The coastal engineer began his conference talk on Oregon Inlet with a joke – sort of.Tom Jarrett summarized his career working to keep the frequently clogged Outer Banks inlet open to boat traffic as “34 years of accomplishing absolutely nothing.”
The crowd laughed, but the frustration in the room was obvious. He was speaking Thursday at the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association’s annual conference at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront.
A session was dedicated to Oregon Inlet, a main Outer Banks gateway to the Atlantic Ocean. Most experts agreed it’s time to try something new. But what?
Oregon Inlet, created by a hurricane in 1846, repeatedly fills in with sand, crippling the fishing and seafood industries that depend on the passage.
The most recent dredging effort provided a reliable route for only about six weeks, conference attendees said.
PLEASE CLICK HERE for more on the developing situation in Oregon Inlet on our website now…
Above: Oregon Inlet, which swirls with currents and ever-changing sandbars, is popular with local fishermen who use the ocean-to-sound passageway to fish and head for offshore waters. Photo Credit: Drew C. Wilson | The Virginian-Pilot.
ROFFS™ Updated Tournament Winners
(These are ROFFS™ clients who won various events in these tournaments.)
We are in the process of updating our tournament winners list for the fall/winter 2014-2015 boat show and seminar season. Please see below for recent editions and click through to our website to see the latest complete version of the list. If your name is missing please contact the office via EMAIL or phone (800) 677.7633 so we can add your tournament wins immediately!
Above: ROFFS™ client Dan Lewis during the 2014 Bisbee’s Black & Blue with his $1.6 million dollar winning fish. Photo credit: Dan Lewis
Ocean City Marlin Club Season Standings (MD): 1st Place Most Blue Marlin Released by any Boat, 1st Place Most Billfish Released by any Boat, 1st Place Most Billfish Released by Charter Boat, 1st Place Most Billfish Released in One Day by a Charter Boat, 1st Place Top Lady Angler & 3rd Place Most Billfish Released in One Day by a Charter Boat Captain Jon Duffie, Jeremy Duffie & Judith Duffie (Billfisher); 1st Place Most Billfish Released by a 34’ Boat or Under, 2nd Place Heaviest Wahoo & 3rd Place Heaviest Dolphin David Black (My Cin); 1st Place Heaviest Tuna Captain Bobby Pastorius (Jenny Poo); 1st Place Heaviest Wahoo Captain Joe Nolan (Odin Spear); 1st Place Top Recreational Angler & 3rd Place Most Billfish Released by a Private Boat Jim Rodgers (First Light); 2nd Place Most Billfish Released in One Day by a Charter Boat & 3rd Place Most Billfish Released by a Charter Boat Anthony Matarese (Reel Chaos); 2nd Place Most Tuna Caught by a Charter Boat Captain Luke Blume (White Lightning); 2nd Place Heaviest Shark Brian Arni (Get Reel); 2nd Place Top Recreational Angler Captain Ryan Freese & Monica Freese ( A Salt Weapon II); 3rd Place Most Billfish Released by a 34’ or Under Frank Goodhart (Brenda Lou).
Cape May Marlin & Tuna Club Seasonal Awards (NJ): Canyon Cup Most Off-Shore Points, 1st Place Top White Marlin Boat & 1st Top White Marlin Angler Jamie Diller & Cole Diller (Canyon Lady); Presidents Cup Most Tournament Win Points Brian Sullivan (Emanon); 1st Place Top Tuna Boat & 1st Place Top Wahoo Boat James Foulke, Pat Byrne & Steve Castellini (Trust Me Too); 1st Place Top Dolphin Boat & 1st Place Top Dolphin Angler Captain Joe Kelly (Salty Tiger); 1st Place Mako Boat Wayne Remster (Miss Edna Jane).
Beach Haven Marlin & Tuna Club Season Standings (NJ): 1st Place Overall Heaviest Bigeye Tuna Mens Category, 1st Marlin of Season Mens Category, 2nd Place Overall Heaviest Bigeye Tuna Mens Category Phil Hiller, Andy Cruise & Bill Johnson (Nic Knack); 1st Tuna of Season & 2nd Place Overall Heaviest Bluefin Tuna Tim Irons (Smokin’ Again); 1st Marlin of the Season Intermediate Category & 2nd Place Overall Heaviest Dolphin Intermediate Category Richard Ryon, CJ Janiszewski & Ryan Parker (Anthracite).
Southern Kingfish Association Division 4 Overall Standings: 1st Place Overall Small Boat Class David Futch (A Salt Weapon); 2nd Place Overall Top Senior Angler & 3rd Place Overall Top Senior Angler Captain Bradley Maroney, Ron Maroney & Kathi Maroney (Home Run).
Southern Kingfish Association Division 6 Overall Standings: 1st Place Overall Top Senior Angler & 3rd Place Overall Open Class Captain Randy Keys & Arik Bergerman (Under Armour Fishing Team).
Ed Dwyer’s Billfish Classic (FL): 1st Place Top Junior Angler & 3rd Place Overall Danny Perna & Erik Perna (Eco Fishing Team).
Captain Hap’s Kingfish Bash and Rodeo (GA): 1st Place Top Lady Angler & 3rd Place Open Class Bradley Maroney, Ron Maroney, Mason Maroney & Kathi Maroney (Home Run).
Mobile Big Game Fishing Club Annual Awards (AL): 1st Place Overall Top Private Boat, 1st Place Overall Catch & Release & 1st Place Overall Top Male Angler Johnny Johnson & Captain Myles Colley (Reel Worthless); 1st Place Overall Blue Marlin, 3rd Place Overall Catch & Release & 3rd Place Overall Top Male Angler John Dorland & Travis Dorland (Cotton Patch); 1st Place Overall Tuna Daniel Haeuser & Captain Jimmy Crochet (Conundrum); 1st Place Overall Dolphin & 3rd Place Overall Top Lady Angler Thomas Turner, Sari Turner, Sydney Turner, Captain Stan Blackman & Joey Birbeck (You Never Know); 2nd Place Overall Catch & Release, 2nd Place Overall Top Private Boat, 2nd Place Overall Top Male Angler, 2nd Place Overall Top Junior Angler & 3rd Place Overall Dolphin Scott Cooper & Ryan Cooper (CE); 2nd Place Overall Top Lady Angler Bennett Long & Janie Long (Rebel); 2nd Place Overall Tuna Captain Patrick Ivie & Michael Burroughs (Quick Time); 3rd Place Overall Top Private Boat Chris Haley (Skin Deep); 3rd Place Overall Top Charter Boat Mike Thierry (Lady Ann).
Southern Kingfish Association Mercury Pro Invitational (MS): 2nd Place Overall Fred Watkins, Jr., Sherman Smith, Susan Smith, William Todd Gardner & Robert Ost (Get Layed).
Southern Kingfish Association National Championship (MS): 2nd Place Overall Small Boat Class Matt Poulus, Captain Bernard Blair, Missi Beaseley, Brandon Blair & Bud Hendrix (Speedgoat).
Bisbee’s Black & Blue Marlin Tournament (MX): 2nd Place Top Tournament Team & 2nd Place Top Captain Dan Lewis (Sporty Game).
PLEASE CLICK HERE to view the latest version of the ROFFS™ 2014 winners list on our website now…
In Florida, a Water-Pollution Warning that Glows at Night
(From Washington Post /// Joby Warrick and Darryl Fears article. Click below for link to complete article)
Karen McLaughlin normally carries a flashlight for her nighttime kayak trips along Florida’s Banana River to spot any alligators resting on the banks. But these days, it’s the river itself that glows in the dark.
“It’s beautiful!” McLaughlin, an eco-tour guide, said as her boat’s wake set off an eerie light show on a moonless October night. Each dip of her paddle stirred up bioluminescent plankton that have invaded this eastern Florida waterway in record numbers since late summer. Like millions of tiny fireflies, they lit a jumping fish in a geyser of emerald light. A manatee out for the evening glowed like an alien spaceship as it passed underneath.
It was striking, but also strange: In a region where explosive “blooms” of toxic or nuisance algae have battered fisheries and killed dolphins and sea turtles in recent years, the glowing microorganisms represent another mysterious shift in an ecosystem that scientists say is out of kilter.
In the same week that some Florida researchers monitored the bioluminescent algae on Florida’s East Coast, others were keeping watch on remnants of a massive “red tide” in the Gulf of Mexico, a swath of toxic algae that at one point stretched 100 miles.
From Southern California’s beaches to the Chesapeake Bay, waterways across the United States are seeing increasing numbers of algae blooms, with impacts including tainted drinking water and poisoned shellfish beds. Some are linked to higher levels of nitrogen pollution from livestock waste and fertilizers from suburban lawns and farms. Others are mostly natural events that are occurring in new places as oceans and inland lakes grow warmer.
Above: Bioluminescent algae on Florida’s East Coast are part of increasing numbers of algae blooms in the U.S. — some of which are toxic, with possible impacts including tainted drinking water and poisoned shellfish beds. Photo Credit: Florida Today Communications/PR Newswire.
Updated Catch Reports Section of ROFFS™ Website
Above: Photo from this past Monday – Great bigeye fishing , caught 4 up to 160lb – Few yellowfin tuna, dolphin, and swordfish! Owner Sid Gold & Capt. Aaron Greenberg fishing aboard their 52 Viking “Can Do Too”
Be sure to visit the section titled “Catch Reports” located under the “Insights” tab on our ROFFS™ website that will feature current catch reports from areas such as the Northeastern U.S., North Carolina/Hatteras, South Carolina/Georgia, Florida, the Florida Keys, the Bahamas, and the Gulf of Mexico. We continue to post weekly updates in this category so please check back often.
Please click HERE for MORE photos and to view recent catch reports…
Warm Winter Could Point to Mixed Sailfish Season
(From Miami Herald /// Susan Cocking article. Click below for link to complete article)
South Florida’s 2014-15 sailfish tournament season got off to a promising early start with last month’s inaugural “Dust ‘Em Off Sailfish Warm-Up” where a fleet of 18 boats released 40 sails in a single day. Captain Dennis Forgione’s charterboat Free Spool took top honors with angler Mindy Marks scoring five releases — all in about 109 feet of water off Haulover Inlet.
But the outlook for the rest of the season, which wraps up in mid to late April, isn’t as bright.
Oceanographer Mitch Roffer, who operates Roffer’s Ocean Fishing Forecasting Service for offshore anglers throughout the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, predicts a so-so season.
Roffer, who uses satellites to track ocean currents, temperatures and other data to help anglers target their favorite pelagic species, says most weather forecasts point to a mild winter.
Please click HERE for MORE on the forecast for the upcoming sailfish season on our website now…
Above: Winning crew – The crew of “Free Spool” celebrates Mindy Marks’ 54-pound cobia, caught on the way to winning the Dust ‘Em Off Sailfish Warm-Up. Photo Credit: Sue Cocking. Miami Herald Staff.
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