2017 Bay Scalloping On Florida’s Nature Coast–An Abundance of Tasty Bivalves!

It’s July, and Natural North Florida’s 2017 recreational bay scallop harvest is off to a roaring start.  The harvest began on June 16 for the waters from Suwannee (in Dixie County) to the Fenholloway River (in Taylor County) and ends on September 10.  The remainder of Taylor County, all of Levy County, Jefferson and Wakulla …

Three Natural North Florida Springs–Free For All!

Some of the best things in our Natural North Florida region are free, and that’s especially true when it comes to three of our smaller springs.  While we have the largest concentration of first and second magnitude freshwater springs in the world, these county-maintained “swimming holes” in Jefferson, Columbia and Alachua counties are fun–and FREE! …

Looking For Some Great Cycling? Download Our Ultimate North Florida Cycling Guide

The Visit Natural North Florida Biking Guide is online and ready to use. You can read it online, or download it as a PDF.   It features 26 one-day cycling trips and 2 multi-day trips, all linked to the RIDE WITH GPS app that’s available for smartphones or certain Garmin GPS units. To use the …

Fishing The Big Bend Marsh–The Closer You Get, The More Reds You’ll Catch!

In the fall, high tides flood, pushing water well into the creeks and marshes all along Levy, Dixie, Taylor, Jefferson and Wakulla Counties, on Florida’s Big Bend.  We don’t have many mangroves, but we do have lots of spartina grass which offers comfort to redfish, or red drum. When the reds get back in the …

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.  …

Fishing Feature: Trophy Creek Outfitters in Monticello

Lots of folks living in and visiting our Natural North Florida region don’t think of rural Jefferson County as a Mecca for fishermen, in fresh or salt water.  Of course, there’s lots of great hunting land, but we need to consider that Jefferson County stretches all the way from it’s short Gulf of Mexico coastline …

Off The Beaten Path: Jefferson County Florida’s Short 6-Mile Gulf Shoreline

If, on a fishing trip to the Jefferson County coastline, you think you’re the first human to ever see this shoreline, you’re wrong. This rugged 6-mile stretch of our Big Bend is now, for the most part, uninhabited and relatively unfished, due in part to the fact that it’s rocky and shallow. But now we …

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 …

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, …