Sports & Outdoors
EcoWatch: July 4th is more than fireworks and hot dogs
June 27, 2024
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of hap…
SW Florida Fishing: Offshore heating up…
June 27, 2024
PHOTOS PROVIDED BY CAPT. BRAD HICKMAN
When it comes to grouper offshore, count on a few gag groupers, but also black, red and yellow-mouths to fill a cooler.
Capt. Brad Hickman can be reach a…
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: From Illinois crime lab to turtle volunteer, Arlene Hall
June 27, 2024
Her byline in the Beacon should be enough of a clue that Arlene Hall is someone worth getting to know. She is the one who has been writing about the happenings with the Boca Grande Sea Turtle Associ…
Turtle report: Nest predators appear this week, snacking on eggs
June 27, 2024
BY ARLENE HALL BGSTA SECRETARY
At long last, the first green sea turtle crawl was documented on Gasparilla Island during the week ending June 22nd! It turned out to be a nest and it occurred on…
Ban on beach fireworks
June 27, 2024
Charlotte County Parks & Natural Resources reminds beach patrons that fireworks will cause sea turtle hatchlings to disorient, leading to injury and death. Activities disruptive to marine turtle…
Surfrider Foundation asks for Fla. support
June 27, 2024
The San Clemente-California-based Surfrider Foundation’s Florida office is asking members and friends to support Florida’s House Bill 165, Sampling of Beach Waters and Public Bathing Spaces. It is o…
Major landscaping for 5th Street Boca Grande gateway
June 27, 2024
BY THE GASPARILLA ISLAND CONSSERVATION & IMPROVEMENT ASSOC.
The Gasparilla Island Conservation and Improvement Association has announced the initiation of two significant bike path improvemen…
Grouper for a quarter: Memories of early fishing
June 27, 2024
Many of us start fishing as kids, introduced by parents or grandparents. It seems to me the younger we are exposed to the outdoors the deeper it imprints. My first memories are about fishing. About…
Share the shore with nesting birds this Fourth
June 25, 2024
Although beachside fireworks shows are entertaining to people, the bursts of color and noise wreak havoc on coastal birds — especially for nesting species. After each fireworks explosion, birds pani…
Fishing is unique to each of us
June 21, 2024
Many of us start fishing as kids, introduced by parents or grandparents. It seems to me the younger we are exposed to the outdoors the deeper it imprints. My first memories are about fishing. About…