Opportunities to curb Florida’s burgeoning populations of invasive lionfish (and learn more about our coral reef ecosystem) will be available in St. Pete Beach and Key Largo in September. And all …
Bimini Travel Special: Free 4th Night and Free Companion Flight
23 Dec 20105:13 PM
Just in time for the our New Year’s Eve Holiday Boat Parade and Pool Party – for a limited time, stay at the Bimini Big Game Club for 3 nights and get the 4th night free, along with complimentary companion flight! Call today for details and to book your New Year’s Three Peat Package.
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![](mailto:?subject=St. Pete Beach and Key Largo Hosting September Lionfish Derbies&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/11894565_10153016510035966_3704420398588416464_o.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2879 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/11894565_10153016510035966_3704420398588416464_o.jpg?w=300" alt="11894565_10153016510035966_3704420398588416464_o" width="300" height="201" /></a>Opportunities to curb Florida's burgeoning populations of invasive lionfish (and learn more about our coral reef ecosystem) will be available in St. Pete Beach and Key Largo in September. And all ocean enthusiasts-- divers or not-- are invited to both events.
Guy Harvey Outpost, a TradeWinds Beach Resort on St. Pete Beach, will co-host a Lionfish Safari Sept. 12-13, along with Reef Monitoring, Inc. and the Fishing Rights Alliance. Then from Sept. 24-27, the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) will conduct REEF Fest 2015 in Key Largo-- a lionfish and ocean education event.
At the Lionfish Safari, both divers and anglers will set out to capture as many of the exotic predators from the Indo-Pacific as possible on Sept. 12. Contestants will keep their catch on ice overnight, then present it at weigh-in ceremonies Sept. 13 at the Outpost for chances of winning cash prizes and the certainty of knowing they did something to benefit the Gulf coast marine environment. Everyone will get to eat some of the bounty, and there will be a photo contest, raffle, and prize give-aways. Tournament entry fee is $35 per person.
It's just as (or more) important for anglers to participate in the Safari as for scuba divers and snorkelers. A recent study by scientists at Nova Southeastern University suggests that local, intermittent diving derbies barely make a dent in reducing overall lionfish numbers and containing their spread. That's because participants tend to zero in on the largest lionfish while smaller fish escape and spread their larvae to far-away downstream locations. Nova's Dr. Matthew Johnston says what's needed is consistent removal of all sizes of the exotics wherever they live, deep or shallow. Anglers are urged to fish for them with hook-and-line, especially in waters too deep for divers to safely explore.
Captain Tim Kehoe, Senior Outfitter at TradeWinds, recently harvested what might have been a world-record lionfish while surf-fishing near the resort. Casting a live scaled sardine (pilchard) in knee-deep water, Kehoe landed a fat 20-inch specimen, but didn't weigh it or turn it over to the International Game Fish Association for certification. Still, that's one less voracious predator plundering Southwest Florida's native fish populations. If you would like to get involved, go to <a href="http://www.GuysLionfishSafari.com" target="_blank">www.GuysLionfishSafari.com</a> or call 727-259-7404.
Now, if you are not an experienced lionfish hunter and would like to learn more, REEF Fest in Key Largo is the place for you. REEF staff members will instruct you on locating them and safely avoiding their venomous spines, and will escort you on a lionfish hunt. This is no derby; it's for instructional purposes only. But REEF Fest is much more than a lionfish expo. The event features seminars on fish identification and behavior; coral restoration; reef ecology and many other topics. Scuba celebrities such as Neal Watson, Spencer Slate, and Marty Snyderman will conduct guided dives to local reefs and wrecks. Evening social events with food and music will cap each day. Many events are free, but pre-registration is required. Visit <a href="http://www.reef.org/REEFFest2015" target="_blank">www.reef.org/REEFFest2015</a>. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/st-pete-beach-and-key-largo-hosting-september-lionfish-derbies/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=No End to Spring Break Family Fun at Guy Harvey Outpost&body=If you and your family are planning an escape to Florida from the frigid north for spring break, you're probably already salivating over the prospects of sipping a cool drink on a warm beach, splashing in the waves, or catching a fish dinner for the restaurant at one of our Guy Harvey Outpost resorts. But there are plenty of other attractions and activities for vacationers of all ages to keep busy and have fun when you decide to take a break from the beach. Here are some suggestions:
ISLAMORADA, FLORIDA KEYS
Check out our <a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.com/islamoradapackages/">Spring Family Fun Packages in Islamorada</a>, or inquire with the Guy Harvey Outpost Travel Desk at <a href="mailto:sales@guyharveyoutpost.com">sales@guyharveyoutpost.com</a> for special savings at Theater of the Sea when you book a stay at the Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost. Must book at the web site or with the GHO Travel Desk for these deals.
<a href="http://www.FloridaStateParks.org">State Parks Boat Tour</a>: 305-664-9814
Visit two of Florida's state parks in a three-hour guided boat tour out of Robbie's Marina offered Fridays through Sundays through April. Your first stop is Indian Key Historic State Park where you will walk the perimeter of the 10-acre island that served as the 19th century county seat of Miami-Dade. You'll see the ruins of a once-thriving town populated mostly by 'wreckers'-- people who made their living salvaging merchant ships that got stuck on the nearby coral reefs-- and check out the tropical plants originally grown by a physician/botanist who lived there in the 1830s.
Your second and final stop is nearby Lignumvitae Key Botanical State Park located only a short boat ride away where you will join a park ranger for a guided tour of the Matheson House and the surrounding tropical hardwood hammock. The house, built in 1919, looks much as it did at the turn of the 20th century, with polished wooden floors, cisterns and the remains of a windmill tower now occupied by an osprey nest.
In a walk through the woods, you'll spot the eponymous lignumvitae tree which doesn't look like much, but whose wood is so dense and hard that it was used extensively in shipbuilding. You'll also get a look at trees with weird names such as poisonwood, strangler fig, and gumbo-limbo.
<a href="http://www.captainslate.com">Underwater Easter Egg Hunt</a>: 305-451-3020
Join Captain Spencer Slate on a shallow-water dive/snorkel/glass-bottom boat trip April 16 as he dresses up as the Easter Bunny and leads the tenth annual underwater Easter egg hunt. Prizes will be awarded to everyone who attends, but there's a special surprise for whoever is lucky enough to find the golden egg.
For lodging packages at the Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost in Islamorada, <a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.com/islamoradapackages/">GO HERE</a>.
ST. PETE BEACH
<a href="http://www.swimwithourfish.com">Get Tanked!</a>
You just can't help gazing at the mesmerizing peacefulness of the 33,500-gallon aquarium at the RumFish Grill at Guy Harvey Outpost, a Tradewinds Beach Resort on St. Pete Beach. Filled with numerous species of colorful, native tropical fish, it was designed and built by the crew on Animal Planet's popular television show, TANKED. Lately it has added some new inhabitants, including two stingrays, Atlantic blue tangs, doctorfish, ocean surgeonfish, and a large French angelfish--enhancing its hypnotic appeal.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/14352097_1101744903237377_6817329903301162398_o.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4628" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/14352097_1101744903237377_6817329903301162398_o.png" alt="14352097_1101744903237377_6817329903301162398_o" width="1179" height="579" /></a>
But you don't have to be content to just admire the aquarium's residents from the restaurant. Visitors aged 8 and up are invited to plunge right in with these friendly sea creatures on guided snorkeling tours. It's safe, fun, and a lot more exciting than watching "Finding Dory" on TV.
<a href="http://www.tampabayboatshows.com">Tampa Bay Boat Show</a>
Check out a variety of watercraft from kayaks to cabin cruisers at St. Petersburg's expansive Tropicana Field March 10-12. Boats new and used will be on display indoors and outdoors. You may end up towing your new purchase back home after spring break. Admission is free; parking costs $6.
Art Shows - <a href="http://www.tarponspringschamber.com">Tarpon Springs Fine Arts Festival</a> and <a href="http://www.mainsailart.org">Mainsail Arts Festival in St. Pete</a>
Make plans to attend the 43rd annual Fine Arts Festival on the Bayou in Tarpon Springs April 8-9. Held at Craig Park on the scenic Spring Bayou, it will feature as many as 250 exhibitors of a wide range of juried art. The event also includes food and live entertainment. Admission is $5, with free parking and shuttle service.
Then on April 22-23, St. Petersburg will host the 42nd annual Mainsail Art Festival at waterfront Vinoy Park. Peruse paintings, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, tapestries and many other media while listening to live music and munching on local treats. Kids will be able to create their own artworks in a special tent; adult professional artists will vie for a share of a $60,000 prize purse. Admission is free.
To arrange your stay at Guy Harvey Outpost, a Tradewinds Beach Resort, <a href="http://guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/st-pete-beach/">GO HERE</a>.
ST. AUGUSTINE
<a href="http://www.floridasbirdingandphotofest.com">Florida's Birding & Photo Fest</a>
Attend workshops and lectures on birding and photography; take walking, boating and kayaking tours of scenic woods and waters; and add to your life list in this April 26-30 outdoors extravaganza.
The event will be based at the Guana Tolomato Matanzas Estuarine Research Reserve, located just off A-1-A about halfway between St. Augustine and Jacksonville. Outdoors and photography gear will be on display and food trucks will be standing by to serve hungry hikers. Some of the outdoor tours already are sold out, so make a reservation now. There's a $25 registration fee. Cash and prizes will be awarded in a photo contest.
<a href="http://www.alligatorfarm.com">Alligator Farm Zoological Park</a>
This is the only place in the world where you can see all 24 of the world's alligator and crocodile species in one place-- including Maximo, a 15 1 2-foot-long, 45 year-old Australian croc. Other reptiles such as the Komodo dragon are housed here as well. An ancient, spreading oak in the middle of the park serves as a scenic rookery for many colorful local birds and provides limitless photo ops. You can tour the park on foot or take a zip line tour.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/16711474_10154845538210803_6926099617369395332_n.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4629" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/16711474_10154845538210803_6926099617369395332_n.jpg" alt="16711474_10154845538210803_6926099617369395332_n" width="583" height="418" /></a>
<a href="http://www.saaquarium.com">St. Augustine Aquarium</a>
This just-opened, 80,000-gallon aquarium holds more than 200 marine fish, and also features a shark and stingray cove. There are hands-on displays and opportunities to snorkel with the tank's inhabitants. An odd-looking guitarfish and a friendly nurse shark are among the highlights. Future plans call for a zip line and educational facilities.
More information on Guy Harvey Outpost, St. Augustine coming soon! https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/no-end-to-spring-break-family-fun-at-guy-harvey-outpost/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=New “Freedom Rising” Shirt from Guy Harvey&body=<a href="http://www.guyharveyart.com/Military_Items.html"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1324" title=""Freedom Rising Independence Day 2012" shirt by Guy Harvey" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/1213_13_independenceday_shirteblast.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="875" /></a> https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/new-freedom-rising-shirt-from-guy-harvey/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Bonefish Packages Announced at Bimini Big Game Club, a Guy Harvey Outpost&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/vaughn-cochran-and-bimini-catch-lr1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-938" title="Vaughn Cochran taming bonefish in Bimini " src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/vaughn-cochran-and-bimini-catch-lr1.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="366" /></a>
Set a New World Record for Bonefish or Permit and Win a Week's Stay For 2
ALICE TOWN, BIMINI-NOVEMBER 21, 2011-Management at the <a title="BBGC web site" href="http://www.biggameclubbimini.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bimini Big Game Club</a>, a <a title="GHO web site" href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Guy Harvey Outpost Resort and Marina</a> has created a novel challenge tied into their newly announced bonefish fishing travel package - break any world record in any line class for <a title="About bonefish" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonefish" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">bonefish</a> or <a title="About permit" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permit_(fish)" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">permit</a> on fly or spinning rod and win a week's all-inclusive stay for two!
<a title="About Bimini" href="http://www.bahamas.com/out-islands/bimini" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bimini</a>, located just less than 50 miles from Miami/Fort Lauderdale, is home to some 50 World Records, with four of those current world records being for bonefish/permit.
Perhaps the most remembered bonefish record was set in 1971 by Virginia Beach sportsman Jerry Lavenstein, who along with legendary guide Ansil Saunders landed a 16-pound, 3-ounce monster just some 300 yards from the
historic Big Game Club.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/jerry-ansil-record-catch-lr-1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-940" title="Jerry & Ansil with their world record bonefish" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/jerry-ansil-record-catch-lr-1.jpg" alt="" width="495" height="640" /></a>
Break Lavenstein's 40-year-old record - or any <a title="IGFA web site" href="http://www.igfa.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IGFA</a> registered record for Bonefish or Permit - and the Big Game Club will provide a complimentary seven night stay, including airfare and transfers, and a day on the water with fly fishing personality Vaughn Cochran.
The competition challenge offer, which is open through 2012, is available to anyone purchasing the special Fly Fishing Package. Details are available at <a title="Bonefish Bimini web site" href="https://guyharveyoutpost.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bonefish Bimini</a>, or call Captain Vaughn Cochran at 904-997-2200 or BBGC reservations at 1-800-867-4764. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/bonefish-packages-announced-at-bimini-big-game-club-a-guy-harvey-outpost/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Cuba Un-canned: See It With the Locals&body=Here are some of the locals you will meet during <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/">Guy Harvey Outpost's</a> guided people-to-people expedition to Cuba December 13-18:
--The son of Fidel Castro's official photographer;
--the director of the Cuba's Masonic museum;
--a rural tobacco farmer;
--a mixologist who will teach you how to make the perfect Mojito.
And the locales you will visit will combine mainstream stops (Floridita --creator of the daiquiri-- and Museo de la Revolucion, stone walls with 1950s bullet holes) with way un-trodden destinations (Cueva El Palmarito --the largest cave system in Latin America, and a fishing cooperative in Cojimar, where Ernest Hemingway's captain spent most of his life).
Your hosts will be Justin White-- operator of <a href="https://www.docfordscubaexpeditions.com/">Doc Ford's Cuba Expeditions</a> and nephew of best-selling novelist Randy Wayne White--and Sports Illustrated photographer Ron Modra.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MG_1480.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-4874" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/MG_1480.jpg" alt="" width="2100" height="1400" /></a>
"The people we are going to meet are incredible-- interesting, intelligent, diverse age groups," White said. "You'll see the monumental places but the targeted people and events introduce you to real people living their daily lives. The most valuable experience you can have is to be with the people and ask them questions. There are no airs put on."
With new U.S.-to-Cuba travel restrictions set to take effect in mid-September, White is taking special care to stay on the right side of the law: staying only in private lodgings, taking meals in private restaurants; interacting one-on-one with Cuban people; and travelling in a 12-member group.
"We will abide by all the policies and restrictions put in place," White said. "We focus on people-to-people exchanges."
The six-day, five-night itinerary is packed with authentic experiences: poring over photo albums with Raul Corrales, whose father shot reams of images of late Cuban leader Fidel Castro and his friend author Ernest Hemingway; walking the docks at Cojimar, the small fishing village where Hemingway's "Old Man and the Sea" was set and where the author's captain Gregorio Fuentes lived to be 104; visiting Finca Vijia where Hemingway's boat, Pilar, still sits; touring a tobacco farm and coffee plantation; and hiking to a huge cave in the countryside. It also hits some of the typical tourist spots such as the Tropicana nightclub and Old Havana. And there will be multiple opportunities to ogle (and photograph) all the old cars, with Modra coaching on the finer points of capturing images.
If you <a href="https://guyharveyoutpost.com/expeditions/cuba/">book your expedition</a> by Aug. 31, you'll receive free airfare from Fort Lauderdale to Havana. For more information, visit <a href="https://www.guyharveyoutpost.com">www.guyharveyoutpost.com</a> or call the Outpost Travel Desk at 800-513-5257. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/cuba-un-canned-see-it-with-the-locals/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Guy Harvey Outpost Initiates "Trash to Treasure" Art Program&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/11707509_946851132049337_3373697342381427908_n.jpg"><img class=" size-medium wp-image-2821 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/11707509_946851132049337_3373697342381427908_n.jpg?w=300" alt="11707509_946851132049337_3373697342381427908_n" width="300" height="239" /></a>While a fleet of anglers chased mahi and wahoo in Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts' Bonfire Tournament on West End, Grand Bahama Island in June, artist Bobby Little stayed behind, keeping very busy at a table in the shade of Old Bahama Bay Resort as part of the “Trash To Treasure” initiative of the Bonfire Series.
One of several artists to be featured in the Guy Harvey Outpost "Trash to Treasure" program, Little used a wet saw and grinder to demonstrate for local artisans and resort guests how to turn waste conch shells into fashion jewelry.
Over a few hours, the piles of discarded shells were crafted into beautiful designs of angelfish, sea turtles, mermaids, pelicans and dolphins.
Guests purchased the finished products for $10 to $20 apiece, with a portion of the proceeds going to local vendors. Spending about $1,300 for tools and supplies, Little says, a Bahamian artisan could set up at a resort and make back his or her investment in about two days.
"One full-size conch shell is worth $300 to $500 when it's cut into jewelry," Little said. "You could create an industry on every island. Anyone who wants to work can work. Now you have a product made in the Bahamas you can sell in the Bahamas or you could export."
The Bonfire Beach Bash & Tournament at Old Bahama Bay featured Little-- a 53-year-old Hollywood, Fla. native who has lived on Rum Cay near San Salvador for decades and who doesn't limit his artistic vision to mounds of conch shells. On his frequent beach strolls, he collects washed-up plastic and turns it into trinkets; fashions rings out of whelk shells; converts dead coral into candle holders and lamps; and is best known for his dramatic 'burning' wahoo and marlin sculptures made of scrap metal. A 16-foot wahoo filled with flaming palm fronds and smoldering charcoal dramatically lit up the post-tournament Beach Bash. Both the wahoo and marlin are expected to be turned into artificial reefs that create habitat for marine creatures and attract divers.
Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts proposes to launch a series of beach clean-ups combined with fishing and art festivals in the Bahamas and South Florida where artists would collect trash, turn it into something beautiful, and compete for prizes for the best creations. Proceeds would be put toward ocean conservation.
"It will benefit the artists, the islands-- anywhere there's trash," Little said. "And there's such a large demographic that follows Guy Harvey's name."
Story by Sue Cocking, Guy Harvey Outpost Staff Writer https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/guy-harvey-outpost-initiates-trash-to-treasure-art-program-2/){kind=link}
TRAVEL DESK : 800.513.5257
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