Article by Larry Jock
New Boat Ramp Opened in Lewes
State and city officials along with U.S. Coast Guard representatives and contractors cut the ribbon on the new Division of Fish and Wildlife Lewes public boat ramp and field office located at the north end of Pilottown Road in a sheltered harbor overlooking the Lewes Canal and out into the ocean. The boat ramp and field office have been in the planning stages since 2003, with design and construction beginning in 2005.
The handicapped accessible public boat ramp features six concrete launch lanes, three prelaunch “make ready” areas, three post-trip tie-down areas, four full floatation boarding docks and two full floatation courtesy docks, plus paved parking for more than 150 vehicles towing trailers, designated single car parking and a fully accessible, 8-foot wide boardwalk area for strolling and boat watching along the waterfront.
The new ramp’s location at the mouth of the Broadkill River at Roosevelt Inlet provides boaters with almost immediate access to the Delaware Bay, eliminating 15-20 minutes of no-wake-speed travel from the former ramp site, which was located closer to the city’s downtown commercial and historic district.
Volunteers Needed for June 13th Inland Bays Cleanup
The DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Section, along with the Enforcement Section volunteers, the Center for the Inland Bays and the Division of Parks and Recreation are seeking volunteers for the Fifth Annual Cleanup of the Inland Bays beginning at 9 a.m. and finishing up about 2 p.m., Saturday, June 13.
This year the cleanup will begin at the Massey’s Landing Public Boat Ramp at the end of Long Neck Road and concentrate on the Rehoboth Bay and Indian River Bay areas. A number of local businesses are donating money, food and equipment such as dumpsters. Volunteers who can bring shallow draft boats are also encouraged.
Volunteers should dress to get dirty and be prepared for cooler conditions on the water as well as wet walking conditions on land. Boots are also suggested. Those who have access to lifejackets should bring one, as they are required on boats. Otherwise, lifejackets will be provided. Young children should not attend.
Last year’s event drew 100 volunteers who collected a large quantity of debris, including soda bottles and cans, tires, derelict crab pots and a lot of plastic. A large construction dumpster was donated and filled by the end of the day.
“With this event, we are continuing our public outreach on behalf of the Division of Fish and Wildlife, Delaware State Parks, the Center for the Inland Bays and our Fish and Wildlife Enforcement volunteers. We hope that through activities such as the clean-up, the persons using the Inland Bays will pause long enough to make decisions that truly benefit these waterways,” said Capt. Aaron Hurd of Fish and Wildlife Enforcement.
Volunteers are encouraged to sign up in advance, as lunch and t-shirts will be provided. To volunteer or for more information, please contact Debbe Passwaters at 302-856-2656 or [email protected] or Marie Burke at 302-934-9495 or [email protected].
2009 Delaware Fishing Guide available online
The new 2009 Delaware Fishing Guide can be found on the Delaware Fish and Wildlife website at www.fw.delaware.gov/Fisheries/Documents/2009fishingguideweb.pdf.
The fishing guide includes information on Delaware fishing license requirements and the new F.I.N. number program, as well as sections on tidal sport fishing, freshwater fishing, newly enacted fishing regulations and general angler’s information. Other topics include trout stocking, fish consumption advisories, invasive species and Delaware’s artificial reef program.
The tackle-box sized printed version of the 2009 Delaware Fishing Guide will be available at more than 125 fishing license dealers throughout the state, including many hardware stores, sporting goods stores and bait and tackle shops. Anglers will also be able to pick one up along with their fishing license and trout stamp, at the Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife’s main office in the Richardson & Robbins Building, 89 Kings Highway, Dover.
44 More Subway Cars Sunk at Redbird Reef
On April 24th, the DNREC Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Artificial Reef Program oversaw the sinking of another 44 New York City subway cars at Delaware’s largest and most popular artificial reef, Redbird Reef.
Each stainless steel subway car is 60 feet long. One barge carried all 44 cars stacked two-high from New Jersey, and a large excavator with forklift-like tongs lifted each 18-ton car and set it overboard.
The addition of 44 subway cars brings the total number of sunken subway cars on Redbird Reef to 934. Although the artificial reef was created in 1997, the first subway car sinking at the reef occurred in August of 2001, when 27 cars were sunk.
Redbird Reef is now more than 1.3 square nautical miles of ocean bottom located 16 nautical miles off the coast of the Indian River Inlet. Since the reef was first created, a variety of materials have been deployed at the site including 890 subway cars, 11 large vessels, including decom-missioned barges, commercial vessels and tugboats, 86 armored military vehicles and 6,000 tons of ballasted truck tire units. The reef now supports more than 13,000 angler visits per year, up from fewer than 300 in 1997.
Delaware has 14 permitted artificial reef sites in the Delaware Bay and coastal waters, with five of these sites located in federal (ocean) waters. Development of the sites began in 1995 as part of a comprehensive fisheries management effort by the Division of Fish and Wildlife’s Delaware Reef Program.
