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This
Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 7/24/03
Kait displays
a scallop!
Nita Chester from
Adbiz of Alachua shows off a fine Redfish!
WE HAVE FOUND THE SCALLOPS! The area just north of Piney Point is hiding lots of scallops. Folks traveling approximately 9.5 miles north of the Steinhatchee River mouth are limiting out regularly in that area. The scallops are in the deeper water this year. A big plus is that the meat is one and a half times the size it was last year. So getting half your limit is prducing the same amount of meat as a full limit last year! I hope that the growth continues into August because last season the meat was huge and very yummy then! Hope to see you soon - the Hag!
SCALLOPING by Brian Kiel
Fourteen of us (3 families) stayed in Steinhatchee during July 14-18 to do a little scalloping, fishing, and diving during our annual Steinhatchee Scallop family get-together. Since this is long I’ll summarize this for those just looking for information.
Scalloping was challenging, as the water clarity was not the best due to the recent and large freshwater outflow from our local rivers. We’ve definitely become spoiled over the last few years with outstanding clear water! Overall, to the north we found the scallops to be larger but the visibility was poorer compared to the south. However, the furthest northern point we ran to was to Big Grassy which is ~ 8 miles to the north.
(Sea Hag interjection: We have now found that just north of Big Grassy Key everyone is limiting out in scallops. It still takes a bit of time to collect them, but every boat going that far north is getting their limit of scallops (approx. 9.5 miles).)
To the south,
we found the water to be clearer but the scallops were just a little bit
smaller. To the south we found reasonable clear water in 4 feet deep beginning
at about 4 miles south of the Steinhatchee channel markers. Around Pepperfish
Key no doubt the vis was even better. It’s hard to state where the
scallops seemed to be the most abundant (north or south). Around Pepperfish
on two occasions we had boat limits within a short time of hitting the water.
Regardless of north or south we found the scallop meats to be large.
[One of the key things we’ve learned to help us find a good shallow water scallop location concerns finding an area containing manatee grass (locals call it “needle grass”). We’ve found that the scallops seem to be much thicker in this type of grass than in thick turtle grass, especially if the manatee grass has rolled up clumps of loose dark algae (locals call it “moss”). The scallops love to set on top of this moss. An area containing a mixture of both turtle grass and “needle grass” is optimal. See this link to get an idea of what “needle grass” looks like (you want a denser needle grass patch than the pictures shows though): http://www.floridaoceanographic.org/environ/images/seagrass/syringodium.jpg. Another key point is that if the tide is near slack tide the scallops drop down to the bottom and wait for more water movement before they “swim” up to sit on top of the seagrasses (they are filter feeders). So if the area your looking at doesn’t seem to have abundant scallops maybe take a closer look at the bottom]
While this was not a serious fishing trip my nephews did do a little inshore fishing. Within one mile north, northwest of the #1 marker they did catch a few 17-18” trout in 3-6 feet using pinfish under floats and they also caught a nice 26” redfish on a topwater plug in the early a.m. next to shore. Floating seagrasses were a problem inshore for casting plugs and artificials. We did not pick up a cobia on the #1 marker despite trying a couple of times. Offshore grouper fishing was problematic as numerous short red grouper pounced on anything dropped down.
Here’s a summary of how our trip went along with a few low-resolution pictures:
Monday: Around 6 p.m. we thought we’d take a look at a spot 1 mile due north of the Steinhatchee #1 channel marker where we had excellent scalloping last year on a high tide. It was high tide again but the water was dark, very dark and we didn’t see any scallops. Obviously we needed to look a little further away from the river.
Tuesday: We loaded up the guys and headed offshore to play with the groupers. With plenty of pinfish in the livewell we headed to 60 feet. On the way out there were large floating mats of seagrass on the surface which would of made trolling difficult. Surface water temp was 84º F. and we could see a few bait pods on the surface on the way out. A couple of pods had something slashing at the bait. Since we had to be back by 1 p.m. we only anchored on 2 spots in 60 feet. At both spots the pinfish (and anything else dropped down) were consumed by sublegal red grouper but the boys enjoyed catching them. Interestingly we only caught 2 gag grouper and fortunately both were legal (largest was 23.5”). One was caught on fresh remora and the second on a live pinfish. At noon we headed in to pick up the girls and the younger children to go scalloping.
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Kait with a scallop
At ~ 1:30 p.m. we went ~ 8 miles to the north off Big Grass. A number of boats were there but we found the visibility to be poor and the scallops not very abundant. We started running south looking for clearer water and we stopped 5 more times before we found good visibility, a nice stand of manatee grass in 4 feet of water, and scallops abundant enough to warrant anchoring (enough to find 2 or 3 on a single breath). We ended up just southwest of Dallus Creek, ~3.5 miles to the north of Steinhatchee #1 marker. In 1 ½ hours we managed about 12 gallons, plus one 18” flounder taken with a pole spear (I carry a small float to mark the location of a flounder and return with a pole spear). At one point I was lucky enough to watch a 17-18” spotted seatrout hang around an opening in the seagrass. I had never really thought about it before but those spots on the dorsal posterior portion of the trout body REALLY blend into the dark holes amongst the individual seagrass blades when you view the seagrasses from above.
Wednesday: In
the morning we loaded up SCUBA tanks to take my twin 17 year old nephews
on their first 
post
certification dive (they completed their SCUBA certification 3 days earlier).
Heading offshore, seas were 1 foot and the trip out to 40 feet didn’t
take long. Again floating mats of seagrass were thick offshore. We dove
a ledge in 42 feet of water and from the surface down to 20 feet there was
a dark layer of water that progressively grew lighter in color as you approached
20 feet. Very peculiarly, the surface was cooler than that of the bottom.
Underwater visibility was excellent at around 50 feet with a bottom temp
of ~ 85 º F. During the dive we saw ~25 legal AJs milling around, one
“bonging” 300 lb + jewfish (goliath grouper), 2 small permit,
numerous gag, some large and small barracudas (up to at least 30 lbs), and
a few mangrove snapper. Just off the ledge there was a large school of small
2-3 inch sardines hanging above the bottom. On this dive we found what appeared
to be a heavy new danford anchor with 12 feet of chain and 80 feet of 5/8”
anchor line. Why they cut the line at 80 feet I don’t understand as
the depth was 42 feet (?). The dive conditions were outstanding and everyone
was comfortable diving only in shorts.
At noon we ran in to pick up everyone and headed north again to scallop around the Dallus Creek area. This time scalloping was a little slower and we only managed 10 gallons over a 2 hour period.
Thursday: At 10 a.m. we headed south enroute to Pepperfish to scallop (hopefully to find clearer water). The week before we picked up 10 gallons of scallops around Pepperfish Key and we decided to go to the south this time. Lightening and thunder were directly overhead of Pepperfish so we stopped ~ 4 miles south of Steinhatchee in 4 feet of water. Visibility was pretty good but the scallops were not abundant. After a little while the storm moved inland and we stopped just west of Bowlegs Point (~8 miles south of the #1 channel marker). Visibility was pretty decent and in 4 feet of water we idled around until we found a large patch of manatee grass. A single diver confirmed the area had a good population of scallops. Over the course of 2 hours and on a single anchor set we invited 20 gallons of scallops into the boat. We then spent the next hour + cleaning scallops but it went fast as we had up to 7 shuckers working to fill our allotted one gallon ziplock baggie full of meats.
On the way back in we headed offshore a little to ~14 feet and put the tube out and pulled the kids around for a little bit. For the majority of kids it was their first time on a tube and everyone enjoyed it.
Friday: In the
morning 4 year old Casey & I took the boat out to do a little pinfishing
prior to having to pack up and check out of the Sunset Place Condos. Just
north of the channel markers the water was very dark and 
you
couldn’t see bottom in 3 feet, however Casey caught enough pinfish
to keep him happy and he also got to catch two catfish on his own on a larger
rod with a live pinfish. On this outing he became proficient in catching
his own pinfish, removing the hook, and releasing his own pinfish. We even
caught a small 3” trout on a small gold hook (see photo). Around 9
a.m. we came back in to pack up in preparation for checking out. Everyone
had an excellent time and thoroughly enjoyed our time on the water.
Brian Kiel
Casey with a nice pinfish
Nice 3” trout
FISHING
with Capt. Paul Cronk
The blonde is Donna Wildes, her boyfriend - Sidney Douglas, the older couple - Carol & Charles Wildes, from Alma, Georgia. They were a great group. Carol had been in a wheelchair for a year and unable to walk due to an illness. She said the only thing that got her through the illness and the therapy was the hope that she would be able to go fishing again. Her husband hung a redfish in her hospital room to give her hope. Donna was her nurse. (Paul said he thinks he is feeling a little ill.) Here are some of the pictures. (Remember, you can enlarge any picture by clicking on it!)
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SCALLOPING with CAPT. PAUL CRONK
The dad is Dwain Key, his son Mike, and a friend Tony, from Covington, Georgia. The one of Mike holding the scallop bag is pretty good.
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Sea Hag Scallop
Charter, July 7th, Susan and Bill Holstine (not sure of the last name spelling),
kids, and grandparents. I think they had a good time. Paul even had the
small compressor on board to blow up their floats - "Sea Hag's Full
Service Charters".
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MORE SEA HAG MARINA PICTURES
Click picture to see enlarge
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This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 6/24/03
Well if this rain would quit we'd be able to get a report. Last weekend was a little slow due to the full moon. The charter boats all brought in a decent catch but other than that the weather has been prohibiting fishing all together. ----- Okay, so the rain stopped, come fishing!
Scallop season starts July 1st.To buy fishing licenses online CLICK HERE SEA HAG MARINA highly recommends buying your fishing licenses before you make your Steinhatchee visit. All that scalloping requires is a regular saltwater fishing licenses. Out of state folks can buy a 3 day licenses online for $7.00 plus a handling fee. You simply enter the dates of your stay and you will receive an authorization number confirming your licenses. Florida residents do the same but the license sells as a one year for $14.00 plus fee. Out of state can buy 3 day, 7-day, or 1 year. Sea Hag Marina will only sell fishing licenses as cash sales. Those wishing to purchase with a credit card will do so in the store online - so buy now Fishing Licenses Online! The Fish & Game Commission are changing the purchsing method for fishing licenses and Sea Hag Marina will no longer be able to process 10 licenses at a time. We will have to process one at a time making a long waiting line. If you are unconfortable about purchasing online you can by over the phone at 1-888-347-4356. I believe the fee is about $1.95 but don't hold me to that.
The scallop outlook is plentiful in the Gulf near the Steinhatchee River mouth. July 1st is the opening of scallop season and goes until September 10th. Steinhatchee is one of the only places in the world where you can collect scallops. These delectable shellfish can easily be scooped up by the most novices of swimmers. It is best if you simply snorkel in approximately four foot of water and dive to collect them by hand. We at the Sea Hag Marina recommends going out the channel until marker 9 then turning north or south and traveling one to five miles. Look for the boats in the grass flats a mile in either direction then find your own spot and anchor up. You should be able to spot the scallops in the water although this year it shall be a little bit more challenging as we still have some brownish color due to the winter's overwhelming rain. The northern area last year produced larger scallops but they were more scattered than the scallops on the southern grassy areas. Scallops are easily collected by hand while snorkeling or can be scooped up with a long handle net while sitting on the boat. The limit for scallops is 2 gallons of whole scallops per person with a maximum of 10 gallons per boat or 1 pint of scallop meat per person or a half-gallon maximum of meat per boat. You are required to carry a saltwater fishing license to collect scallops. Other equipment that can be purchased at the Sea Hag Marina are dive flags (we have over 400 in stock at $14.59 - beats Wal-Mart), scallop bags, masks, fins, snorkels and small accessories such as straps, clips, no fog, dry boxes, etc. We are also setting up tp become a Sherwood Dive Shop. We should be carrying Sherwood's top of the line regulators, BC's, mask, fins, wetsuits, and accessories. We will also be renting dive tanks for $8.50 a day. Sea Hag Marina offers a place to clean scallops or you can call one of the many locals who will clean them for you for a small fee. If you plan to make a weekend trip, I recommend making reservations for a motel room and a boat slip as early as possible, as the town fills up quickly. The first two weeks are very crowded but are very fun. If you wish to avoid the crowds, come in August.
Currently folks are catching Redfish around oyster bars using a live shrimp on a 4/O hook. The flats around the former Marker 18 is producing some nice size Spotted Seatrout and lots Cobia. To catch the trout, I recommend using a 3/4 ounce ready rig with a Cajun Thunder float. For bait, use live shrimp, frozen shrimp or some of the local baitfish, like a small pinfish or green backs. For artificial rigs try a red 1/4 ounce jighead with the Saltwater Assassin grub tails in the colors of electric chicken, chartreuse diamond, limetreuse or candy corn. Other grub tails that are working great are Riptides Gold-n-Glows with and without the firetail. If you like to toss a lure, the top seller 4 to 1 is the Rapala Skitterwalk. Colors best are silver mullet and chartreuse.
Large Cobia are being landed almost daily. Look for Cobia to hide near structures such as channel markers and pilings. Expect them to approach the boat as well. If you see this fish, try casting a live pinfish in his direction. Some folks use a large bobber to keep the bait near the surface. You may also use a balloon. Cobia are finicky eaters so if the live bait does not work try throwing everything in your tackle box at them. You may be pleasantly surprised. If you are trout fishing, rig a larger pole with a free-floating pinfish (or with a large float to keep the bait at the surface) and stick it in a rod holder just in case a stray fish happens by while you drift. The Cobia must be 33' in length from the nose to the fork. They are also excellent to eat!
Offshore the grouper fishing has been fair as long as the weather is cooperating. Many nice grouper have been caught in as close as 18 miles although most fishermen are catching them in the 25 mile range. The top baits for Grouper are thread herring, Spanish sardines, cigar minnows, and squid. Trolling the Stretch 30+ lures is producing larger fish than bottom rigs. Troll Stretch 30+'s at 3 to 4 knots using a 25lb. or 30lb. test line or use 65 lb. test braids. While trolling, many folks have been hooking up some really nice sized Kingfish. Kingfish tend to hit the shinier color Stretch 30+ such as the black/chrome or the blue/chrome. Hottest selling Stretch 30+ is the Perch.
Good Luck!
This Week's Steinhatchee Fishing Report 5/29/03
I apologize for the delayed report. I think I'm working too hard! Not too much has changed from the reports below except that Cobia and Kingfish are being caught on a more regular basis. The top water plugs are working the best for trout with the Skittle Walk being the best seller for the month! Offshore Grouper, Kingfish and Amber Jacks have been scorching! Here are the last two weekends' photos (I'm uploading the pictures now so if they do not appear, they will shortly):
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Captain Bill Brown takes out a high school buddy who lands his first Kingfish and it's a doosie! (5/25/03) |
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5/26/03 |
Bruce VanAllen with 25" Trout (5/24/03) |
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Kellie Young with a Nice Jack! |
Mike Ewing of the Gainesville Offshore Fishing Club displays a 2.5 lb. Trout |
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A Smoakin' King! Wife of Smoak Allen caught this awesome Kingfish! |
I may have my days crossed up (5/17) but I believe this is a picture of HALF of the Brian Sides party that chartered both the "Miss Chaeli" and "Neva-Miss" from Sea Hag Charters (see below left for the other HALF) |
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I may have my days crossed up (5/17) but I believe this is a picture of HALF of the Brian Sides party that chartered both the "Miss Chaeli" and "Neva-Miss" from Sea Hag Charters (see above right for the other HALF) |
