Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Entertainment, News, Sports & Outdoors.
The Englewood Sailing Association is offering three summer camps for kids ages 8 to 17 for the summer of 2024. Each camp is one week, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Friday at the Sailing Center at Indian Mound Park. Students will learn to sail small boats in the beautiful Lemon Bay. On Friday, students […]
Written by Garland Pollard on . Posted in Breaking News, News, Sports & Outdoors.
Caterpillars earlier this month denuded many of the leaves of the historic banyan trees on Banyan Street, thought it appears that the trees are beginning to recover as of this week. Visitor Colleen Flynn noticed the issue on a recent visit and contacted the Boca Beacon. “We were last here for a couple of weeks […]
Written by Anna Ridilla on . Posted in Breaking News.
Heading to Alabama; left island Wednesday The surprise visit of one of the last two remaining Navy PT boats to Gasparilla Island caused a stir on its visit this week. A Facebook post called the ship a “bad boy as it floated by the house.” “What an incredible sighting tonight as I was sipping champagne […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in Featured News, News, Sports & Outdoors.
Locals have alerted the Boca Beacon to a number of possibly derelict boats off of Gasparilla Island. In recent weeks, at the north end in Charlotte County, there have been two abandoned boats, and even a motor yacht taking on water. At the north end of the island, near the fishing pier, is a New […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.
The state of Florida has a robust program for derelict boats. During recent hurricanes, there were hundreds of boats in area waters, many abandoned. There were some, including a sailboat on the beach near 7th Street, that became lodged in the sand, and were difficult to remove. Bradley Johnson, Public Information Officer for Florida Fish […]
Written by Guest Columnist on . Posted in Columns, Opinion, Sports & Outdoors.
BY CAPT. SANDY MELVIN Tarpon season continues in full swing. There are thousands of tarpon around right now and you can catch one just about any way you want. The traditional pass fishing has been on fire, but also those fishing the beaches and the harbor, both with spinning tackle and fly fishing are catching […]
Written by Delores Savas on . Posted in Columns, Opinion, Sports & Outdoors.
“As crude a weapon as the cave man’s club, the chemical barrage has been hurled against the fabric of life – a fabric on the one hand delicate and destructible, on the other miraculously tough and resilient, and capable of striking back in unexpected ways. These extraordinary capacities of life have been ignored by the […]
Written by VAN HUBBARD on . Posted in Columns, Community, Opinion, Sports & Outdoors.
BY CAPT. VAN HUBBARD Editor’s Note: Van Hubbard’s column Hook, Line and Sinker appeared in the Beacon beginning in 1988. We are delighted to welcome him back. I’m returning to the Boca Beacon because I realize how important Boca Grande is to my career and life. I first traveled to Boca Grande because it offered […]
Written by Staff Report on . Posted in News, Sports & Outdoors.
The 2024 sea turtle nesting season for Gasparilla Island runs through October 31. Here are some sea turtle season “Do’s and Don’ts” provided by the Florida Park Service. Pets are not permitted on State Park beaches. Sea turtles do not know the difference between a domestic animal and a wild animal. They may perceive a […]
Written by Sheila Evans on . Posted in Community, News.
Running for a local office on Gasparilla Island is sometimes more complicated than one might expect. Because there are two counties on the island, if an elected board, like the Gasparilla Island Bridge Authority, serves both Charlotte and Lee County residents, a candidate for one of those boards must be “qualified” by the Florida Division […]