Underwater Lights and Florida Lobsters

[ITcookY]

Has anyone installed underwater lights or have experience with them. The mini-season for lobsters is coming up and I think some underwater lights will be very helpful. If they are not, let me know about it. A couple bright spots maybe all that is needed. Let me know what you think.

But before you comment, I know these are not REAL lobsters. But... they are crawdads on steroids. =:-)-{ }=

[Ironman]

lights are not good for the spiney calif lobster...squid or maceral yes..

Wayne

[Buju]

They're good for bullynetting crawfish @ night in the shallows, creeks, etc.
But the new standard LED transom lights won't be much help.
The ideal setup for bullynetting entails a open skiff (flats boat, bay boat, jon boat) with two sealed beam 12v floodlights hanging off either side (prt&stbd) of the bow at, or in the water directed slightly forward and downward. The boat crawls along forward @ idle, and a guy stands on the bow w/ a long handled (15 to 20') bullynet, pouncing on every bug he sees. Also, the nylon netting used on newer bullynets sucks, use cotton netting if you can find it. Some guys just use a cotton mop on a push pole or other looong handle.
I'm not big on netting 'em though, I employ the use of apnea and a loop to get my bugs.

Can't believe I'm giving advice to help with mini season.... I HATE mini season & what happens to our little islands every year... The destruction to the nearshore ecology alone is reason enough to put an end to it.

[ITcookY]

Thanks for the help. Rest assured Buju, I have never been a participant in the mini-season. It is more of a reminder that it's that time of the year to have the gear ready for the of the full season. The mini-season is dangerous in my book. Too many drunk people driving their boats in the middle of the night not seeing where they are going. I have not quite gotten past the part of self-preservation to the point of thinking of the environmental impact.

The LED lights would be something that I can use to "Find my way back to the boat" on a night dive.
Lobstering from the boat with a net is cheating anyway, right?. I was thinking you just use the light to spot them and then you jump-in and pursue them. That's almost like dredging for Blue Crab or Oysters except on a little smaller basis. IMHO.

Thanks for advice though.

[Buju]

Illegal to dive for lobster at night...
I think it' something like 1/2 hour before sunset, until 1/2 hour after sunrise is prohibited... right? But the regs change often...
Is Kevin still around? Kev, you recall?

[Buju]

Just had a look, because the head seemed foggy on the issue.
Apparently it's only illegal to dive @ night for them here in the Keys, and only during mini-season.
http://www.myfwc.com/RULESANDREGS/Saltw ... obster.htm
Otherwise yer good to go...

[ITcookY]

Thanks Beju. I didn't know there was a difference between Broward/Dade and the keys. I am glad, it just get crazy there in the Keys during the mini-season. Lately, people have been dying during those couple of days.

Again, thanks for the regulations link!

[In Memory of Vicroy]

Hey Faithful, me & the Bride are coming to the keys week after next to stay with my sis & bro in law at their house on Sugar Loaf key. Be there for a week. The coonasses are coming, the coonasses are coming, hide the whiskey and women.....what's this crap about "illegal"? What dat is? I'm bringing my shocking rig for some fresh fish and lobsters....man I love dem fla. lobsters. I plan to gig the ones that are still moving after we shock 'em. Can you buy dynamite close by there? Works better than shocking in deep water, and at night too. Speaking of night, is there a good place around there to get pelican eggs? Do you need a license to make Manatee sauce piquant?

Might as well clean the place out before the oil gets there anyway.

UV

[randall]

you cant kill bad grass.

[Buju]

I hear ya UV...

There are so goddamned many rules now. Need a PhD to know if you can harvest a snook or grouper on any given day.
Long time sayin of mine is "I like my snook like my eggs- poached".
I'm just tryin to keep people from unknowingly ending up with a fine bigger than the replacement value of their boat. It happens...

Sugarloaf is great. Waaaaay back-up-off-in-there. Some areas down island that way are real remote.
But the pelican eggs aint worth squat- taste too much like ladyfish. The Bald Eagle eggs are where it's at. Osprey are good in a pinch.
Manatee is allright, like algae infused beef... except the marina cows- too strong of a diesel undertone for me. I'd go for the turtles- esp. the hawksbills & greens. Dem's good eatin.
While you're at it, the grass patches just inside of the reefs are loaded up with queen conch so big they're dieing of old age. I just got back from the reef matter of fact... they can't even carry that big ol thick lipped shell around anymore. Cracked conch, scorch conch, conch salad, yessir real fine eats.
All kidding aside though. I think my favorite moment in political uncorrectness was about 8 years ago. My good friend and I were in my flats skiff, flyfishing for bonefish right in front of Snake Creek, in Islamorada. I was poling the boat, and saw a good school of bones working our general direction. I pole to intercept, and he lets out a great cast, strip, strip, strike- fish on. It was on a 6 weight rod (way too small) so the fight was taking some time. As it was wrapping up we had three or four other flats skiffs that stopped to watch it unfold. These, mind ya, are the very uppity, persnickity, holier than god flyfishermen who dress better to go fishing than most folks dress for church. So they're all offering little tidbits of advice, and attaboys, and whatnot. We started feeling WTF, these guys need to mind their own and move on, they're kinda killing our buzz. So the fish gets boatside, I pull out the tarpon lipgaff and in plain sight I impale that bone on the gaff and sling em into the boat with a big ol thud.

I'd pay good coin to see the looks on their faces again. Most took off immediatley. One guy voiced up in a kinda half yell, half cry, some crap about etiquitte and the future of fishing. I promptly stood up a took a leak in his direction, and that did it- away they went.
What I failed to understand about the whole deal is If ya see two guys wearing boardshorts, smoking big ol maduro cigars, and kicking back Red Stripes on a skiff at 8 a.m.- do you think they are out there to fit in to a etiquitte club? or maybe to enjoy themelves and be left the hell alone?

Tell ya what, grind that bonefish up, add an egg, garlic, herbs and seasoning, and sautee in olive oil for bonefish parmesan, or in butter for bonefish breakfast patties w/ egg on a muffin. Thats living.

Lemme know if i can help with anything befo, during, or after your trip UV.

[In Memory of Vicroy]

Thanks, Buju....we used to fish tarpon in East Bay between the South and Southwest Passes of the Mississippi River, sort of behind Port Eads....slow troll for them in about 60-80 feet of water with a stupid looking bait invented by a coonass called a Coon-Pop......some PVC pipe filled with lead with a big soft plastic curly tail off the back with the whole she-bang wired to a giant circle hook. Common to have mulitple hook-ups with 150+# tarpon. The favored vessel was my Coon Ass Cabin Cruiser, a 20 foot aluminum flat with a wooden house (complete with sash windows) I built on the back....rod holders were PVC pipes nailed to the house....70 hp Nissan main motor with a 16 hp Go-Devil mud motor kicker. We sat in folding lawn chairs in the front and putt-putted around on the Go Devil - steered in slow lazy S-patterns by moving the lawn chairs around.....when we hooked up and the tarpon started jumping, we'd take turns trying to hit them in the air with my Ruger Redhawk .44 magnum revolver. Aim usually improved with the number of beers. I actually have video of another member of this board doing the same, but less sporting...he was using a 9 mm with a big ass clip.

Anyway, looking forward to coming to the keys and plundering the area - will be my first visit other than a few times on business.

And you can't kill bad grass, that's for sure. I plan to get some lobsters and do them Coonass style for my sis, et al and would appreciate a line on a good place to pick some up, fresh or frozen.

UV

[randall]

buju...i had an art opening last night. a friend from new england emailed me to find out about the "dress code"........................."well, i'm wearin flip flops". and walter can attest i was.


the first hour were at tropic star i take a kayak out and catch a pretty nice fish. of course i have no idea what the regs or customs are so i let that fish go. everyone got a good laugh over that....rules?

you get sorta programed fishin in the US. (unless of course you're a coonass)

[Buju]

Great story UV, almost choked on my coffee from laughing. Imagine doing that in Key West harbor, or Boca Grande...
Far as the fresh bugs go... Well yer getting here a little too early to legally get em. The mini season is in late July, and the normal season opens on Aug6.
So from a market, they'll be frozen...
Now if yer looking for what my Bahamian friends call "summer crab" they're
all over, and only in season during the closed lobster season- A man's gotta eat.

Randall, the TSL story reminds me of the first time I went to the Bahamas, and was very concerned about having a fishing license to wade for bonefish...
People looked at me like I was deformed when I'd ask about it.
Oh, and the dress code... You gotta remember you're the artist, people let the artist do as the artist will. But, I'm liking your style sir.
Hush Money... I'd say something about it if I could find the words.
In a league of yer own, that you created. Amazing and inspiring as usual...

[Capt. Mac Creech]

Vic, We're taking the Bodasious down about that time, Maybe we can hook up. Will stay in touch

[In Memory of Vicroy]

Thanks, Mac - be great to see you guys. As for wing-shooting the tarpon, the perpetrator depicted in the video has reminded me he was using a 10 mm, not a 9.

UV