Pompano Beach, Florida’s Shipwreck Park– a collection of 16 sunken vessels located a short distance offshore in the Atlantic–is about to get its first dive bar. And you can become a …
Diving with Santa Claus
6 Dec 201610:41 AM
It turns out that Santa Claus carries more than toys in that reindeer-driven sleigh: a set of scuba tanks. And you will have two opportunities to dive underwater, sit on his lap, get your photo taken, and present him with your holiday wish list.
Santa’s sleigh will take him first to Pompano Beach where South Florida Diving Headquarters, a Guy Harvey Outpost Outfitter, will host a two-tank dive on Dec. 11. One of Captain Jeff Torode’s dive boats will give you and Santa (and a couple of his elves) a lift out to the 70-foot-deep wreck of the Ancient Mariner where you’ll proceed down to the deck for a photo op. For the second dive, you and Santa will do a drift dive along a shallower reef. Afterward, digital photos will be available that you can convert to holiday cards or decorations or just plaster all over Facebook and Instagram. Cost is $60; for reservations, call the shop at 800-771-DIVE or go to www.southfloridadiving.com.
Then on December 22, Santa arrives at Captain Slate’s Scuba Adventures, a Guy Harvey Outpost Outfitter near Islamorada, for a two-tank afternoon dive on a couple of shallow reefs where snorkelers also are welcome. You’ll get a photo session and a holiday gift. Cost is $85; for reservations, call 800-331-3483.
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![](mailto:?subject=Gather Ye Lobsters While Ye May&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/lobster.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-3967 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/lobster-225x300.jpg" alt="lobster" width="225" height="300" /></a>By Sue Cocking, Guy Harvey Outpost staff writer
scocking@guyharveyoutpost.com
Lobster hunters have two more weeks to bag a limit of tasty entrees before Florida's harvest season closes on April 1. Whatever you catch will have to tide you over until the annual two-day lobster mini-season July 27-28.
Here are some tips from three South Florida lobster diving experts for getting your limit of six per person per day:
KEYS
Go shallow, advises Eric Billips, owner of Islamorada Dive Center and author of textbooks on underwater hunting.
"You'll be way better off in eight to 15 feet of water just inside the reef," Billips said. "Look for a solitary coral head in a sandy area. Where you see one [lobster], there's a chance there will be two or three in the same head."
Billips and his companions recently caught four large lobsters near Hens n' Chickens Reef-- including a four-pounder. His preferred method is to use a net and tickler stick instead of a snare or 'bugger'.
"Be super chill, not real aggressive, tap-tap-tap real gently behind them," he advised.
It's illegal to spear lobsters in Florida, but it's perfectly okay to add to your haul by spearing some exotic lionfish, which frequent the same habitats as the crustaceans.
MIAMI BEACH/BISCAYNE BAY
Like Billips, Miami Beach captain Abie Raymond is finding plenty of super-sized bugs on isolated coral heads in the shallow waters from South Beach to Haulover Inlet. If you don't know where these coral heads are, Raymond said, follow the fish.
"If you see blue tangs, chase them and they will 99 percent of the time lead you to a coral head you didn't know was there," he said.
Biscayne Bay, the captain said, has not been as productive as usual due to this winter's unseasonable record rainfall.
Raymond, a free diver, uses a tickle stick and his bare hands to catch dinner.
"I tickle-stick them out and wiggle my fingers on my left hand and the lobster will put out his antennas," Raymond explained. "Then I put my [right] hand on the back of his tail."
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Slate-Special.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-3968 size-full" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Slate-Special.jpg" alt="Slate Special" width="724" height="351" /></a>
GREATER FORT LAUDERDALE
Few scuba divers are as successful at harvesting lobster in Broward County's urban waters than Jim "Chiefy" Mathie of Deerfield Beach and his regular dive crew. The author of the popular how-to manual "Catching the Bug" says the late-season hunter's best bet is to hit the east side of the third reef 75 to 85 feet deep, weather permitting.
"I can almost guarantee they'll be out there," Mathie said. "It's been bumpy. The visibility hasn't been the best due to rain and wind. The weather has kept people in. We've had an outstanding year. Almost every time we went out, we got our limit or almost our limit."
Mathie prefers the snare over the net and tickler stick.
"It's hard to get them out of the net," he said. "I use my snare like a tickler stick, withdrawing the loop and tickling them out. As soon as you've got that loop around the tail, you've got 'em."
NOT SO FAST...
Before you hit the hunting grounds, make sure you have a valid Florida saltwater fishing license and a lobster permit. To be legal, a lobster must measure greater than three inches on the carapace or head, and you must use a lobster gauge to measure it in the water. Taking egg-bearing females is prohibited. You must display a red-and-white diver-down flag whether you are diving from a boat or from shore. For a complete list of lobster regulations, visit the <a href="http://myfwc.com/fishing/saltwater/recreational/lobster/." target="_blank">MyFWC</a> web site.
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Sue Cocking chronicles the Guy Harvey Outpost travel and adventure experience in regular blog posts on GuyHarveyOutpostNews.com/. For 21 years, Cocking covered the full spectrum of outdoors adventure opportunities in South Florida and beyond for the Miami Herald, including fishing, diving, hunting, paddling camping, sailing and powerboat racing. She is a certified scuba diver and holder of an IGFA women's world fly fishing record for a 29-pound permit.
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Share your photos, videos and experiences with Guy Harvey Outpost by hash tagging #OutpostAttitude to all of your social media posts. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/gather-ye-lobsters-while-ye-may/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=History of Diving Museum, FREE Presentation March 19, Dive Memorials, CLICK for details&body=<img src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/dive-memorials.png" class="size-full" alt="Dive Memorials at the History of Diving Museum, FREE Presentation" /> https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/dive-memorials-at-the-history-of-diving-museum-free-presentation/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Rehabbed Turtle Released off Florida Keys to participate in Tour de Turtles’ Event&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/11754301_733884743406613_3971705450198939655_o1.jpg"><img class="wp-image-2826 size-medium" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/11754301_733884743406613_3971705450198939655_o1.jpg?w=293" alt="11754301_733884743406613_3971705450198939655_o" width="293" height="300" /></a>Photo Courtesy of Andy Newman.
MARATHON, Florida Keys -- A rehabilitated loggerhead sea turtle that convalesced about four months at the Florida Keys-based Turtle Hospital was fitted with a satellite-tracking transmitter and released Friday off the Florida Keys.
Named Aaron, the subadult reptile crawled into the Atlantic Ocean in front of several hundred cheering spectators at Marathon's Sombrero Beach.
It is the only rehabilitated turtle of 12 that is part of the Tour de Turtles initiative created by the Sea Turtle Conservancy.
Beginning Aug. 2, the online education and awareness program will track the reptiles for three months. Turtles will be followed after releases in Panama, Costa Rica, Nevis, W.I. and Florida.
"It's the sea turtle who goes the furthest distance in three months that wins the marathon and wins the Tour de Turtles," said Dan Evans, research and technology specialist with the Sea Turtle Conservancy. "The takeaway from the whole program is to really raise awareness about sea turtles, to get people interested in sea turtles through technology and to also let people know what they can do to help protect sea turtles."
Aaron was discovered floating in a Key Largo boat basin in March. It was treated at the Turtle Hospital in Marathon for an intestinal impaction and parasites in its digestive system with antibiotics, anti-parasitic medications, lactulose, vitamins and a diet of squid and fish
Learn more here:
Tour de Turtles: <a href="http://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.tourdeturtles.org%2F&h=tAQHKPX4B&enc=AZNRUuCt5hIJx33XuBw3zcy-tyIGy6-uvyaKnyWxJIqBOGXfS-FZhNUD9qYelatOGq5nvUvQfLji-c1LuPjQIHfPRp0Ozwei5hGNAK5NXO43BlJOoeO3jgyaOvEHeYj8yzW6Q_4HWMe16xT2rBmfZnbMniNaxUwTNHRt1sglx8RB5_g9jX-9IilW42_-LENnsnAnqxdwHfydNJWMKTInmj71&s=1" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.tourdeturtles.org</a>
The Turtle Hospital: <a href="http://www.turtlehospital.org/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.turtlehospital.org</a>
https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/rehabbed-turtle-released-off-florida-keys-to-participate-in-tour-de-turtles-event/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Guy Harvey Outpost’s Outdoors Blog Gathering Growing National Readership&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/sue-cocking-with-tarpon.jpeg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2937 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/sue-cocking-with-tarpon.jpeg?w=300" alt="Sue Cocking with Tarpon" width="300" height="200" /></a>The outdoors adventures that veteran writer Sue Cocking brought to the front door for Miami Herald subscribers over two decades are now reaching a national audience courtesy of a popular fan-interactive website hosted by <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com" target="_blank">Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts</a>.
Considered the preeminent woman outdoors writer in America, Cocking’s first-person accounts of her travels cover a colorful, action-packed and sometimes edgy series of field reports covering Florida, The Bahamas and beyond.
Cocking, now the outdoors staff writer for Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts, built a legion of fans in South Florida over the past 21 years as the Outdoors Writer for the Miami Herald. The highly respected journalist was also a news reporter and anchor for several South Florida radio stations, including WINZ and WIOD, both in Miami. She was also the co-host of “The Weekly Fisherman”, aired weekly on WQAM-560.
Sponsored by the Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts—a unique collection of waterfront destinations— Cocking’s blog is no passive stroll in the park. She literally dives right in and can be found chasing grey ghosts in the Florida Keys flats; gator hunting in Lake Okeechobee; diving with hammerhead sharks in the Bahamas; and kayaking in the Everglades back country.
“Sue is the perfect correspondent for our Travel With a Purpose Outpost theme,” said Mark Ellert, President of Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts. “She stands directly in the center of where adventure mixes with education, science and conservation. Her tales are fun, evocative and educational and her experiences open the door for anyone who wants to participate, whether it be recreational fishing and diving, hunting, sailing, powerboating, camping on simply advocating the conservation of the outdoors and oceans.”
“Reader interaction is key to the success of this blog,” said Cocking. “I’m always open to new experiences and story ideas, and invite readers to share their stories, images and videos with me.”
Cocking can be reached at <a href="mailto:scocking@guyharveyoutpost.com">scocking@guyharveyoutpost.com</a>. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/guy-harvey-outposts-outdoors-blog-gathering-growing-national-readership/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Billfish Invitational Day 1 – Scuba Diving?&body=During this week’s Billfish Invitational tournament, Fred Garth, Editor-In-Chief of <a title="GHM web site" href="http://www.guyharveymagazine.com" target="_blank">Guy Harvey Magazine</a>, will be filing a series of dispatches from tournament headquarters at the Bimini Big Game Club.
The day began with sunny skies and nice reggae music playing at the open air <a title="About the Big Game Bar & Grill" href="http://www.biggameclubbimini.com/bimini-bar-grill.htm" target="_blank">Big Game Bar and Grill</a>. I munched on eggs and bacon and slurped down mucho coffee after a big night of festivities at the <a title="Billfish Invitational web site" href="http://www.billfishinvitational.com/" target="_blank">Billfish Invitational</a> opening celebration. (Note to self: avoid Appleton’s Reserve Rum in the future – stick to virgin Coca Cola).
We set out after a hearty breakfast for a few scuba dives with <a title="Guy Harvey Inc. web site" href="http://www.guyharvey.com" target="_blank">Guy Harvey</a>, his son Alex, Steve Stock (GH Inc, President), Frank Johnson of <a title="Mold Craft web site" href="http://www.moldcraft.com" target="_blank">Mold Craft</a> and sculptor <a title="Kent Ullberg's web site" href="http://www.kentullberg.net" target="_blank">Kent Ullberg</a>. Fishing boats headed out into a glassy sea and negligible winds – 12 boats in all – to try their luck with the wily billfish. A full report on that will come later tonight or tomorrow.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/stevekentguyalex11.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-737" title="Scuba Diving at the Billfish Invitational!" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/stevekentguyalex11.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="366" /></a>Left to right: Steve Stock, Kent Ullberg, Guy Harvey and Alex Harvey
The weather is absolutely and positively PERFECT with zero wind or waves. The scuba trip was also stellar. Saw lots of cool critters – turtles, rays, grouper, permit, and the rest of their slimy brethren. But no sharks. However, Guy Harvey is not the kind of dude to be disappointed. He gathered four mahi-mahi carcasses yesterday for a chum fest this afternoon on the shark dive.
That report as well as fishing results will be coming later, that is, unless the song of the Appleton’s Reserve fills the air with its sweet music before I can jump into the blogosphere. We will see what wins – rum or blog. Place your bets!!
Garth Out! https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/billfish-invitational-day-1-scuba-diving/){kind=link}
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