I'll be doing a talk on fly fishing for Gulf of Maine sharks this Wednesday at the Charlotte Harbor Fly Fishers' monthly meeting. The meeting is open to all who enjoy fly fishing. There is a $3.00 fee that goes to support club activities. 

I'll have PowerPoint presentation full of cool photos and videos describing this niche fishery that takes place from late July, through early September 10-20 miles offshore. We target; Blue, Mako, Thresher and Porebeagle sharks ranging from 50-400 pounds on fly and conventional stand up gear. The fly fishing action consists of sight casting to blue sharks and the occasional Mako with 10-15wt fly rods. 

The meeting is this Wednesday, February 10th, 6:30pm at Charlotte Park Civic Association Bldg 
420 Pompano Terrace 
Punta Gorda, FL

Note to Self: Remember to pull the drain plugs in BOTH of your livewells when putting the boat up for the winter...

I estimate this block of ice, cast net, scrub brushes and who knows what else to be about 125 pounds and is 10" think. It's been melting since we left Maine on Saturday morning and hopefully by the end of today it will be gone. Can't wait to see what is in there.  Today we finish unpacking. Tomorrow is boat cleaning day. Friday the fishing gear gets sorted out and rigged. I'll be fishing on Charlotte Harbor this weekend!

I can't believe another five years have gone by. Time to renew My USCG License aka; Merchant Mariner Credential. I just sent in 30 pages of forms and documentation to the Coast Guard Regional Examination Center in Boston. 

Quite a process, drug test, physical, eye and hearing exams, background check, sea time and boat ownership documentation. All that with a $90 check and presto, 8-12 weeks later your new certificate arrives in the mail.

But in reality jumping through such hoops is very important. Licensed captains are entrusted with the safety and well being of the folks on our vessels. A responsibility we all take very seriously.

Obsession Sportfishing Charter, celebrating 25 years of providing quality outdoors experiences. I have the greatest group of clients and friends in the world. I also have the most understanding wife in the world. I am truly blessed.

Capt. Dave 

Barb and I will be heading to Port Charlotte in a week or two. Thought I'd start my fishing reports now seeing that I'm checking the conditions daily. 

Conditions: Water temps will rebound this week. Winds will drop too. There will be mid day low tides with good moving water

Bait the fish are feeding on: some whitebait in the upper harbor, pinfish, ladyfish, shrimp, crabs

Species to fish for this week: Seatrout, Redfish, Jacks, Spanish, some Snook

Fishing Tactics: Cold water tactics – fish deep water and banks until the mid day warmth heats up the flats.

My fly fishing tip of the week: Cold water requires fishing slow and deep. Might need to swap to an intermediate or sinking line. Maybe even weighted flies for the holes and edges.             

My spin fishing tip of the week: Still fishing with bait and popping corks or slow retrieved jigs in deep water early then move to the grass flats as the water warms.

7 day outlook: A cold front move out Monday and the winds will drop and shift into the southeast. The weather change will bring a few showers. Temps will rebound to seasonal levels allowing the water to warm up.

This week's forecast:

This is something Barb and I already knew - Punta Gorda on the southeastern side of Charlotte Harbor is a great place to excape the cold. Trip Advisor agrees, it listed PG as its most afordable southern destination.

We live just across the bridge in Port Charlotte but spend most of our time in Punta Gorda. Great restaurants and shops, We love the farmers market, I launch from two of PG's boat ramps almost daily and pick up my Florida fishing charter clients at the area hotels. PG hosts several festivals and fishing tournament throughout the year. Oh, almost forgot Barb's favorite ice cream shop Scoops is at Lashley Park right on the River Walk.

And the fishing... PG has great snook, redfish, trout, cobia, jack and mackerel fishing minutes from their boat ramps. Spin fishing or fly fishing, you'll have a great time in Punta Gorda.