Go Fish Fort Myers

Welcome to the Fort Myers area, a place that many anglers call the home of the finest fishing in Florida, the "Fishing Capital of the World." And that's not just blowing our own horn, or conch shell, as it were.

Photo credit: University of Florida Museum of Natural History

Southwest Florida and its waters were the stronghold of the Calusa, Florida's last indigenous people to thrive without agriculture as a basis for their existence. Their culture not only thrived on the bounty of the Gulf and its lagoons and estuaries, it dominated, exacting tribute from all others on their frontiers. When encountered in the 16th Century by Spanish explorers, the Calusa empire literally rose from the sea on gleaming terraces of mollusks, mounded over millennia of harvesting shellfish and fishes taken from the surrounding seagrass meadows.

Today that ecosystem and its riches of fishes continues for the pleasure of anglers around the world. Under the management of Florida's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and its constituency, you're invited to join the fun.

What to Expect

Tarpon are the game fish that made Florida famous, and that all started in 1885 at the mouth of Sanibel's Tarpon Bay, with a New York angler named William Halsey Wood. Over the next few decades wealthy sportsmen from around the world flocked to famous tarpon fishing destinations including Boca Grande, Useppa Island, St. James City, and George Schulz's hotel at Punta Rassa. Today the area boasts two fishing clubs headquartered at Fort Myers Beach and Cape Coral that are devoted exclusively to tarpon, and which welcome newcomers. Boca Grande Pass is widely known as the world's best tarpon hole, with a fleet of guides serving the spring and summer seasons when the giant silver kings arrive. 

The Caloosahatchee River has a year-round fishery for adults up to triple-digit weights, and the Fort Myers area's vast backwaters host light tackle and fly fishers who catch juvies, from a few pounds to 40 or so, year-round. Tarpon sometimes are landed from the area's beaches, primarily on Sanibel, and a few are caught from bridges and piers, but boaters, often guided, have the greatest advantage. Tarpon may be harvested for world record purposes with the pre-purchase of a $51.50 tag available only from county tax collectors. Few tags are ever purchased, primarily because tarpon are managed exclusively as a catch-and-release fishery that dictates those of 40 or more inches must remain in the water at all times.

In Southwest Florida's coastal waters, in addition to tarpon the "big three" target species are snook, redfish and spotted seatrout. By virtue of their tropical nature, snook are the rarest and arguably most highly prized as game fish, unable to thrive where winter water temperatures regularly fall below the mid-50-degree range, roughly north of the Tampa Bay area. The area is the heart of snook country in the U.S., accounting for more special saltwater license permits required for taking or attempting to take snook than any other county. Snook also are considered among the most delectable of Florida fishes, although harvest is permitted only in March, April, October and November on the west coast. The bag limit is one per angler, with a "slot limit" of 28 to 33 inches.

Redfish lead double lives, first in the estuaries where they are spawned in fall and grow to adult size in about three years. They then move to offshore waters where they reach weights to perhaps 50 pounds during life spans averaging 35 years. Those that can be harvested between 18 to 27 inches are strong fighting juveniles on a "see food" diet, aggressively eating small fishes, shrimp and other crustaceans, jigs, spoons, flies and anything else they also detect with their especially strong sense of smell. Adult reds are fully protected, so there always will be juvies with which to play.

Spotted seatrout are one of the best striking fish that, like reds, are members of the delectable drum family. The spotted variety sometimes are called speckled trout, differentiating them from first cousins sand seatrout, which are generally smaller and uniformly silver, with a 12-inch minimum length. The biggest specks, well over the 15- to 19-inch slot size, are called gators, and it's legal to keep one within the three-trout daily bag limit if fishing from shore, or one per vessel. It's hard to out-catch an angler fishing trout with a popping cork or clacker rig, even with live bait, and the way to target gators is by casting a noisy topwater plug.

What Else We Got?

Wetting a line in Southwest Florida’s salt waters offers not just a chance, but the probability of catching fish. Beside the "grand slam species" above, mangrove snapper, sheepshead, flounder, pompano, black drum, tripletail, cobia, Spanish mackerel and a host of sharks are very common inshore customers.

In offshore waters those are joined by multiple grouper and snapper species, king mackerel, permit, African pompano, amberjack and more. Almost all are excellent table fish, and they all are managed with fishing regulations. Besides a hook and line, bait, and release equipment including pliers, a smart phone with the Fish Rules app is an invaluable tool. Florida also publishes an annual regulations magazine available from tax collectors and other fishing license vendors.

Getting Started

There is no better way to start fishing here than under the eye of an experienced fishing guide. Florida requires guides working on navigable waters to be U.S. Coast Guard licensed captains, and the other recommended prerequisite newcomers should ask for is liability insurance, which often is required of guides working from resort marinas. Many captains also can be contacted through web sites they maintain on the internet, where they advertise fishing specialties such as target species, their boats, specialties like fly fishing or family outings, and fees for trips that may include half-day and six-hour outings in addition to full days. Bait and quality tackle almost invariably is included, but guides may recommend bringing clothing options including a hat and sunglasses, sunscreen, food and beverages. In addition to daily rates, it's conventional to tip for a good experience.

The Fort Myers area has an estimated 500 miles of natural shorelines accessible by boat, and few boats are better for fishing than highly affordable kayaks. Paddling is truly being one with nature, to the point fish may not even bother to flee as you glide seamlessly through their habitat. One's range is limited, but access to local waters is not, by virtue of kayak liveries on virtually every river and bay in the area. The community also maintains the Great Calusa Blueway, a 190-mile marked trail "via easy-to-identify brown-and-white signs through shallow areas away from boat traffic." Find everything you need to explore the Blueway, from trail maps and/or GPS coordinates to many more helpful resources, including tips and techniques.

Boating access opens a gamut of fishing venues, but good opportunities also exist from shore and designated bridges. All of the Fort Myers area's beaches, including Bonita Beach, Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel, Captiva and Boca Grande, offer access points, although some may not be open due to recent hurricanes. Fishing is free, but check the beach conditions page for closures, regulations, parking fees, or free park-and-ride transportation. 

Charlotte Harbor State Park in northwest Cape Coral offers two entry points to the vast flats that border the harbor's eastern shore, with excellent wade fishing for trout and other species. Most popular is the North Cape Flats Trail, a half-mile hike that ends just south of the Burnt Store Marina community, with access to a mix of flats habitats including oyster bars and seagrass beds. Parking is near the intersection of Northwest 40th Lane and Northwest 44th Place. Fishing Access 4 is a shorter hike that begins with wading through a mangrove tunnel, near 3915 NW 44th Pl, Cape Coral, FL 33993.

Fishing with guides typically costs hundreds of dollars, but do-it-yourself anglers may well get by for the cost of a fresh or saltwater fishing license, and fishing tackle they already own. Specialized tackle for fly fishing or deep jigging can be expensive, but a starter outfit that will serve very well may be available at department stores starting at less than $20. Spincasting outfits will work fine for a trip to a local pond, but generally do not hold up well in salt water, where open-face spinning gear is recommended. A spinning reel loaded with 12-pound-test monofilament line on a 6-1/2 or 7-foot fiberglass rod can serve well in many fresh or saltwater venues.

Bait choices are as broad as the waterfront, but basically boil down to natural or artificial offerings. In salt water a shrimp is universal, frozen or live. Almost all saltwater fish are carnivorous, and shrimp appeal to some species, like sheepshead and pompano, with a preference for crustaceans. Live shrimp are widely available from bait shops, but they may also require a flow-through bait bucket, a retaining line and perhaps a sand spike for fishing from shore. Fresh frozen shrimp are less expensive and work well for most species, including snook, redfish, spotted seatrout, mangrove (gray) snapper, and many other tasty targets. Large "hand-picked" shrimp may be available at a premium price, but they may produce better for larger snook or even tarpon. Cut pieces of fresh fish or frozen mullet also may be good choices when bottom fishing, with tackle as simple as a hook (non-stainless steel, non-offset circle hooks are required when fishing with natural bait) and a sliding egg sinker (Google "knocker rig"). A hook tied directly to 12-pound monofilament is ideal for snapper, sheepshead and seatrout, but a length ("leader") of heavier mono between hook and a swivel attached to the main line (Google "fish finder rig") will help prevent chafing and cutoffs by snook, ladyfish, Spanish mackerel or other toothy predators.

Artificial baits including many suitable for fresh or salt water exist by the thousands, in a multitude of categories including topwater and subsurface lures, metal spoons, leadhead jigs and more. Some require expertise to be effective, but some are very easy to use. Harking to the effectiveness of shrimp, many manufacturers offer shrimp lookalikes impregnated with scent (Google "Gulp! Shrimp") that can be fished on the bottom just like a natural bait. Others offer plastic shrimp prerigged with clacking or popping corks that attract predators with sound vibrations, when jerked along the surface.

Virtually all of the area’s freshwater bodies, including hundreds of ponds and some 200 miles of landlocked canals in Cape Coral alone, are home to the famed Florida strain of largemouth bass, several native panfishes including bluegills, and exotic Mayan cichlids some locals call "redhots."

In fresh water, few baits are more consistent producers than spinnerbaits, which are very effective when simply cast and retrieved. Larger spinnerbaits are good for largemouth bass, and sizes as small as 1/16-ounce are great for panfish including native bluegills and scrappy, tasty exotic cichlids including oscars and the very widespread Mayan species. Plastic worms in an inexhaustible array of colorfully named patterns also are exceptionally effective for largemouths, but they require a bit more finesse. Try starting with the "junebug" color, dark purple with green flake. 

First, A Few Rules

Anglers not from Florida will need to purchase fresh or saltwater fishing licenses, with a few exceptions: Youths under 16 years old; or anglers fishing from a licensed fishing pier or boat with a charter license; or anglers fishing from a boat operated by a person with a saltwater vessel license; or anglers fishing during designated free fishing days in fresh or saltwater don't need licenses. See complete license requirements here. 

Fishing in Florida is defined as attempting to take fish or almost all other living organisms in fresh or saltwater. "Fishing" also includes helping to fish, including baiting hooks, netting a catch, or assisting an angler in any other way. Whether one needs a freshwater or saltwater license depends on the fish, not the water. Snook and mullet, for instance, are commonly caught in fresh water, but they are designated as saltwater species.

In addition to a license, anglers are responsible for knowing and adhering to all other fishing regulations, including species bag and size limits, gear requirements and season closures. Snook and lobster fishing (or diving) also require special license endorsements. Tarpon and goliath grouper can be taken only with special harvest permits. Again, detailed information and license purchases are available at MyFWC.com. FWC also encourages keeping up to date on regulations with the Fish Rules app available for Apple or Android devices. Start planning your trip today to enjoy Florida's finest fishing in the Fort Myers area.

About the Author

Lee County native Byron Stout is a graduate of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications, and a former fishing guide. He has provided Southwest Florida fishing coverage for newspaper, television, magazines and online since 1978. He just can't stop himself.