The photo shows "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca with an Ocklawaha River largemouth bass caught and released on 11 September 1990. "Ocklawahaman" started his bass fishing in Florida in 1965. The late, great Doug Hannon (The "Bass Professor") like MANY of the other famous largemouth bass fishermen and personalities moved to Florida AFTER Rodman Dam was closed across the Ocklawaha River on 30 September 1968. Did they ever see the Ocklawaha and Silver Rivers and Silver Springs before Rodman Dam's closure? https://www.bassmaster.com/news/doug-hannon-dead-66 Worth, Don. 1984. "Doug Hannon on river bassin' [sic]" article. "Bassmaster" magazine (September-October 1984, page 33-46), Montgomery, AL. Available as a hardcopy. Don Worth (1984) with and/or quoting Doug Hannon (the "Bass Professor") about river bass fishing in "Bassmaster" magazine: "We drifted on, the mysterious siren song beckoning us around the next bend, then the next, and the next. Time melted in the sleepy afternoon sun as we were carried on the current past moss-laden cypress and palms so ancient in their appearance, we wouldn't have been surprised had a brontosaurus lumbered out from behind them!" "We might have been in a time warp, so wild and prehistoric this place appeared. But it was 1984. We were floating down the Oklawaha, one of Florida's finest bass fishing rivers." "'As far as largemouth bass go, I'd say that rivers offer today's Bassmaster angling opportunities that perhaps are simply not available in lakes--even the best lakes.'" "'Rivers are magic!' said Hannon as we drifted quietly along the Oklawaha. 'There’s something satisfying about fishing where the water carries you at its own pace. The environment rolls by as you drift past. I think of fishing a river in the same sense as watching a motion picture, as compared to fishing a lake, which is more like looking at a snapshot. In a river, you’re almost overwhelmed by the power of its life and motion. It keeps calling you on; you just want to go around one more bend!'" "Hannon believes rivers have what it takes to grow not only big bass, but the biggest bass." "'For a bass to get very big, it has to live a long time--it will take a 14- to 16-year old bass to be of world record proportions. However, bass won't live long in warm water. In the North, bass have been reported that are 18 years old; of course, their limited yearly growth rate keeps them from becoming record fish.'" "'Florida's short, pure rivers--such as the Silver or Rainbow--have what it takes to produce a world record bass,' Hannon believes." "Hannon pointed out that the very best Florida bass rivers connect to more fertile waters, adding to their potential. 'The Silver connects to the Oklawaha, the Rainbow to the Withlacoochee; the bass can utilize the clear, short river for spawning and to moderate their environment and the more fertile waters for feeding.'" Serious river bass fishermen will always miss and remember the late Doug Hannon (the "Bass Professor") who passed away on 29 March 2013. -------------------------------------------------------------------- STREAM-BRED FLORIDA LARGEMOUTH BASS ARE NATIVE TO THE FREE-FLOWING OCKLAWAHA RIVER FOR OVER 1000 YEARS! GET BACK TO THE REAL-FLORIDA! THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER IS SPECIAL -- SET IT FREE! FROM ITS SUPREME SOURCE TO THE SEA! ALL SPRING-FED SWIFT-FLOWING 56 CROOKED MILES OF MAINSTREAM! FROM ITS SILVER SPRINGS SUPREME HEADWATER TO THE ST. JOHNS RIVER ESTUARY! "There are lake fishermen, and there are river fishermen, and seldom do the twain agree!" - Original author's name is unknown. "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca's Bass Fishing began in Florida more than 50 Years Ago (1965)! https://sites.google.com/site/ocklawahamanpaulnoscareports/ocklawaha-river-bass-fishing-is-special Thank you to all that have already signed this petition and desire a free-flowing "Source to the Sea" 56-mainstream-mile "Real-Florida-By-God" Ocklawaha River - Silver River - Silver Springs system! Encourage others & spouses &/or significant others to do the same! Thanks for your support! Sincerely, Paul.