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Charlotte Harbor and Lemon Bay

Keeping Boaters and Fishermen Informed

November 2007

Producers of the

Lovin始 the Fish Richest Tournament

KIDS CUP

New Design Anchor

Page 8

Prop Repairs Page 14

Underwater at the PHOSPHATE DOCK Mangroves: Epic Planting Begins Page 11

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

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Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

November 2007

November 2007

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LETTERS

TO

KEEP KIDS READING & FIS HING Dear Water LIFE I am a reading teacher at Gulf Middle School in Cape Coral.

Several of my students live and fish on Pine Island. They are extremely interested in your magazine; which TOTALLY excites me, because it is difficult to get most of my students to read anything!

I was wondering if I could request 20 of your magazines to be mailed to me monthly to be used for educational purposes. Do you have a bulk rate; and if so, how much would it be? If this is not possible, is your publication available any where in Cape Coral? I would be happy to try to pick them up on a monthly basis.

Thanks for a great and informative magazine! My fishermen husband & son devour it too!

Lei gh Anne Page Gulf Middle School Intensive Reading Grades 6-8

MAGAZINE

WAT E R L I F E

Boat Parade Route Resurrected

The lighted boat parade organization committee has reconsidered their proposed route change. The parade WILL NOW ONCE AGAIN BEGIN AT EDGEWATER LAKE, AS IT HAS IN YEARS PAST. “The general public spread the word that the parade had to come from the lake,” parade organizer Capt.

Doug Buuck said. Buuck noted that the parade will end with a display of lighted boats at Laishley Park Marina which will be illuminated on Saturday and Sunday night.

Boaters interested in becoming part of the event can obtain a registration form at www.puntagorda-chamber.com or by calling the chamber at 639-3720 The parade date is Dec 8.

Just a brief note to thank all our readers, local guides and contributors for making this publication come together every month. Capt. Ron Blago, Capt. Rob Moore, Capt. Chuck Eichner, Capt.

Andy Medina, Adam Wilson, Betty Staugler, Bill Dixon, David Allen, Steve Skevington, Dave Hofer, Robert and Fishin’ Frank, you all make it happen, thanks!

And a big thanks to the community for supporting the Don Ball School of Fishing and the Kids Cup Tournament,

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(941) 766-8180

TOTALLY INDEPENDENT Water LIFE is not affiliated with any other publication

© 2007 Vol VI No. 11 Water LIFE

Contributing Editors:

Together we are working to

keep Charlotte Harbor and its contributing rivers clean and

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fishable.

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Thanksgiving Thanks From Us

November 2007

11/07

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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:

Adam Wilson photographed this Goliath Grouper at the old Phosphate Dock at Boca Grande, last month.

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.

Any Bite Could be a Record November 2007

By Mi chael Hel l er Water LIFE Editor “Fishin’ here is still just as good as ever,” my New Mexico friend Joe said as he drew down hard on the stub of an unfiltered cigarette and exhaled slowly. New Mexico to Miami, over the road in a big rig, with a quick disappearance in Port Charlotte.

So we were out on the water, just up from Cape Haze, fishing.

Slowly, Joe reeled in his bait, carefully looked it over, and then casually flipped it back out toward the shore.

His line fluttered just a little. “Dam pinfish,” Joe said, reeling his bait back in only to find its eyes pecked out.

Joe reached into the well, picked out another nice sardine and nose hooked it.

Then he cast it back to the exact same spot.

I was throwing a gold spoon down the shoreline.

Suddenly I had a hit.

Joe saw what happened

immediately. “Could be a record fish,” Joe said. You could count on Joe to be the one to start an endless discussion. Then he added “but any bite could be a record fish.”

Of course Joe was right.

You never know. That’s the part we like about fishing.

I stuck the hook. The moment in time when the angler knows the fish is hooked and the fish is just finding out, had arrived.

Tension increased exponentially, then the drag began to slip. The fish turned down the shoreline. A moment of exuberation, fish on! And then he turned some more and the line began to shake, quiver and jerk. Pull-pullpull, then a little slack, then pull-pull-pull.

A jack, “maybe the biggest Jack you ever caught?” Joe said. Could have been, maybe. But it wasn’t.

Joe, in the mean time popped open another beverage can. “What if that was a

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

record fish?” Joe asked. “You gotta kill it for it to become a record?”

I pulled the jack up on the deck. The question was irrelevant, it wasn’t a record. I unhooked the jack unceremoniously and put him back in the water.

I thought about Joe’s question a little more and unscrewed a Gatorade. “You don’t have to kill a fish for it to be a record,” I said.

“But if it’s a really big fish you have to get it to a certified scale. It might be dead by the time you’re done weighing it,” I said.

“I don’t mind killing stuff,” Joe said, “I just don’t like to kill stuff by accident.”

I had started casting and retrieving my trusty Hobo gold spoon again and I had another hit.

“Maybe that one is the record,” Joe said.

I ignored him.

It wasn’t a big fish but it was a fighter. I reeled it in.

“What’s that, a baby barracuda?” Joe asked. “Yeah I guess so,” I said. I took a picture of the toothy little

guy and released him.

A couple of days later I fished with Capt Jerry Gilespie, I mentioned the little cuda and Jerry told me he had caught one on the east side not long ago. Then a few days after that I mentioned it to Capt. Ron who told me he also caught one a couple of months back. Ron said a friend of his told him it wasn’t a barracuda, it was a sennet.

That night I looked up ‘sennet’ on the internet.

Here’s what I found: They are predominantly seen on Florida’s east coast, south of Indian River. They average 1-pound, but can grow to about 2-pounds. There is no closed season, size, or bag limits on sennet. Like the barracuda, they are voracious and opportunistic feeders and will strike at a variety of baits. Then came the part I wish I knew about before I threw that sennet back: There is no state record for sennet – Joe was right.

Any bite could be a record fish.

I’m not going to tell him.

Page

The sennet, a relative of the barracuda

5

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Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

November 2007

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Phosphate Dock November 2007

Underwater at the

By Adam Wi l son Water LIfe Diving If you're feeling a little more brave, and have a little more experience, the remnants of the phosphate pier makes for an awesome dive. Plan on jumping in about an hour before a high tide. You will feel the tide turn and begin to run out, that's the time to head back to the boat. Depth ranges from 12 feet inside the pier to 45 feet at the outermost pilings. The main concerns are current, entanglement hazards, overhead situations with possible falling structure, low visibility and of course large animals! Because of the possible nightmare scenarios it's definitely an advanced dive for strong, experienced divers.

We usually hit the pier at least once a year in our conquest of stone crabs and this year was no different. We could see the bottom 15 feet down from the boat so we knew the viz was going to be about as good as it gets. With a high tide at 9 a.m. we dropped off the side of the Mako at 8 o'clock sharp.

Swimming into the first row of pilings, the amount of fish are overwhelming. Jittery snappers dart back and forth. Sheepsheads and spade fish casually drift up and down each post. Higher in the water column huge snook hover motionless until you invade their privacy a little too closely. Further out and closer to the pass, massive goliath grouper guard the outside of the piling maze – some are full grown adults reaching 500 pounds or maybe more.

For me, the tarpon are the most impressive. If you remain calm and stay still they will swim right at you, angling just enough to miss hitting you at the last second, all the while staring at you with that huge dark eye.

Their curiosity is amazing and if you stay in the same spot long enough a train of tarpon will form and one by one they will take turns

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MAGAZINE

silently cruising by, inspecting the strange invader in their home.

There is also a good chance of spotting more typical offshore wildcards here as well, like permit, barracuda, lobsters, jacks, cobia and sharks.

On our last dive at the pier, right as I was ready to shove off from the piling closest to the boat, an 8 foot bull shark swam right over our anchor, patrolling outside the safety of the posts. I waited a few moments to see that he wasn't turning around, then quickly swam up the anchor rope to the dive ladder.

There are divers that still think the idea of diving the pier is taboo and refuse to do it. November should give us some pretty good windows and for me it is an exhilarating, must-do dive.

Page 7

Snapper and Goliath Grouper

Tarpon

Adam Wilson can be reached for comments or div ing information at (941) 766-1661 or v ia email at: wilsonpools@comcast.net

Snook

Barracuda

Page 8

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November 2007

Water LIFE

November 2007

BIG

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MAGAZINE

LEFT: Jim Edge, left, with a nice snook caught on artificials. RIGHT another nice snook provided by Capt Angel Torrez. Both fish were caught at the U.S. 41 Bridge at night in October.

under the Bridge

Screaming Reels

By Capt. Andrew Medi na Water LIFE Staff November will surely be the month to get a line wet. With low water in the backcountry fish are being pushed out into deeper spots. You will find yourself doing most of your fishing outside the bar. Late last month the water was the lowest I have seen it in a year. This may be the start of our winter pattern. Water temperatures have sure been getting lower with the cooler nights.

If you don’t like fishing the low water conditions – it’s not every body’s cup of tea – there are other choices.

Snook fishing is hot right now and chances are it will stay that way until the close of season next month. Snook are feeding heavily, hoping to put on some fat for the upcoming winter that will soon be upon us. I personally think that this year, so far, has been better for slot size fish.

In the daytime the bite has been really hot at the creek mouths and canal entrances.

It seems the deeper, hard tide areas are holding most of the fish, and the bigger snook are coming in after the sun goes way down.

We have been fishing mostly at night starting at 10 o’clock or so and finishing up around 2 in the morning. I know what most of you are thinking. Why so late?

Everyone knows that snook pile up around lights and structure. A few of the area’s hottest spots have both.

The Myakka and Peace Rivers have large well lit bridges. At night, the fish use the shadow lines there as ambush points. We have been working up along the bridge, tossing the largest bombers we can throw.

It seems if you can keep the juvenile tarpon off the plug, you have a pretty good shot at

$349,000

a keeper line-sider. This approach also works well when fishing lit docks, but remember people who have under water lights, probably don’t want you fishing them. It gets expensive if you snag the power cord, and it is illegal to fish underwater lights in Charlotte County anyway.

Dock lights shining from above the water line will hold just as many fish and will create the same shadow lines or ambush points found at the bridges.

The plugs we have been throwing are the Bomber ‘Long-A with three treble hooks, in blue and chrome and chartreuse and chrome.

There are a couple down sides to this lure. First of all, in the dark, flying around your head when cast by another angler, or spit back by a fish, they might get a little dangerous. Sometimes we remove the top and middle treble hooks. This does two things, it allows you to use the plug as a handle when landing a fish and it’s also better for under size fish that would normally get hooked by all three.

Another down side is the lures cost about $6.00 and to go fishing seriously you

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60ʼ ON THE WATER with seawall in and dock being installed. Lots cleared with water and sewer available.

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Ready to enjoy or offer for rental

want to at least bring two of every color. (I try to carry four of every thing). Break offs, hang ups, you just never know. What you don’t want is to be out there at night, digging in your tackle bag for something to throw at prime feeding time.

If you only have a small skiff, the bridges may not be so enjoyable for you.

The wind usually doesn’t settle down until late and it gets a bit bouncy at times.

Out on the flats, it has been hot. With all the white bait in the harbor our fish have stayed on a long feed. Large numbers of snook, and redfish are being caught on both the east and west walls. As long as the bait stays around, this pattern should continue.

Cut bait such as ladyfish and mullet have also been producing good redfish catches throughout the harbor.

And for you artificial anglers, the tailing reds are here. Watch for them inside the bar just south of Burnt Store. If you have been ‘on’ with your casting you just might have a chance. Remember be safe on the water and just have fun.

Capt. Andrew Medina can be reached for

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Judykaff@earthlink.net

Water LIFE

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have a minimum of 1 pound of lead per foot.

So if a cast net is 10 feet long and is listed as 1 pound per foot the net would have 10lbs of lead on it. I have seen some custom cast nets made up to 1.8lbs per foot. This is a very heavy net and although it would sink very fast, in my opinion, it is more weight than you need to get the job done catching bait in water less than 6 feet deep.

I now carry two cast nets on my boat. Both are 10 foot cast nets, but with different mesh sizes. One is the most popular size for our area, a 3/8 inch mesh. This size mesh cast net will sink relatively fast enough in water 8 feet or less and will not gill most baitfish over 3 inches in length. But this net will gill smaller baitfish very easily. My other net is a 1/4 inch mesh size. This size mesh is very small and will catch just about any size bait I throw on. The only limit to this net is that it is not very effective in water deeper than 7 feet. I always start with my 1/4- inch mesh cast net. If the bait is primarily larger then I may switch over to the 3/8 size net. The 1/4-inch net will catch fewer baits per cast but will also eliminate the cleaning ritual of gilled baits. I’d rather have to throw the net a time or two more than have to clean out a gilled net.

Choosing the type and brand of cast net can be very confusing as well. In a nut shell and I’m not getting too technical, here is my quick philosophy on cast nets: There are two types of nets, custom made and production made. The custom made nets are without a doubt usually a better net. The one main difference to me

C CA AS ST T N NE ET TS S

The elevated bow of Capt. Robʼs new Andros 23 boat makes for a perfect netting platform.

By Capt. Robert Moore Water LIFE staff Fall has finally arrived and so have the cooler temperatures. The final bait run for this year has also begun and from now until mid December we will have some of the best live bait fishing of the year. The bait I am referring to is the scaled sardine and threadfin herring. These two baits are the top choice among most anglers for fishing for snook and redfish in Southwest Florida.

These baits will not survive more than a day or two in captivity so your local bait shops can not offer them. The only real logical way to catch these baits is to cast net them yourself the day you are fishing. Most anglers cast net them first thing in the morning. Although you can net your live bait all day, usually it is easier to catch first thing in the morning.

Having the right cast net for the right situation can make the difference between a very easy and pleasant bait catching experience versus a very frustrating and messy bait catching experience. When it comes to having the right cast net I am referring to the size of the mesh size on the net and the weight of the lead line.

In cast nets you have the length of the net which is the length of the net from the lead line to the top of the net and you have the mesh size, which is the size of each square within the net. The smaller the mesh size the smaller the baitfish you can catch. Also the smaller the mesh size the slower a net will sink. This is simply due to more surface area cutting through the water. The mesh size of your net is very important when throwing on a school of baitfish.

If your mesh size is to large to keep the bait confined with the net the bait will pass through the net. Worst yet, the bait may get caught as it attempts to go through the mesh. This is referred to as ‘gilling’ and can be both messy and frustrating when you have to remove hundreds of small baitfish gilled in your net.

At times it can take up to an hour to pluck all the little baits out. Not to mention the hundreds of baits that were killed for no reason. So the size of the mesh can obviously make or break the cast netting experience.

The speed at which a cast net sinks is dependent on the amount of weight on the lead line. Typically the average net will

is they throw and open a little better. The other difference is the price. A quality custom made cast net can cost well over $200 for a 10 foot net, depending on the manufacturer, which is about double the price of a quality production made net. If I had to make a living throwing a cast net all day, day after day, a custom net would be the type of net I would get. But the reality is, although I may use my cast net everyday at times, I usually don’t have to throw it more than a half a dozen times each day. The other reality for me is that I do throw my nets around structure quite a bit (markers) and if I get to close to the marker, a custom net will tear just as easily as a production one on the barnacles. I have had both types of nets and I seem to get about a years worth out of either of them before it is time to replace. My overall opinion is you don’t have to spend a fortune on a cast net, it ultimately comes down to your preferences and your wallet.

Below is a list of a few production and custom cast net manufactures. All have their pro’s and con’s. I personally use EGO cast nets. The price versus the quality is the best bang for your buck. Betts also makes a decent production net but is more expensive and you’re not getting a better net in my opinion. Calusa cast nets are custom made nets and are one of the better custom made nets. They also make a cheaper version custom net called the Cracker net.

Producti on Cast Nets EGO Cast Nets: www.adventureproducts.com Betts Super Pro Cast Nets: www.bettstackle.net Excalibur Cast Nets: www.excaliburcastnets.com Custom Cast Nets Calusa Cast Nets: www.calusa.com Master Craft Cast Nets: Cape Coral, (239) 574-6950

Capt. Robert Moore can be reached for questions or to book a fishing trip at:

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November 2007

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From $299,900 Sailboat water. No bridges to ICW; 5 minutes to Gulf.

Gorgeous custom home.

Spectacular Bay and Canal views from throughout.

Other home also available.

November 2007

2008 90 HP Yamaha only

Water LIFE

2008 Stingray Loaded, only

MAGAZINE

18? bowrider, well equipped, only

14? electric or gas, seats six only

50hp 4-stroke O/B,2 fish chairs, 150hp Yamaha, Fishing or Cruising, 2 fish livewell chairs, full cover bimini, vinyl deck, only livewell, enclosed head, full canvas &

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P a g e 11

19? 115hp O/B, loaded deck boat, Only

16? Deck Boat, FD161, 75hp 4-stroke, bimini, full cover, call for more -infor mation

2007 Limited 115hp O/B, changing room pottie, covers, bimini and ski tow,

Richest Redfish Challenge

Page 12

By Mi chael Hel l er Water LIFE Tournaments “Oh man, Mike, the fish is alive.

Come on.”

“It’s dead.”

“No it’s not!”

The tone rose an octave “That fish is alive!” The volume rose in pitch as well.

“Put it in the tank and let me see it swim,” I said. The angler holds the fish by the tail, down at the bottom of the tank in the shadows.

“See.” “Let ‘em go,” I said. “Let me see it swim, and stay upright.”

“I have to hold it. He’s not ready yet.”

“He’ll never be ready, he’s dead. Take as long as you want ... he’s not coming back.”

The next team in line is waiting patiently, watching the drama unfold. We are at the measuring station at the Richest Redfish Challenge in Punta Gorda, Fishin Frank and me.

I turn away, the angler takes his two fish, a live one and the dead one, up to the weigh-in scale. I motion to the scorekeeper with one finger slit across my throat. It’s our pre-agreed signal for dead fish. A dead fish means the angler’s total weight will be reduced by one pound. A stiff penalty. One pound off will surely keep anyone away from the big $25,000 check.

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

November 2007

The weigh-in goes on, Frank and I checkin’ ‘em in and measuring them and Capt. Ralph Allen working the scale.

In the end, out of 80 teams there were 61 teams that weighed-in fish. One team was disqualified after both team members failed the polygraph test.

But except for our one whiner and the disqualified team, it was all good; A day of good fishing and the fishing was for a good cause: Punta Gorda’s Good Shepherd School. “We raised over $90,000 tournament organizer Bruce Laishley said at the

captain’s meeting the night before. “The rules were pretty clear, angler Bobby Daughtry told me the day after the tournament. “We put our cell phones in the waterproof box before we go out in the morning. We won’t talk to anybody,” Daughtry said, Talk was the disqualified team allegedly had made contact with

another boat during the event. Daughtry and her partner Lyn Bevis finished 15th, good for $400 and the last team in the money.

First in the money was Capt. Rhett Morris and Capt. Eric Carstenson, who weighhed in with a very respectable 14.28 pound two-fish total. That got them the big, first place, $25,000 check.

Rounding out the top-5 were 2nd Place, $10,000: Alan Eggebrech and Steven Barnhill with a 13.82 weight.

3rd Place, $7,000: Ray and Fran Smith with 13.34 pounds 4th Place, $5000: Clay and Todd Rebol with 13.24 pounds.

5th Place, $4000: Chuck Jenkins and Chris Frohlich with a 13.18 weight.

November 2007

Water LIFE

No Motor Zone?

Here?

The mouth of Catfish Creek, one of 3 spots discussed as a polling or electric only areas

By Capt. Ron Bl ago Water LIFE Senior Staff Remember the good old days when you could take your boat into the back country of Charlotte County to your secret spot, fish all day and not see another boat for hours. You could even go on a weekend and still have the whole place to yourself. Well, those days are long gone.

The increase of fishing in Charlotte Harbor has been explosive in the last 10 years. The number of registered boat owners in the county is now over the 20,000 mark and growing. No one knows how many out of town boats are here on any given day. If you are lucky enough to find a parking spot at a boat ramp, you will definitely find a lot more competi-

MAGAZINE

tion at the popular fishing spots ... and on the weekends, forget about it. With fishing tournaments, guides, out of town tourists and weekend fishermen, many people feel it’s just too crowded.

This exact scenario was predicted back in 1999 by Capt. Robert Hill, chairperson of the Manatee Seagrass Task Force and a member of the Florida Guides Association. In Capt Hill’s recommendations to the Charlotte County Commissioners on April 7,1999, he pointed out ‘The impact of boats operating in the shallow waters has increased dramatically in recent years. An explosion of flats fisherman in Florida has created a whole new industry. A variety of special boats, motors, rods, lures, jack plates and stainless steel propellers have been developed just for the exploration of the grassflats of Florida. This combined with an increase from other user groups has created a great impact in our area.” He sure got that right.

Part of the Task Force recommendations included what was then called Limited Motor Zones. ‘The group determined the need to create an area where propscarring, pollution, boat noise and other adverse impacts of internal combustion engines could be minimized.’ At that time a plan was worked out to have these zones placed in the Catfish and Whidden Creek areas. It was envisioned that there would be marked channels and ‘when deviating from the marked channel, the boat operator would be required to tilt the motor up and use push poles, paddles, electric trolling motors, or any other means of non-combustion travel.’

You may ask what happened to that plan? Well as a member of the original task force, I can give you a personal opinion. Initially there was some opposition from a segment of the fishing community. Their argument went- “I’m here to fish, I have a shallow water boat and I don’t hurt anything or anyone. I just want to go from spot to spot as easy as I can; and anyway, who is going to stop me?”

While the task force was working out

Page 13

these problems there was a paradigm shift that changed all environmental priorities – Manatee Protection.

The Save The Manatee Club discovered our little county, came to town and somehow got themselves appointed to the Task Force. They basically convinced people that manatee protection should be the top priority in Charlotte County and because manatees were not normally present in these proposed zones, the SMC felt they were not necessary. They got them voted out of the final plan and the idea of ‘No Motor Zones’ got thrown on the pile of good ideas who’s time has not yet come.

Then the SMC went about ‘helping us out with our manatee problem’ and the rest of that story is now past history.

The Charlotte Co. Marine Advisory Committee is about to resurrect the question of ‘No Motor Zones’ once again.

The question is, is this still a good idea and is now the time to implement it. The MAC is asking all interested persons and organizations to express their opinion for the record. Is there a need for these zones?

Where should they be located? What rules and regulation are needed to make them work? Here is your chance to be heard.

The next MAC meeting will be on Thursday, November 8th at 9:30a.m. At the Charlotte County Administration Center, Room 119.

Cap. Ron can be reached for comments , information or to book a guided fishing trip at 941-474-3474

Canʼt Make the Meeting?

Send us your comments and ideas:

waterlife@comcast.net

You should include your name

Weʼll forward all the coments ideas to the Charlotte Marine Advisory Com.

If itʼs after the 8th, send your thoughts to us anyway, there will have to be ample time for public comment.

Traditional Prop Job

Page 14

By Mi chael Hel l er Water LIFE editor According to Mike Moran the number on an outboard prop, the number people call ‘pitch’ actually refers to distance. Once you factor in ‘slip’ that 19 or 21 pitch prop will propel the boat forward 19 or 21 inches for every revolution it makes. I hadn’t been in Mike’s shop for five minutes and I learned something already.

Looking around there are ‘propeller things’ everywhere: measuring gauges, blocks, dollys, hammers, welders and an old ‘gravity’ balancing device. Tools of the trade. A more ‘modern’ prop shop might have laser and CAD measuring devices and a digital balance scale, but Mike has experience, thirty years of running his hands over a prop, feeling the angle, and feeling the ‘cup’ of the blade.

Right now Mike is a man in transition.

He’s designed and built a new anchor, his concept is so different that the US Patent office has issued him a patent on it. (more about the anchor on page 15) So Mike’s not doing a lot of prop work right now, but on this day he was going to help me out.

My prop had 1200 hours on it. It wasn’t badly beat, but the edges were knife sharp from running through the sand. At wide open throttle the RPMs are up higher than before, so I thought it would be a good idea to have the prop gone over. If the blades aren’t getting a good bite in the water the motor can over rev - or at least bounce off the rev limiter, which I don’t like for long.

Running through the sand effectively grinds the prop’s diameter down. Have you lost any speed? Mike asked as he ran his hands over the edges of the three stainless blades. He could tell. As the diameter decreases the thrust decreases and the boat doesn’t go as fast. It’s not always a big drop, a mile an hour or two, but that’s a lot in boating. As it turned out my prop was about a 1/4 inch smaller than when it was new. Compounding the problem of propeller wear is the fact that as the wear occurs the ‘cup’ of the propeller is opened up. Cup is formed by a slightly rolled over lip on the edge of the blades that allow the propeller to hold a little more water, in effect get a little better ‘bite’ .

The way you fix this problem is by grinding the sharp edges flat and then build them back up by welding more stainless material. It sounds simple, but it is tedious work.

Tig-welding one small stainless rod at a time, the edge of each blade is painstakingly reconstructed, first two or three passes along the top and then a couple more fill-in passes of welding along the bottom of each weld. All in all, Mike spent over two hours welding. Then the first welds were ground into the rough new shape of the blade. Then a few low spots were welded some more and then they were ground smooth as well, first with a rougher abrasive wheel and then with a finer one. In all, about two dozen abrasive discs were used in the grinding.

Once the blades were shaped then Mike made a template of tinfoil from the smallest blade and used that to size the other two blades uniformly. A simple but elegant approach.

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

Next the cup was put back in, gently rolling the new edge by hammering it against a steel buck. And all the time the pitch of each blade is being checked and rechecked with a special measuring device that rolls across each blade. Then the prop is put on a balancing shaft and slight amounts of metal are ground away from the back of the heaviest blades until the prop no longer demonstrates a ‘heavy side.’ The final step is cosmetic. A liberal amount of rouge and a polishing wheel bring the stainless steel prop to a better than new finish. Total work time involved: about 4 hours.Expect to pay: $150 to $300 ... every job is different.

November 2007

Mike Moran shows the traditional prop rebuilding process. The rebuilding process involves building up the edges with welding, then grinding them smooth and hammering the blades into pitch and shape. When finished, the prop is gravity balanced.

New Anchor Design

Water LIFE

November 2007

S t aff R eport It’s so revolutionary I can’t believe no one has thought of this already. That was my first impression after seeing Mike Moran’s new anchor design. A sliding sleeve on a round anchor shank. Throw the anchor out, pull on the anchor line and the collar slides up to the top of the anchor shank and the anchor hooks as any normal anchor would. But if you get stuck under something you simply move the boat and pull the anchor line in the opposite direction. The collar slides down the shank the other way, now you are pulling in the opposite direction and the anchor comes free.

Currently Mike Moran is manufacturing these anchors out of his Hunter Anchor and Marine fabrication shop in New Port Richey (727-847-9779) in various different sizes and designs. Plow or Danforth, the sliding shank concept is applicable. The anchors are constructed in either polished stainless steel or galvanized metal. Mike is looking for an investor or two to help him market the anchor commercially. Visit his website at: www.hunteranchors.com

LEARN TO FISH S.W. FLORIDA! Fishing seminar series taught by Capt. Steve Skevington of Paradise Fishing Charters

Tues., October 18th (6-8 pm)

INSHORE‚ FISHING TECHNIQUES

Tues., November 27th (6-8 pm)

OFFSHORE‚ FISHING TECHNIQUES

Suncoast Auditorium – Located behind Englewood Community Hospital – 700 Medical Blvd, Englewood Cost $35pp per seminar Kids under 14 are $10 (Tax deductible/ Seating is limited) Register Online at www.englewoodrotary.org or call J.J. at

941-697-8277

MAGAZINE

Page 15

Mangrove Marauders

Page 16

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

November 2007

The reforestation of the West side of Charlotte Harbor

By Betty S taugl er Sea Grant / Water LIFE 10,000 red mangrove propagules (seeds) were planted or dispersed along the shoreline of the East and West Wall of Charlotte Harbor on October 13th thanks to community volunteers and a technical team known as the Mangrove Marauders.

The restoration event was rather eventful with strong northeast winds that made for very rough and very low water conditions. Our plans were fluid at best, but at the end of the day, what we thought would take two days was completed in one.

The morning started at 8:00 am with the arrival of volunteer captains and FWC staff at Burnt Store Marina. Our volunteer captains represented the Charlotte County CCA, PGI Fishing Club, PGIslanders Cruising Club, and citizen volunteers. Volunteer captains transported FGCU students to the restoration site.

Fifteen students from FGCU and four staff from FWC made up our planting team. Working in groups of three, one planter cleared a path with a bat or axe handle, while the other two planted propagules that were collected and painted red by area volunteers over the last month. The red paint will allow us to go back out and evaluate our restoration project in the future.

At 11:00 am more volunteers met us on site to begin dispersing propagules.

Dispersal propagules were also collected over the course of the last month, only these were the ones painted white.

Citizen volunteers and volunteers representing the clubs mentioned above dispersed into the deadfall in areas that were marked specifically for this restoration method. We planned our dispersal to occur on an incoming tide with the hope that the tide would push the propagules onto shore in the same fashion that natu-

rally would occur if we had healthy trees producing propagules in these restoration areas. Although we didn’t need such a strong onshore wind, we are hopeful that the northeast wind, which occurred on the 13th, will provide an extra benefit to our West Wall restoration efforts.

Because of the large scale mortality and the difficulty in accessing land to plant at the high water mark, we are hopeful for success in the dispersal method. However, because we think there will be a higher failure rate using this method, we doubled the amount of propagules used for dispersal. If dispersal using twice as many propagules is as successful as planting, then that will be great news, as the effort involved is considerably less even though more collection of propagules is needed. But, the only way we will know which method will prove most beneficial, is to go back out and monitor our progress. This is the reason for the painted propagules.

We will be going back out soon and then quarterly for one year to evaluate our project. Our goal is to not only demonstrate restoration success, but to write the book on the best methods for conducting community based restoration projects after natural disasters such as the one we experienced in Charlotte Harbor. Using proven restoration methods, and our lessons learned during the planning and implementation of this first restoration event, we hope to be able to conduct future restoration events.

Commonl y asked questi ons about our restorati on project: Q. Won’t the mangroves come back on their own?

A. Yes; however in the mean time, important fish corridors are being impacted, erosion is possible, and exotic plant species are being provided an opportunity to become established.

Q. Should the deadfall be removed?

A. No; we believe the deadfall is providing some important habitat function. We also believe the deadfall will help to trap the propagules that were dispersed.

In all, we estimate about a hundred volunteers participated at some level on this project. The technical team (from Charlotte County, Charlotte Harbor NEP, FWC-Charlotte Harbor Field Station, Florida Sea Grant, and Marine Forest Research, Inc.) wishes to thank all of you for your contributions!! We also thank the Friends of the Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserves, Friends for Extension, Johnson Engineering, Burnt Store Marina and Porto Bello Restaurant for sponsoring our post restoration lunch. The food was wonderful and appreciated by all.

Other Mangrove Marauders who have provided support throughout the project include the Charlotte Harbor Reef Association, HONC Construction, King Fisher Fleet, and Water LIFE Magazine.

Betty Staugler is the Sea Grant Agent for Charlotte County. She

November 2007

Water LIFE

Page 17

MAGAZINE

26' Bayliner 2609 Rendezvous Deck Boat, 1995. Powered by single 175hp Mercury outboard. Asking $13,900

26' Boca Grande Cuddy Cabin, 1986. 350 HP Crusader inboard, very nice condition, fully equipped. REDUCED to $22,900

30' Contender CC .Twin 225 Yamaha Saltwater Series II, less than 300 Hours, T-Top, New trailer included. $57,900

20' Pathfinder 2000V 2007. Single 150hp Yamaha v-max. In showroom condition and comes with aluminum trailer. $36,900

22' Pathfinder 2200 V tournament Series, 2005. Single 200hp Yamaha HPI 2004. Very well maintained, includes trailer. $38,500

29' Wellcraft Coastal 2004 hard top, twin 225hp Yamaha Four Strokes. Ultimate offshore fishing,well equipped $116,900

36' Stamas 360 EXP 1992, Only 200 hrs on 23' Caravelle 230 CC, 2002. Very well equipped Tarpon Tower boat. 225hp Yamaha twin 375 Merc. inboards new in 2006. Bottom paint, props redone Reduced $74,900 under warranty until 2008! $39,000

37' Sea Ray 370 Sundancer, 1995. Twin 315HP Cummins. New Canvas & Berber carpeting, 1000 hour check. $139,500.

28' Scout 280SF CC Fisherman, 2002. Twin 225hp Yamaha 4 strokes. Very nice condition throughout, and lift stored! $79,900

38' Bayliner 3870 1985. Twin 135HP mitzubishi deisels. Nice roomy economical cruiser. $59,500

32' Hatteras Flybridge Sportfish, very nice throughout . Twin 350hp Crusaders.

High quality sportfisherman. $49,500

30' Young & Grant Sportfish, 1983. Single 350HP Caterpillar 3116 Turbo, 2000.

Asking $34,900 Owner Moving Must Sell

18' Cobia Center Console 1999. Single 115HP Yamaha V-4. Great for fishing or cruising. $10,900

Owner wants her sold now!

All of the features of a larger vessel

30' SeaRay 300 Weekender, 1989. Always been lift stored out of the water. 260HP Mercruiser Inboards. $28,900

Loaded with all your fishing needs & more!

22' Black Jack 224 Bay Boat, 2006.

Single 250HP Yamaha 4 stroke, low hours. $47,900

37' Marine Trader Double Cabin Trawler, 1979.

A lot of bang for the buck on the Trawler Market Single 120HP Lehman. $49,900

24' Grady White Offshore. Twin 140HP motors. Fish rigged with tuna tower, outriggers, down riggers, etc. $10,900

28' Cape Dory, 1985. Highly sought after.

Downeast style diesel powered trawler .Single 100HP Westerbeke $55,900

26' Shamrock, 2003. Inshore orOffshore fisherman. Full keel tracking and protection. Single 250 Indmar. $29,900

35' Trojan 350 Express. Very nice, well designed boat that is lift stored and ready to cruise. Twin 320HP Crusaders. $67,500

33' Grady White 330 Express 2007. Twin 250 Yamaha Four Strokes. Raymarine autopilot and power assist steering. $254,900

"Sea Breeze" is a spacious, two stateroom cruiser.

34' Catalina 34 MK II, 2001 - sailors' favorite! Performs well and is very easy to handle. 35HP single deisel. $97,900

2 Garmin GPS/Sonar Systems & Radar system.

Mechanically good express sportfish. Owner will accept trade.

36' Mainship Express Open, 1990.

SaltShaker tower with controls. Twin 330HP Meruisers 2000. $42,900

25' Parker 2520 Pilot House Fish 2005, like new. 225 HP Yamaha Four Stroke. 5 year transferrable hull warranty. $54,900

26' Gladstron GS269 Express Cruiser, 2005In "Show Room" condition & only 52 original hours, always dry stored. $37,900

30' Proline Express - 2000. Great offshore fishing boat. Twin 225HP Evinrude. $49,900

32' Island Packet Cutter, 1991. Must see if looking for a high quality vessel. We present all offers. Single 27HP Yanmar Deisel. $99,000

"Slip Away" in a spacious Motor Yacht.

42' Uniflite double cabin. Queen berths fore & aft, with a popular sundeck. Twin 300HP Detroit deisels, 8.2L. $114,900

Excellent condition throughout.

38' Egg Harbor Sportfish, 1974. Twin 335 HP Marine Power 5.7 Vortec EFI - NEW 2006. Has had extensive upgrades. $69,500

Page 18

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

November 2007

Mellow Xtreme Redfish Tournament 3rd place: Cody Baily and Zach Lozano 11.59 lbs $ 125.00

2nd Place: Paul Lambert and Brandon Varney 13.02 lbs $245.00

1st Place: Mike Mahan and Bob Boudrrau 13.08 pounds $750

“Negative 4 - . Todayʼs tide was a negative 4. My ... God! Itʼs going to be tough today.” Capt Andrew Medina, weighmaster for the Xtreme Redfish Tournament This was the last round of the year. Whatʼs made this tournament popular is anglers can sign up at the dock on the morning of the event. There is no captainʼs meeting the night before, and while some of the high dollar, high pressure anglers prefer the bigger tournaments in town, the Xtreme attracts a more casual crowd.

Fathers and sons (or daughters) fishing ʻbudsʼ and the like. But what makes it popular can also be the curse. With a terribly low tide and not much water predicted until late in the afternoon, a number of teams apparently decided instead of fishing they would go to breakfast. Only 14 boats signed up for the event. Still some nice redfish came to the scale. including a 7.54 pound fish from the father and daughter team of Mark and Jordan Frisbie that paid $140. Mike Mahan and Bob Boudreau took home $750 and the eventʼs first place honors with a total of 13.08 pounds. Look for this tournament series to grow.

November 2007

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

Good Signs

Page

19

The best news about the first day of mangrove planting was that there were numerous naturally occurring propagules laying along the high water line on the west side of the harbor. A steady wind from the east for the week prior probably helped them wash ashore.

On The Line F i s h i n g w i t h C a p t R o n

By Capt Ron Bl ago Water LIFE Senior Staff The cool weather is here. This is perfect weather for fishing. The water temperature is around 80 degrees and falling. October rainfall was more than twice the normal amount, but we are still very far below for the year. It looks like the drought will continue right into the upcoming dry season. Be on the look out for major forest fires next year.

Everyone is talking about the great snook fishing we are having this fall in both Charlotte Harbor and Lemon Bay. There is still plenty of whitebait to be had for those that throw the castnet, but pinfish and large shrimp are also working well. In Lemon Bay, big snook are being caught in Ski Alley and Rag Alley. A lot of people are talking about the good luck they are having fishing the mangrove shoreline on the west side of Lemon Bay. I tell them all to keep working that area because I’m doing great on the East Side of the bay – less competition.

Getting on the water is now a lot harder for those folks fishing the harbor. The two

largest boat ramps in the county, Port Charlotte Beach Complex and Placida are closed until January for renovations. With the exception of the City of Punta Gorda ramps, and the Spring Lake ramp the only other one left is the small steep ramp at El Jobean. I’m seeing people putting in at the Ainger Creek ramp and going out Stump Pass down to the harbor. If you have time to kill, you can always go through the Cape Haze No Wake Zone to get south. Here is a tip for you trailer boat folks that are looking for a less crowded spot to launch. Try the Manasota Bridge boat ramp in Sarasota Co.. This little used ramp is on the West Side of the bridge and offers plenty of parking, and remember because it’s in Sarasota County there are no parking fees.

Redfish and trout are plentiful right now and I’ve been catching my fish on jigs. I haven’t found a color that won’t work. Shrimp green, motor oil, gold metal flake, white ... they all seem to work. I’ve been waiting for the bluefish and pompano to show up in Lemon Bay. Should be any time now. I had a record year last year and

Hereʼs a pinfish that measured over 9 inches. It was caught on a greenback near Alligator Creek. According to the Fish Encyclopedia, the world record for pinfish is 3-pounds 5 oz.

expect the same this year. Offshore fishing is pretty good. As the water cools the grouper fishing should really pick up. We have been catching a lot of the small gag grouper in the grassbeds lately so maybe these babies will find their way offshore and grow up to be those big 20 pounders that were so common in the past. Maybe then they will cut back on the bag limit regulations that have made grouper fishing almost a thing of the past.

Dine on the dock ~ Million $$ View!

There are still kingfish, Spanish mackerel, amberjack and snapper out there right now, so an offshore trip is still worth while. Remember that the price of your fishing licenses has gone up; a few bucks for residents but it’s a big hit for out-ofstate folks.

Capt. Ron can be reached at: captronb@juno.com for fishing information or to book a guided fishing trip.

Boaters Welcome

N 26 38.040 W 082 03.958 Near Marker 55 On the Matlacha Pass Dockage Available

Friday Fish Fry 5 – 9 pm

Live Entertainment

Live entertainment Dock Party every Sunday 3-7 every weekend 4271 Pine Island Rd. 282-3232 www.bertsbar.com

Water LIFE

ʻWrapʼ Graphics Take on a New Dimension Page 20

S t aff R eport It started with NASCAR vehicles ‘wrapped’ with custom vinyl graphics. Then tournament anglers got on the bandwagon with wrapped bass boats. That spread to wrapped trucks and even wrapped trailers. “Last week I wrapped a semi,” Josh Smith of Wrap Sign and Design said. “It took 59 panels, the printer worked non stop for three days.”

The printer Smith talks about is a super-sized inkjet printer not unlike the printer attached to most home computers, only it’s bigger, a lot bigger.

At first it was exclusive for a shop to have this type of equipment, but today there has been a proliferation of print and sign shops, all with big printers.

Like everything electronic, printer prices are coming down and technology is moving ahead.

Today you can wrap anything.

So Josh, Jimmy and Steve at Wrap Sign and Design in Murdock are branching out.

They’re wrapping a lot of cool stuff. How about your favorite photo wrapped around a door or

made into your own wallpaper – to cover a room? They can do it.

Mailboxes? They’ve done that. Got a favorite fish picture?

Blow it up to cover a wall, wrap it on a piece of styrofoam or a door blank and hang it in the den.

Portraits? These guys can output a 16x20 portrait on a special inkjet canvas so it looks like a painting. Cost? About 40 bucks.

They can even output a picture on a material similar to a lanai screen. The decorating possibilities are endless.

In this story we brought them

MAGAZINE

November 2007

Shoreline Survey

The West Wall: Hurricane Charley chewed the red mangroves away

a three panel privacy screen and a digital file made from a 35mm slide of the East Cape of Baja, Mexico. It took a couple of hours to output the three panels and attach the graphics to the wood, but the finished product is stunning.

Fabulous Luxury Home on 4 Acres North Port- Million dollar features, over 3800sf under air, guest suite, movie star pool, 2000sf outbuilding and built in 2005. $699,000.

New Waterfront Home $299,950- 100% Remodel 3/2, extra wide canal, super fast to open water, fabulous lanai, Better Than New! $299,950

Incredible Open Water Views Nautical tropical keys style stilt home In Pirate Harbor, 25 minutes to gulf, over 3000sf total, immaculate with 4 car parking and RV pad, Boat Lift & davits. $499,000

Tropical Paradise Key West Style Home Wide Open Waterviews, Custom

Grand Key West Home 150' Waterfront with Quick Gulf Access, Luxurious Custom Home with Elevator, Over 3800sf under air, boat ramp, dock. $899,000

The Ultimate Deep Creek Home - Luxury appointed 3/2/2 pool home, over 2000sfAir, designer kitchen, metal roof, Simply The Best Home! $299,900

Fantastic Country Home- 2.5 AcresOversize luxury 5 bedroom custom pool home, built in 2002, pond shed, circular drive No deed restrictions $499,950

Features, Designer Pool, Sailboat Waterfront, Granite, Oak Cabinets, Stunning! $799,900

By Jamie Boswell Charlotte Harbor NEP Not only can mangroves protect and feed sportfish, they filter water and stabilize sediments - improving water clarity, and they protect our homes and communities from tropical weather.

To assess the condition of the shorelines surrounding the Charlotte Harbor watershed a two-fold project was initiated by the Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program (CHNEP). This project uti-

Bucanneer LotSunsets at your back door. Premier Pirate Harbor deepwater lot 100ft. of seawall, amongst absolutely gorgeous homes! $309,000

Keys Stilt Home with Boat Ramp Picture window views,deep water canal, recently remodeled, elevator. 5 minutes to Charlotte Harbor, over 3000sf $479,000

Music Studio Vacation Resort Waterfront paradise, multiple decks, quick gulf access Nearly 3000sf under air with an old Florida charm- $549,900

lized over 100 volunteers to survey the status of mangroves and exotic vegetation. The volunteers were each responsible for certain segments of the harbor, they were provided with training and materials and sent out to slow down and take a close look at the shoreline. All forms of vessels were used from kayaks and canoes to large power boats, and even one motor-sailer.

In addition the CHNEP is also working with a company called Photo Science to produce a detailed map of the shoreline, which is slated to be publicly available in the summer of 2008.

Preliminary results from the ongoing project show over 400 miles of mangrove shoreline were significantly degraded after Hurricane Charley. However, from volunteer collected data, the CHNEP estimates only seven percent of mangrove bordered lots along the developed areas of the Charlotte and Lee County shoreline show signs of remaining significant damage.

Other Prel i mi nary Resul ts: Volunteer data shows 33% of privately owned lots along the main shoreline, excluding canals, are bordered primarily by mangroves.

At least one of the three most invasive exotic plants to shorelines, Australian pines, Brazilian pepper, and seaside mahoe (aka seaside hibiscus) are present on 13% of privately owned shoreline lots.

A total of 1232 miles of mangrove shoreline and 417 miles of hardened shoreline have been mapped, with many more miles to go.

An estimated 34% of lot owners with mangroves choose to trim the mangrove hedge.

This project is still a work in progress, so stay tuned for the final results which will be publicly available in the summer of 2008 from www.chnep.org

November 2007

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. The State of Florida's Policy and Budget Council is now recommending a 3-percent cap on the valuation of ALL properties. Of all of the new property tax reform proposals floating around right now, this appears to be one of the fairest contemplated so far.

2. Crying out for fairness, the Sarasota home builders association sued the County over newly imposed impact fees. Citing the damage that construction trucks have on County roads, an additional 50 cents per square foot was assessed against home builders. Since this fee isn't being charged against garbage trucks, fire and ambulance vehicles or anyone else causing wear and tear on the local roadways, they seem to have a point.

3. The City of North Port charges impact fees to developers to make sure that taxpayers don't end up carrying the brunt of required capital investment in parking lots and roadways. Unlike other cities and counties, credit is apparently not provided to developers that provide for their own parking.

Although probably not intentional, it can be an oppressive burden on developers and a disincentive to provide much needed commercial development.

Developer Ron Oskey's (of City Marketplace fame) North Port Commons simply passes that cost directly on to its tenants. Robin Hood would turn over in his grave if he knew that the heavy handed cty fathers could steal more than $45,000 from a new ice cream shop owner for the benefit of

Water LIFE

a wealthy landowner.

5. In Charlotte County, Commissioners outvoted Adam Cummings to delay the enormous increase in impact fees to be charged to builders for new home construction. A nouveau supply-side economist, Mr. Cummings determined that a commissioner's role now extends to encouraging or discouraging development as he sees the needs of our community. At the expense of legitimate homeowners, he feels that builders will stop building unneeded spec houses if impact fees are outrageous. A check on recent building permit applications indicates that he might be a little late on this crusade.

6. Charlotte County Development Review Committee approved the development of a new retail center at the corner of Loveland and Peachland in Port Charlotte. The 150,000 square foot development will be located on a 14 acre site.

7. The owners of the Isles Pool Service will redevelop the old ice house on 41 in downtown Punta Gorda. The new Ice House Pub will provide entertainment in an old English styled pub complete with dart playing.

8. The Sunloft development on Marion has been topped out.

Completion is scheduled for late next summer. The mixed use building will consist of 1 large (5,000 sf + ) restaurant on the first floor with 2 smaller retailer/restaurants. Fifteen condominiums are for sale at up to $600 per square foot on the third floor with general offices in between. Not surprisingly, no formal leases or sales have taken place yet at these "Manhattan Style" prices.

9. Skybus has started taking reservations for twice daily non stop flights from Punta Gorda to Greensboro, NC. Promotional tickets are available on line at www.skybus.com starting at $10!

MAGAZINE

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21

Plan始s for the new downtown auditorium apparently call for 驶cast-on-site始 construction. In this approach, the builder lays out forms horizontally on the gound, sets in the reinforcing steel (shown above) and then pours it solid with concrete. Later the sections will be stood up vertically and connected together as walls.

S al es S tati sti cs: Demand continued to erode as national press continues to forecast declining valuations. Prices have stabilized but volume is so meager as to render that comfort meaningless.

These statistics are intended to assist in analyzing trends in supply and demand and not to indicate specific mar-

ket values. Ending inventory is not always beginning inventory plus listings minus sales since many pending listings are held over from month to month, some listings expire and are withdrawn and, therefore, do not appear as sales and new listings includes price changes.Please visit us at www.harborparadise.com to view any available properties from Venice to Burnt Store Marina

Page 22

By Denni s Peck Water LIFE Sailing Just some thoughts on the regatta: It was pulled off with great success even after at the last minute the beach complex site was closed because of new construction. With only two and a half weeks notice we were able to change the venue to the sailing center.

This had it's oblivious effects on attendance by competitors, but the regatta was still a success especially for the competitors that chose to challenge the conditions.

Thanks to the city of Punta Gorda Utilities for parking the city cars and trucks in the grass and leaving the parking lot open for competitors. That helped with the success of the regatta in this confined area.

You couldn't have asked for much better weather for a regatta for boats of this size. The Punta Gorda Sailing Club did a great job in putting on this event for the Y Assist program.

Even with the Punta Gorda Boat Club refusing to let the Punta Gorda

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

November 2007

The Precision Fleet was a pleasure to watch as close competition around the course made for a fun afternoon.

Sailing Club use the basin to hold their committee boat and support boats they were able to work around that and still pull off a successful regatta. Note that we chose not to challenge the boat club even thought they don't control the basin, time was of the essence here.

Saturday ended with a cookout of burgers and hot dogs and started with a continental breakfast for all there.

On Sunday it started again with a continental breakfast and then to races and ended with the awarding of the trophies. I must make a comment here on how well the competition went in

the Precision Fleet. They had some good starts and places changed as the races went around the course. The hottest competition was in the Sunfish Fleet which saw some very aggressive action on the starting line and at the marks. These races where held just off Gilchrist Park so the community could watch and see the action. That is what small boat sailing is all about (racing and watching them race). It even appeared to be a great time for those that only came to help put it on, for all seemed to enjoy the time together..

Dennis Peck can be reached at: bdselah1@bdsailing.com or bdselah1@globalcrossing.net,

November 2007

A Tale of Two Paddles

By Davi d Al l en Water LIFE Kayaking Two of the most pleasant and enjoyable paddling spots in Charlotte County are Shell Creek and the Myakka River in the North Port Area. These two paddles are very different in terms of the surroundings, the wildlife one sees, and sometimes, in the difficulty of the paddle.

Let’s get into the details of these two venues and see what makes them so attractive to paddlers.

Shell Creek is located about 10 miles northeast of Punta Gorda and flows mostly west from its origin east of Highway 31, still in Charlotte County. Overall, the Creek is about 8 miles long and empties into the Peace River just north of the I-75 Bridge.

Hathaway Park, located on Washington Loop Road, is probably the best launch site on the Creek, with a concrete ramp, restrooms and picnic facilities. Hathaway has an adequate Park and Pay parking area with space for trailers. Washington Loop Road is about 6.5 miles north of Punta Gorda on Highway 17.

Once you have launched your kayak from Hathaway, you can either go upstream to the east or downstream toward the dam. Shell Creek has a dam on the lower stretch of the Creek to prevent, saltwater intrusion into the fresh water Creek.

If you select the downstream course, you will shortly find the Creek opening

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

up, the foliage less dense, and you will probably see more birds and other wildlife.

If you paddle about 3.5 miles downstream, you will come to the large pond formed by the dam. The dam cannot be easily portaged so this is the usual turn around point. The Paddlers enjoying a day on the Myakka River pond however is home to many species of Myakka paddle is the North Port Marine birds and large flocks are usually seen.

Park Ramp located on Chancellor If you elect to paddle upstream from Boulevard, just off Highway 41. There is the dam, you will find a completely difa good ramp and launch area plus adequate ferent scenario. The Creek, about 70 feet parking. wide at the ramp, narrows within the first The Myakka River is about 1.5 miles mile and the surrounding trees and shrubs downstream from the launch point. The seem to hug the banks. The current picks channel is clear and fairly wide most of up noticeably as you progress upstream. the way with little current. As you And if there has been rain in the last few approach the River, mangroves appear on days prior to the outing, it can be a very both sides of the channel and add to the hard paddle, with the current pushing you feeling of separation from the surrounding around the bends in the creek. After communities. The Myakka is quite narabout 2 miles of upstream paddling, the row where the channel enters the River – water becomes more and more shallow, perhaps 400 feet across. and the banks, closer and closer, until you Turning north after entering the finally run out of water. There are a few Myakka, the River breaks into several sandy banks on the upper stretches where channels around island and some dead-end you can beach the kayak for a break. leads. Roughly 0.5 miles upstream of Paddling back downstream to the ramp is the entry is a rookery island. Many difoften a sleigh ride with the current pushferent species of birds make this island ing all the way. their home, particularly in the spring The usual launch point for the lower when the hundreds of nests are full of

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23

hungry, squawking, hatchlings. It’s quite a sight, even if you’ve seen it before.

Paddling downstream, after entering the Myakka, presents an entirely different picture. The River becomes much wider, the banks are populated with residential areas and you lose the feeling of being out in a natural area. You can paddle to the El Jobean Bridge, 6.3 miles from the entrance and beyond – past Hog Island and into Charlotte Harbor, if you want.

These are just two of the many good paddling spots found in Charlotte County.

The 30 to 40 different paddles that the Port Charlotte Kayakers take each year are each different in their own way. That’s what makes this one of the best paddling areas in Florida.

The Port Charlotte Kay ak ers meet each Wednesday ev ening at 5:30, at Port Charlotte Beach Park . All newcomers are welcome.

Contact Dav e Allen at 941-235-2588 or dlaa@comcast.net for more information.

Exciting Bites

Page 24

and Mystery Fish

Make the best of a windy day

By Capt. Chuck Ei chner Water LIFE Charlotte Harbor Most fishing trips start out with great expectations. Throwing the cast net only 3 times and filling the livewell with large pilchards had us humming. However, as we headed into the harbor and looked eastward our expectations went to about zero.

On the horizon was a huge storm with dark clouds and sunlight illuminated shower rays were reaching down to the ground. Within minutes the choppy harbor also had building 3 foot rollers. And if this were not bad enough, the steady 12 knot northeasterly wind had blown all of the water out! The plan was to fish the Gasparilla area, now my partners looked to the captain for hope and guidance.

Two buddies from Baltimore were in town to fish and the last week of October was throwing us curve balls.

The infamous plan B was to stay in protected waters. In fact, I gave serious consideration to heading back home however the seas got rougher as I ran my flats boat due south parallel to the east wall.

Heading back into the wind would have been painfully rough. The next challenge was finding an access point through the sandbar to reach the flats which barely had a foot of water on them. Sliding into the Two Pines area we used the trolling motor to work our way inside. As we rounded a few islands we saw plenty of mullet and a sauntering redfish of about 4 pounds in barely 12 inches of water- a

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MAGAZINE

November 2007

good sign. The storms that we left north of us now were bearing down on us again, with raingear to fend off a brief squawl we went back to fishing. Not exactly good conditions and the first two deeper water areas we fished didn’t produce a bite. My Hereʼs an exciting bite, a 7 pound redfish caught on a charter with Capt Angel Torrez. third choice was a deep hole out well off the leader was old 15 pound reel filler line – never know what the fish was – it never islands. We anchored and chummed free hmmm, maybe that was the key. Light slowed even for a moment. Our fishing swimming pilchards. Mark bowed up a mono and light leader. Tim and I both fever was now very high as the sun was nice fish and brought a 19 inch flounder switched over to mono and 20 pound setting. Another nice trout and catfish aboard. Next, it was Mark again with a flourocarbon and eased deeper into the came aboard as we chummed heavy as 24 inch snook and then a catfish, meanbasin where we had seen several fish blast our trip approached its end. Gazing into a while Capt. Tim and I couldn’t buy a a few of our freely chummed baits. calm spot on the leeward side of an bite.

Tim makes an attempt at broadcasting island, we all saw an incredible blast with Relocating to a fishy looking basin we about a dozen lively baits but instead they water spraying high into the air. Capt. set up on an island corner where the tide hit the water in one big plop and Bam! A Tim later described it as a boulder being was rushing in over a flat. Just beyond monster snook mashes the bait instantly dropped off a building. This was no ordithat was a slight drop off. Three lines in nary fish that mashed, blasted and pushed the water and Mark is bowed up again! A in one big gulp ..certainly one of the biggest hits I had ever seen. Moments water coming in our direction. The huge serious battle with the grand finale being later another giant hits the bait with an fish cut a wake rolling into our free an 8 pound jack. Our enthusiasm was explosion. The only problem is they swimming baits. The silhouette of its high as I began to analyze why Mark had were too smart to hit baits that had hooks back was arched high above the water the hot stick. in them. Couldn’t have managed them on with two thirds of the fish below the surHis outfit was far from sophisticated. mono anyway we rationalized. face. We all cast towards the huge wake He had an extra stiff, extra short rod as a As the tide picked up momentum we knowing there was no chance even if he result of losing 20 inches off the end and ran to a small winding ditch that meanbit. As quick as it started, the waters then re-installing a new tip. The reel ders between 2 islands. The idea was to went silent while our hearts pounded out. looked more appropriate for crappie fishsit near the mouth to intercept fish that Speculation started with a 50-100 pound ing and the 8 pound mono on the reel used this as a travel path to the backcoun- tarpon or perhaps a huge cobia. Tim was what I call ‘crying line’ Mark’s try. Anchoring the bow and stern to prethought he saw scales, I saw a smooth vent the strong wind from swinging the back. We all agreed it wasn’t a shark and boat, Mark rears back on a small snook of course, we will never know. and finally I catch one myself. Tim folThe final spot was near home and a lows up with an 18 inch speckled trout chance to let our bait go before going in. and fish are popping bait all over the Another nice jack of 8 pounds came place. The bait blasting continues with aboard along with ladyfish and a sailcat. some big ones rolling by the boat for 15 Our conversations focused on most of the minutes. Funny thing is they can obvifish that didn’t bite our lines. Two ously can tell which pilchards have hooks incredibly big explosions from monster in them because they avoided them for the snook, a huge voracious aggressive fish most part. The catfish didn’t seem to that will linger in our minds for a long mind however! Finally, I had a good time, a fish that dumped half a spool take. Rearing back on my 10 pound before breaking off and a flounder and mono the rod buckled and my drag was trout dinner. Now that’s a good day of screeching. The drag was clearly overfishing! taxed as it would burn fast then pause, Capt. Chuck Eichner operates Action then burn and pause as this fish very Flats Backcountry Charters and can be quickly had taken half the spool from me! reached at 941-505-0003 or online at Snap! I knew it was coming and we’ll www.backcountry-charters.com.

SCUTTLEBUTT

November 2007

Sometimes Unsubstanciated, But Often True

Boat Ramp Bl ues Both Port Charlotte and Placida boat ramps are currently closed for r en o v at i o n s .

Seems like both these facilities were just renovated, doesn’t it? At Placida (above) it looks like the ramp slope has been reduced. In Port Charlotte they are making room for tennis courts and kayak launches.

Cold Hard Fact We’re willing to bet there will be some cold comments about the new stainless, ‘seatless’ toilets in both the men’s and ladie’s rooms at Harpoon Harry’s.

Veni ce Jetty Talk continues among anglers, now Port Charlotte anglers, about the general public behavior at the Venice Jetty. Allegations include numerous rods per person, wasted catch, live baitfish strewn around and restaurant owners catching fish illegally for use in their establishments.

S n o w b i rds Arri ve White pelicans have taken up winter residence in the Gasparilla Sound.

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Keyes Reef The 524-foot General Hoyt S. Vandenberg, a decommissioned U.S. Air Force missile-tracking ship is being sunk 6 miles south of Key West. There will be 10 or 11 places along the length of the ship that will come up to within about 40 feet of the surface. The Vandenberg, will anchor the lower end of a dive environment that Keys dive shop owners are calling the Florida Keys Wreck Trek. At the top, off Key Largo, is the former U.S. Navy Landing Ship Dock Spiegel Grove, currently the second-largest ship in the world ever to be scuttled as a reef.

Bat Patent The Chum Bat, an anglers tool for dispersing live bait over a broad area, has been awarded a patent by the US Government. The owner of the patent is Bill Speidell of Port Charlotte. Speidell will manufacture and distribute the bats. See local tackle shops.

MAGAZINE

Backcountry Special!

2 anglers, 6

Page 25

In the Bag

Page 26

Water LIFE

Flatsmasters 2007 Championship

S t aff R eport The first cool front of the year had lowered temperatures by about 10-degrees on tournament morning and a brisk northeast breeze was blowing.

At 7:10 am- boat number 1 – team Screenprint Plus, the 2007 Team of The Year, was released. They were soon followed by the rest of the field. The scales opened at 1:30 pm, but the first boat to weigh-in was at 2:25pm when team Seacoast Supply put up 13.09 pounds to get the show started. Then, 20 minutes later, Jeff Totten and team Aquascapes Pool and Design weighed 14.30 pounds.

By 3:00 pm the action picked up at the

scales with notable weights from team Waterproof Charts – Landry Jr., Whitbread, McGuire with 15.65 pounds – and team Big Dawg Charters; Sanders, Dooley, Barnhill at 15.26 pounds. In all, 30 teams weighed in on Saturday with 13 snook and 29 redfish caught.

Next came Sunday and the Top-5.

Each team weighed their redfish first.

All the teams but one had their redfish with team Aquascapes Design jumping out to an early lead with a 6.39 pound red. The lightest red was team Waterproof Charts with 4.92 pounds. Then came the snook. The snook round went fast as the first three teams didn’t have a snook to

November 2007

MAGAZINE

weigh in.

When Jeff Totten and his Aquascapes team pulled an 8.02lb snook out of their well, they put all the pressure on 19 year old John Landry Jr. and his Waterproof Charts team. They would have to come up with a 9.50 lb snook to win.

After a quick struggle in the livewell, team Waterproof Charts pulled out a 9.97lb snook for a total weight of 14.89 lbs and the title of 2007 Maverick Boats Flatsmasters Champions.

They also took home the Boat!

Landry’s father Paul Sr. summed it all

up. They’re all kids. None of them is a guide. It’s just great so see them win.”

“You couldn’t have asked for a better ending,’ Landry said.

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November 2007

Water LIFE

Offshore Report

Page 27

MAGAZINE

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By Capt. Stev e Skev i ng to n Water LIFE Offshore Right now the action is all about the bottom fishing, grouper and snapper have been non stop for over a month now.

The snapper have been picky, but they haven't been turning down a live shrimp.

We are fishing for the snapper with a simple "fish finder rig." This consists of 3oz sliding egg sinker, about two feet of thirty # floral carbon leader & a 1/0 circle hook.

Drop this rig down on your favorite ledge with a live shrimp and hold on these snapper are sucking em down.

Grouper are in closer than normally found this time of year, they’re just a few miles off the beach.

There being caught live bait fishing & trolling, my personal favorite way to fish these guys is trolling.

Use a good set of down-riggers or deep diving plugs.

Dragging deep diving plugs behind your boat can produce mixed results.

If your dragging them in "dirty water" your not going to get near as many hits, however if you pick your day and wait for nice calm and clear water, you can put a lot of gag grouper on the deck.

Don't be surprised to hook into a few big kingfish trolling like this either.

Huge schools of Spanish mackerel and Bonita are loaded up just off the beaches.

They’re hitting live sardines & small spoons, as well as jigs & other artificials.

Have fun!

Capt. Stev e can be reached to book a trip or for offshore information at 575-FLAT or at 276-0565

Page 28

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

November 2007

The Water Water LIFE LIFE Distributor始s Club

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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

Stone Crabs in Season

Water LIFE

November 2007

Page 29

MAGAZINE

CLAWS On the table and on the crab

Report from the Commercial Front

By Kel l y Beal a. k. a. Crabby Gi rl S pecial to Water LIFE Nothing tastes better than the first claw of stone crab season and it’s that glorious time of year again! These delicious little creatures are one resource we have that is renewable. As long as the claw is 2 3/4 inches from ‘joint to point’ it's a keeper. After the claw is removed, the crab is then thrown back and the crab regenerates a new claw.

Stone crab claws have fingerprints too. The ones with long solid lines are the crabs original claw that have never been harvested, The ones with short dashed lines are ‘replacement’ claws.

It is a myth that you are only allowed to take one claw. You are allowed to keep both claws so long as they measure up. A stonecrab can regenerate its claws three times during its lifetime.

Once harvested, the claw is taken to the fishhouse that same day to be cooked.

It is boiled for about 15 minutes and then slushed in freezing cold water. It is extremely important to put the claws in freezing water right after cooking because this prevents the meat from sticking to the shell.

After we cook and slush the claws then comes the

Stonecrab season runs from October 15 to May 15.

Habitat includes offshore reefs, bridges, trestles and other structure close to the gulf passes.

WAT E R WAY fun part - the grade! We separate the claws into mediums, large and jumbo.

Retail prices go anywhere from $13 to $30 a pound. There are 6 to 7 medium claws to a pound, 4 to 5 large and less than 3 to a pound for jumbos.

Last year we had a couple of one pound jumbo claws at the fishhouse, but that is rare.

It’s been on the TV that because there were no storms this year that means a better than average stone crab season. That is not necessarily true. There are other factors than storms.

If the octopus come in - the stones may get wiped out.

Stonecrabs like everything else are cyclic. You could have 2 good years then 5 bad ones. It’s all a gamble.

A very expensive gamble.

After you figure all the gear in, the traps cost us $20 to $30 each and the bait is getting crazy expen-

sive and hard to find. We like to use pigs feet for stone crab bait, but many farmers have now started to export their pigs feet for food grade products. Pigs feet are $30 a box. In order to run 400 traps you need six boxes, so now crabbers have resorted to using mullet which doesn't last as long in the traps.

The stonecrab differs from the blue crab because the stonecrabs are crawlers and they literally fall into the trap while the blue crab are swimmers and can manuever much quicker.

The crabbers take the claws off the stones with their hands. The chances of them getting bit by a blue crab are much higher than getting bit by a stonecrab.

Good thing too- a stonecrab can take a finger!

Kelly Beal and her husband Jimmy are commercial crabbers. They own and operate Peace Riv er Seafood in Punta Gorda, and can be

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Page 30

Novemb Fishing Report

Charlotte Harbor:

Robert at Fishin' Franks Port Charlotte: 625-3888

All bets are off any more. It’s been so unusual – summer into fall – it’s going to be tricky to predict this month at all.

S nook are moving around and starting to chew a little better,. that I know. There are still some snook out along the beaches, but they are moving in, in real good numbers. The West Wall is starting to get some fish on it. Every day there will be fish moving further and further into the canals and into the river. El Jobean will be good this month too. There and at the 41 bridge – those spots are already producing really good, and every week we are getting better and better reports.

Maybe the redfi sh are going to start to school. Theoretically, there is supposed to be a bunch of big schools of reds around right

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MAGAZINE

now, but they are just not here.

Normally, they would already be breaking into smaller groups now, but there are just small groups of decent redfish. They haven’t wadded up into the big schools. I don’t know if it’s too dry or too warm. There Jeff Watkins with a 33 inch 13.8 pound oversize are a lot of good redfish. The fish was released. redfish on the east side, down to Burnt have been here for three or four Store, but the fish seem to be weeks already. It’s been a phenomhanging closer to the deeper water enal king mackerel run and if the and, again, they are not in big weather doesn’t screw it up they schools. Cut ladyfish are the best could be around for another couple baits by far. Soft plastics are pick- of weeks. Go figure! We have ing up a little bit. Top-waters another 5 or 6 degrees (for the early in the day. water to cool) before those fish Trout are closed as of Nov 1 leave. Right now they are all in so we won’t say much about 18 to 25 feet of water. Boni ta trout, except there have been some and S pani sh mackerel will be nice big trout around, and they are in that same water column as scattered. It could be a banner well. Then, as the water cools, winter for bigger trout....but we’ll they will move further off shore. have to see. Remember, no predic- Another thing with the big bonita tion I’ve made so far has stuck! schools is that there are some Ki ng mackerel should be pretty big bl ack ti ps, spi nners showing up right now, but they

November 2007

There are plenty of hungry jacks around right now to tug on your line.

November 2007

BIG-4 BIG-4

F i s hi ng C o nt i nued

and bul l sharks mixed in with them. Five or six foot spinner sharks that can launch 15 feet in the air are out there now too. Spinners can get real air.

This is a good time to be looking for tri pl etai l .

They will be on the offshore buoys and on the inshore markers. Blind cast a shrimp inshore, or sight cast them on the beach where you should be able to spot them hanging around.

S heepshead are already starting to move in at Placida and at the old phosphate dock. Novak and Trembly Reefs are good with them right now.

Another fish this month is fl ounder. Flounder has been good for the last few years. Right now they should be close around the edges of the nearshore reefs, laying in the sand.

From the beach, slow drag a shrimp or a squid strip within the first 10 feet

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MAGAZINE

Novemoberʼs Target Species Species Novemoberʼs Target

coming

KIDS SNOOK are moving in from the beaches.

of the surf line and you could find a flounder.

We may or may not get a pompano run this year.

When the sheepshead and flounder show we often get a pompano run. It’s a cyclic thing in the fall, maybe one year on, one year off. They will be in that same area as the flounder – in the surf – and at the drop off in the intracoastal.

Freshwater – This is the month where the crappi e start to move around and get abundant. A lot of people don’t realize a poundand-a-half or two-pound crappie is pretty common here. Look for them in any freshwater canal. Pick a spot and fan cast it with a beetle

n Nov 4-11 Key Wes t Wo rl d

Champi o ns hi p Offs ho re Po werbo at Races , 27th year.

n Nov 8-11, Fo rt My ers Bo at Sho w 35th

annual, the area’s biggest Boat Show!

n Nov 10, Fi s hi ng Ex trav ag anza inshore,

offshore, and fly fishing seminars, bait-net-

REDFISH are starting to school up now

SPANISH MACKEREL still in the harbor and offshore

spin or a small buck tail.

Once you hook one then start using live minnows for bait. The only thing is, you have to be prepared to move around a little from canal to canal until you find them.

Lemon Bay

Jim at Fishermen’s Edge Englewood: 697-7595

Fishing has been good.

The reports I hear are that redfi sh and snook fishing is good. The big thing is, the low tides. You have to be careful. There are good fish in the whole area, all the way south through Lemon Bay into Gasparilla

Calendar

Walk the dog underwater: Rapalaʼs new shallow-swimming Sunwalk XRSD-9. Note the one big hook on the back treble and the little horizontal stabilizer fins at the tail.

Sound. We’ve had a good run of clean water and a lot of baitfish. tarpon, boni ta, jacks, bl uefi sh, l adyfi sh. I haven’t heard any pompano or permi t stories, but a lot of those fish are ‘hush-hush’ ... you don’t hear about them until

of

ting demonstrations, question and answer sessions with successful anglers, and "how-to" sessions on fishing knots. Area charter captains will be on hand. Local experts will offer tips and advice regarding electronics, tackle, and equipment. 12:00 - 3:00 at West Marine Venice 1860 Tamiami Trail

THE ALL NEW 2008 F-450 KING RANCH SUPER DUTY

TRIPLETAIL on the markers and crab traps offshore

they are gone. Guys fishing in the sound are catching a few fl ounder. There are S pani sh and ki ngs close in, in under 25 feet of water. There are a lot of nice fish this month. And there are some bass in the Rotonda canals. Bass are on

Events

n Nov 15: Sal t Water Tacti cs fo r the

Fl ats 5:30 p.m. Capt. Jay Withers West Marine 700 Tamiami Trail Punta Gorda

n Nov 24: No rth Po rt Hi g h Red and

Sno o k To urnament, Harpoon Harry’s, Punta Gorda, $400, a Classic Tournaments event.

n Dec 8: Red Spo t To urnament $200/ 3

Fishing

RIGHT NOW: weather permitting

Very GOOD!

November 2007

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

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