Guana WMA clean up

[dogyak]

Removing navigation hazards from Guana lake . Lots more work to do , but a good start . This is my friend Trey , he's got another clean up schedule July 9th . I'll be out of town

[saltcoastkayak]

What h.p. motor is on that boat? Isn't Guana Lake limited to 9.9 max. h.p.?

What navigation "hazards" are in Guana Lake? Removing white PVC poles with red tape on them? Looks like someone is removing navigation "markers", not navigation "hazards".

[SuaSponte]

I was thinking the same thing. Perhaps he needed some PVC for some projects.

[dogyak]

Motor is legal , it's a copperhead . They have been working with the biologist & FWC in charge of Guana , sure they aren't removing something their not supposed to be , but will asked . They also collected almost 30 bags of garbage as well I was told . I've been out of town alot since this spring

[santander]

good work on the clean up; not sure what the negativity is about. There is no channel at guana so need for navigational markers; wish they would clean out those old crab traps

[dogyak]

good work on the clean up; not sure what the negativity is about. There is no channel at guana so need for navigational markers; wish they would clean out those old crab traps

Just heard back from Trey , the PVC ones were from the old bird researched studies . Not removing the actual Nav markers . @ santander , I'll relay that back to Trey on those old crab traps sir .

[santander]

i meant "no need" for markers; the lake is pretty much the same depth though out until you get past the watchtower so i can't see any need for navigational markers. Cant wait til they start filling up so i can get back out there a few times a week; fishing always seems off for me when the water is so low

[JaxQuack]

Santander, I've removed a few dozen old traps in the past month and will continue to get any we can find until the water rises.

I guess it's only appropriate that I reply to this thread, since it's mainly about what we were doing on the lake. Dogyak summed it up pretty well though. I've been lurking here for years, getting excellent fishing reports. So I thank you all for that. Some stand up guys on the forum, who always seem eager to help other anglers

My names Trey, I've been stationed here since 2002 (lucky I know). Born and raised in southeast Louisiana, I love jax because the marsh is so similar. Avid hunter and fisherman. Guana and the ICW are my two main focus points for both fish and fowl, but I've been hitting the river with my kids here lately as that seems to be more enjoyable for them... And a bobber and a worm around the stumps is almost a guarantee.


In regards to Guana, I am a FWC volunteer on the WMA and I simply assist with any project or task they may ask. The biologist(who happens to be a good friend) asked me if I wanted to help him remove all of the old wooden and PVC poles from the lake, all of which have various reasons as to why they are there. I realize that they aren't really a "navigation hazard" to most with the naked eye, but a large number of PVC pipes actually mark old wooden poles that are just below the water line. When we were able to remove the pole, we also removed the PVC. There is still a lot to do, and while most think they are channel markers they all have very random reasons as to why they are there. I didn't move the PVC in the middle of the main channel in the northern part of the lake, simple because regardless off what they are there for, I totally agree they assist in more than they may harm

The motor is well above the HP regulation for the lake (37 hp), however, FWC runs many boats of various horsepower, including airboats on the lake for study purposes. Law enforcement was notified that there would be a large hp motor on the lake, as it was needed to pull the stumps out of the mud.

We ventured a little too far north and spent the last hours of daylight stuck on dry ground. It took roughy two hours to did out underneath the boat so that we could get going again. Fun times none the less

The goal is to clean up the lake, nothing more, nothing less. Something we can all benefit from. I know you kayak guys do your part too n many times on the lake I've seen guys come off the lake with more trash than I'm sure they went in with.

Trey

[santander]

thanks for all your doing; any ideas when the water level is coming back up?

[Kudzu]

Thanks for your work. As someone heavily involved in the maintenance of hiking trails I know it's often a thankless job. We just take for granted that the areas we like are naturally pristine.

[Chris]

Good stuff guys. Haters gonna hate.

[internetpilot]

Thanks, Trey. You're a man and a half for this, especially doing it on a volunteer basis. I've ruined more than a couple of trolling motor props on these navigational hazards, so I would definitely call them that. Everyone needs to remember that Guana is a limited motor zone, not a NMZ. Although I see a lot of kayakers out there, I think I usually see more motorboats, and those old posts can do a number on a prop. I've also snagged more than my fair share of what looked like abandoned/lost crab traps on the southern most part of the lake. If I'm in my canoe (more room) and it clearly appears to be abandoned (no marker, float, etc.), I'll usually bring it back to the launch at the dam and abandon it by the garbage can. It usually doesn't stay there longer than it takes for me to load up the canoe.

Just my opinion, but I would definitely say there's a channel in Guana Lake -- even on the northern half. You can usually clearly see it on a Google Earth satellite map (because for years the satellite image is of the lake being low), but the current scan update is of the lake being full so it's not as easily seen. But anyone who regularly fishes Guana knows about the deeper channel on the west side of the lake that pretty much goes the full length. I've never really seen any PVC pipes that clearly mark it though, at least not the whole length. I do have to admit that there have been some PVC posts that I've used for navigation for years now, but just because I've been using them for that doesn't mean that's what they were originally for or that they should still be there.

We Guana Lakers can't thank you enough, Trey! You should lurk less and post more! I think we all owe you at least several "bottomless" pitchers at upcoming JKF happy hours.

[JaxQuack]

thanks for all your doing; any ideas when the water level is coming back up?

They started letting water in on the 2nd. I was at six mile ramp last week, and water was up to the launch. I don't think it's enough to launch yet, but it's much better than before the big storm we got

[dogyak]

thanks for all your doing; any ideas when the water level is coming back up?

They started letting water in on the 2nd. I was at six mile ramp last week, and water was up to the launch. I don't think it's enough to launch yet, but it's much better than before the big storm we got

Hey Trey , I get back late friday night before the 9th . I'll be there in your boat on the 9th bro , and yes , I'm going to put the mud motor back together , lol .

[Ferg]

What h.p. motor is on that boat? Isn't Guana Lake limited to 9.9 max. h.p.?

What navigation "hazards" are in Guana Lake? Removing white PVC poles with red tape on them? Looks like someone is removing navigation "markers", not navigation "hazards".

Dude, is this crabbyyak again?