Loran C termination in process;
user groups unhappy

By Capt. Mike Holmes

The National Association of Charterboat Operators is continuing to fight the termination of the LORAN C system. Some bottom fishing specialists, both recreational and commercial, in the Gulf of Mexico prefer to use LORAN in the final approach to small pieces of bottom structure or wrecks because they perceive its repeatability and pin-point accuracy to be better than GPS. Some shipping interests also still use LORAN in combination with GPS.

Caribiana Sea Skiffs moves to Pensacola

Curt Morse, the new owner of Caribiana Sea Skiffs, has moved the operation from New Orleans to Pensacola. The 23-foot, panga-style vessel has a hull weight of 1,200 pounds and handles outboards to 90 horsepower. With a high bow, shallow draft plus a top speed of 40 mph, it’s a good choice for either inshore or light offshore fishing and cruising. The standard Coastal series has a white lapstrake fiberglass hull with teak rub-rails, floor boards, and helm seat produced by local craftsmen. The Signature series offers custom hull colors and more elaborate fittings. For more information go to caribiana.com.

Southern Yacht Club news

March will be a busy month in NOLA at the Southern Yacht Club beginning with the Commodore’s Ball on Saturday, March 6. Also that weekend is the annual Mardi Gras Regatta and team racing for the Southern Nichols Cup. On the March 11 the J/22 Mid-winter series begins, followed by the Flying Scot class March 21 to 26..
The annual Leukemia Cup begins with a captain’s meeting, party and auction at 6:30 p.m. March 19. Racing begins the next day, with One Design, Optis, and board boats competing. PHRF fleets compete the following day. To register, call 504-837-0945, ext. 308. The annual Mandeville Race concludes on om March 27. Southern plans to offer “Intro to Racing,” and “Basic Spinnaker” sailing classes this spring. For information view  southernyachtclub.org.

Red snapper catches show improvement

Although NOAA Fisheries has imposed a several months long total ban on keeping red snapper in the South Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico red snapper catches showed an increase in average size of fish retained. Some have interpreted this to mean the fish are on a rebound, while others might point out that with a open season running from June 1 until August 1 and a two fish per person per day catch limit, anglers were probably hunting harder for two larger fish, possibly culling many more small fish in the process.
A coalition of fishermen and businesses that depend on fishing for their livelihoods staged a march on Washington on February 24 to speak to their representatives about problems in the reauthorization of the Magnuson-Stevens Act.

Gulf dodges serious fish kills

Most areas of the western Gulf reported no serious fish kills from the Christmas and January freezes. In Texas, the upper coast mostly saw dead forage fish, such as shad and mullet, although lower on the coast some speckled trout and snook were found dead in back bay lakes near Port O’Connor and as far south as Port Aransas. In most areas, fish appear to have had time to move to deeper water before the water temperatures reached a dangerous level. Not so along the Florida Gulf Coast from Tampa Bay through the Ten Thousand Islands where a week of cold days pushed water temps below 55 degrees. Snook, permit and redfish suffered huge kills. To further protect certain fish species that suffered in Florida, state officials have imposed a ban on keeping snook, bonefish, and tarpon through March 31, but will allow catch and release for these species.