Capt, Rick Davidson, Editor (greasflats2@yahoo.com)
The Sea Hag Recovers From Hurricanes
… and the Davidson/Thompson Era of Fishing Reports Comes to a Close
After almost twenty years of writing a monthly fishing report, I’m no longer able to fish regularly and it’s time to step down, so this report is more about the past than the future. The unfortunate thing is that this coincides with the horrible destruction from Hurricane Helene that flooded much of Steinhatchee.
I first started to fish at Steinhatchee when Charlie and Danielle were running Norwood’s in Cedar Key. The Sea Hag at that point in time was tiny, with only one dock sticking out into the river. From the time they took it over, their goal was to make it a destination marina, and they’ve spared no expense and hard work to make it just that. I’ve watched Chaeli and Chase grow up into fine people, and the marina turn into the best I’ve seen on the upper gulf coast and panhandle.
Our sadness over the recent destruction, which is especially painful given all the work done after Hurricane Idalia caused such destruction just a year ago, is tempered by the fact that they immediately began work to restore things….a 20 foot surge actually got into the second floor of the store and the new floor had to be replaced. With multiple workers and volunteers, things are moving forward. The store is back, but the docks have not been fixed yet, but we’re hopeful things will be back to normal soon, because there’s some great fishing in the fall.
The blue tape above the heads of Derek, Danielle and Brittany marks the high water mark from Hurricane Helene’s surge. That’s 20-feet! When Capt. Tommy Thompson asked Danielle if she cried when she saw he damage to her home and her marina, she said “No, but she cried for the many folks in Steinhatchee who had no homes and no insurance to cover their losses”. That’s ‘good citizenship’!
My regular fishing partner Capt. Tommy Thompson, who has served as the webmaster for many years, is part of my history at Sea Hag. Both of us have always been supported and appreciated by Charlie and Danielle. I want to take this opportunity to thank them for that support and their friendship over the years. Sea Hag was like a second home to us, and that includes all the staff and many captains that worked there over the years. I hope to get over to visit from time to time, and maybe even get some fishing in. I know that Sea Hag will continue to prosper and support the community as they have in the past…..because they’re good people.
Best wishes….Capt. Rick Davidson
…and now just a few words from Tommy:
I often think about what my overall fishing experience would have been without my relationship with Charlie, Danielle and all the folks at the Sea Hag. I began guiding in 2000, essentially using that time time give me experience and photos for my Florida Sportsman features, columns (Big Bend Action Spotter and Sportsman’s Kitchen) and books (The Salt Water Angler’s Guide to Florida’s Big Bend and Emerald Coast). I had originally planned to trailer my Shipoke skiff and to fish the Gulf inshore waters from Homosassa to St. Marks, but after the first few trips to Steinhatchee with Rick, I was spoiled. Of course, in the early ‘aughts’, the Sea Hag was smaller, but it was then, as now, full-service and customer-oriented. The Sea Hag offered me service and storage and access to some of the most untouched stretches of the Gulf.
I’m happy to have been able to help with the production of these fishing reports. Rick has always been on time regarding deadlines and despite his meager education at Vanderbilt and UNC, has been pretty readable, even by me, with only an education from Emory University. Even with simple minds, we managed to get a nice report out every month and still caught plenty of fish!
Here are a few of our favorite photos from over the years. (Click on any image to see it full-sixzez0
