Manasota Key, Boca Grande, and Palm Island fishing has been good this month, despite all the rain runoff from tropical storm Debbie. Debbie dumped more than 12 inches of rain within 24 hours locally. Some areas that boarder our fishing grounds got much more. 

We have experienced "tannin" water for almost the entire month of August. "Tannin" is when the freshwater runoff from the mainland, enters the saltwater estuaries and begins to blend. Nothing that is unusual for our area, it just typically happens over and more consistent time frame (weeks rather than days). 

With all that in play, we are still catching quality fish. Pictured are photos from Capt. Conrad, he runs our 22 Pathfinder, and has been on a good run of fish. It a fun time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!


Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946

Let's go tarpon fishing in Boca Grande, from Manasota Key Florida!!! Tarpon fishing is in full swing locally. We have thousands of fish moving around throughout the fishery.

Our trips typically start early in the morning on the beach or in the harbor. Finding a calm group of undisturbed tarpon first thing in the morning, is an anglers dream.  If getting up early isn't your thing, plan for an afternoon fall tide. The "hill tides" in Boca Grande pass, can be some of the hottest bites of the season. 

With morning and afternoon slots available, there has never been a better time to go tarpon fishing in South West Florida!!! 

Tarpon Season is here! It's hot, hot, hot! With daytime temperatures reaching into the mid 90's, the water temperatures have absolutely skyrocketed!

Tarpon are pouring into our areas from all directions of our fishery. There has never been a more exciting inshore #gamefish to target! Tarpon pull hard, have aerial acrobatics that are unmatched, and can get a case of "lock jaw" at a moments notice, all while maintaining the possibility of chewing the bottom off the boat!

They are truly the #silverking. With Tarpon season in full swing, it's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!

Redfish!!! It's been an awesome spring fishing season so far. We are starting to see "lots" of Redfish moving throughout the bay. We are even seeing some "breeder" sized fish, not just the smaller juvenile fish we would expect coming back from Red Tide.  We are not allowed to keep the redfish in Charlotte harbor, but it's great to allow clients opportunities to catch them. With our redfish population on the rebound, it's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!

Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946

Our spring fishing has kicked off with a bang!!! This years relentless winter, has given way to an "Oven baked" spring!!! We had temperatures this week, that started in the low 50's, and rose to nearly 90 degrees!!! Those rising temperatures, have made the fish respond positively!!! 

Morning half days are producing a good bite for keeper trout, and snook on deeper shorelines, because the tides are still in the winter solstice... But, the afternoons... with the turn and help from the westerly winds, and a healthy incoming tide, have been producing redfish, snook, and trout... with incredible consistency!!!

It's a fun time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!

Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946

The pompano fishing in the bay remains strong. With the forecast calling for highs in the low 80's for the next 10 days, we anticipate bait fishing to kick off within that time frame. Transitioning nto spring conditions Snook, redfish, and trout are our bread and butter trips. With spring conditions on the horizon, it's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!

Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946

Some really cool temperatures moved into the area over the Christmas and New Year holiday. The blustery winds and cooler temperatures had the pompano moving throughout the bay nicely.  A delicious fish to target, their table fair is top 5 in my book. They are also really fun to catch, will hit a jig like a sack of bricks!!! With cooler temperatures on the horizon, and a full box of jigs, it's a fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!

Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946
www.palmislandoutfitters.com
www.charlotteharborchronicles.com

Happy New Year fishing followers!!! 

Our 2023 season ended with some incredibly cool and unusual weather. We had a low pressure system move into the Gulf the week before Christmas, and it was followed by the coolest temperatures of 2023.  That set us up for some winter time conditions.  

When our water temperature falls under 68°, we turn our attention to some "off brand" species.  Pompano are available throughout the bay, during these cold temperatures of the winter season.  Working diligently to jig the deep water flats, produces a high rate of by-catch, and the value of the target species is worth the hunt. 

With the right guide service, winter time can be a fun and tasty time to fish in South West Florida!!!


Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946

With the winter winds bringing cold air down from the north, our winter season has started early this year. 

When our inshore water temperature drops under 70 degrees, our inshore fishing changes. We put up our live bait rods, and break out the Jiggs!!! Jigging the bay for pompano, can be some really fun fishing, that can produce some excellent table faire. Pompano are typically found on our beach front, traversing the passes and sand bars. But, when the big north blows happen, and the water temperature drops, they move inshore!!! We concentrate our efforts on the sandy bottom channels that make up the bay, and use a solid drifting technique to maximize our coverage as we search for schools. The by-catch is but not limited to: trout, flounder, jacks, bluefish, mackerel, and my favorite, the "lovely Lady" fish!!!

Because winter has come early, and the pompano are in the bay, it's an fantastic time to go fishing in South West Florida!!!

Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946

With September rains, the inland and harbor water temperature have started to fall. This triggers all of our inshore gamefish, to start moving into a fantastic fall trend. Trout can be found in abundance, over the deep water grasses on the bar edges throughout the harbor.

Snook have started to move from the passes and beaches, into traditional trends heading for warm water refuge for a fall feed looking forward to winter time. Redfish can be found scattered throughout the harbor and bays, most fish caught on shorelines are under slot... But, big schools of over slot breeding fish are starting to pop up throughout the fishery on moon tides. Like most fall seasons, it's a fantastic time to be fishing in South West Florida!!!

Capt. Mike Slattery
941-626-6946