Bayou Bash hosts weekend of fishing and fun
The Swivel Sisters hosted their seventh annual Bayou Bash, an inshore fishing tournament for reds, trout, and flounder last weekend, with more than 200 participants taking part.
The annual fishing tournament started out in the late 1990s, organized by brothers Mark and Clint Moore. In 2018, tournament director and president Kendra McDaniel founded the Swivel Sisters, a women’s fishing organization that focuses on connecting women to water but the group doesn’t limit themselves to just fishing.
“We do a lot of other stuff besides fish. We scuba dive, kayak, snorkel, just about anything you can do to water,” McDaniel said.
Within the same year of their organization’s founding, the Swivel Sisters began organizing what is now known as Bayou Bash which has become a staple in the fishing community.
The tournament featured a child and adult division. Contestants were allowed to fish anywhere along the Forgotten Coast but were required to weigh in at Salinas Park. A total of 209 participants competed for prizes including guaranteed cash payouts and trophies for the first place winners.
“All of our regulars were back and they were here to compete,” McDaniel said. “They want the bragging rights.”
The inshore competition offered a payout of $1,000 for the adults and $500 for the children. The mystery category offered a $500 payout for adults and $250 for children. The mystery fish for the 2025 competition was pompanos for the adult category and pinfish for the children’s category.
First place for flounder was awarded to Josh Henderson in the adult category, weighing in at 4.42 lb. and Kaylynn Henderson won first place in the children’s division, weighing in at 3.12 lb. Brayden Daily took first place for the Inshore Slam, weighing in at 13.03 lb. and Coast Davis won first prize in the children’s category, weighing in at 11.41 lb. Mary Lyle won the mystery fish category, weighing in his pompano at 2.16 lb. and Ariel King took first place in the children’s division, weighing in 0.32 lb. Lillie Gay secured her first place trophy with her record breaking redfish that had 56 spots, weighing in at 1.96 lb. Jordan Daily took home first place in the children’s category with his redfish that had 5 spots, weighing in at 3.45 lb. The first place trophy for trout went to Chuck Tharpe in the adult category, weighing in at 6.79 lb. and Camden Moore took home first place in the children’s category, weighing in at 5.07 lb.
The cut-off for weigh in was Saturday, at 6 p.m. and the winners were announced during the Sunday Funday the next day at 3 p.m. Sunday’s activities included a free mullet toss, for all ages, in addition to food offered by South Gulf Fire Rescue, beverages offered by the Swivel Sisters, and shaved ice provided by Tropical Paradise. The mullet toss offered a $200 payout for men and women each. The children received $100 each.
The Swivel Sisters host multiple tournaments each year to connect with the community and they use the funds raised to give back.
“We try to put on camps and clinics for kids and women,” McDaniel said. The organization also provides scholarships to local high school students in Gulf County.
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.