It’s Not Too Late To Prepare For the Big Bend’s 2017 Scallop Harvest

It’s June and there’s just another month until the fun begins! New dates apply for the 2017 Florida Recreational Bay Scallop Harvest, particularly in all of Dixie County and part of Taylor County.  Those two counties are the nexus of the harvest on our Natural North Florida Gulf coast. “The 2017 bay scallop season for …

New “User-Friendly” Dates Announced For Big Bend 2017 Recreational Bay Scallop Season

In recent years, Florida’s Recreational Bay Scallop harvest rules were fairly simple.  You could “catch” your limit of these tasty morsels from the Pasco/Hernando County line to the Mexico Beach Canal from July 1 until September 24th.  Some places were better than others with regards to the size and number of scallops available.  But now, …

Fishing October’s Lower Tides on the Gulf Coast

One thing I can’t predict is the weather or wind, and it turned out that we had a fair amount of the latter this past weekend when Hurricane Matthew chewed up Florida’s east coast.  Big storms like Matthew produce winds on both coasts. However, it looked like our fish didn’t really care. Trout and reds …

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.  …

“Hooking Up With Heroes” Tournament, Horseshoe Beach–September 17, 2016

As we all know Horseshoe Beach is certainly enjoying a bountiful scalloping season this year and everybody shares in that enthusiasm. From Denis Buckley at Horseshoe Beach Marina” “We  have planned a very special event for our Veterans who we could never do enough for us on September 17th 2016.”  

Our Seagrasses, And What They Mean To Big Bend Anglers (And Snorkelers!)

The largest natural preserve, our Big Bend Seagrasses Aquatic Preserve is huge–almost a million square acres.  And it’s a big part of the reason that our Gulf coastal fishery is so good.  It stretches from Waccasass Bay in Levy County to St. Marks in Wakulla County and serves as a nursery for small bait fish, …

Fishing Feature: Kayaking in Fishbone Creek

If you’re camping at Shired Island, staying at Horseshoe Beach or Cross City, or just making a day trip with your kayak to the Dixie County coast, don’t miss launching at the headwaters of Fishbone Creek and heading out to the bars in Horseshoe Cove.   On higher tides, these backwaters flood well into the …

Get Your Seafood Dinner “Fresh From The Shrimp Boat Restaurant” in Horseshoe Beach

As one of the locals told me, “It don’t get no fresher”.  And despite the grammar, when you know your seafood was recently swimming in local waters, that’s all that counts. The Shrimp Boat isn’t hard to find.  It’s on Main Street (the MAIN street!!) just across from the boat ramp.  There’s plenty of parking …

Headed West To Horseshoe Beach? Don’t Miss Lily Creek Store on Hwy 351

Located about halfway between Cross City and Horseshoe Beach, Fl, Lily Creek General Store and Cafe is a “must stop” if you think you’ll need any supplies for your vacation or fishing trip.  While there are some supplies available at the Horseshoe Beach Marina, you might consider stopping and browsing at Lily Creek Store before …

“More Than The Usual” at Horseshoe Beach Marina in Dixie County

Horseshoe Beach Marina USED to be pretty typical for a place that’s off the beaten path, on a stretch of Florida’s Gulf coastline that’s known for having lots of fish, but not much more.  Before it’s purchase by Dennis Buckley, the marina rarely had gas, and the operator was torn between his (very good) guiding …