It’s that time of year: nets and gauges are taken out of storage, mouths water in anticipation, and bug fever strikes Florida with a vengeance.

In Greater Fort Lauderdale, mini lobster season is not merely a chance to catch the spiny lobsters Floridian waters are known for — it is cause for celebration. BugFest By The Sea, a weeklong festival designed to highlight recreational lobstering and South Florida dive culture, presents a unique chance to experience mini season like never before.

Held in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea (LBTS), a charming city with a small-town vibe just north of Fort Lauderdale, the event boasts free diving and lobstering workshops and seminars; beach, pier and reef clean-ups; snorkeling trips; and, of course, lobster competitions.

When I was offered the chance to make the trip, I envisioned piles of buttery, broiled lobster tails dancing their way onto my plate after an exciting day of diving beneath emerald green waters.

I was eager to experience Florida’s “Gold Coast” diving for myself and perhaps be fortunate enough to bag a bug while I was at it.

Lauderdale-By-The-Sea is no ordinary town; named the Shore Dive Capital of South Florida in 1997 by the Broward County Commission, the diving lives up to its namesake: Most, if not all, of the coral-reef systems and artificial reefs are within swimming distance of its beaches. Some sites are even a mere 100 yards away!

The proximity and accessibility of diving in LBTS and its surrounding towns have created a dive culture unlike any other — the local diving community is just as active as those who come to see the colorful reefs and historic wrecks of the Atlantic.

The first day of diving dawned bright and sunny. After we munched our delicious breakfast in the quaint, yet luxurious Sea Lord Hotel & Suites, we grabbed our gear, loaded up the van, and made our way to South Florida Diving Headquarters, located on the signature Intracoastal Waterways Fort Lauderdale is famous for.

The seas were calm as we headed out on the spacious, 45-foot power cat Aqua View, one of two power catamarans and a smaller 34-foot dive boat that complete South Florida Diving’s fleet.

This was no run-of-the-mill dive trip — we were in the presence of a local legend. Jim “Chiefy” Mathie, a veteran lobster slayer with more than 25 years of experience, author of two lobster books, and owner of his own company — aptly named Chiefy, LLC — accompanied us on our morning dives. And who better to ask about the local diving and lobster scene that the expert himself?

Today was the start of the short two-day window to hunt spiny lobster, and everyone on the boat was eager to catch these elusive bugs.

When asked about our destination, Mathie revealed: “Where we’re going to dive is not very pretty … if you want to catch lobster, you’ve got to go where not a lot of people go. And we want to catch lobster.”

Yes, we sure did.

Soon, I was submerged beneath the warm blue water of the Atlantic, following Mathie as he expertly wove in and around soft coral formations, peering under ledges and hoping to see the telltale sign of a lobster: their long antennae peeking out from beneath a ledge or crevice.

A gentle current pushed us along, making finning almost unnecessary. Schools of grunts hovered around the colorful coral heads, and an occasional rainbow parrotfish swam toward me, beak open, seemingly curious as to why this huge, bubble-blowing creature was in its habitat.

I slowed, checking out the reef’s macro life — was that an antennae I saw?

False alarm. It was only a peppermint cleaning shrimp perched in its hiding place, hoping to attract more marine customers.

A flurry of movement up ahead caught my attention; Mathie had spotted a lobster, it was of legal size, and it wasn’t carrying eggs. The game was on!

Mathie used his tickler to provoke the lobster into scurrying out into the open from its hiding place under the coral ledge, while placing his net directly in its path. My eyes widened, however, when I saw how fast the lobster propelled itself across the sea floor — suddenly, it was to my right, antennae desperately waving, rust-colored tail tucked under its body.

I now understand why lobstering is a sport — catching these elusive creatures isn’t easy. It requires good instincts, quick reflexes and experience.

As the divers on the boat came up, triumphantly clutching their catch bags, filled with legal-sized lobstern — they celebrated, for they would be eating well tonight. (And so would we.)

BugFest is unique because it focuses on the post-hunting activities in addition to the actual lobstering process. A key part of the week’s festivities was the Spiny Lobster Chef Cookoff on July 31, in which six teams compete to win the BugFest Master Chef Plaque. The event is free and open to the public, so be sure to head on over to the competition located in LBTS’s picturesque town square.

Not only are local dive shops and businesses recognized, the audience gets free samples of the meals the chefs prepare: I tasted lobster prepared in six different recipes, each as delicious as the last.

After sunset, the BugFest Awards Ceremony took place, and the Great Florida Bug Hunt winners were announced. Official weigh-in stations are located in Pompano Beach, El Pardo Park and LBTS. For each lobster entered in the contest, divers received a raffle ticket for the $15,000 in cash and prizes. Boat-diving categories include Biggest Bug Caught Off a Boat (private or commercial) and Biggest Bug Caught off of Dixie Divers and South Florida Dive Headquarter’s fleet. Beach-diving categories include Biggest Bug Caught on different dives, as well as total weight for both days of mini season.

The contest also has three wacky, non-traditional categories like Bug Babe: the Prettiest Lobster Caught By A Woman Diver ($100 prize), the Dive Store Buddy Team (which earns the winner acase of beer and a cheesy trophy) and the Funniest Lobster Selfie (where the winner received a free DIVE LBTS T-shirt and $150 silver-lobster pendant donated by Reef Safe, the official sun care product for BugFest-By-The-Sea 2014).

Wrap up the week of fun and diving with some good food at 101 Ocean, visible from Lauderdale-By-The-Sea’s pristine beaches, 50 yards from the fishing pier and only a short walking distance from the hart of LBTS and the Sea Lord Hotel & Suites. A huge outdoor bar lets you enjoy the balmy sea breeze while eating, or dine inside with a beautiful waterfall and fish tank as your backdrop. Try the Jumping Shrimp or the Calamari for an appetizer, and capitalize on the fresh seafood with their fish and chips, fresh blue point coldwater oysters, or the fresh salmon. Round out the meal with their white-chocolate bread pudding — a dessert that’s as fantastic as it sounds.

As the week drew to an end, and I checked out of the Sea Lord, I took one last glance at the foaming ocean. I would be back next year, ready to take on some lobster of my own. Thank you, Lauderdale-By-the-Sea, for hosting such a unique and exciting take on mini lobster season.