Ft Lauderdale

[ScubaPiney]

Hey going to be down it the Ft. Lauderdale area this weekend and trying to get wet. I`ll be down from NJ and will be the first time in the area. I will have acess to a 23 ft center console If anyone could give me a heads up where to go any rules and regs I should know about ( besides the bascis of course Knowing size, species, whats in season and not, having a fishing lic.) and how the water and conditions have been down there I would greatly apprecite it.

 

[Johnoly]

If this is your first time hunting in the area, I'd recommend a local guide or DM. Most every dive shop has them. It's just that the rules and customs are so numerous and the law enforcement is not very forgiving. Water temps have been running high 60's to low 70's depending on the gulf stream.

 

[DennisS]

There are three reef lines that run parallel to shore, each about 20-30 ft deeper than the previous one, using your depthfinder you should be able to spot drop offs and ledges.

Watch out for the current. It varies from non-existent to can't swim against it, to get back to the boat. It can change while you are down.

There are fish you can't spear, fish that need to be between limits, closed seasons and a lot of other regs, definitely have a copy of the regs for reference, they're available when you get your license. They can be complicated. There was a cartoon in one of the sport fishing mags with a guy landing a fish, the caption was "Call my lawyer, I just caught a fish"