Scalloping with the Worthington's

Of course, like many who move to Florida from a colder climate, I have a Florida "to do" list!

Now, do you think scalloping was on that list?

No.

However, since meeting Bob and Lou Worthington, I've been on a couple of fishing adventures that I never thought possible. Really! I had no idea you could catch shrimp one at a time. When Bob Worthington, I had this flashback of scenes from Forest Gump, you know, when Forest and his Captain Dan caught all that shrimp with nets on their boat Jenny. Well, since shrimping with Bob turned out to be much different than I thought, I figured . . . sure, I'll go scalloping with you too!

So, on Saturday, July 21, my husband and me hit the road around 5:30 a.m. heading north to Horseshoe Beach to meet the Worthington brother's for a day in the bay, literally.

The evening before, I "googled" Horseshoe Beach and learned that the city is in Dixie County and is about 3 and a half hours away. According to the 2000 Census, the population hovered just above 200 people and the city was only .2 square miles. It sounded quaint and I thought we would have the bay all to ourselves . . . but I was wrong.

Once we made it safe and sound, we met Bob and Lou at El Sea's Fish Camp, a spot they'd been staying at for a little more than a decade. (Talk about loyal customers!) The camp offers cabin rentals, boat storage and a private dock.

Upon our arrival, we hopped in Lou’s boat; the guys filled her up and headed out into the bay. I believe we went out about 7 miles from shore. During the drive, I could hear Lou talking to Bob and Bob talking to Lou. Bob said something about his "honey hole" and Lou said there's the "parking lot." I looked over and probably saw a total of 100 boats; parked and driving around. I guess that was the "parking lot" Lou referred to.

Well, once we "parked," Bob and Lou explained how scalloping works and gave us each a short tutorial. We were to snorkel through the bay and look for scallops on the sand or in the sea grass. Bob said that they may "shoot" away from us if we don't grab them right away. They use the motion of the shell to propel through the water. It's their defense mechanism.

Our first spot was about four feet deep and had a lot of boats nearby. In every direction I looked I saw three to four boats that were also parked and had people in the water. The boys all jumped in the water first, of course, I was last. As soon as Robert hopped in the water, he came up and said he didn't see any. I waited on the boat and asked Bob and Lou when they came up; both of them hadn't seen any either.

After I hopped in and swam around, I too had no luck. Eventually, the Worthington's decided to try a new spot. The second location was awesome and turned out to be the best spot of the day. As soon as Robert jumped in, he came up and yelled, "I got one." After a few minutes in the water, I found one. It was in the sea grass about an arm length away. I used my net and scooped it up and placed it in my bucket. Eventually, I scooped up eight total.

At one point Lou brought up a starfish and a sea urchin for us to see!

After spending some time at this spot, our hosts decided to take us to our third and final location. Although we found more overall sea creatures, we did not find any scallops. I think Bob and Lou may have found a couple but Robert and I got on the boat empty handed. We did however see a lot of starfish and colored sponges.

We called it a day following our third location and headed back. It was on this beautiful boat ride back to Horseshoe Beach that we saw the pretty pole. What is the pretty pole you ask? According to my guides, the pole is decorated with items of those who've died at sea. I guess family members and friends come out and attached personal items and things that meant something to the person that passed. We saw a chair, stuffed animals, soda can and even a toilet seat.

After returning to the dock, we unloaded and chatted a bit before heading home. That's when we heard about the ol' Worthington saying, "Catch and Fillet." They said some people catch and release, but not them. Bob also shared stories about how he and his brother would go to the end of 58th St when they were young'ns and catch scallops there. He says there aren't any near Gulfport now. In fact, he told me that it's hard to find scallops anywhere in Pinellas County. You have to drive to Pasco or further north for better results. That's why he's been coming to Horseshoe Beach for about 12 years. Every summer the Worthington brothers come up here for about 7 to 10 days and they catch plenty of scallops. Robert and I are grateful we were invited to this family tradition.

All in all, the four of us brought in about a gallon and a half of scallops. I know at least eight of them have my name on it!

I had a blast. And I guess the friends I've made in Gulfport will "push the envelope" with my "to do" list!