When everything comes together, almost like the old days: Capt. Van Hubbard

Helene and Milton changed our lives and landscapes. Recovering is hard, slow and expensive. What doesn’t kill us does make us stronger. They hurt most of us profoundly but there is hope and light at the end of the tunnel.

We finally got permits and are making progress to rebuild our home and lives. The headaches of battling for building permits, finding construction help, getting money from the insurance company and trying to get new insurance have taken a toll.

We were lucky because we had the upstairs to camp in. It’s small but dry, with most conveniences. Not what we want but what we need to survive. It’s difficult to deal with all the new challenges. I just look at many of my neighbors and understand we are lucky. Several lost everything, others are in campers. I’m thankful but it’s uphill.

We are lucky because our waters escaped the red tide this time. Our waters were flushed by 2.5 feet and then 4.5 feet of saltwater tide surges. Helene flooded our upstream watersheds.

This time we were lucky. Milton didn’t dump the rains like Helene. We even suffered droughts for months afterwards. Rain came in spurts this summer. There were few evening thunderstorms like we used to get. We got some rain in heavy spurts. Much of this runs off rather than seeping into our aquifers. The rainy season is wrapping up with us in a deficit.

Our estuaries require clean fresh water to replenish our habitats and aquatic life. The life cycles start with tiny animals that require clean water, food and habitats. Our fisheries start out as tiny larvae and grow. Varied habitats support different sizes and types of critters.

Tiny tarpon thrive in stagnant brackish ponds. Most fish can’t live without dissolved oxygen, but tarpon can. As they reach about five pounds they take advantage of floods to escape downstream to creeks and rivers, beginning their journeys. Different fish take advantage of unique circumstances to grow through their life cycles. Any bottleneck in life circles can destroy everything beyond the blockage. Everything is dependent on other things below and above to grow up and reproduce. 

Maintaining balance is critical for survival. Add in the carrying capacity which explains that an area can only support so much of anything. Too much starves life, not enough it’s hard to find mates to reproduce and replenish life. Habitats are required for food and shelter from bigger critters.

My world and fishing-guide career has changed again. Between growth and disruptions I’m lost. I enjoyed the very best catching anyone could dream of. Thanks to many of you I got to experience the life of my dreams. I was able to share it with thousands of others. I did push too hard to catch fish, but we all share fish memories that can’t be duplicated now, except on special occasions.

Don’t misunderstand me, we still have world-class fish here. If and when everything comes together it’s almost like the old days. My problem is that it used to be almost every day and predictable. Now it’s a blessing when the stars line up, so please enjoy those special moments. And thanks to everyone who allowed me to live my dreams. 

Capt. Van’s column Hook, Line and Sinker began in the Boca Beacon in 1988. He lives in Placida. Email him your fish tales at captvanhubbard@gmail.com or follow him on Facebook.