Fishing Charlotte Harbor Area (zoo, sink, claim)

[Seafood Junky]

Originally Posted by MartyGras

While at Port Charlotte Beach today

Man them SUVs can go anywhere...

[1dobiedude]

Going to a boat ramp is more fun than a comedy club----sometimes. lol

[Messing About]

Hi Lynnstrick
Thanks for your questions. As has been stated, we have a very healthy estuary and fishery here on Charlotte Harbor. There are plenty of fish to be found...just not all can catch them. You'll be staying just up the Pellam waterway from my home. September will bring the return of snook season. The canals in PC are great places to troll for snook. Bring shallow diving plugs such as a Storm Twitch Stick or a Rapala XR8 and troll at no wake speed. You will hook up. Can you land it? Great fun. The only downer is on the days when the tide brings lots of pine needles to the surface and fouls your lure but just chalk it up to Mother Nature, reel in, clear the debris, repeat troll.

When you want to fish open water in your bay boat you can choose from the west wall or east wall of the harbor. Each has a long sand bar that you'll want to study on the charts before arriving and still get advice from Franks (when you pickup your live shrimp). You can fish inside the bar or outside the bar but there are only a few places to cross the bar in your bay boat unless we are at high tide. The redfish will usually be inside the bar, in the shadow of the mangroves. The snook are often near the many tidal creeks waiting to ambush prey on incoming and out going tides. The trout could be inside, outside or on top of the bar at anytime. Look for areas where the Seagrass flats drop from really shallow to 4-6' depths and drift with live shrimp under popping corks.

That time of year the trout should be really plentiful in one of absolute favorite spots, turtle bay. From the dock behind your rental house, it will take you a good hour to get there but oh so worth the trip. The clear water and flourishing turtle grass beds make it a Mecca for Speckled Trout. The golden colors of their heads contrasting against their silver bodies will have your jaw dropping. You'll also have a shot at snook, plenty of lady fish, mangrove snapper, and yes, those pesky feline fish. You'll want to spend the whole day in Turtle Bay but if your Bay Boat has a backplate, think about exploring the ultra shallow flats of Bull Bay next door. A hunk of cut lady fish pitched under a shady mangrove has a high chance of being gobbled up by a slot or over slot size Redfish. Your reel drag better be set first because once they start peeling your line, it's too late to make those adjustments. Such fun.

There's more inshore opportunities here than I have time left on earth to explore. We haven't even started on the Peace and Myakka rivers, which meet near Hog Island and give way to Charlotte Harbor but each have many miles of their own fishing grounds. I suggest you read our entire fishing thread between now and your trip down. You may just find yourself so excited you start thinking about what it would be like to live here.

Welcome aboard. Have fun. Tight lines.

[lynnstrick]

Thanks MA,
sorry I posted in the wrong place in the beginning.

Your reply is wonderful, almost poetic, makes me not want to wait until September to be there.. I will take your advice and read the entire thread, as I said earlier my husband and I LOVE to fish, have been doing it for over 15 years together and both of us fished with our dads as kids, but we are still not what I would call GOOD at it. you know the old saying 10 percent of the fishermen catch 90 percent of the fish, well, we DEFINITELY are NOT part of that 10 per cent group. We do manage to bring home dinner most nights but would really like to get good at catching the Trout and Reds. We are always happy to take ANY advice we are given. I am almost embarrassed to say it but we only just learned how to PROPERLY, hook a shrimp a couple of years ago, this from a guide in Marathon. (and wow, what a difference such a small, overlooked thing can make)

Sounds like turtle bay is a MUST SEE ... and an hour boat ride is not a problem...specially when it ends in such a heavenly sounding place. It almost sounds as if when you get into this bay you wont care if you catch fish or not, if they aren't biting just sit back and enjoy the beauty. (it sounds very much like a couple of backwater spots we found in the KEYS)

[Messing About]

Glad you appreciate the post, Lynn. Turtle Bay is quite something to behold. Page back just one page in this topic, I have a couple of photos shot there last weekend. Then consider the fact that I was in 4' of water when we shot those.

THere's some short videos of fishing the area on my You Tube Channel:
https://youtu.be/DyOAUWWTMlA

https://youtu.be/iysDjMETvKM

https://youtu.be/9HFV3_hgTd0

https://youtu.be/it9rwhn1XHY

Don't worry about your skill set. It will improve. When I moved here 8 years ago, I couldn't tie a proper knot. Now I never use swivels. Tie braid straight to leader and am amazed at how my knots hold in a fight. You'll get better too.

Tight lines.

[SeaRay35]

Leaders? We don't need no stinkin' leaders

[SeaRay35]

Bill, the Tarpon were crazy out in the pass. Our boat didn't hook up, but saw many hook up. Fish were all over. If you decide to go and ***, make sure you talk with Frank on proper ****. Break aways are no longer allowed and FWC were boarding boats and checking rigs.

[SeaRay35]

J1g was edited out

[MikMal]

Originally Posted by SeaRay35

J1g was edited out

I find that sooo comical. Political correctness at it's finest. It's not like j*g is a slang term; it's the real name for that type of fishing item and technique.

[Seafood Junky]

one of the oldest types of fishing lure!