#1. Tom’s nephew. This is what it’s all about for Tom.
#2 A great day spearfishing with Tom’s team.
HORSESHOE BEACH
Where did the summer go? It has been a fun-filled several months in Horseshoe Beach. Scallop season has been very good and kept plenty of folks on the water, when it seems too hot to do anything else. Water clarity hasn’t been great south of Pepperfish Keys, but it hasn’t slowed us down. Luckily, the area north of Pepperfish, held a ton of scallops all year long, and gave most people “who are serious about scavenging in the water” a full day’s limit. With the recent heavy rain, and the woods full of fresh water running off into the Gulf, I’m sure that it’s going to wrap up scalloping about the time the season ends. We sure don’t have anything to complain about there. I’ve seen scallop season last a lot shorter time due to Mother Nature.
Offshore fishing has been a lot of fun this year. The extension of red snapper season was a great blessing and surely makes those trips offshore worthwhile. We have consistently been able to catch a limit of snapper and come home with some grouper, cobia and other fish, making a good haul and a great box of fish on most trips. Even though snapper season is coming to an end, I hope everyone who was able, enjoyed pulling these fish off the bottom. Continue to be diligent and stayed informed and ready to send a message next year, when it comes time for decisions to be made about our ARS season. This year has been a great opportunity to educate yourself on how government works, when it comes to regulation of our public resources.
Inshore fishing hasn’t been all that hot, except for temperature hot. Offshore grass beds have produced some nice trout. These fish should start moving into the shallower grass flats through the month of September and October. When we start to see a slight temperature change, start fishing deeper outside grass, and move shallower until you find the fish. Cajun thunder rigged with about 18 to 20 inches of fluorocarbon underneath it, and a live shrimp or gulp shrimp, should get it done. Redfish are just starting to show up in decent numbers, and later this month and October, are prime months to target redfish. Outer bars, grass point and creek mouths should produce a limit of redfish. Keep informed; there is a lot of momentum behind a four-year moratorium on redfish. Other areas along the Gulf Coast are experiencing supposed decreased redfish numbers. There is momentum to shut it down for several years. One per person is fair to me, and I wish we could get some more enforcement of the One-Fish Law. I know a lot of you are not much in favor of seeing heavy FWC patrol, however, there is a lot of overfishing of redfish and anglers coming to the hill, exceeding the limit. Some of these people have fish in the freezer, that have been in there for months. I’m the first to support eating fish, especially a redfish grilled on the half shell, but fresh is best! Now you have my opinionated comment for this month.
Fall is near and its starts a favorite time of the year to fish for many of us. Horseshoe has an awesome inshore fishery, and this is the time of year to see it at its best. Spend some time enjoying seeking out new areas to fish, being responsible with laws and conservation and remember, we all want this to be available for future generations to come. Horseshoe is a great place to see the beautiful sunsets, shrimp boats and a very simple, quiet way of life. Come see us.