Our Blog: From the Waterfront

The Last Buffalo Hunt

The Last Buffalo Hunt

Photo: Tony Friedrich and fluke My boat sits on the Southern end of a decent-sized island in the Chesapeake Bay. When my bare feet touch the aging fiberglass deck, I feel at home. Securing the gear, warming up the engines, and throwing the lines is a cathartic experience. Basically, I can’t wipe the smile from […]

Gulf States Advance Red Snapper Exempted Fishing Permits

Gulf States Advance Red Snapper Exempted Fishing Permits

Red snapper has been the center of a “who can manage it better” battle for the last several years. In federal waters, red snapper management is dictated by the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA) and falls under the jurisdiction of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Despite a successful track history of […]

Big Change Coming in Recreational Landings Data

Big Change Coming in Recreational Landings Data

For many years, anglers and businesses critical of recreational fishing regulations have focused their ire on the Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistics Survey (MRFSS) and on MRFSS’ successor, the Marine Recreational Information Program (MRIP), claiming that the landings estimates those surveys produced were very inaccurate and did not truly reflect recreational harvest. Their criticisms of MRFSS […]

Fishing Isn’t Just for the Big Boats

Fishing Isn’t Just for the Big Boats

Photo: The Slavins with springers After 20+ years on the Oregon Coast—during which a depleted stock of sturgeon contributed to the loss of a huge component of my guide business and an opportunity presented itself to work for the Association of Northwest Steelheaders—I find myself in disbelief as to the state of our inland fisheries. […]

Hopes, Fears and The Future

Hopes, Fears and The Future

My fishing seasons begin bright with hope and filled with expectations. Last year’s mistakes and missed opportunities have been recalled and dissected all winter; plans have been laid to assure better outcomes next time. And those next times are coming soon. The marina has promised that, sometime later this week, my boat will go into […]

Aquaculture in the Gulf of Mexico — Proceed with Caution

Aquaculture in the Gulf of Mexico — Proceed with Caution

According to short term projections by the Food and Agricultural Organization (or FAO), global fish demand could increase by 47 million tons in less than ten years. In the last several decades, despite rising seafood consumption, wild-capture fisheries’ production remained steady, while aquaculture production grew to help meet this demand. The United States is not […]