This news report from CNN could mean a whole new world is opening up for boaters and anglers.

I’ve been dying to go back since I went, legally as a journalist, to cover the 50th Anniversary of the Hemingway Open in 2000. I also did a little fly fishing for tarpon.

I’ll go again if anyone’s willing to send me.

We're pleased the Big Game Club is coming back.

The Bimini Big Game Club is back. We reported on this over the winter, and we are pleased to see it come to fruition. It’s been five years since we set foot on Bimini, way too long. Here are some of the pertinents from the release:

…The legendary Bimini Big Game Club has officially re-opened as a Guy Harvey Outpost Resort & Marina with reservations now being booked for the busy summer boating season.

…General Manager Chris Pollock said the venerable 51-room resort and 75-slip marina, located in the heart of the island’s cultural hub, Alice Town on North Bimini’s southern tip, is now accepting reservations.

Guests can call: 1-800-867-4764.

The 75-slip marina will handle boats to 145 feet.

…Many improvements are underway at the 75-slip marina resort, which is located on the main navigation channel in Bimini Bay, which separates North and South Bimini.  The marina can accommodate boats up to 145 linear feet. By Spring 2011, a full service fuel dock will be operational.

Guy Harvey paintings adorn the dining room walls.

…“The Guy Harvey Outpost concept is to create an eco-destination attracting both fishing and diving enthusiasts while focusing on adventure travel, sustainable tourism and marine conservation,” said Pollock. “Our plan is to work in concert with educators, scientists and other professionals to make the Outpost a diverse experience that can be enjoyed on many levels, including a working laboratory offering individuals and families one-on-one interactive opportunities to learn about marine science and nature.”

On the docks at the old Bimini Big Game Club

I considered it a crime against the boating and fishing community when the Bimini Big Game Club closed its doors a while back, crushed by the economic downturn. Founded in 1947, the Big Game Club is a legendary outpost on the first stop across the way from Florida. With that and the Compleat Angler, Hemingway’s old haunt that burned down in 2006, Bimini’s boating and fishing culture lost serious pieces of flavor and history.

The Bimini Big Game Club brings historical flavor back to Bimini.

Now, at least, the Bimini Big Game Club is coming back. It’s opening up, hopefully by May 1, under the stewardship of Guy Harvey Outpost Resorts & Clubs. The famous painter of fishing scenes and marine life, and noted conservationist, is looking to reestablish the club as an eco-tourism destination focused on fishing and diving. I, for one, hope to be one of the first back at the new bar.

The map says it all. Look at all that coastline. Look at how close it is to the Bahamas. Having grown up in Florida, I have the biased opinion that it’s the greatest state in the Union. At the very least, it’s the boating capital of the universe. Don’t believe me? Read this article pointing out how Florida boaters spend $8.5 Billion annually to pursue their passion. That’s right, billion. That’s more than the entire GDP of some sovereign nations. (Some really small sovereign nations, but the point still stands.)

There are some who forget, when lost amidst the concrete and sky scrapers, that Manhattan is an island. Cut off from New Jersey by the Hudson, Queens by the East River, and the Bronx by the Harlem River, it’s a water town. And the best place to see the bright lights of the city is by boat. But if you’re going to cruise around Manhattan you should know a few things.

–The Ferries always win. Always. From the giant orange Staten Island ferries busting out of the terminal at the southern tip, to the fast ferries that blast over to Jersey, they go when they’re ready  and it’s up to you to stay out of their way.

–Fink Means Good Bread. If you’re in the East River cruising on the Queens side and smell baking bread, that’s from the Fink Bakery in Long Island City. If you cut into Newton Creek the smell will get more intense. Thankfully it masks the toxins and raw sewage.

–Old and New Yankee Stadium are visible from the water. Head up the Harlem River and check it out. If you enter from the Hudson side you have to deal with a low swinging railroad bridge.

–The Gowanus Canal Yacht Club has nothing to do with boats. It’s a beer garden.

–There is no place to dock at the South Street Seaport. Try Chelsea Piers on the West Side and Skyports Marina on the East.

–To fuel up you have to run across the Hudson to Jersey.

–The East River and Lower Hudson can at times be rough going in small boats, thanks to all the commercial traffic throwing mongo wakes that reverbate off the seawalls.

–Man does that current rip through Hell Gate.

–There are insane people who ride PWCs around Manhattan.

–There can be excellent fishing in city waters. Where? Sorry I’m not going to hot spot them.

Kalik, Bimini Ring Toss Game, and Bahama bread add enhancement to reason.