No excuses, go fishing

Today is National Hunting and Fishing Day, but since hunting season is closed right now, play it safe and go wet a line.

The state estimates that more than three million residents and visitors fish or hunt in Florida each year, contributing more than $8 billion (yes, that is billion with a "b") to the economy and supporting more than 85,000 jobs.

In these hard economic times, many families are turning to fishing instead of taking the usual vacations, i.e., Disney World, Busch Gardens. Fishing is relatively inexpensive. Once you buy the basic equipment, you don't need to pay a fee every time you go, as with golf or bowling.

And anglers are the vanguard on the conservation front. Sportsmen - hunters and fishermen - started the conservation movement. Organizations such as Ducks Unlimited have fought to preserve habitat, which is essential for fish, birds and a wide variety of mammals and reptiles.

But do yourself a favor, instead of letting the kids sit inside this morning and watch cartoons, head down to your nearest tackle shop and buy yourself of bucket of bait. If you don't catch anything, at least you'll get a tan, and you can always go home and make a nice shrimp cocktail with the leftovers.

To learn more about fishing in Florida, contact the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Camping weather

When I woke up this morning, the air was cool and dry. Time to break out the tent and head for the woods.

Like many campers, I've been waiting months for an excuse to build a fire and sleep outside. Sure, you can camp during the summer, if you have to, but I would much rather wait until Autumn, when the nights are crisp and the skies are clear.

For at least two thirds of the year (September through April), Florida is a great place to camp. Granted, we don't have mountains, but we do have barrier islands. Grab a kayak, paddle out to Anclote Key and pitch your tent beneath the pine trees. You'll forget pretty darn quick that you live in a major metropolitan area that is home to four million people.

Florida has hundreds of good camping spots, but the best book early. I try to enter the fall with my "camping plan" firmly in place. I've already booked more than a half dozen campsites for my scout troop and at least a half dozen more for official "work" adventures with my crazy gang of friends. (Yes, when you're the outdoors editor, you do get paid to camp.)

Some of my favorite spots to camp locally include Pinellas County's Fort Desoto Park, Myakka River State Park in Sarasota County and Lake Kissimmee State Park, east of Lake Wales. If you don't mind a drive, Anastasia State Park in St. Augustine can't be beat.

Jaws captain dies

Frank Mundus, the legendary Long Island charter boat captain fictionalized in the movie Jaws, died last week. He was 82.

No fisherman, surfer, swimmer or scuba diver for that matter, will ever forget Robert Shaw's character,  Quint, from the 1975 blockbuster.

"This shark, swallow you whole," the rough and tumble charter boat captain told the panicked citizens of a resort town. "For ten thousand dollars...you get the head, the tail, the whole damn thing."

In real life, Mundus fished out of Montauk, on the South Fork of Long Island, where he began "monster fishing" in the early 1950s. He once harpooned a 17 and 1/2 foot great white which weighed an estimated 4,500 pounds.

Mundus never though much of the film that made him famous. According to the New York Times, he thought it was "the funniest and the stupidest movie" that he had ever seen. In his later years, Mundus became a quasi-conservationist, switching to circle hooks and participating in government-sponsored tagging programs.

Today, many species of sharks are now considered onthe decline and most forward-thinking anglers refrain from killing these creatures, unlike the famous captain

Kids fishing tournament

Looking for something to do with the kids this weekend? The Old Salt Fishing Club is offering a free tournament for kids and teens at the Pier in downtown St. Petersburg from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday.

The kid's event is part of the Old Salt Loop Tournament, a five-day offshore fihsing adventure that is now in its 37th year. The West Coast of Florida isn't known for its marlin and sailfish, but they are out there in the Gulf of Mexico, you just have to travel to get them.

The boats left Thursday and will be back on Sunday with photos of their catch from the "Loop Current." The public is invited to come down to Vinoy Park from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m,. for the official "weigh in."

If you are planning to fish the kid's tournament, all you need is a fishing pole. The Old Salts will provide the shrimp and squid. And if that is not enough, formeer Tampa Bay Buccaneer Mike Alstott will be handing out the awards afterwards. Anglers must pre-register.

Shark bites 13-year-old girl in Volusia County

NEW SMYRNA BEACH — Authorities say a 13-year-old girl was bitten in the leg by a shark off New Smyrna Beach, the 16th shark bite of the year in Volusia County.
Volusia County Beach Patrol Capt. Scott Petersohn says the girl was in waist-deep water Tuesday when the shark bit her on the leg. She suffered several small puncture wounds and a 3-inch gash. The girl was visiting from New York. She has not been identified.
The bite happened a couple of miles from where most shark bites occur. Petersohn says swimmers should shuffle their feet when walking in the ocean because rhythmic movement is a signal to a shark to swim away. Splashing around is similar to what another fish might do when injured, and that attracts sharks.

Scallop search

Hundreds of volunteers from across the Tampa Bay area will hit the water this Saturday for the annual Great Bay Scallop search. The event, sponsored by Tampa BayWatch, has been held every year since 1993, and by all accounts, 2008 could be a record year.

Researchers who monitor the area's fragile bay scallop population have found record numbers of these tasty mollusks. And although the recreational scalloping season is closed south of the Pasco County line, volunteers can still do their share by helping gather data to help in the management of this species.

Scallop populations fluctuate from year to year. In 2005, the year of a devastating red tide, volunteers only found one scallop. The following year, that number had increased to 17. But in 2007, the number jumped to 555.

Scallops are found year round in Tampa Bay. It takes a scallop about 12 to 18 months for a scallop to reach its full size of two inches. They are easily spotted hiding in the sea grass as snorkelers swim along the surface.

To register for this event, call Rachael Arndt at (727) 867-8166.

Rookie of the Year

Five years ago, Lakeland's Bobby Lane was just another small businessman. The 34-year-old Polk County man had landscaping business but always dreamed of cashing it all in and becoming a professional bass fisherman.

Lane sold his business in 2003 to follow his dream. He eventually worked his way up to the BASS Tournament Trail, and last week at a Bassmaster Elite Series Event on Lake Oneida near Syracuse, N.Y., clinched the coveted "Rookie of the Year" title after catching 12 pounds 4 ounces worth of bass on the first day of competition.

With the honor came a $25,000 check, not bad for a day's fishing. He also qualified for the 2008 Bassmaster Classic, the "Super Bowl of Fishing," which will be held this year on South Carolina's Lake Hartwell.

The BASS tour is freshwater fishing's oldest and most prestigious freshwater fishing organization. Originally headquartered in Alabama, the organization recently moved its opeations to Florida to be closer to the world's best bass fishing. The organization runs several tournament series, for every level of fisherman, from weekend warrior to professionals such as Bobby Lane.

Record catfish

When 64-year-old James Mitchell hooked a fish on the Choctawactchee River this week, he knew it was a whopper. After all, it had hit a bluegill as big as his hand and put a serious bend in his stout six-foot rod loaded with 50-pound test line.

But Mitchell, who is disabled, didn't give an inch. When he finally got the beast along side his boat, he need the help of his son and grandson to help him pull it over the side.

The 53-inch long blue catfish weighed 64 pounds 8 ounces, more than three pounds heavier than the previous record cat caught in Little Escambia Creek north of Pensacola.

Mitchell, who likes to catch his own bait with a fly rod or cane pole, said his secret is,, "the bigger the bream the better."

While blue catfish are found as far south of the Suwannee River, they are not native to Florida. The were originally found in the rivers and tributaries of the Midwest and Mississippi River and how they go to Florida, nobody knows.

Mitchell's fish is a new state record.

Bug huntin'

Don't worry if you missed last month's two-day, special sportsman's season for spiny lobster. There are still plenty of "bugs" to go around.

The regular lobster season opened today and will run through March 31st.  Many lobster hunters, this writer included, avoid the hustle and bustle of the mini season and wait until August when there are no crowds or lines at the boat ramp.

Floridians are lucky. Spiny lobster larvae travel with the Loop Current and then get dumped on the coral reefs of the Florida Keys. So no matter how many divers and snorkelers catch, there are always more, albeit small, coming in on the next tide.

The limit is six per person per day. Click here to learn more about spiny lobster.

Holy sturgeon!

Jeff Summers, an officer with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, was enjoying a day on the Suwannee River with his family last Saturday when he saw a three-foot-long sturgeon jump out of the water and land in a boat that was passing by.

Fortunately, nobody was hurt, except the fish of course. The boat sustained some minor damage, and the fish was returned to the water, apparently no worse for the wear.

But every year about this time reports such as this start to filter in from the Suwannee, one of the last breeding grounds of the rare Gulf sturgeon. The fish, once found throughout the Gulf of Mexico, is now largely confined to the West Florida River. State officials estimate that as many as 7,500 sturgeon, averaging about 40 pounds each, spend about two thirds of the year in the Suwannee.

The fish, which can get seven feet long and weigh more than 170 pounds, have had some pretty nasty collisions with people on personal watercraft in recent years. That is why state officials urge boaters to slow down during the spring and summer months when travelling along the Suwannee.

Nobody knows for sure why sturgeon jump. One theory is that they might be engaging in some type of dominance display. Another is that the fish are attempting to communicate. But then again, strugeon may jump simply because they are happy.

(Times photo - Lara Cerri, 2006. Click to enlarge.)