Tarpon
Beginning in April, tarpon begin their migration up the coast out of the keys and work their way towards Boca Grande Pass. At that time, I’ll start looking for some early arrivals in Pine Island Sound in hopes of finding them laid up in the sand holes off Demere Key on the eastern side of the sound. This is a good bet if the water temperature hits 75 degrees. In May, I head toward the beach and like staking out off Murdock Point just off Cayo Costa on the southern edge of Boca Grande Pass. Here, throughout the day, it’s not unusual to get shots at strings of fish moving north. This migration should go on through June.
More importantly, the upper harbor at its confluence with the Peace River outside Punta Gorda is proving to be a great fishery for small tarpon. From April to November fish from five to thirty pounds can be seen rolling from the U.S. 41 Bridge to the perimeter canals of Punta Gorda and west past Colony Point towards Ponce Park. To the west, Larger fish from 50 to 80 pounds can be found in the harbors’ deeper holes.
Looking for Poons
After the long stretch of fishing trout, snook, and redfish throughout the fall, winter, and spring, I've turned my attention to hunting tarpon this summer. I'll spend some time up the Peace River as well as along the upper east side of Charlotte Harbor. Because I run...
Hot and dry conditions
As we begin June, it’s been really dry and just about all S.W. Florida is experiencing drought conditions. As a result, the water on the flats along upper east side where I’ve been spending most of my time are clear. This can be opportunistic for sight fishing but it...
Summer Transition
As we reach the half way point of May, Charlotte Harbor has opened up with plenty of options. I’ve moved my way out of Pine Island Sound and have been spending all my time along the upper east side of the harbor. This, the Charlotte Harbor Preserve State Park always...