dixie
Warmer Water and Air Temperatures Drive Snook North Into Florida’s Nature Coast
Snook are one of Florida’s most popular gamefish Traditionally, in years past, West Florida’s snook population remained south of our Natural North Florida waters. That was largely due to cold winters, which either run snook into warm residential canals on the upper suncoast, or kill them outright. However, winters over the last ten or twelve …
Boat? What Boat? Try Wade-Fishing on Florida’s Taylor and Dixie County Coastlines
Redfish are a common catch for anglers wading the Big Bend I guess I’m guilty of assuming that everyone who fishes on the Big Bend has a boat. I’m hardly an elitist, but consider myself lucky to have had access to, or ownership of, a boat for the last 50 years. However, I’ve …
Natural North Florida Overcomes Hurricane Hermine
Hurricane Hermine comes ashore on Florida’s Big Bend, September 1, 2016 with minimal hurricane force winds. We’re a tough, resilient bunch in Natural North Florida. When Hurricane Hermine hit just east of St. Marks in Wakulla and Jefferson counties on September 1, 2016 it had been a full decade since we’d had a similar event. …
Get Lost (Or Not!) At Dixie County Florida’s Shired Island
Dixie County has a few “roads to nowhere”, but Hwy 357 actually goes “somewhere”. It runs from about the mid-point of Hwy 351 between Cross City and Horseshoe Beach to Shired Island. Shired Island is bounded by Shired Creek and Johnson Creek and connected to “land” by a short bridge over Shired Creek. Once you …
Off the Beaten Path: Scalloping in Horseshoe Beach, Dixie County
If you’re contemplating a trip to our Natural North Florida coast to snorkel for scallops this 2016 recreational harvest season, be aware that our main ports of St. Marks, Steinhatchee and Keaton Beach are crowded. It was estimated that there were 1500 boats leaving the river on opening day and while there were likely less …
Natural North Florida Springs–Cool in Summer, Warm in Winter
Our Natural North Florida counties (Alachua, Gilchrist, Levy, Dixie, Taylor, Madison, Jefferson, Union, Lafayette and Wakulla) have the largest concentration of natural freshwater springs in the world. And, when the weather gets hot, they’re the perfect place to cool off. However, visitors and residents flock to the springs, and their contant 72-degree water temperatures, when …
2015 Bay Scallop Reports, Steinhatchee and Keaton Beach
The second week of Florida’s 2015 recreational bay scallop season proved much more productive than the first. There were no steady sea breezes keeping the water dirty and the travel to the scallop grounds rough. And the mid-day low tides made it easier for kids and beginner-swimmers to search the grass for the tasty bivalves. …
Gag Grouper Harvest Opens 4/1/14 In Three Natural North Florida Counties
Gag Grouper Harvest Opens 4/1/14 In Three Natural North Florida Counties
Water Temperatures Cross The 70-Degree Threshold on Florida’s Big Bend–And The March Fishing Is Great!
This past week (the first week of March 2015), Gulf of Mexico water temperatures finally crossed over the 70-degree mark. And the BITE IS ON! All the ports in our regiion (Yankeetown, Waccasassa, Cedar Key, Suwannee, Horseshoe Beach, Steinhatchee, Keaton Beach, Econfina, Aucilla, St. Marks and Panacea) report great catches of spotted seatrout and redfish, …