Florida Diving

Tapping the new “Real Time Web” <--- FAST video

2011-10-31T01:35:00.000-04:00

SUBJECT: Tapping the new “Real Time Web” <--- FAST video

I just finished watching this new video from traffic whiz Anthony Morrison, and I had to be the first to share this with you:

==> http://157155yqg4u2jn71ef40piihfv.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=FLORIDADIVING

Why?

#1, Anthony’s opening up for the first time about a traffic GAME CHANGER he’s calling the “Real Time Web Effect” (hint: it’s affecting you *already* if you’re trying to make money online)…

… and #2, I think you’ll agree this video’s a little “different” than the usual “marketing” stuff (especially the part with the exploding apple).

Bottom line: This video is about SPEED (you’ll see what I’m talking about in just a second)…

… so if you want to catch it before it’s gone, click the link below to watch it right now, while it’s on your mind:

==> http://157155yqg4u2jn71ef40piihfv.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=FLORIDADIVING

Talk Soon,

ArtMeister

P.S. You might have seen Anthony on TV (anywhere from his own show to CNN), but he’s NEVER shared what he’s talking about right here:

==> http://157155yqg4u2jn71ef40piihfv.hop.clickbank.net/?tid=FLORIDADIVING

GottaHalfIt: Great New Service in Florida

2010-10-23T16:45:00.000-04:00

We've found a great new service here in South Florida. However, they have locations all across the country, so no matter where you are, you can take advantage of their phenomenal deals.

They send out an email with a Deal of the Day. The deal is usually a local shop or restaurant offering a HUGE discount. For example, we bought $194 in auto services for $9.99 that included oil change, tire rotation, car wash, vacuum, nitrogen tire fill, etc.

Lots of local restaurants, spas, service businesses, and more. There's also a referral program that allows you to earn points toward future deals.

1. Sign up free
Each day we will present you with an unbeatable deal to a local restaurant, spa, or event. Click Here: https://www.GottaHalfIt.com/share/shareReferral.do?ru=22894210910

2. Click to Buy
Once you see a great deal you want simply click our "Buy Now" button and purchase the deal. It's that simple! Easily pass the deal on to your friends through email, facebook, and twitter.

3. Print Your Halfit and Enjoy!
You will receive an email notification, the next day, that your Halfit Voucher is ready for you to print and use immediately!

We highly recommend this service and use it personally.

The Dutch Antilles Cease to Exist

2010-10-13T10:01:00.000-04:00

End of the road for Dutch Antilles < Dutch news | Expatica The Netherlands

The Dutch Antilles will stop existing from Sunday when two of its islands become independent states in the Kingdom of the Netherlands and three become Dutch municipalities under a pact concluded last month.

Until now, the Netherlands and its former colonies, the five-island Antilles and the neighbouring Caribbean isle of Aruba, were independent member countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

But under the new deal, the Antillean islands of Curacao and St Maarten will become independent states in the Kingdom, while Bonaire, Saba and St Eustatius will become Dutch municipalities

"After midnight on Saturday, the country known as the Dutch Antilles will no longer exist," Dutch interior ministry spokesman Thijs Manten told AFP.

"The composition of the Kingdom of the Netherlands will change."

From Sunday, the kingdom will consist of the Netherlands, Aruba and the two largest ex-Antillean islands: Curacao with about 150,000 inhabitants and St Maarten with about 40,000

The islands of Bonaire, Saba, and St Eustatius, with less than 20,000 inhabitants between them, will become special-status Dutch municipalities.

The changes reflect the wishes of a majority of voters in referenda held on the islands, leading to the signing of a final pact by the Antilles, the Netherlands and Aruba on September 9.

Curacao and St Maarten will each have their own parliament, government, prime minister and currency: the guilder.

Bonaire, Saba and St Eustatius will switch to the US dollar and have "island councils" akin to municipal councils. Their inhabitants will vote for the national Dutch government.

The three new municipalities will have to adopt many Dutch laws. The most contentious among them, allowing for abortion, gay marriage and euthanasia, will be systematically adopted over a period of two years, said Manten.

"The big benefit of all this is that a country that did not function properly (the Antilles) will stop existing," he added. "It will free the islands from a lot of debt and allow them to make a fresh start, creating space for new policy formulation and spending on things like health and education."

Under the deal, the Dutch government would take over 70 percent of the debt of the Antilles, estimated at some 1.7 billion euros (2.4 billion dollars).

The New PayPal? PayBox will Pay YOU $50 to Find Out

2010-10-05T11:58:00.003-04:00

Click to Join Free and Receive $50

For those of us who were online when PayPal first hit the scene, we remember the incentives that they offered to get folks to join their service. PayPal paid a referral fee for every person a member referred who joined their new 'revolutionary' service. While it certainly helped expand PayPal's reach in an effective and viral way, it also was a very lucrative referral system for those who referred their friends; a win-win scenario.

There is a new service now on the scene called PayBox. PayBox is in their pre-launch phase with the launch anticipated to be in 2011. As with any financial service, they need to have a solid customer base before they officially get off the ground.

As an incentive for new members, PayBox.me is offering
$50 Free just for signing up.

In addition, by logging in frequently to help them expand the service during the pre-launch phase, they'll pay you up to $20 per day.

Furthermore, earlybird users who refer their friends receive
$5 for every new member they refer.

Sounds like a pretty sweet deal, so what's the catch?

Best I can tell thus far, the only catch is that you have to actually log into your account on a weekly basis to keep in active during the pre-launch phase. When you sign up, they don't ask for any proprietary information (no social security number, no year of birth, no first born). All you do is create a username and password and then subscribe to their blog. Simple.

My wife and I signed up and thus far everything is going as they've described. With any luck, PayBox.me will have a successful launch and we'll have an alternative to PayPal... which could mean that PayPal will finally have some competition and will have to reduce some of their fees.

Click Here to Visit the PayBox website or to Join Free and Receive $50:

http://www.PayBox.me/r/branon
or
http://www.PayBox.me/r/panfilova

Scuba Diving Photos, Ocean Artwork, and Scuba Posters from VirtualMuse.com

2010-09-24T11:45:00.000-04:00

Scuba Diving Photos, Dive Posters, Ocean Artwork at VirtualMuse.com

Challenge: Diver

Buy From Art.com

Couple Diving, USA

Casey Mahaney

Buy From Art.com

Diver Swimming with Butterfly Fish an...

Buy From Art.com

Diving in Colourful Reef,...

Michael Lawrence

Buy From Art.com

Couple Scuba Diving, Sponge Formation...

Stuart Westmoreland

Buy From Art.com

A Diver Swims Between Two...

Bill Curtsinger

Buy From Art.com

Diver with Pair of Pearly Nautilus, G...

Jurgen Freund

Buy From Art.com

Scuba Diving

Jacques Bosse

Buy From Art.com

Diver with Ocean Sunfish,...

Eric Horan

Buy From Art.com

SCUBA Dude

Fred May

Buy From Art.com

Diver Holds on to Giant Manta Ray, Me...

Jeff Rotman

Buy From Art.com

Love is in the Air, Scuba...

Buy From Art.com

Minnow Caves and Scuba Di...

Michele Westmorland

Buy From Art.com

Diving Helmet with Weight...

Buy From Art.com

"Scuba Cat " fine art print

Holly Kitaura

Buy From Art.com

Diver in Middle of School...

Michael Aw

Buy From Art.com

Diving at Stingray City o...

Greg Johnston

Buy From Art.com

Cavern in Broken Stone, A...

Casey Mahaney

Buy From Art.com

Diver and Soft Coral, Great Barrier R...

Jurgen Freund

Buy From Art.com

Manta Rays with Diver, Yap Island, Ca...

Amos Nachoum

Buy From Art.com

Scuba Divers with Hawksbill Turtle, H...

Stuart Westmoreland

Buy From Art.com

Female Divers Submerged B...

Amos Nachoum

Buy From Art.com

Diver with False Clown An...

Jurgen Freund

Buy From Art.com

World's Most Dangerous Sh...

Buy From Art.com

Great White Shark, Swimming, South Au...

Gerard Soury

Buy From Art.com

Hollywood Diving - Outfall and Second Reef

2008-11-21T01:01:00.001-05:00

Unable to find another last minute diver, my buddy, Ty, and I decided to do a little anchor diving. It was the first decent wave weekend day in quite awhile, and we wanted to make the most of it. We left the dock around 9am and made our way to our first dive site. Unfortunately, there were several dive boats trolling across the wreck, so we opted for a shallower dive elsewhere.

We anchored up near the Hollywood Outfall, which is located just North of Hollywood Boulevard right off the beach. Just in case you're not familiar, an 'outfall' is a nice way of saying sewer pollution disbursement pipe. There used to be dozens of these up and down the Florida coast pumping millions of gallons of near-raw sewage waste into the ocean every day. Most of the municipalities have since shut them down, but there are several that are still active including the City of Hallandale Beach and one up near Pompano and Boca, but I don't specifically know who operates it.

If you've never been diving on one of these sites, it is certainly an eye-opener. Having accidentally come across the Hallandale Outfall Pipe some years ago, I would never dive one of these active sites on purposes. Picture a large round pipe with a plume of thick smoke pouring out into the water, except that instead of smoke, it's dark, stinky sewage. The reef life around it is usually dead, but the fish life is usually pretty abundant with some of the largest Bermuda Chubs I've ever seen in my life swimming in schools through the plume of effluent. YUCK! Needless to say, I immediately started swimming upstream.

Installing one of these now would NEVER make it past the EPA, let alone the reef protection groups, etc. Unfortunately, neither of us had an underwater camera or I'd be happy to post photos. The pipe is a HUGE steel pipe, some of which are larger than 3 feet across. However, it is weighed down to the sea bed by way of a matte of interlocked concrete blocks. They make almost a road bed along the bottom. The sad part is that they laid these blocks across whatever happened to be in the way - including coral heads and rock formations.

In the years since, some of the steel rods that hold the blocks together have rusted through, usually where there is a lot of stress on them such as a lump created by laying over a coral formation. This creates small perforations in the matte that create a crevice, which allows fish to swim in and out at will. In some of these sections, there are caverns that are several feet wide, a foot or more high and dozens of feet long - perfect habitat for a variety of reef fish who gather in these areas now.

The Hollywood Outfall Pipe, now inactive, has simply become part of the habitat. On this particular day, most of the fish life was gathered on the North side of the structure, perhaps to be on the lee side of the North-flowing current. I saw a nice dog snapper slip into one of these crevices, so I lined myself up and waited. Within a few minutes, it emerged again and found itself on the end of my spearshaft. I repeated the process twice more. Three snapper on the stringer; not a bad dive. I also saw a very large yellow jack and a just-over-legal king mackerel, but both were out of range. Ty picked up two lobsters hiding amongst the matte.

I had promised Ty to show him a spot that two of my other buddies and I had found a few months earlier. On that trip, we landed 11 lobster and several fish on one dive. After a little trial and error, we located the area and dropped in together. Ty dives with a scooter, so he tends to cover a lot more ground than I do, even with my Omer Millennium Longfins. I prefer to take it slow, cover less ground, but take more time to see everything I can. On this trip, it paid off.

I was on the bottom for all of about 45 seconds after following the anchor rode down to the bottom. Grouper will frequently move toward an anchor when it hits the bottom; perhaps to check out the commotion or the poof of inevitable sand. We had anchored in a sandy spot right next to the reef line. Rather than follow the reef line, however, I saw a small outcropping over the top of the edge. I swam toward it and spooked a grouper. He shot off across the reef light a lightning bolt. I kicked hard to try to catch him, but knew that if he kept up the pace, I'd never get close.

His first burst of energy subsided and he paused just long enough for me to take a long-range gill shot, which hit its mark. A perfect shot, he had little opportunity to escape as the flopper on the Hawaiian Shaft I was using on my Riffe C3XS had opened on the other side. He thrashed toward a coral head, which I thought meant a bent shaft for certain. Instead, he turned a somersault and I was able to grab him before any damage was done. Ty showed up behind me just as I was locking the red grouper onto my stringer. I did a little happy dance to which Ty rolled his eyes and kept cruising.

I continued scouring the reef looking for more fish. My wife had sent me on a mission as our freezer was nearly empty. Too many bad weather days left me no previous opportunity to replenish our seafood supply. I was a little disoriented because the clouds kept going in and out obscuring the sunlight. However, the first lobster I found were sitting in a small cave that I had found on that previous dive trip. You can see video of the cave - full of lobster - here on my YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG7oIK2q4LQ

As soon as I saw the sponge, I instantly had my bearings and knew where to find more fish and lobster. I picked up a total of 6 lobster, the 24-inch grouper, and 2 nice Spanish Mackerel before getting a little chilly and deciding to head back to the boat. God had shown us abundance today, and I thank him as I made the 100-yard swim back to the boat, compass in hand. The scenery had been amazing, the seas calm, the water a little cloudy, but perfect for spearfishing. If the water is too clear, the fish see you well before you either see them or before you could get in shooting range. Most importantly, both divers returned safely to the boat without incident.

All in all, another great day diving in paradise.

Key West is NOT the Marquesas

2008-05-18T12:21:00.001-04:00

My buddies, Randy Docks, Ann Scutti, and Matt Doty, and I were all set to compete in the 2008 Spearboard Open Spearfishing Tournament. We had what we thought was a rock solid charter booked out of Key West going to the Marquesas with Captain Daniel Zier on the 'Second Nature' charter boat out of Garrison's Bight on Key West. Originally, the trip plan was to arrive in Key West Friday night, sleep on the boat while motoring overnight to the Marquesas, with the diving starting at dawn on Saturday. According to 'Capt'n Dan' (using my best Forrest Gump character voice) he would be putting us on big fish all day, and in fact, would be 'pushing black grouper out of the way so you can shoot the bigger ones.' A sales pitch of course, but his website photos seemed to back up the claim. Turns out that many of the 'spearfishing' photos on his website are actually from commercial line fishing days with the occasional shot of him with some fish he shot personally freediving.

Unfortunately, he didn't live up to the hype. In fact, the boat and it's crew were ill-equipped and untrained to accommodate divers. No dive platform, a plastic ladder thrown over the side of the very tall gunwales, and a mate that was not trained in helping divers either get geared up, get back on the boat, or stow their gear without causing potential damage. We ended up assisting each other most of the time getting the tanks into the boat, among other things. In fact, the mate was on the flybridge chatting with the captain a couple times when we were getting ready to dive.

The dive platform was obvious upon our arrival, but at 6am the day of the tournament, our choices were pretty limited. The Marquesas trip we paid for turned into a multi-dive outing always within sight of land of Key West. To add insult to injury, the captain and mate did some freediving during our surface intervals on a shallow spot that was nearby the spots we dived. The water had great visibility and oddly enough, the captain bagged a 10-pound mutton snapper, a 20-pound black grouper, some hogfish, and a couple nice triggerfish; interesting, since I didn't even see a mutton snapper all day.

Advice: if you have the opportunity to charter with Captain Dan Zier on 'Second Nature' in Key West... Skip the Trip.

Dive 1:
90-115 feet of Water, Hard Bottom
Expected: Huge snapper and grouper
Viz - 15-20 feet (if you're lucky, looked like diving in watered-down milk)
Fish Seen: 2 HUGE African Pompano (can't shoot 'em), 1 Goliath Grouper, lots of little yellow tail snapper, 1 small yellow jack
Fish Boated: NONE (NONE?!?)

Dive 2:
80-95 feet of water, Wreck: Cayman Salvager then Reef nearby
Viz: 20-30 feet on the wreck, 15-20 on the reef
Expected: Huge amberjack, huge grouper, huge mutton snapper, maybe big hogfish
Fish Seen: 1 legal black on the wreck that was too spooky to get close to, 1 decent yellow jack, few small hogfish, a couple mackeral (not on the tournament list)
Fish Boated: 1 decent yellow jack (see photo)

Dive 3:
45-75 feet of water, reef ledge
Viz: 10-20 feet depending on depth
Expected: Huge grouper, huge snapper, huge hogfish, ANYTHING!?!
Fish Seen: Several black grouper, spooky lane snapper and schoolmaster, smallish hogfish, several mackerel
Fish Boated: 1 black grouper (see top photo), 2 legal hogfish

Dive 4: (Repeat of 3rd location)
45-60 feet of water, reef ledge
Viz: 10-15 feet and declining
Expected: Grouper
Fish Seen: Several black grouper, spooky lane snapper and schoolmaster, smallish hogfish, several mackerel, 30lbs Nassau Grouper, 1 Triggerfish
Fish Boated: Nice Trigger Fish (see photo below), 1 small snapper

If we had been diving out of our home ports of Pompano Beach or Fort Lauderdale, this would have been a decent day if we had done two dives instead of four. However, having paid for a Marquesas trip and having received a near-shore Key West trip, we were all extremely disappointed. So much so that none of us took our fish up to New Port Richey for the tournament weigh-in.

About the grouper:
Matt and I were covering some very interesting coral formations around 50-60 feet, criss-crossing across what I would call 'mushroom forest'. There were lots of holes and even tunnels for fish to traverse. The black grouper came out of a hole and shot across the reef. I followed it around and over several coral heads and took the 'Hail Mary' shot on the far end of my speargun's range. I thought a body shot might actually stick at that distance, and it did. The fish swam, with shaft in place, under one coral head and through another. So, the one big fish of the trip came at the expense of a hardened steel Riffe shaft, which was thoroughly bent in the process. Nice fish!

Note to readers:
While you certainly shouldn't believe everything people tell you or even show you on website photos, you should have a certain level of expectation when booking a professional charter. First and foremost, the captain and crew should be EXPERIENCED with divers and be properly equipped to handle them. As many charters as we've booked between us, it never dawned on us to ask the captain if his boat had a dive platform and swim ladder. You just assume (bad idea) that anyone who is chartering divers will have these two essential items. Of course, none of the four of us will make that mistake again. Also, please note that all divers on this trip have advanced training and Nitrox certifications. Never dive beyond your skill or training level, don't push your personal limits, and of course, plan your dive and dive your plan!

On a positive note (finally, I know), the seas were calm, the weather was nice, the water was warm, and all divers returned to the boat safely after each dive. While we were all tired from the driving and the full day of diving, we were all prepared (mentally, physically, and with regard to skills/training) to do this trip.

The highlight of the trip for me was seeing a 30-pound Nassau Grouper for the first time. I've seen lots of 3-5 pounders, but never one this massive. The two African Pompano on the first dive were also amazing. They swam straight up to me within a minute or so of hitting the bottom. As they swam away, I snapped the bands on my speargun and they turned around and came back for a second look. Both times, they were within 10 feet of me. Very cool!

Diving Off Hollywood & Dania Beach

2008-04-13T17:46:00.002-04:00

Randy Docks with Black Grouper
My buddies, Randy Docks, David Docks, Ann Scutti, and I decided to try some deep diving today since lobster season is gone for another season. The seas were a whopping 6 to 12..... inches... and the weather man was correct for a change. We scooted South out of Port Everglades past the Dania Pier and decided to drop in for a look around. We ended up a bit deeper than 80 feet, but it was well worth the dive.

Our bottom time wasn't that impressive, but Randy skewered (literally, no pun intended) a 34-inch Black Grouper, that promptly cut his 400-pound monofilament shock cord and swam off. Luckily, Randy was able to track and subdue the catch as well as retrieve the spear shaft.

Just a short distance away, I picked up an 18.5-inch Yellow Tail Snapper. This was actually my first yellow tail as most of the fish we get close enough to are usually just at the legal mark. I'm too lazy to clean small fish, so I tend to let them swim on by. However, this one looked like it would be a nice meal or two. For the record, the Grouper in the photo is Randy's, I just borrowed it for a photo opportunity. :)

Our second dive was just burning off what was left of our first tank on some patch reefs off Dania Beach. Ann picked up a few nice hogfish, and we saw the largest Black Margate I have ever seen. He had to be 10 pounds or larger - nice fish! I'm not a big Margate fan so he's still out there.

Ann and I did a third dive on the Donal McCallister and the grouping of wrecks around it. There was no current whatsoever - What A Treat! We were able to hit all of the wrecks in the group and then go back to the McC to enjoy watching the monster Goliath Grouper who was hanging out inside the pilot house.

All in all, it was another fantastic day of diving here in South Florida!

Spotted Eagle Ray Kills Keys Tourist

2008-03-21T10:13:00.003-04:00

**Reprinted from the Miami Herald** We don't usually add non-diving related stories, but I'm sure a lot of folks will want clarification about this one. This was NOT a diving death and the woman was NOT stung by the eagle ray. The eagle ray happened to jump out of the water while the boat was going by and it happened to run into her and knock her head against the boat. Obviously, this was a freak accident that no one could have either predicted or prevented.

MARATHON
Eagle ray's leap into boat kills tourist in Keys
A Michigan tourist died Thursday when a ray flew out of the water, knocking her head against the side of the boat.
Posted on Fri, Mar. 21, 2008
BY CAMMY CLARK
cclark@MiamiHerald.com

MARATHON -- A morning fishing outing ended in tragedy Thursday for a family of Michigan tourists when a 75-pound spotted eagle ray leaped into their boat and caused the death of a 55-year-old woman.

Judy Kay Zagorski, 55, of Pigeon, Mich., who was fishing with her sister and parents, died Thursday morning of apparent blunt force trauma.

The exact cause won't be known until her autopsy is performed Friday.

Officials of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission say they can't remember a similar accident in the Keys happening in at least 20 years.

''It's so unusual, so rare, so bizarre,'' FWC spokesman Jorge Pino said. ``We see them jump out of the water all the time, but [have] never seen them impact a human being or cause a death.

``She was just at the wrong place at the wrong time.''

Spotted eagle rays are capable of leaping completely out of the water when pursued or trying to shake off scavenger fish that attach themselves to the ray.

This ray, which died from being out of the water too long, had a remora -- known as a suckerfish -- attached to its fin.

The rays swim gracefully through the water via the undulation of the pectoral fins.

NORMAL TO JUMP

''They naturally jump out of the water, like porpoises do,'' Dube said. ``It's natural to them and quite spectacular to watch.''

Investigators said Zagorski had injuries to her face and head. They did not find evidence she was pierced by the ray's toxic barb.

''To lose a child just leaves the parents numb,'' said neighbor Marcia Corcoran, who knew the family from their annual visits to Marathon. ``I can hardly believe it myself.''

The Michigan family left the dock of their pink rented house on Fifth Avenue Ocean in Marathon just before 10 a.m. They were traveling on a rented 25-foot fishing boat to the deeper waters of the Atlantic Ocean via the Key Colony Beach Channel near Vaca Cut.

The boat was traveling about 25 miles an hour when the ray jumped into the air and on board. The ray struck both sisters, who were sitting in front of the console.

Zagorski's sister suffered a bad bruise, and she was treated and released from Fishermen's Hospital.

Investigators say the force of the ray likely caused Zagorski to hit her head, possibly on a metal rail on the side of the boat.

''There was a lot of blood on the boat,'' FWC spokesperson Bobby Dube said.

CPR was performed while Zagorski's father drove the boat to a dock just a block from their vacation rental. Neighbor Jim Corcoran called 911 and said rescue emergency personnel arrived within minutes.

But it was too late.

Zagorski, wearing a bathing suit and her wedding ring, was already dead.

Her husband, Steve, had died in 2005 at age 53.

At the time of the accident, a third sister was on a plane to join the family, unaware of what had happened.

Corcoran said the spotted eagle ray was so big it took up about half of the front of the boat.

It's not the first time a ray has caused injury in South Florida. In October 2006, a spotted eagle ray stung a Broward County man, piercing his chest with its toxic barb.

IMPALED

The 30-pound stingray leapt into James Bertakis' boat while he was near Lighthouse Point with his granddaughter and one of her friends. The foot-long barb stuck into Bertakis' chest and entered his heart chamber.

Bertakis, now 83, has made an almost full recovery, according to son Jim Bertakis. After several weeks in intensive care followed by in-patient rehabilitation, the elder Bertakis is ''90 percent'' better, his son said. He even has been back on the water in his 16-foot boat.

''Dad's doing great. I just saw him three days ago,'' Jim Bertakis said Thursday from Michigan. ``It's a miracle he survived. We smile every time we see him.''

Miami Herald staff writer Evan S. Benn contributed to this report. Photo by DETECTIVE MARK COLEMAN/MONROE COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE.

Lobster Season Opened August 6

2007-08-27T18:50:00.000-04:00

Lobster season officially opened on August 6th. We're finding lobster at just about every depth where there's structure. The weather has been great, the seas have been calm, and visibility has been phenomenal this summer.

One morning, the seas were glass calm and we were actually able to make the run from Port Everglades to Commercial Pier in less than 20 minutes (35 knots in our little 22 Center Console is blazing fast).

One of the real estate agents who works for me, Claudio, wanted to take a potential customer out on the boat for a quick lobster dive. When we pulled up to our favorite spot we could actually see a stainless steel washer laying on the bottom (shiny and new) at 35 feet while looking over the gunwale of the boat. Amazing!

We only did one dive that morning before we ran out of time and had to get back to work for some other appointments, but I limited out and only covered about 50 yards of reef. No photos this trip, but we had a great morning of diving!

I love being self-employed!

Happy diving!

--Branon Edwards
Real Estate and Mortgage Broker

Mini-Season: Day Two

2007-08-27T18:34:00.001-04:00

Sorry for the delay in getting this one out.

Our second day of Lobster Mini-Season was not as productive as our first, but we still had a great day. We finished the day with 43 lobsters (53 on day one) with 8 divers. No single diver limited out for the day, but nobody went home empty-handed.

It seemed like the lobsters were a bit more skittish on Day Two than on Day One, which certainly makes sense. I don't know if anyone has studied lobster communication strategies, but they were much quicker about dashing into their dens they were previously.

Randy shot a very large black grouper that actually ran the shaft under a ledge and broke off the steel shaft like it was a twig. Needless to say, this was the big one that got away. We've marked the spot in the GPS and will be going back again for another try. We picked up a few fish here and there, but nothing else of serious note.

During our last dive, we were dropped on a good sized patch reef in between the second and third reef lines. I could tell we weren't on the third reef because of the depth and structure, so Pat and I decided to swim East toward the third reef once we ran out of reef on this spot.

I give solid kudos to Pat for actually trusting my judgement to make the long swim. We never made the reef, but as Pat was nearing the end of this tank, we came across a large piece of fiberglass laying on the bottom. Apparently, it was a chunk of a boat that had sunk somewhere nearby in years past. Not only are we the only two guys I know crazy enough to try to make the run, we're also the only guys I know who can find a 3-pound bug in the middle of the structureless 'dessert' between the two reefs. All in all a great day of diving!

Looks like it's going to be a good lobster season this year if mini-season is any indication.

Happy Diving!

--Branon

Mini-Season: Day One

2007-07-25T18:24:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the Two-Day Florida Sport Season for Lobster, otherwise known as Mini-Season!

As you've read in our previous articles, Mini-Season is the last Wednesday and Thursday of July here in Florida. The two day extravaganza allows sport divers the opportunity to pick up a few lobster for the official lobster season begins the first week of August.

Divers are limited to a total of 12 lobsters per day throughout Florida, with the exception of the Florida Keys, which limits divers to just 6 lobsters per day.

Since Mini-Season starts on Wednesday and Wednesday itself technically starts at Midnight Tuesday night, the waters off the coast of Florida were filled with boats and divers armed with lightsticks and flashlights last night. My buddies and I decided that night diving for Mini-Season was going to be a bit much work this year, so we opted to go out at 6am Wednesday morning instead.

As we were preparing to leave the dock, some of our midnight diving friends were pulling into the dock. Looking a little tired, they boasted 16 lobster with 4 divers. It's not limit, but it's a far cry better than I did last year during our midnight dive. We made our assessments of proposed depth and headed out of Port Everglades.

Part of our group wanted to dive shallow and two of us were holding out for deep water. We two deep fans opted to stay on the boat for the first dive and let the rest of our party of 8 splash in about 30 feet of water to start. At the end of their first dive, they had about a dozen bugs between them - not bad, but not great either. By the way, the term 'bugs' is diver slang for spiny lobsters because they're just so darn cute.

My dive buddy and fellow deep enthusiast, Pat, and I were all too happy to try our hand at the third reef. The reef itself is about 45 feet in the center with about 60 feet on the West side and 60 to 100 feet on the West side, depending on the area. We splashed in at about the center line and worked our way East. We were joined shortly thereafter by the second wave of divers and worked our way back and forth across the reef.

Pat and I came upon a nice ledge with 6 bugs beckoning us onward. All 6 were keepers - no eggs and no shorts. By the way, if the lobsters are females with eggs, you are not permitted to take them, and of course, the rest must measure up in size as well. We continually worked our way East and West across the reef as the current pushed us Northward. I picked up another lobster nearby and then it was slim pickings for awhile. There weren't many places for the bugs to hide in this particular section of reef, but our patience paid off as the edge of the reef became more defined.

Pat and I picked up 3 more bugs in one den (lobster hole) and then spotted another den a few yards away. Pat pushed his lobster snare in through one side of the hole to spook them out in my direction. When he did, a chubby little 2-foot nurse shark came scurrying out of the hole right past me. By this point, we were both running a little a low on air, so we decided to surface. Pat landed a total of 7 on this dive and I landed 6 - not a bad first dive.

Needless to say, the rest of the group was now convinced that deeper was the way to go. My long-time dive buddy, Randy Docks, spent a good 15 minutes wrestling a monster bug out of a deep crevice. It was so far back in the hole that he had to actually remove his gear to get far enough in to loop the lobster. Here's a photo of Randy with his prized lobster - the largest of the day from our boat.

For the record, Randy is by far the most successful lobsterman that I have had the pleasure with whom to dive. He and I have been on the same dive on the same reef where I didn't even see a bug and he limited out. Today, he was apparently going for quality over quantity. Nice Lobster, Randy!

Pat and I decided to stay deep for our second dive of the day, and again, we were rewarded. Pat picked up an additional 2 bugs and I landed 6 more bugs, a nice Danforth anchor, and a 20-inch mutton snapper as an added bonus.

My first dive ranged from 40 to 70 feet and my second dive was almost entirely at 70 feet. I achieved my limit of 12 bugs for the day and will be back out there tomorrow to see how well the lobster gods smile down upon us.

Our boat with 8 divers landed a total of 53 bugs; not a bad first day! We only saw a few shorts (lobsters too small to keep) and probably a dozen or so females with eggs. I was the only one on the boat to limit out and Randy took home the prize for the largest bug of the trip.

Best of all, the weather cooperated, seas fluctuated a bit, but never spiked over 2 feet; everyone came home safely, and nobody went home empty-handed.

Florida Keys Launches DiveALIVE

2007-07-23T11:07:00.000-04:00

Speaking of dive skills, the Florida Keys has announced a new program called DiveALIVE. The program focuses on helping divers brush up on skills before getting back into the water.

DiveALIVE:
http://www.DiveAlive.org

A - Air
L - Lose the Lead (drop your weight belt)
I - Inspect Your Gear
V - Verify Your Dive Plan & Skills
E - Escape (stop, think, breathe, and act - don't panic)

Although it's short notice, they are offering a Diving Rodeo & Expo today at the Florida Keys Community College's lagoon on Stock Island (just North of Key West). It's being offered from 10am to 7pm. They will be giving divers an opportunity to refresh their skills and also learn lobster tickling techniques in anticipation of this week's Mini-Season. Some of the skills to be reviewed are mask cleaning, controlled emergency swimming ascents, and weight dropping.

Did you know that, in most cases, when divers are recovered after an accident, the vast majority of them are still wearing their weights?

According to an article in the Miami Herald today, over 20,000 visitors are expected in the Keys this week for Mini-Season. The article also mentions that a 2001 study estimated that there are over 1.9 Million dive trips in the Keys each year. That's a lot of dives and a lot of divers!

Here's a link to the article:
http://www.MiamiHerald.com/884/story/179042.html

Skills and Training/Calling a Dive

2007-07-23T09:15:00.000-04:00

Only YOU truly know your skill and comfort levels.

As most of us know, diving is not an inherently a dangerous sport. It is not without dangers or risks, but proper training, properly maintained equipment, and updated skills all play a part in minimizing these risks. No sport that I'm aware of is completely without risk. Even if you're just playing billiards, a ball can get launched off the table and whack you on the foot... or worse, whack some big burly dude on the foot who proceeds to whack you with a pool cue in return.

In football, players wear an assortment of pads and a helmet. In baseball, the catcher wears pads, a metal cage around his face, and has an oversized glove to fend off the ball while the batter wears a helmet. In hockey, the players also wear helmets, face masks, pads, and gloves. But in all cases, the players spend a great deal of time practicing and honing their skills. You won't see players taking a month off to relax before playing the Stanley Cup Finals, the Super Bowl, or the World Series.

While it's not likely I'll ever sell tickets to anyone wanting to see me backroll off a dive boat into the Atlantic with a speargun in my hand, there's a good deal of preparation and ongoing study that goes into each dive I do. From the meticulous way that I always pack my gear bag to setting my computer and my pre-dive safety checks, I'm always checking and double-checking before it's dive time. Most of the time, nobody even notices what I'm doing because it's just second nature for me, but you can bet every piece of my gear has been inspected before I splash.

In fact, most divers have no idea that I have watched how comfortably they've gotten their stuff together or that I've actually spun their tank valve to make sure it was on while they were sitting on the gunwale. The casual way I rattle off the pre-dive makes it sound like I'm talking to the fish, but you'd be surprised how often it reminds someone that they need to put in their weight pockets or set their computer to Nitrox. If they don't catch the hint on their own, I'll be a bit more direct like, 'Are you diving without your fins today?'.

Unfortunately in scuba diving, it's not uncommon for a certified diver to dust off his/her gear after a year of non-use, load up the boat, and jump in the water without having reviewed anything other than the Weather Channel to check on the day's conditions. It's not uncommon, but it should be.

While the diving industry essentially polices itself with regard to certifications, there is no law enforcement agency responsible for making certain everyone who giant strides or backrolls off a boat into the ocean is certified or even knows what they're doing. On commercial dive trips, dive shops and dive boat operators ask divers about their experience and certification levels, ask for dive logs to verify the date of the diver's last dive and experience level, and of course, having skilled personnel on the boat to conduct safety reviews and dive plans.

On private boats and beach dives, it's up to the individual divers themselves to ascertain whether or not they're properly prepared for the dives they're about to do. Perhaps the most difficult task is taking one's ego out of the equation and making an honest assessment of skills, equipment, and comfort levels. I've been on dive trips with divers who talked a great game, but were completely inept in the water. As a trained Divemaster, I can recognize some of the problem signs and can intervene where possible, but we can't be everywhere all the time.

For example, I was once on a charter as a paying diver. One of the other customers had apparently faked his dive log to get on the deep-water dive. He was on vacation from West Virginia and talked a lot on the way out about all the places he had been diving. However, once we were under water, I could tell something wasn't quite right by the way he was handling himself. His buoyancy was off and his fin kicks were awkward. I kept an eye on him and decided to intervene. We had initially descended to 100 feet and were coming back up across the reef to 60 feet on a guided tour. I swam up to him and gave him the signal for a gauge-check. He shrugged his shoulders and pushed the gauge console toward my face. At 60 feet with no apparent intention of ascending, he was already down to 300psi. Bad form - time to go.

I signaled to the rest of the group that this diver and I would ascend together. I grabbed onto his BCD and started our ascent. I put my alternate air source in my mouth and handed him my regulator (I don't use an octopus). As he put it in his mouth, he reached across to check my gauge. I still had 2,000 psi, so he signaled for us to rejoin the group and continue the dive. Needless to say, we did not. When we got to the downline, I stopped to do our 3-minute safety stop at 15 feet. I checked my air and we were already down to 750psi. Then, without warning, he looked me in the eye, smiled, waved, dropped the regulator, and free ascended to the surface. Brilliant!

Back on the surface, I informed the captain and the divemaster of the multi-faceted fiasco. Within a few moments, he chuckled that this was indeed his deepest dive ever, that he hadn't been in the water in over a year, and that perhaps he 'fudged' his dive log just a little. They politely advised him that he would not be making the second dive, nor would he be invited back on the boat. I have no doubt in my mind that had I not intervened when I did, he would have breathed his tank dry and then free-ascended to the surface; probably getting bent or suffering an air embolism in the process.

In short, never be afraid to call a dive because you're uncomfortable. I say this on most of our dive trips and really do mean it. I don't care what you're uncomfortable about - the depth, the profile, the plan, the current, the waves, the visibility, the way your gear just doesn't seem right, the cheesy shark flick you watched the night before, or even the way that seagull appears to be sizing you up. If you're uncomfortable - call it!

I know that people can sometimes peer pressure their friends into trying some new things, and divers are no exception. But it's up to each of us to know when to bow out gracefully. Simply put, if you are uncomfortable with the conditions, the dive profile, or just uncomfortable in general, don't make the dive. There's no shame in admitting that maybe you're not as confident with your skills as you would like to be or that perhaps you would rather do a few shallow dives to polish your skills before making a more advanced dive.

Of course, if you're not properly trained for a particular dive then you shouldn't be doing the dive in the first place. Take the time and make the effort to not only get the proper training upfront, but also to maintain your skills along the way. If it's been a year since you've been in the water, at the very least, you really should be diving with a professional, and preferably, you should be taking a refresher course before you get on the dive boat.

Refresher courses are inexpensive and could actually save your life. Even if it's just review, if you pick up one thing or it helps you remember that the first thing you do when you're in trouble is drop your weight belt, then it was well worth the time and expense.

Spare-time divers often forget the basics and skilled divers sometimes push the envelope a bit. But all of us can use some extra time dedicated to brushing up on our skills, properly maintaining our equipment, and always diving safely.

Remember that the life you save could be your own.

Ghost Traps

2007-07-07T11:35:00.000-04:00

A note about 'Ghost Traps' - this is the common term for lobster traps that have been lost at sea. The loss could be due to a storm or something as simple as having the marker buoy cut off by a careless boater. It is my personal belief that ghost traps do nothing but harm the environment. Any lobsters caught in a ghost trap are surely doomed to a slow and inhumane death by starvation. Plus the loose line hanging off the trap usually wraps itself around surrounding reef, which causes long-term damage to the ecosystem.

Please note that tampering with an active trap in any way is a serious crime in Florida. Go to jail, go directly to jail, do not pass Go, and do not collect $200.

While I am not certain about the legality of doing so, if I happen across a ghost trap that is CLEARLY a ghost trap on the bottom, I take a few steps to minimize its impact on the environment.

First, I open the hatch and help any of the critters stuck inside to freedom. You will frequently find fish, crabs, and other species inside a trap if it's been there long enough.

Second, I remove the hatch from the trap and place it inside the trap as securely as possible. The hatch hinge is usually made of material - canvas, leather or something similar. A quick cut with a dive knife usually does the trick.

Third, I stuff any free-hanging line into the trap to keep it from banging around the reef. If feasible, I will then turn the trap upside down in a sandy spot so that nothing else can get in and the rope can't get out.

Make sure you're not damaging any coral as your doing all this stuff, by the way. It takes coral about a year to grow 1/4-Inch, but only a split second to kill it.

If the trap is connected by a running line to other traps, I do NOT cut this line. This gives the proper owner of the trap the opportunity to retrieve the entire string of traps in one shot if he/she has properly marked the group on a GPS and comes back for them in the future. Each of these traps represents a considerable expense to the commercial fisherman and thus, destroying the traps beyond repair is generally just a nasty thing to do - especially if there are other options available to you as detailed above.

If there are any commercial lobstermen reading this, I would appreciate hearing your thoughts on this issue. While we don't come across ghost trips every week, we do certainly find them from time to time. Write me at: Branon@ScubAHH.com

As always, thanks for reading.

All the best,

--Branon

Lobster Mini-Season

2007-07-05T16:59:00.000-04:00

Ah, Yes... the sweet smell of July in Florida! For many of us die-hard Floridians, April, May, and June are more than just the Spring and beginning of the rainy season - it's a time of frozen food and a longing for mini-season.

Florida's Spiny Lobster Season officially runs from August 6th to March 31st.

So, April traditionally begins a time of sadness for most Florida divers since it marks the end of lobster season and the beginning of digging into the freezer for the remnants of bounty from days gone by. In fact, I know divers who braved the 4-6-foot seas of March 31st in order to get one more zipper bag of lobster into the freezer before the great lobster famine began. (Yours truly included.) I found myself actually doing the math to figure out how often my wife and I could enjoy a lobster dinner before the next opportunity for fresh lobster would be upon us.

Luckily, Florida Wildlife has found it in their hearts again this year to maintain the two-day sport season, or what we locals call 'Mini-Season'. Traditionally, mini-season is the last Wednesday and Thursday of July (July 25 & 26th this year). Mini-Season is an event in itself.

I have a buddy here in Fort Lauderdale that actually negotiated with his employer to have the last Wednesday and Thursday of July off from work EVERY year. Further, he negotiated them as regular paid days off - not as part of his vacation days, sick days, or otherwise. In fact, he refers to them as his 'High Holy Days'. His boss happens also to be a diver, which may explain why they don't find him in the office during these days either. Needless to say, we Floridians take our diving very seriously.

As most Floridians know, the last week of July is traditionally a bad time to go to the Florida Keys. Every yahoo in the tri-state area with a boat and a crawfish permit is out on the water from daylight to dusk on both days. By the way, a 'crawfish permit' is the state sticker on a Florida fishing license that enables you to try to catch lobster. Notice I said 'try'. It's an art as much as it is a science.

Unfortunately, many of these folks are once-a-year divers and there are almost always fatalities - on the road and in the water. The Florida Keys are well-prepared for the event, which brings in millions in tourist dollars to the Florida economy each year. For me, I stick to the reef I know the best - Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale, and Pompano Beach. I use the off-lobster months to scout new areas, add secret spots into my GPS, and study how the lobster are reacting to various water conditions and temperatures. Many of my buddies and I spearfish year round, but we've always got an eagle eye open for good lobster habitat. For example, just the other day we came across a spot that.. oh wait.. if I tell you, it won't be a secret anymore. Nevermind.

Mini-Season is a short two-day sport season when ONLY sportsmen are permitted to catch lobster. Commercial lobster boats and traps cannot begin harvesting until the official season begins on August 6th. The idea is that sportsmen have 2 days of unhindered lobster hunting before the commercial guys come in and pick up the lion's share of the bounty.

Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against commercial fishermen. I think that everyone has a right to make a living. However, I do feel that there are, as in all things, a few bad apples that ruin it for everyone else. Poaching, overcatching, and ignoring limits hurt all of us in the long run. As far as I'm concerned, we all have a responsibility to protect the environment that has obviously been so good to us and continues to support us. As such, I've developed some lobstering rules to live by...

Branon's Top 10 Lobstering Rules:
1. Always have a fishing license with lobster permit, and an approved measuring device. You never know when that megalobster will be staring you in the face.

2. Never take more lobster than you need or intend to actually eat - and certainly no more than the legal bag limit (6 per person per day).

3. Check a lobster as closely as possible BEFORE you attempt to catch it - if it looks too small it probably is. Also, if you see eggs or the tell-tale sign of eggs (curled tail with cleaning claspers in 'hold' mode) don't disturb the lobster. If you disturb it, it will just be that more jumpy next year when it's bigger. :)

4. If you inadvertently catch a lobster that is short or that has eggs, promptly let it go with as little stress and inconvenience to the lobster as possible. I generally try to even point in back in the direction of its hole so it's not out in the open an easy prey for other predators.

5. REALLY good lobsterers will even release the lobsters with the tar spot on their bellies (black spot on the underside near the tail that looks literally like road tar) since it means that the lobster is female and has already been fertilized, but has not yet dropped her eggs.

6. Minimize the trauma to ANY lobster you catch. If you rip all the legs off trying to get it out of a hole and it turns out to be short or have eggs, you've just signed a little lobster death warrant for not only that lobster, but all the future lobster it might have mothered along the way. Lobster Loops, as they're called, are fantastic. I've actually caught lobster with a loop that never realize they were caught until I was holding them in my hands measuring them. Slow, deliberate finesse is key - again, lobstering is an art. Swimming at full speed headlong into a reef with both hands grabbing at a lobster isn't just stupid, but also you are likely to damage the reef, lose the lobster, and probably damage yourself in the process.

7. Measure EVERY lobster you catch EVERY time - UNDER WATER WHEN YOU CATCH IT! 'Barely legal' is still legal, but do you REALLY want to be the guy on the boat with the shortest lobster? Size matters, no matter what GQ or Cosmo says these days.

8. Re-Measure EVERY lobster when you bring it onto the boat. This is your last chance to toss it back before the lobster is too traumatized to make it in the wild... and before Florida Wildlife, the Sheriff's Office, or the Coast Guard can write you a nasty citation for undersized lobster and start confiscating your stuff.

9. Bathtubs, washing machines, and concrete blocks should be properly disposed of - and not sunk in the open ocean to create 'lobster hotels' or other artificial habitat. In addition to being an environmental issue, there's also a HUGE fine involved - even if you're just diving on someone else's artificial habitat.

10. Leave lobster traps alone! Taking lobster from a trap is Stealing! In addition, there is a VERY HEFTY fine involved, including possible jail time. You wouldn't want someone to steal from you at your job, why would you do it to someone else?!

Okay... here's a bonus rule:
11. If the hole is big enough for a lobster to live in, chances are it's big enough for an eel or other critter to live in as well. Before you go sticking your hand (or your arm) into a hole, you might double check to see if anyone else might be at home. Yes, moray eels bite and they're not usually very polite about it. Just ask my buddy, Three-Finger Mike!

Here is the official information from the state website regarding lobster season and bag limits:

"The spiny lobster sport season will fall on July 25th and 26th for 2007. The bag limits are 6 per person per day for Monroe County and Biscayne National Park, and 12 per person per day for the rest of Florida.

The possession limit on the water is equal to the daily bag limit, and off the water is equal to the daily bag limit on the first day, and double the daily bag limit on the second day. Possession limits are enforced on and off the water.

Spiny lobster has a minimum size limit that must be larger than 3" carapace, measured in the water. A reminder that possession and use of a measuring device is required at all times, and night diving is prohibited in Monroe County (only during the sport season). A recreational saltwater license and a crawfish permit are needed for harvest.

Regular spiny lobster season is August 6 through March 31. The bag limit is 6 per person per day. Harvest of lobster is prohibited in John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park during the sport season. Harvest is also prohibited during both the 2-day sport season and regular season in Everglades National Park, Dry Tortugas National Park, and no take areas in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. " http://myfwc.com/marine/lobster.htm

Happy Lobstering!

All the best,

--Branon

Hollywood Black Grouper

2007-06-30T23:01:00.001-04:00

19.5lbs / 32-inches Black Grouper
Shot in 50 feet of water off Hollywood Beach, FL

One of my regular dive buddies wanted to try out his new (1970s) Bertram 28, so we loaded it to the gills with 6 divers and ran South of Port Everglades inlet. Divers included Ann Scutti, Eric, Ted Tanglis, Chip Edmonds, Randy Docks, and me.

Chip had a secret spot loaded in his GPS and off we went. The current has been running South all week, so we jumped in the water just North of the spot. The bottom structure was varied and included a variety of sea life. The visibility was awful for our area clocking in at maybe 25 feet. Unfortunately, this was to be the best visibility we would have all day and dropped as low as 15 feet on our third drop.

The first wave of divers were Chip, Ted, and me. Chip picked up a few hogfish along the way for an upcoming barbecue, and Ted missed another hogfish. We weren't seeing as much as we had hoped, but continued drifting South with the current. We started our dive on the deep side of the reef and as time moved on, we came in a bit shallower to check out that section of the reef and also to lengthen our bottom time. As we were cruising along around 55 feet I saw the oddest thing - a four to five-foot pine tree standing straight up on the bottom.

Upon closer inspection, it actually appeared to be some type of marine plant, but it was as close to an underwater pine tree as you can imagine. There were pipefish and a variety of smaller fish living among the branches. As I swooped in to take a closer look, I noticed a small yellow jack at a cleaning station getting the parasites removed by small blue goby-type fish. As I finished looking over the curious 'tree', I moved in the direction of where the jack had been. He had already moved on; most likely spooked by the three dark figures loudly blowing bubbles and moving in his general direction.

As I passed over the cleaning station, I noticed a small cloud of dust, which is usually a tell-tale sign of hogfish. I started looking intently for the little critter. We were heading West toward the apex of the reef when I noticed a much larger cloud of dust. This was either a very large hogfish or perhaps a grouper. Needless to say, my radar was on full alert and I was scanning the bottom as far as the visibility would allow. Up ahead, I saw a small divot in the reef bottom complete with a few ledges. I let out a breath and sank silently toward the first ledge. It was a nice overhang, but wasn't even deep enough for a lobster.

I passed this overhang and kept moving onward. Immediately after the small overhang, there was a good-sized hole. As it came more into view, I could see a large squared tail poking out. GROUPER! There was so much particulate matter in the water that I first thought it was a red grouper. Either way, this one was certainly more than legal size. (Black Grouper @ 24" and Red Grouper @ 20" - Red Grouper in the Gulf @ 22"). I moved slowly passed in line with the hole, but could not see inside it. I checked the rear of the dorsal fin for any spots just to reconfirm that it wasn't a Nassau Grouper, which are protected here in Florida. Nassaus also have a slightly rounded tail so I was not surprised that there weren't any dots. I estimated about where the head should be and pulled the trigger on my Riffe C3XS.

The hole exploded with a huge cloud of dust. As the shaft of my speargun disappeared into the hole, I knew it had found its mark. I quickly ran my left hand through the bands and pushed the gun up to my shoulder to secure it and keep it out of the way. The gun is buoyant without the shaft and the butt of the gun conveniently floats upward and behind. In the same motion, I had grabbed the shock cord and started pulling moving toward the hole. I could no longer see the shaft, so I followed the line all the way to it. I could feel the grouper pushing deeper into the hole and trying to wedge himself into the rock.

Grouper use this tactic regularly whenever they feel threatened. This is why line fishermen have to react to a strike instantly; if they hesitate, the fish will run into a hole or under a ledge. The fish inflates its air bladder to puff itself up and barricade itself in the hole. As the fisherman yanks on the line, the line usually frays against the rocks and soon breaks. Even with a steel shaft, the fish will try the same course of action - usually bending the shaft among the rocks. As deep as this hole must have been with the shaft not even being visible, I knew I didn't have much time. I grabbed the spear firmly and started to pull. I could feel the fish puffing up and trying to wedge himself in, but I kept pulling. In short measure, the spear shaft started coming out, and the fish with it.

The cloud of dust was huge now and I couldn't see a thing. I ran my hand up the spear until it reached the fish. Doing this sets the Hawaiian flopper that has hopefully exited the other side of the fish. I felt it lock in place and started moving the fish out of the cloud so I could begin to work at securing my catch. I reached my left hand under the fish and into its gills. The gills are fairly spiny and if you get a gloved hand inside with a solid grip, you're unlikely to lose the fish if it shakes free of the spear. This is especially true if you also are holding the fish upside down simultaneously. With the fish securely in my left hand, I reached with my right to open my stringer. I dive with a medium metal stringer most frequently that is clipped off to my Dacor BCD on a D-ring at my waistline. I opened the stringer and slid it through the gill and out his mouth. In one motion, I closed the stringer - now the fish is truly secure.

Experience has taught me that with larger fish, it is best to get them actually on the stringer before you remove the shaft. One swipe of a grouper's powerful tail and he can free himself of just about any hold you might have on him, save a good gill grip. Once secure, I reached the spear tip, pulled it through just a bit to disengage the flopper and then slid it back from whence it came.

Many divers will finish up with the fish before reloading their guns, but again, experience has taught me that whenever you're wrestling with one fish, there are often others coming in for a closer look to see what is happening. Mutton snapper are notorious for this. I reached up my left shoulder with my right hand to where the bands were still holding the gun in place. I slid it down my arm and reloaded the shaft into the gun. I clicked on the safety and proceeded to reload the 3 22-inch bands.

As I finally looked up from my work, I noticed my two dive buddies just sitting there watching the whole thing unfold. They had already been scanning the surrounding area for curious fish; no luck this time. Chip looked at me with wide eyes and motioned his hands like applause.

Black grouper are a prized catch among spearfishermen. They are typically pretty skittish especially when it comes to divers. The bubbles we exhale are actually pretty noisy and tend to spook many fish species. Even sharks tend to shy away from divers because of the noise. Granted, when there's blood in the water or fish thrashing around, loud bubbles are hardly enough to keep a large bull shark at bay.

I reached down to the inside of my right calf and grabbed my knife. The grouper was yanking on the stringer trying to free himself. After several motions with the knife, the fight was over and three families would eat grouper tonight.

As we finished the dive, I picked up a nice Spanish mackerel and then Chip called the dive with 750 psi. We didn't want to max out our bottom time so we could do a decent second dive. Randy, Ann, and Eric were in next and each came up with a nice hogfish. This was Eric's first time in the water with a speargun, and a hogfish is a great first catch!

After the second wave returned to the boat, Chip, Ted, and I went in for our second dive. We covered a lot of ground, and Chip and Ted both got hogfish. Given the size of the fish I landed on my first dive, I was very selective about shooting on this dive. I occasionally pointed out fish to my two companions, but never pulled a trigger. As is often the case during summer in Florida, a quick summer storm materialized and our dive was cut short by three tugs on the flag line I was towing above me. This is a signal we use when the guy running the boat wants to recall the divers. We also use an engine signal - revving the engine three times in succession within earshot of the divers.

As the three of us surfaced, we could instantly see the storm - the sky was black and there was lightening in the distance. No arguments here; we all climbed aboard and we were headed into Port Everglades within minutes. We got rained on, but hey, it's a dive trip - you're going to get wet anyway. Regretfully, Randy, Ann, and Eric did not have an opportunity at a second dive. That just means they'll get the first round the next time we go out.

All in all, it was a nice day for diving. That's the great thing about Florida, even on the few days where the visibility isn't stellar or the weather picks up, we're still diving some of the nicest bottom in the ocean. I dived in the Bahamas and in Mexico, but there's something to be said about being able to dive during the day and sleep in your own bed the same night.

All the best,

--Branon

Welcome to Florida Diving!

2007-06-27T15:03:00.000-04:00

This Florida Diving blog is dedicated to all things Diving in the State of Florida. We'll explore scuba diving, freediving, snorkeling, plus lobstering, spearfishing and tournaments as well.

Whether you're a certified scuba instructor or a newbie looking to get certified for the first time, we're sure you'll find something here that will interest you. Our articles will come from actual divers, not lawnchair quarterbacks who can't tell an SPG from their NDL. No matter what your skill level or your diving interests, you'll hear from folks who are actually out there diving here in Florida.

For the record, I am a PADI Certified Divemaster and have been scuba diving since I was 9 years old. I received my first certification when I was 13. Of the many hundreds of dives that I have safely completed, most of them have occurred right here in my home state of Florida. I'm also a freediver and have been snorkeling almost since I could walk.

If you have a question about diving in general or about Florida diving specifically, please don't hesitate to drop me a line. You can reach me at Branon@ScubAHH.com

Okay... let's go diving!

All the best,

>--Branon