Snorkeling for lobsters...

Today is the first day of the annual Florida ritual known as lobster mini-season.   An estimated 30,000 people descend on the waters of the Florida Keys for this mini-lobster hunting season.

Translation: This week is the opening of lobster season here..  A good time NOT to be on the water..  Lobster Mobsters from the main land  come down.. run around drunk, run next to you while you are fishing, run over snorklers with out dive flags, run aground, drown, fights at the boat ramp, fights at gas stations, etc..  this is not a major exaggeration..  Several years ago 9 people died in the first 2 days.. no one last year fortunately..

More prop scars are created this week then the whole rest of the year..

Of course like every thing else, the minority give the majority a bad rap....   Hope every one has a fun and safe lobstering vacation...

May be we are just spoiled..  most of the year I see only a few boats a day while I am in the back country,, This time of year, some days none...  Yeah, guess I am spoiled..

I am taking a quick trip to the Bahamas  with some friends..     Will be checking and returning my emails daily..  Will be back Monday night after the mob has left..

Fishing here oscillates between good and tough depending on the weather..   Beautiful day here in the islands today..  Light east winds, lots of sunshine and a high of 90 degrees..

News Flash

July 21, 2010

A new tighter fitting cap, implemented July 15, on a failed blowout preventer of the Transocean/BP well in the Gulf of Mexico continues to keep new oil from gushing into the environment and the federal government has authorized BP to continue using the cap at least through Monday.

Meanwhile the risk remains low for near-term Transocean/BP oil spill pollution threats to the Florida Keys and South Florida, according to officials involved in response efforts and, in fact, since the April 20 explosion, the Keys have not been physically impacted by the spill.

"This is because the Loop Current has been cut off from the northern Gulf of Mexico and our scientists are saying there is no clear path for oil to travel from the spill site, which is about 500 miles to the northwest of Key West," according to Billy Causey, superintendent of the southeast region for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Sanctuaries, which includes the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

Translation: The only nasty oil here, is in the deep fryer at the Tiki Bar.. 

But their french fries and hot wings taste good...

It has been windy and cloudy the last several days here in the islands...  This has made for some tougher fishing...  The lower Keys has lots of shore lines to fish and run that are protected from wind..  

The bad news is solid cloud cover makes it tougher to spot the fish.. 

The good news is the wind is laying down and the clouds have thinned out....  Got sunny today!!

The best news is BP has capped the oil leak...  It is amazing.. since it has stopped leaking my phone has started ringing.. been booking days for later this year and next season..

Come on down...  The water is fine..

Just got back from a two week vacation in Montana...   Great to see my friends, the mountains and the river..  Oh and the fish are big this year!!

Kevin Guerin with a Brown trout..  Kevin guides in Montana and the Keys..

Great to be back!!

Fished the last few days with friends...  It has been fun..  Up early and out on the water before dawn.  We have been finding rolling juvenile tarpon as the sun comes up..  then have been targeting permit and bones on the incoming gulf edge tide... then when the tide tops out and the water gets too warm..  ocean side for big tarpon...  Most of the big tarpon have moved on...  But there are still enough left to keep it interesting..  Had one go way out of its way to eat my fly today..

Like I said It is great to back!

Oil Spill????

Currently, for south Florida and the Keys, there is a very low risk of impact in the near future, due to the separation of the Loop Current, NOAA officials said.

"Any oil reaching this area (South Florida and the Keys) would have spent considerable time degrading and dispersing and would be in the form of scattered tar balls and not a large surface slick of oil," the NOAA study said, echoing previous statements made by the U.S. Coast Guard, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and local officials.

For more information....         http://www.fla-keys.com/oilspill/   

Floating into the canyon...........

Currently I am in Montana.... 

I goofed up this year..Tarpon season has lasted longer then usual...  usualy the tarpon and the charters start to thin out about the middle of June...  I planned my vacation to Mt. too early..  Left the Keys June 22nd and it was still going strong..  I will be back in the Keys tommorrow..  My friends tell me that the fishing has been good!!
 
I love Montana, but can't wait to get back to the flats...
 
Oil Spill???    Lots of my friends here in Montana have asked about the Keys and the oil spill.. 

NOAA: Short-Term Threat to Keys Remains Low

July 7, 2010

The risk remains low for near-term Transocean/BP oil spill pollution threats to the Florida Keys and South Florida, according to officials involved in response efforts.

"This is because the Loop Current has been cut off from the northern Gulf of Mexico and our scientists are saying there is no clear path for oil to travel from the spill site, which is about 500 miles to the northwest of Key West," according to Billy Causey, superintendent of the southeast region for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Sanctuaries, which includes the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

Further exemplifying Causey's point is that NOAA is not currently producing offshore oil spill trajectory maps.

The Gulf Loop Current is a clockwise current that normally carries water from the Yucatan Channel north into the Gulf of Mexico, then back down south off Florida's west coast, past the Dry Tortugas and into the Gulf Stream.

NOAA is not certain how long the separation will remain, but the agency said it will resume production of offshore spill trajectory maps, if needed.

Causey explains the situation in a video that is being shown on this website's dedicated oil spill information page.

On Friday, July 2, NOAA released a study, using historical wind and ocean currents to project long-term likelihoods (during a 120-day-period that began April 22) that surface oil products from the BP/Transocean leak might reach areas along U.S. Gulf and East coasts.

"Any oil reaching this area (South Florida and the Keys) would have spent considerable time degrading and dispersing and would be in the form of scattered tar balls and not a large surface slick of oil," the NOAA study said, echoing previous statements made by the U.S. Coast Guard, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and local officials.

For the study, a "threat" was defined as when BP/Transocean spill oil, sheen, tar balls or other effects might come within 20 miles of a shoreline. However, it does not indicate they would come ashore. Whether or not oil travels ashore depends upon wind and ocean currents at the time, NOAA said.

Tar balls are less stressful on the environment and easier to mitigate, Causey said.

Currently, for south Florida and the Keys, there is a very low risk of impact in the near future, due to the separation of the Loop Current, NOAA officials said.

For more information....         http://www.fla-keys.com/oilspill/   
 
Basically the Keys will be fine...  At least from the oil.....  We need protection from the media...