Hi, everyone and welcome to sunny southwest Florida. I’m Mel the Guide at Gulf Coast Kayak in a little town called Matlacha. I would first like to thank all the readers and kayakers who have been out with us throughout the summer. As you well know it was a hot one. We did get out early and beat the heat and saw a lot of birds, dolphin, turtles, stingrays, and a lot of jumping mullet. The fishing was good even with us having a ban on Snook. We saw some nice Reds, Trout, and Snapper caught.

Now that the extreme heat has left us it’s time to get on the water full time and do some major kayaking. I ride a motorcycle to work every day, about 30 miles there and 30 back, and the mornings have been nice and crisp. The trip home in the afternoon is really nice as it starts to warm up by midday.

Hi, all. Welcome back to the adventures at Gulf Coast Kayak in Pine Island and Matlacha, FL.

First I would like to say thanks to the many readers and their well wishes on my shoulder operation. A few months ago I found out that I had a torn rotor cuff in my shoulder. I don’t know if I got it from all the paddling I have done in the past years, or just plain old age.

Either way I had a good doctor and he went in with two probes: one a camera and the other a rod that he could sew me back up. They go in and put two screws in the bone, then grab the tendon and pull it to the bone, then wrap some line around it and secure it to the bone. Sounds easy enough!!!  Well, the operation was a piece of cake. It was the recovery time and rehab that was a bummer. But, that all said, it’s all behind me now.

YES, it’s HOT, HOT, HOT. The weatherman says that there have been more heat index records broken this year than any other year in recorded history. At the time of writing this column I heard the weatherman state that Texas has had temps over 100 degrees for the past 50 days in a row. That’s some heat. We here in southwest Florida have not been too far behind. At Gulf Coast Kayak we made our starting time for tours earlier and later than our normal launch times. We did more sunset and moonlight tours than we have in the past. All of which were a lot of fun, and we beat the heat. Some of us don’t care about the heat and just take a dip in the water to try to cool off. However, this time of the year the water temperature is like a warm bath. Not too much cooling off here. The elderly and very young have to watch out in this kind of heat. Folks who work outside are very prone to dehydration.

We are back from the Jersey Shore; we spent the holidays with my daughter and son-in-law, and our two lovely grand daughters. Cassie, 17, is the captain of the cheerleaders; Brielle, 14, is a freshman on the JV basketball team in Point Pleasant. My wife and I love going to the games to see Cassie cheer and Brielle play. It’s always so nice to visit the family. However, this year we also had a bunch of SNOW—the largest snow storm in recorded history. We stayed for about three and a half weeks. And had four snowstorms. My wife loves this and to me it only reminds me why I live in the great state of Florida.

Now, let’s get back to paddling, here in paradise. Often I am asked, “what’s it like to be Mel, The Guide? What a great job you have.” So, come with me through a typical day as Mel, the Guide:

Hi, guys; welcome to paradise, Matlacha, and Pine Island. Today I want pass on some info and my views on how to anchor your vessel. An anchor is a device normally made of metal used to prevent a vessel from drifting due to wind, and current.

Some of these anchors are permanent, or moorings, others are temporary. There is also the sea anchor, a bag or bucket you drag behind your boat to slow it in wind and a fast sea.

Probably the most common anchor is the fluke type. It has large metal flukes which hook on the rocks or bury themselves in a soft bottom. Also known as the Danforth, it does a pretty good job of holding most boats.

There also is the CQR (Clyde Quick Release)/plough, which looks like a plough that a farmer uses to till his field. Another anchor used today for large commercial ships and fixed stations, such as oil rigs, is the Bruce/claw.

Most of the anchors we mentioned so far won’t work too well if you are in a kayak or canoe. Because of the limited space in the kayak you don’t want anything that has sharp points or edges. So, what are your options?????

Wow, what a month February was!!  I don’t know where to begin. Now that everything is final, I want to share with you a new venture that I, Calusa John, Calusa Ghost Tours, and Jory Pearson of Florida Paddlesports are embarking on as a team.

We won a county bid for Bowditch Point Regional Park on the north end of Ft Myers Beach. This beautiful 17-acre park wraps around the entire north tip of the beach with deep-water docking, full beach access, and facilities that will house our kayak and tackle outfitters on one side of the building, and introduce the “Cast Iron Cafe”, a concession specializing in Florida cooking with a coastal ambiance.

Wow, it was cold last month. I usually try to predict what the season is going to do, but this one is tricky. It looks like we are going to be back and forth with the temperatures. I didn’t even put the boat in the water since the last article.

The weather should be moderating now that we have blown through the solstice and the days are getting longer. The water should follow suit and keep getting warmer. I know I am going to eat my words in a month. Regardless, get out there and do some fishing or boating in between the fronts. It appears this season’s El Nino is really working on the Northern states. I’m sure you saw the report that every state in the continental U.S, except Florida, had snow on the ground. Crazy!!