|
Our Heritage, Our
Life, Our Florida
Middle Grounds
By Bob Harbison
The Florida Middle Grounds is considered by many to offer the
ultimate Florida Gulf of Mexico fishing experience. A typical
trip aboard the Florida Fisherman, Hubbard’s Marina, Madeira
Beach, Florida, begins at 3:00 p.m. Friday afternoon. It takes
10 hours to reach our destination deep into the heart of the
Middle Grounds. Fishing time begins around 1:00 a.m. Saturday
morning. Night fishing on the Florida Middle Grounds defies the
imagination. Snapper of all kinds love to feed at night. Even
huge grouper love to feed before the sun makes an appearance on
the eastern horizon. More often than not, by 5:00 a.m. most of
us already have very respectable catches of mangrove and
American red snapper. More
OUR HERITAGE, OUR LIFE, OUR FLORIDA MIDDLE GROUNDS
By Bob Harbison
Snapper are not only fun to catch, but offer meals fit for a
king, they are a real prize. It was 5:00 a.m. early Saturday
morning. The light breeze was perfect, just enough to keep us
cool, with gentle seas running one to two feet. The Florida
Middle Grounds, with calm seas, plenty of fish, and good friends
enjoying the adventure together is exactly what our Middle
Grounds fishing experience is all about. I was fortunate to have
Greg Chinault fishing next to me. The conversation was
wonderful. Only one problem, those darn fish showed no respect
what-so-ever. They were much more interested in our Spanish
sardines than our chit-chat. As the waning moon broke from
behind a cloud, Greg’s six ounce sinker hit the rocky home of
the obliging American red snapper. Greg reeled up about five
turns from the bottom, 125 feet straight down. Instantly a
monster slammed into his bait, and took off like a run away
freight train. Greg, holding on for dear life, was pinned
against the railing. We quickly reeled up to get out of Greg’s
way. We had no idea what species he was fighting. All we knew
was that this monster was big and strong. After a grueling 15
minutes we finally saw color. Greg was completely wiped out.
Will, our first mate, gaffed Greg’s 18.5-pound American red
snapper. What a fight, what a prize! Greg’s trophy of the deep
easily won first prize in the “big fish” snapper jackpot. What a
trip! Bragging rights for years to come, and compliments of the
Florida Middle Grounds, Red snapper filets fit for a king, along
with memories that will last a life time.
The Middle Grounds consist of underwater formations of stony
hard and soft coral growths which in turn provide a natural home
for a very abundant population of huge grouper, fighting
amberjack, snapper, as well as many other species of fish. In
addition, the Grounds are dotted with numerous ship wrecks.
These wrecks provide the angler with outstanding opportunities
for the fight of a lifetime. Many classic battles are fought,
won, and lost as sportsmen challenge the inhabitants who call
the wrecks of these once proud ships home. Giant goliath grouper
weighing hundreds of pounds, amberjack in the 70-to 80-pound
range, and the class act of them all, huge American red snapper,
are waiting to prove that they are now the masters of this
underwater domain.
The Florida Middle Grounds is a very large area 100 miles
northwest of Madeira Beach. The Grounds, encompassing an area of
330 square miles, is noted for limestone pinnacles and ledges
with shear drops of 20 to 30 feet. These ledges, both top and
bottom, hold vast numbers of Gulf reef fish. They are easily
found on a modern day fish finder. Often, indicative of huge
schools of fish, the entire screen is lavished in colors of
yellow, green and red. Grouper can easily be seen on the ledges,
and snapper higher in the water column.
To challenge the Florida Middle Grounds, adequate preparation is
absolutely essential. Florida is a warm tropical state, with hot
days and nights. As such the clothing required to cope with the
heat centers around shorts and a short sleeve shirt. In
addition, due to the abundant sunshine , a cap with a long bill
is considered a must. A good pair of polarized sun glasses will
help to protect ones eyes while enabling the fisherman to better
see his line. The Florida sunshine, even during the winter, is
very strong. Sun block lotion, with an SPF rating of at least 45
is required. Shoes that dry quickly are also needed. “Crock”
rubber soled shoes provide a tremendous cushion against a hard
deck, and dry almost instantly. Florida weather can change
virtually within minutes. As such, rain gear is a priority item.
I have tested many different brands. The best of the best is
“Columbia.” This state of the art clothing breathes, but keeps
moisture out. |
|
|
All Gulf and
Florida folks,
Attached you will find a letter signed by Representative Steve
Southerland and 17 other Florida and Gulf Representatives
supporting NO NEW FUNDING OF ANY NEW CATCH SHARE PROGRAMS. We
need all Florida and Gulf Representatives to sign on to this
letter. Please send the letter along with your request to your
representative today! Action will happen soon on this issue so
this needs your immediate attention.
Thanks,
Bob Zales II
President
Petition >
|
Lawmakers seek bigger role for science in
fisheries regulation
By Steve Urbon
surbon@s-t.com
October 03, 2011 2:59 PM
BOSTON — The fate of the Northeast groundfishing fleet and its
treatment by the government were the subject of a Statehouse
public hearing today by the U,S, Senate Committee on Commerce,
Science and Transportation.
The two-hour meeting in a packed Beacon Hill hearing room lacked
the acrimony of some previous meetings and instead had an air of
inevitability about catch shares and sector management. Much of
the time was spent swapping strong suggestions about improving
NOAA's fisheries science, management and public relations.
NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco, however, took heat from U.S.
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who had become frustrated by her
seeming inability to supply concise answers to questions from
the panel, which was chaired by Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass.
At one point when Lubchenco handed a question off to Eric
Schwaab, head of the National Marine Fisheries Service, Frank
snapped, “Just give a straight answer. It could be yes, it could
be no. You don't have to hire someone to take the SAT for you.”
The panel also included U.S. Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, who
proposed a closed meeting with Congress, fishing
representatives, and NOAA officials to discuss sensitive matters
such as the failure of NOAA to fire its law enforcement chief
after he was found to have shredded up to 80 percent of his
files while his agency was under investigation.
Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., who sat alongside Kerry, repeated his
frustrations at having his requests – demands, in fact — for
NOAA documents ignored and rebuffed.
The meeting ended with a consensus that:
- NOAA's calcified bureaucracy needs to be examined by an ad hoc
committee,
- NOAA fisheries science needs to be redirected to be of better
use,
- a move of fisheries management to the Interior or Agriculture
Department needs to be examined,
- and NOAA's relationship with the fishing industry needs to be
less adversarial and more transparent to rebuild after a total
loss of trust.
No date was set for the closed session. |
|
