Capt. Rick Davidson, Editor (grassflats2@yahoo.com)
Fishing Report August 2023
The fantastic scallop and snapper season came to a crushingly sad conclusion as Hurricane Idalia made landfall at Keaton Beach as a category 4 storm. The whole Big Bend is suffering as I write this, but luckily as of now there are no known deaths.
The massive storm surge completely flooded the Sea Hag Ship’s Store first floor, but the staff worked hard in advance to get most inventory up to the upper floors. Most cabins avoided damage, but the cleanup will be a challenge and ongoing. Most areas near the river are covered with sea grass and black mud. Several of our docks came loose. Luckily we have generators that have helped a great deal, but there’s much to do. If anyone is interested in volunteering to help cleanup, please get in touch with us.
Roy’s Restaurant and Crabbie Dad’s suffered significant damage and flooding. Fiddler’s Restaurant was flooded as well. Many homes are uninhabitable. Massive storms like that have profound effects on fishing; fish may be found in areas that are unusual for them. The bottom is often changed, with rocks and oyster bars more exposed than before. If you do chose to fish, be particularly careful near shore and watch out for unusual sand bars offshore. Also, be careful about floating flotsam and jetsam. Docks and all sorts of miscellaneous junk has washed out of the river and onto the flat, so navigate with care and watch your speed.
Our entire village has been impacted, but Steinhatchee has been through bad storms before. We have already begun cleanup. Follow our progress on our Facebook page; we will work as hard as we can to get back to business, and we thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. We will let everyone know as we progress, and we cannot thank you enough for bearing with us through this difficult time.
