With years of being in the charter fishing business I have seen charter services come and go. Quick schemes of getting rich on the water or just the inability to produce catches that make clients keep coming back. Here is how to pick the right captain and boat to make your next fishing charter a memorable and positive experience. First off you want to pick a charter boat that meets your needs. If you want to go offshore fishing you certainly don't want to book the guy with the 20' Bay Boat just because he says he can do it or because he is the cheapest. A charter boat in the 40' range will provide you with the most comfort even during the rough seas, enough room to roam about the boat and most likely an air conditioned cabin for those hot summer days or those colder days to keep you warm. YES, it will be more expensive, however for safety reasons as well as comfort this is definitely the way to go. Now if the guy in the 40' range tells you he can take you Flats fishing with that 40footer then he is just trying to make a quick dollar.
Most large boats have a minimum draft of at least 3.5' and cannot get into the shallows that you need to be in to catch the fish on the Flats. In this case look for someone that has a shallow draft Flats boat, preferably with a poling platform and one who uses that platform with a pushpole instead of a trolling motor to fish the shallows. YES, trolling motors do have their place however fishing for Reds and Tarpon takes stealth and even though not the roar of an outboard those blades on that electric motor still make noise. For ease and making your vacation or charter less stressful when booking look for a charter service that can offer you both Offshore and Inshore fishing charters and have the boats to back them up. These are the guys that are successful enough producing fish and building a client base to put them in numerous boats to cover all aspects of the fishing spectrum. This may be hard as many charter services only offer a small boat or just a large boat to fish. Now there are some guys who cannot adapt over to fish both spectrums of Inshore and Offshore fishing and be successful at both, however if they have more than one boat they should at least have a knowledgeable captain aboard the boat you booked. Another way to help with booking the proper charter is to check out their website, most fly by night guys will have either no website or a small one page webpage. Most of the guys with the larger websites will have pics of their boats that they provide as well as their catches (lets face it..all fisherman like to brag about their catches) and charter services are NO different. BEWARE of the guy who guarantees fish!!! Yes, this sounds like he is an established and confident captain, however remember that catching bait is catching a fish. They do not guarantee size and you will never see one of these charters guarantee a species. Even a junk Cuda on the offshore or a Catfish on the inshore counts as a fish. This is called FISHING and not catching and even though it looks good this can be a quick scam.
We at Smokin Em Charters can offer you both an Offshore boat in the 44' Trojan Custom Sportfish "Smokin EM" as well as Inshore with our 20' Hewes Flats "Smokin Em Too". We DO NOT guarantee fish, however our record speaks for itself. We have NEVER been skunked and have always produced fish to the docks. You can check out our website at
www.florida-fishingcharters.com
Capt. Gil
Smokin EM Charters