Beginning in July 2020, I became a regular contributor to Wisconsin Outdoor News (WON) in "From The Little Cabin In The Woods" column.
This article was published in the WON Sept 3, 2021 issue. It is the first in a three-part series I wrote on our trip to Key West.
Karen Hough double checks a Florida Keys lobster against the size limit.
Originally, only Shannon and I planned to go lobster hunting in Key West. Dan was headed to Canada and Stan decided he would stay home and supervise Major. When the Canadian border did not open in time for the Honl cousins’ fishing trip, Dan decided to join Shannon and me for “Lobster Fest.”
In theory, this sounded like a fantastic idea. You drift around in warm tropical waters, collect a few lobsters, enjoy Tutti Frutti drinks poolside, and head out in the evening to some great little eating spot where they serve you your own lobsters and fabulous side dishes. Right?
Shannon’s friends, Jen Snyder and Clint Hough live in Miami. They have a boat. Lobster Fest is an annual friends and family outing for them. We were invited to join them. The Mini Lobster Season, as it is referred to in Florida happens each year over two days, the last Wednesday and Thursday in July. This is a statewide event as tradition-laden and as widely participated in as the opening weekend of Holy Week (the gun deer season) in Wisconsin. This two-day event gives recreational lobster harvesters a chance to go out ahead of the eight-month commercial season.
Clint and his Boston Whaler.
I drove to Chicago. Shannon, Dan, and I flew out of O’Hare on Tuesday morning. Shannon and I on Delta, and Dan on American. With Dan, being a late add to the travel roster, this is just how it worked out. Dan got bumped to First Class on an earlier flight and Shannon and I got delayed in Atlanta, so when we arrived at the Key West airport, Dan was waiting with the rental car. He had already checked me into my lovely poolside room at the Perry Hotel and had stocked the mini fridge with my favorite flavors of yogurt, bottled water and two kinds of dark chocolate. What a guy!
We met the Hough family and their friend, Jim, for dinner at Matt’s, the on-site restaurant. The hotel is adjacent to a marina, where Clint docked his boat for the week. Shannon and Dan had done this trip two years previously. I had met Clint and Jen when they visited us while we were in Captiva one year. Everyone else and everything else was new to me. Mostly, I enjoyed the great food, a nice glass of wine and let the group conversation swirl around me. Honestly, it was like dropping into someone’s deer camp on the night before season. There were a lot of “remember when” stories. There were also the “I wonder how it will go tomorrow” speculations.
Those of you who have been reading my stories have figured out that I am apprehensive about new situations. I am all for signing up, then I start worrying. I do try to prepare. In this case, the preparations began a few weeks earlier when Shannon came to spend a week. We made several trips to Divepoint Adventure Center in Stevens Point for equipment. Shannon needed a new dive mask, and I needed a new snorkel. We both needed fins. Some of this we figured out while field testing our equipment at the pool at the Stevens Point Country Club. I have a pool membership there for the purpose of swimming early morning laps for exercise. Once we got our gear organized, I used several of my lap swim times to practice snorkeling and free diving. I conquered the snorkeling. The free diving…not so much. Before I even left home, I had resigned myself to the fact that I probably could not successfully catch a lobster. I planned to just go and enjoy the experience. Maybe, I could help others find the “bugs” as they call them.
So, how do the folks who do catch lobsters accomplish this? I think our experience was typical. We loaded into Clint’s Boston Whaler at 6:15 and organized the gear. The sunrise over the marina glowed orange and magenta through the palms, reflecting off scattered gray clouds. As hundreds of boats reached open water, the race was on. It was like the biggest bass tournament you can imagine with everyone racing to get to their special lobster honey hole. When we finally reached Clint’s favorite spot, the sun was up. There were boats lined up along the shallow lobster grounds as far as you could see. There were all kinds of watercraft…yachts to rubber rafts. Clint went in the water first to scout a good location for the rest of the hunters. His dad, John, took the helm. It only took a few minutes for Clint to come back to the boat, spiny lobster in hand. His mom, Karen, double checked to be sure the lobster was legal, before she dropped it into a cooler. There is a minimum size. Divers are required to carry a measuring tool that they use to measure the carapace of the lobster. Double checking size when you boat the lobster is recommended. Females with eggs are off limits as well. These are measures that help to insure a sustainable harvest.
Heading out of the harbor at O' Dark thirty
Christine and Dan enjoy a gorgeous Key West sunrise on the way out of the harbor.
Dan prepares to dive in and brings home a lobsteer
With the first lobster in the boat, Dan, Jim, and Clint’s brother, Avery, dropped into the water. One by one, they began to bring in the wriggling quarry. When I finally got my courage up, I put on my gear. John gave me some instructions for getting off the back of the boat and safely into the water. No sooner did I get my face down, but Avery caught one right under me. I got to watch as he snagged a lobster from under a rock. There are many techniques, ranging from grabbing them bare-handed (shudder) to using a “tickle stick” to prod them out of hiding and into a net. They are fast. If the one Avery caught is any example, they are strong and do not come willingly.
When boat traffic became too congested, with some boaters displaying unsafe behavior, we moved to a new area. Dan found a great lobster spot and encouraged me to get back in the water. On my second dive, with Dan’s help, I spotted a lobster. It’s long antennae, protruded from under a rock. There were three lobsters under that rock. Clint and Dan bagged them, but one was too small, so they released it.
Dan learns now to clean the lobsters.
I love boats and water. It was a lovely day to be out. I had the pleasure of experiencing a natural-resource-based recreation that I had not participated in before. Even though, I did not actually catch a lobster, I got to taste the bounty of the sea that night at dinner. We took our catch to Hurricane Hole, where the staff served us our spiny lobster tails grilled. As we savored this delicacy, I sipped a cold Pinot Grigio and enjoyed listening to the lobster crew share their adventures of the day. It was a lot like the end of the first day at deer camp.
Delicious meal of lobster caught by the Tail Chaser crew off of Clint's boat. Prepared by the staff at the Hurricane Hole.
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