SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

This one comes in by way of Queens Crapper, who wrote the perfect blurb:

I like how the reporter and newscasters act like this is something that no one knew about and haven’t been doing for centuries…

I have a lot of nasty things to say about these people and the attitude that Southern Brooklyn is some uncharted wasteland waiting to be explored by Manhattan douchebags. But, well, the diplomatic side of me says I should keep it to myself and instead be grateful that one of our local industries got some good publicity. Let’s just hope it brings some clients down to Sheepshead Bay’s beleaguered fishermen.

Courtesy of BrooklynQ

I used to see this a lot growing up. Fish hanging, gruesome and decomposed in the summer sun, nailed to the pier’s pilings. So when BrooklynQ put it on his site, WhiteTrashBBQ, I went down to the piers to get my own photo. But no luck. They were gone. It appears the Parks Department – or some authority – asks the fishermen not to do this anymore.

But it is an age-old tradition for fisherman. Thinking maybe it had some cool story to it – a good luck charm, maybe, or warding off the evil spirits of tinier fish – I began asking around. While the truth is far less supernatural, it’s still pretty cool. Fishermen tack their catches to the pilings so customers know what they’re catching. According to one local fisherman hanging out in front of Captain Dave’s boat, Sheepshead Bay once resembled the aquatic version of the pass to Golgotha, with crucified catches on every piling of every pier.

The more you know, eh?

Oil collected in a skimming boom - Courtesy of Deepwater Horizon Response via Flickr

As oil gushes out of the ocean floor, the Gulf’s highly sought after seafood is vanishing from menus nationwide.

Here in Sheepshead Bay, Randazzo’s Restaurant is feeling the pain. According to a CBS News report, owner Paul Randazzo said the price of Gulf seafood is rising as availability disappears.

Before the spill, certain seafood was readily available. “It’s ‘how many cases do you want?’ What’re you kidding? And I’m paying two dollars over market. And now it’s not so available, it’s ‘why don’t you try this, why don’t you try that’?” he said.

…

“The longer and longer this clean-up takes? I think the higher the prices of seafood is going to get,” Randazzo said.

Louisiana, the state most hurt by the spill, makes up nearly a third of the nation’s domestic seafood supply. Staples like shrimp, blue crab and oysters have taken the largest hit, caught up in the 30 percent of the state’s coastline that has been closed to fishing since the spill.

Keep reading to find out what Louisiana fishermen are promoting as alternatives, and voice your opinion on whether Sheepshead’s fishermen should start selling catches to bolster fresh fish supplies.

Courtesy of Peak & Eat

The blogger over at Peak & Eat, a food and photography site, recently took a trip down to Sheepshead Bay.

“Yo, ho, yo, ho, a pirate’s life for me,” B sang as the Brooklyn VI slipped away from Sheepshead Bay. Surrounding me were gritty, beer-bellied, middle-aged men; some quiet veterans brought their own fishing rod and bait, while others just came with a macho attitude.

To read a Black Sea Bass’ voyage from capture to consumption – and the delicious recipe used to cook it (steamed, with beer) – head on over to Peak & Eat. If you love food and good writing, you won’t regret it.

Captain Steven Ventura of the Sea Queen VII struck back against an aspiring thief Saturday night, foiling the plans of a knife-wielding dunce.

According to the NY Post, Ventura was off the coast of Coney Island around 11:20 p.m. with 15 passengers when he noticed the sinkers from his fishing lines vanishing. When he spotted the culprit, a fight ensued in which the thief, Joseph Neuer, brandished a knife. Ventura avoided injury as he slugged the would-be robber, and passengers and crew bound him with duct tape. When they docked at the Sheepshead Bay marina, police arrested the felon and charged him with third-degree assault, menacing, harassment, and petit larceny.

From the NY Post: Continue Reading »

Many of you had your day out in our local waters celebrating Father’s day with Daddy Fisherman and are just finishing up eating your day’s catch.

Go ahead and share your story of today’s big catch, here. Even if you didn’t go fishing today or the new fishing rules limited your catch, feel free to tell us a past fish tale your father told you!

Your story doesn’t have to be quite as dramatic as six-year-old Tegan Humphrey’s. Last Sunday, she did her father proud by landing a very large halibut on board Capt. Rob Hyslip’s charter boat in Alaska. The Anchorage Daily News says that, not unlike a lot of you who went to Coney Island yesterday, she was fishing for a mermaid.

Of course, she had some help from dad and the captain’s sawed-off shotgun. The Slanch Report tells us that while she was more than willing to reel the fish in, she did not want it shot. We knew the story of a little girl reeling it all in by herself sounded a little fishy!

But, keep your comments sans-guns — because, Sheepshead Bay has seen more than its share of fishes and guns!

(Photo courtesy of Paula Frisinger & Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby via AOL Good News Network)

I love this photo from Flickr user bayrat. It looks like it’s jammed outside of time; a dark, grainy film noir view of Brooklyn’s fishing culture. Bayrat, who comes from a family of Sheepshead Bay fishermen, wrote this about the photo:

I took this picture in 1976, when my father and brother fished out of Sheepshead Bay. The background buildings are in Rockaway, the boat is 2 miles offshore, in the Ocean. The apartment buildings in the background were new construction at that time.

(Monofilament fishing line recycling collection box at Stella Maris Fishing Station; Photo by Ray Johnson)

The not-for-profit organization, Going Coastal, Inc., works to preserve urban waterfront resources by connecting people and their coastal waterways in sustainable ways.

One of the many means to the ends of “public enjoyment of coastal resources and responsible use of coastal resources” that the Going Coastal organization, in partnership with the Berkley Conservation Institute, uses is the collection and recycling of monofilament fishing line. Although, this fishing line is a necessity for making the big catch, it’s not necessary (or good) for it to be thrown into the water.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, monofilament — which lasts for up to 600 years — contributes to environmental pollution. Check this article about birds in Florida found strangled by this type of fishing line.

Monofilament line is doing damage to local wildlife in the Sheepshead Bay waters. Darren, at Bernie’s Bait and Tackle says, “I do a lot of diving and whenever I’m out in the water I see a lot of horseshoe crabs that get tied up in the fishing line and there is a lot of other marine wildlife that gets tangled. For example, there’s a type of bird that when it goes diving into the water for fish, it comes up with fishing line. But, I’ve also seen people go fishing and get caught up in it. He goes on to say that if “we could do something to help the environment, then that’s what we’ll do.”

To help reduce the damage to our natural environment, the organization has put out a call for volunteers to place and maintain collection bins where fishermen can place their used monofilament fishing lines. The collection bins are already in place at a few local fishing supply stores, a marina, and the NYC Parks Department pier station. With your help, they can be placed at every other spot where they are needed. Once or month or so, the boxes are visited by the volunteers and the fishing line is packaged and sent out for recycling in postage paid boxes.

You can spread the word about the importance of keeping this fishing line out of the waters by telling your friends to drop it off at the stations. If you or someone you know may be able to volunteer to help with this recycling effort, contact Going Coastal.

Contact information to volunteer:
Going Coastal, Inc.
Send e-mail

Stella Maris Fishing Station
Bait, Tackle & Ice
2702 Emmons Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11235
(718) 646-9754
Open Everyday
March 1 to September 30 from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m.
October to February – Call for hours
Located near the store entrance

Bernie’s Bait & Tackle
3035 Emmons Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
(718) 646-7600
Open Everyday from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Located behind the counter

Venice Marina
3939 Emmons Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11235
(718) 646-9283
(Ask the manager for the drop-off box)

NYC Parks Department Fishing Pier Station
Drop-off station located at the end of the dock
Parks Information 1-800-201-PARK

Brooklyn Based has a great article today titled, “The Naming of Sheepshead Bay“. It explains the story of the sheepshead fish, the awesomely evil-looking toothed piscis, and its history within our murky waters. John Waldman, a professor of biology at Queens College, and author of Heartbeats in the Muck, which traces the history of the New York Harbor, explains why it may have left some time in the late 1800s. But for those like me that love that ugly bastard of a fish, there may be cause to rejoice. He says that conditions for their return are forming:

From time to time, a stray sheepshead makes its way to Brooklyn and rumors fly that the species has made a comeback. Waldman doubts a comeback is imminent, but does think Sheepshead Bay could become attractive to the species in the future.

“For one thing, we are seeing oysters in a lot of places that they weren’t found in the mid century,” he said. “And the waters are warming a bit because of climate change, so we might become more inhabitable.”

Check out the full article here.

The Sea Queen VII will be launching their summer flounder (fluke) 2009 season on Friday, May 15. You can head on over to Pier 5 on Emmons Avenue (near Dooley Street).

There are new stricter regulations that limit the size and number of fish that you will be able to catch, but you can have a lot of fun escaping from the concrete jungle for a day. Just make sure to follow the rules, because there’s no way to escape the DEC.

Here is the information:
Sea Queen VII
Fluke Season Launch on Friday, May 15, 2009
Half day sail from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Sheepshead Bay Pier 5 at Emmons Avenue & Dooley Street
Captain Gerald Nappi or Captain Steve (917) 642-0265