This weekend was the first official weekend of Fall! Did it feel like fall where you are? Here in SWFL we are seeing a bit cooler overnight temps. Our days are still topping out in the 90's! Our first memorable cold front usually hits around thanksgiving. Until then we stay pretty toasty! This week I've had some great guests on the boat. We stayed inshore and caught a variety of fish. In the back country the bite is really heating up. Juvenile snook are everywhere and

Bait Flat Views from "Devil Fish" This week charter guests stayed hooked up to a number of species in and around Boca Grande FL. Live bait is worth the early wake up. It is abundantly along our flats before sunrise. Fishing the flats of bull and turtle bay, fish cant resist a live white bait swimming by. Shrimp haven't been lively enough to catch their attention. Live bait of choice Inshore there are redfish schooling up, snook prowling the flats and mangrove snapper tr

How do you know when its winter in Florida? Cue the WIND! Yup thats right, another windy winter for our anglers. Although, its better than snow right? Being a Cleveland Ohio native I know that all too well. All this wind, well it really creates some casting champions. If you can land your white bait under those mangroves in a 15 knot wind you are a great fisherman. We do get the occasional lower wind days throughout our winter months. Those days we try to get our gues

Many anglers have been on the search for Snook and Redfish. Never heard of them? They are a common saltwater species and a popular inshore catch in Florida waters. These fish are a tough fight on light tackle. You can increase your hook ups by appealing to their senses. Snook are an opportunistic feeder, chasing down your pinfish or lure. While redfish (red drum) feed similar to a carp, as they are in the drum family. They enjoy crustaceans ( shrimp and crab ) as well as

Father and Daughter fishing crew this week. Eric and Courtlyn set out to hook up on some BIG fish over two days while vacationing in Florida. Being "shark week" on the discovery channel was a perfect time to hook up to some toothy critters. Day one we went for Goliath Grouper first. Although they are pretty picky for their reputation for being a reef glutton. If you don't have the right bait, it can make or break your trip. Thankfully for us the reef was alive as we pul

The heat of summer is here. Temperatures in Florida soar to over 90 degrees in the afternoon's, July- August. Although water temperatures are on the rise, we know just where the fish like to hang out during our warmer months. Like any species they move and change with the seasons. Some species following their food sources and a few cooling off in deeper holes. Inshore snook are prevalent and a fun catch on live bait. Season is closed but they are an exciting catch and rele

With this windy weather anglers have been having a great time with some inshore action. Snook are prevalent across the flats. Anglers hooking more than a dozen during a recent trip. Ashley and Peter from FishDFUNK had a blast learning about and catching our local inshore species. Redfish and trout are hanging round too, they have been hiding WAY up under the bushes. Time to work on your casting skills or end up in the trees! #Inshore #Snook #redfish

Spring break is in full swing, and I've had plenty of families on the water spending time together. Most importantly hooking up to some fish. The weather ( wind and waves ) have kept me inshore most of the week. Both the fish and our guests don't seem to mind it! Everyone is hooking up to snook this week. Live bait and cut bait (pinfish, ladyfish, mullet) seem to be attracting the most snook and trout. Plenty of juvenile and in slot fish swimming around looking for a

The bite on the Gulf coast has been great this spring. The snook are loving our mild winter and warm water temperatures. Guests on charters are enjoying the bite. Dustin, from South Dakota caught his very first while fishing earlier this week. His largest being in slot at 29 inches! He decided to tag his catch instead of bringing it home for dinner. Its snook season for the gulf coast. Our Spring harvest runs from March first and closes on May 1st. Slot size is between

This week my clients fished inshore. Boca Grande, Charlotte harbor and Gasparialla sound. Mild temperatures making it a great week to be out on the water. Guests caught a variety of species on cut bait including snook. These fish are a fun catch and release on light tackle, guests catch them using penn battle II 2500 series reels. Guest Steve, also did some bow fishing this week. Cruising the flats searching for shootable species. Most common during winter months are sti

Jason spent the day on the water with a few good friends. They had a fun morning inshore fishing with live bait and artificial. Catching a few nice snook the largest being over 30 inches. Soft plastics on a weighted jig head have been getting the snook & trout to bite. Later in the day Jason hooked up to his first goliath grouper! These fish are a blast to catch on rod & reel or handline. The guys posted for a few snapshots before de-hooking and releasing their catch to

A cool front is blowing in for the weekend, overall temps are above average for this time of year. We've had a very warm holiday. This week fishing inshore charter guests caught a variety of fish. Snook, Trout & Jack Crevelle were keeping anglers hooked up all week long. Artificial baits have been getting the bite, some occasions even over a live white bait. Ive been using a paddle tail with 1/8 weighted jig. Bouncing it off the bottom or near structure, you can also mak

Kevin, Jill and Charlie joined us for two day of inshore fishing around Boca Grande/ Placida. They are interested in eventually buying a vessel of their own. Big fans of the Florida Keys they quickly fell in love with the island charm. Everyone was excited to explore the area. Especially Charlie! We took them exploring the mangrove islands and grass flats. They caught snook, flounder, trout and redfish! Dad also seemed to be a sting ray magnet, hooking up to TWO giants on

Julie and her husband Todd set out for a day of inshore fishing. Snook was the most active today, eating free lined white bait on a small circle hook. They tagged the two largest catches of the day and even RE-Captured Tofu. This is the second recapture of this snook since his original tag in April 2016. We are working with Gray Fishtag Research to get some data together on this guy and it will be on their site with in a few weeks. Julie will receive a pair of Costa Sung

Lee and his crew have been fishing with us in for a few years now. This trip we took them nearshore exploring the local wrecks outside of Boca Grande. The waters were rough but the fish didn't seem to mind. The day started off with some smaller catches. Spanish mackerel were biting anything that flashed by them, flashy spoons ans jigs caught their eye. They are toothy and are known to steal tackle, use light wire as a bite leader. The barracuda began eating every macke

Jimmy and Andrew joined us for a day of inshore fishing for snook. A saltwater species they had yet to catch. After battling a windy morning we found a quiet place to set up, by the afternoon everyone was hooking up on snook. It was great to see their excitement every time a line got picked up. They are featuring their trip on their YouTube Channels over the next few weeks! Check out their pages NoobAngler & RawrFishing. Today we were tagging ALL our snook for Grey Fish

Inshore Charlotte Harbor and Boca Grande the bigger fish have been roaming around. Plenty of in slot redfish, snook and trout prowling around our local flats. White bait is first choice, pinfish and live shrimp are tied for a close second. Artificial has been working well in the morning. Popping cork and artificial shrimp for trout. Top water lure for snook and jacks. Larger trout have been attacking small pin-fish on a float. Redfish have been picky eaters but not pa

Night fishing has been heating up along our local bridges. Winter fishing is great in Charlotte Harbor. Sheepshead have been popular this month. The bite has been heating up with the ride switch. Snook have been especially active along bridges and structure. Live bait and artificial are both great options. Contact us today for our 4 hour night fishing rates. #snook #fishing #NightFishing

All the recent rain has the inshore bite going off. Between cooling the water temperatures and creating strong freshwater runoffs, the fish are charged up. Snook are after white bait, free lined with a circle hook. Pinfish are also a great option. Float or free-line. Rodney & family spent the weekend out with us, catching snook on the flats. These snook are a blast to catch and release. Tyler hooked into a nice Jack, these fish are intense fighters especially at a larger s