by Sue Cocking, Guy Harvey Outpost Travel Journalist scocking@guyharveyoutpost.com The odds look good for sinking the Lady Luck as Broward County’s largest artificial reef in July. But the mock …
Special GALAPAGOS Presentation, April 16th, at the History of Diving Museum
13 Apr 20147:39 PM
William Bebee In The Galapagos, presented by author Jack Grove 7pm FREE. At the History of Diving Museum, just minutes from the Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost. For more information check out the History of Diving Museum http://www.divingmuseum.org/
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![](mailto:?subject=Lady Luck To Take a Dive This Summer&body=by Sue Cocking, Guy Harvey Outpost Travel Journalist
scocking@guyharveyoutpost.com
The odds look good for sinking the Lady Luck as Broward County's largest artificial reef in July. But the mock underwater gambling casino aimed at attracting both fish and scuba divers to the waters off Pompano Beach could use a few more high rollers.
The non-profit Shipwreck Park Foundation, made up of city officials and local business owners including the Isle Casino, has put up $625,000 to purchase, transport, clean and finally sink the 324-foot former sludge tanker about 1 1/2 miles southeast of the Pompano Beach Pier. The ship, originally called the Newtown Creek, was towed from its former home in New York City to a shipyard on the Miami River in late April to be stripped of equipment, cleaned of pollutants and drained of fuel and oil.
But some unexpected permits imposed by New York officials before they would release the ship increased the project cost by about $175,000. So now the Foundation is looking for some private donors to chip in and make up the difference.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/wreck.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-4075 size-full" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/wreck.jpg" alt="wreck" width="720" height="361" /></a>
"It's going to be a great wreck," said Captain Jeff Torode of South Florida Diving Headquarters, a Guy Harvey Outpost Outfitter. "Everybody is going to benefit. It's a win-win."
The Lady Luck sports multiple decks and is covered with metal piping that creates plenty of nooks and crannies for fish to hide and coral to grow. Its relief and complexity enhances the whimsical casino ambience to be created by prominent Pompano Beach artist Dennis MacDonald: mock poker tables; roulette wheels; oversized dice; and fish costumed as croupiers. Donors to the project can commission unique artwork by MacDonald to be placed throughout the ship. The interior bulkheads will feature a rotating gallery of waterproof paintings and other decorations crafted by local artists. Options for underwater selfies will be limitless.
Lady Luck is to become the centerpiece of Pompano Beach's Shipwreck Park, which includes other popular artificial reefs such as the Captain Dan and Jay Scutti. Plans call for an underwater trail connecting them.
Resolve Marine Group, based in Fort Lauderdale, has been chosen to sink the ship-- performing underwater modeling and other tests to ensure it settles right-side up on the sandy bottom. Broward County's last artificial reef deployment-- a barge holding Easter Island-like Rapa Nui statues--went wrong when it flipped upside down off Deerfield Beach last summer, crushing most of the artwork.
To learn more about how you can help with the deployment of Lady Luck, go <a href="http://www.shipwreckparkpompano.org" target="_blank">HERE</a>.
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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.
********** https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/lady-luck-to-take-a-dive-this-summer/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Explore Man’s Relationship with the Sea at the History of Diving Museum, Islamorada, April 15th&body=Immerse Yourself, Man’s Relationship with the Sea at the <a href="http://www.divingmuseum.org/">History of Diving Museum</a>, April 15th 7pm. Alyssa Engiles presents the story of Man, Homo Delphinus to the Aquatic Ape Hypothesis.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/alyssa-engiles-history-of-diving-museum-friend.jpg"><img class="wp-image-2681 size-large" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/alyssa-engiles-history-of-diving-museum-friend.jpg?w=550" alt="Alyssa Engiles, History of Diving Museum & Friend" width="550" height="550" /></a>Alyssa Engiles, History of Diving Museum and Friend.
Come early to meet David Charash and learn about the underwater adventure of <a title="Cousteau Dives the Keys!" href="http://guyharveyoutpostnews.com/2014/06/11/cousteau-dives-the-keys/">Mission 31 </a>when Fabian Cousteau broke his grandfather’s endurance record.
The History of Diving Museum is located at: 82990 Overseas Hwy about one mile north of the <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/islamorada-fl/islamorada-fl-overview.html">Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost</a>.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/dive-helmet.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-2678" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/dive-helmet.png" alt="Dive Helmet" width="199" height="275" /></a>
For more information on the <a href="http://www.divingmuseum.org/">History of Diving Museum</a>
For Fishing with Guy Harvey Outpost: <a href="http://www.ghofish.com/">www.ghofish.com</a>
For Guy Harvey Outpost & their great resorts: <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/" target="_parent">http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/</a>
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![](mailto:?subject=Vet to Vet: Dive, Dive, Dive!&body=Retired U.S. Navy Petty Officer Seth Wade likely will have to get around using a wheelchair for the rest of his life-- a daunting prospect at the age of 26. After losing use of his legs in a 2014 auto accident that damaged his spinal cord while on deployment in Europe, Wade is adjusting to civilian life in his hometown of Tampa. But instead of being depressed about what he can't do as a paraplegic, Wade has decided to focus on what he CAN do-- snow and water skiing, sailing, and, just recently, scuba diving.
"Being in the water gives you a sense of freedom," Wade said between pool training sessions in Clearwater recently. "I love it. I can't wait to get to the good stuff."
Wade was trained by Scott Crawford, a U.S. Air Force retiree and owner/instructor at Rock Bottom Divers near Tarpon Springs. Crawford has been donating his time to teach and certify military vets-- both disabled and able-bodied-- as scuba divers for the past three years. He works with several non-profit veterans' groups to help defray costs for the dive boat, equipment and instructional materials.
"It's called 'adaptive diving'," Crawford said of how he trains his students. "It's based on what the candidate can do -- not what he can't do."
Crawford was introduced to Wade by Nelson Corbin, executive director of the North Carolina-based Wounded Veteran Retreat Program. Corbin, a U.S. Army Rangers veteran, began organizing outdoor outings for wounded vets about three years ago after his son, who served in Special Forces, lost both legs in Afghanistan.
Corbin helped out with Wade's dive training sessions in the pool and an inland spring. But neither he nor Crawford cut the young man any slack. Wade lowered himself from his wheelchair to pool side and in and out of the water. He had to perform the same skills as any other open-water dive candidate-- removing and clearing the mask underwater; executing out-of-air drills and emergency ascents; donning his buoyancy control device and many others-- all while swimming with webbed gloves and no fins. He took to the skills easily-- probably because he grew up fishing and snorkeling in Tampa Bay.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/P1010485.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-large wp-image-4206" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/P1010485-1024x768.jpg" alt="P1010485" width="1024" height="768" /></a>
"Good work, man!" Crawford congratulated Wade.
The student earned both an open-water and Nitrox scuba certification through the SSI agency. Nitrox is a breathing gas containing less nitrogen than regular compressed air-- important for Wade because it means less nitrogen accumulating in the scar tissue on his spine. Too much nitrogen in the blood and tissues can lead to decompression sickness, or the 'bends' -- a painful and serious medical condition.
"It's nice having two vets [in training sessions]," Wade said. "Doing it with non-vets from a local dive shop would be not as comfortable."
The new scuba diver reflected back on the dark days of his post-accident recovery at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center near Washington, D.C. where he was treated by several psychologists, some of whom he "fired". But one who he called 'Lieutenant Dan' stood out as particularly helpful.
"Somehow, he was hooked up with Guy Harvey," Wade recalled.
'Lieutenant Dan' got Wade a limited-edition print of a tarpon signed by Harvey, along with a tee shirt. Today, that tarpon hangs over Wade's bed at home in Tampa.
"I never did get to thank Guy Harvey," Wade mused. "If you see him, tell him I said thanks."
<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/dive-packages/"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-4200 size-full" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/ad.jpg" alt="ad" width="737" height="301" /></a> https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/vet-to-vet-dive-dive-dive/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Gather Ye Lobsters While Ye May&body=<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/lobster.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-3967 alignleft" src="http://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="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Slate-Special.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-3968 size-full" src="http://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=Killing for Conservation!&body=<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/green-turtle-lionfish-haul-2014.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2068" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/green-turtle-lionfish-haul-2014.jpg?w=225" alt="Lionfish Derbies Work, 908 Dead Lionfish Cannot All Be Wrong!" width="225" height="300" /></a> Killing for Conservation?Lionfish are incredibly fertile and have no natural predators in the Atlantic Ocean. <a href="http://www.reef.org/">Reef Environmental Education Foundation</a> (REEF) has been leading the fight against this Indo-Pacific invader and after six years of Lionfish Derbies at Green Turtle Cay the evidence is clear: Lionfish Derbies Work! Lionfish now range from Brazil to North Carolina and beyond. They can live in fresh water too! The 908 Lionfish killed in this one day event was fewer than in previous years even with more divers and better weather. AND those fish that were killed this year were smaller than in previous years; another good sign. Lionfish Derbies will not send the fish back to the Pacific; they can however help local communities keep the population in check.<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/credit-ellie-splain.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2071" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/credit-ellie-splain.jpg?w=300" alt="Three Contestants for the Smallest Lionfish Caught. Photo Credit: Ellie Splain" width="300" height="200" /></a>Three Contestants for the Smallest Lionfish Caught. Photo Credit: Ellie Splain Click Image to Enlarge<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/green-turtle-cay-abacos/overview.html">The Green Turtle Club</a>, a <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/index.php">Guy Harvey Outpost</a> Expedition Lodge hosted the event. For six years, REEF scientists have conducted a Lionfish Census before and after each event to assess the impacts of the Derbies. REEF estimates that had these 908 demons been allowed to roam Abaco waters for another year they would have consumed between 700,000 and 2.2 MILLION! Native prey fish.Congratulations and Thanks to REEF & to The Green Turtle Club for executing a great event for an important conservation mission!For more information on <a href="http://www.reef.org/">Reef Environmental Education Foundation</a> and other <a href="http://www.REEF.org/lionfish">Lionfish Derbies</a>.For More information on <a title="The Green Turtle Club" href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/green-turtle-cay-abacos/overview.html">The Green Turtle Club</a>For More information on <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/index.php">Guy Harvey Outpost</a> https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/killing-for-conservation/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Guy Harvey Outpost Club to Open on Rum Cay, Bahamas&body=<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-aerial-lr1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-949" title="Rum Cay, Bahamas" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-aerial-lr1.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="412" /></a>
Second Location for Guy Harvey Outpost Properties Program
Fort Lauderdale, FL - November 28, 2011 - <a title="GHO web site" href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com" target="_blank">Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts LTD</a> announced today plans to open its second boutique resort property on <a title="About Rum Cay" href="http://guyharveyoutpost.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=80&Itemid=87" target="_blank">Rum Cay</a> in the southern Bahamas. The popular <a title="Sumner Point M&V web site" href="http://www.rumcaymarina.com/" target="_blank">Sumner Point Marina & Villas </a>property is undergoing renovations and reopens this spring as the Guy Harvey Outpost Resort & Marina, Rum Cay.
Rum is the southern gateway in and out of the Bahamas, just like <a title="About Bimini" href="http://www.bahamas.com/out-islands/bimini" target="_blank">Bimini</a> is to the north, so this is a great complement to our system and certainly will be a welcome Outpost for any of our customers spending time further down the island chain," notes company President, Mark Ellert. The Rum Cay project follows the reopening of the <a title="BBGC web site" href="http://www.biggameclubbimini.com" target="_blank">Bimini Big Game Club</a> last year as a Guy Harvey Outpost. Rum Cay is an out-island destination known for its rugged and unspoiled beauty, and daily life on Rum is little changed over the past hundred years.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-bluffs-lr1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-952" title="The unspoiled bluffs at Rum Cay" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-bluffs-lr1.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="366" /></a>
"Every serious angler or diver has the Southern Bahamas on his or her bucket list, every mariner knows it’s where you put in for fuel and shore leave and with a lack of crowds or development, Rum Cay enthusiasts consider it their own private island retreat," adds Ellert, who oversees location selection for the firm. "For all these adventure travelers, we intend the Outpost Club & Marina to be the destination of choice in the Southern Bahamas."
The island has approximately 60 permanent residents and is roughly 50 miles southeast of Georgetown in <a title="About The Exumas" href="http://www.bahamas.com/out-islands/exumas" target="_blank">the Exumas</a>. Conception Island, which is part of the <a title="About the Land and Sea Park" href="http://www.bnt.bs/parks_exuma.php" target="_blank">Bahamas National Land and Sea Park</a> sanctuary, figures prominently in the company’s interest.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-marina-lr1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-954" title="Rum Cay Marina" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-marina-lr1.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="366" /></a>
"Conception is just 10 miles from Rum," said the company’s chairman, <a title="Guy Harvey Inc. web site" href="http://www.guyharvey.com" target="_blank">Dr. Guy Harvey</a>, who holds a Ph.D in marine fisheries management. " In addition to the fantastic diving there, we intend to work with government in expanding the coral and shark research work of the <a title="GHRI web site" href="http://www.nova.edu/ocean/ghri/" target="_blank">Guy Harvey Research Institute</a> which is a cornerstone of our Outpost program in the Bahamas."
Named Santa Maria de La Concepcion by Columbus who visited the island on his first voyage to the New World, Rum Cay is believed to have acquired its modern name from a shipwrecked cargo of rum. The island’s most famous shipwreck is that of the 101-gun <a title="About the HMS Conqueror" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Conqueror_(1855)" target="_blank">HMS Conqueror </a>which sank off Sumner Point in 1861, and is now preserved and protected as the Bahamas Underwater Museum.
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/snorkling-off-rum-cay-lr1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-956" title="Snorkeling off Rum Cay" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/snorkling-off-rum-cay-lr1.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="828" /></a>
Widely recognized for its outstanding diving and fishing, Rum Cay is also popular with surfing and kite-boarding enthusiasts, and sky diving over the island is quickly gaining in popularity. This December the resort hosts its second "Jump Boogie", a weeklong skydiving and kite-surfing event.
"Rum Cay has always interested us because of its unquestionable natural beauty and its top-of-class sporting activities, including extreme sports that appeal to a new generation of Guy Harvey friends and fans," emphasizes Ned Stone, who leads the company’s "Outpost Pursuits" program. "Surf, kite and paddle boards are the new beach sports, and we intend to bring our top-of-class DNA to these as we’ve done for fishing and diving."
<a href="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-surfing1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-957" title="Surfing Rum Cay" src="http://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/rum-cay-surfing1.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="367" /></a>
The Sumner Point Marina is situated on the southeast tip of Rum Cay. The marina and adjoining club facilities have been owned and operated by the Little family since 1960. Known for its protected marina, picturesque beachside cottages and gourmet dining, the property exudes the bohemian flair of its owner and artist-in-residence, Bobby Little.
"It’s time for our family to take this incredible property to the next level", remarked Bobby Little in announcing the conversion of his boutique resort. "I was raised on Rum, as has my son. With our renovations and the support of the Guy Harvey Outpost brand and management, I expect our property to become a beacon for sustainable tourism in the Southern Bahamas. I can’t think of a better legacy for our family, for the Bahamas or for anyone who has come to call us their island home."
For more information, visit <a title="GHO web site" href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com" target="_blank">Guy Harvey Outpost</a>. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/guy-harvey-outpost-club-to-open-on-rum-cay-bahamas/){kind=link}
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