Water LIFE MAY 2008

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LIFE

Charlotte Harbor and Lemon Bay

Keeping Boaters and Fishermen Informed Since 1997

XTreme Redfish Page 18

Inshore Tarpon and other things Page 17

Producers of the

Kids Cup

Results and Photos

May 2008 KIDS CUP

Page 6 & 13-15

Offshore AJs

Page 22

w w w. C H A R L O T T E H A R B O R M A G A Z I N E . C O M

Diving Deeper Wrecks Page 19 ALWAYS

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Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

March

2008

May

2008

Water LIFE

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3

Water LIFE

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LETTERS

TO

(and

from)

High School ninth grader who won out over 121 other anglers deserved better. He did a great job! Instead, coverage literally went to the dogs that day.

What gets me is that all the local media, TV and print together, profess to Last monthʼs Kids Cup Captainʼs meeting dinner for 300. being environmentally conscious and kid friendly and here we are The Beauty of a Free Press teaching kids about the environment - first On behalf of 122 junior anglers age 10 hand out on the water - teaching them fish through 16, 97 guides, captains and boat handling, de-hooking and release techdrivers, 244 parents, 488 grandparents, niques, getting them involved in a consernumerous brothers and sisters, 75 sponvation-based sonic fish tracking project sors, and 23 tournament staff and volunthat is not only news worthy, but scientifteers I would like to point out that the ically relevant and......nothing. local media has once again shown themThose who participated came away selves to be a sorry excuse for a news smiling. There were plenty of good fishgathering operation and a pathetic example ing stories. The weather was great. of alleged community oriented focus. How So what if the local paper ran a ‘photo could they ignore the kids? provided’ picture of birds in the Everglades They had enough notice. Photos were on their front page. It’s their right to be available to them on the day of the event. out of touch. That’s the beauty of a free To be fair, the Charlotte Sun in fact did press. I just wish they wouldn’t profess to run a brief story a day or two after the be community minded.

Kids Cup, but they never ran a photo or Mi chael Hel l er even a mention of the Kids Cup Top-5 Kids Cup Tournament Director winner. Booker Cothern, the Charlotte

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Dear Mike & Ellen, Although our son was not a winner in this yearʼs Kids Cup Tournament, the fact that he participated and endured the struggles of competing makes him and all of the competitors winners! In every contest in life there are winners and losers, but to say that an angler in the Kids Cup has lost just doesn't seem right. The angler's received so many awesome gifts by the generous sponsors. The kid's were able to spend the day out on the water doing something they love to do, most of them with their dad's.

Fishing is such an incredible sport and such a great way for kids to stay involved in the study of evolution, conservation and plain old fun!

Knowing that the money contributed to the Kids Cup goes to the Don Ball School of Fishing to teach kid's about fishing is yet another, if not the most important reason for kid competitors to continue with this great tournament. Just think what the world would be like if there were no such thing as a fishing rod or fish to catch?

Thanks again for the incredible experience.They learned how to accept not placing in the top five or winning for the heaviest fish in their age category. This will only help build their character. And let's not forget to mention how cool it is for them and their families to see Mote scientists there implanting the surgical tracking devices for everyone to actually see. This just doesn't happen in the public eye. Only during the Kid's Red Tournament. This in itself is a real gift!! There are triumphs and tribulations in every aspect of life. Win or lose, our son and our daughter will be there to compete in your Kids Cup next year and the year after that and the year after that. What a great experience!

Thank you for hosting such an important program for our children. Without people like you, the world would be a much dimmer place. Until next year, The Galloway Family

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2008

Water LIFE Charlotte Harbor Magazine

Michael and Ellen Heller Publishers

(941) 766-8180

TOTALLY INDEPENDENT Water LIFE is not affiliated with any other publication

Vol VII No.5 © 2008 Water LIFE

WRITE US! e-mail (preferred) Waterlife@comcast.net Regular MAIL: 217 Bangsberg Rd. Port Charlotte, FL 33952

No part of this publication may be copied or reproduced without the written permission of both publishers

Contributing Editors:

Fishing / Environment: Capt. Ron Blago Charlotte Harbor: Capt. Robert Moore Gasparilla: Capt. Chuck Eichner Port Charlotte: Capt Andy Medina Offshore: Capt. Steve Skevington Real Estate: Dave Hofer Sailing Advisor: Bill Dixon Kayaks: David Allen Sea Grant: Betty Staugler Diving: Adam Wilson

on the COVER:

15 year old Booker Cothern of Port Charlotte raises the Kids Cup Trophy while surrounded by the other Top-5

on our WEBSITE:

WWW.charlotteharbormagazine.com

Realtors: Links to advertisers

Tide Graphs: For local waters

Weather: Links to all of our favorite sites.

Back editions: Pages of previous editions Artificial Reefs: Lat. and Long local reefs

Manatee Myths: Read the original plan to create sanctuaries and refuges, as spelled out by the United Nations in 1984

Kids Cup Updates, Fish Tracking and Tournament Information.

May

2008

On Any Thursday Mi chael Hel l er Water LIFE Editor It was early April, we had been working on the Kids Cup for four months straight. I needed a break before the tournament. A quick fishing trip was in order.

My friend Capt Ralph (our Kids Cup weighmaster) and I planned a late afternoon outing. “What do you want to catch?” Ralph asked. I wanted to take out my frustration on something big. ‘Lets go shark fishing’ I said, and a plan came together.

It was a simple enough plan. Ralph had a dry chum bag that someone at the Fla Sportsman show had given him, so with that and (in case it didn’t work) a big red frozen chum block, we headed out. I took a rod with 30 pound Power Pro on it. My normal 12-pound testmono rod was already rigged with my favorite bait, a gold spoon, and was already on the boat.

Our plan called for catching some ladyfish and then using them for shark bait.

Halfway down the harbor we spotted a school of threadfins. I cut the motor and we drifted toward them in the current.

Figuring there could be some ‘ladys’ hanging around the ‘threadies,’ when we got close enough to cast, I threw out my spoon. The surface was alive with bait but as soon as my spoon hit, a big – very

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

big, boil erupted. It grabbed my spoon for a second and then my line went limp.

We looked at each other. We both knew.

Next, right behind the boat (5 feet), a tarpon came lazily to the surface rolling in slow motion with his green armorcladbody halfway out of the water. I reeled in and cast again ahead of him.

Wham! He hit, but in a few seconds he too was off. Then another tarpon rolled and I cast again. Wham, again! But this time I had him.

I think it was the same lazy fish because all he did was swim away, slowly. I had no chance of stopping him.

So Ralph fired up the boat and we followed. Jumping, peeling drag, coming in and then going out the fish kept on headed towards the Cape Haze bar.

I fought the fish for a half hour, trying to shake my $4 Eppinger/Rex spoon loose so we could get on with our shark fishing. On 12 pound test I wasn’t getting the lip-ripping, stress relieving fight I had hoped for, but the tarpon on my line made me smile. Finally the tarpon said good-bye and we were again headed to our shark fishing hole at Cape Haze.

On station, first cast, a small jack.

Into the well for shark bait. Next cast a big trout, maybe 3 pounds. Release. Cast after that: another trout, maybe the first trout’s brother. Then the tide went slack.

Page

Tarpon are in the harbor. This one hit on a 1/2 0z gold Eppinger spoon, rigged on 12 pound test. After about a half hour he broke loose and we got on with our shark fishing trip.

Our chum slick wasn’t moving. We hung out for another 15 minutes, pulled the anchor and left. Next plan, head up to Alligator Reef where one of Ralph’s guides had brought in a couple of cobia earlier that day. Alligator Reef: nothing.

Then up to Marker No. 7 at the mouth of the Myakka.

Now we were looking for bait. We netted a few threadies and then a pelican dropped out of the sky and hit the water about 30 yards away. I set the boat on a downwind drift and we slid in amongst the pelicans, which didn’t bother them at

5

all.

First cast. Yank! Bit right through!

Now we were into the toothy fish. We leadered up with wire cast out and settled in. A 3-foot blacktip shot out of the water fighting like a dog. Next cast another and so it went; 3 and 4 foot blacktips mixed with mackerel 2-feet or longer, right up until about 7 p.m. when Ralph and I agreed that enough was enough. Maybe 8 or 10 sharks came to the boat along with an assortment of big toothy mackerel and a few more bluefish.

Then we jumped up on plane and I nudged

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Kids Cup Sponsors Palm Chevrolet Laishley Marine Fishin' Franks Bait & Tackle Pool Sharks of Lemon Bay, Inc Eldred's Marina The Turtle Club Bayshore Marine & Yacht Brokerage Fantasea Scuba Bennedettos Restaurant J & C Drydock Marine King Fisher Fleet Screen Print Plus Harpoon Harry's/Captain's Table Ingman Marine Mercury Marine Medina Fishing Charters Buffalo Graffix Harbor Chevron Noahs Marine Shore Protection West Coast Trailer Perin's Barber Shop Chris McMillan / ReMax Harbor Realty Rio Villa Bait and Tackle Capt. Bill's Barber Shop The Wetter, The Better Mamma Nunzia Affordable Boat Canvas SuperDay Express Boater' Warehouse Southern Oxygen Nav-a-gator Don Gasgarth Ford Marine Max Ellen McCarthy Realty The Boat House at Boater's World S P I Gallery Tom Krause / Artisit Gulf Coast Engraving Stump Pass Marina Fishbites Bait Shimano Classic Fishing Products Arc DeHookers Suffix Frabill Power Pro Pradco and Joe Cox CVS Pharmacy Strike King Lures Lowrance Eppinger Exude Henry's Tackle Quantum Eagle Claw Flying Fisherman Bass Medics Plano Tackle The Cape Coral Breeze

Tracking Title Sponsors Mote Marine Sea Grant Pinnacle Employee Leasing / One More Catch West Marine / Boat U.S. Fishermen's Village Yacht Basin Charlotte Honda Charlotte Harbor Reef Association Sea Grant Progress Energy Kingfisher Fleet Water LIFE Magazine Aquatic Release Conservation Sea Tow Charlotte Harbor Friends for Extension Foundation

Individual Volunteers Patti Pierrone Ralph Allen Robert Lugiewicz Kristie Lugiewicz Frank Hommema Terry Hommema Gene Kingery Alison Heller Catherine Milford Robert Cohn Betty Staugler James Staugler Donna Ball Sheri Medina Reena Kroger Jan Allen Elisa Allen Ronald Blago Jerry Jensen Keith Benner Gary Stouch Julia Granger And Thanks to all the parents who did what they had to do, sometimes easy, sometimes not so easy, to get their children fishing in the Kids Cup. Without them we are nothing.

Sincerely, Michael & Ellen Heller, Tournament Directors

May

MAGAZINE

2008

2008 Kids Cup Results

Sponsor始s banners covered the dock and ran around both corners at Fishermen始s Village for the 2008 Kids Cup

Weight

7.04 6.98 6.84 6.44 6.44 6.42 6.36 6.34 6.14 6.06 6.02 5.98 5.80 5.70 5.70 5.66 5.50 5.48 5.46 5.32 5.26 4.88 4.88 4.58 4.54 4.40 4.38 4.30 4.28 4.28 4.02 3.92 3.90 3.86 3.30 3.24 3.18 3.00 2.72 2.64 2.50 2.50 2.44 2.36 2.34 2.32 2.30 2.30 2.28 2.26 2.16 2.14 2.14 2.12 2.10 2.10 2.08 2.08 2.08 2.06

#

94 100 26 16 56 1 27 11 4 36 114 23 105 109 74 6 21 19 22 7 5 38 31 15 91 61 78 60 71 8 119 62 44 99 90 25 70 40 83 80 118 37 85 39 120 64 17 98 3 50 108 12 86 101 97 106 59 87 84 95

Angler Name

Austen Cody Booker Dylan Brandon Zach Crosland Aaron Taylor Jacob Justin Brooke Wyatt Conor Kyle Amin Dale Kyle Mason Kaylin Zach Sayje Austin Jeppe Britteny Jeannee Robby Allison Catherine Austin Lauryn Hunter Jeff Ryan Benjamin Joe Andrew Joshua Nic Mason Adrian Ricky Landon Jake Jesi Hunter Brittany Casey Cody Will Chad Kaitlyn Rocco Tina Jimmy Jeff Craig Cody Joey Joseph

Age

Henson Bollinger Cothern Daughtry Varney Granger Polk Leigh Hendrix Bates Dutton Conely Carter Peters Watkins Mahshie Flocker Miller Waters Olayer Lozano Monning Taylor Bennetsen Witt Hubbard Howard Warren Merriman Oskey Llewellyn Murphy WatkinsJr Sides Abdill Gilcher Merriman Lebron Marshall Elrod Ivankovic Stewart Collier Vale McHale Welsh Morrison Gunnderson Bailey Gaskins Cambern Legg Pennella Flowers Flowers Adams Smith Cistello DeVincenzo Capeto

15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 14 16 12 12 12 10 14 14 15 14 12 16 16 10 13 11 13 15 11 16 13 15 16 13 12 16 14 14 15 11 14 11 11 16 15 14 16 12 11 12 15 11 11 13 15 16 11 14 12 14 15 13

Award TOP FIVE

Age Group Age Group Age Group Age Group Age Group

Sptsmnship Age Group Age Group

Weight

2.06 2.06 2.04 1.94 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

#

49 111 13 33 51 63 18 42 52 77 107 79 65 67 89 110 46 73 75 92 93 96 113 9 104 116 47 103 34 35 55 66 81 82 88 32 43 45 48 69 72 76 102 10 20 29 30 117 14 24 28 54 58 112 121 122 2 68

Angler Name

Jesse Eric Dylan Mark Caleb Riley John Anthony Zane Logan Brent Austin Maison Jonathon John Austin Harlan Michaela Mathew Kaine Danielle Riley Cyler Chance Megan RJ Tanner Taylor Brenden Conner Zack Madeline Christopher Trevor Brandon Taylor David Bryton Cody Michael Tyler Dusty Michael Trey Nick Anthony Justin Tyler Collin Jessie Chris Nick Cody Josh Daniele Sage Frankie Jeffrey

Smith Lewis Legg Uebelacker Gaskins Welsh Messenger Calleja Smith Lightly Cambern Elrod Skinner Gander Reid Johns South Flowers Newberry Mackie Cummins Mizell McVay Galloway Malone Gross South Endersbee Gorman Flood Shaver Chavez Savage Harris Stafford Crosland Isaacs Wolfe Waldrop Eisner Browning Newberry Endersbee Llewellyn Kaszuba Karambellas Shafer Lewis Mix Daughtry Dagge Fischer Shea Jacobs Damaseau Naeder Mancini Gander

Age

14 16 10 11 10 10 11 12 12 12 12 13 14 14 14 16 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 11 11 11 12 12 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 15 15 15 15 15 16 16 16 16 16 16 16 11 14 14

Award

Lightest

TOP-5 Results are on Page 14

May

2008

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

Page 7

Redfish Tracking Underway Page 8

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

May

2008

By Betty S taugl er Sea Grant / Water LIFE

With the April 19 Water LIFE Kids Cup Tournament completed, the 2008 Water LIFE Kids Cup Redfish Tracking Project is now underway. As a sign of the times, some of these young redfish caught and released at the Kids Cup are actually rigged with hi-tech acoustic transmitters sending unique sound codes to underwater receivers in the area. Other redfish, only equipped with old fashioned-but reliable dart tags and phone numbers begin to tell the story.

In the meantime, a lot goes into the planning and implementation of this project. We actually began planning for 2008 in May of 2007. Remember, this project seeks to determine the fate of tournament caught and released redfish Do they survive? Where do they go?...ect. As mentioned, our project hinges on two important tagging methods. The first uses anchored dart tags (streamers) coupled with angler recapture information; the second uses more sophisticated acoustic transmitters and tracking equipment. Tied to this are two additional studies, a control group study and a genetics study. More on those next month.

Anglers weighed in 68 redfish. Not all of them met the slot limit, but all of them received the anchored dart tags. Anchored dart tags were applied after the weight and length were taken by Capt. Ralph Allen, the tournament weigh master. Our dart tags came from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC). Both sets of tags (yellow- left over from last year and orange received for this year) were originally purchased for snook research, but were generously donated for our project. Since researchers are generally expected to provide their own tags for individual projects, we are grateful for FWCs continued support of our project.

Anglers, if you happen to catch a tagged fish, please write down the tag number, length of the fish and capture location, and call that information into the redfish hotline. The phone number can be found right on the tag. We ask that you please release the fish with its tag

intact so that it can continue to provide important information about redfish survival, travel patterns and growth rates as it is recaptured.

Twenty fish also received acoustic transmitters. These transmitters (sometimes referred to as sonic tags or acoustic tags, about the size of a AA battery) are surgically implanted into the abdominal cavity of the fish.

The transmitters are powered by an internal battery allowing them to transmit a signal that can be received by our equipment when the fish is located nearby. Last year our transmitters were much smaller with smaller batteries, and shorter signal ranges. A fish had to come within 150 feet of our equipment to be detected. The larger transmitters used this year can be heard about 450 feet away from a receiver, this is a huge improvement.

This year’s transmitters can also ‘chirp away’ for 820 days compared to 150 days from last year.

Selecting an appropriate transmitter for the project, included considerations of the weight of the fish in relation to the weight of the tag. A great deal of research has been done by the vendor (VEMCO) and other researchers to determine the maximum size transmitter that can be used safely with minimal complications to the fish. On another front, our surgeons Carole Neidig

from Mote Marine Laboratory and Cindy Armstrong from Progress Energy, and University of Florida veterinarian Roy Yanong ran tank trails testing anesthesia concentrations appropriate for redfish. This step was necessary because the anesthesia we used last year was not available for use this year. Instead we used carbon dioxide (CO2), a USDA accepted and commonly used anesthesia. These trials examined the influence of CO2 concentrations on differently sized redfish, under different water chemistry conditions. Applying this knowledge at the Kids Cup, Carole and Cindy surgically implanted transmitters into 20 pre-selected redfish, based on their health and size at weigh-in. After surgery, redfish were placed in oxygenated recovery tanks, revived by dedicated volunteers, then released. We thank Southern Oxygen in Punta Gorda and Capt. Keith Benner for providing our oxygen, CO2 and regulators for the event. I should also mention that we had to obtain a special activity permit from FWC for all of our research activities, from the time the fish were handed over to us until their release back in the water.

A pod of waiting dolphins near tournament dock Continued on facing

May

Water LIFE

2008

page Continued from facing page

made releases more difficult this year. We decided to transport all of the fish away from the dock and release them in an area where they would have a better chance of survival. To do this, we moved them in livewells, around the corner and released them past the rock wall of the marina.

Once released, Fishin’ Frank and Terry were on hand in a University of Florida boat listening for the coded signals of the acoustic tags with portable tracking gear. We heard 19 of the 20 transmitters this way. As a bonus, we also heard from a transmitter unknown to us, which I have yet to identify. Roger and I picked up the 20th transmitter on Monday morning.

Over the next year you may see Roger and I out in the field tracking or servicing our equipment. We need to download and service the underwater receivers on a monthly basis to prevent flooding caused by barnacles and oysters growing on the seals. We also will have volunteer anglers helping us by taking receiving gear with them when they go fishing. Remember, as we download equipment and receive angler recapture information, it will be posted on the redfish tracking website http://charlotte.ifas.ufl.edu/kidscup/index.html which should be operational for this year’s tournament starting at the end of May.

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MAGAZINE

Fishinʼ Frank and Terry tracked each released fish to make sure it was swimming.

This year, two fish that had implants subsequently died. Those transmitters were recovered and will be reused.

Regular updates will also be available in Water LIFE Magazine, so stay tuned for another exciting year of following the Kids Cup redfish. Anglers, if you caught a fish in the Kids Cup Tournament, I’ll be sending you a letter with your fish tracking information. If you do not receive your letter by the end of May, call me at the number below and I will get that information to you.

Special thanks goes out to you anglers, the team of volunteers, tag sponsors and the captains and anglers who contributed financially towards our redfish tracking project. We think this is a very important project and are pleased so many of you do too!

Betty Staugler is the Florida Sea Grant

30' Catalina 1989, single 25HP Universal Diesel. Comfortable cockpit, sleeps 6, full galley. Full bimini with dodger Rigged for single handling. $34,500

21' Aquasport 215 Explorer Walk Around Cuddy has been lift stored, owner has kept it in top condition. 200HP Johnson O.B.Boat is an excellent value. $17,900

28' Carver Voyager fresh water cooled twin 5.7L Mercruisers. Very roomy with 11'1" beam. Large flybridge, marine head w/shower, airconditioning, full galley. $18,500

23' Donzi 235 Sport 1998, with a 2006 220HP Mercruiser 4.3. Interior like new and trailer is included. $18,900

30' SeaRay 300 Weekender, 1989. Always been lift stored out of the water. 260HP Mercruiser Inboards. $24,900

23' Four Winns 230 Horizon, 2001. Fast 230 27' Sportcraft hard top, 1991. 270hp HP Volvo Penta I/O, Bimini top, swim platMercruiser. Great fishing / cruising. Lift kept, form with boarding ladder. This boat is in enclosed head, sleeps 2. Make offer. $19,900 imaculate condition. REDUCED $22,900

31' Wellcraft Scarab, 1991 with 2006 twin 496 Magnum Mercriuser. This Scarab is very well kept. New outdrives in 1997, fresh water flush system. $39,900

26' Boca Grande Cuddy, 1986. Many recent upgrades to include new risers and oil cooler.Well maintained and cared for.

PRICED TO SELL! $21,900

24' Pro-Line Walk Around Cuddy, 225 Yamaha 4 stroke Will sleep two, full hard top, salt water wash down plus color electronics! REDUCED! $25,900 OBO

21' Hurricane, 2007 Sundeck w/fish pkge.

Fuel efficient 2007 Yamaha four stroke 150, less than 35 hours. Loaded for a fishing day or just cruising with family. $34,900

20' Sea Hunt 202 Triton, 2004 Yamaha 4stroke 150 with 150Hrs! Center console has an entry for the porta pottie. Stored inside in excellent shape. $18,900

34' Catalina MK II,2001.Single 35HP Universal diesel. sleeps seven in airconditioned comfort.

"Sea Breeze" has four sails including spinnaker. Full electronics.REDUCED $94,900

23' Sea Swirl 2300 Stripper, 2000.

Single 200HP Evinrude. Nice walkaround cuddy, good for coastal fishing, cruising and diving. REDUCED! $23,900

30' Young & Grant Sportfishing, 1983. Single 350hp Caterpillar 3116 turbo new in 2000.

This vessel is charter rigged and a proven tournament winner. $47,500

Page 10

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

May

2008

The More We Pay – The Less We Get May

2008

By Capt. Ron Bl ago Water LIFE Senior Staff I finally get it. The revelation hit me like a thunderbolt right between the eyes.

All month I’ve been calling and e-mailing county officials trying to make some head way on some of the many fishing and boating problems we have in the county.

Here is the conclusion I reached: The bigger our government gets, the more money we have to pay for it and the more inefficient they become. If you follow this out to its logical conclusion; the taxpayers will all wind up broke and our government will accomplish nothing. Let me give you a few examples of what I mean.

We just finished the 5th annual Water LIFE Kid’s Cup redfish tournament out of Fisherman’s Village in Punta Gorda.

There were 122 kids that entered this year and everyone had a great time. This is one of the bigger tournaments in our area. It’s a non-profit, all volunteer enterprise with all the money raised going to the Don Ball School of Fishing that teaches our local kids how to fish. All the organizers, volunteers and sponsors of this tournament do a great job each year and ask nothing more than an opportunity to support our local kids. What did our local county government do to help out?

Nothing at all. No support, no promotion, no effort even to thank the people running the tournament.

Here is another example. For the last 6 weeks there has been a sunken boat in the main channel in Chadwick’s Cove in Englewood. I’ve called the Sheriffs Department and I know other people have complained to county staff about the situation and yet the boat is still there. Over the last three years Chadwick’s Cove has become a dumping ground for people who want to abandon their boats. We passed an abandoned boat ordinance last year which gives the county the authority to get these boats out of there. The Marine Advisory Committee has allocated in the last two years $260,000.00 of tax payers money to be used to take care of situations like this. What really bothers me is that just four months ago the county staff removed a large sunken sailboat in exactly the same place this new sunken boat is. This is why people are getting fed up.

You throw a ton of money at a problem and government can't do something as simple as get a boat out of the water.

Here’s another one. The Geo Tubes are being removed from the north side of Stump Pass. These sand filled Gor-Tex tubes, were put in place to slow the sand migration into the main pass. By most accounts they worked pretty well with approximately five acres of new sand accumulating around the tubes. It appears that the people who run the park are the ones who want the tubes removed because they say that there is erosion on the Ski

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P a g e 11

Alley side of the park.

Have you taken a look at what the people who run the park have done to that park since the county gave the land to the State? First they charge you to park there. Then they put in a wooden walkway to the beach, which was immediately (one month) washed away by the first storm Youʼre flying in a fixed wind airplane at 1000 feet above the ground. You are traveling at 90 mph. that hit the area. Then they Quick: How many manatees do you see? And you canʼt use a camera. Aerial manatee surveys demanded that the beach be employ that technique. No wonder boaters and fishermen questioned the validity of aerial surveys. re-nourished with sand that was dredged out of Stump Pass. And, of course, there is that great job they did killing all the Australian pines because they were not a native species. Now the place looks terrible, but at least it’s all natural.

When the tubes go, all that sand built up behind them will wind up in Stump Pass; which will result in the taxpayers of Charlotte County having to spend 2 to 3 million dollars to dredge the pass to keep it open. What bothers me is that our own board of county commissioners voted 4 to 1 to not even to challenge the DEP’s order to remove the tubes. Only Tom D’Aprile was smart enough to see the big picture and realize that the taxpayers were going to get shafted on this deal.

Here’s a trick question for you. What is the number of live manatees in Florida this year? Answer: we don’t know because the State decided not to do any aerial surveys this year. This appears to be a direct violation of the 1990 Florida Statute FS 370.12(4) which requires an annual, impartial, scientific benchmark census of the manatee population. The State cancelled the survey because they said the weather was just too warm this winter.

On Jan.4th of this year the official temperature at the Sarasota – Bradenton Airport dropped to 32 degrees with inland temperatures dropping into the 20’s. It was so cold that 40-percent of the tomato and strawberry crop was lost to frost . It was reported to be the worst crop loss in the State since 1989.

So why would they not do a survey at that time. At first I thought maybe January was just too early in the year for an accurate count; but a review of the record shows they have done Jan. surveys in 91,92,95,96,98,99,2000,2001,2003and 2005. I can only speculate, but remember that manatee deaths were down in 2007 and so far in 2008 deaths are down 35-percent. We have had very little rainfall, which may be bad for your lawn but it’s great for sea grass because the water stays clear. So manatees had plenty of seagrass to eat this winter and there was no red tide. With manatees being such prolific breeders maybe there were simply too many to count.

Page 12

R Re ea all E Es st ta at te e N Ne ew ws s PROVIDED BY: Dave & Marlene Hofer RE/MAX Harbor Realty (941) 575-3777 dhofer@remax.net Recent area news i tems

1. A residential development is now planned for an 81 acre site near Englewood Hospital. Charlotte County will have to rearrange proposed density to accommodate the change to 5 units/acre zoning from the present 2 units/acre.

2. Lowe's has broken ground on a 170,000 sf store on 38 acres across from the North Port Commons shopping center on US 41.

3 .

Among our more interesting developments, Terra Sol, a clothing optional RV resort, is in the works on a 320 acre parcel in DeSoto County.

An 18 hole golf course and professional quality tennis courts are just some of the amenities planned. I'll refrain from the temptation of editorial comments here.

4. TEAM Punta Gorda presented the City Council with a proposal to dredge a canal between the existing rim canal and alligator creek. Though three years of noble effort has gone into this proposal, the city attorney was quick to point out that SWFMD, DEP and US Army Corps of Engineers unlikely endorsements will be needed before any meaningful conversations can be pursued.

5. Weighing the alternatives to getting the 1% sales tax extended, Charlotte County Board members are considering the benefits of a special ballot in May, rather than the November election to try to get this measure passed. Smaller turnout will likely yield a more focused electorate to try to win over.

6. Official groundbreaking for the 106 room Five Points by Sheridan took place

Water LIFE

on April 30 on the old Holiday Inn site on the Peace River at US 41 in Punta Gorda.

May

MAGAZINE

2008

7. Our local minor league baseball team, the Redfish, officially closed its doors after just one unsucessful season.

8.

Sunloft reports that a lease is immanent for its 6500 sf first-floor restaur a n t .

Two other retail spaces are still available, totaling about 6,000 sf. 12 of the 18,000 sf of offices on 2nd and 3rd floors have now been leased. All 4th floor condos are still available.

Just in case there's anyone left 9. that has been impressed with Charlotte County's real estate acumen, The Loop commercial and residential project promises to be a notable case study. The Board's inconsistent approach to impact fees has now caught the Loop in its web. The Board feels that the Loop was too late with their development application to take advantage of the rates before they found the need to be quadrupled..... but too early to take advantage of the subsequent rollback to their old rates. The Wilder Companies are being asked to come up with $18 mil rather than the $4 mil that would be required under today's (or last year's rates).

10. The unintended tax shelter known as Skybus abruptly went out of business and filed for bankruptcy protection this month.

Following so quickly on the heals of Publix' cancellation of their distribution center, the County Airport Authority must feel a little unloved right now.

11. Facing a nearly $3 million increase in the estimated cost of concrete, the Punta Gorda parking garage project took another step toward the oblivion of good, but untimely, ideas.

12. The budget crunch is now jeopardizing the $25 milloin county jail expansion and the $4 million Family Services Center (a/k/a dryout center). I don't know how we've gotten by without these items in the past, but it appears that we will have to wait a while longer to enjoy these fine new facilities!

13.

Not so for the Environmentally

The new 106 room Five Points by Sheridan in Punta Gorda will paralell U.S. 41 northbound.

The area of the project on the river will be developed as condos in a 驶later phase.始

Sensitive Lands Oversight Committee.

They bravely voted to spend $45 million of their $28 million budget to buy two undevelopable tracts. The County Board will now have to play "Solomon" to determine whether to acquire 1655 acres of scrub jay habitat or 10 acres of remote swampland.

14. Florida is now considering which of the many municipal infrastructure projects that it needs to subsidize. While the 1800 acre Tern Bay development has been idled with less than 2% buildout, the $58 Mil CDD bonds are now in default with little resource for servicing the debt.

Apparently, there are worse situations than those winning the State's attention.

15. Neal Development from Bradenton and Pennsylvania based Benderson are reportedly putting together an offer to

Charlotte County to develop Murdock village. In spite of the foundering real estate market, this development will probably get done... but at substantially lower returns to taxpayers.

In other news: Charlotte County population declined in 2007 for the third year in a row. Population peaked at 156, 213 in 2004 and now stands at 152,814.

Water resource alarmists estimate population increases averaging 6.7% per year over the next 10 years. Professional demographers show that growth rate to be more like 2% per year. Hopefully, water management decisions will be based on realistic projections... we will see.

S al es S tati sti cs:

Lot volume has leveled off at last year's pace of just under 100 for the month.

Prices, though, are about half of last

Water LIFE

Fishing the Kids Cup

May

2008

MAGAZINE

Screaming Reels

By Capt. Andrew Medi na Water LIFE Staff The month of April was a great month both for fishing and for me personally. I got to put my nephew Cody Bollinger in the Top 5 for the second time since he started fishing the Kids Cup in 2004. The smiles on the young angler’s faces when the trophies were given out, the camaraderie, the fun – it was all great!

The final day was as tough as they come. We had a slow moving tide, it was a one tide day, and there was a lot of pressure on the group of fish we were on. It all proved to be too much for the fish and they just wouldn’t eat.

This month I think we’re going to see those fish will settle down a little with the higher water and they will feed better earlier in the day. We failed to catch our fish on the final day, but Cody and I will get one more chance next year, before he turns 17.

Cody Bollinger is interviewed by ESPNʼs Keith Allen at the 2008 Oberto Redfish Cup/Kids Cup weigh in. Below with Capt. Andy in 2004

Capt. Andrew Medina can be reached for charters or for information at: (941)4561540 or on the web at

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Page 13

Kids Cup and Don Ball School Evolution

Mi chael Hel l er Tournament Director The Kids Cup is designed to be an introduction to tournament fishing and as such we as adults need to continue to set good examples for our kids.

This year we put 122 kids out on the water in the Kids Cup. This year for the first time there was a question about the rules. Two different boats came back with two fish in their well. The Kids Cup is a one fish per angler tournament. The rules clearly say so. But I do not believe anyone tried to break the rules. One adult admitted he simply hadn’t read the rules, the other one finally told me he thought we wanted as many fish as possible for our tagging program. I explained that two fish caught and possessed at the same time by any one angler is a violation of state law. The first lesson of tournament fishing is to know all the laws and then to read the tournament rules.

We didn’t disqualify any one, we simply told them we would not weigh their fish. That was my decision. “We have to play it straight,” I told them. “That’s the whole idea.”

Our winner, 15 year old Booker Cothern from Port Charlotte read the rules and now, this month, Booker’s learning experience takes him to a real big-time professional tournament.

After the IGFA did away with their Junior Angler World Championship tournament we wanted to find another event for our Kids Cup winner to participate in.

I met Bart Schad in Punta Gorda this Spring. Bart is, the VP of marketing for the Ranger Boats IFA Redfish Tour. I told him about our Kids Cup event. Bart agreed to give our Kids Cup winning angler and his adult guide/boat driver a free slot in the May 17 IFA Ranger Boat Tournament held at Stump Pass Marina in Englewood. Booker and Terry Cooke could win a new Ranger Boat, or a cash payout depending on what they weigh in.

If you’re in the Englewood neighborhood on May 17 stop in to cheer them on. I know my wife and I will be there!

My wife Ellen and I have been tournament directors for the Kids Cup from the beginning. It was our idea to use the money we raised in the Kids Cup to help fund the Don Ball School of Fishing program that our friend Jerry Jensen had started in the Charlotte County Middle Schools. Jerry is the head of the Charlotte Harbor Reef Association which is the non-profit parent of the Don Ball School of Fishing.

Running a school program involves a lot of legwork and preparation, A lot of procuring tackle and supplies, a lot of physically going to places; schools, classrooms, and so forth and making sure everything comes together. Jerry is now 80-plus years young and he has asked my wife Ellen and I to take over the Don Ball Program and run the Reef Association.

It is a great honor and a natural evolution for us all. Jerry will still be involved with everything, we’ll just transition slowly into the future and take the weight off his shoulders.

Our plans for the future include expanding the Don Ball program into Cape Coral in Lee County. Over the coming summer months we plan to develop a workbook for the Don Ball program – a manual that the Don Ball teachers and students can refer to in class. This will not be a book kids will be tested from, but a book they can look at to find answers about fishing in Charlotte Harbor and straight talk about protecting our environment.

We are going to have to rearrange our work flow to do all this, so over the coming summer months we will share some of our new ‘workbook chapters’ in the pages of this publication.

Another strength we will bring to the school program is local photography, particularly aerial photographs of specific local fishing areas. We plan on putting together a ‘slide show’ that we can incorporate into the Don Ball program next year. It’s going to be an exciting time, for us all.

Page 14

Top 5 Results

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

KIDS CUP

May

WINNER!

Booker Cothern 5.49 Brandon Varney 5.24

Dylan Daughtry 3.05

Austen Henson No Fish

Cody Bollinger No Fish

LEFT: Booker Cothern, 15, and Terry Cooke pull a 6.84 pound fish out of the well and get it ready for the scale. That fish got Booker into the Top-5. The next weekend Booker went on to win the Kids Cup.

It looked like everyone had a good time. This time the Top-5 Kids Cup anglers were all 15 year old boys, which may explain why there were more girls entered in this yearʼs Kids Cup than ever. Every angler got a Kids Cup Competitorʼs trophy. If you didnʼt get your trophy, stop in at Fishinʼ Franks in Port Charlotte or call (941) 7668180 and weʼll make arrangements to get one to you.

2008

May

2008

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

KIDS CUP

Page 15

Everyone was smiling as the boats came back to the weigh in dock.

The Sportsmanship Award went to 10-year old Sayge Monning (above left) who was mistakenly awarded the heaviest fish for a 10-year old and then who handed over the award to the rightful winner Conor Peters and shook hands with him with a smile.

Also awarded a special prize was Sage Naeder, 11, who was the last angler registered, and brought back the heaviest fish, which was unfortunately just a hair too long.

The staff from Mote Marine and Progress Energy (FPLĘźs science lab) took fin clips and implanted 20 sonic transmitters . Our weigh master Capt. Ralph Allen affixed streamer tags to 68 fish during the Kids Cup event.

Thanks to Charlie Halley Photography and Tom Sibley – The Wetter The Better, for help with pictures

May Fishing Promises Tarpon & Shark

Water LIFE

Page 16

By Capt. Robert Moore Water Life Pro Guide Staff The month of May usually marks the beginning of tarpon and shark fishing for most fishing guides and recreational anglers.

Tarpon have begun their migration from the south and usually by May, or shortly before, they arrive in Southwest Florida by the thousands making a day of targeting them worthwhile. Right on the heels of the tarpon migration are lots and lots of hungry sharks. All of these tarpon and sharks seem to come together in one location – Boca Grande Pass.

I like to think of Boca Grande Pass as home base. This is where a large percentage of the tarpon will come to at one time or another during their migration.

From there they will disperse in schools ranging from as little as 20 fish on up to large schools numbering in the hundreds.

Some will choose to stay on the Gulf side and roam the beaches for food as they prepare for their yearly spawn. Some will travel up into Charlotte Harbor as far up as the Peace and Myakka Rivers to feed on the large schools of fatty baitfish that are found throughout the harbor. Some will stay in the pass and forage on the different baits that get pulled in and out with the strong currents. One thing that seems

WAT E R WAY

May

2008

to be a known fact is that during the next three months on the New & Full Moon of each month, Boca Grande Pass usually sees a very large increase in the numbers of fish in it. The tides on these moon phases are very strong and are known as the Hill Tides. Lots of tarpon baits, crabs in particular, are swept through the pass. There is normally a tremendous feed on these tides several days before and after the moon phases.

As we approach a full- or newmoon phase I will usually look closer to the passes for concentration of fish. In between the phases I will generally look further up in A nice lemon shark comes to the boat Photo: Capt. Steve Skevington, Paradise Charters Charlotte Harbor or along the beaches. with very little scent. will increase your hits and quality (size) Shark fishing is also at its best in the When used, ground up fish in pre-made of sharks by using live bait or at least a month of May. Look close to the passes chum bags and menhaden oil purchased very freshly caught and never frozen dead and beaches for the best results early in from most tackle shops will always bait. I like to take the extra time to catch the month. Later in the month and increase your chances in attracting more live baits such as small jack crevelle or throughout the rest of the summer you sharks into your immediate area. Capt. ladyfish and use them live or very fresh. will see a larger number of sharks within Marks Chum has become my favorite Most sharks, especially the smaller Charlotte Harbor, the Gasparilla area and chum block. I have had the best results ones, can be nothing more than swimin the Pine Island Sound. ming trash cans. But larger sharks such as with this chum compared to most others.

When most people think of fishing for the bull, lemon, blacktip and hammershark they think of soaking a dead bait on Capt. Robert Moore can be reached at: heads will be more likely to grab a frisky the bottom. A dead bait of some sort is 941 624-5710 or at: tarponlive bait than one sitting on the bottom always acceptable, but I have found you man@comcast.net

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May

2008

Flying Fish, Monster Bites and Sea Creatures

By Capt. Chuck Ei chner Water LIFE Charlotte Harbor The past four weeks on Charlotte Harbor have been extraordinary. Every fishing trip has been an adventure with a new discovery of some sort each time.

Our waters are exceptionally beautiful with water clarity comparable to the flats of the Florida Keys on calm sunny days.

My personal mode of operation on the harbor has been different than most. The average harbor angler runs a fast boat and seems to run quickly to every spot.

Zooming across flats, around mangrove islands and zipping through open water with little notice of what is really going on. My motto is just the opposite and it pays off big. On a recent outing while slowly cruising the open waters for tarpon there were fantastic schools of stingrays nearly everywhere I went. This is not really unusual for the spring, but many were spotted eagle rays. Many locals refer to them as leopard rays because they are typically black with white spots. Graceful and in harmony they glide together forming one of natures most beautiful patterns in the sea.

If you take the time to study huge schools of rays you may notice that in the shallows (less than 10 feet) they disturb the bottom and in doing so they dislodge small aquatic creatures like shrimp, crabs and fish. For the savvy angler, patient enough to watch, a remarkable thing can be seen – occasional fish darting around the rays. This doesn’t happen on every school of rays but with patience and your motor shut off (no trolling motor either) you will be amazed at what is really going on. On one particular day the fish darting around the rays were tarpon. I had shots at a 75 pound tarpon

Water LIFE

hanging with the rays and on that same day I also monitored a dolphin at long distance that was involved with the rays.

The closer we got to the dolphin revealed it was a monster tarpon way over the 150 pound mark. So big that at first we thought it was a dolphin! This wise old fish kept a good distance from us – however patience and stealth led us to being able to observe this remarkable fish.

With a constant vigil over the shallows and in this case it was 6 feet deep, a family of manatees was seen wallowering over a dark patch of bottom. A dark shadow appeared far from the manatees and I pitched a large threadfin herring in that direction. The dark shadow was a cobia zooming over to my bait and then it stopped as if it had brakes, inspected the bait (and apparently saw the hook) and did an about face and swam off. Pretty exciting stuff while watching stingrays!!

One Sunday morning I woke up at 4:00 a.m. This was my day off and I was hoping to sleep to 9:00. Somehow it made sense to slip the boat into the water and ease out into the dark to get my ‘religion’ before any other boat hit the water. A beautiful morning it was, however hours of a slow idle over the harbor didn’t produce a bite from free lined white bait drifted behind my boat. At 9:00 a.m. the first signs of life were seen a hundred yards ahead. Small white birds dipped to the surface. There were no active feeding fish but I figured a cast or two should be made. I placed a live pilchard on a jighead and flung it out where 3 birds had just dipped the surface. On the second cast a big fish grabbed my bait and nearly pulled the rod out of my hand. I hopelessly watched my spool being dumped and snap! I was totally bewildered and couldn’t believe what had happened. My expectation was for a fat ladyfish when I made the cast. I grabbed another rod that had a leader and hook on it and pitched it out. While waiting for another bite I rerigged another jighead and cast it out.

Wham! My drag was singin’ and the spool was being dumped again! The last

Water Toys, Water Skis, & Floats in stock w w w. a l l f i b e r g l a s s r e p a i r s . c o m Scott Steffe Owner

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MAGAZINE

time my drag poured out like that it was a smoker kingfish. I was strategically located near Alligator Creek, but on a quiet Sunday morning who knows the range of this ocean going fish.

Fishing by myself and having a monster fish hooked was not easy. I April Rewards: Joan Eichner with a nice redfish and a nice snook. started my big engine, shifted forward and hoped the free line in the back wouldn’t get caught up in the prop. Meanwhile I am steering towards the fish gaining back line and Wham! The line out the back now has a monster fish burning off drag. Now, what to do?, Goal #1 was to the dock with a big smile on my face and know what I had hooked and with over 15 a sore shoulder. minutes into the fight I figured it was a Over the past 4 weeks I have sighted cobia or kingfish but no jumps or other many, many sharks around the harbor. clues. As the fight wore on my medium Mostly in shallow water which makes me action backcountry rod equipped with 20 far less interested in wade fishing. Sea pound braid began to have a thumping turtles have made a nice showing. These feeling to it. Meanwhile the tarpon rod shy creatures only give you a glimpse of hung off the stern was buckled with the themselves before diving for the bottom. forward momentum of the boat, still in But perhaps the most unusual sighting gear. The thumping feeling I experienced was a flying fish! While on a cruise to was familiar, one I associated with a jack Boca Grande in the middle of the harbor I crevalle. Finally, the moment of truth, a was flanked by a flying fish off my starjack over 3 feet in length and nearly 2.5 board side. What else is out there? Take feet in girth. I estimated the fish at well the slow lazy approach to boating and over 20 pounds but had no camera to take fishing and enjoy our harbor. The mysa picture of this unusually large species teries of the harbor create enough passion for the harbor. The stern rod held a kissfor a lifetime of fishing!

For information or to book a guided fishing cousin of the first fish. ing trip with Capt Chuck Eichner call 941Completely worn out I headed back to 505-0003 or : www.back country -char-

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Water LIFE

Page 18

Fishing with Capt. Ron

By Capt Ron Bl ago Water LIFE Senior Staff Right now is the peak time to go fishing in our area.

The weather is great and the fish are biting. You can take your pick of species: snook, redfish, trout, Spanish mackerel, kingfish or tarpon - it’s all good right now.

For inshore fishermen the key to success is getting good bait. Shrimp will work, but let’s face it; shrimp is getting kind of pricey, if it’s available when you need it.

One of the problems in our area is that the shrimp deliveries to the local bait shops are sometimes late in the morning; so if you want to get out early you have to hope that there are some left overs from the day before or your bait dealer has to be willing to save some overnight for you. It always pays to be on good terms with your local prawn broker.

Of course if you want to take control of your own destiny you have to learn to throw a cast net and get your own bait. It’s really not that hard to learn. All you need is someone to teach you and a lot of practice on your part. Both Calusa Nets and West Coast nets have excellent videotapes that will get you started. Beginners always ask me what size net they should buy. You can legally throw a 12-foot net, but you better be a big strong guy to do it. Most guides and experienced fishermen will throw a 10-foot net; but an 8-foot net will probably get the job done for most people. The next thing you have to decide is the mesh size you want: 3/8 in. mesh works well this time of year when the bait is fairly large, it also sinks fast if you are throwing in deep

May

MAGAZINE

water (6 foot or more). 1/4 in mesh works well in the summer when the bait is smaller; it works really well in shallow water over grass flats and is easier to keep clean.

Rocks, old crab traps and junk will really tear up a cast net, so try to know what’s on the bottom before you make your throw. Two things will really age your netwater and sunlight. After a day’s fishing, remember to clean your net with fresh water, let it dry and store it out of the sun. With proper care your net should last many years.

I’ve been pretty lucky finding whitebait on the Tom Fisher and Buzzy Hayes landed this monster cobia after an hour fight on April 10. west side of Lemon Bay, The fish was caught on 20-pound line witha greenback for bait. “We had the Power Pole down and this thing was dragging us in circles,” Fisher said. north of Stump Pass. This time of year I try not to be too early. I like to watch the throwing small bits in the water. You can watch your early birds and see if they are having any luck finding chum drift in the water and it puts out a nice oil slick on bait. I’ll just watch them throw their nets and see if they the surface. After a few minutes you usually see fish get any white bait. If they are having luck I’ll stay in hitting your chum – fight that urge to throw that net, the area, if not I’ll move to another part of the bay. I those fish are most likely pinfish and that’s not what try to anchor next to a patch of grass in such a way as to you want. Keeps chumming until you see smaller fish give me the option to throw on the grass or on a sandy in your chum line then throw your net. If you get a few spot next to the grass. For chum I use Jack Mackerel white bait just keep chumming and throwing till you fill mixed with chicken feed that I buy at a local hardware your livewell. Remember you can never have enough store. You can use bread, crackers or cornmeal as filler – whitebait. they all work. Mix it all with a little water and start Capt Ron can be reached for questions or charters at

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May

2008

Water LIFE

Wrecks

By Adam Wi l son Water LIFE Diving For the past several months my dive buddy Carl and I have been doing some technical dive training with Jim Joseph at Fantasea scuba. Our main goal has been to comfortably and safely explore some of the deeper, less visited, Gulf wrecks.

Most of our training dives were done on the east coast where deep water is much closer to shore, which makes for a more controlled environment.

Unfortunately, the amount of fish we observed over there, even in deep water, is slim compared to what we have here. So we were excited to finally explore some deep wrecks in our own backyard.

With our training complete and a summer weather pattern starting to form it was finally time to go deep. First on our list is a 200 foot freighter that sank in 1992 en route to the Honduran island of Roatan from Tampa. Laying in 180 feet and 70 miles from shore, not many divers visit the Roatan Express wreck.

Arriving on scene it was easy to tell we were close even without the GPS. There was a smell of diesel in the air and a small slick on the surface. Even after 15 years, this wreck is still oozing small amounts of diesel into the Gulf. This is

MAGAZINE

not uncommon as some wrecks continue to leak fuel from rusting tanks for decades after being on the bottom.

This far out into the Gulf visibility can be almost unlimited. Swimming across the mid- ship cargo deck I could easily see both the wheel house on the bow and the stern through the trucks still chained to the aft deck. Before the ship went down it capsized, scattering its containers across the sea floor, but the vehicles that were chained on deck remained

Page

19

Left: Exploring an east coast wreck Above: Mike hangs on to the dorsal fin of a whale shark for a ride.

Right: An African Pompano. The FWC passed down the o.k. for spearing permit/African pompano in federal waters late last year.

in place when the ship settled perfectly upright. Off the starboard side in the stark white sand lies a lone upside down lifeboat that serves as an eerie reminder of the lives the Gulf claimed that night.

Large groupers and snappers looked on with curiosity at the invaders to their inner space. It was very possible most of these fish had never seen divers before.

Goliath grouper were also abundant along with the usual swarms of amberjacks overhead. Tropical fishlike angels, hamlets, a variety of wrasse species (including hogfish) and even sea cucumbers have also made this ship their home.

A dive this deep is obviously beyond the limits of recreational diving.

We spent weeks preparing for just this one 20 minute dive. Careful planning of gas mixtures and amounts is crucial for deep diving. Necessary decompression obligations every 10 feet on our ascent made our return trip to the surface world longer than the actual time we spent on the bottom.

On the run back in, one of our

divers, Michael Huskey, noticed a large dark blob just below the surface and immediately yelled "whale shark!". We were still offshore about 45 miles in 130 feet of water. As the shark skimmed along the top of the swells we could see a myriad of fish closely following. We all slid into the water hoping to see cobia, but instead it was a school of about 100 amberjacks and remoras. It also was Michael's 35th birthday. It was a perfect ending to an exciting day. I don't know anyone else that can say they have ridden

Page 20

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

May

2008

By Bi l l Di x o n Water LIFE Sailing May is going to be a good month for sailors. The bitter cold of mid April will only be a memory. May 14 will be a BIG day. For a lucky few, the race to Key West begins at the Boca Grande sea buoy at 12:55 PM. A skippers meeting for the summer series will be held at 6 PM at the PGI civic association building. Spring series awards will be presented at the PGSC pot luck dinner meeting at 7 PM. Check the web site at pgscweb.com for details of what to put in your pot.

Later in May small boat racing on the 17th, the summer series starts on the 18th, and Pete Welch will continue his Saturday non–race events. Also cruising activities will be in full swing culminating in the Memorial Day cruise to Pelican Bay on the 24th, 25th. It’s the biggest cruise of the Bob and Mary Anderson 's Journey On surfing to Key year. As of mid April 35 boats have West in May of last year.

Photo by Chuck Taylor signed up.

Not May, but June 28, West Florida PHRF will be holding their annual election of next year’s officers and ratificameeting here. Highlights will include 2 free tion of proposed changes to the bylaws. steak dinners for certificate holders and award- Details will be on the WFPHRF web site at: ing of the WFPHRF BOTY trophies as well as www.westfloridaphrf.org Check the Club web

May

2008

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

Paddling in the Everglades

By Davi d Al l en Water LIFE Kayaking The Port Charlotte Kayakers typically take several long weekend trips to intriguing spots outside of Charlotte County, but always somewhere in the southern half of Florida. We look specifically for areas that have beautiful surroundings, bountiful wildlife and of course, cooler temperatures in the summer and warmer in the winter. And yes, mosquitoes and nosee-ums are factored into the equation.

With so many wonderful and varied spots to kayak in Florida, the choice is often not easy to make.

Over the last several years, our club has gone to Big Pine Key, the Crystal River Area, and Key Largo, but, as a club, we had never paddled the Everglades. So we decided to make the short drive (about 100 miles) to Everglades City, and spend three days kayaking in Chokoloskee Bay and the mangrove-lined rivers. Everglades City is in the southern part of the 10,000 Islands area and on the southern edge of the Big Cypress National Preserve. It is an ideal spot for paddling.

The plan for this weekend began early on Friday, reaching Everglades City shortly after noon, grabbing a quick bite to eat, then getting in a 2 hour paddle before check-in time at the hotel. We launched our kayaks at the Ranger Station on Chokoloskee Bay and headed almost directly south, through Sandfly Pass, to Sandfly Key. It was a beautiful afternoon with only gentle breezes blowing from the southeast, and almost no tidal current.

Pelicans, anhingas, other species of birds,

and several dolphins joined us for the 2.5 mile trip out to the Key and back.

After checking in at the hotel, we adjourned to the pool deck for a relaxing wine/soda party with lots of food to snack on. We decided to paddle Halfway Creek the next day, launching from the put-in just off Highway 41. We had a fine dinner at the Seafood Depot followed by some live music at the Rock Bottom Bar. It was a great way to end the first day of our trip.

Saturday morning, 9 am, we launched from a narrow, sandy bank of Halfway Creek. No current and little wind, a perfect day for kayaking. On the shore -- if you could call it that – were willows, cattails, cabbage palms, and of course mangroves. As we paddled through the mangroves and sawgrass we slowed our pace to watch several small alligators sunning themselves along the bank.

Soon we found ourselves entering an overgrown mangrove channel, completely surrounded by the arching trees. The channel was so narrow we had little room to swing a paddle and often pulled our way along from mangrove branch to branch. As we made our way through this channel it became so narrow and dense that very little light was able to penetrate the canopy. The black mangrove trunks and shoots created a very strange landscape as we paddled south.

After about two hours, we entered a mangrove area that was impenetrable.

Several of us tried to find a path through this tight spot, but we finally gave up.

As you can imagine, turning 23 kayaks

around in a narrow mangrove tunnel is no easy task, but all of us made the turn and paddled back to the parking area.

Everglades City is noted for the number and quality of its seafood restaurants, and we checked most of them out. All were excellent, but we wanted to have our last dinner at the Oyster House; always quality seafood and unsurpassed service.

After a wonderful dinner and some more live music, we returned to the Captains Table hotel where most of us stayed, to get ready for the Sunday paddle in the Turner River.

On Sunday morning we drove to the launch site on Highway 41, northeast of Everglades City. We decided to make this a three-hour paddle, so we could return to Port Charlotte by mid-afternoon.

The Turner River was even more beautiful than Halfway Creek and we remarked that this river felt like the ‘real Everglades’. The beauty of paddling through the cattails and saw grass, with scattered cabbage palms, gave the impres-

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Photo Skip Rasmussen, P.C. Kayakers

sion that this was virgin territory, unexplored and pristine.

As we paddled south, the creek gradually narrowed and wound its way through several small ponds. Again, we saw several alligators, maybe 6 to 8 feet long, either sunning on the bank or swimming along the mangrove edges. Through the open areas we saw anhinga, diving and swimming birds that fed on small fish.

Snowy egrets and great blue heron were seen fishing or flying overhead. What a wonderful opportunity to experience first hand all nature has to offer. We turned back north to the launch. We loaded our gear for the return drive to Port Charlotte, knowing we had enjoyed one of the best paddling weekends we’d ever had.

The Port Charlotte Kay ak ers meet each Wednesday ev ening at 5:30 PM, at the Port Charlotte Beach Complex . All paddlers, or potential paddlers interested in finding out more about the sport and our club, are welcome. For more information, contact Dav e Allen 941-235-2588 or: dlaa@comcast.net

Xtreme Redfish Tournament

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Page 22

Offshore Report

Josh Smith watches as weighmaster Andy Medina checks length on his 8.53-pound redfish.

By Capt. S teve S kevi ngton Water LIFE Offshore Well, my all time favorite fish to catch, the permit, has shown up in all its glory. These are the very same fish that have been taunting anglers down in the keys for the last few months and now it’s our turn to get into the action with one of the hardest fighting fish in the Gulf. Fishing for these guys is so simple, all you’re going to need is a livewell full of silver dollar size pass crabs, a spinning rod fully loaded with 15-20-pound test, and some 25-30lb fluorocarbon leader. We like to use 1/0 size circle hooks on these fish for a good release.

Get anchored up just up-current from one of your favorite wrecks and free-line one of those crabs out behind your boat. Just dont be to surprised if you catch a lot more than permit as huge cobia and even black-fin tuna are in the area and they like the taste of the frisky little crabs. We put some cobia on the boat last week and they remain a target into this month.

S t aff R eport The Xtreme Redfish Tournament at Banana Bay continues to grow. This time the event drew 41 boats, weighed in 54 fish and released them all alive. The biggest fish, caught by Josh Smith, recorded an 8.53 on the digital scale.

Fi rst pl ace went to Brett Ezell and Bobo Schwandner with 13.85 total and a $1570 payout. They also had the 2nd biggest fish, at

2008

8.18 lbs.

S econd pl ace went to Josh Smith and Justin Davis 13.55 total .... $780.00 Their big fish was worth an extra $400.00 Thi rd pl ace went to Paul Lambert and 15 year-old Brandon Varney with a 13.30 total worth $380.00 (Lambert and Varney made it to the Kids Cup Top-5 the following

The dock at Banana Bay Motel in Charlotte Harbor will be extended 200 feet

The crabs are a top bait for the cobia, but a frozen squid or live thread-fin sardine also work really well.

Look for them on your favorite wrecks and big ledges, be ready to offer them anything they want as they can be very picky when they want to be.

We have been catching sharks almost every day now some going 150-200-pounds. They make for some very exciting fishing and they’re right up on the beach in as little as 15 feet of water all the way out to about 55 feet. We like the first light in the morning for the best bite and then again right after sunset.

Red grouper action should really start to heat up this next couple of weeks. Start looking at those hard bottom spots deeper than 80 feet. They should be holding some real slobs right now.

Lane and vermillion snapper are hanging out on those same spots so have a light rod down with a bit of shrimp or squid on a small hook. That should prove productive.

The tarpon have been back for a while now, they’re moving up the beaches making their way up to Boca Grande. Tossing live thread fin sardines at them early in the morning is a great way to hook up.

Amberjack are still hanging out on the deeper spots

offshore. The wrecks deeper than a 100 feet have the best fish on them. Fishing these guys with heavy jigs and live baits is proving to be a lot of fun.

When your out that deep be on the look out for some big mangrove snapper behind your boat, if your chumming at all, there should be a lot of them up there in no time. There's just a lot of great fishing going on right now, rather you like bottom fishing or trolling, live baiting tarpon and permit, or chumming up monster sharks, this month and next have got you covered.

Capt Steve can be reached for charter at (941) 575-3528 or at www.paradisefishingcharters.com

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May

MAGAZINE

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May

2008

Water LIFE

SCUTTLEBUTT Sometimes Unsubstanciated, But Often True

KEY WEST, Florida Keys -- Artificial reef project organizers coordinating the cleanup and sinking of a former United States Air Force missile tracking ship off Key West, announced a postponement of the scheduled scuttling. The 524-foot Hoyt S. Vandenberg will not sink May 15 as originally hoped for, said Joe Weatherby of Reefmakers. A new date will be announced in the future, "We know many people are

MAGAZINE

planning to travel to Key West for the sinking,” Weatherby said. “We want to ensure they understand the ship will not sink May 15.” Weatherby blamed skyrocketing fuel costs and unanticipated cleanup challenges as reasons why the project, originally estimated at $5.7 million, now requires another $2.3 million.

Tree Huggers Foothol d The Sierra Club is working dilligently to grasp

footholds in both Sarasota and Charlotte County Governments. Jono Miller, the grand master of all Sierrans, is making a run for the Sarasota Commission and there are two, maybe three members vying for spots on the Charlotte County Commission. We fishermen and river dwellers are the true environmentalists and take better care of the environment than do the professed groups such as the Sierra Club. The Sierra Club tends to be environmental extremists who are anti everything We don't need the Sierrans mandating our way of life. Known Sierra Club candidates are: Percy Angelo (District 3) and Ruth Bromberg (District 1). Ray Cowen

Page 23

(District 5) has, at the least, the Sierra Club mentality. Cowen is rumored to be an implant of Adam Cummings who has received applause from this group many times over.

Real l y Bi g S nook? A 60-inch (sixty!, 5 feet!) snook was said to have been caught by a ‘youth angler’ from the Bayshore Pier last month. We have not seen a photo.

Bar of S oap i n the Water Fountai n Everyone loves the new Bayshore Live Oaks Park, especially the area’s homeless.

Said one homeless guy of the parks nice new fountain: “Now we have some place to wash up.” The park also has a large

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Page 24

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

May

2008

The Water Water LIFE LIFE Distributor始s Club

Cooks Sportland

4419 So. Tamiami Trail S. Venice 493-0025

is the Water LIFE Internet Provider

Pick up a copy of Water LIFE at any of these and 120+ other locations. Water LIFE is not affiliated with any newspaper or other publication and is distributed at select locations around the state. These free ads to our loyal distributors rotate on a monthly basis.

If you would like this publication for distribution at your business please call us at 941-766-8180

May

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2008

MAGAZINE

The Grouper Fishery

The Commercial Perspective

By Kel l y Beal Peace Ri ver S eafood Water LIFE Punta Gorda It's getting harder and harder for the commercial fishermen to make it. As a matter of fact, times are getting hard for all of us. The cost of fuel is insane, but fuel is just one of the many concerns for the commercial grouper fisherman.

Between the fuel cost, the mandated VMS (Vessel Monitoring Systems), yearly quotas and closed seasons - how does he or she make it?

The grouper fishery is regulated at both the state and federal waters. The state waters on the west coast of Florida extend 10 miles out from shore and are managed by the Florida Marine Fisheries Commission (FMFC). Beyond the 10 mile contour is the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) which extends another 200 miles from shore. This area is managed by the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Management Council (GMFMC). As of December 7, 2006 the US Dept of Commerce through NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service, established a rule that requires all vessels holding a Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Permit to purchase, install, activate and maintain a Vessel Monitoring System (VMS). Basically, it’s Big Brother Watching. As a society we are so overgoverned, but imagine life as a grouper fisherman. Not only is this invasive device required, but you have to purchase

it. Typically the cost of a VMS is anywhere from $1600 to $2900 and it comes with a monthly service fee of $40 to $60.

How crazy is that? And who has access to this info? What if you worked years to learn the floor of the gulf? Now it is a felony for a commercial fisherman to leave the dock without a functional VMS system that records his where-abouts.

Fishermen fear that information could become very valuable to an unscrupulous government employee who might have access to it.

This year the quota for deep water grouper is 1.02 million pounds. These fish are typically caught 150 miles out.

This includes Snowy, Yellow Edge and Kitty Mitchell among others. The shallow water grouper fishery quota is 8.8 million pounds. Both have trip limits of 6000lbs.

The deep water grouper fishery met their quota early last year in June, but the shallow water grouper fishery did not, so that fishery stayed open – except for the February 15th - March 15th closure.

Can your business afford to take a month off? Commercial fishing is all about being prepared and taking a huge gamble. Think of the costs involved to venture out. The permit - $5000, boat (average 40 to 45-foot) and gear (hooks, line, lead, spreader bars, electric motor for bandit, etc.) - $160,000, VMS - $2000 and monthly service - $480 annually , 350 to 400 gallons of fuel per trip $1600, bait -$800-$1000, and don't forget time is money. Trips can range anywhere from 4 to 10 days and that's if all goes

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Page 25

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Fishing Report Charlotte Harbor:

Robert at Fishin' Franks Port Charlotte: 625-3888

Definitely May is the month for Tarpon. They will be the number one pick. It’s not much good for shore fishermen, but the tarpon are already in the harbor and they will be dumping into the pass in really good numbers throughout this whole month. Jig fishermen will do well in the daytime, live bait fishermen will be most productive at night or hanging on the outside of the pass waiting for fish to come in. Live baiters off the beaches or inside the harbor can either drift using threadfins or sight-cast to fish.

Small tarpon will take a large pinfish or a big shrimp. Later in the season ladyfish will become an effective tarpon bait, but that’s usually not until July or August.

S nook is closed this month. It’s still a good catch and release fish, but you can’t keep them until September ... unless they change the rules on us again!

Redfi sh is another good one that hap-

Water LIFE

pens this month. The little rat reds thin out and the thicker slot size fish become more abundant. Local tournaments are seeing redfish in the 6 to 7 pound range consistently. Early morning is good for topwater fishermen and greenbacks are coming into their own as bait. Soon they will start to out-preform even the nice shrimp we have been seeing. But I still wouldn’t leave home without a bag of frozen shrimp, just in case.

Another good fish this month is offshore permi t. Ideally you have to have a trolling motor or drift, they won’t stand for the noise made by a big motor. These fish will congregate on man made reefs and wrecks much more than they will on a natural reef structure. Preferably, pick the calmer days when you can see them up on the surface tailing. It will look like a bunch of ‘little swords’ sticking out of the water. Live crabs or shrimp are the bait to use. Keep very quiet and cast from as far away as you can when you are around these fish.

Cobi a will move up into the inside of the harbor and be on the near-shore reefs this month. We have been seeing some really big cobia around already this season. Always have a pole with a Bomber or a live pinfish available. Cobia will usually follow around with either a regu-

MAGAZINE

May

2008

This over-the-slot-sized redfish went back in the water and probably headed offshore.

lar stingray or a manatee, they never seem nice size and toothy!

The grouper bite has definitely to hang out with the cow-nosed rays slowed down, but the mangrove snapthough. per and the l ane snapper are picking If you are bottom fishing offshore always keep one bait free-lined on the sur- up. The full moon is still a great time to go fishing offshore at night. face out back. You never know what will Slow trolling this month could get show up. Sometimes it will be a cobia. you hooked up on a sai l fi sh within 5 Sharks are starting to show up this miles of shore. We’re seeing more and month. There have been plenty of bl ack more sailfish close in, in our area. ti ps around and rumor has it that a 12foot hammerhead has been caught already this year. Bul l sharks, and hammers are around now – predominantly they will be all over.

The little black tips can be caught from El Jobean all the way to the US 41 bridge. For the smaller sharks use cut bait or sardines, jacks are good bait for the bigger fish and it would be best (if not mandatory) to rig with a length of wire.

Kids Cup T-Shirts for $6 !!

S pani sh mackerel and bl ueAN ACCIDENTAL OVERRUN OF KIDS CUP T fi sh are here and should stay abunSHIRTS HAS BEEN DONATED TO THE DON BALL dant for the rest of the month. The SCHOOL OF FISHING Shirts are for sale at $6 each. Various adult mackerel we have seen so far this sizes are available at Laishley Marine in Punta season have been real quality fish,

Gorda. All the proceeds go to the Don Ball School.

May

2008

Fishing Report Lemon Bay:

Jim at Fishermen’s Edge, Englewood: 697-7595

BIG-4 BIG-4

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MAGAZINE

Aprilʼs Target Species Species Aprilʼs Target

IFA RANGER Tournament MAY 17 ENGLEWOOD

SHARK smaller ones in the harbor, bigger in the passes

Tarpon are kicking off. They are around and increasing in numbers, but the biggest thing has been redfi sh and trout. There are a lot of redfish around, guys are catching them on shrimp, pinfish, live bait ... what ever they are throwing at the time, Cal, Gulp Exude, some guys are using topwaters. The water has warmed up and everything is more aggressive now.

There are a lot of snook around. In the (April 26) O’Bannon Tournament there were a lot of fish caught, but mostly medium size, the bigger fish at the top of the slot are still hard to find. Most everyone is using live bait for snook, but Skittterwalks and the Super Spook Jr have also been productive.

There are a lot of tarpon in Little Gasparilla Pass and even some in Stump Pass. Good quality fish because we’ve had clean water and a lot of bait around for months.

I’ve had reports of super good sea trout. A guy in lemon bay got a 30 incher and there have been plenty caught here in the 28 inch range.

The trout are coming on 5-inch DOA Cals and jerk baits. A big hand picked shrimp brought in the 30 incher. The 5-M Mirrolure or any of the

REDFISH bigger fish are gathering in schools

other spinning ‘prop’ baits have been working on the trout.

There are still pompano around. The sheepshead are disappearing but there are a lot of permi t on the wrecks offshore. There are reports of cobi a on those wrecks offshore as well.

AJs. The offshore wrecks like the Bayronto have been producing well. I’ve heard a number of reports of smaller sai l fi sh offshore, three or four miles out. That’s been the pattern for the last five or six years, it’s a natural occurrence. When the bait

SNOOK have been very good this year... at night

TARPON are here already, in the Harbor and in the Pass

Calendar of Events

n May 3: XTreme Redfish Series - Port Charlotte, Banana Bay Motel, $125 sign up in a.m.

456-1540 n May 3: Tanner South Benefit Tourney, Laishley Park, $300 n May10,11: Maverick Boats Flatsmasters Series- Redfish Classic 2 redfish, bait of choice 941-637-5953

THE ALL NEW 2008 F-450 KING RANCH SUPER DUTY

n May 17: IFA Ranger Boats Redfish Tour, Englewood, Stump Pass Marina, info: 478836-4266 n May 31: Silver King Classic, Fish Tale Marina, Ft Myers, $150, 239 415 8973 n May 31: Charlotte High School Redfish Roundup, fish on your bait of choice.

n June 14: Couples Tournament, Burnt Store (863) 245-8380 n June 14: Firefighters Assn.

Redfish Tournament, St. Pete, 2 redfish 941-637-5953 n July12,13: Maverick Boats Flatsmasters Series- RedPlug Challenge, Artificial lures only. 941-637-5953

Fishing

RIGHT NOW:

Very Excellent!

May

2008

FMstr

Water LIFE

Classic Tournaments at 941-637-5953

6/28/08- Pirate Redfish Tournament- Punta Gorda 2 redfish on bait of choice

7/12,13/08- Maverick Boats Flatsmasters Series- RedPlug Challenge 2 redfish on Artificial lures only

7/13,14/08- Maverick Boats Flatsmasters Series- RedSnook Challenge 1 redfish and 1 snook on bait of choice 10/11,12/08- Maverick Boats Flatsmasters "No Entry Fee" Championship 1 redfish and 1 snook on bait of choice 11/8/08- North Port High Red & Snook Shootout 1 redfish & 1 Snook on bait of choice

12/6/08- RedSpot "Count The Spots" Redfish Tournament Most Spots on 2 redfish

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