mississippi and was developed for the Mississippi Gulf Coast National Heritage Area by stakeholders in the industry. Business owners and operators are recognized through a checklist that focuses on training, sustainability and stewardship. The program is aimed at those companies whose primary business is dependent on the natural environment in Mississippi’s six coastal counties and could include businesses like eco-tour companies, locally owned outfitters, charter boat operators, tour guides, eco-lodges and agritourism entities to name a few.

The Outpost Business Program seeks to foster economic development while promoting environmental conservation and stewardship of Coastal Mississippi’s natural resources. The qualifications for membership are somewhat stringent and require a certain level of training and knowledge of Coastal Mississippi’s history and natural environment, but the benefits for nature-based business members are substantial. The MSGCNHA can offer member businesses access to environmental training, advertising through the MSGCNHA and our partners’ websites, marketing materials including decals and logos that can be used on their own and other’s websites, and most notably for Mike and Brandy, access to the MSGCNHA Community Grant Program to help grow and sustain Outpost businesses; a program that is normally open only to non-profit entities along the Gulf Coast.

As a member of the Gulf Coast Outpost Business Recognition Program, the Biloxi Cruise Company applied for and was awarded a 2021 Mississippi Gulf Coast National Heritage Area Community Grant to partially fund the needed restorations on the Sailfish, the heart and soul of Mike and Brandy’s naturebased business. The Heritage Area was happy to assist in an effort that would not only promote tourism and economic growth, but also help preserve a historic vessel and company that was built, founded and has operated in the City of Biloxi since 1950. This is one of very few tourism businesses from that era on the Gulf Coast that has been in continuous operation to this day and has certainly become part of the fabric of our coastal culture.

In the fall of 2021, with the close of the summer tourism season, Mike and Brandy motored the Sailfish north up Old Fort Bayou to the Harris Marine boatyard in Ocean Springs, Miss., where the boat would spend the winter in dry-dock undergoing the much need repairs. Once on dry land, the renovation of the Sailfish could begin by removing the compromised side decking and revealing the extent of the needed repairs. Although confined to the gunwale down, the amount of work needed was slightly more extensive than Mike and Brandy had anticipated. The replacement of several ribs and side boards would be needed using old growth cypress lumber, a material traditionally used for boat building in this area that is known for its durability and rot resistance. The new materials would be anchored in place with the use of all stainless fasteners and an exuberance of marine epoxy. The final sealing and painting of the hull would have the Sailfish ready for an early spring 2022 re-launch; just in time for another busy tourism season.

Maintaining a historic wooden vessel’s seaworthiness in the 21st century is unquestionably an arduous task; particularly one that is still used in daily service. Unlike 70 years ago, wooden boatbuilding is an art form that is disappearing from our culture and finding a craftsman with those skills today can be challenging. Traditional materials are both expensive and hard to find, and all repairs are inspected by the U.S. Coast Guard and must comply with Coast Guard regulations. The restoration of the Sailfish has helped to preserve our maritime history and culture on the Gulf Coast and its return to service will ensure its continued contribution to our local economy and to our reputation on the Mississippi Gulf Coast as a tourist destination.

To learn more about the Sailfish or to schedule a Biloxi Shrimping Trip with Mike and Brandy Moore, visit their website at biloxishrimpingtrip.com. For and full list of Gulf Coast Outpost Businesses and to learn more about the program, go to the website at gulfcoastoutpost.com.

COMMUNITY

IT TAKES TWO ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: ASHLEY ANDERSON MASON by RoxAnn Rankin Wicker

ACommunity | 31 Community | 31

Q + A

The lighthearted duo sat down with me to chat about Ashley’s The lighthearted duo sat down with me to chat about Ashley’s background and scope of work for the future.