Running thru 2015, the innovative Fish for the Future tournament is open to anglers anywhere in the world, with divisions and awards for twenty gamefish species. “With the iGHOFISH app we can now actually …
Bahamas Wahoo Challenge @ The Bimini Big Game Club
11 Nov 20104:23 PM
The Big Game Is On! The 1st leg of the Bahamas Wahoo Challenge begins today at the Bimini Big Game Club! Capt. Ned Stone, Dir. of Program Development for Guy Harvey Outpost Ltd. , headed to the BBGC early yesterday to prepare for the tournament. Ned took a quick break from the action to send us a report of the pre-tournament conditions:
“We were blessed with an amazingly beautiful day today. I went by the Bimini Biological Field Station – AKA the Shark Lab – for a quick visit with staffers Christine, Jill and Brian. We decided to take advantage of the good weather and headed back to the BBGC with hopes of tagging a bull shark or two. The sharks showed up – along with a good number of tarpon (including one upwards of 100lbs.) – but no luck so far on getting a bite. It seems the bulls are smart enough to know when we put a hook in the bait!
The marina is starting to fil up. The Sarah K and the Airborne are in and getting ready for the Wahoo Challenge, and a half dozen catamarans came in to clear on their way East. It’s been another busy day in Paradise!”
Ned will be sending more updates and photos throughout the week, so continue to follow the Guy Harvey Outpost blog, Facebook Page and Twitter feed for full reports on all the action from the Wahoo Challenge.
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![](mailto:?subject=Art of the Dive/Portraits of the Deep Exhibition Scheduled At IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum in October&body=DANIA BEACH, FL—SEPTEMBER 22, 2011—A group of internationally acclaimed marine artists, including <a title="Guy Harvey Inc. web site" href="http://www.guyharvey.com" target="_blank">Dr. Guy Harvey</a>, <a title="Wyland's web site" href="http://www.wyland.com" target="_blank">Wyland</a> and sculptor <a title="Kent Ullberg's web site" href="http://www.kentullberg.net" target="_blank">Kent Ullberg</a>, will be among the featured artists in the Art of the Dive/Portraits of the Deep traveling museum exhibition, scheduled to be on display at the <a title="IGFA web site" href="http://www.igfa.org" target="_blank">IGFA Fishing Hall of Fame & Museum</a> from October 1st to November 30th.
The exhibition, produced by <a title="David Wagner LLC web site" href="http://www.davidjwagnerllc.com/" target="_blank">David J. Wagner L.L.C.</a>, features work by leading artists who portray underwater life forms and habitat.
<a href="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/guy-harvey-bluerunner1.jpg"><img title=""Blue Runner" - Guy Harvey" src="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/guy-harvey-bluerunner1.jpg" alt="" width="405" height="297" /></a>"Blue Runner" - Guy Harvey
<a href="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/stanley-meltzoff-jewfish6sabbathreefworship.jpg"><img title=""Jewfish 6 - Sabbath Reef Worship, Belize" - Stanley Meltzoff" src="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/stanley-meltzoff-jewfish6sabbathreefworship.jpg" alt="" width="405" height="299" /></a>"Jewfish 6 - Sabbath Reef Worship, Belize" - Stanley Meltzoff
<a href="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/ian-coleman-caribbeanreefshark.jpg"><img title=""Caribbean Reef Shark" - Ian Coleman" src="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/ian-coleman-caribbeanreefshark.jpg" alt="" width="405" height="286" /></a>"Caribbean Reef Shark" - Ian Coleman
The exhibit features original paintings and sculptures and photographs by the world’s leading marine painters and sculptors. These begin with New York painter, <a title="Stanley Meltzoff's web site" href="http://www.silverfishpress.com/" target="_blank">Stanley Meltzoff</a> (1917-2006), who as curator/author was given his art-of –the-dive start with a commission from <a title="NGS web site" href="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/" target="_blank">National Geographic Society</a> in the 1960s and who is now generally recognized as the progenitor of the series.
In addition to works from Stanley Meltzoff, Guy Harvey, Wyland and Kent Ullberg, artists and sculptors represented include Charles Allmond, Al Barnes, Renee Bemis, Eric Berg, M.J. Brush, Ian Coleman, Jean-Louis Courteau, John Kobald, Diane Peebles, Randy Puckett, Don Ray, George Schelling, Randall Scotts, Rachelle and Wes Siegrist, Mark Susinno, Fred Thomas and Ronnie Williford.
Mike Myatt, IGFA Chief Operating Officer stated “We are very excited and deeply honored to be the first venue of this truly incredible collection of art. This is definitely a show not to be missed.” https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/art-of-the-diveportraits-of-the-deep-exhibition-scheduled-at-igfa-fishing-hall-of-fame-museum-in-october/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Billfish Invitational Auction Spotlight – “Surfaced”, a Guy Harvey Original&body=<a title="Billfish Invitational web site" href="http://www.billfishinvitational.com" target="_blank">BILLFISH INVITATIONAL</a> AUCTION ITEM: "SURFACED", a Guy Harvey Original
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/surfaced.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-674" style="border-color:black;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;" title=""Surfaced", an original pen and ink by Guy Harvey" src="http://guyharveyoutpost.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/surfaced.jpg" alt="" width="545" height="304" /></a>
Growing up in Jamaica, <a title="Guy Harvey Inc. web site" href="http://www.guyharvey.com" target="_blank">Guy Harvey</a> spent many hours fishing with his father along the island's south coast. He was obsessed with the creatures of the sea and began drawing pictures of the many different fish he observed.
In 1985, Guy produced a series of 44 original pen and ink drawings inspired by the <a title="Wikipedia entry for Ernest Hemingway" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Hemingway" target="_blank">Ernest Hemingway</a> classic <a title="Wikipedia entry for "The Old Man and the Sea"" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Old_Man_and_the_Sea" target="_blank">"The Old Man & the Sea"</a>, and displayed them at an exhibition in Jamaica. Based on the show’s success, and a subsequent trip to Havana to fish the <a title="Hemingway Billfish Tournament web site" href="http://www.cubatravelusa.com/Hemingway%20Marlin%20Tournament.html" target="_blank">Hemingway Billfish Tournament</a>, Guy was compelled to create a complete series of drawings to honor Hemingway’s work. As they say, the rest is history!
Al these years later, Guy continues to find inspiration in the bigger-than-life exploits of Hemingway. In 1999, Guy and fellow <a title="IGFA web site" href="http://www.igfa.org" target="_blank">IGFA</a> trustees celebrated the opening of the organization’s new facility with an exhibit of Hemingway’s fishing exploits, literature and memorabilia. And now, a decade later, Guy has returned to Bimini to honor Hemingway’s contributions to big game fishing and his celebration of this “Island in the Stream”.
This Guy Harvey original is one of Guy’s most cherished pieces. This original pen and ink highlights the power of the majestic blue marlin, and defines the enduring spirit of anglers who challenge these great fish. In a fitting tribute, Guy has rendered the blue marlin in bold, real-life color – a detail that emphasizes the blue marlin’s supremacy of the oceans.
In addition to this stunning piece of artwork, the offering also includes an autographed copy of “Santiago’s Finest Hour”, a special edition, out-of-print book published in 1999 on the Centennial of Hemingway’s birth. Enjoy a first-hand perspective of Guy’s appreciation for Ernest Hemingway, whose exploits and writing have inspired Guy and millions others, including those participating in the inaugural Billfish Invitational. Framed 25 ½” x 36 ½”. Donated by Guy Harvey.
AUCTION INFORMATION:
Tickets to nightly events of the inaugural 2011 Billfish Invitational are available for $150/pp. Price includes cocktails, dinner and participation in the auction and award presentations.
On-site auction is Thursday, May 19th at the Bimini Big Game Club. Online bids accepted through Midnight, Wednesday, May 18.
Please contact Capt. Ned Stone (<a href="mailto:nstone@guyharveyoutpost.com">nstone@guyharveyoutpost.com</a>) for details.
https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/billfish-invitational-auction-spotlight-surfaced-a-guy-harvey-original/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Fishing The Wild West in Florida's Ten Thousand Islands&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/eveg.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2943 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/eveg.jpg?w=300" alt="Eveg" width="300" height="225" /></a>By Sue Cocking, Guy Harvey Outpost staff writer
[Everglades City, FL--] Yes, the weather may still be hot, muggy, and buggy in southwest Florida's Ten Thousand Islands, but the fishing is what is truly smokin'.
Pending the onset of late fall/winter cold fronts, this remote region of jagged oyster bars, mangrove-fringed mud flats, and offshore wrecks and artificial reefs can be unmatched for rod-bending action and bountiful table fare.
Consider: on calm-weather days, anglers are free to motor 30 miles west of Everglades City into the open Gulf of Mexico to catch a limit of snapper, grouper, and whatever else deigns to stop by on rock piles, artificial reefs, and shipwrecks.
Or, those who prefer near-shore sight-fishing can battle big snook along the shorelines of most of those Ten Thousand Islands, especially the natural moats surrounding the mangroves and in the sloughs that ring the outside sand bars on lower tide stages. Redfish also are plentiful along those sand bars, as well as oyster bars and island moats. Large numbers of spotted sea trout patrol the sloughs and channels on higher tides and can also be found --(surprise!)-- on live, rocky bottom 10-12 feet deep several miles offshore. There's also a good chance of locating resident tarpon around island points and river mouths.
Fall is a great time of year to hunt for tasty tripletail, a mysterious fish found throughout Florida from near shore waters a few feet deep to miles out in the Atlantic Gulf Stream. But here in the Ten Thousand Islands, the search area is narrowed to crab trap lines strung a few miles offshore in the Gulf and dead tree stumps that have washed up in the shallows.
And there are several more species to be found cruising the region this time of year, including cobia, sheepshead, pompano, black drum, and Spanish mackerel. And don't forget sharks; they're pretty much everywhere and very satisfying to catch and release on all ranges of tackle. Lucky anglers might even catch sight of an endangered sawfish-- a very distinctive-looking member of the stingray family-- plying the flats or the sloughs, but they are closed to all harvest.
While it is possible to catch many of the region's fish on fly rod and on artificial lures such as plugs, jigs, and soft plastics, using live bait is far and away the best bet for closing the deal. Securing enough bait for a day's fishing is rarely a problem around the Ten Thousand Islands at this time of year.
Check out dimples on the surface revealing the presence of threadfin herring and pilchards. In open water, diving pelicans are very helpful guides. Mullet can be found schooling on the flats, especially in coves and creeks; single fish will be seen flipping for no apparent reason or else leaping en masse when chased by predators. Bait hunters finding no joy on the flats may find it necessary to head offshore to live-bottom areas to get what they need. Being able to throw a large cast net is a necessary skill. Caution: using live shrimp for bait will probably draw all kinds of unwanted interlopers such as ladyfish, blue runners, catfish, and who knows what.
Anglers not inclined to get wet and dirty throwing a cast net will probably do just fine purchasing live or fresh-frozen bait in Everglades City. A couple weeks before the Oct. 8 recreational red grouper closure, part-time Everglades City resident Lou Volpe and a companion caught their limit of four (and released 30 that were undersized), plus a dozen lane and gray snapper and a limit of eight sea trout using mostly dead finger mullet and pilchards on 'knocker rigs' where the egg sinker is next to the hook. The pair had a well full of just-caught pilchards, mullet, and pinfish netted by Volpe on his 22-foot bay boat, but they didn't really need all that live ammo. And despite fishing on a sunny, calm Sunday, they encountered perhaps four other boats the entire day.
Despite its proximity to Naples (45 minutes) and urban Southeast Florida ( 1 1/2 hours), the Everglades City-Chokoloskee region still has the feel of a fishing frontier.
Saddle up and check it out.
*****
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. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/fishing-the-wild-west-in-floridas-ten-thousand-islands/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=A Hemingway Returns to Bimini – Part II: Of Boats and Bonefish&body=John Hemingway, grandson of the legendary <a title="About Ernest Hemingway" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Hemingway" target="_blank">Ernest</a>, is in <a title="About Bimini" href="http://www.bahamas.com/out-islands/bimini" target="_blank">Bimini</a> this week while on assignment for Showboats International magazine. John, who is being hosted by the <a title="BBGC web site" href="http://www.biggameclubbimini.com" target="_blank">Bimini Big Game Club</a>, is sampling the best of Bimini - including many of the pursuits and places that were favorites of his grandfather during his years on the island (1935-1937). John filed the following dispatches after spending the day with Bimini's famed guide and boat builder, Ansil Saunders:
Mr. Saunders is a very interesting man. Apart from having bonefished for over fifty-five years, he was a good friend of <a title="About Dr. Martin Luther King" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_luther_king" target="_blank">Dr. Martin Luther King</a>. King visited Bimini several times in the 1960s and on one of his last visits in 1968, he told his friend Ansil, while the two of them were out fishing, that he knew that he was going to die soon, that his time had come, but also that God must exist, saying "look at the sheer abundance of life you have here, in the air and in the sea. This is proof, if ever proof was needed.
Here Mr. Saunders is seen holding a photograph of himself and the US ambassador to the Bahamas when she gave him a plaque commemorating his friendship with Dr. King.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ansil12.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1162" title="Bimini's legendary boat builder and fishing guide, Ansil Saunders" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ansil12.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="412" /></a>
Here I'm standing behind my fishing guide, Mr Ansel Saunders. He built the bonefishing boat we're standing next to, the cost about $30,000, incredible craftsmanship.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/ansiljohnboat.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1163" title="John and Ansil pose next to one of Ansil's custom-built boats" src="http://guyharveyoutpost.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/ansiljohnboat.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="412" /></a>
This guy was heavy and towards the end I was bringing in one after the other, and god do they fight (all of them were released afterwards, you don't eat bonefish). What a morning!
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ansiljohnbonefish.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1164" title="John and Ansil with one of the many bonefish caught in the Bimini flats" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ansiljohnbonefish.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="412" /></a>
The first bonefish I caught, out of about a dozen, incredible morning, about six pounds, of the eastern coast of South Bimini, Bahamas.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/johnbonefish.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1165" title="John and one of the many bonefish he caught with Ansil on the Bimini flats" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/johnbonefish.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="412" /></a>
Stay tuned for more updates from John's trip to Bimini! https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/a-hemingway-returns-to-bimini-2/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation Supporting New Shark-Free Marinas Initiative Florida Campaign&body=<a href="http://www.sharkfreemarinas.com/florida/submission/submission/"><img class="aligncenter" title="SFMI 2011 Florida Campaign" src="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/florida-campaign.png" alt="" width="285" height="100" /></a>
Converting Florida Marinas Critical to Health of Shark Populations
The <a title="SFMI web site" href="http://www.sharkfreemarinas.com/" target="_blank">Shark-Free Marinas Initiative</a> (SFMI) is reaching out to marinas in Florida to ask for their support in conserving the world’s shark populations. Organized as a cooperative by the <a title="Pegasus Foundation web site" href="http://www.pegasusfoundation.org/" target="_blank">Pegasus Foundation</a>, the <a title="GHOF web site" href="http://www.guyharveyoceanfoundation.org" target="_blank">Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation</a> and <a title="US Humane Society web site" href="http://www.humanesociety.org/" target="_blank">The Humane Society of the United States</a>, the SFMI aims to reduce shark mortality worldwide by discouraging the landing of sharks and encouraging catch-and-release of sharks in sport fishing, while rewarding forward-thinking marinas that participate in this program. Supporting organizations include <a title="MML web site" href="http://www.mote.org/" target="_blank">Mote Marine Laboratory</a>, the <a title="PEG web site" href="http://www.pewenvironment.org/" target="_blank">Pew Environment Group</a>, <a title="Fishpond USA web site" href="http://www.fishpondusa.com/" target="_blank">Fishpond USA</a> and the <a title="Fisheries Conservation Foundation" href="http://www.fisheriesconservationfoundation.org/" target="_blank">Fisheries Conservation Foundation</a>.
“Shark populations worldwide have suffered severe declines due to over-fishing,” says world renowned artist, angler and conservationist, Dr. Guy Harvey, “Marinas in Florida can now do their part to help conserve these ecologically vital animals by joining the SFMI.”
Sharks are currently being killed at an unsustainable rate. A scientific study published by Imperial College, London estimated that the fins of from 26 million up to 73 million sharks per year were being traded through the world’s fin markets as of the year 2000, mostly for shark fin soup. In addition, the U.S. government estimates that recreational fishing killed an average of more than 200,000 sharks along the U.S. Gulf and Atlantic coast each year between 2004 and 2008.
“Many sharks species have declined because of overfishing, which recreational fishing has contributed to in the U.S.,” notes Dr. Robert Hueter, senior scientist and director, Mote Marine Laboratory’s Center for Shark Research. “Sustaining these species is in the interest of recreational anglers as well as marine conservationists.”
Marinas in Florida can help reduce the number of sharks being killed by joining the SFMI and preventing dead sharks from being brought back to their docks. "There is no state more important to the success of this initiative in the United States than Florida, the sport-fishing capital of the world," says Luke Tipple, managing director of the SFMI. ""Because of the number of shark species off Florida, and the sheer number of nursery grounds and migratory routes located there, protecting Florida's sharks is critical to maintaining the health of Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico waters."
<a href="http://www.sharkfreemarinas.com/"><img title="SFMI Logo" src="http://guyharvey.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/sfmilogo.jpg" alt="" width="324" height="347" /></a>
SFMI supporter John Land Le Coq, co-founder of Fishpond USA, agrees. “Sharks are the guardians of the ocean and play an essential part in the health of the ocean. Most anglers I know are very concerned about the status of sharks. I hope every marina in Florida joins this important program. ”
According to Dr. John Grandy, senior vice president, The Humane Society of the United States, “Thousands of dollars in prizes are offered in shark tournaments that the government itself acknowledges are poorly monitored. Kill tournaments and misinformed media support the antiquated concept that the only good shark is a dead shark. This has to change.”
There are two different levels of commitment for an interested marina. It can either become a “Shark-Free Marina” that completely prohibits the landing of all sharks on its docks or a “Shark-Friendly Marina” — a facility that discourages the killing and landing of sharks and does not promote any activity that could harm sharks.
“The SFMI works in tandem with businesses and fishermen to increase the awareness of the need to protect our sharks and oceans,” says Barbara Birdsey, founder of the Pegasus Foundation. “This is a voluntary program that will prevent the needless killing of these ecologically and economically vital animals.” Each marina will also receive recognition around the world as a partner in this growing initiative.
Dr. Harvey summarizes: “I encourage recreational fishermen everywhere to join with me and SFMI to help protect sharks and our oceans. Our world needs sharks.”
Facts
The U.S. government estimates that, on average, more than 200,000 sharks were killed annually off the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf coast by sport fishermen for each year between 2004 and 2008.
In 2009, close to 2,000 shortfin mako sharks were killed in recreational and commercial fisheries in the U.S., leading the National Marine Fisheries Service to declare that shortfin mako sharks are “overfished.” Despite asking fishermen to voluntarily release these sharks unharmed, tournaments targeting makos have continued.
Today the dusky shark population in the northwestern Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico is estimated to have lost 80-85 percent of its population since the mid-1970s, according to research cited by a 2011 NMFS report. The NMFS prohibited recreational fishermen from possessing duskies starting in in 2000, but they can be difficult to identify and some sport fishermen still catch and release them.
Forward thinking anglers have already created new fishing tournaments that help conserve sharks and support marine research. For example, in 2011, the Guy Harvey Ultimate Shark Challenge, an annual Catch and Release Tournament in SW Florida awarded $10,000 in prizes for research related tagging, while the Ocean City (Md.) Shark Tournament awarded $30,000 in prizes in its Catch and Release Division.
The Shark-Free Marina Initiative is a program of The Humane Society of the United States. It is strongly supported by the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation, Fishpond USA, Mote Marine Laboratory, Oceanic Defense, The Fisheries Conservation Foundation, the Cape Eleuthera Institute and the Pegasus Foundation.
https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/guy-harvey-ocean-foundation-supporting-new-shark-free-marinas-initiative-florida-campaign/){kind=link}
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