Access Problem for Palm Beach-2015 BlackTip Challenge Media

This is not good !!! The fishing spots are getting slimmer and slimmer!!! That's a great spot to fish. (Was). Is their anything we can do as fisherman???

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I am a local who has lived near the south jetty of the Lake Worth (Palm Beach) inlet since 1956. I am a fisherman. The fishermen who camped on the beach last weekend during your tournament and killed a Hammerhead then buried it are responsible for no more camping on the beach. Pretty work....... http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/news/ ... cry/nj6Fh/

I'm confused are you bosting about killing a hammerhead shark?

JP, this isn't the guy who killed and buried that hammerhead. He's a guy who lives near there and simply wanted to inform the shark fishing community about the affect of burying that shark in the sand. You can do whatever you want with this info.

JP, this isn't the guy who killed and buried that hammerhead. He's a guy who lives near there and simply wanted to inform the shark fishing community about the affect of burying that shark in the sand. You can do whatever you want with this info.

OK...It's being looked into.

Turns out the buried shark was in Jupiter.
The Hammerhead here in Palm Beach was reported to have been hacked at for chum in front of one of the neighbors.
My belief is that if a high percentage of these big Hammerheads are going to not be able to survive being caught then people shouldn't fish for them.
Town Council is going to enact ordinance prohibiting sleeping on the beach because of this incident.

I am a local who has lived near the south jetty of the Lake Worth (Palm Beach) inlet since 1956. I am a fisherman. The fishermen who camped on the beach last weekend during your tournament and killed a Hammerhead then buried it are responsible for no more camping on the beach. Pretty work....... http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/news/ ... cry/nj6Fh/

Funny how the news media and the locals often get there stories all wrong."Fishboy" why don't you read the story again -the buried shark was north of the Juno pier, which happens to be many miles north of the south side of Palm beach inlet where you supposedly live since 1956.Also for your information which you do not seem to have very accurate "The Blacktip Challenge" is not our tournament although we promote and support it; it is Josh Jorgensen's Catch,Picture,Release Shark Tournament and he works hand in hand with scientist from NOAA ,NMFS and other scientific organizations to benefit shark studies not just during the Blacktip Challenge but throughout the entire year-get your facts straight Mr "fishboy".Josh Jorgensen has worked tirelessly to educate fishermen of the importance of shark conservation and has gained a level of respect in the Local and International Press and in the scientific community because of the work he has provided through the hundreds of fishermen that tag sharks during his annual event. Hammerhead sharks will sometimes fight to the death on a line and it becomes IMPOSSIBLE to revive every single hammerhead shark that is released although we make every effort to the point of sometimes swimming with the sharks until they are strong enough to swim off on their own. I can assure you that every effort was made to resucitate the hammerhead shark that was buried on the beach as per FWC recommendations.We work hard to obey ALL the state and local laws(Fishing and Otherwise) and we all cannot be blamed for what a handful of fishermen weather they be in the tournament or not may have done. We believe that setting up a tent on any beach indicates 'Camping' and we are fishing not Camping so in the future Tournament organizesors should warn fishermen about not setting up camp sites on Public beaches where the locals may protest such as places next to over populated sea-side communities such as Palm Beach.We have to work hard to be respectful of others that have the right to also be on the beach.Our rights are not greater then others rights -we should ALL be able to enjoy a day on the beach without harrassment.

on www.Blacktipchallenge.com website in the "About" section

"The Blacktip Challenge is a catch, tag and release shark fishing tournament on Florida's East Coast. It's an exciting and beneficial combination of competitive sport fishing, adventure, entertainment, scientific research and education. Anglers that participate in the tournament are educated about proper shark tagging techniques and procedures.

The Blacktip Challenge and its anglers actively take part in an important joint-research effort with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Apex Predator Cooperative Shark Tagging Program and the International Land-Based Shark Fishing Association. This makes the angler's role as a competitor also one of an important contributor to the knowledge and understanding of these animals. Information collected by anglers is sent to NOAA and the Apex Predator Program for further analysis. Our hope is that anglers continue this practice outside of the tournament".

It's a sad, yet familiar feeling; being a Miami resident I am well aware of the processes and corruptions that money can make possible. The rich oceanfront land owners hate nothing more than seeing a bunch of shaggy beach fishermen contaminating the very air (that they think they own) around them. I miss many a good ol' spot that I once fished leisurely with no problem at all around my neighborhood. I knew it would only be a matter of time before one of the best landbased spots in Florida became nearly inaccessible. I am a part of the Shorebound Anglers Alliance and will try my best to keep our rights secured and working.

I once wrote a petition letter to a few senators and whatnot about a ban that was going on up in Pensacola. I have also left a signature for those type of petitions in places such as Texas, Del Ray, and Boynton. I do this because sometimes that one vote matters!

Thank you, Fishboy, for your input, it's good to see perspectives. I respectfully and politely disagree with some of your points. I'd like to suggest that one person saying "I saw these sharks being hacked into chum" without anyone else's testimony isn't enough to make an entire sport a bad thing. Unless the fishermen in question confess the act or some other evidence comes out, we have hearsay and I would suggest that isn't fair to anyone (the fishermen or the people of West Palm). I certainly don't point the finger at you, Fishboy. I point it at how the story was delivered to you (media).

Regarding catching hammerheads. I understand it is your belief that a majority of hammerheads would not survive a catch and release, but I'm afraid there is too much evidence against that claim. The majority of hammerhead sharks caught from land DO survive, but your claim isn't completely untrue. Scientists agree that hammerheads are more prone to death by stress than other species in the ocean. That certainly merits extra care from someone who catches one and the FWC concluded that care was given to one of these hammerhead, even though it died anyway.

Regardless of how many hammerheads live after being caught, THESE two sharks did not. I assure you that the shark fishing community feels a personal pain by that fact. It truly affects us all. But the biggest point I would like to make is that it was an accident and no people were hurt by these events. Whether or not there was a tournament, it still would have happened. Whether or not someone was sleeping on the beach, it still would have happened. I personally don't see how putting ordinances in place would change anything. People will still fish from the beach for shark because we love what we do and have the right to do so. And I hope they continue to do so from West Palm Beach. You have a great city and I always feel welcome there.

As a fellow fisherman, I respect that you came here and spoke up. Thank you again for your input.

To further clear the air, I know who disposed of the shark, the people who did it were only returning the animal back with Mother Nature due to a rookie team panicking and leaving a hammerhead that did not make it on the beach. The camping and tent part was due to very rare cold weather conditions for the BTC , but normally it's a group of 2-4 with 4 rods and some chairs, just like the pompano and mackerel surfcasters and families fun fishing / picnicking !!

Blacktip Ninja (BTN) thank you for your reasoned and kind reply. Way to win someone over. Sure sign of intelligence and leadership.
I love to fish for sharks too and I know it is impossible to exclude Hammerheads who may be harder to release than Tiger Sharks or Bulls. I just hate to see Hammerheads killed as there are so many fewer today than in the 50's and early 60's when I was a dock rat on the Palm Beach Pier, watching them shot with a carbine and hung up. It worries me to see sharks moved around by rolling them sideways, especially Hammerheads.
Again thank you BTN and William, a "supposed" leader, not to late to learn something from his approach.
Out.

"Fishboy" you have to understand that we are sick and tired of the continuous attacks on our sport and the shark fishermen in it, and if I seem hostile 'you damned right i'm hostile because it's us the minority land-based shark fishermen against the scared public & rich beach-side home owners who don't want us anywhere near there mansions. Sorry if you feel offended, but Yes I am sensitive about how the media portrays us especially when the facts are not stated correctly and people against us are quick to jump on the bandwagon.If you are truly a shark fishermen like the rest of us ,you should of been more constructive in your initial post,I also believe you sir can be of benefit to our cause if you truly care about us and the sport. Maybe i'm a dreamer to believe everyone that says they care --really does.
We stride to teach the newbie shark fishermen the best and quickest ways to release sharks, but there is a learning curve in our sport -it takes time and practice to learn the proper way to handle sharks quickly and safely. We need to make more of an effort to teach how to properly handle Hammerhead sharks in order to ensure they survive after release. In the last decade or so we have gained much knowledge and have adapted to perfect our release techniques,now we need to pass that knowledge more effectively.As tournament directors Josh and I work hard to prepare the participants in our tournaments as to the best practices for releasing sharks. As tournament directors we take on the responsibility of educating the anglers that fish our Tournaments and we make every effort so that ALL sharks are released alive and in good shape.We don't take lightly when sharks die and wash up on a beach;that is the one thing that we fight against the most .Gaining the respect of the general uninformed public and local government officials may take years ,but the seasoned anglers and shark scientist know that every attempt is being made to protect the sharks we catch ,and they also know that we have come a long way from what used to be our sport. We will continue to learn and progress in our techniques but we will always defend our dilligent efforts. We ask to be respected and understood.We will protect and save our style of fishing at all cost.

Video of Spinner on plug;

Video of Spinner on plug;

Awesome!! My favorite way to catch blacktips and spinners. Was this recent?
Thats pretty cool on the open beach, iv'e only got them on topwaters from the south jetty.

2012. I've found these sharks fight much harder when caught from a boat. It usually takes 15 minutes to catch them with 40 lbs. of measured drag from a boat, which is a stronger effort than a Blue Fin Tuna of the same size exerts. They don't fight that hard when caught from the beach. If they aren't in the right mood the plug will scare them. Other times they absolutely slam it. Catching them on bait isn't enough of a challenge for me as they eat so readily and the top water eat is spectacular.