After a slow start, finally found some good grounds and getting our limit. If you're ready to hit the Gulf and go scalloping, the dates for 2020 have been set. Book your Homosassa scalloping charters with a licensed captain. Shaved Faces! +3. Season opens the Saturday before July 1st every year. HOMOSASSA PRE SEASON SCALLOPING REPORT 2020 With scallop season only less than a month away many are wondering how plentiful the scallops are. Sorry, no promotional deals were found matching that code. Homosassa Scalloping 2020. Michael Mancke, general manager of the Plantation on Crystal River, said restaurant and bar sales were down because they were forced to run at 50% capacity. If you’d like to see available dates and book your trip, check out our scalloping page. Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. Scallops are a harvested Mollusk and do have regulations or limitations, therefore a license is permitted and is included with your trip. Essentially it is exactly like collecting golf balls in the deep end of the pool. Our water usually stays clear all season! New measures for Limited Access vessels implemented through Framework Adjustment 32 to the Atlantic Sea Scallop Fishery Management Plan and a summary of how they may affect fishing plans and activities for the 2020 fishing year. This creature filters the saltwater for nutrients that suspend in the water column. We’ll be running scallop charters out of 2 boats this year. Contributing Member. Please log in, or sign up for a new account to continue reading. Now the county prepares for manatee season, which traditionally runs from the end of November through March. The 2020 recreational bay scallop season for Dixie County and a portion of Taylor County opens June 15 and will remain open through Labor Day (Sept. 7, 2020). When scallop season began July 1, the economy started reopening, people had been cooped up in their homes for four months and were ansty to get out. 2020-2021 Season Dive Calendars (First page includes sunrise times). The agency is asking scallopers to fill out the harvest form detailing their catch details. Cloudy early, then thunderstorms developing this afternoon. Although Florida’s scalloping grounds do hold sharks, you shouldn’t worry about them since most are migratory and don’t hang around long. There’s nothing hard core needed to enjoy a day scalloping. Scallop season is a big tourist draw on an annual basis. Don’t wait make sure to book your scalloping charter today! 12/19/19. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) set the 2020 bay scallop season in Gulf County (including St. Joseph Bay) to open Aug. 16, 2020, and remain open through Sept. 24, 2020, closing Sept. 25.This season was set after working closely with the local community and allows the FWC to balance stakeholder and community desires for a high-quality scalloping season … In fact, data from FWC shows the harvest was at an eight-year low. wildspeed. SPECIESJANFEBMAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG OCT SEPDEC NOV Gulf County Opens Aug. 16 Closes Sept. 24 Franklin-NW Taylor County & Levy, Citrus & Hernando counties Opens July 1 Closes Sept. 25 Fenholloway through Scallop Season 2020 will open July 1st and end September 24th. So Where Should You go Scalloping This Summer? We’ll be running scallop charters out of 2 boats this year. Scalloping fit that bill, he said, because it was outdoors and mostly limited to families. 2019 wasn’t our best scalloping season numbers wise however, if history holds true our beloved bay scallops will bounce back to good numbers in 2020. Many local residents as well as visitors from far and wide visit Citrus County to catch the tasty mollusks. Storms may contain strong gusty winds. Thank you for reading! Steinhatchee has a lot of runoff freshwater that meets the gulf, and a very rainy season can disrupt clarity very quickly. Scallop season 2019 opens July 1st and closes September 24th. The Complete Guide to Florida Scalloping in 2020. ) The discarded shells create a hazard to humans and sea life, along with creating an environment for unhealthy vegetation growth. If you would like to go with us, we’ll be happy to have you aboard! Post Jul 28, 2020 #1 2020-07-28T14:00. The scalloping is just as good in Homosassa as it is in Crystal River. There are many reasons why Crystal River is the best place, but one of the most important reasons is due to water clarity. We have many rivers to feed into the Gulf that help scallops grow since these bivalves are very environmentally sensitive. 2021 Recreational Scallop Seasons - AT-A-GLANCE Gulf of Mexico State Waters Click on the species for up-to-date closures and regulations. Cape San Blas is much like Port St. Joe since it is not too far away and you can wade out to the scallops. Get ready for scallop season with these helpful tips. Chance of rain 100%. You’ll hear it described by some as an Easter egg hunt. The data is used to manage the fishery set seasons and boundaries for the season. “All-in-all, it was a great season, she said. If you would like to go with us, we’ll be happy to have you aboard! During their meeting Wednesday outside Tallahassee, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) set the season in state waters off the coasts of Levy, Citrus and Hernando counties for July 1 through Sept. 24, according to an … Scallops thrive in the clear, grass-laden saltwater flats off of the coastline due to an abundance of fresh water flowing from coastal rivers into the Gulf of Mexico.Â. ... Florida Scallop Season 2020. Catching scallops is the best part! Many scallopers skipped last year due to the poor reports of population in many different counties, and that means less people were out harvesting last year. ... harvesting of scallops, like it does all of Florida's fisheries, and the 2020 recreational bay scallop harvest season begins Wednesday July 1, 2020. Scallop season is a big tourist draw on an annual basis. With June 1st being the first day of grouper season and doing some shallow water spear fishing every rock pile that we worked in the grass on the outside was plenty of scallops and nice sized. Mostly due to the wet season washing out all of the visibility in the Gulf of Mexico around that coastline. 2020-21 Maine Scallop Season Overview . Homosassa … Boat 1 Captain Nick Warrington with his Kencraft 24.8 ft bay challenger. How to scallop in Homosassa Springs, Florida. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. Our water is a perfect balance of depth and visibility, which means at depths of 6 feet we can still clearly see scallops in the grass. The reports were so bad, I didn’t even bother a trip, the first time in many years. Pricher said by all accounts, mollusk yields were much better this year than last. We’ve taken the time to put our years of summertime scalloping experience into an easy-to-understand guide that you can use on your next adventure. Most people will look for blue eyes, but our Captains believe that in certain conditions you may not see blue eyes, so looking for the shape of a scallop will definitely help! This creature filters the saltwater for nutrients that suspend in the water column. The countdown is on, its only one week until scallop season 2020! You have permission to edit this article. Scallop Season is Here! Our favorite technique is to go out on a lower tide in very shallow water and basically float around and pick them up from a few feet below. In most cases, their scallops can be found on sandy bottom areas as well as in seagrass beds. Wooten said there were still plenty of scallops available when the season ended which makes her optimistic for next year. Others simply go out and enjoy snorkeling different areas while looking for the scallop shape in the grass. Should I Worry About Sharks While Scalloping? The most common technique is diving down and grabbing scallops from the seagrass. The season started July 1 and ended Sept. 24. Scallop Management Area Map Scallop Season 2020 Scallop Season 2020. wildspeed. There’s no question that Crystal River, FL is one of the best places to catch scallops. Last season was disappointing because of a lack of scallops in the coastal waters. Visibility is a must have, in order to find and collect scallops. Emergency Regulations for In-Season Closures. Hotel occupancy was down this season but revenues remained strong because he was forced to increase prices to offset the falloff from the pandemic. 714 245 3. Most were from the drive market of such places as Sarasota, Jacksonville, Daytona Beach, Orlando and Tampa, he said. Homosassa River: Scallop Season! 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