Water LIFE Sept-Oct 2004

Water LIFE

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Charlotte Harbor and Lemon Bay Florida

Keeping Boaters and Fishermen Informed

Kids Cup on TV ...but few had utilities to watch that day Page 7

September / October 2004

Our House

Twice Hit, Once Missed ...Fishing Our Way Back to Normal Page 3

KAYAK TRIP Fisheating Creek in the Rain Page 9

Property Value Predictions Page 10

www.CHARLOTTEHARBORMAGAZINE.COM

Harbor To u r Page 6

Mkr 1 now Mkr 1/2

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Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

September/October

2004

September/October

2004

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

In the End There was a Good Sign

By Mi chael Hel l er Water LIFE Editor The eye of hurricane Charley passed over the Bangsberg Beaney - Severin area in Port Charlotte where we live. That’s why this month’s edition is a little late. Five houses on our block were totally demolished, many others sustained major damage. At first I thought our house was ‘fixable’, but now it looks like the 50 percent rule will force us to rebuild. The 50percent rule ststes that if you spend more than 50-percent of the county’s appraised value of your house (without the land) then you must bring it up to current building codes. That means the finished floor elevation must be brought up to 11 feet.

Homes in our area are at 7 feet, so the only way to comply is to rebuild. Personally I think this is a ‘conspiracy’ between the county (who gets their flood insurance from the Federal Government) and the insurance companies, who don’t want to insure these properties anyway. At any rate we may be out of luck, but we still see other things every day that remind us we are luckier than others. Folks on fixed incomes will be forced to move elsewhere because of this rule but in our case we’ll borrow heavily from the SBA and hope to survive.

A month after Charlie, Charlotte County is still reeling.

The tourism department doesn’t know where to start to promote Charlotte County so we have suggested the following: Fishing (as we have always said) is the future of this area, so let’s fish our way back to normal.

The people who brought you last June’s Kids Cup Tournament - (WaterLife Magazine publishers Michael and Ellen Heller, Gene Kingery of the old Red Snook Tournament and our barefoot fishing buddy Capt. Ralph Allen who also ran the CCA’s Kid’s Fishing Day) are discussing what I will call The Charlotte Harbor Challenge. Aseries of small tournaments that could bring anglers from other Florida municipalities here to fish and help promote Charlotte County across the state. It will be a fun series, designed to remind everyone that there is still good fishing in Charlotte Harbor. Each leg of the tournament would be two part. Their anglers would come here and then our anglers would go to their area. If the first challenge was with Sebring and Central Florida they’d come here and fish snook and redfish and then we’d go there and fish for bass. The idea would be to get the local papers in the other regions to publicize the challenge and in that way help promote Charlotte County. The tournament could be held out of Harpoon Harrys at Fishermen's Village. This would be a small event with only a dozen anglers from each area and a small payout, good prizes with a big return for the future.

There could be a Challenge to the Keys, and then Fort Lauderdale. Whatever they fish for in their area our anglers will

fish for when we go there. We want to keep Charlotte Harbor in the spotlight for as long as we can and with stops around the state the Charlotte Harbor Challenge series might just help our area to recover. If you want to fish on the Charlotte Harbor Challenge Team, give us a call at (941) 766-8180 and leave your name. We will call you back. We’re making this up as we go along, but I assure you it will be fun and a welcome break from rebuilding. If everything comes together the Challenge could start in late October.

This month our publication may be a little rough around the edges. There is not as much color as we would like, and some of our regular writers are not yet able to contribute, but we’ll be back at 100-percent soon.

Fishin’ Frank lost both his home and his business, Capt.

Rob Moore survived the storm, but has now taken a break from fishing to help others as a fireman. Capt. Chuck Eichner lost part of his house in Pirate Harbor and he too is rebuilding, and Capt. Ron Blago, although lucky to escape Charley was thoroughly drenched by Frances, but we are all working hard to get back on track, and we will.

Our house was five lots up a canal from the Peace River in a place where the Charley was particularly vicious. The storm blew the plywood covered windows on the canal side of our home, plywood still attached, right out of the wall and through the living room and kitchen. Then it punched a hole in the boarded up windows on the opposite side of the house and blew the whole mess out. It was ugly. If it weren’t for the windows letting go there is no doubt in my mind the roof would have lifted off.

But to every event of catastrophic proportion there comes a point of closure, a time when you leave the disaster behind and begin to move on. For us, in the wake of hurricane Charley, closure came at 7:15 in the morning on Friday, August 27th, which happened to be my birthday.

Up to that day we had been camped out in the one dry room we had left, living with bottled water, Red Cross “heater meals” and getting minimal power from an old gasoline generator. Every day we were up at dawn, asleep at dusk, probably still in shock.

We were sitting in the living room, that morning, contemplating yet another day of sorting through the mess in the sweltering heat. There was a nice breeze blowing in from the south that came through the gaping hole in the Florida room and blew out through the open front door, pretty much on the same path Charley took. Up to that point every morning had been the same: wake up and start on the heavy work before the day got too hot, but on this morning we lingered in the breeze, drinking coffee boiled with the grounds, camp-style, and not

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AFTER THE STORM I was dripping wet, while squeegeing out our house and office in Port Charlotte.

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saying much.

My wife sat at the battered dining room table, that was in the middle of the living room now, and I was against the wall sitting in a pool chair about ten feet away. We were stupefied and exhausted from the long ordeal.

Suddenly, something caught my eye outside, a shadow moving in the air and getting bigger. I looked up, focusing on the street through the open front door and saw a wingspan that was big; three feet, maybe four. With the sun rising in the east the bird was clearly visible as it swooped down lower. An osprey, talons dangling, with great brown feathers and yellow eyes, tucked its wings back at the shoulder, then folded them some more and flew right into the living room through our open front doorway - perhaps four feet above the ground. We didn’t have time (or the energy) to react. We sat still.

Once inside, the bird extended its wings in a gentle glide, banked slightly to the right and flew directly between us, flapping once, ever so lightly as its right wing tip passed not two feet from my face. The soft air from the great bird’s wings blew across my face like a kiss from heaven.

The bird dipped left then right, zig-zagging artfully from the living room into the Florida room and then flew out the large gaping hole left by the missing windows. We sat motionless for a moment or two, goose bumps blossoming, skin tingling, in an uplifting swell of awe.

Like the great owl in the Harry Potter movie the osprey brought us a message, a reminder of why we live here; the

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Water LIFE

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September/October

MAGAZINE

2004

Re-Opening in October !!

Fishinʼs Fine, once youʼre past Marker No.1 and Frances may have helped the water

Mike Thought you’d like an update on the harbor: In the wake of hurricane Charley, sewage, debris, oils and gas clogged up the harbor, drifted across our flats, and through our passes. It may have seemed like our harbor was wasted, but I look at it as Mother Nature taking a bath, scrubbing up. The harbor is not wasted, just trashed and trash gets cleaned up, thanks to coastal cleanups. We have lost docks, some fish and many mangroves.

Personally losing my two boats and my house, I know how everyone feels, but if you think about the storm it also stirred up sewage and other sediments already on the bottom, and that has been flushed out now and diluted in the gulf. After Charley, Frances only helped things along. As a guide on Charlotte Harbor I know the fish are not where they were before the storm, but we’ll find them again. We all choose to live in Florida and hurricanes are a part of it. Like snook and trout season, we also have a hurricane season, but unfortunately there is no size limit on hurricanes. In the 30 years I have lived in Florida I knew one day the old fish shacks would go away - a lot of them did over the years but they always seem to come back bigger and better than before. (Johnnie and Jack don’t let me down) Our harbor is like those fish shacks. It will come back bigger and better than before. Be patient with the water and it will happen. We also need to sup-

port the local area tackle shops. If they are going to survive they need our help too.

Screamin' Reels Capt. Andrew Medina

Hey Mike!

You can word this however you want, I just want it clear to everyone that Allan Beraquit is OUT OF THE PICTURE! FLORIDA LIGHT TACKLE CHARTERS IS UNDER NEW OWNERSHIP! Capt Derrick & Christy Jacobsen, are the sole proprietors of Florida Light Tackle Charters now, we purchased the business from Allan Beraquit on Aug. 5th, 2004.

As you know I am a native of SW Florida and a fishing guide in Port Charlotte for over 14 years. Florida Light Tackle Outfitters is a light tackle fishing outfitter with a fleet of 40+ charter boats and captains spanning the Panhandle to Key west!

HURRICANES BLOW, YET THERE IS SOME GOOD FISHIN’ NEWS! Let’s see, I know I left my boat somewhere around here, of course, “Sorry Charley” decided to deposit a few dozen small live oaks on the deck for me to use as firewood, gee thanks! Well, I made it to the boat ramp, and hey it still floats, that’s a plus, let’s go see if the local marine life is still where we left it?

Nope, they didn’t move to far, as I rounded Cape Haze Point I noticed some redfish on the outside of the bar! I quickly shut her

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down and let the armada of redfish settle enough to get into target range. I decided to launch a top water plug at them, which is always comical because they are so clumsy at ambushing top water baits, but after a few smashes, zing-zing went the drag! After landing several, the average was 9 to 14 pounds, also a couple of descent 24 & 26 inch snook decided to get in the frenzy!

All in all I was on the water about 2 1/2 hours and I was very pleased to see that the marine life didn’t seem to be all that affected by the storms, yes they did move a little closer to the saltier water, but that happens every rainy season until they adjust to the lower salinity. I wish I could say the same about the surrounding shorelines. They are hardly recognizable, but as life, they will take new shape. On the ride home I made two quick stops and caught several small sea trout and a ladyfish on a grub tail jig which just proves to me that fishing is as normal as in prior years for this month!!

Remember, even if you don’t take time to go fishing, take a little time for yourself to relax and unwind!!!Good Luck & Good Fishin!

Capt. Derrick Jacobsen Florida Light Tackle Charters 941-627-9929 or toll free 1-866-4-Tarpon Email: captainderrick@floridalighttacklecharters.com

9/04

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Contributing Editors:

Fishing / Environment: Capt. Ron Blago Charlotte Harbor: Capt. Robert Moore Gasparilla: Capt. Chuck Eichner Port Charlotte: Fishinʼ Frank Offshore: Capt. Steve Skevington Technical Advisor: Mike Panetti Sailing Advisor: Bill Dixon Cartoons: Ron Mills Kayaks: Ben Turpin

on the COVER:

Kayaking in Fisheating Creek

on our WEBSITE:

WWW.charlotteharbormagazine.com

Tide Graphs: For Punta Gorda, Shell Point, El Jobean, Pine Island, Matlacha, Redfish Pass, and Lemon Bay. Weather: Links to all of our favorite weather and radar web-sites.

Back editions: Previous edition pages.

Artificial Reefs: Lat. and Long. for 24 local artificial reefs off Charlotte, Sarasota and Lee Counties.

Manatee Myths: Read the original plan for sanctuaries and refuges, as laid out by the United Nations in 1984 Links to Realtors: Connect with advertisers

September/October

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Water LIFE

ʻTwo Titsʼ are bare and there are no leaves on the ʻElephantʼs Buttʼ Page

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S t aff R eport On Saturday September 18 we took a liesurley boat ride up the Peace River, from Port Charlotte to the Fort Ogden Trestle, and then turned around heading south, back past Port Charlotte and down to Captiva Pass. It was a beautiful day on the water and in the course of running for almost five hours we did not strike any submerged objects or encounter any problems what so-ever. Perhaps I am being prematurely optimistic, but it looked to me like things in the harbor were clearing up nicely, and when we sampled the seagrass beds off the east side, north of Pirate Harbor. We found bright sparkling clean grass with none of the brown algae and other ‘stuff’ that often makes the beds look dingy. The seagrass, like a lot of other things in the area appeared to be pressure cleaned by the 150-plus mph churning of Charley and the following ‘flush’ of Frances.

At the beginning of our ride, leaving the Edgewater Lake channel, we spotted a number of tarpon in the 40-60 pound range rolling on the surface and as we progressed south down the harbor we saw several pods of dolphin aggressively thrashing schools of smaller fish near the deep midharbor tarpon hole. From Alligator Reef south there were areas where numerous pelicans were diving on bait and along the west wall about three-quarters of a mile up from Cape Haze we spotted two manatees boiling. Turtle Bay is still Turtle Bay although the trees are less leafy and the water is still dark, but by the time you head west to Bull’s Bay things are almost back to normal. Ospreys and eagles were evident in their usual haunts and as we headed further south there were more and more boats out fishing, but we stayed far enough away so that we couldn’t see if they were using live bait or artificials.

In the Pine Island Sound anglers were wade fishing in numerous spots and there were plenty of weekend-warriors out cautiously exploring with kids and family aboard. At Captiva Pass, where Charley lingered, only two of the five or six old fish houses that stood watch there for 100 years remain, but one is already under reconstruction and I’m sure the rest will be back. Cabbage Key and Useppa appear to have escaped the storm almost unscathed.

Granted, the shoreline vegetation has been thinned out significantly along both sides of the storm’s track, but all in all it looked like a normal Saturday in the harbor. Some crabbers have even started replacing their traps along the eastern shore, north of Burnt Store, which probably means the crabs are also alive and doing well. Hobbs Point has lost some leaves but gained a big stretch of white sandy beach and the cut in there seems to be in the same place and depth. A little further north, the markers into Pirate Harbor are almost all gone but there are

MAGAZINE

September/October

2004

Trees were cut off level in the Colony Point area of Punta Gorda near Ponce De Leon park

On the Peace River the Fort Ogden trestle wobbles in the big water and all over, the shores of the river are like a wasteland .

some temporary ones in place now and the old Ice House pilings are right where they used to be before the storm. The pilings on Alligator Reef have had their danger signs blown away and the concrete is clean and white with no bird droppings to be seen. The strobe lights glued in place a year ago are still intact. The island fishermen refer to as “Two Tits’ is now totally naked and a little further up harbor, we observed there are no leaves on the Elephant’s Butt.

Up the Peace River things are recovering a little slower. There are no crab traps in the river yet, and the vegetation from Punta Gorda all the way to Fort Ogden looks like it was trimmed with a buzzsaw. The once tall grasses and trees have all been clipped off and not much standing growth rises above the 25-foot mark. The big power lines above Harbor Heights which were knocked down by the storm are currently being restrung and Bird Island, once a rookery for the area’s shorebird species is now defoliated and empty.

Many of the permanent channel markers are gone here too, but a number of them have already been replaced with temporary ‘cans.’

In the Harbor Heights area there are still a number of hulls , many of them pontoon boats still tangled in the mangroves with sections of aluminum trailer carports and other debris. Up river it is the same story, places where small tornadoes touched down in the trees snapping whole half acre clusters off at the six or ten foot level. Nav-A-Gator appears to have dodged the bullet and looked to be open for business. Bboats on lifts, especially two pristine old Chris Crafts just upstream from there still sit in place, also, apparently

lucky. The water in the river is flowing heavily now and we had to duck our heads as we passed under the Lettuce Lake bridge which in normal times will accommodate a tower boat At Captiva Pass only two of the old fish shacks remain, but work is underway with 7-foot to repair them rods sticking up. There is plenty of water at the water plant but we couldn’t tell if the plant was in operation or not and at our northernmost stop, the old Fort Ogden trestle now has numerous pilings loose and wobbling in the current waiting for the water to pull them out.

Like everything else we saw that day, time and the forces of nature will eventually have their way.

Markers all around the harbor, like this one at Alligator Reef have been windblasted or knocked down entirely

Up and down the harbor, where ever the storm passed, the shoreline looks the same

Water LIFE

We Almost Waited Too Long September/October

2004

By Michael Heller Water Life Editor At 2:00 p.m. on Friday the 13th we gather all our last minute containers and important papers and put them near the door. Charley was now a full blown Cat III hurricane with winds of 125 mph and was 35 miles south of Sanibel. There was mention of possible Cat IV enhancement and then 25 minutes later the weather service came on the air with the news that Charley was approaching Captiva and was a full blown Cat IV storm with winds of 140 mph. A friend from Fon Du Lac Wisconsin calls to ask if we are ‘some of the knuckleheads’ who are staying.

“Will this house withstand a 140 mph wind?” my wife asks, as I stash stuff up high to avoid the predicted 10-foot storm surge. I think for a moment and then answer “No.” I stop when I hear my own words reverberate in the empty garage.

At 2:35 my friend Capt. Ralph Allen calls and asks: “What do you think?” “I think this is the worst case scenario,” I tell him and we agree it is time to leave... if it’s not too late.

At just before 3 pm my wife, dog and I are in our car. Ralph and I have decided to head to Arcadia. He’ll take Hwy. 17 from Punta Gorda and we’ll run out Kings Highway crossing the river at 560 where we will hook up with Route17 at Nocatee.

There is not much traffic on the road any more. The sky is grey black with some very gusty winds. Out past the Nav-A-Gator, transformers on the telephone poles begin to explode in electric blue eruptions. It is a scene right out of the movie Twister, but happening in real life.

“This is not good,” I tell my wife as I mash the gas pedal harder into the floorboards.

At Arcadia it is raining hard and it is extremely windy. We find out later that a tornado blew through Arcadia at the time we arrived. We make it to SR 70 and haul-ass east in and out of torrential bands of rain and gusty wind. It is amazing how slowly some other people are driving. We pass them all and keep hauling-ass. In a half hour we are in clearing conditions and we reconnoiter with Ralph and his family at a gas station outside of Okeechobee. We are now out of broadcast radio range and have no further contact with any real time reports about where the storm is headed. By the clouds I know it is right behind us and is still closing fast. Ralph decides to continue on 70 east, but we break off for Indian Town, running on the left side of the dark black sky. We pick up the Turnpike, then the Sawgrass Expressway and finally Alligator Alley. Now we are headed back home from behind the storm, coming back up from the south.

At Naples we see the first examples of damage, huge highway signs uprooted and thrown into the pine trees. As we proceed north the scenery only gets worse.

At the Charlotte County line tractor trailers along the interstate are overturned and lay sprawled like toys on the road. We wait for 30 minutes near the Charlotte County airport for the Interstate to be cleared, then we move on. By the time we get to the Peace River bridge everything is dark. From the Harborview exit we follow a state trooper into Port Charlotte.

The trooper swings his hand held spotlight in front of him as we move slowly ahead, through fallen trees and dropped power lines.

Calamity is everywhere.

A boat hangs against a power pole, houses and their contents are split open and strewn

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Our neighborʼs hand built sailboat wound up in his pool, while our Paramount, tied ten feet away, escaped unscratched. It seemed almost unfair, but fair doesnʼt come with a hurricane.

everywhere.

At Whidden Industrial Park, a cluster of metal buildings is ripped open and balled up like tin foil in the trash. Aluminum roofs, plastic soffits, and wires are everywhere.

At U.S 41 the trooper turns north and we are on our own.

Driving down Edgewater we drive across lawns and in 4wheel climb over several power poles and felled trees. We are heading home.

We turn down our block in front of two houses with no roofs at all. We look at each other in silence. A chill runs down my neck, but by 8:30 p.m. we are home.

Our roof is mostly intact, but devoid of shingles. Bare wood shows through everywhere. One piece of plywood is missing and I can see into

the attic there. Two of our boarded up windows have been blown out into the street. The living room parquet floor is under an inch of water. Our bedroom only has a two broken panes and the bed is relatively dry. Holding each other in our arms, my wife sobbing quietly with the dog lying against her side, we fall to sleep.

It will be two weeks before the power comes back on. We will live in ruin, trying to cope and

Kids Cup appears on TV, but few are able to tune in ESPN

S t aff R eport It was never a sure thing. Producers of the ESPN Redfish Cup said the Kids Cup might appear on TV, but wouldn’t guarantee it, so when August 28th rolled around everyone was planning to watch the broadcast and see.

Unfortunately on August 28, 15,000 people in Charlotte County were still without electricity and those that had power were still missing their Comcast cable service. So as it turned out Moore and Boudreau were the winners you needed a generator and a satellite dish to watch T.V. that Saturday.

The artfully edited program made little of the fact that the team declared the winners on tournament day were disqualified for fishing in a no motor zone while using their motor and for running on plane within a manatee zone. Later the local team of Robert Moore and Bob Boudreau were declared the winners, but to watch the broadcast you’d never have known. Video editors made it look like Moore and Boudreau took the win on tournament day and were on stage to receive the award. Throughout the hour long Redfish Cup program the producers interspersed short segments of other Cup activities: The cardboard boat race was first, then the Big Air Dogs and finally, at the height of the action, the Kids Cup contestants each appeared on TV holding up their fish and being interviewed by Fish Fishburn. Tommy Davis, the Kids Cup winner from Port Charlotte got to hold up the Kids Cup trophy and had his name appear on the screen below the clip. It was awesome.

We were able to make a copy of the program using tournament moderator Gene Kingery’s satellite dish and as soon as things calm down a little more we will make copies and be glad to share them with anyone who is interested. Just give us a call.

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September/October

2004

Kayaking on Fisheating Creek September/October

2004

By El l en Hel l er Water LIFE Publisher “Nice day for boating!” I shouted above the pounding rain and furiously swiping windshield wipers in the truck. We both laughed and actually it was a great day for kayaking.

Sometime earlier in the week the plan had been casually coming together as Fish Eating Creek kept surfacing in Michael’s mind.

Saturday we decided to go for a ride and see what was calling him to this creek off Lake Okeechobee. We drove out of the rain and had a pleasant 45-minute ride across the middle of the state.

Here is a personal confession; I am a sucker for tourist traps! Worlds Largest Tepee, South of the Border, Real Indian Villages, The North Pole, Rattlesnake Ranches etc, they all suck me in like a Hoover.

(Hoover Dam?) So it was no surprise when I let out a gasp at the sight of “Gatorama” along the road in bum-yuck no-where. “Maybe on the way back” was the most excitement I could get from my partner and it lacked both enthusiasm and sincerity.

On our first try we went to the wrong place along the creek for renting canoes, so we doubled back to try another direction. I had one more shot, Gatorama loomed ahead and I had to talk fast. “ OK let’s just stop and check it out. See how it compares to Gatorland in Ft. Myers. We can just look in the gift shop,” I said. I was getting close to pleading, but he was slowing down.

So I said it, “No more than $10.

We will not spend more than $10 to see gators.” That did it and we turned in. I seriously did not want to see the poor big beasts cooped up in slimy ponds, but I wanted to see what was inside. I am a sucker. We did a quick lap in the gift shop and saw the posted rates of $10.00 each.

We politely left. I didn’t even use the rest room.

In the car I looked at the brochures we picked up and there it was: Fish Eating Creek boat rental, so our stop was not for naught.

At the creek we had our choice of numerous canoes or 2 kayaks, yaks it was. The man in charge of the boats had a wonderful mid-chestlength white beard and looked like one of the Seven Dwarfs, maybe Doc, because of the wire frame glasses, or Smiley because he was also very nice.

The water was high from all the rain and running swiftly. We decided to paddle upstream and float back.

Sounded easy, but it wasn’t. These rental kayaks were adequate but nothing like the Caddy-yaks that Laishley Marine lent us for our last adventure. These boats were much tougher to paddle and my back never felt quite right in the seat.

Pretty quick in the trip some ants that had been the previous kayak occupants found me. One in particular got my immediate attention when he traveled up my shorts and bit me on my thigh. There were only a few and I won the battle swiftly, but it was tough to squish the ants and paddle upstream simultaneously, otherwise I lost ground.

But I loved it.

The bow continually fell off, left or right, into the 4 knot current so correcting or over correcting was a constant battle at first. But further up creek we found paddling easier and the surroundings more than compensated our efforts.

Because the water was so high the creek was all over the place and a little tough to follow, arrows on posts every now and then assured us we were on the right path. We went about two miles upstream enjoying the intermittent shade from trees and clouds and stopping periodically for Gator Aide breaks. During one rest stop we heard the real thing croaking as only gators can croak, deep and resonate. It was extremely silent so his voice sounded huge and I felt small and vulnerable.

The cypress trees were truly magnificent, the bases of their trunks feminine in form. Some were worn smooth, like alabaster sculptures, from years of water flow. Others with shapes resembling the old fashioned hooped gowns of southern belles with hanging moss for their lace. The current and high water made it tough to avoid touching these trees either with your kayak, paddle or hands. At one spot Michael pushed himself off of a tree with his hand and a big black spider ran down inches from his touch. This was not a Jesus bug or water spider – it was big. I made such a fuss we had to go back for Michael to see his near brush with death, but he poo-pooed me in typical male fashion and we went on our way. I watched where I put my hands.

Distant thunder was growing less distant and we knew the storm was inevitable. When you know you are just going to get wet, no matter what, rain can be very pleasant.

Water LIFE

In the thick of the rain we decided to stop fighting Fish Eating Creek and let it have its way with us. Sometimes backwards, sometimes sideways we floated effortlessly back the way we had struggled to come and soon the rain had moved on. On their way up stream one small powerboat all but stopped when they saw us so we could float by. Then we passed a party of 4 or 5 small boats with moms, dads, kids, coolers and fishing poles all heading up stream.

Other than those two encounters we were undisturbed all afternoon.

We floated with our eyes closed, we floated stretched out on our backs watching the clouds, and we raced without paddling, generally soaking up some quiet time. Near the end of our expedition we watched a gator swim lazily back and forth from shore to shore in a type of farewell gesture. I thought of Gatorama and was glad I hadn’t contributed to the business of holding these ancient creatures prisoners.

“Doc” was at the dock when we got back and he noted “You made it back!” Pretty observant fella, nonetheless we pulled our yaks ashore and smiled. Michael took the paddles and headed for the boathouse. Eager to help I grabbed my life vest from my yak. I walked over and snatched up Michael’s vest from his boat and WHOA! there was that big black spider up close and way to personal for me. When I showed it to him, Michael just laughed and said he guessed the spider just needed a ride back to camp!

Don’t miss a paddling trip on Fisheating Creek.

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FisheatingCreek

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Lake Okeechobee

DRIVING DIRECTIONS, ABOUT 1 HOUR: Take HWY 17 east from Punta Gorda, turn Right on Hwy 74 and follow it to Hwy 27, turn left and go about 1 mile, the Fisheating Creek campground is on your left. Kayak and canoe rentals are available. Call ahead to make reservations.

Real Estate Perspective: What Happens Now? Page

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S t aff R eport What do the hurricanes mean for real estate values in Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda? That’s the question on a lot of people’s minds.

Even before the storm, practitioners were saying more households will be put on the market this year, but they will attract fewer buyers during the next six months. According to David Lereah, the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors and Front Line commentator for Realtor Magazine “Confidence in market conditions remain relatively high compared to the same time period in 2003.” “ Sales of existing single family homes continued to rise, nationwide, for the six consecutive month period with a record 6.95 million units sold in June, up from 6.81 million units the month before. “It is clear that this market has tremendous momentum,” Lereah said adding “Home sales are expected to stay strong even with some easing expected by year’s end.”

But how does a communi ty devastated by a hurri cane measure up to nati onal standards?

After hurricane Andrew hit the Miami area, real estate was relatively flat for a year and then as rebuilding and remodeling

Water LIFE

began, prices stabilized and again began to climb.

The sheer number of effected homes in the Miami area and the large path Andrew cut through and the heavily populated area, meant that reconstruction took longer and that real estate market took longer to rebound. The process was additionally slowed by a shortage of materials and labor.

Charlotte County, however could be cast in a different light.

Here many smaller older homes that were built to older building codes will be replaced with new homes built to current codes. Improvement upward will mean a proportionate increase in property value.

Also affecting the value of real estate will be the 50-percent rule.

Homes here that require construction valued at 50-percent or more of the value of the structure, will have to be brought up to current code standards. In many locations that means changing the elevation of the finished floor to comply with current building codes. Homes in the ‘A’ flood zone in Port Charlotte, for example, that were built at 7-foot elevation will have to be brought up to 11 feet if 50-percent of the structure’s value is exceeded. Of course such major improvements would easily

MAGAZINE

translate into increased value, but that will come with a significantly high cost. The regulation can not be changed since it is the basis for federally guaranteed flood insurance in the county. The only remedy the county is proposing is a carry over of the 3-percent tax increase cap for those who are rebuilding, but if you live off the property while rebuilding you may be in danger of losing your homestead exemption. There are no simple solutions, at least not yet.

Plaguing other home owners, however, is the less than 50-percent scenario where a home worth $100,000 on a lot worth $250,000 sustains $45,000 worth of damage. Bringing that house back to the level it was at before the storm would cost $45,000 but only make the house worth its original $100,000 price. Owners with this dilemma will consider carefully the intelligence of repairing versus the potential of tearing down and starting over, if they can afford it.

Lyn Bevis, a broker with ReMax Realty in Punta Gorda added several additional observations on what these storms will mean to the real estate market.

“This will all unfold in the next 60 days,” Bevis said.

“Right now I would say that 70-percent of our ‘deals’ are holding together. Of course all contracts will need additional addendums and right now anyone can get out of a contract they had before the storm hit, if they want to,” Bevis said.

“There are going to be some good buys in the coming days. We have had a lot of

September/October

2004

investors coming into Florida, mostly the people who follow hurricanes around.

“My main advice to the elderly is, and I can’t stress this enough, if you get an unsolicited offer to sell your home you should get a third opinion before you do anything,” Bevis said.

Tear down deals have been few and far between so far. The ideal tear-down scenario has an investor with a contracting crew coming in, buying a house as is, and then fixing it up for resale. That kind of a deal only works if there is ‘some’ damage but not ‘too much’ damage. It’s a delicate balance “Mobile home areas like Deltona and Pine Acres where owners own their property will rebound with the rest of the community. New mobile homes built to the more stringent current codes will increase property values there across the board,” Bevis predicted.

“The future, in spite of the recent past looks bright. In a year, we will be better than ever and prices will reflect that change,” Bevis said. There will be new disclosures on future real estate contracts in this area for some time to come. Damage cited by adjusters and evidence of mold will have to be dealt with.

Quick fixes in construction will become things inspectors look for and have buyers attest to in every future sale.

These are all things we have never been through before. “You need to talk to your realtor or to an attorney before you do anything,” Bevis suggested. You may need to advice from both of them before this is

September/October

Water LIFE

2004

ScuttleButt Sometimes Unsubstanciated ... but often true

POOL CAGES Clearly the reason so many pool cages blew down is because of the spline. In the years past the old style pool cages used a round rope style rubble spline to hold the screens in place. It was the kind of spline you could easily roll back into place with a two-dollar spline roller bought at the hardware store. But the problem was that the old style cages with the round spline were prone to have the screen blow out when the wind reached 30 or 40 mph and that was unacceptable for consumers. So the engineers got to work and came up with the new flat spline design that uses a much more rugged spline held in an I shaped slot. If you have any screening left in your new design pool cage try to push it out and you will see why the new design cages failed. The spline wonʼt give. So the wind loads built up, the spline held and the pool cages collapsed.

tied to the lift with the cradle loosely tied to the pilings survived while those simply left sitting in their cradles blew away. A 150 mph, wind will do that.

WEST MARINE Wonʼt be reopening in Punta Gorda but may relocate to the area near Burnt Store Road and US 41

BOATS AT DOCKS Go figure! The dock at the Holiday Inn, the one we all thought would be gone-gone-gone- actually faired better than most of us thought. The west facing walkway was torn apart, some of the vessels there sunk, but for the most part the whole marina survived intact. Hats off to whoever came up with that design, or to whoever is that lucky.

WET PLASTER Plaster walls that have become wet can turn to powder in time. Wet plaster needs to be replaced and if you have

LIFE & Death BOATS ON LIFTS Looks like the boats left

Shortly before the arrival of Charley we discovered a colony of tadpoles living in a puddle in a swale along our street. We gathered up a bunch of them and put them in a bowl along with some of the moss and grass that was in the puddle. The tadpoles weathered Charley and Frances in a room where the windows blew out and we are happy to report that as of this writing they have sprouted legs and have been released back into the wild. Tadpoles it seems have thrived during the last month in spite of the weather.

On a less happy note, the horseshoe crab population was the first to go in the aftermath of Charley with large numbers of them floating to the top, dead three days after the storm.

Pollution from the Peace River phosphate mines had produced a similar ‘kill’ pattern after the passage of a previous storm, seven years ago.

C huck Wi l l • Tom S t i vi son John Georges • Kurt Ji l son www. redfi s hyacht . com

real plaster donʼt settle for drywall replacement.

MOLD Mold is forming everywhere. Here is a trick we used to use back in the 70ʼs when we were building houses in Palm Beach County. If you get ready to rebuild and there are still some moldy stains apparent when you are ready to paint the only thing that we have found that works to paint over mold is silver spray paint. Use it as a primer and then paint over it with your regular wall paint, the mold will not come through.

PLACIDA QUEEN Taken ʻOff Line” By the Coast Guard

WET INSULATION Once insulation becomes wet it compresses and it loses its “R” value.

Donʼt let anyone tell you you can spray it with bleach and let it dry. Your house will never be the same.

WINDOW FILM We had the windows on the west side of our house covered with a mylar type sunscreen by Dick Tennant. At the time Dick told us it would also protect the glass

Three tadpoles swim in a puddle in a driveway swale along Bangsberg Road.

Now at

2 Locations

Let Us S e l l Yo u r Bo a t

MAGAZINE

t o b e t t e r s e r ve you

21942 Edgewater Drive Port Charlotte (941) 206-6280 and

On The Water at Royal Palm Marina 779 West Wentworth Englewood (941) 474-0140

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11

from hurricane damage. Turns out he was right. All the sunscreen coated windows that blew out blew out intact with the sunscreen attached. The glass broke, but the shards were all attached to the mylar when we picked them up. Iʼm not sure if it helped the house any, but it sure made the clean up a lot easier.

PLUG IN OR PLUG OUT? Thatʼs still a debatable question. Some people prefer to leave the drain plug in their boat so that in case it comes off the lift it will still float. In the case of a lot of rain the boat could accumulate a lot of water (7 lbs/gallon) and break the lift cables. Plug out? It could sink. There is no solid answer for every case.

BOAT SALES Several local boat dealers report being unable to deliver new boats since insurance companies (Allstate is one of them ) refuse to write boat policies at this time in this area.

STUMP PASS MARINA Will soon close for ever and become a condominium development.

Horseshoe crabs died from the pollution

MOBILE SERVICE

We May Be Down, But Weʼre NOT Out

We offer MOBILE SERVICE 6 days a week (Mon - Sat) If needed please call (941) 255-3106 or 769-8064 Thanks to all our friends, neighbors and customers for all your help. We Will return to Port Charlotte!!

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Water LIFE

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MAGAZINE

September/October

2847 VIA PALOMA 3/2/2 PGI home located on an extra wide canal for ease in boating with an 18,000# lift and long double dock. Ponce Inlet, Charlotte Harbor and the Gulf are just around the corner from this sailboat waterfront home. $698,000 CHARLOTTE STREET & SHORE DRIVE - Oversized (2/3 acre) building site directly on the Peace River, deed restricted for a single family residence.

Have your own dock or use the Association dock in basin on Otter Creek. $795,000 SHORE DRIVE Estate homesite with nearly an acre of direct Peace River frontage offering fantastic views of Charlotte Harbor. $999,000

2240 Bayview - MLS # 439128 Sailboater’s Paradise!

Two mins. to harbor. Deep sailboat draft. Beautiful large 3/2 home in perfect condition & shows like the day it was built. Extrememly well maintained. New seawall. $650,000.

3948 Turtle Dove Blvd. MLS # 423777 Exceptional PGI Signature Series Grand Pelican 3/2 w/large office & great room.

Gorgeous view down long canal. $679,000.

64 Colony Point Dr. - MLS # 437814 - Tim Towles custom built home w/views of Charlotte Harbor & long canal view w/quick sailboat access. 30’dock, 3 A/C units, 2 master suites, 2 hot water heaters. Large family room, pool, kitchen nook, wet bar, 2 car garage w/separate storage closet. Great location ! $775,000

3900 Colony Court - MLS # 437918 - Stilt home on 2 lots w/good access to Charlotte Harbor !

One bridge out. $530,000.

4006 Maltese Ct. MLS # 439122 Truly outstanding executive residence located in prestigious Burnt Store Isles on a tip lot w/170’ of watefront.

By far the best canal view in BSI or PGI. 10,000 lb. boat lift. Oversized garage. French doors & sliders.

Call office for list of upgrades. $925,000.

2004

24082 HARBORVIEW ROAD Large family home with 5BR and 4 full baths & 3 half baths nestled in a country setting but close to town. Set on over 12 acres, this uniquely designed custom home compliments its treed surroundings. Enormous family room, oversized poollanai area and outdoor picnic area. Detached parking for 6 vehicles with a 2 stall horse barn and feed & tack room. $990,000

September/October

2004

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St aff Rep o rt Phosphate mining is dependent on sulphuric acid to leach the phosphate out of the soil they dig up.

The process involves constructing huge ‘gypsum stacks’ that are then covered with pools of the acid. (The photo at right is of a Peace River basin stack at Mulberry, made last year) Now the DEP has ordered the stacks acid pools to be neutralized and dumped into the Peace River. This saves the processor money and is a terrible thing.

Now is the time for the Department of Environmental Protection to stop issuing new permits for phosphate mining and processing sites and to make the industry come up with hurricane and tropical storm protection for the existing sites.

September/October

Phosphate Dumping OKʼd

2004

ABOVE: This sinkhole in wet ground swallowed up 20.8 million pounds of liquid phosphoric acid in a previous spill.

Right: These gypsum stacks off Rt 17 near Bartow were photographed last year. The DEP has OKʼd the acid in two stacks to be ʻneutralizedʼ and then dumped into the Peace River.

Pools have taken a real beating from the hurricanes. Filters are working overtime, especially with the pool cages gone and debris flying around in the air.

Watch your chlorine level carefully, keep it high and if your pool tile was damaged when the cage collapsed tell your insurance company you want all new tile. It should be a match not a patch. Donʼt settle for the quick fix.

At Left, our springer spaniel Molly Brown is sad that the pool cage is gone and the hurricane blew the windows out of her house ...but spaniels have those sad eyes most of the time anyway.

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The Manatee Test September/October

Can You Pass?

2004

By Capt. Ro n Bl ag o Water LIFE Senior Staff The world of manatee protection continues to reside in the world of the bizarre. Lee county finally had their state ordered Manatee Protection Plan approved by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC). Lee County is one of the 13 Florida counties required by state law to adopt a manatee protection plan. With the local and the state officials working closely together it only took 18 years to get the job done. Of course this will have no effect on the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) which has installed their own set of regulations for Lee County boaters.

Now, the latest weird twist comes from Manatee County where local, state and federal officials can’t seem to agree on what areas need additional manatee protection. A proposal has been made to require boaters to take a manatee test and earn special boat and operator licenses before being allowed to enter into these manatee disputed areas. I always laugh at these well intentioned but misguided plans to protect the manatee. A lot of the non-boating public still believe that when their doctor, lawyer, minister even their own friends and relatives get behind the wheel of a boat they become manatee mauling maniacs, so I will volunteer the first question for the proposed test: If y ou see a manatee while operating y our boat y ou should 1- Breakout the harpoons and pretend your Ahab going after Moby Dick.

2 - Get up to ramming speed. After all the only good manatee is a dead manatee.

3- Call all your friends over, then get in the water with the manatee, have a love in and offer to share your tofu sandwich with the lovable sea cow.

4- Keep your eyes open. Stay as far away from the manatee as possible and go about your business.

The problem is not with the boaters, but with the people who make regulations for boaters in the name of manatee protection. If anyone should be tested it’s these folks.

So here are a few sample questions for these folks. Ans wer true o r fal s e 1- The manatee was put on the endangered species list as a result of extensive scientific research? Answer False. It turns out there was no population research on manatees at the time. The manatee was added to the list by administrative order. If the manatee was submitted today it would not meet the criteria to be listed as endangered.

2- The Florida manatee is a totally different species than the West Indies manatee ? Answer False. There are

Water LIFE

some differences in DNA but at best, you could say that the Florida manatee is a sub-species of the West Indies manatee, so unless they pass the Endangered Subspecies Act, they’re the same animal.

Remember a German Shepherd and a St. Bernard have different DNA, but they’re still both dogs.

3 - A steady increase in the total number of manatees will eventually result in the manatee being removed from the endangered species list? Answer, False.

Population has nothing to do with it. You could have a million manatees, but if it is decided that they are losing habitat and the number of human related deaths continues to increase, the manatee will remain listed as endangered.

4 - Top scientists at the FWC and experts in marine mammal population estimates have recommended that the manatee be delisted from endangered to threatened in the state of Florida ?

Answer, True. Why has that decision been postponed for over two years? Good science equals bad politics, that’s why.

5- Boats are the greatest cause of manatee deaths ? Answer False. 76% of all manatee deaths have nothing to do with boats or boaters.

6- The Save the Manatee Club is against additional aerial surveys, research to determine the effectiveness of speed zones, research to determine what types of boats are most likely to run into manatees, research to determine the optimal population of manatees in Florida.

Answer True. These were the provisions of senate bill 540, that the SMC strongly opposed, calling the bill ‘a plot by special interest to weaken manatee pro-

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Cape Coral Oct 4 thru 14

Naples Oct 11 thru 21

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Port Charlotte Oct 18 thru 28

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On The Line

16

MAGAZINE

September/October

Fishing with Capt Ron

Dine on the dock ~ Million $$ View!

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

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By Capt Ron Bl ago Water LIFE Senior Writer The hurricanes for the most part spared the Lemon Bay area and delivered their main punch to the Punta Gorda - Port Charlotte areas. Charley which had been predicted to hit Tampa, took a sharp right turn hitting Sanibel and Captivia islands then through Bokeelia and Punta Gorda and right up the Peace River leaving massive destruction on both sides. My heart and sympathy goes out to so many people whose lives will be forever changed by this storm. I’ve learned my lesson. The next time one of these hurricanes gets within 100 miles of me, I’m boarding up the shack and leaving town.

Fishing is coming back in Charlotte Harbor and for some people just being on the water helps a person clear their minds and give thanks for still being alive.

Fishing is the one thing that remains normal. You, the water and the fish, you all made it through the storm. Charlotte County has been nice enough to suspend until further notice the parking fees at the local boat ramps. The boat ramps are still there, but a lot of the fancy landscaping is now gone with the wind.

Remember that Oct.1 is when the new annual parking permits go on sale. The permit is good from Oct. 1 to Sept 30 and is not pro-rated. The fee with sales tax is $37.50 and can be purchased at the Port Charlotte Beach Complex or the Tringali Recreation Center in Englewood.

If you are going to be on the water remember to keep your eyes open for debris. Busted docks, pilings and construction materials have been blown into the Harbor and a lot of this stuff is still popping up in unsuspecting places Fishing in Lemon Bay is back to normal for this time of year. Because business is so slow and the price of gas so high, I have been using my canoe to do what I call flats watch. The advantage of my canoe is I can maneuver and fish while standing up. I use a long bamboo pole to

2004

glide over the shallow flats looking for fish. The first thing I’ve noticed are the large schools of big fat mullet that are already forming up in the bay. A sure sign that fall is coming. Along the oyster beds were plenty of sheepshead and small schools of mangrove snappers.

The grass flats themselves are full of bait. Sardines, threadfin, pinfish and glass minnows all staking out their particular part of the grass flat. The potholes have trout and ladyfish in them waiting for the bait to swim by. If you watch the flats you will see the telltale signs of fish.

Sometimes it’s obvious. The other day the water exploded next to me with bait jumping out of the water being chased into the shallow water by a large school of fish. I assumed it was either a school of jacks or redfish, both of which I had caught there in the past, but as I pushed myself over to their location I was surprised to see a large school of black drum.

Their football shaped bodies were a copper red color without a spot on their tails.

They continued to move all around me while I fumbled to grab a rod with a green Cotee grub tail. The first cast I hooked up and spent the next 15 minutes getting towed around the grass flat. These are an amazingly powerful fish. When I finally got him to the side of the canoe he was a little over two feet long, but very heavy for his size. The next day in the same general area I saw another pod of bait being attacked but this time not nearly as violent as the black drum. I was using a gold metal flake grub tail and began to hook blue fish in the 15 to 20 inch range.

Over the next few days I caught redfish, snook, trout, grouper, snapper, ladyfish, jacks and a few small sharks all in an area no bigger than a football field. Some on a gold spoon, but mostly on a grub tail jig just standing up drifting in a canoe. A great way to spend some time waiting for things to get better.

For fi shi ng t ri ps i n Lem on Bay cal l

September/October

Water LIFE

2004

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September/October

MAGAZINE

Boating Statistics offer Perspective of the Industry, but ʻNew Dataʼ is Two Years Old

By Capt Ron Bl ago Water LIFE Executive Staff There were over 13.0 million recreational boats registered in the United States according to the most recent U.S. Coast Guard and National Marine Manufacturers Association statistics.

California, for the first time, lead the nation with 1,051,606 registered boats followed by Michigan with 1,000,337.

Florida was third with 922,597. The top 10 states account for 52% of all the registered boats in the country.

The types of boats that are required to be registered is pretty much left up to the individual states. Some require canoes and kayaks to be registered, some don’t. Some states, like Alabama only require rentals to be registered. Most states, like Florida, require registration if you put on a motor,

Insulation Removal Keystone

even a small, electric trolling motor. The registration fee in most states is around $10 annually. Remember the higher the number of registered boats a state has the S tate

Number of Reg. boats

Are canoes and kayaks regi stered?

1,000,337

Yes

834,974

Yes

6 Texas

624,390

No

8 Ohio

413,276

Yes

383,971

No

1 California 3 Florida

4 Minnesota 5 Wisconsin 7 New York

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9 Illinois

10 S.Carolina

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CH NTY 93 U 19 CO CE N I S

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No

922,597

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650,280

Yes

529,732

No

398,431

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Location: Affinity Tackle Info: 941- 697-1343 D.O.A. St.Croix Capt Mikes West Coast Cast Nets Quantum

greater the amount of federal tax money that is returned to the state to be used for local boating improvements.

Here i s the l i st of the Top 10 states by boat regi strati on and thei r pol i cy on canoe and kayak regi strati on:

2 Michigan

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2004

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Guides to the Rescue

Plan to attend a night full of fishing information On Site Factory Reps Store Wide Specials, Free Food & Door Prizes!

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• Fall Fishing Charlotte Harbor with Slide Show & Seminar by Capt. Mark Bennett • Seminar by Todd Arcos of DOA Lures • Capt. Mikeʼs Lures Seminar by Capt. Mike Hakala • Factory Repʼs on hand to answer your questions: St. Croix, West Coast Nets, Quantum, TFO, DOA, Capt. Mikeʼs Lures, Accurate Reels, Teeny Products, Reflex Rods, and others!

• Ranger & Sea Pro Boats on Display • Cast Net Demonstrations & Lessons. Come learn how to catch your own bait!

Mark “Gritter” Griffin, head of the Professional Redfish Organization (PRO) and Mike McKinnon collected and transported two truckloads of relief from the Park Memorial Methodist Church in Troy Alabama to Punta Gorda during the aftermath of Hurricane Charley. The trucks contained, SCA North America products, Diapers, Paper Goods, Conecuh Sausage Rolls, Blue Springs Water and Sister Shubert Baked Goods. Much of the load also went to Arcadia.

September/October

A Day in the Bay

2004

By Don Cessna Water Life Englewood Have you been doing any fishing lately? This has been an unusual summer of fishing in Lemon Bay. Normally the warm water causes the fish to become lethargic and we need to downsize baits and use more stealthy tactics. In short, fishing becomes very difficult, but it is not impossible to be successful. This year we have done very well catching large fish and the odd thing is on larger baits. It seems that whatever the species the fish are plentiful and large. There were even more tarpon caught in our area than normal (maybe nature’s way to even up for the short king mackerel season) and the tarpon were also mainly nice size fish.

As usual Lemon Bay does not disappoint. It is a very rare day on the Bay that folks don’t catch a nice assortment of fish using a wide variety of tactics. Even legal size grouper are caught in the Bay as of late.

Since the fish are eating well with lots of live bait in the water the focus is to find areas which

hold bait. The area around Stump Pass has been producing nice snook which by the way came back in season on September 1.

Also very large jack creval up to 15 pounds have been caught around the Pass. Those gulf size jacks provide a memorable fish fight on light tackle.

Large trout cruising the grassy shore line are a fairly dependable catch. Many people have caught 17” trout with many even larger. These are some nice sized trout and are among the easier fish to catch. The trout over 20” may not be good for the table, but are impressive to see.

Lots of maximum legal redfish are caught in shallower waters that have ready access to deeper holes. Anywhere you find this combination it is very likely you will find a small school of redfish. Oversize redfish are plentiful now and these guys also are formidable down and run fighters.

For those who enjoy catching higher numbers of fish the docks in the Bay hold lots of mangrove snapper. The fenders around our two overhead bridges are packed with snapper and sheepshead.

For just a bunch of fun catching fish, even the ladyfish are often two foot sized fish. Yes, even though they are not a fish

Water LIFE

MAGAZINE

to eat it can be fun just to watch them destroy a buck tail jig.

Many times you can enjoy the whole fight and simply give some slack in the line and they will ‘release’ themselves. Most certainly, keep a close check on your leader since they sure chew it up. Anyone who enjoys freshwater trout fishing would relish the jumping ladyfish fight. With trout streams being so highly regulated and the expense of a membership or guide and lodging, it costs most thousands for a fly-fishing trip. I’m truly surprised that fly fishermen from up north haven’t taken to lady fishing.

The rigging of choice is our normal length of monofilament or fluorocarbon leader generally 20-24 inches long either tied line to line or joined by use of a barrel swivel. Line to line eliminates an extra knot and a visible piece of metal and though it is rare for the barrel swivel to fail it is possible. More likely though is the failure of a knot. The swivel also can pick up moss which makes it really visible and keeps it from functioning altogether. Those who fish using live bait are doing well with large bait fish and if live 5-6 inch baits are working very well, mullet,

grunts, and the larger pinfish can be free lined with a 1\2 ounce egg sinker or a popping cork to hold the bait to a smaller area.

Frozen bait is always good for the redfish and again large portions have been the way to go.

The snapper and sheepshead also enjoy the frozen bait, but smaller pieces are needed for them. With the start of snook season large live bait and artificial lures should be an excellent choice now. Lures are my personal choice for most fishing in the Bay and near-shore gulf. Jig heads and plastic tails are one of the favorites and are very versatile.

Bait fish imitations are another good choice. Both are excellent for redfish and snook in the Bay. As always a leader should be employed. Most fishermen find through experience that a few favorites distinguish themselves.

I strongly advise purchasing plenty of the favorites, as when they are productive they often rapidly become unavailable in the style or color you like.

There is often a new “must have” in the pipe line, however you may have to re-learn subtleties with which you were familiar for the old stand by. This is valuable advice!

Large baits for big hard fight-

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ing fish! That sure sounds exciting to a fisherman. We have been catching large fish in spite of the heat and are still able to rig heavy enough to actually catch them. The other unusual case has been the total lack of red tide so far. Our waters are nice and clear and the summer fishing has been dependable. You may not find the species you are after, but usually you will find good fishing.

If you don’t have a boat we have a wide variety of places to fish from the shore and one can still do well. Just like fishing from a boat hitting several likely places, the same can be done by car and most of the time you can get from spot to spot in ten or fifteen minutes. Unless of course you stop off for a snack at the quick shop (try that from the boat). So break out the heavy rods and stop up and spend a day with us on Lemon Bay. And, good luck!

Don@Ray’s Bait & Tackle 480 W. Dearborn St. Englewood, FL. 34223 (941) 473-1591 Two blocks north of the Indian Mound Boat Ramp

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Water LIFE

September/October

MAGAZINE

Barefoot

Coral

2004

NEW DEVELOPMENT UNDER CONSTRUCTION Due to complete Dec 2004 in time for 20042005 rental season TWO UNITS AVAILABLE 10% holds until close.

BLDG 1, unit 303, direct gulf front 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath 1685 sq ft $975,000 BLDG 2 unit 501, 1991 3 bedroom 2 1/2 bath 1991 sq. Ft. $775,000 BEAUTIFUL CORAL CREEK Easy access to the intercoastal.

18000 sq ft lot with deeded dock space on Coral Creek in gated and deed restricted community. $220,000

September/October

2004

Water LIFE

Yamaha Responds to Dumping Ruling

S t aff R eport Note* Just before hurricane Charley there was an interesting ruling by the U.S. Justice Department which would have received more attention from local boaters had it not been for the storm.

Differing points of view prevailed in the wake of a preliminary determination issued by the U.S. Department of Commerce in August that found “Japanese producers/exporters have sold outboard engines in the U.S. market at less than fair value, with a margin of 22.52 percent.”

Phil Dyskow, president of Yamaha Marine Group, said that the DOC had not compared Japanese and American sales in a valid manner, and noted that the ruling was only the first step in a continuing process. Dyskow said “We don’t plan to increase our price on outboard motors to our customers and we don’t expect to pay duties.”

In a press release Yamaha outlined several objections to the findings.

– 1. “The Department of Commerce compared sales to OEM boat builders in the United States with sales to retail distributors in Japan.”

– 2. “The Department of Commerce did not take into account all sales expenses in Japan.

This raises the prices at which motors are calculated as sold in Japan, resulting in a misleading impression of dumping margins.”

– 3. “The Department of Commerce incorrectly included sales of four-stroke powerheads to Brunswick in the same category as sales of outboard motors. The powerhead sales to Brunswick accounted for over 50 percent of the dumping margin.”

– 4. “Preliminary analysis indicates that margins on sales by Yamaha to dealers and boat builders in the United States were under

15 percent while margins on the sales of OEM powerheads to Mercury were more than 100 percent. Thus, Mercury, not Yamaha, was the principle beneficiary of the alleged dumping.”

Dyskow also said Yamaha is already moving to reduce the margins on its outboards, having lowered its prices in Japan and increasing prices in the U.S. of approximately 3 to 4 percent on outboards beginning this model year.

Dyskow said he believed Mercury Marine may have initiated its investigation as a way to disrupt its competition, and offered what may be a forecast of things to come.

“Clearly they would like to disrupt their foreign competitors, they would like to drive up the price of 4-stroke engines,” Dyskow said.

It’s probably time for our relationship with Mercury to come to an end.” Yamaha had been producing four stroke powerheads for Mercury, up until this spring when they began producing their own line of four-strokes.

“We are pleased with the Commerce Department’s investigation,” said Patrick C. Mackey, president of Mercury Marine in a statement.

For its part, Bombardier said it also welcomed the ruling.

Larry Vandiver, director of communications for Suzuki, said his company has not yet prepared its course of action.

Yamaha was the only Japanese manufacturer investigated by the Commerce Department.

Gary Ingman the local Charlotte County Yamaha dealer noted that his Yamaha representative told him the decision would result in Yamaha adjusting prices in Japan to compensate for the ‘spread.’ “It won’t have any effect on our pricing at all,” Ingman predicted.

The Commerce Department will announce its final decision on the matter on or about Dec. 24.

A Trip This Guide Would Rather Forget With all the focus on the up-coming presidential election we thought youʼd enjoy this photo of the Presidentʼs mother, Barbara Bush, standing in the water, helping to push her guide Hank Brownʼs boat off a flat in the Keys. Thatʼs Kitty (Mrs Nick) Brady in the water with her. The date was Sept 1991 and her husband George Bush (No. 1) was president at the time and hosting the George Bush Cheeca Lodge Tournament.

Weʼre sure Capt. Hank would rather forget this incident. The photo hangs on the wall of the restaurant at the Laureli Resort in Islamorada.

Hurricane Force Winds

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Twizzlers and Scrubby Bubbles

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By Mi chael Hel l er Water LIFE Editor When it comes to hurricanes there is still so much we do not understand. How is it that one house is spared and the one next door is totally destroyed. How can a 173 mph wind (that’s the last speed the anemometer at the hospital heliport reported before the sensor was blown off the pole) rip through a house and still leave the pictures hanging on the wall. Why are the ridge lines on so many tile roofs hammered clean while the tiles next to them are still intact?

Here are some theori es.

Everyone knows that tornadoes are the destructive force in a hurricane, but we tend to think of tornadoes as big swirling masses, like the ones depicted in the movies. “It sounded like a freight train,” is usually the onscene description, but with hurricane Charley at least we had something different. My theory is we had what I am calling ‘twizzlers,’ small fingers of tightly wound tornadoes, not unlike the spiraling silver skyrockets we see going up on the fourth of July, except in the case of a hurricane they were coming down - skinny fingers of destruction pointing here and there, often no more than a few yards wide. Look at the shape the hurricane left the radio tower in downtown Punta Gorda in. Picture what wrapped around it and bent it like that; a twizzler.

As far as the ridges on the tile roofs go, my theory is ‘scrubby bubbles.’

Small effervescing armies of bubbling air like the ones shown on the commercial for toilet-bowl cleaner on TV. Wind, like water will take a smooth path over a smooth surface, but if the surface is rough, like the surface of a tile roof, the wind along the surface begins to burble. It is a phenomenon not unlike what happens along the top of an airplane wing just before it loses lift. All those little bubbles of air then become pockets of destruction looking for something to get under and push up. The ridges are first to fail. They are made of thinner tiles which are set in mortar to which they do not bond tightly.

Compound that with a flexing plywood roof and the fact that the ridge tiles have sharp angles. Then introduce the force of ‘scrubby bubbles’ of air and the ridges become the weakest link. The ridge lines look clean after the storm because the ridge tiles break and blow away leaving only the mortar. It is these tiles flying about in the air that might have brought on the beginning of

The ridge lines on the tile and slate roofs were the first to fail.

Fishing Report Page

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S t aff R eport All accounts of fishing everywhere in Southwest Florida except in the upper reaches of Charlotte Harbor are good. Just a week after hurricane Charley we were hearing of nice schools of redfish and some big snook in the Pine Island Sound area.

“We were slamming the reds in the Sound,” Capt. J.R. Witt said, talking about his first charter in two weeks after the storm “Fishing in Bull and Turtle Bay was pretty good too,” Witt added. A week after that Goeff Paige reported great redfishing in Sarasota Bay and the Venice area. “We had two legal slams on artificials and that’s good any time,” Paige’s fishing partner said of their trip.

Up in Charlotte Harbor, Frances may have actually cleared out the water a little

since the storm broadcast its winds from the north for more than a 24 hour period, but local guides were at first hesitant to fish the upper part of the Harbor yet.

“There was so much sewage, oil and bacteria in the Harbor that the danger was from infection if you got any cut or scrape on your skin.

At this time the area on the east side of the harbor, inside the bar and south of Alligator Creek and around ‘Crab Trap, is still littered with debris. Trees, sections of docks and pole are sticking out of the water there one angler reported on September 18. “We caught nice trout, a 26 inch redfish and a 29-inch snook on artificials in ‘the bays’” the same angler said, “all on artificials and all on the outgoing tide,” he added.

Water LIFE

The annual summer shark tournament at Fishinʼ Franks was held the week before Charley and as usual there is always something new to report from this event. Here a shark is brought to the measuring slab in a high-priced insulated king mackerel bag.

Ainʼt never seen that before. We are happy to report that with help from Laishley marine, Franks will be open and back in business in October.

The Insurance Game

S t aff R eport The storm passed and we called in our insurance claim. “You will be contacted by an adjuster within 72 hours,” we were told. That time came and went. We called back and were referred to another number.

Mr. Green will handle your claim, we are very busy. He will contact you. If you don’t hear from him in two days, call this number. Two days went by and no call. We called the number. Hello this is Mr. Green ...No I don’t have your claim let me check. Oh, Mr. Brown is handling your claim. I’ll call him and if he doesn’t call you back in two days here is his cell phone, give him a call. Two more days went by and no call. So we called him. No I’m not handling your claim. I’m up in Orlando, let me check. I think Mr. Black is handling your claim. He’s very hard to get to right now, I’ll call him and if you don’t hear from him in two days you can give him a call. Two days went by and nothing. We called. Hello this is Mr Black, No I don’t have your name. We went down to the insurance commission site set up in Charlotte County. They gave us the name and phone number of the head agent in Charlotte County and we called immediately. “Oh no, that’s not right,” the head honcho for our company says. “You come down here right now and ask for me.

I’ll get this straightened out for you right now.” We hopped in the car and drove over. He was a personable guy. Come

MAGAZINE

right in he said and he took us back into his tent and introduced us to a lady who was eager to help. We went to her work area and she got online and made some notes, then she called someone and discussed our claim. I see what the problem is. I’m sorry you are having these problems. Your claim has been assigned to Mr. Smith, he’s out in the field right now but I am going to call him. She picked up the phone and made a call. Yes, yes, that’s right. Ok yes, I will. She hung up. Mr. Smith is handling your claim and he said to give him a couple of days to get caught up and and he’ll call to make an appointment to come see your house .... If you don’t hear from him in a couple of days ......

It was a little more than two weeks and we hadn’t heard from anyone so we hired a private adjuster to handle our claim and now we are waiting for him.

September/October

Tournament Adjustments

IFA Redfish Tour previously scheduled for Punta Gorda on September 17 has been moved to Tampa. There just werenʼt any accommodations available in the Punta Gorda area one tournament official said.

The Redfish Cup Finals, scheduled for Titusville on September 4 were cancelled and the tournament finals were moved to lake Charles Louisiana Sept 30 on the heels of hurricane Ivan. Iʼm not sure how we will get there, with I-10 closed after the storm, Capt. Rob Moore and Bob Boudreau the current leaders from Punta Gorda commented.

The Flatsmaster September 11 tournament scheduled to be fished from Harpoon Harryʼs at Punta Gorda was postponed. A new date and location will be announced soon. Harpoon Harrys, along with all of Fishermenʼs Village has now reopened but the dock at harrys awaits reconstruction so tournaments weighing-in there might be on hold for a while longer as well.

2004

Fishing

RIGHT NOW:

almost back to normal

They donʼt want you to win

If you are being jerked around by your insurance company you can check them out at one of the following websites: National Association of Insurance Commissioners: www.naic.org

Insurance Information Institute: www.iii.org

If you are wondering which company gave us the run around it was, Clarendon,

This is a private adjusterʼs claim sheet for damage to one room. The details are what is important

September/October

2004

Water LIFE

SAILBOAT WATERFRONT POOL/SPA HOME - Tile roof.(only a few missing from Charley) Looking for that dream home, then look no further. This home located in Collingswood Pointe is on two lots. Custom built thru-out. 4 BR + 4 Bath, built in 2000, 3585 Sq Ft. Circular drive and 3 plus car garage with plenty of parking space, dock, 9,000-pound boat lift and down the Manchester Waterway to the Harbor.

Gorgeous architecture and landscaping makes this a true beauty, Italian tile on entrance of large columns and double glass front doors open to view of living room and pool/lanai area. Everything is oversized with large ʻLʼ shape lanai with summer kitchen with cooking/grilling center, U–Line auto ice maker/refrigerator. Pool closet

and hose bib in pool area with great view of lake. A gourmet kitchen to die for, wooden cabinets, solid surface counters, 48 inch sub-zero style ref. Vegetable sink in island and 2 breakfast bars. Double oven, one is convection also. 2 water heaters and 2 A/C units. 17-inch diagonal tile in all rooms except Berber in bedrooms. A lovely master suite with his and hers walk-in closets and Roman shower, commode closet, 2 vanity sinks, Sec. sys and intercom, niches and plants shelves everywhere. Well and sprinkler system for yard. Home features gas and electric.

The list goes on and on. $1,200,000 MLS # 415288 Call Ellen McCarthy

Saltwater Canal Pool Home

Port Charlotte

Saltwater canal home w/new dock and roof, minutes to the Harbor, 2/2 w/ 1208 sq. ft., remodeled bathrooms w/tiled floors & new cabinets, large kitchen w/office just around the corner, Florida room w/ solid wood ceiling, carport & workshop, plus extra parking. $254,900, MLS#435493, Call Ellen Today!

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MAGAZINE

Port Charlotte 3/2/2, 2022 sq. ft. built in 1989 w/ 10x12 dock to fish from, palm trees & many extras, $379,900, MLS#436317, Call Ellen Today!

This home shows pride of ownership, living, family & dining room, kitchen w/breakfast bar & nook, pantry, cathedral ceilings, tile & carpet, 4 walkin closets, 2 skylights, plant shelves, jetted tub in master bath, new roof in 2004, large lanai & many other extras.

FRESHWATER CANAL POOL HOME, Port Charlotte Area 105, beautiful 2/2/2, 2000 sf, built 1987, all new upgrades last 5 yrs., 2 master suites, living, family, and breakfast/Florida room w/sliders to pool, Corian kitchen & custom cabinets, separate laundry room, office and storage in finished garage, beautifully landscaped, & much more, $219,900, Call Ellen McCarthy, Century 21 Aztec & Assoc., 941-766-1466.

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