Red Snapper Business Changing with the Times

The promise of pulling in red snapper onto a charter boat has kept tourists coming to this part of the gulf coast for years. but just like the tides change so is the fishing industry. "If you're going to survive you are going to have to learn to diversify," says veteran boat captain Ben Fairey.

It used to be going fishing in Orange Beach meant one fish: the red snapper. But with restrictions and the shorter season now if you want to stay in the charter business you're going to have to change the way you do business.

Workshops like this one for boat captains and deck hands help enhance that experience. "More and more of our visitors are looking for more of an educational experience and not single pursuits,"says nature tourism specialist Joanne McDonough.

"It's the new wave of charter fishing. It's not about pounds of fish you caught anymore. It's about the quality of the experience." Something Randy Boggs says he began doing 12 years ago. "We manage to entertain, we cook on the boat, we cut up and we're family safe and it's a lot of fun for everybody to come out and go fishing."

Not everyone has made the transition according to Fairey. "Still a little bit of wanting to fight what's going on and disagree with the National Marine Fisheries but I think there is also an element that understands how good it has worked."

But the days of counting on red snapper to keep your business afloat could be over. "No, there's no way with 40 days for a season, as short as it is that you can make a living purely off of red snapper."