Addictive Angler

This Week on Twitter 2013-05-01 – 2013-05-07

Ben — Wed, 08 May 2013 00:51:59 +0000

@ReelNJShoreCris @WFN GL on those AJ's! in reply to ReelNJShoreCris ->

Video: The Belize River Lodge, World Class Fly Fishing

Ben — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 12:28:24 +0000

Video Time again at Addictive Angler — This 10:25 video is the 1st fishing video of 2013 for Addictive Angler and we had a blast filming and making it. Hats off to Mike and Margarete of The Belize River Lodge for their wonderful hospitality and of course enabling this great fishing video to be made:

We were honored to go fish at the historic Belize River Lodge for some world class fly fishing and dining, Mike and Margarete are the most wonderful hosts, this should be on ever fly fishermans dream bucket list for 2013! You can book your trip on:
Addictive Traveler

Video: Tarpon Caye – Belize Fly Fishing at Its Finest!

Ben — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 12:18:20 +0000

Addictive Angler recently was invited out to Tarpon Caye lodge out of Placencia, Belize. A scenic retreat in the remote Belizian waters that puts on a great show. Currently being remolded and upgraded the tarpon Caye Lodge breathes authentic. Its remote, gorgeous, the food is awesome, and the fishing… well the fishing is a fly fishermans fantasy come true!

To Book your Amazing Fly Fishing Vacation at the Tarpon caye lodge, Click Here!

*For the Traveling Fly Fisherman** Sale on Bonefish Travel Rod from Fox Sportfishing! Click Here!

Enjoy the Video!

Fishing Video: Whaaaat?? The West Indies Meets The West Coast

Ben — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 12:36:47 +0000

Well its video time here again, this is a trip we just took with our friends from Trinidad & Tobago, The video features some new effects, nice fish, and 8 days of good time stuffed into 10 minutes. Featuring full HD viewable 1920×1080 and stereo sound we enjoyed making this video from the filming to the editing. This is the second over 10 minutes video we’ve done, but the first produced one.

This is a trip of catches with everyone landing a roosterfish, a bunch of dorado (Mahi mahi), and one blue marlin weighing in around 250lbs or so. We stayed at the wonderful Casa Roland Resort which is an Oasis in the Jungle for the duration of our visit to southern Costa Rica, The Zip line was up in the Jungles nearby Golfito. We hope you enjoy the video:

Tarpon Caye in Belize, 4 Sweet Asses!

Ben — Sat, 03 Nov 2012 23:17:27 +0000

Awash in the land of Belikin Beer, Maya’s, and good times We found ourselves in the company of a true legend, in a location that wasn’t far behind on the scales. The entire organization at tarpon caye is spot on, A rustic fishing lodge on a remote Belizian Caye, surrounded by the refreshing Caribbean breezes, flats as far as your water logged feet can take you, and a class act team whose passion shines through in every cast, set, miss, and fish landed.
The Fishing at Tarpon Caye is without a doubt, epic. Permit grace the many flats around the caye, fishing grounds are never far away, and there is always tarpon about, allowing Tarpon Caye to truly live up to its name. A truly Un-parralelled experience in Belize!
We try to be stingy with our sweet asses here at AA. but when your fishing guide/comedian extraordinaire is a legend who has rubbed elbows with the best of the best, well we couldn’t help but to spread the wealth, Charles Sr. and Jr. alike run a progressive operation which is in the process of receiving a sexy makeover. Spending all day chasing tail — at sea, and nights trading fish stories, old and new, with new friends while enjoying some amazing Belizian cuisine! Conch, Lobster, hog Snapper, Grouper, Baracuda, and whatever else that may grace line or trap are prepared with the same love and passion as the guides lend to their fishing. 4 Very Very Sweet Asses for the Leslies, damn fine show gentlemen, damn fine!

The Historic and Famous Belize River Lodge

Ben — Sat, 03 Nov 2012 23:10:24 +0000

Arriving at the Belize River Lodge is almost surreal, a dirt road to a mango tree, three rings on the bell. A short bit later Thomas came slowly down the river and gathered us for 4 days of some incredible fishing, beautiful sites, hidden nooks, and the finest dining you’d ever imagine at a fishing lodge, that leaves you feeling guilty for eating so much, but hungering for just one more bite.
A short ride up the river later and ‘home’ reveals itself. A lodge with history and years kept in perfect fishing condition by the proprietors who not only run an immaculate show, but are attentive crossing every t and dotting every i.
The club house carries fishing relics from years past that capture the eye and capture the imagination with stories from the varied sawfish relics to the old pictures of the lodge from the ‘old days’ the charm of years of fishing history washes over you, and if it doesn’t the stories from Mike will ice the cake. Sometime it was hard to decide what carried more anticipation, the next meal or the prolific hook-ups in between. Somewhere it all blends together into an amazing experience that is most deserving of 4 sweet asses. Fly fisherman, spin casters, or anyone just searching for a damn good time visiting the varied fishing grounds that Belize has to offer are in for a treat as most of the year yields some form of excitement. A huge thank you to Mike and Margarite and a special thank you to our very knowledgeable and happy guide John, who took perfect care of us.

4 Very Thankful Sweet Asses!

Slam Dunk Sea Bass – Corvina – White Sea Bass Fishing Action!

Ben — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 16:17:01 +0000

We saw the day coming while studying the weather and our guess didn’t leave us disappointed! With Lindor, one of our favorite captains in Golfito, we made our way out to the waters of Pavas, where one of the longest surf breaks is. Immediately we knew it was going to be a wild morning as we had hookup after hookup. Usually huge proponents of ‘you don’t leave fish to catch fish’ we departed with a full cooler less then two hours later!

Fishing with a variety of live bait we caught in the early morning it was a frenzy not soon to be forgot!

This is a re-release from the original Slam Dunk Sea Bass, lots of fishing action – Enjoy:

A summary of the ‘contradictory and confusing’ EU shark finning ban vote

Ben — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 15:14:38 +0000

Last Wednesday morning, the Fisheries Committee of the European Parliament voted on proposed amendments that would, if passed, form their response to the European Commission’s 2011 proposal to end all removal of shark fins at sea (and thereby close loopholes in the EU finning ban). As the EU is the single largest supplier of shark fins to the Hong Kong markets, the eyes of the marine conservation community were focused squarely on Brussels, where the vote was taking place. Despite the numerous celebratory tweets , press releases , and Facebook updates that I observed, the vote didn’t go as well as hoped. The result has been described as “contradictory”, “confusing”, “puzzling”, and “inconsistent”, and it’s hard to disagree with that summary.

The Committee voted on a series of amendments, most of which had been debated earlier this year. Most of the problematic amendments were defeated and several positive amendments were endorsed. One of the most closely watched, which would have maintained exceptions to the current ban on at-sea fin removal and would have raised the fin to carcass ratio to 14% of dressed weight, was defeated. However, proposed text which refers (in principle, but without details) to removal of fins at sea also narrowly passed.

Yes, you read that correctly. MEPs (Members of European Parliament) voted to adopt text that suggests that removing fins at sea is sometimes acceptable, but voted to accept the Commission’s proposal to delete that part of the current regulation allowing for such exceptions. Contradictory, confusing, puzzling, and inconsistent indeed!

Don’t worry, though- this isn’t over. One of the next steps is a discussion before a Plenary session of the full European Parliament, which will consider these issues. This will likely take place in the next few months, perhaps as early as mid-October.

“We will continue to urge all MEPs to promptly remove all confusion in Plenary and clearly endorse a strict EU policy against removing shark fins at sea, without exceptions,” said Sonja Fordham, President of Shark Advocates International.

I’ll keep you posted on what’s happening and how you can help.

Source Article from http://www.southernfriedscience.com/?p=13747

NYC terror-response boat sinks after sergeant orders opening of underwater hatch

Ben — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 15:14:32 +0000

A $500,000 Port Authority patrol boat sank this month after a veteran police sergeant took the advice of a clueless civilian safety instructor — and opened a hatch while it was under water, The Post has learned.

“It was like opening a window during a carwash,” one PA insider lamented of the screw-up off Breezy Point, Queens, that left 11 people scrambling for their lives.

Nobody was seriously injured, but eight cops and three civilians had to either swim to safety or be rescued as the 37-foot M-2 model Moose Boats craft sank 40 feet to the ocean floor about 300 yards off shore.

PA sources said the sergeant who ordered the hatch open is expected to face disciplinary action. They refused to identify him. He will likely lose vacation days for failing to maintain supervisory control and basically abdicating his command to a civilian during the Sept. 9 debacle, they said.

The aluminum-hull catamaran was being used for rescue exercises mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration for airport first responders, a source said.

Source Article from http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/09/24/nyc-terror-response-boat-sinks-after-underwater-hatch-opened/

Dozens of rare sharks being sold for fin soup in Dubai market

Ben — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 12:14:39 +0000

DUBAI // Rare sharks are being sold at Deira fish market so their fins can be hacked off to make soup.\Peter Jaworski, a vet in Dubai, counted 140 sharks during a single visit to the market. They included smooth hammerheads, bigeye threshers, common threshers and a mako, all of which the International Union for Conservation of Nature lists as threatened.

There were also common blacktips, hardnose sharks and a spinner shark, which are classed as near-threatened.

Dried fins on sale at the market included one from a whale shark. Trading in products from this species is banned by an international treaty.

“The most tragic was the thresher,” said Dr Jaworski, who is involved in a shark-research project. “This is very rare, usually it’s not even seen by divers because it’s a deep-sea species.”

Dr Jaworski said: “If someone sees a thresher shark in the water, it’s a sensation. It was shocking because I’ve never seen so many thresher sharks at the same time and the same place, there were about 40.”

Hammerheads on sale at the market included pregnant females. Dr Jaworski believes the numbers being caught pose a threat to the populations of some species, which could have a drastic impact on the entire marine ecosystem.

“The shark is the top predator, and when the top predator disappears there is a critical chain reaction. If you have no predators the fish they would normally prey on grow in number because there are no sharks to control them, and they eat everything else, so the populations of smaller fish are threatened.”

The shark-fishing industry is driven by the lucrative trade in shark fin, which is dried and used to make shark-fin soup, a sought-after delicacy in the Far East.

The shark specialist group at the International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates the global value of the shark-fin trade to be at least US$540 million (Dh2 billion), and possibly as high as US$1.2 bn.

Dried fins are sold at Deira in 4kg parcels for between Dh400 and Dh600. The cost fluctuates daily and some species command higher prices than others.

Most of the fins are exported to Hong Kong, though the soup is available in restaurants in Dubai for about Dh70 a bowl.

The trade in whole sharks is legal. Shark-finning, in which the fins are cut off live sharks as they are landed on boats and the remainder of the fish is thrown overboard, was banned by the Ministry of Environment and Water in 2008.

Rima Jabado, a marine biologist, said a lack of information about shark populations off Oman, the source of many of those sold at Deira, and the level of fishing in the Sultanate meant it was impossible to determine the impact of the trade.

Ms Jabado will be one of the speakers at a four-day shark conservation conference in Dubai next month. She will talk about the role of fishermen in conservation.

“We need to speak to the fishermen and find out exactly why they fish for sharks, what incentives they have,” she said. “Are there particular species they’re targeting and others they are not?

“It’s important to educate them in terms of species, how they identify the different species, and have logbooks on the boats where they can record their catches. Some species will probably have to be evaluated in terms of what’s happening with their populations.

“Based on that, there need to be incentives to tell the fishermen that this particular species is threatened, so if you catch it, you need to release it.”

She said most of the sharks sold at Deira were caught by fishermen from other countries.

“The UAE is the fifth-largest exporter in the world for shark fins but it is a channel for sharks that are caught regionally. Probably 95 per cent of the sharks at the Deira fish market are not from the UAE.

“The UAE needs to start regulating the trade and controlling what species are allowed to be brought into the country.”

csimpson@thenational.ae

Source Article from http://www.thenational.ae/news/uae-news/dozens-of-rare-sharks-being-sold-for-fin-soup-in-dubai-market