Fishing Report
Need a Fishing License?
You need a fishing license fast. You have planned and prepared and the morning you are going out fishing on your new boat has arrived! At 6:00 a.m. you realize that you have no fishing license and you don't want to meet the local FWC officers under that circumstance.
You don't need to find a bait and tackle shop and you don't need to get on the internet. Dial 888-347-4356 (or 888-FISH-FLORIDA) and have your credit card ready. You will be given license numbers over the phone and that will save you if you get pulled over.
If you are unclear ( as most of us are ) about what species are in and out of season, you can go to the FWC website and print out the regualtions. Go to www.myfwc.com and click on saltwater regulations. Just be sure to know what county's waters you are fishing and know when you are in state waters, and know when you have crossed into federal waters. The regulations often differ.
Have fun and leave some fish for the rest of us!
Red Snapper Fishing On Father's Day
My husband Bob and I decided that since the weather was so perfect we would take a short offshore fishing trip on Father's Day. He has some good numbers inside of 10 miles, and since we had dinner plans with some friends it needed to be a quick trip.
We got to our first stop to catch some live bait and the next thing you know I am pulling in one sea bass after another and Bob is looking at his depth finder seeing structure he has never noticed at this stop before. (When we don't catch anything on a stop he calls his depth finder a fish cartoon; when we do catch fish, he calls it the greatest invention ever!)
About the time he is wondering out loud why he has never noticed this big hump we are drift fishing over, my pole doubles over and I know this is no sea bass.
It is a beautiful Red Snapper and is pushing 25"! What a great dinner. I am pretty certain that the next trip out, Bob is going to be prowling around that area again seeing what other structure he may have missed there. We were in 50' of water and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The snapper hit our bait which was squid on a small hook.
To be safe in knowing what fish seasons are open in state and/or federal waters, here are two useful websites. For Florida's state regulations visit www.myfwc.com and for federal regulations visit www.gulfcouncil.org State and federal rules aren't always the same and they can be confusing, so be careful and know what waters you are in and what the season is for the fish you catch!
Enjoy fishing in the unspoiled waters of The Forgotten Coast! Oh and by the way... SCALLOP SEASON officially opened yesterday and will run thru the latter part of September. Catch my next blog about SCALLOPING in the St. Joe Bay!
Fun Facts About Our Piece of Paradise
- St. George Island and the other barrier islands in the chain are thought to be around 5,000 years old.
- 200,000 years ago, sea level was approximately 350 feet lower than it is now, making Florida about twice the size it is now.
- Eastpoint was founded in 1896 by a communal farming group of settlers from Nebraska and got its name from the town across the bay, Westpoint now known as Apalachicola.
- As many as 300,000 baby loggerhead turtles hatch each year on St. George Island!
- In 1954 Lanark Estates Inc. from Miami FL bought most of Camp Gordon Johnston and named it Lanark Village. With sales offices in New York, Chicago & Washington, they began promoting Lanark Village as a beautiful and affordable place to live.
- Over 250,000 troops were trained at Camp Gordon Johnston and the barrier islands were used for amphibious landing training that was used in both Pacific and European theaters in WWII.
- While the economy of much of Franklin County relies on the Gulf of Mexico and the Apalachicola Bay for much of its income (fishing and oystering) some of the people on the mainland depend on other sources. Another industry is bee culturing which produces about 350,000 pounds of tupelo honey each year and brings income to many local beekeepers.
