Yellowfin tuna greater than 200 pounds; both blue and black marlin; and all the sailfish you want to release. These are among the sport fishing highlights you can enjoy on Panama’s Pacific coast …
A Call to Artists: the Bimini Bonefish Challenge Art Contest
18 Jan 20113:56 PM
A message from Vaughn Cochran, renowned artist, fly fishermen and conservationist:
We’re having a parade on February 25th to celebrate the inaugural Bimini Bonefish Challenge tournament. And what’s a parade without parade floats? We need some, and we need your help!
Design a float for Bimini Bonefish Parade that celebrates the 40th anniversary of the catching of the 16lb, 3oz world record monster bonefish in Bimini. For those of you who can’t join us in the actual parade in Bimini, we’re going to host a virtual parade on the Club’s website. The floats in our virtual parade will be judged by writers and editors from the fishing industry and the winner will receive a complimentary two night stay at the Club, and a full day of backcountry fishing.
You can use any media to create your float. Now you realize, we’re looking only for a photo of your float design because its only going to exist on our website! So dream big…dream in color….get fancy, or keep it simple. It doesn’t matter – except to the judges! Submit your entry on the Club’s website. As entries are received they will be displayed in an updated loop. Please submit your entry with a white background. The winner will be announced in Bimini at the conclusion of the parade and the award ceremony for the Bimini Bonefish Challenge. The deadline for entries is February 23rd. Now, go to your studio and unleash that artist in you….and remember, Vaughn and Guy are looking over your shoulder!
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![](mailto:?subject=Fish Panama This Spring and Summer!&body=Yellowfin tuna greater than 200 pounds; both blue and black marlin; and all the sailfish you want to release.
These are among the sport fishing highlights you can enjoy on Panama's Pacific coast from late March through the end of July with Captain Hennie Marais and Panama Yacht and Fishing Charters-- an exclusive Guy Harvey Outpost Expedition.
In the remote Coiba Islands, a national park located off Panama's southern coast, Marais will slow-troll live bonitos along the gamefish-rich Hannibal Bank where the baits get crashed by huge yellowfins and black marlin. Your floating base camp for this adventure is a comfortably-appointed 66' Buddy Davis sport fishing yacht that can accommodate parties of up to six. You have the option of an additional battle wagon too-- a swift 37-foot Strike with top-of-the-line tackle and equipment to hoist huge tuna up from the depths and subdue greyhounding marlin.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/IMG_0377adjusted.jpg"><img class="wp-image-4589 size-full" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/IMG_0377adjusted.jpg" alt="IMG_0377adjusted" width="1739" height="1159" /></a>PHOTO: Your floating base camp - a 66' Buddy Davis luxury sportfishing yacht with the optional 37-foot Strike.
Or Marais can escort your group east to the Gulf of Panama where the waters around the Pearl Islands and Pinas Bay further south provide abundant opportunities offshore for tuna, marlin, sailfish and mahi. Inshore, you'll get shots at feisty species such as roosterfish, snapper, and amberjack. On this expedition, you can stay at a private resort and make day trips, live aboard the luxury yacht, or arrange a combination of the two.
"Fishing in Panama is exotic, with beautiful warm weather and beautiful scenery," Marais said.
Book your adventure now at <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com">GuyHarveyOutpost.com</a>, or call our travel desk at 800-513-5257. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/fish-panama-this-spring-and-summer/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Taking the Back Country in the Blazing Mako&body=<img class=" size-medium wp-image-3389 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/black.jpg?w=300" alt="Black" width="300" height="222" />By Sue Cocking, Guy Harvey Outpost staff writer
scocking@guyharveyoutpost.com
Even though the Guy Harvey Outpost <a href="http://www.blazingmako.com" target="_blank">Blazing Mako Festival and Fishing Tournament</a> is still four months away, it's not too early to sign up your team or start plotting a strategy for claiming $10,000 in prize money-- particularly if you enter the inshore division.
The tournament date of June 18 falls squarely during the peak of the inshore fishing season in and around the Florida Keys and two days before the full moon. Catching, measuring, photographing and releasing the eligible back country species of permit, bonefish, tarpon, snook, redfish and the funfish category of shark, ladyfish, jack and trout for points, cash, and bragging rights won't be as challenging as during other seasons of the year.
Anglers will be allowed to enter a maximum of five fish in each category using live bait, artificial lures, or fly tackle. More points will be awarded for lures and fly rod.
"This is a great time of year to catch all these species," said seven-year veteran Keys light-tackle guide captain Richard Black, who fishes from a 17-foot, 8-inch Hells Bay Professional skiff.
Black said his strategy would be to locate small tarpon first thing in the morning in Florida Bay-- likely near Snake Bight-- and fish with fly rod (if the angler were capable), or with small Mir-O-Lure plugs or light jigs. Snook and redfish tend to inhabit the same territory at that time of year and likely would bite the same offerings.
Once you've racked up enough points for those three species, Black says step two would be to blind-cast a jig or plug for ladyfish. You could enter the larger ones in the funfish category and keep a few to hang off the skiff while anchored to attract lemon sharks to within fly-casting range.
"In a good spot with good current, you could catch five sharks on fly pretty quick," Black said.
Then if you are lucky enough to have sufficient sunlight in mid- to late afternoon, the guide said, you could look for bonefish in Florida Bay or on the ocean side of the Upper Keys. Bonefish almost never turn down fresh shrimp, and they also are likely to bite small jigs and shrimp-patterned flies.
"I know some anglers I'd lead off with fly and switch to bait," Black added. "You have to fish the conditions. If conditions are crappy and you have to cover more water, you would use a spinning rod."
Black believes it will take 1,500 to 2,000 points to score a top-three finish.
Even if you don't accumulate nearly that score, it will be more than fun to try and then you get to celebrate at the awards party at the Islander-- a Guy Harvey Outpost Resort in Islamorada.
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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/taking-the-back-country-in-the-blazing-mako-2/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Capt. Slate’s Creature Feature at the Islander Guy Harvey Outpost Islamorada&body=Not every creature is scary. Not every creature has hair either.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/capt-slates-dive-center.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-2149" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/capt-slates-dive-center.jpg?w=660" alt="Capt Slate's Dive Center" width="660" height="255" /></a>
Every Friday & Sunday morning at 8:30, <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/adventures/diving.html">Capt. Slate</a> goes diving with his friends. Some want to cuddle; some just like a scratch behind the fin. Please do not try this at home, Capt. Slate is a trained professional and has been a practicing creature for 36 years!
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/slate-moray.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-2150" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/slate-moray.jpg" alt="Slate moray" width="350" height="224" /></a>
When diving be careful of the "S" word... No not Sharks... SLATE!!!
Capt. Slate is one of Guy Harvey Outpost's "Go to guys." He relocated his shop just a short drive from the <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/islamorada-fl/islamorada-fl-overview.html">Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost</a> in Islamorada. The drive from Miami International Airport it is less than two hour to the Islander. So no matter where you are coming from we can get you in the water in no time. And we promise, Slate is not as scary as he looks.
To get up close to Capt. Slate or one of his friends give our Reservation Wranglers a call at 800-513-5257 or drop them a line reservations@guyharveyoutpost.com https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/capt-slates-creature-feature-at-the-islander-guy-harvey-outpost-islamorada/){kind=link}
; Captain Madison MacDonald (352-601-7392) and Captain Colin Guy (352-634-2901).
For the last few years, the Nature Coast has experienced something of a snook bonanza. This hard-fighting, line-sided speedster will make you work for it, but it is so much fun. Toney and MacDonald recommend casting a C.A.L. Shad jerkbait in glow/goldrush with a 1/8-ounce chartreuse jig head or a MirOLure Little John around the points of mangrove islands all the way up to the mouths of the Homosassa and Chassahowitzka rivers on the higher stages of the tide.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/P1000028.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4927" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/P1000028.jpg" alt="" width="4608" height="3456" /></a>
Once you've checked off the snook, the red should be a gimme. In the fall, bull reds way over the slot limit of 18 to 27 inches make their way inshore from their Gulf spawning areas following schools of mullet. According to Guy, they can often be found on the spoil banks off Crystal River, in the moats of mangrove islands and around rocky reefs on the rising tide. Guy and Toney say the best bait is live pinfish or shrimp. But for purists who prefer artificials, a good bet is 1/4-oz. Eppinger gold spoon, or various soft plastics.
Sea trout are becoming a lot easier to locate than they were a month ago. The go-to bait just about everywhere on the Gulf coast is a live shrimp fished beneath a popping cork such as a Cajun Thunder or Flats Equalizer. (Purists may substitute a soft plastic for the live shrimp.) Toney and MacDonald are finding the spotted sportsters on the south side of the Homosassa channel and north of the Chassahowitzka River channel and also just west of the St. Martin's Keys.
You certainly don't have to be an expert to score a slam; all three guides are happy to teach novices how to cast and retrieve their baits. And besides the satisfaction of besting the big three, you can have your catch cooked at any of several excellent local restaurants. Some suggestions: Katch Twenty Two in Lecanto (352-746-6691) and West 82 Bar and Grill at the Plantation on Crystal River (<a href="https://www.plantationoncrystalriver.com/">www.plantationoncrystalriver.com</a>), which is also a great place to stay during your fishing trip. Call ahead to make arrangements for preparing your catch.
Take a break from post-Irma recovery with a brief fishing excursion. You might be able to write it off as therapy. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/catch-an-inshore-slam-near-crystal-river/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Connected Warriors Gets Guy Harvey Outpost Support&body=Dear Christian,
Thank you for your kind words. We at Guy Harvey Outpost are moved by your letter and want you to know we are giving back. Nothing like the sacrifice you and your family have made. We will keep giving back. It is not always easy to find the right vehicle through which to help a cause. We have chosen Connected Warriors as ours.
Guy Harvey Outpost properties donated trips, art, fishing tackle and other prizes to <a href="http://connectedwarriors.org/">Connected Warriors </a>for their Annual Fundraiser this week. We want to honor all of our Veterans and their families who give so much. Connected Warriors provides Veterans and their families with free yoga classes. Ongoing studies indicate that regular yoga practice is more effective in the long term treatment of anxiety, depression and PTSD than conventional treatments.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/cw-logo-expanded.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-2319" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/cw-logo-expanded.jpg?w=300" alt="cw logo expanded" width="300" height="258" /></a>
Christian, thank you for your inspiration and for your enthusiasm for our efforts.
We all look forward to your next visit.
Take good care of yourself,
Your friends at Guy Harvey Outpost
PS. In addition to Guy Harvey Outpost's trip donations, support for Connected Warriors our staff reached out to the broader Guy Harvey Outpost Family. A special thanks to all those who jumped in with generous donations for Connected Warriors. Among those who answered the call when we asked for contributions for our Veterans were:
<a href="http://http://www.guyharvey.com/index.html">Guy Harvey </a>
<a href="http://www.titosvodka.com/">Tito's Handmade Vodka</a>
<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/islamorada-fl.html">The Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost</a>
<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/green-turtle-cay-abacos/overview.html">The Green Turtle Club, a Guy Harvey Outpost Expedition Lodge</a>
<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/bimini-bahamas.html">The Bimini Sands Resort & Marina, a Guy Harvey Outpost Expedition Lodge</a>
<a href="http://lmrtackle.com/andy-moyes-skirted-lures.aspx">Moyes Big Game Tactical Fishing Lures</a>
<a href="http://lmrtackle.com/">LMR Custom Tackle</a>
<a href="http://tropicalfitnessadventures.com">Yoga Ned</a>
More Information on Guy Harvey Outpost: <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/" target="_parent">http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/</a>
https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/connected-warriors-gets-guy-harvey-outpost-support/){kind=link}
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