Gordon and I pre-fished Bull and Turtle Bays a day prior to one of my March charters. The wind was 15 and gusty out of the NE. We found most of the fish holding in deeper water but once we found them the snook, sea trout, jacks and ladyfish were very willing to bite our lures. There's some pretty cool underwater video included in this one. Enjoy!
Florida Fishing Charters
~ providing quality outdoors experiences for more than 20 years~
Charlotte Harbor is 100 miles south of Tampa and 30 miles north of Fort Myers and includes the areas of Boca Grande, Pine Island, Gasparilla Island, Placida, Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda. “A tranquil getaway on Florida’s Southwest Gulf Coast and a premier charter fishing destination”.
Charlotte Harbor redfish, snook and sea trout fishing is among the very best in Southwest Florida.
Spring tarpon fishing along the beachfronts is known as the best in the world.
Other sport fish species available; sheepshead, Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, bluefish, cobia, bonito, snapper, grouper and flounder. mangroves, grass flats, canals, beachfronts, passes, and artificial reefs. The fishing and exploring possibilities are endless.
This twenty five mile long, five mile wide Harbor lends itself perfectly to guided light tackle and fly fishing. Sight fishing is exciting along the flats and mangroves of the East Side, Bull Bay, Placida and Gulf Beaches. Blind casting the grass flats of the West Wall, Cape Haze and Turtle Bay is very productive. On windy days the Peace River, Myakka River and endless canals provide shelter and consistent action. There are over ten area boat ramps that make for short runs to productive fishing
In support of Orvis' commitment to restoring the everglades and Florida's southern rivers I am donating a portion of each 2017 charter fee to the Everglades Trust. I applaud Orvis for becoming involed in this important cause. I became an Orvis Endorsed Guide over 20 years ago because of the Company's commitment to conservation. Those of us who make our livelihood from natural resources should give back to them. - Capt. Dave Pecci
The Orvis Company is partnering with anglers to help the Everglades Foundation save America's iconic wetland. Orvis will match every donation dollar for dollar up to $45,000 for a total contribution of $90,000.
To help, send your check to: The Everglades Foundation c/o The Orvis Company 178 Conservation Way Sunderland, VT 05250, or donate online.
I challenge all of you to donate to this extremely important cause.
First, Join Orvis in the Fight to Save America's Iconic Wetland by signing the #NowOrNeverglades Petition Today!
Second donate to the Everglades Foundation and Orvis will match your donation dollar for dollar.
John Albin and Jim McCadie joined me for a few days of fly fishing. We fished Matlacha, Pine Island Sound and the Cape Haze Peninsula. Water temps and water clarity provided some excellent sight fishing opportunities.
Dry conditions continue. Water levels in the Harbor are low. Water Temps are in the mid-seventies. Water clarity is very good...
Tom and Joe caught four species of fish on their 4 hour charter in Bull Bay and Turtle Bay this week. We had to adjust our tactics, but it paid off...
Conditions: Late morning low tides, hot and sunny. The dry conditions continue. Water temps will rise into the mid to upper 70s this week. Bait the fish are feeding on: Shrimp, crabs, pinfish, some glass minnows and sardines. Not much whitebait (threadfin Herring and scaled sardines) around.
7 day outlook: The coming week will more like April than the start of March
02-27-17 Fishing Report Capt. Dave Pecci
Target species right now: Redfish, Sea Trout, Snook, Ladyfish, Jack Crevalle, Spanish Mackerel, Cobia and Bluefish. Fishing tactics....
Tim ans Lizzy catching several different species during their two day adventure on Boca Grande.
Conditions: I fished the East Wall, Matlacha Pass, Gasparilla Sound, Bull Bay and Turtle Bay last week. The water clarity was very good throughout the Harbor and it should be the same this week. There's a red tide bloom along the beaches from Boca Grande to Manasota Key but it hasn't entered the sounds or bays...
Water temps are now in the mid-low 70s. Salinity remains high due to the lack of rain. Fishing conditions are excellent.
Capt. Dave Pecci - Obsession Sportfishing
Conditions: We continue to have very good water clarity and quality due to the dry conditions throughout Charlotte Harbor. Water temps are in the low 70s. Average tides this week will provide for good flats fishing. The bite in Matlacha as well as Bull Bay and Turtle Bay has been good. Pine Island Sound's grass flats have been producing seatrout and redfish, concentrate on the deeper portions of the flats. The Keys along the East Wall of the Harbor are holding redfish of varying sizes and a few snook. If you're looking for trout in that area they'll be on the outside of the bar in deeper water.
The mid-day ebb tides will move the fish off the flats. Work the holes and edges until the water level increases.
02-13-17 Obsession Charters Fishing Report
I'll be doing a seminar at the Florida Sportsman Expo in Ft. Myers on sight fishing tips and tactics this Sunday. The Seminar covers ways to catch more snook and redfish on both spin and fly fishing gear. I'll share some of the things I've learned while fishing on Charlotte Harbor the past 8 years like reading the fish's movements, finding productive water dealing with weather changes and more.
My Seminar is at 1pm on Sunday. It's full of cool pictures and videos of fishing action from Matlacha, Pine Island sound, Charlotte Harbor's East and West Walls, Bull Bay, Turtle Bay and more. More info on the Expo including other seminars.
Conditions: Water clarity is good. The water level is very low due to the winter tides. As long as water temps are in the mid-60s or above the fishing will be very good. Lots of snook around. The redfish have been a bit elusive (for me anyway). The fish have been moving back onto the flats with the incoming tide. Work the oysters and holes at low tide.
Bait the fish are feeding on: Shrimp, Crabs, Pinfish, some Threadfin Herring.
Lots of snook around. The fish have been moving back onto the flats with the incoming tide. Work the oysters and holes at low tide.
Fishing Report February 1, 2017
Jerry Jamison from Bath, Maine hooks and brings this nice tarpon boat-side using spin fishing gear and a live crab. Great Job Jerry!
The tarpon have returned to the beaches of Boca Grande, Captiva and Sanibel Islands after last week's back to back cold fonts pushed them offshore.
Last week's back to back cold fronts are behind us. The tarpon have returned to the beaches of Boca Grande and Captiva. Jerry did a great job hooking and getting his 75 pound tarpon to the boat on a live crab. Click read more for additional pictures. Video coming soon.
We saw this redfish rush the fly and eat in 12" of water. Paul caught it on a 9wt. Orvis Helios H2 rod and one of my whitebait flies.
Doug Bates from New Hampshire joined me for some snook sight casting in Bull and Turtle Bay in Charlotte Harbor. Water temps in the low 80's made the snook a bit sulky but we persevered. Caught em on Doug's 8wt TFO rod and one of his white and black deceivers.
Charlotte Harbor is Florida’s second largest estuary encompassing 270 square miles. Over 80% of its shoreline is preserved land. There are more than 15 boat ramps and many kayak access point on the Harbor providing easy access to great fishing.
May light tackle and fly action: May is all about tarpon. The spawning migration has started and there have a few tarpon being caught in the Sounds, Passes and along beaches the past two weeks. By mid-month the fishing will be in high gear. The back country waters are in the low to mid 80s so the best fishing will be early and late in the day. Mid-day will provide lots of lookers and refusals unless you’re pitching bait. The large snook are moving their way to the beaches and the sounds.
Conditions: We are settling into our early summer weather patterns with offshore winds early switching to sea breezes in the afternoons. Water temps will be in the low to mid 80s. April was very dry so the salinity in the lower harbor and the sounds are average or slightly above. The upper harbor fishing has slowed somewhat do the warm weather and lack of rain. Greatly reduced Lake Okeechobee discharges into the Caloosahatchee River has improved the water quality in lower Pine Island Sound.
Bait the fish are feeding on: shrimp, crabs, pinfish, ladyfish. Some whitebait in Matlacha Pass, upper Pine Island Sound, Gasparilla sound and on Bokeelia Shoals. There’s lots of threadfins and greeenbacks on the beaches.
May Fishing Tactics: The back country; with the warm and dry conditions fishing becomes an early morning game. Go early fish the moving water near the mangroves until the sun gets up. As soon as it gets bright shift you attention to deeper cuts between islands and keys and the depressions in the mangrove creek mouths. The deeper edges of grass flats will hold sea trout throughout May.
My April Fly Fishing Tip: Many of my clients want to fly fishing for tarpon in May. I carry two set ups on the boat for them. A floating line with a suspending fly for the fish coming over the shallow bars and a sink tip line with a weighted fly for when the fish are laid up or doing daisy chains in deeper water. prespawn tarpon can be finicky, the fly placement is key. Many times they will only move a few inches to eat.
My April Light Tackle Tip: Don’t get in a rut using a particular tarpon bait. Crabs are wonderful bait but if you are getting refused show them something else. Pinfish, whitebait, cut ladyfish, sail cat tails, even shrimp can turn on the finickiest tarpon.
Species to fish for this month: Tarpon, Snook Redfish, Spotted Seatrout.
Many customers ask me if I guide for tarpon in Boca Grande Pass, I politely answer “no”. Then I go on to explain that I fish the miles and miles of beaches and, in the Sounds on both sides of Boca Pass but I do not participate in the fishery that takes place in the Pass. These two photos sum up the difference between what I do and what goes on in the Pass from mid-April through the end of June. I’ll take light tackle and fly fishing the 20 miles of beaches, Gasparilla Sound and Pine Island Sound over the parking lot that is the Pass thank you very much. Now, if you are interested in catching tarpon in the Pass I can give you some names of captains to contact.
save the tarpon photo of Boca Grande Pass
A day on the Beach - Capt. Dave Pecci photo
Yes, they are here. More showing up every day. Time to book your tarpon charter. Call me for available dates.
Written by: Phil Monahan - The Orvis Company
Photo Via Orvis.com
This week, we visit with Capt. Dave Pecci about early spring fishing in the Charlotte Harbor area of Florida. We also talk about the current water-quality issue in Florida. You may all be sick of hearing about it, but other than climate change, the Everglades issue is one of the most serious and immediate threats to both our freshwater and saltwater ecosystems. But don’t worry, we also talk about catching redfish, speckled trout, and snook.
In The Fly Box, we cover a broad range of topics, from the Eastern green drake hatch, to small-stream steelhead tactics, to the advantages of fiberglass rods.
If you don’t see the “Play” button above, click here to listen.
