News Section: Fishing
Captain Favorite's Fishing Forum July 2, 2012
Your One-Stop Spot for Fishing in Manatee County
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Peggy of Tennessee with a 33 inch redfish caught on a chunk of ladyfish off of Longbar. |
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BRADENTON – Due to the stormy weather, the First Annual West Coast Tarpon Challenge weigh-in was postponed until last Saturday. Anglers were given the opportunity to fish one additional weekday of their choosing. The weigh-in celebration, complete with live music, was held from 1-2 p.m. on June 30, with the award presentation at 3:00 p.m. Visit their Facebook page for more information.
Fishing Updates
16th Annual DeSoto Fishing Tournament
- DeSoto Fishing Tournament Committee members are switching it up a bit by relocating to Tarpon Point Grille and Tiki Bar and Tarpon Pointe Marina this year.
- Participants will be fishing from July 13 -15, with a weigh-in schedule from 11:00 a.m to 3:00 p.m. with the awards party following shortly after.
- The tournament was previously located at the Bradenton Yacht Club.
- Anglers hoping to compete in the event should register by July 6 to receive a discounted early admission fee.
Divisions include offshore, inshore, spearfishing and junior.
- A children’s tournament will be held on Saturday, July 14 from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. with registration beginning at 8:30 a.m. Only the first forty applicants may compete. The children’s awards will be held following the tournament.
Snook to Remain Closed for Another Year in Gulf Waters
- The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) voted to keep the recreational harvest of snook in Gulf of Mexico waters closed for another year to offer the species additional protection after a 2010 cold kill detrimentally affected the population.
- The decision came at the June 28 Commission meeting in Palm Beach Gardens after staff presented an updated stock assessment that showed snook populations are improving in the Atlantic and are not in biological jeopardy in the Gulf. The next assessment is due in 2015.
- “If we have a bad winter this year, we will benefit from this caution; if we don’t have a bad winter, we will let all these breeding fish come through the slot,” said Vice Chairman Kenneth Wright, referring to the snook slot limit of 28 to 33 inches in Gulf of Mexico waters. “We’ll really have done something good and we’ll have protected some of these fish.”
- The recreational snook season was closed in Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic waters by executive order on Jan.16, 2010, after the cold kill. The FWC manages snook in both state and federal waters, though the species tends to inhabit the shallower, near-shore state waters. The effects of the cold kill were less severe on the Atlantic coast, where the normal season reopened for harvest Sept. 1, 2011.
FWC Approves Ordinance for Anchoring/Mooring Pilot Program in Sarasota
- Meeting Thursday in Palm Beach Gardens, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved, with one contingency, the city of Sarasota’s proposed boating ordinance for the anchoring and mooring pilot program coordinated by the FWC.
- “The goal of the anchoring and mooring pilot program is to explore potential options for regulating the anchoring or mooring of non-live-aboard vessels outside the boundaries of public mooring fields,” said Maj. Jack Daugherty, leader of the FWC’s Boating and Waterways Section. “The FWC’s role is to provide consultation and technical assistance on the issues.”
- Local governments for the five communities participating in the pilot program are responsible for soliciting public input and adopting local ordinances within their jurisdictions. These ordinances must be approved by the FWC and will continue to be evaluated by the FWC and the Legislature. Since June 2011, when the final participant was selected for the program, FWC staff members have been attending the sites’ public-input meetings to provide information on the pilot program.
County Seeks Public Input for Proposed Warner’s Bayou Renovations
- Local residents, boaters, fishing enthusiasts and environmental supporters are invited to a third public workshop to discuss proposed renovations to Warner’s Bayou boat launch on July 11.
- The workshop will be held at Palma Sola Elementary School cafeteria, 6806 5th Ave NW, Bradenton. The meeting is open to the public, and it will begin at 6:30 p.m. with a staff presentation that covers a new proposed plan based on public comments earlier this year.
- Manatee County officials decided to postpone until at least Labor Day, 2012 any proposed repairs and improvements to Warner’s Bayou boat ramp. The ramp was originally scheduled to be closed for repair and upgrades in March, but many residents near the popular boat launch asked to have more input. County officials and staff met with concerned residents at the launch in March and again at Palma Sola Elementary School in April to ask for their feedback for the park.
- For more information on Manatee County Government, visit online at www.mymanatee.org or call (941) 748-4501.
Weekly Fishing Report by Captain Chad Gamble
Well, let’s just say I haven’t gotten much fishing in the past weeks with this crazy weather we’ve been having. Debbie really pulled a doozy on the Charter Captains, with winds packing a punch for 7 days straight. The good news is, I am fully caught up on all my preventative maintenance and everything on the boat has a nice sheen of “Corrosion Block.”
In the weeks leading up to this storm, the fishing was great with tarpon eating well on some days and not at all on others, but the inshore bite never stopped. We caught very respectable rout on the edges of Long Bar Point and some scattered redfish on the shallow flats adjacent to Long Bar as well.
The most notable catch, well, “almost” a catch, came when I had a cancellation due to the wind. That afforded me a great opportunity to fish with a friend of mine on his boat! Let me tell you, as a boat Captain, when you have a chance to go fishing with somebody else’s boat, you pounce on it. It is amazingly pleasant to not have to drive the boat, or lug heavy gas cans, or worry when the motor makes a funny sound. On top of all that, I had no pressure at all to catch fish. That was all on my friend John’s shoulders, and it was awesome!
We started out tarpon fishing at the North end of Anna Maria Island. It was a trip full of laughing like a school girls, telling old stories, and a well needed break from the high stress.
Just when we were about to pack it in due to a slow bite, I hooked a decent sized tarpon in the 100lb range. After about thirty minutes we had the fish whipped, well, we thought we did anyways.
Out of nowhere, a huge 13-14 foot hammerhead shark comes in and made our tarpon act like he was just hooked 5 seconds ago with a “second wind style” burst of energy. We rolled video as best we could as we tried to get the boat in a position to open the spool and let the tarpon swim on her own to escape the shark. The only problem we had was that the tarpon kept on going back and forth under the hull using the boat as “cover”. When it was all over, the tarpon had gotten away from us and the shark. We then counted all of John’s fingers as he was doing the filming. Once we got to “ten” we started laughing like school girls again.
USCG Captain Chad Gamble
Email at Hookandladdercharters@gmail.com
Call (941) 809-8922
Fishing Forecast
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Surface high pressure across the south central Florida Peninsula this afternoon will gradually lift north into the Central Peninsula later tonight through the upcoming week. Light winds and slight seas are expected each day over the Gulf waters with an onshore sea breeze component developing along the coast each afternoon.
Monday
West winds around 10 knots. Bay and inland waters a light chop. Monday night will bring west winds around 5 knots early in the evening then becoming variable less than 5 knots overnight. Bay and inland waters smooth.
2012/07/02Mon02:14 a.m.1.37H
2012/07/02Mon04:51 a.m.1.29L
2012/07/02Mon11:20 a.m.2.79H
2012/07/02Mon07:59 p.m.-0.42L
Tuesday
West winds around 5 knots. Bay and inland waters smooth. Tuesday night will bring northwest winds around 5 knots in the evening then becoming east around 5 knots in the late evening and overnight. Bay and inland waters smooth.
2012/07/03Tue02:57 a.m.1.38H
2012/07/03Tue05:46 a.m.1.27L
2012/07/03Tue12:11 p.m.2.82H
2012/07/03Tue08:44 p.m.-0.4L
Wednesday
East winds around 5 knots becoming west in the late morning and afternoon. Bay and inland waters smooth. A slight chance of thunderstorms. Wednesday night
will bring northwest winds around 5 knots in the evening then becoming east around 5 knots in the late evening and overnight. Bay and inland waters smooth.
2012/07/04Wed03:28 a.m.1.38H
2012/07/04Wed06:45 a.m.1.23L
2012/07/04Wed01:02 p.m.2.77H
2012/07/04Wed09:25 p.m.-0.3L
Thursday
East winds around 5 knots becoming west in the late morning and afternoon. Bay and inland waters smooth. A chance of thunderstorms. Thursday night will bring east winds around 5 knots. Bay and inland waters smooth. A slight chance of thunderstorms.
2012/07/05Thu03:54 a.m.1.41H
2012/07/05Thu07:45 a.m.1.16L
2012/07/05Thu01:50 p.m.2.65H
2012/07/05Thu10:02 p.m.-0.16L
Solunar Forecast
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Merab is a writer at the Bradenton Times. She can be reached at merab.favorite@thebradentontimes.com
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