Captain Rich of Reel Rich Fishing Charters out of Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,Florida reported another great week of fishing on Charlotte Harbor. While we had been enjoying more fall like conditions well in to our short “winter” season, inshore water temps have now dropped 10 degrees since our last report as back to back cold fronts have swept across Charlotte Harbor putting us into our more seasonable range. Speckled Sea Trout continue to be strong and we have adjusted to targeting them on the grass flats and inside edges where the suns rays warm the bottom. Shrimp under a float have been working well. Covering water with a 3” DOA cal swim shad on a 1/4oz jig head with a slow and low retrieve will help locate pods of fish. Redfish have been extremely good this week as well. We have been on a good aggregate of fish and we are absolutely seeing the benefits of the temporary closer by the FWC. It’s undoubtedly been one of the best years in many for this species. when we have the right tide and wind the action can be fast paced. The cool off has put us squarely into Sheepshead season and this hard fighting and delicious fish has been a steady visitor to our net all week. We have picked up some real tanks this year too with some fish pushing the 8 pound mark. A good hook makes all the difference when targeting Sheepshead and we love the Owner Mutu Light offset circle hook in the 1/0 size for these guys. Everyone has their favorite bait for sheep’s but for us we keep it pretty basic with shrimp. Spanish Mackerel,Pompano, Mangrove Snapper,Black Drum and Ladyfish continue to mix in with the action daily. March is right around the corner for us now and traditionally the official start of our spring season and one of our favorite times of the year. White bait should start pushing back in and the snook will start pulling out from their winter holes to greet them. Cobia will start showing on the bars and maybe even a few early season Tarpon will be targetable. One things for sure - it’s been a mild and strange winter here on Charlotte Harbor that has been filled with excellent fishing. At this point any prolonged warming trend will only make things more exciting If your interested in a fishing charter on Charlotte Harbor We have plenty of open dates available. Offering 4, 6 and 8 hour fishing charters and we are conveniently located to Punta Gorda, Fort Myers and Cape Coral Florida . We invite you to check out our trip offerings here on FishingBooker and book your Charlotte Harbor Fishing charter today. We depart daily from Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,Florida.

Captain Rich of Reel Rich Fishing Charters out of Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,Florida reported excellent fishing on Charlotte Harbor this week. With inshore water temps running 70 to 74 degrees over the last week the harbor has been fishing more like late fall then mid winter. Speckled Sea Trout continue to be strong and we have been targeting them in a little deeper water then last week. Shrimp under a float has been the key pattern but larger swim bait patterns slow rolled over deep grass have been producing larger fish.Using a 3/8oz jig head and a white zoom paddle tail fluke will keep the bait down low and add distance to each cast. Redfish have been extremely good this week. We have been on a good aggregate of fish all week and when we have the right tide and wind the action can be fast paced. We have even been picking up a few Black Drum mixed in with the Reds, They are open to harvest now and are absolutely delicious table fare. Sheepshead have been picking up this week as well and I would expect it to continue as gulf water temps drop. Spanish Mackerel,Pompano, Mangrove Snapper and Ladyfish continue to mix in with the action daily. Covering water and running the tides right now is the key to success as the windows of opportunity have been narrow over the last week. With the up coming new moon this weekend improving tides will usher in some better flow throughout the day and impact the bite positively over the next week. Father and son Team Larry and Mike from Michigan put together a nice mixed bag this week with a steady pick of Reds, Black Drum and Trout on their Charlotte Harbor Fishing charter. Wade from Washington state and his crew put together a nice catch for the grill and kept the rods bent all morning Destin from Pittsburgh came out and got in on some of the Red hot action and insisted on the captain getting in on the action as well which was a blast. If your interested in a fishing charter on Charlotte Harbor We have plenty of open dates available. Offering 4, 6 and 8 hour fishing charters and we are conveniently located to Punta Gorda, Fort Myers and Cape Coral Florida . We invite you to check out our trip offerings here on Fishingbooker and book your Charlotte Harbor Fishing charter today. We depart daily from Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,Florida.

Captain Rich of Reel Rich Fishing Charters out of Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,FL reported excellent fishing on Charlotte Harbor this week. The Sea Trout have been exceptional this week with many days providing one after another steady action all day. Trout are super focused on glass minnow forage right now and are willingly taking artificial baits. While Spanish Mackerel,Pompano and Ladyfish continue to mix in with the action. Moving water is key and keeping an eye out for birds diving will help define likely areas holding fish. Closer in to the mangrove keys and back waters Snook and Reds are doing well and will take free lined shrimp pitched onto and near structure. As usual for our winter fishing trips here on Charlotte Harbor shrimp are king and the larger game fish really can’t resist the biggest ones you can pitch in front of them. Gag Grouper have started pushing into the harbor for their seasonal migration and we have had some excellent catches this week . While the season is currently closed for this species they provide a great challenge and exciting fight on our inshore gear. Mike and his crew from up north boated over 25 Gags on one of our trips this week. Sheepshead have been a little confused with our water temps being on the warm side of normal but we are still picking up a few and Georgie Kline from Homer, NY also gets top honors with this weeks jumbo. Temperatures over the next 10 days are forecast for near record Highs and this is undoubtedly going to have a positive impact on the already good fishing. If your looking for a fishing charter on Charlotte Harbor We have plenty of open dates available. Offering 4, 6 and 8 hour fishing charters and we are conveniently located to Punta Gorda, Fort Myers and Cape Coral Florida . We invite you to check out our trip offerings here on FishingBooker and book your Charlotte Harbor Fishing charter today. We depart daily from Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda Florida.

Captain Rich fishing out of Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,FL reported excellent fishing on Charlotte Harbor this week. There has been a good run of Trout, Spanish, Pompano and Sheepshead moving into Charlotte Harbor as our winter time fishery is now in full swing. As water temperatures continue to cool the fishing has remained very active. The Sea Trout are starting to show up in their usual patterns and with good numbers.Most trips have been swinging over 100 fish over the rail. Pompano have been adding a lot of excellent action on each trip as of late and they are absolutely one of my favorites to not only catch but on the grill as well. While most of our Pompano have been caught as by catch While targeting a multi species bite more fish can be caught by specifically targeting Pompano with silly jigs and pompano jigs fished with the short hop and pause method across the sand bar edges. Jeff from MO caught this world class (22”) Florida Pompano on our New Year Day Inshore Charter. We have plenty of open dates available offering 4, 6 and 8 hour fishing charters on Charlotte Harbor during our winter and spring Florida fishing season and we invite you to check out our trip offerings here on FishingBooker and book your Charlotte Harbor Fishing charter today. We depart daily from Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda Florida.

Captain Rich fishing out of Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,FL reported excellent fishing on Charlotte Harbor this week. There has been a good run of Sheepshead moving into Charlotte Harbor as of late and the steady pick of Redfish and Snook has continued as water temperatures have actually warmed keeping the fish very active. The Sea Trout are starting to show up in their usual patterns with smaller specimens in the upper harbor and larger sized schools fallowing behind in the southern harbor and Pine Island Sound areas. With the inevitable arrival of some major cold fronts to cool the water a bit we would expect the trout bite to improve. The catch and release season put into effect last May and excellent bait fish stocks all year will have a pretty good impact on the quality and numbers of trout we catch this season. Sadly It looks like our Tarpon have moved out for the year. Thanks to everyone who came out and Tarpon fished with us this year. It was undoubtedly or best season ever! Dates for the 2020 Tarpon fishing charters (April-June) are locking up fast so make sure to book your dates early so they don’t get away.- -And we still have plenty of open inshore dates available in our winter and spring Florida fishing season and we invite you to check out our trip offerings here on our FishingBooker profile and book your Punta Gorda - Charlotte Harbor, Flordia Fishing charter today. Punta Gorda FL- Charlotte Harbor-Fishing Report

Captain Rich fishing out of Burnt Store Marina in Punta Gorda,FL reported very good fishing on Charlotte Harbor this week. There has been an exceptional Redfish bite this year that has really carried on into the fall season The challenge over the past days However has been adapting to the declining water temperatures. This is pushing the fish to transition closer to their winter season areas. There are still a lots of Reds around says Captain Rich they are just more spread out and traveling more than they where. The good news is that when fish are located this time of year they will feed eagerly as they look to bulk up a little before winter. Just about any method is working right now to take Reds. Slow rolling swim baits, gold spoons and top water plugs are all good choices right now especially when covering a lot of areas in search of fish. Once a area is found to be holding fish switching over to a split crab or a big shrimp fished on the bottom is a good tactic to pick up a couple extra fish. We still have plenty of open dates available in our upcoming season and we invite you to check out our trip offerings here on our FishingBooker profile and book your Charlotte Harbor Fishing charter today.