If I can't Fly... Florida

Bman.

Bman.

Pre-takeoff checklist
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Springfield, Missouri
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Bman.
So I am down here in Longboat Key, FL on vacation. All week long I see GA flying the coastline out of KSRQ. Jealous! I wanted to fly my Archer II down here... wife wasn't having it for that long of a flight with kids in tow from Missouri. So, I have moved on to the other hobby I enjoy - fishing.

I want to go fish for some reds but come to find out, boat rentals are nearly as difficult as plane rentals. The two marinas I have checked in with don't have a fishing type vessel that will work to my liking. Who knew it would be so tough to find a boat. I guess the logic is if you are that gung-ho to fish 1) you would have brought your own boat or 2) you would get a guide..

Anyone near Cockroach Bay (east of Tampa) that has a boat I can rent for a few hours... ha.

Benjamin
 
Rent a kayak
 
Should have senT THE WIFE and kids down in a metal tube, while you fly the Archer. That’s what I did when I had my Tiger. Worked out great.
 
Reds are backwater; surely you can find a lowly pontoon to rent? That would work ok.
 
Lots of shallows you can wade fish around the Tampa area. Talk to a few shops, ask some locals, and check the newspaper. I've had decent luck at Ft DeSoto Park and at Honeymoon Island, but you have to be at the right time and tide.

Best bet would be to hire a guide, though.
 
Half Fast said:
Lots of shallows you can wade fish around the Tampa area.
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And....the Gary the Gator will be waiting...

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Half Fast said:
Unlikely. Gators don't like saltwater. They're freshwater lake and swamp critters.

Sharks, on the other hand,...
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Well you said shallow water, nothing about salt....seen 'em in brackish wa-wa though.
 
He's at Longboat Key and wants to fish for reds (aka redfish, red bass). That's saltwater.

Yeah, I've seen gators in brackish water. Brackish creeks around Jacksonville where I grew up had a few.
 
Half Fast said:
He's at Longboat Key and wants to fish for reds (aka redfish, red bass). That's saltwater.

Yeah, I've seen gators in brackish water. Brackish creeks around Jacksonville where I grew up had a few.
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Yup seen 'em in N. Fl panhandle, FWB area.
 
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Gators seen occasionally on the flats around Cedar Key, so I’m told. I’m enough of a believer that we keep our dogs away - that and the razor sharp oysters bloody up their feet.

...but back to the Reds fishing. Reds are best fished from kayaks.
They’ve come into shallow water early this year due to the generally warm winter, so I’m told.
 
Gators are up in the southern portion of GA, AL, and LA also. AL has a gator season as does LA. Don't know if GA has a season or not.
 
mscard88 said:
Gators are up in the southern portion of GA, AL, and LA also. AL has a gator season as does LA. Don't know if GA has a season or not.
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Florida has a gator season.

Of course, we also have a tourist season, but so far I haven't been able to find out whether I need a migratory bird stamp to shoot snowbirds.
 
Half Fast said:
Florida has a gator season.

Of course, we also have a tourist season, but so far I haven't been able to find out whether I need a migratory bird stamp to shoot snowbirds.
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Funny, when I lived in Blue Ridge GA we had Floridians that spent summer months in the mountains of N. Ga. The locals referred to them "Floridiots". Not me now, the locals, so no offense. :D
 
mscard88 said:
Funny, when I lived in Blue Ridge GA we had Floridians that spent summer months in the mountains of N. Ga. The locals referred to them "Floridiots". Not me now, the locals, so no offense. :D
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Half the population living full time in Blueridge is from Florida. My sister has a place in Cherry Log (near Blueridge) that I use a few times a year.

I wouldn't mind the snowbirds so much if they'd just stay in their condos and motorhomes and off the roads. The traffic here is miserable.
 
Half Fast said:
Half the population living full time in Blueridge is from Florida. My sister has a place in Cherry Log (near Blueridge) that I use a few times a year.

I wouldn't mind the snowbirds so much if they'd just stay in their condos and motorhomes and off the roads. The traffic here is miserable.
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Haha that's what the locals up thar in N. Ga say! ;) :D
 
Half Fast said:
Florida has a gator season.

Of course, we also have a tourist season, but so far I haven't been able to find out whether I need a migratory bird stamp to shoot snowbirds.
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Common feeling in tourist places I bought this magnet when I lived in Vermont in the late `80s:

tseason.jpg
 
mscard88 said:
Haha that's what the locals up thar in N. Ga say! ;) :D
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I visit N Ga a couple of times a year to ride sportbikes with a buddy or two. I'm always amazed by how polite the local drivers are up there. They'll frequently slow down on a straight stretch and wave us past. Some will even pull off the road for a moment to let us go by.

Heck, one guy was so nice he even pulled off the road, down an embankment, and into a tree, just to let us go past....
 
Half Fast said:
I visit N Ga a couple of times a year to ride sportbikes with a buddy or two. I'm always amazed by how polite the local drivers are up there. They'll frequently slow down on a straight stretch and wave us past. Some will even pull off the road for a moment to let us go by.

Heck, one guy was so nice he even pulled off the road, down an embankment, and into a tree, just to let us go past....
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Yeah, we lived here for 4 1/2 years. It was going back in time 20-30 years at times, and was refreshing. Friendly folks for sure. I had a Miata and those sportbikes would be on my ass (probably YOU lol) going through switchbacks and no where to wave 'em by or pull over.
 
mscard88 said:
Yeah, we lived here for 4 1/2 years. It was going back in time 20-30 years at times, and was refreshing. Friendly folks for sure. I had a Miata and those sportbikes would be on my ass (probably YOU lol) going through switchbacks and no where to wave 'em by or pull over.
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Shoot, one time a cop even tried to give us an escort to clear out traffic. Had his lights and siren going like a regular parade. Unfortunately he couldn’t keep up with us, though.
 
Half Fast said:
Shoot, one time a cop even tried to give us an escort to clear out traffic. Had his lights and siren going like a regular parade. Unfortunately he couldn’t keep up with us, though.
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LOL, reminds me of what the barber I used in Blue Ridge told me about the Mayor. No tickets to the people of BR! Later on during the early 2000s the Atlanta Constitution had a pic of the Mayor in "his chair" at a cock fight that got busted. Funny stuff up thar.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=231x3080
 
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