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HOLIDAY, Fla. — Scallop season opened in Pasco County on Thursday morning, signaling the start to the county’s longest traditional season on record.
Last year was originally set to be the longest season, but a toxin found in the water pushed FWC to put a pause on scalloping just a few days in. While the season was extended and formally closed in late September, many say it wasn’t the same. Hurricane Helene hitting the radar and fears over water quality led to a drop off in the amount of people enjoying the second half of scallop season.
On Thursday morning, a line of boats sat at the Anclote River Park boat ramp waiting to launch and head out into the river to scallop.
One of the many boats in the mouth of the river Thursday morning, was led by Capt. Brandon Csaszar with Anclote Charters.
Csaszar had a tough year last year. After getting a big hit to business with the stall on scallop season, his boat was badly damaged in Hurricane Helene. It took nearly five months to re-wire and fix his boat and get back to accepting clients once again.
“I had to call people I had booked and tell them my boat was ruined and send their deposits back,” Csaszar said.
He said when he first discovered his damaged boat, it was hard to stomach.
“Everything’s flashing…. like how am I going to make the payments this month? How am I going to pay college for the kids?” He recalled.
Now with some clients back on the books for scallop season, Csaszar is staying positive and looking forward to what should be a successful summer.
“I knew that we’d be out here. There’s a lot of people who didn’t think we could,” he said.
Csaszar said multiple spots in Pasco County are filled with scallops this year and on a nice day it will be easy to reach bag limits.
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Angie Angers
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