THE FISH
San Carlos Bay, the back bay and the near Gulf. What's biting depends on the month.
Ambush feeders tucked against mangrove roots, dock pilings and bridge shadows. They hit hard, run for the nearest structure and jump. Pound for pound the best fight in the back bay.
Copper-colored with a black spot near the tail, often tailing in inches of water on the flats. Stubborn, shouldering fight and the best eating fish we catch inshore.
Striped bait thieves with unsettlingly human teeth. They pick a shrimp off the hook without you feeling it, so hooking one is genuinely satisfying.
Structure fish that dive straight back into the rocks the second they're hooked. Heavy tackle, live bait and a real arm workout. Goliaths are catch, photo, release only.
Fast, toothy and greedy — they run in schools and hit a moving bait hard. When they're thick you can fill a cooler lid in an afternoon, and the whole boat stays busy.
Small, sharp-eyed and everywhere once you find them. They stack up on structure and bite all day, which makes them a favorite with kids — and they're as good on the table as anything we catch.
Also on the card: spotted sea trout, tarpon, bonnethead shark, ladyfish, pompano, mutton snapper, cobia. Licenses are covered for everyone aboard.