Wa t e r LIFE
Charlotte Harbor, Lemon Bay & the Gulf The Don Ball School of Fishing
February 2015
Offshore page 10-11
Baby Tarpon page 8
Seminar in Print page 12
Waterway History page 14
More Ethanol Woes page 21
www.WaterlifeMagazine.com
The Local Newspaper is LYING to you page 20
Always FREE!
PAGE
2
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
FEBRUARY 2015
FEBRUARY 2015
BACK ISSUES @
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
PAGE 3
PAGE
4
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
FEBRUARY 2015
Tune in to Radio Fishinʼ anytime! Talk shows with Fishinʼ Frank @ FishinFranks.com
Water LIFE inc.
Send letters and photos to: WaterLIFE@comcast.net
To Water LIFE I just happened to read some of the "factoids" published by Capt. Blago in your January issue. I thought I might respond with a few "factoids" of my own. For example, he asks "who is paying their fair share" of taxes? He then states that the top 20 percent of income earners pay 69 percent of all of the taxes. My "factoid" the wealthiest 20 percent of US citizens own over 85 percent of the wealth of our great country. His "factoid" "The bottom 20 percent paid only 4 percent of the taxes." My factoid. The bottom 40 percent own only 0.2 percent of the wealth of our country. (I couldn't find any data on the wealth of the bottom 20 percent). Here's another little "factoid" he might want to include in his
next discussion of income inequality .... the top 400 families in this country own as much wealth as the bottom 150 million individuals. Mr. Blago might want to take another look at his "factoids" ... and at who is paying their fair share. As for his ideas on conservation.... Yes, we all know that the extinction of species is a natural phenomenon, but to seemingly deny that mankind is contributing to extinctions is particularly disturbing when his livelihood depends, at least in part, on the conservation of wildlife. I am sure the captain is an excellent fishing guide. Perhaps he should stick with his area of expertise and leave the political posturing to those who actually have correct "factoids". Dave Dyke, PGI
New House May Solve Old Problem
Iʼve been on a clean-drinking-water crusade lately. Charlotte County needs to update their water system and either ʻloopʼ their dead end water mains around into the other mains so they flow freely, or automatically and regularly (like every other day) flush the dead end lines out. If the county doesnʼt do one of those two things the ʻcrudʼ in the line (rust and particles from decaying 50 year old pipes and God knows what else) gets piled up at the dead end of the line so the houses there suffer the most with yellow, rusty, stinky water from Charlotte County Utilities. So Iʼd now like you to meet the new guys at the dead end of the water main on my block. The house isnʼt quite finished yet, in fact they just planted all those palms last month. I donʼt know who the owners are, but do you think someone who builds a house like this is going to put up with smelly rusty yellow water? Nope - not even for their landscaping! – MH
Thank You for supporting The Don Ball School of Fishing
This year marks the 14th year of our Don Ball School of Fishing. The only reason we are able to continue this program tghat teaches 6th and 7th graders about local fishing and preserving the local environment is because the community supports the idea. Right before the holidays we received a nice check from the South Gulf Cove Fishing Club. They have encouraged our program straight along. For the staff and the students I say ‘Thank you!’ And at the beginning of this year the Southwest Florida Marine Industries Association also give generously to our cause. Thank you too! We all believe that educating kids is a positive way to influence the future. We thank all our donors and sponsors sincerely!
waterlife@comcast.net www.WaterlifeMagazine.com
Michael & Ellen Heller Publishers
(941) 766-8180
217 Bangsberg Rd. Port Charlotte, FL 33952
Independant - Not affiliated with any other publication Vol XIV No 2 © 2015
No part of this publication (printed or electronic) may be copied or reproduced without specific written permission from the publishers.
Contributing Editors:
Photography: ASA1000.com Senior Editor: Capt. Ron Blago River and Shore: Fishinʼ Frank Charlotte Harbor: Capt. Billy Barton Family Fishing: Capt. Bart Marx Punta Gorda: Capt. Chuck Eichner Venice: Glen Ballinger Kayaking: David Allen Sea Grant: Betty Staugler Offshore: Capt. Jim OʼBrien Fly Fishing: Capt. Scott Sichling Beach Fishing: Mallory Herzog Circulation: Robert Cohn Office Dog: Molly Brown
on the COVER: Red grouper are back and this anglers, out on a trip with Capt. Joe Miller of Venice was taking them home for dinner. Offshore: page 10-11 & 23
YOUR AD reaches readers all month long = Cost Effective!!
ADVERTISE HERE!
$99 per month!
Water LIFEʼs 1/8 page ad (this size)
still just
call 941-766-8180
The effective & economical month-long advertising solution
4- C O L O R is always FREE WE areTHE WAY to reach people who love the WATER!
www.waterlifemagazine.com in print - online - and always FREE
Elegant Online: TURN THE PAGES EVERY MONTH Back Issues to 2004 Kids Charters Fishing Classes Tides Weather Sailing Kayaking Diving
Our website is Easy to Nav iga te & coo kie FR EE
One-click Links from the address in your ad to your website
Free on yourDevice too!
Your ad looks GREAT on our clean white paper with NO SMEAR ink
“Like a good day on the water”
FEBRUARY 2015
BACK ISSUES @
Super Trawlers, Really Big, Bad Idea
By Michael Heller Water LIFE editor It was a simple video link on YouTube that got my attention. The still image on the link was a thick cylindrically shaped form, filled with silver. I clicked ‘play’ and the form began to move. It was a section of a compressed net, maybe 20 feet across and 10 feet high and it was filled Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTeCliOqJrA with fish, mostly mackerel, from the definition of a super trawler. the ocean off Australia. The net moved The Australian secretary for agriculture across my screen as the ships automated released a statement on Christmas Eve machinery kept pulling it out of the sea saying supertrawlers would be permaand past the camera. It kept coming and nently banned from Australian waters, but coming. When deployed, the net was over his ban simply defined a super trawler as 1800 feet long and 600 feet wide. a vessel longer than 130 meters. EnvironThe world has gone mad with supermental and fishing groups immediately size on the ocean. Gigantic cruise ships, criticized the decision because it allows supertankers and now super-trawlers. smaller vessels with equally large nets and The Australian government instituted a processing capacity to fish in restricted ban on these vessels two years ago, but areas. The acceptable size of the nets used their ban runs out this year. was not specified in the ban. Super trawlers have the ability to deciThe Australian government had previmate the fish populations. Opponents say ously imposed bans on Dutch owned suthe Australian ban is inadequate because it pertrawlers. One ran out in November, the defines ships only by size and not by their other is up for review in April. industrial fishing capacity. The world must learn from the AusA recreational fishing industry tralian experience. Supertrawler concenspokesman said there was now a need to trates an enormous effort into a small area sit down with environmental groups and and that it has an impact by efficiently put pressure on the government to change taking a huge number of fish out of the
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
PAGE 5
A tightly packed net, 1800 feet long and stuffed with mackerel, is pulled from the ocean.
sea very quickly, exaggerating issues already ongoing in the fishery. This has the potential to become a global problem. “There needs to be more research into depletion of fish stocks, a more transparent policy on how much and where fish are caught and a commitment to independent observer programs,” an Australian fisheries minister said. As expected, fish processing companies argued a ban on its fishing boats was improper and should be overturned and when questioned a processing spokesman would not state whether his company would continue to use super trawlers if the ban is lifted this year, saying only that they had a quota and that they intended to fill it. In Australia, a website petition at-
tracted 90,000 signatures, claiming the ships would have devastated local fisheries and impacted protected species. Under the proposed conditions for fishing, the super-trawlers could have legally killed up to 10 seals a day. The environmentalists had a field day with that report! A Tuna Club of Tasmania spokesman summed up the situation saying they believed that supertrawlers outdated the present harvest strategy. ''The sheer efficiency of this type vessel means that the science used to determine quotas needs to be rethought,” he said. A final decision is expected to be made later this year in Australia, but the other open oceans of the world are still fair game for this kind of ‘fishing’ and there doesn’t seem to be any way to regulate it.
PAGE
6
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
FEBRUARY 2015
Snook Still Have to Feed
By Capt. David Stephens Water LIFE Harbor Living in South West Florida over the years, I have heard people talk about winter being the worst time to fish Charlotte Harbor, but in my personal opinion, we have world class fishing here year round. The biggest problem is, during the cooler months one of our most prized game fish is not known for its ferocious appetite. Snook fishing this time of year is not at its peak, however we do live in an area that has warming trends between cold fronts. After a cold front passes generally we will have several days, and at times a week or more of warm weather. When this happens our water temperature will rise enough to make sluggish snook feed. I have been targeting snook as long as I have been old enough to fish for them. Over the years I have taken a lot of notes. I have also had my share of bad days fishing for these guys during the winter, but one of the things I have noticed that helps to get our water temperatures to levels that snook will actually feed in is not the how warm it gets during the day, but how cool it is at night. If we have nice sunny days in the 70s, but it gets down in the 40s at night, that will not allow our water to warm enough. The warmer it is at night paired up with a really nice warm day is the key. Put several of those days together and we are making the right conditions for snook to turn on. To locate feeding fish during this time of year you have to know where they migrate to. During the colder months snook move to areas that have depth. Water cools from the surface to the bottom, so when cold fronts pass the deeper the water the warmer it will be close to the bottom. When we have a warming trend snook will move from these deeper water areas in search of prey. Look for areas that have good tide flow
that are near deep water. I also like to look for areas that have a black or darker bottom. The darker bottom absorbs heat better. If you locate fish in shallow water and are not able to get them to bite, the chances are they are more interested in warming up than feeding. Take a note of the water temperature and try again once it has warmed up a little. If the water is cooler than 70 degrees chances are it is to cold. That’s when I often have very good luck getting snook to feed in the deeper water. If you can locate some, live bait will work well. A jumbo shrimp or fresh cut-bait will also get their attention. Just be patient - you will be rewarded. www.backbayxtremes.comSouth West
Florida’s finest fishing give me a call or send me an email. All of our charters are private and customized to fit your parties needs. 941-9165769 ww.backbayxtremes.com
Get Ya’ a Butt Dragger FEBRUARY 2015
By Capt. Chuck Eichner Water LIFE Inshore
Modern day largemouth bass fishing has led to lure and tackle innovations that have carried over into the saltwater arena. I was a bass fishing guide for 17 years before moving to the Charlotte Harbor area, but when I started hooking snook, redfish and tarpon, I literally lost interest in bass fishing. But not the tactics used by bass fishermen. I still find their tackle fascinating and recently found a better way to fish live shrimp using a bass jig! Daiichi Hooks has a jig-rig designed for plastic baits called the “Butt Dragger” hook. This rig comprises of a bent shank hook with wire spring to attach the bait and a weight that is attached to the underside of the hook. It comes in only one weight at 1/8 ounce and hook sizes range from 3/0 to 5/0. The beauty of this rig is that you can rig a shrimp Texas style which makes the shrimp completely weedless – and equally as important it presents the shrimp in a realistic manner! Shrimp by nature almost do a vertical leap in the water column when agitated and then they softly float and glide back down towards the bottom. Mess with a shrimp in a bucket of water and you will get the idea.
This jig was designed for a plastic bait but is incredible for fishing live shrimp. To rig, you first cut off the tail flush against the first segment. You will need to use a sharp pair of scissors to assure that the meat at the end is firm and intact. You then screw the shrimp onto the wire spring until flush with the hook. You turn the shrimp underside so that you can poke the hook point into the bottom of the shrimp, first bending the shrimp so the hook penetrates
BACK ISSUES @ BACK ISSUES @
allowing the shrimp to be straight.
Two important things; first a shrimp that is bent on the hook spins in the water and fish do not like it – and secondly, do not tear the tail off as it weakens the meat in the tail end and the shrimp will not stay attached. You have to cut it! To fish, throw out to a pothole or mangrove bush and allow the bait to settle to the bottom. Raise your rod in a soft sweeping motion without reeling to move the bait. Drop your rod, reel in the slack and pull the rod from the 10’oclock to 12’oclock position to move.
Basically, you fish the lure on a slack line which allows you to drop the rod upon
a bite, then reel in your slack and set the hook. This presentation with this special jig has the shrimp fall in a natural way lofting back to the bottom as opposed to a normal jig where the jig pulls the shrimp in a straight line to the bottom. All fish love this method of fishing and you can cover water, making accurate casts and fish a live shrimp like a lure. On a winter day in Charlotte Harbor you can expect to catch, redfish, trout, sheepshead, blowfish, pompano, ladyfish, bluefish, jack crevalle, flounder and a few others. Not a bad alternative to cutting a hole in the ice up north and sitting on a bucket in a fish shanty! Capt. Chuck Eichner operates Action Flats Backcountry Charters and can be reached at 941-628-8040.
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
PAGE 7
Ditch Tarpon PAGE
8
By Mallory Herzog Water LIFE Fishing When you hear about tarpon in the fishing world it’s usually a catch of a lifetime. Heavy duty rod and reel. Two hundred pound gorgeous silver king leaping out of the water, all the while you’re praying the fish stays on the line. We all know about tarpon of this caliber but where do they start? Tarpon are said to live into their 50's. Where are they able to hide from many of the ocean's predators looking for a quick meal? Just-hatched tarpon are not the fish you would recognize, they are transparent,
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
eel-like body with a prehistoric-looking, fanged head. They remain in this stage for about 30 days before starting to transform into normal-looking fish. Where tarpon spawn has been a hot topic for many years between scientists and anglers. Do they spawn offshore or in our back waters and bays? I believe both. One of my favorite gloomy day activities is to head to my friends back yard. He lives on a few acre's of land with "freshwater" ponds and canals. Perfect for that day where you only have a few hours before work. These waterways hold your average bass, blue gill and even a few
tilapia. But on a recent trip, I was really surprised what was hooked on the end of my line. A tiny tarpon! These guys range from 1to 5-pounds. I was thrilled when I saw more of these guys rolling around in the distance. But how did they get there? The how is essentially drainage ditches teaming with life. Have you ever seen the movie Finding Nemo? "ALL drains lead to the ocean!" Maybe not directly, but in a
winding twisting and turning system of culverts and pipes, these juvenile tarpon have found their way to a safe home where they can grow. And they are thriving. Rolling around in the distance, feeding on smaller minnows. I’ve never seen this canal this full of life. We've fished this location at least a dozen other times with nothing exciting to report back. Maybe that day they were just passing through, but I’m thrilled that we were in the right place at the right time.
FEBRUARY 2015
Andrew got out his fly rod to see how they would respond to that. He was throwing a grey/blue EP fly he tied earlier in the day. After a few casts he was hooked up, as was I, catching a few on the fly. So much fun on a fly, they have such intensity, even at such a small size. I tried swim baits and various lures, but most were just too large to hook these little guys. The smaller the better worked in this situation. They were so visual, which made it all the more exciting. They were short striking and fighting over the lures and the fly as we were bringing them close to shore. We must have hooked a dozen and caught four before they disappeared for the day. I’ve heard of others catching "ditch tarpon" but did not realize it was possible in your own back yard. My favorite thing about saltwater fishing is you never know what will bite your line, and that surprise species usually turns out to be a great memory on the water.
FEBRUARY 2015
BACK ISSUES @
Crystal River Manatees
On The Line
The Crystal River Manatee Festival brings in tourists and their dollars
By Capt. Ron Blago Water LIFE Senior Staff
If you head north to Citrus County you will come across the small town of Crystal River, known in the past for tarpon fishing and scallop season, but now best known for their annual Manatee Festival in January. Last month’s event brought over 10,000 people to celebrate the Florida manatee. This is a pretty respectable number of admirers considering that the town only has only 5,000 residents. The topic of conversation among some of the locals this year was whether the manatee has been a blessing or a curse for their little town. In order to understand their point of view, a little history is in order. Back in the 60s and 70s the Florida building boom hit the Citrus County area. Everyone wanted to have waterfront property and what better way to get that done than to make it, using the standard dredge and fill technique. So canals were dug and homes were built: instant waterfront. In order for a plan like this to work, you need a piece of land to mine for good fill for home sites and a place to put the muck from the dredging for the canals. The developers picked a 51 acre site of swamp-land (today they call it wetlands) as their throw away site. When the project was finished, this site, now known as King's Bay was given to a non-profit foundation. After all, there was no sense in paying real estate taxes on land you could not build on. Back in those days, seeing a manatee was a rare occurrence, but some of the locals noticed that in the winter months you could find a few manatees in a small section of King's Bay called Three Sisters; a 1.5 acre piece that has three freshwater springs which pumped out water at a constant 68 degrees. The entrances to the springs was blocked by large limestone boulders which were part of the natural geology of the area. Someone first counted the manatees at Three Sister around 1965 and found 33
manatees there. Shortly after that, someone removed those boulders which allowed access for the manatees to the 1.5 acre spring site and then the number of manatees started to increase. By 1988 the number grew to 158 and the latest count in 2014 recorded over 500. It's important to remember that this is not a natural manatee habitat but a man made area that the manatees have adapted to, much like the manatees adapted to power plant outflow. With the manatee's addition to the Endangered Species Act; the importance of this area became recognized so the City of Crystal River, in partnership with Southwest Florida Water Management District, bought the land. History does not record the name of the person who first looked at these manatees and said to himself: I bet people would pay good money to see these things, but he would now be the father of the Manatee Tourist Industry in Crystal River. As the industry grew, the city required that all tour operators have permits and log the number of customers they take. Last year they issued 47 commercial permits. In 2010 they reported 67,000 customers in 2013 that number had grown to over 125,000. If you estimate an average of $30 per customer, your looking at over $ 3.75 million just in tours, which doesn't include money taken in by hotels, restaurants and tacky souvenir shops. The money adds up. You can see how Crystal River has become the boom town of the manatee gold rush. Now some of the locals have the feeling that they have lost control of their small town. Because the manatee is on the Endangered Species List, every Federal, State and local government organization that has anything to do with water or the manatees in it must be approved when there are any changes to the status quo. As one tour operator put it “We now have too many manatees, too many people and not enough habitat.” I feel sorry for the people of Crystal River; I guess they should have left those limestone boulders right where they were.
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
PAGE 9
Future Management of the Entire Recreational Sector PAGE
10
NOAA Fisheries seeks public comment on Amendment 40 to the Fishery Management Plan for the Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council has submitted Amendment 40 to NOAA Fisheries for review, approval, and implementation. The Notice of Availability for public comment on this amendment published in the Federal Register on January 16, 2015. NOAA Fisheries encourages constituents to access Amendment 40 and its associated Final Environmental Impact Statement at: http://sero.nmfs.noaa.gov/sustainable_fis heries/gulf_fisheries/reef_fish/2013/am40/in dex.html If approved by NOAA Fisheries, Amendment 40 would provide a basis for increased flexibility in future management of the entire recreational sector, and reduce the chance for recreational quota overruns.
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
scamp
atlantic grouper
FEBRUARY 2015
amberjack
snapper
red groupers
porgy
Photos on this page are all taken on charters last month by Capt. Joe Miller, of Fish Galore Offshore, fishing out of the Venice Inlet.
FEBRUARY 2015
BACK ISSUES @
Warmer January Brought Kingfish - for a Short While
By Capt. Dan Cambern Water LIFE Placida Ok, so it’s February and you want to know what is biting and where to find those hungry fish. Well let me start out by telling you how the fishing was in January and go from there. For the most part we had warmer than average temps and not too much wind until the end of the month, when some of my customers from Michigan decided to drag some of the Great White North down with them. Yes, we were blessed with warm enough temps so that we've had an abundance of bait off-shore, including blue runners, and cigar minnows which are some of my favorite live baits, especially if I'm free lining them behind the boat for kingfish, sailfish, black-fin tuna, or maybe a cobia. Big blue runners are also very addictive for amberjack as well as cobia around many of the numerous wrecks and reefs we have off-shore. January and February are not months we catch many kingfish, but with the conditions the way they were we managed to catch a few. I usually look towards the middle of March to see significant numbers of kings. Ok, let’s talk about grouper fishing. As of Jan. 1st Amberjack, trigger fish and red grouper seasons re-opened and the bite has been fantastic with many grouper
limits being caught. By the way the red grouper limit is back up to 4 per person in state and federal waters as of the first of the year. I encourage our customers to keep only 2 or 3 which is plenty of fillets, especially when combined with the many other reef species such as mangrove, lane, vermilion, and yellow tail snapper that are usually caught in the same areas. Add to that, we have trigger-fish, porgies, grunts, as well as a few sea bass which seem to be making a slight comeback. The word is that the Gulf of Mexico Fishery managers are going to change the red grouper limit to two fish per person some time this year. Also gag grouper is still scheduled to re-open July 1st. as far as I know. But red snapper season is still anyone's guess right now, so stay tuned to this publication for further updates. Capt Dan Cambern owns and operates Hammerhead Charters LLC. Our boat is docked in Placida, Fl at the Fishery Restaurant. Call 941-380-6226 or 941-625-6226 to book your trip of a lifetime today!
FWC Casts Seafood Dragnet
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
Staff Report Last month FWC officers from Lee and Charlotte counties came together for an organized area-wide detail focused on wholesale/ retail licensing and quality control inspections. According to the FWC, the detail was put together in order to protect the public from possible unsafe seafood consumption as well as to ensure that businesses had the required licensing, to ensure that seafood is being legally bought and sold. During the one day operation, officers inspected 65 facilities. Many of the locations inspected were in compliance with the law, however there were a wide range of violations observed including possession of undersized fish, not possessing proper licensing, failure to possess proper documentation of sales and a
PAGE 11
variety of quality control issues. Officers found rotten fish for sale and businesses that had flies and dogs inside the facility with the fish. One facility had an ash tray with cigarette ashes and bleach being used right next to fish that was being prepared for sale. There was also one facility that did not have proper refrigeration to keep the seafood wholesome and another where the refrigeration line was cut and was dripping A.C. condensation water down where seafood was stored. All together, 30 warnings and 6 misdemeanors were issued for the violations. Followup inspections will be done to ensure the violations have been corrected. A specific list of the businesses investigated was not available at press time, but stay tuned!
PAGE
12
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
AQUATICA
FEBRUARY 2015
ONE MONTH始S CATCH and a Seminar for More
By Capt Billy Barton Water LIFE Inshore When our water temps make it down into the 60s and even the 50s, which will most likely be during the month of February, you can expect the metabolisms of most of our saltwater species to slow down. They just don't have to eat as much and in turn they aren't going to be as likely to chase down a bait-fish. Our winter fishing usually revolves around shrimp and crabs, which are slow moving creatures. Crustaceans are found mostly on the bottom during the daytime. Blue crabs are a little less intimidated creatures and will be found scavenging through the grass looking for whatever they can find to pick on and make a meal of during the day. Blue crabs are a favorite bait of many anglers, when targeting big red drum (red-fish), big black drum, cobia, and tarpon throughout the year. A lot of your most aggressive feeding saltwater fish will make blue crabs part of their main diets. Fiddler crabs and mangrove crabs are also a favorite during the winter. Both of these crabs average about the size of a quarter and a lot of our fish down here just can't resist them. Fiddler crabs typically can be identified by having that one large intimidating looking claw matched with one small claw. These crabs can usually be purchased at your local bait shop. Now if you're flat broke, don't have the money for fiddlers and you're fishing for a meal, you can put the time and effort into catching mangrove crabs (or dock crabs). These little bugs can usually be found exactly where their name implies. In the mangrove bushes or scurrying around your local dock pilings. They're pretty quick so it pays to have a small net or something to catch them with. If you get your hands on some of these little guys it can be very rewarding.
Sheepshead and pompano, two of our most sought after wintertime fish, make these crabs a main part of their diet. A good sized live shrimp is still my favorite. I spoke at a few fishing seminars last month with the guys from Fishin始 Franks and the Pirate Crew. How to fish a live shrimp properly in the winter was my primary topic at these talks, and I had a lot of very interested listeners. What I learned while teaching, was that there are a lot of people out there who don't actually understand the way a shrimp moves and swims when underwater. Shrimp will usually bury-up during the day and be on the move at night. Naturally, a shrimp will swim forward very slowly. Even during the daytime, when spooked out of its hiding spot by one thing or the next, a shrimp is not capable of swimming fast. It can however, snap its tail when it's spooked and jump from one spot to the next rather quickly, pushing itself backwards. What I like to do, is to try and imitate this while fishing. The best way to imitate this, is to tail hook a decent sized shrimp on a jig-head. Pinch the fan of the tail off of your shrimp. This will expose the meat of the shrimp, putting some scent into the water. Now simply insert the point of your hook through the underside of his tail, and come out of his back. If you hook your shrimp properly this makes for an extremely aerodynamic piece of bait and it gives you that long cast you need. Your biggest fish more times than none will be hooked a good distance from the boat
often right when your bait hits the water and is on the drop. My personal favorite jig-head is 1/8 ounce gold flake or copper in color, and made by a company called Mission Fishin. The gold and copper tend to be great colors to use while fishing the tanic harbor on a bright sunny day. An 1/8 ounce jig-head is probably the most common size I use and seems to be most effective. If you始re at a spot where there's a good amount of moving water or a decent amount of wind, sometimes you may need to bump it up to a 1/4 ounce. The idea is to use as little weight as possible, but to be able to slowly hop your shrimp off of the bottom and let it settle for a few seconds in between twitches. This is probably hands down my favorite way to target red-fish. Not only are we catching reds like this, but snook, speckled trout, flounder, pompano, sheeps-head, black drum, and bonnet-head sharks are also on the list as well. As the seasons change, the fishing changes so if
FEBRUARY 2015
BACK ISSUES @
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
PAGE 13
There are lots of nice snook and redfish here, but look at the size of the bluefish (top left this page) and the jack crevalle (bottom left this page) Those were truly impressive specimens. All fish shown here were caught last month on charters with Capt. Billy
you change with the fishing, it should mean continued success. Remember, this Florida weather may not seem like 驶winter始 because you're not seeing snowflakes, but to our fish, it's wintertime! So next time you're out, try fishing your shrimp a little bit slower, and a little bit lower. Good luck out there guys! Keep them lines tight! Capt. Billy Barton,
Scales-n-Tails Fishing Charters 941- 979-6140
PAGE
14
EMAIL:
Harbor HISTORY Trivia
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
FEBRUARY 2015
A steam tug tows a phosphate laden schooner out Boca Grande Pass in the 1890s
By Capt. Betty Staugler Water LIFE Sea Grant Here's a little trivia for newcomers and history geeks. Trivia information and a whole lot more can be found in two Florida Sea Grant documents: Navigational, Historical, and Environmental Perspective of Charlotte County Waterways, and A Historical Geography of Southwest Florida Waterways. Both of these documents are long out of print but can be accessed in PDF form online at: www.flseagrant.org.
Who was Charlotte? – Juan Ponce de Leon discovered the harbor in 1513, and for many years it bore his name: Bahia Juan Ponce. Some maps however called the harbor Carlos Bay, for the Calusa chief, Cacique Carlos. Florida was a Spanish territory until 1763, when the Treaty of Paris ceded Florida to England. In 1764, King George III of England commissioned engineer Bernard Romans to chart the coast of Florida. In a 1775 document Romans wrote of a new bay that "…contains a large river, which empties itself into the new harbor of which I am the first explorer, we have given it the name of Charlotte Harbour. Romans did not explain why he called the new bay Charlotte, but it is likely named after King George's new wife Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
How was the Harbor Surveyed Prior to the 1900s? – Often times when you look at a NOAA Chart you see "Hydrography from surveys made prior to 1900". Starting in the 1800s our nation's first scientific agency, the United States Coast Survey, surveyed this area. One of our first charts was Coast Chart 175, dated 1883. In those early days, surveying was done using stone benchmarks called monuments along the shoreline. Horizontal angles were measured among them, distances calculated, and a "triangular network" established. Crews of sounding vessels measured depths and determined the positions of the soundings by sextant angles taken between pairs of control stations. The old monuments, although obsolete today, are generally found to be within a two-foot radius of their published position. How were the Structures in Bull and Turtle Bays Used? – Ice houses (like the one at the mouth of Bull Bay) were col-
lecting points where keepers would weigh catches from the fishing boats. Run boats brought ice from the Punta Gorda Ice Plant to preserve the catch, and transported fish to Punta Gorda for processing and shipping by rail to the nation's markets. The fish houses provided accommodations for fishermen, allowing extended stays near the fishing ground and providing places for gear and net maintenance. Some of these structures remain today and are in the National Register of Historic Places, the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation.
When was the Main Charlotte Harbor Channel Established? – Navigation improvements for a 12-foot deep by 200foot wide channel from inside Boca Grande entrance to the wharf at Punta Gorda were authorized by the federal government in 1891 and completed in 1897, justified primarily to accommodate barge shipments of phosphate rock from mines in the Peace River Valley. Railroads brought phosphate to the wharf at Punta Gorda; it was then lightered to vessels lying in Boca Grande anchorage. Other cargo shipped to and from Charlotte Harbor included cattle, grain, fish, oysters, lumber, and general merchandise.
How was Dredging done in the Early Days? – The Army Engineers during the 1890s operated its own dredge, the U.S. Steam Snagboat and Dredge Suwanee, which made channel improvements and set day beacons in the inlets, inland waterways and rivers in Southwest Florida. This vessel was a steam-driven shallow-draft, square-bowed scow, 100-feet long with a 24-foot beam and 4-foot draft. Although underpowered she was suited to her task. The Suwanee was put together inexpensively as an experiment in creating a general-purpose vessel for work on small bays and rivers. Her suction dredge discharged the raised slurry on shore through pipes swung perpendicular to her sides, while her derrick provided the lifting power to raise rocks and snags from the bay bottom.
Charlotte County Sea Grant Agent, Capt. Betty Staugler UF/IFAS Extension, Charlotte County (941) 764-4346
FEBRUARY 2015
BACK ISSUES @
Nice Sized Pompano By Capt Bart Marx Water LIFE inshore February and the fishing has been good. We have been catching a large variety of species on our recent trips. Sheepshead, mangrove snapper, white grunts, flounder, hog fish, snook, reds, trout, and pompano have been on the hook to keep our guests in awe. Anglers are impressed with how many species we can catch in such a short time. When the wind is not too bad we can venture out into the Gulf of Mexico and do some bottom fishing. This time of year the flounder and sheepshead are usually plentiful. There are mangrove snapper, porgies and grunts too. On one of our recent fishing adventures it was too windy to venture out so we fished inshore around Gasparilla Sound and Bull Bay. We started from Placida Park boat launch. We ventured to our first fishing hole / spot where we caught a few sheepshead to harvest for a fish fry these guys were looking forward to. Then the bait robbers started to nab almost every bait so it was time to move. With the waters so cool, we have been fishing the deeper spots around docks and other structure where the fish have been hanging. We caught small red fish and small mangrove snapper as we would fish a spot for a short time and then have to move. We went over to Bull Bay where we rigged for some trout action. The first rig
in the water and there was a trout on the line. I like to drift across the grass flats and work your baits so as to cover lots of area. This has been productive for me and if you get some good catches in an area crank up the motor, circle back and drift that area again. And if it is a hot spot, drop the anchor, powerpole, or pin to hold you. Lots of time it turns out to be a sand hole, or the edge of one, where the trout hide to ambush a passing bait. Sometimes you get reds or flounder out of these holes and on some occasions you pick up a pompano. The picture that goes with this story is of my three guest anglers, from left to right Lee in his digital camo, Tom in his Realtree camo and Rob sporting a black shirt. The other photo is of Tom Jones, no he’s not the singer, but his drag was singing as he reeled in that nice pompano. That thing gave him a fit. It ended up on both sides of the boat and I told Tom ‘don't let the line touch the boat!’ and he did a great job doing that, but somehow the line got around the motor. It wasn’t until I trimmed up the motor and it freed up the line that we got a good look at the fish and realized, WOW, it was a nice sized pompano. Tom let the fish run a few more times to burn off some of its energy, but it was still pretty frisky when we harvested it for the fish fry we talked about earlier. This was the highlight of the adventure for all. We fished a while longer and then called it a day. The bait of choice was live shrimp. If you would like to come along with me call 941-9796517 or e-mail me at captbart@alphaomegacharters.com I can go with you on your boat using your gear or we can take mine. Singing drags and tight lines make me smile.
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
PUNTA GORDA ISLES
PAGE 15
MLS C7202199
3 Bed/2.5 Bath/2 Car Garage – Heated Saltwater Pool 39' Dock, 20,000 lb. Boat Lift Just minutes to Charlotte Harbor!!
J U S T R E D U C E D ! $534,900
Lennore Shubel – Realtor Office: 941-575-2502 Cell: 631-741-4589 Email: lennore@liveswflorida.com
PAGE
16
EMAIL:
The Breuggeman
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
FEBRUARY 2015
Olʼ Fishinʼ Hole
Capt. Jm O’Brien Water LIFE Offshore Hey ya -all hope you got out and got some fish'n in. The catch has been great no matter what your fish'n for, from sheepshead to AJs and grouper. Our pictures and story for this month is me and the guys fish'n from 40 to 50 miles out in 120 to 140 feet of water. We got some guys together and fished the 11th Annual John Breuggeman Grouper Tournament and it was a real good tournament. Our fishermen were Walter Jennings, Maurice Benson, Ken Wasson and me and we had a great day on the water! I broke the ice with the first grouper then Maurice got a Big -Un then Ken caught a couple of Big -Uns. Like I told these guys, I just love fish'n the deeper waters the fish are just bigger. At 40 to 70 miles out we threw some keeper grouper back and just kept the BIG - UNS. Fish'n 40 to 50 miles out is like fish'n 30 miles 15 years ago, - it's awesome. We was just what we call running and gunning the areas, but out of the whole day we must have gotten over 20 new way-points for each area we fished and I'm ready to go back out there NOW!
Well that's it for today, so if you have a good ol' fish story or a recipe for cooking fish that we can share with our readers or if you want to book an offshore charter with us aboard the Predator II give me a call ( 941 ) 473 -2150 AND REMEMBER GET OUT AND SNORT SOME OF THAT GOOD CLEAN SALT AIR CUZ IT’S GOOD FER YA ! ! !
FEBRUARY 2015
Mondays with Dad By Fishin’ Frank
Water LIFE Baitshop
I have decided to go fishin’ on Mondays with my Dad – just to let you know, he is the original Fishin Frank. Boy this was a heck of a Monday to start on, Jan 26 started out nice as could be at 6 am, but by 7 am the front was here, the air temp dropped and the rain
BACK ISSUES @
headed up the creek. He watched the depth finder and when we found a deep hole we would anchor up above the hole. Dad would cast a night crawler just to the edge of the hole trying to get it to fall or slide down the side of the hole to the bottom and wait for the cat fish. Well, we waited next to a half-dozen holes, but no cat fish would come and play.
Shell Creek is narrow. It could be blowing 40 mph and you are not going to have waves. I had forgotten what a beautiful ride it is up the creek. I’ve been seen up a lot of creeks, as you would guess, often without a paddle, but this time it was with a 20 horse outboard and being there was a real treat.
The banks are oaks, cypress, and palms, with vines and cypress knees stickin’ up all over. It’s really quite beautiful and we saw lots of turtles getting warm in the sun. and wind blew in. Right then I knew this was going to be a fishin trip, not a catchin trip. But we loaded up the little boat and off we went to Hathaway Park out on Washington Loop. The ramp at Hathaway is a little steep but not bad.
Our thought was, maybe the front would not stop the freshwater catfish from biting, but it did. Dad and I launched the boat and
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
anyway, but it would have been ok.
On the way back down the creek I chose a beetle spin which is my go-to lure, after all, everything eats a beetle spin, and the CreekZilla I was dreaming of was no exception.
I had been casting the shore, but nothing, and then I started trolling the ‘spin’, but still nothing. We were at the 2nd bend from the ramp when I decided to reel it in and just to cast at a bunch of lilly pads. So I made my first cast and when the beetle spin hit the water I let it fall for the first couple feet then give a small twitch to the spin and after
It’s hard to believe how deep the creek is. Many spots have 12, 15, even 20 feet of water in a lot of holes, There is an average depth of 6 foot, with the shallowest water we found at 5 feet. I was not in the mood for live bait.
So the choice was a plastic dinger worm, hoping for bass and a beetle spin. I flipped that dinger into weeds and along the shore line as we moved up the creek and at one bend I got a hit, but it was a swing and a miss. It felt like a smaller fish
PAGE 17
that, a moderate steady retrieve. This style has worked for me many times before. The second cast, the beetle spin hit right at the edge of the weeds and it was on the
drop and I had just twitched it, when Wham! Something slammed that beetle spin and took off for the bottom. My rod bent over double, I was praying my 10 pound line would hold, when ping my lure came flying to the surface. ‘Another swing and a miss,’ I told Dad, then I finished reeling in the beetle spin.
With it in my hand, I looked and some creature had ripped off the spinner blade, which has never happen to me before – and it crushed the hook! So I was fish less and befuddled as to what could have demolished my spinnerbait up here in a creek? I though about trying again, but it was getting dark and cold and I was under-gunned for the situation, but now I know where you live, Creek-Zilla. I’ll be back. We have a personal score to settle If you have not been fresh water fishing lately give Shell Creek a try. I have maps on how to get there on fishinfranks.com, Frank@fishinfranks.com 625-3888
Sailing PAGE
18
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
FEBRUARY 2015
33rd Golden Conch Regatta
By Peter Welch win. In Non Spinnaker, three Water LIFE Sailing boats were tied at 5 points Twenty five boats in four classificaafter two races. The boat Mortions competed in this Regatta January 17 gan had to avoid a collision and 18. Participants were from Cape and delayed a tack toward the Coral, Platinum Point, and Punta Gorda favored wind in race two and clubs. finished 6th in Two race cirthat race. Three cles were used. other boats Seven Spinnaker were tied for boats in one start first at days to the south and end. Morgan the Non Spinkept their head naker (7) and in the game Cruising boats Sunday after (11) to the north having to abin three starts. solve a penalty Spinnaker boats with a 720 dehad five races gree turn. over two days. Going right to The north course meet the new had 3 races in the wind they got a same period. great lift when Large variatacking to the Water LIFE photos: Fran Burstein tion in wind dimark. Finishing Fleet rection and velocity and wave height was first Sunday, they rose to secSpinnaker Non Spin the major challenge at this event. These ond in Non Spinnaker for the Cruising A conditions demanded a flexible strategy, regatta. not tactics against a competitor. RecogIt was reverse fortune in nize that the wind was shifting to the east Spinnaker class. After four and tacking to meet it gave a big advanraces the boat Still Crazy was ahead of tage over boats heading north. second place Soulshine by one point. But Regatta winners are determined by the at the fifth start they took a 720 degree addition of finish positions. Low points penalty turn in a start line incident when
$2 off any haircut!
1st Pace Soulshine (P Robbins) Fancy Free (G Poquette) Diva Gorda (R Gottschlich)
2nd Place See Ya (T Milan) Morgan (W Curtis) Sedaddler (N Maggio)
there was no clear determination of fault. The recovery dropped Still Crazy to fifth and third overall. In Cruising B, Diane Fowler’s Windy City had two first places on day one. Day two they were in fourth. This produced a tie score with Mariah. The tie break went in favor of Windy City by virtue of the two firsts. Boat of the Year awards are given
3rd Place Still Crazy (B Knowles) Jammin (J Haller) Panache (D Dorey)
based on results in five regattas. Golden Conch was the third. Standings now are: Soulshine, 42 points ahead of See Ya. Fancy Free, 20 ahead of Morgan, and Diva Gorda 14 ahead of Panache. The Conquistador Cup on March 7-8 and the Leukemia Cup, March 21-22, finish the series and will be reported here. This month the Charlotte Harbor Regatta for small boats is Feb 6-8.
All photos: Fran Burstein
Yakinʼ with the Sea Cows FEBRUARY 2015
By David Allen Water LIFE Kayaking This is the time of year when you can see manatees up close and personal. As the temperature of the local streams and rivers declines, the manatees look for warm water to survive during the winter months. The Fish and Wildlife Commission reports that on average about 150 manatees die from cold stress each year. Luckily, the FPL power plant in North Fort Myers discharges warm water and provides a safe haven for the manatees so you don’t have to go very far to find manatees in the winter. The power plant is about 1.5 miles above where the Orange River enters the Caloosahatchee. The water is warm for most of this distance. There is no question that the manatees like the area nearest to the power plant and seem to spend most of their time there. Lee County has conveniently established a very well organized way to see the manatees from a kayak. It is Manatee Park. You can easily get there by taking I-75 south to exit 141 and going east on Hwy. 80 to Manatee Park. There is a big sign at the entrance. There is an all day parking fee of $5. You can rent a kayak from Calusa Blueways Outfitters at the park, starting
BACK ISSUES @
at about $15/hour. Tandems are a little more expensive. If you want to bring your own kayak, the launch is free so long as you pay the $5 parking fee. Optimum viewing times are between the months of December and early March. Once you get into March and beyond, the manatees disappear, returning to their more natural habitat. There is a lot to do other than kayaking at Manatee Park. There are shelters for a picnic, a butterfly garden, an observation platform right over the warm part of the river and a nice walking trail. You can’t always depend on seeing manatees at the power plant. So far this winter it has been a little warmer than usual, so many manatees have been comfortable in the waters they normally inhabit. If you call 239-690-5030, perhaps a park ranger can tell you if manatees are near the power plant. Or go to the Park web site at http://www.leeparks.org/pdf/Manatee_par k_trifold.pdf. The Port Charlotte Kayak Club meets each Wednesday evening at Franz-Ross Park at 5:00PM. Franz-Ross is next to the Charlotte County YMCA. The meeting are brief so don’t be late. For more information contact Dave Allen at 941235-2588 or dlaa@comcast.net
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
PAGE 19
PAGE
20
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
SCUTTLEBUTT
FEBRUARY 2015
Sometimes Unsubstanciated, But Often True
Shotgun Wedding When the couple decided to get married, they took engagement photos which included their passions. One in particular shows Mitch with a Ruger Red Label shotgun broken over his shoulder—itʼs the first gun he bought with his own money, a treasure he plans to hang on to all his life, just like his beautiful new bride who took the digital photos to a local Walmart to have them printed. But an associate at the store refused to print the image with the shotgun in it because in her mind and interpretation of store policy, “It promoted gang culture.”
Public Input disregarded Last summer, the FWC proposed a large number of areas in western Pinellas County, from Tarpon Springs to Fort Desoto, be declared Slow Speed Manatee Protection Zones. During a required review by a Local Rules Review Committee made up equally of boating interests and Manatee proponents, the boating advocates were able to eliminate some areas, most notably the elimination of major portions of the West Coast Intracoastal Waterway channel from the slow speed proposal. However, in the final MMP proposal issued by FWC, several recommendations by boating advocates were ignored.
Lies the Newspaper Will Tell You The Charlotte Sunʼs Waterline section proclaims, on its front page no less, that it is “The Original Since 1997.” That is not true. We know this for a fact because we CREATED THE WATERLINE section for them and the first edition was on March 19, 1998. We have pointed this out to them twice, but they refuse to change their proclamation. One lie should make you wonder what other lies they are passing off as the truth, so donʼt believe their fishing reports either. Just ask Jim at the Fishermenʼs Edge. Heʼll tell you, they simply made fishing reports up and put his name on them. Lies are not a good thing in the newspaper business.
Pay Your Child Support No. 1 In December, an investigator observed a known individual actively fishing using a PVC pipe, a method used to harvest ghost shrimp in the Gulf of Mexico. The PVC pipe is rigged to act as a suction device. The investigator observed the individual insert the PVC pipe into the waterʼs bottom several times, return to the shore, and dump ghost shrimp into a five-gallon bucket. The investigator later conducted a saltwater license record check on the individual. The investigator confirmed that the individualʼs license was suspended/revoked for failure to pay child support. On January 5, the investigator completed an arrest warrant which was signed by the judge. Pay Your Child Support No. 2 - is this a trend? The FWC officer observed two men trying to load a boat backward onto a trailer at a local Brevard County ramp.
The officer approached the men and observed several undersized sheepshead lying on the deck of the vessel. After speaking to the men about the fish, FWC dispatch advised that one of the men was wanted on two writs of attachment for failure to pay child support. The man was placed under arrest for the two writs and for possession of undersized sheepshead.
Boating Resources Used to Rescue Kayakers - FWC Officers received a call that 3 persons had fallen into the water near the Card Sound Bridge after their kayak sunk in rough seas. An officer located the 3 kayakers who had managed to climb on to a lower support column of the bridge. A careful rescue in over 25 knot winds ensued, the three wet and shivering victims along with their kayak were returned to the shore. Editor notes* If kayaks were required to be registered then these kayakers would have paid their fair share of the cost of being rescued. Instead, this way, power boaters picked up the cost.
MIXED USE AREA - Bathers, sun worshipers, shellers and sand flea hunters all came together with the birds at Englewood Beach last month.
FEBRUARY 2015
BACK ISSUES @
TECH CORNER Bad / Good / Ugly / Beautiful By Michael Heller Water LIFE editor First the Bad Look carefully at the two wear plates (below) from my water pump after a year and a half of moderate use. The top one is new, the bottom one, which still has a gasket on it, is the old one. Notice the grooves worn around the center hole on the old plate. This is from Charlotte Harbor sand wearing away at it. Change the plate, the housing cup and the rubber impeller together, regularly as suggested, or
more frequently if you run shallow a lot. Next comes the Good Aacon Marine hardware (Clearwater, FL) is the BEST. Here is the inside of my retractable bow light after 13 years of punishment! The boat was stored outside the whole time. Finally the bulb had burned out! This unit disassembled as ex-
pected. No water incursion, no corrosion what-so-ever. The best companies use the best materials. End of story. And here is the UGLY: ethanol My boat quit running right. Top speed fell off and then it started to die under moderate power. If I went slow it was fine, but what fun is that? When it ran, it ran ‘too good’ to be a water-in-the-fuel issue and if I squeezed the primer bulb the rpm’s would speed up. A low reading on the FlowScan fuel flow gauge confirmed my suspicion: It wasn’t getting the gas. What I love about old carbureted motors is they make sense! Three years ago I had installed what was then sold to me as ethanol proof fuel line. At that time I was replacing a line that disintegrated from ethanol and the pieces clogged my fuel pump. The boat
SOLD!
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
had similar symptoms as it did today. The hose I replaced the first hose with was grey plastic outside with a black liner and a clear plastic sleeve inside - that liner was supposedly the ethanol proof part. “This is the fix,” the salesman told me, but what happened was, I had to replace that hose too. What slowed my boat down last month
was that ethanol proof clear plastic liner had separated from the rest of the hose and was collapsing inside it. The problem occurred at the bend above the primer bulb, possibly because of all the flexing there. I had to cut the whole hose lengthwise to find the problem! I also found the plastic liner had ‘fused’ itself to every fitting it was attached to, which is not good for removal. And if you try and reuse this kind of hose the liner crumples back inside (right). It was a new product in a rush to market
Punta Gorda Isles
Beautiful Home With Intersecting Canal Views!, 3/2/2 with pool, built in 1995, appx. 2000sfAir, in power boat section. List $369,900 Sold $360,000
Call the Captain! SOLD!
Punta Gorda Isles
Call the Captain! Beautiful Sailboat
Waterfront Home! 3/2/2 with tons of updates, open floor plan, extra large dock with deep water. List $269,000 Sold $259,000
SOLD!
Burnt Store Isles
Call the Captain! Super Nice Sailboat Waterfront Home! 3/2/2 with pool, built in 1989 List $374,000 Sold $351,000
with no long-term testing. Ahhhh the Beautiful! I got to thinking about fuel lines. I have a fuel cell (tank) in my hot rod with a submerged line that shows no ill effect from 10-percent ethanol gas. The line is what racers call blue hose, Fragola 8600 series push-lock hose, it has a black syntheticrubber liner, heat bonded with a fiber weave to a blue synthetic outer shell. Looking down at a cut off end of the blue hose, (below) it has a gear-like pattern. The piece in my car has been continually submerged in 10-percent ethanol gas for about 3 years. There is a hose available at the local marine stores that looks a lot like the blue hose, except it is grey. The box I found was labeled Silverado 4000, it was not a
known name to me. The end of that hose had a similar ‘gear’ pattern and its inner surface looked and felt like the blue hose. The box said ethanol compatible. I bought 11 feet of it, took it home and hooked it up. My boat ran like a raped ape in the cold morning air (can I say that?) and my world was all good again. I like to test stuff and report on it, so I’ll keep an eye on this new hose and let you know how it holds up. No news, in the short term, will be good news. In the long term... who knows?
Punta Gorda Isles
SOLD!
Call the Captain! Premium Power Boat Lot With Wide Water Views! Bigger foot print for a home with a 3 car garage, this lot was on the market a short time. List $189,000 Sold $184,000
SOLD!
Port Charlotte
Beautifully Remodeled Power Boat Home! 3/2/2 with pool, built in 1988, appx 2100sfAir, Sold over appraised value! List $344,500 Sold $317,500
Call the Captain!
PAGE 21
SOLD!
Burnt Store Isles
Call the Captain! Fantastic Building Lot in Sailboat Community! The perfect location to build your dream home, seawall & dock. List $189,000 Sold $183,000
PAGE
22
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
FEBRUARY 2015
February – Predictions and Suggestions
Charlotte Harbor
Frank, at Fishin’ Franks 941- 625-3888
I have been watching all the fronts and I have this theory. Underwater, every 33 feet the pressure doubles, so in shallow water the water pressure is more affected by the air pressure above. So if you get a low pressure over 1- to 5 feet of water it drastically effects the fish because it causes changes in their swim bladder and they cant stay upright and so it’s hard for them to eat. That’s why right now the fishing in the Gulf is going crazy, because they are in deeper water, but the inshore
fishing is more or less very inconsistent now because it’s shallow. It’s a theory. Now on to the fishing: Out in the Gulf the snapper and grunt fishing went from great to just good. The red grouper have stayed in close to shore because there was not much cold. They are still in 60 feet. Take a 272-degree heading 7- to 9-miles out of Boca and you should limit out on reds in 3 hours. There is a huge rock field out there - it is at least one square mile of hard bottom. Most of the near shore reefs have snapper, grunt and porgys. You may not hit the max-limit, but you’ll have more than several meals. Live shrimp are best, that or squid and sardines . You’ll be in really good shape with squid wings, which are better than the boxed squid. Squid wings come
from Humboldt squid in California. Most guys use them in thin strips. The wings are shipped without ever being washed, so they are very stinky. It’s hard to freeze them because of all the Pictures this page: Above - Capt. Billy Barton salt in them. Below, left - Joe Miller Bonita are offup in the Harbor. They are bigger on the shore along with amberjack and a couple east side in the deeper spots, but you have of black fin tuna and mahi mahi, but for to get way back past the islands, usually them you have to get out past 35 miles. In past the second or third set of islands, for the 10 to 20 mile range we have Spanish nice redfish now. A trolling motor or push mackerel, bonita and possibly a king pole is the way to get back there. If they mackerel. hear you, they shut right off. You still have a real good shot at a Spanish mackerel are moving in. There cobia. It’s not like a couple of years ago, is a good bunch at Jug Creek Shoal, in not monsters, but there are quite a few dePine Island Sound and at Cape Haze. This cent cobia around. The Kudzu shad, culmonth they should start working up into prit bass worm, a ribbon tail worm, and 3the Harbor. to 4-/0 short shank hook with some weight Trout and sheephead are much better. to the front of the hook, like a Florida rig This is the month to look for them at for bass, let the hook stick out the top for Placida and El JoBean trestle. Its been a cobia. late bunch-up for them this year. Getting inside, redfish started to pick
Charters
Offshore Fishing Trips: 1/2 day • 8hr • 10 hr • 12 hr We help put your charters together
Shark, Tarpon, Grouper, Snapper, Kingfish, and MORE!
Nighttime Trips Available
Capt. Jim OʼBrien USCG 50 ton license since 1985
941-473-2150
BackBay Xtremes Capt Dave Stephens www.backbayxtremes.com
941-916-5769
Guide Card Space Available $40/month
FEBRUARY 2015
The BIG-4
BACK ISSUES @
WWW.WATERLIFEMAGAZINE.COM
Good
February
There are some cobia on the bar on the west side, more Fish to expect in small ones and very few keepers. The weird part is they are behind the bar, not where we expected them to be. Cobia will follow a little bait fish right across the top REDFISH Way back in the TROUT in the Harbor and the RED GROUPER On fire on of the water so watch for that hard bottom offshore. islands on the east side Pine Island Sound indicator. Plenty of bonnet sharks Guys are catching snook up in the creeks and east and west, on top of and behind the bar. Cast way up in the back, up toward the river, up past a shrimp under a bobber and chances are you’ll El Jobean, but there have also been some nice catch a bonnet. snook caught right at the bridge too. They are We have pompano from Burnt Store to Two getting big fish casting bigger lures like Wind Pines and some in front of Jug Creek and Bull Cheaters and big Bombers and guys say the and Turtle bays. tackle takes some serious strain with the big fish. In fresh water, the catfish and bass are pretty I would guess they are fishing the outgoing tide good. Fish bright color lures, light or dark. at El Jo. I havent heard much about crappie fishing We caught some trout the other day, but but we’re selling a lot of minnows. Crappie are nothing worthy to bring back. You gotta’ pick the most secretive fish on the planet. You have a and move around. The little ones are along the better chance of someone showing you naked bank, but some guys are getting 15- to 20-inchpictures of their wife than them telling you ers, somewhere, and even a couple over 20. For redfish, you gotta’ go thru a lot of little ones. We caught some, but not any keepers. We were fishing Whidden’s Creek wherever we could find water and potholes. We only saw one boat up past where we were. That windy day the Bay was wide open for miles and there was not a lot of activity at the ramp. A lot of guys have been fishing at the pass hoping for pompano but when the water was dirty they weren’t doing much. In and around the passes, the guys fish heavier jigs to get down to the bottom, but that was before the wind started blowing. Now they need even more weight. Snook from a trip with Capt. Dave Stephens Offshore, fishing has been lights-out-phenomenal! I saw so many pictures of big red where the crappie are! grouper - 15- to 18-pounders. There were 6 guys on one boat and everyone got at least one Jim at Fishermen’s Edge 15 pounder. 697-7595 The Amberjack guys went to the Bayronto Who knows what the weather will bring. At and got into 60 pounders and also caught some the end of January the water was dirty, the water nice grouper ... before the sharks came in. coming in from the Gulf was muddy with all the There have been nice size mangs and lane southwest wind. You have to find clean water to snapper around offshore too, at 30-plus miles find anything other than catfish. out. At 45 miles, a friend caught a 33 pound There have been pompano and whiting on black grouper and bunch of porgys and they the beach and some nice black drum. The guys said keeper cobia were around too. There are catching sheepshead say it has been ok, but sheepshead might get better as the water temper- still snapper around the docks in the bay and nice flounder on the bottom. atures get cooler. A fellow on a research dive said he came With the warmer temperatures at the end of across a depression in the bottom and found 15 last month, whitebait was still was around and flounder in the same spot. He said he had never snook were on outside of the bars where they seen anything like it. ‘Maybe they were mating shouldn’t have been in January. I don’t know or spawning,’ he said. when were gonna’ get a real cold snap.
Lemon Bay
OFFSHORE Capt. Jim OʼBrien
SHARKS - are out on the inshore reefs some 4 to 5 footers are being caught mullet and bonitas are good baits
AJs - ( GREATER AMBERJACK ) Guys, they're on all the offshore wrecks and are waiting for you and they're hungry. The guys I have talked to are having a blast catching them and the ones 30-pound and under are great to eat. You just have to make sure you cut every bit of red meat off your filet and I mean every bit of red meat. Don't leave a speck on what your going to cook. Then fix it like you would your grouper. Best bait are blue runners or a lively pinfish and then hang on.
COBIA - are getting more plentiful on the offshore wrecks and reefs. I have had a couple of different fishermen tell me they are doing very well on catching cobia. They are using big pin fish and they are vertical jigging for these big boys. The biggest they have caught so far is about 40 pounds. SNAPPERS - mangrove snapper and lane snapper are hitting anywhere from inshore to 50 miles out. Best baits cut squid and live shrimp.
RED GROUPER ARE TURNED ON RIGHT NOW - they are chewing on just about anything you want to put down to them. We have caught them on mullet, squid, sardines, pin fish, squirrel fish and squid by itself. There are some
POMPANO In the Harbor, the surf and the passes
PAGE 23
Gulf Temps are low 60s
The Harbor is 3or 4-degrees warmer
95˚ 90˚ 85˚ 80˚ 72˚ 70˚ 68˚ 50˚ 45˚
Good ! FISHING RIGHT NOW:
Shown at left: Mate Matt Barton, aboard a Kingfisher Fleet offshore trip, helping the customers show off their catch: (top) red grouper, (middle) gag grouper and (bottom) yellowtail snapper. The gag, in closed season, had to be released. BIG - UNS coming in from 30 to 50 miles out.
GAG GROUPER - IS CLOSED UNTIL JULY 1st but a bunch of them are being caught right now. Just make sure you know the difference between a gag grouper and black grouper. A black grouper you can keep, the gag grouper will cost you. BLACK GROUPER - a few have been caught at a 140 to 160 foot of water. Best bait live pin fish and live squirrel fish.
PAGE
24
EMAIL:
WATERLIFE@COMCAST.NET
Bow Rider
Commander
2300 LX
1999
$19,999
#682
Bow Rider
Sea Ray
176 br
2003
$9,900
#676
Bow Rider Bow Rider
Maxum
Stingray
Center Console Key West
Center Console Cape Craft
20 SF
195LS
1720 CC
16 CC
1998 2006
1995
2004
$7,900
$13,900
$5,900
$8,995
#638
Flats Boat Flats Boat
Hewes Sea Chaser
#684
Jet Boat
Yamaha
LS 2000
2000
$11,900 $9,900
#631
Gheenoe
16CC
2004
$5,600
#648
#668
#634
Center Console Angler
173 CC
2009
$17,900
#622
Cruiser
259
2006
$32,900
#689
Center Console Triumph Cruiser
Bayliner
Deck Boat
Hurricane
Deck Boat Deck Boat Deck Boat Deck Boat Deck Boat Flats Boat
Glastron
Hurricane
215 CC
Discovery 246
#656
$26,900
#644
RL210
2004
$15,900
#686
226 CC
StarCraft
20.05
Pathfinder
$34,900
#666
2014
231 OB
Crownline
2007
$21,900
187 SD
Hurricane SS Bennington
2006
238
17T
2008 2010
1999 2001 1999
$14,999 $34,900
$17,900 $14,900 $9,900
FEBRUARY 2015
#615 #602
#693 #692
#618
Flats Boat High Perf. Jet Boat
Jet Boat Pontoon Skiff
Hewes
Baja Marine Sea Doo
SeaDoo G3 Pontoon
Redfisher 18 180 Flats Tailfisher 17
20 Outlaw
2001 2007 2005
2007
1800 Challenger 2003 200 Speedster 188f
2007 2008
$16,900 $17,900 $17,900
$19,900
$22,900 $15,900
#696 #700 #698
#675
#645
#700 #699
Walkaround
Grady-White
230 W/A
1992
$19,900
#677
Walkaround
Pro Line
251 W/A
1995
$21,900
#609
282 W/A
2001
$49,900
#652
Walkaround Walkaround Walkaround Walkaround Walkaround Walkaround
Stratos
Aquasport Cobia
Sailfish
Grady White
Boston Whaler
2600
225 Explorer 230 W/A
2660 W/A
235 Conquest
1990
1998
2004
2006 2006
$17,900
$15,900
$27,900
$52,900 $52,900
#683
#624
#629
#598 #667