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May Fishing around the Boca Grande area - anyone done this?


JHbowhunter

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So my annual father/son saltwater fishing trip this year is taking me to the west coast of Florida.  It was tough to not go back to Abaco but I have never tried the west coast of FL.  May will be the month, right about the time I am getting tired of shad fishing.  Got really cheap flights to Fort Myers for starters.   Has anyone fished this area before? So many disappointing Tarpon charters in the keys, when you see literally thousands of big tarpon everywhere but have yet to find a captain that can get them to feed. This area looks good.

 

After doing much more research (including individual background checks to ensure no criminals this time) - I have decided to go with these guys:

http://www.floridainshorextream.com/

I have decided to skip the "backcountry" for snook and reds, and do a "near shore" trip first.  They target snapper/grouper but generally catch kings, tripletail, goliaths, sharks, permit, bonito, and even Mahi on most trips as well.  I love those variety trips, and I figure to do that on the first full day just makes sense because the hope is to have fresh fish to grill while I stay there.   That to be followed by a day off, then an all day Tarpon trip around Boca Grand. Thanks to VRBO, found the perfect place right on the southern tip of Little Gasparilla Island, complete with our own boat dock. The charters will pick us up right there, and we will be bringing our own rods to fish off the dock and the shoreline when we are not on a charter. 

Check this place out I found on VRBO! 

https://www.vrbo.com/67924#

Look at the "location" tab - shore looks "fishy". Also can just walk directly across street and be on the Gulf side beach.

Oh and good news, the captain I originally booked with, finally responded and acknowledged my cancellation.

Nothing spooks deer more than my stank… 

16 3/4” Live Fluke Release Club

I shot a big 10pt once….

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Catching tarpon with any regularity in the Keys is the Holy Grail and unattainable for most, myself included.  Boca Grande is supposed to be slamming for tarpon, so I wish you luck.  The other trip promises to allow your captain to put you on a hot bite versus targeting just one species, and you should have a blast going after any of those species.  The VRBO house has a very nice cut from the big water to the back water, so you should also have action fishing from the beach right by your house.  

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Catching tarpon with any regularity in the Keys is the Holy Grail and unattainable for most, myself included.  Boca Grande is supposed to be slamming for tarpon, so I wish you luck.  The other trip promises to allow your captain to put you on a hot bite versus targeting just one species, and you should have a blast going after any of those species.  The VRBO house has a very nice cut from the big water to the back water, so you should also have action fishing from the beach right by your house.  

 

If that house location is killer for fishing, I suspect there will be more Jersey guys booking it in the future - I will surely report back.   Gonna bring a conventional rod with 50lb braid and some backbone, to fish some cut mullet off that dock at night. Hope for a shark or even a tarpon. 10lb and 20lb spinning for the rest.  Supposedly good grouper, snapper and sheepshead all around those docks...

 

Nothing spooks deer more than my stank… 

16 3/4” Live Fluke Release Club

I shot a big 10pt once….

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Sounds like a great trip Jack. A neighbor and friend vacations half of the year with his wife and his back yard is the Gulf Coast of Florida. He has been asking my son and I to take a trip to fish for the past few years on his boat, but something always get in the way. (money  :rofl: )

 

Any idea what a round trip flight for 2 would cost in March, and what airline did you get flights from?

Edited by LPJR
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Fished the Boca grande pass about ten years ago for tarpon. It was packed with boats. craziest thing i every saw. You needed a very good captain because once someone hooked up half the challenge was navigating the boat and tarpon away from all the other boats. I saw a lot of 140lb plus fish caught that day. I never hooked up that day but my father had a large tarpon on for a few minutes until it made its first jump. There was a boat about 50 yards from us that had about a 10 foot hammerhead shark biting its stainless steal prop. The captain was pushing it away with the boat pole. Once the shark showed up the fishing died. Its was a cool experience to fish for tarpon that way. 

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Fished the Boca grande pass about ten years ago for tarpon. It was packed with boats. craziest thing i every saw. You needed a very good captain because once someone hooked up half the challenge was navigating the boat and tarpon away from all the other boats. I saw a lot of 140lb plus fish caught that day. I never hooked up that day but my father had a large tarpon on for a few minutes until it made its first jump. There was a boat about 50 yards from us that had about a 10 foot hammerhead shark biting its stainless steal prop. The captain was pushing it away with the boat pole. Once the shark showed up the fishing died. Its was a cool experience to fish for tarpon that way. 

 

I specifically requested "no tarpon in the pass" and they prefer to fish along the beaches and find their own pods anyway.

Nothing spooks deer more than my stank… 

16 3/4” Live Fluke Release Club

I shot a big 10pt once….

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Sounds like a great trip Jack. A neighbor and friend vacations half of the year with his wife and his back yard is the Gulf Coast of Florida. He has been asking my son and I to take a trip to fish for the past few years on his boat, but something always get in the way. (money  :rofl: )

 

Any idea what a round trip flight for 2 would cost in March, and what airline did you get flights from?

 

I always search flights using expedia.com.  I am seeing $282 round trip from Newark to Fort Myers, using 3/16 to 3/20 as dates. I try to avoid flights on weekends.

Change it to 3/17 to 3/21, $232 round trip.  Change it to fly into Orlando on those dates, $131 round trip.  (all quotes are per person)

 

I always start my search on expedia, but generally end up booking directly with united using my mileage plus card, which gets each passenger one free checked bag as well as the mileage points.

Edited by JHbowhunter

Nothing spooks deer more than my stank… 

16 3/4” Live Fluke Release Club

I shot a big 10pt once….

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If that house location is killer for fishing, I suspect there will be more Jersey guys booking it in the future - I will surely report back.   Gonna bring a conventional rod with 50lb braid and some backbone, to fish some cut mullet off that dock at night. Hope for a shark or even a tarpon. 10lb and 20lb spinning for the rest.  Supposedly good grouper, snapper and sheepshead all around those docks...

 

 

I was going to suggest fishing off the dock at night for sharks. We stayed in Bradenton Beach 2 years ago and a guy caught a 6ft. blacktip off the beach not long after sunset. Good luck!

Edited by mightyhunter
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