In St. Lucie County,
Guide Charlie Conner reports spotted seatrout have been a little tough to entice, but with the wind laying down and water clarity improving Capt. Conner expects the bite to pick up. Snook and redfish can be found along the mangrove shore line early in the morning hitting live shrimp and soft plastic jerkbaits with 1/4 ounce jig heads. Bluefish and Spanish mackerel are hitting spoons and jigs along the beach even further offshore.
The report made an outstanding outcome and it would result for another fishing result.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Brazil's Fernando de Noronha is an eco-paradise
By Robert Hilferty
Following a trail leading to one of Brazil's most beautiful beaches, I was wonder-struck by a craggy, thumb-shaped rock towering 1,060 feet above the shimmering sea. This geological showoff was a signal of more natural splendors ahead.
Morro do Pico (Peaks Hill) is one of many glorious sites on the island of Fernando de Noronha, a former penal colony that once housed gypsies, murderers and political prisoners. Today it's an eco-paradise teeming with marine life and pristine, uncrowded beaches.
Fernando de Noronha is only an hour's flight from Recife, a city on the country's northeastern coast that's cluttered with high-rises and known for murky waters and shark attacks. But the island seems light years away with its sparkling sand, turquoise waters and friendly dolphins and turtles.
The island, once visited by Charles Darwin, is the largest of 21 in a volcanic archipelago named after a Portuguese aristocrat who never set foot on its shores.
After arriving, I wasted no time sampling the beach closest to my pousada, one of about 120 modest inns scattered on the island. My one-star inn (Pousada da Morena) cost $230 a night, but the nicest bungalows at fancier places like Ze Maria and Maravilha can top $1,000 during high season in January, which is Brazil's summer.
On the beach
While walking to Praia da Conceicao (Beach of Conception), I first spotted Morro do Pico, the soaring rock that can be seen from almost anywhere on the island. After almost being flattened by two boys racing on horseback — a surrealistic scene right out of a Bunuel film — I eventually found my way to an immaculate beach where I bathed in equatorial warmth as the sun set.
The pristine environment is no accident.
The area was designated Brazil's first National Marine Park in 1988 and was named a World Heritage site in 2001. You won't find any beachfront Sheratons or Marriotts here. Visitors, whose numbers are limited, are charged an environmental protection tax of about $22 a day. And you can get slapped with a $200 fine for littering.
The next day I woke up with an urge to cavort with sea turtles. While my friend Jorge pursued his scuba passion, I headed to Baia do Sueste (Bay of the Southeast), where I rented snorkeling gear and a guide for about $50. In no time I was swimming within arms reach of a dozen or so of these wondrous creatures, who weren't disturbed in the least by my presence.
Stingrays were also abundant. A few times I found myself inside a kaleidoscopic swirl of blue and orange fish, making me feel like an underwater Doctor Dolittle.
I then strolled to the adjacent Praia do Leao under the beating sun. Though named after a lion, the beach is best known for its turtles. In fact, no one is allowed on it after 6 p.m. between December and June because green turtles come ashore and galumph their way up the strand to dump eggs, a painstaking two-hour process. (Fifty days later, adorable hatchlings emerge from their sandy cribs and make a beeline to the sea — if a nasty bird doesn't snack on them first.)
Jorge's scuba dive was also a success. Armed with an underwater camera, he saw fascinating rock formations and coral in the Buraco do Inferno (Hell Hole), a diving site that features more than 200 types of fish, including peacock flounder, goliath grouper and harmless reef and nurse sharks uninterested in noshing on your limbs.
Grinning dolphins
Dolphins, though, are the islands star attraction. There's even a bay named after them: Baia dos Golfinhos.
To get an up-close view, I recommend a boat trip. Mine left from Santo Antonio harbor at the islands northern tip, traveling south along the coast as far as the Ponta da Sapata, a massive rocky wall punched with a curious hole the shape of Brazil.
After passing the Baia dos Golfinhos, we suddenly found ourselves surrounded by playful dolphins. The most mischievous ones raced ahead of our boat in packs of five or six, periodically peeling off while seeming to flash a grin.
Soon we were treated to a magnificent view of Dois Irmaos (Two Brothers), twin peaks of volcanic rock rising out of the water whose peculiar beauty is enhanced by centuries of guano droppings. I saw surfers riding huge waves on the Cacimba do Padre beach and decided to participate in my own water sport — Plana Sub, a popular activity in which you're dragged by the boat while holding onto a plastic board, alternately skimming and submerging. Just like a dolphin.
One dolphin-sighting tip: Avoid the crack-of-dawn outing to the Mirante dos Golfinhos lookout point. You're too high and too far away to see much of anything. However, it is a good starting point for a hike to the most stunning beach on the island, Baia do Sancho. En route you'll see Mabuya lizards and exotic birds, as well as an indigenous rodent that looks like a rabbit-squirrel mix.
Out of the way
Getting to the beach is tricky. You must descend two rusty ladders positioned in narrow crevices in the cliff before negotiating a steep stony staircase. It's worth the effort. Surrounded by stunning cliffs and swaying palm trees, the bay is glorious. The sand is silky white and the azure water is crystal clear. Best of all, the beach was almost empty.
While the perimeter of the island is gorgeous, the interior isn't. Most roads, aside from the main highway, are unpaved and turn to mud after a heavy rain. And since no accommodations are close to the beach, you must rent a dune buggy for $125 a day or ride pricey taxis, which cost a minimum of $10.
The small village of Vila dos Remedios, the islands town center, has a few good restaurants and cafes, plus one bank. At the outdoor Bar do Cachorro you can enjoy a caipirinha (the national cocktail of cachaca, sugar and lime) and dance to forgo, regional folk music that features an accordion, triangle and zabumba drum.
All while dreaming of your next encounter with turtles, dolphins and empty beaches.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Hundreds of killer whales seen in Gulf of Mexico
By JAY REEVES
It was a fish story that even veteran boat captains found fascinating: As many as 200 killer whales feeding on tuna in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
"It was like being at Sea World because they'd come right up to the boat," said Eddie Hall, captain of the Shady Lady, the 60-foot charter boat that spotted the shiny black sea beasts with white eye patches and undersides. "It was pretty neat."
It was also hard for some skeptics to believe: Orcas, as killer whales are also known, typically are thought to live in cold water and eat seals.
But Hall's description of what he saw last Oct. 31 was no tall tale: A government biologist who saw video taken from Hall's boat confirmed the captain had spotted the creatures. And last week that same scientist, Keith Mullin, explained at a public meeting in Orange Beach, Ala., that yes, contrary to common perceptions, killer whales really do live in the Gulf, far from land.
Mullin, whose outfit has been working for years to get an accurate count of the Gulf's whale population, said it may be time to dramatically increase estimates on how many killer whales are lurking in the deep waters off the Gulf Coast. He's taking part in a research expedition this summer that could determine if his hunch is right.
Scientists believe the whales have been in the Gulf for years, Mullin said, and that their presence — though startling to some anglers — isn't a sign of climate change or other manmade condition. Their relatively small population and the speed at which pods move make them difficult to count, which could have led to lower estimates.
"I've got good records of them in the Caribbean. We see them almost exclusively in deep water, 600 feet and more," Mullin said. "I think they've always been there. It's just in the last 15 to 20 years that we've been trying to study them."
Hall told The Associated Press on Monday that the Shady Lady was 95 miles off the coast of Alabama when anglers and crew saw scores of the marine mammals feeding near an offshore rig in water more than a mile deep.
"There were four different pods. We estimated there were about 200 maximum. One pod had 75 in it," said Hall, who runs charters out of Zeke's Landing in Orange Beach, about 40 miles east of Mobile.
People on the boat took video and photos, including some with the offshore rig in the background to identify their location. But Hall said they got laughed off the dock when they returned.
"It was a joke because no one would believe us," he said.
Hall sent photos and video to Gary Finch, whose Fairhope-based Gary Finch Outdoors company produces a syndicated fishing and hunting television show. Finch then showed them to Mullin, who works at the Southeast Fisheries Science Center in Pascagoula, Miss., an arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that researches marine life.
Mullin didn't have to look twice: Hall was right about seeing killer whales, although he couldn't tell by the video how many were near Hall's boat, he said in an interview with AP.
The Shady Lady sighting "created a stir" over killer whales in the Gulf of Mexico, Mullin said; about 80 people attended the informational meeting he held in Orange Beach last week.
Gulf orcas are just like the ones that live in cold water, Mullin said, save for their diet of dolphin and tuna instead of seals. Male killer whales average 20 feet in length and weigh as much as 12,000 pounds, but females are smaller.
Fifteen groups of killer whales have been sighted in the Gulf since deep-water surveys began in 1992, he said. Past estimates have varied widely, from a low of 49 to a high of 277 living in the Gulf north of a line extending from Key West, Fla., to Brownsville, Texas.
The actual number of killer whales in the Gulf could be closer to 500, Mullin said, and a two-month expedition this summer could help nail down an answer. The trip was planned independently of the boat's sighting, he said.
Either way, Hall's glad Mullin's outfit is involved. He knew what he saw, but he was still happy to get confirmation that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.
It was a fish story that even veteran boat captains found fascinating: As many as 200 killer whales feeding on tuna in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
"It was like being at Sea World because they'd come right up to the boat," said Eddie Hall, captain of the Shady Lady, the 60-foot charter boat that spotted the shiny black sea beasts with white eye patches and undersides. "It was pretty neat."
It was also hard for some skeptics to believe: Orcas, as killer whales are also known, typically are thought to live in cold water and eat seals.
But Hall's description of what he saw last Oct. 31 was no tall tale: A government biologist who saw video taken from Hall's boat confirmed the captain had spotted the creatures. And last week that same scientist, Keith Mullin, explained at a public meeting in Orange Beach, Ala., that yes, contrary to common perceptions, killer whales really do live in the Gulf, far from land.
Mullin, whose outfit has been working for years to get an accurate count of the Gulf's whale population, said it may be time to dramatically increase estimates on how many killer whales are lurking in the deep waters off the Gulf Coast. He's taking part in a research expedition this summer that could determine if his hunch is right.
Scientists believe the whales have been in the Gulf for years, Mullin said, and that their presence — though startling to some anglers — isn't a sign of climate change or other manmade condition. Their relatively small population and the speed at which pods move make them difficult to count, which could have led to lower estimates.
"I've got good records of them in the Caribbean. We see them almost exclusively in deep water, 600 feet and more," Mullin said. "I think they've always been there. It's just in the last 15 to 20 years that we've been trying to study them."
Hall told The Associated Press on Monday that the Shady Lady was 95 miles off the coast of Alabama when anglers and crew saw scores of the marine mammals feeding near an offshore rig in water more than a mile deep.
"There were four different pods. We estimated there were about 200 maximum. One pod had 75 in it," said Hall, who runs charters out of Zeke's Landing in Orange Beach, about 40 miles east of Mobile.
People on the boat took video and photos, including some with the offshore rig in the background to identify their location. But Hall said they got laughed off the dock when they returned.
"It was a joke because no one would believe us," he said.
Hall sent photos and video to Gary Finch, whose Fairhope-based Gary Finch Outdoors company produces a syndicated fishing and hunting television show. Finch then showed them to Mullin, who works at the Southeast Fisheries Science Center in Pascagoula, Miss., an arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that researches marine life.
Mullin didn't have to look twice: Hall was right about seeing killer whales, although he couldn't tell by the video how many were near Hall's boat, he said in an interview with AP.
The Shady Lady sighting "created a stir" over killer whales in the Gulf of Mexico, Mullin said; about 80 people attended the informational meeting he held in Orange Beach last week.
Gulf orcas are just like the ones that live in cold water, Mullin said, save for their diet of dolphin and tuna instead of seals. Male killer whales average 20 feet in length and weigh as much as 12,000 pounds, but females are smaller.
Fifteen groups of killer whales have been sighted in the Gulf since deep-water surveys began in 1992, he said. Past estimates have varied widely, from a low of 49 to a high of 277 living in the Gulf north of a line extending from Key West, Fla., to Brownsville, Texas.
The actual number of killer whales in the Gulf could be closer to 500, Mullin said, and a two-month expedition this summer could help nail down an answer. The trip was planned independently of the boat's sighting, he said.
Either way, Hall's glad Mullin's outfit is involved. He knew what he saw, but he was still happy to get confirmation that his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Watch out for young dolphins
Senior Conservation Officer for the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary, Rob Laver says it is important for the community to be responsible when interacting with the dolphins in the Port River.
“Two of the most important things for people to remember are keeping your distance and lowering your boat speed,” he said.
DEH rangers who operate in the sanctuary often have to caution people who are either harassing dolphins by getting too close or who put them at risk by going too fast in their boats.
By law, boat users need to keep their speed below 5 knots if the vessel is within 150 metres of a dolphin.
Mr Laver says while it's understandable that people are keen to have an ‘up close and personal’ experience with dolphins, they must remember to keep their distance by at least 50 metres.
“Excessive interaction can result in a loss of feeding behaviour, which can impact on both mother and baby. Also calves do not need to be fed by members of the public. Dolphins are wild animals, and it is important for us to respect their habitat," he said.
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