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Tuesday, 4/13, the wind was howling through the tree-lines of Estero Bay, where I fished the backwaters with Richard Kostrcewa and his son, Stephan. We used live shrimp to catch and release nine sheepshead, a mangrove snapper and two crevalle jacks. Wednesday was another windy morning in Estero B...

First of all, our hearts go out to our fellow fisherman and all the residents of the Gulf coast who have been impacted by the BP oil spill. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of you, and we feel fortunate to have escaped this crisis on our shores here in SW FL. We also want all our potential customers to kn...

Pat Fitzgerald and his sons have fished with me for years. This year, the boys brought some friends along for a boat-load of six, including Pat, sons Jimmy and Tommy and friends, Matthew, Jacob, and Brandon. We headed out of New Pass Thursday morning, 7/1, to fish in 44 feet. The boys caught a mess of yel...

“No oil—No spoilOur Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Estero Bay was my fishing grounds on Tuesday morning, 7/27, when I fished with Chris Polumbo and his young daughter, Miranda, along with Miranda's two friends, Bridget and Rachel. We caught two 17-inch trout and two keeper mangrove snap...

“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Wednesday morning, 11/3, I headed offshore just ahead of an approaching cold-front for the last day in the next several that would allow offshore fishing. Seas were a little sloppy at two-to-three feet about nineteenmiles west of New Pas...

“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” After a rainy cold-front pushed through the area on Wednesday, 12/1, seas were rough through Thursday. Predictions were for 15 knot winds and 2-4 foot seas on Friday but, when I headed offshore with Greg Bauer and friend, Jim, we hit three-...

“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” I was in port for several days the week of December 12th, due to a strong cold-front that elevated seas offshore to 12-18 feet, as winds gusted and temperatures plummeted. By Thursday, conditions were calming, but the trip I had scheduled f...

“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday, 1/24, seas were calmer and I took advantage of those conditions to head out to two spots, one 28 miles west of New Pass and one 36 miles out, to fish in about 65 feet with long-time customer Barry Pflueger and his friends, Glen Ray, brot...

“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday, 3/7, I fished with (I kid you not) Dave Hanson! After we laughed about captain and client having exactly the same name, Dave introduced me to the rest of his angling party, which included his son-in-law, Ryan Seipp and friend, Way...

“No oil—No spoilOur Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday morning, 4/4, I fished the near-shore reefs off Bonita Beach with Tim and Stephanie Cobb and their two children, Spencer and Sydney. We were fishing just ahead of a weather-front predicted to kick winds up to 25 knots by early afte...

“No oil—No spoilOur Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday, 5/2, was another one of those breezy day, but the wind direction made it possible to at least get my party of four out to the reefs. Long-time customers Dennis & Jamie Riddell brought Dennis' brother, Tom, and sister-in-law,...

After a few days off the water, with high winds and seas persisting into mid-week, I got back offshore on Friday morning, 5/20, with long-time customer Casey Miller. This time, Casey was in town for a wedding, and he invited the groom and friends to fish with us. The group, consisting of ( in addition to...

Monday, 7/4, Tony Herring, son Jacob, friend, Josh Schneider, and Tony's two nephews celebrated the Fourth of July with a fishing trip offshore. We fished in 60 feet, using live shrimp and cut-bait. We caught a 13-inch keeper mangrove snapper at our first spot, but the dolphin showed up right after t...

After a long time off the water, nearly a month, due to our very slow slow-season, along with a couple weeks of consistent rains, I finally got out fishing again on Monday, September 12th. I fished with live shrimp in central Estero Bay with long-time customers Steve Spitzer and Jalissa Reeve...

Wednesday, 10/5, I had an offshore trip planned with Bryan Smith and friends, Tony and Kevin. There were small-craft-advisories in effect that morning, and seas were forecast to be two-to-four feet. The guys didn't want to fish inshore, preferring to go after some bigger game, so we decided to try s...

With rough seas persisting into the weekend, my Saturday charter was deferred to Monday, 11/14/11, when seas calmed to two-to-three feet. I headed about 22 miles offshore, out of New Pass, with Bob and Stephanie Rose. We caught a bunch of grouper, but no keepers. Using shrimp and pinfish, we caught...

Just as busy season was gearing up, the first week of December brought not only high winds and rough seas, but also red tide conditions in the gulf and up into Estero Bay. The good news is that the weekend's wind direction helped push the red tide out to sea. And, the backwaters, at least the spots I fishe...

After two days of windy, rough, unusually cold weather, thanks to a strong cold-front, I finally got back out fishing on Wednesday morning, 1-4-12. It was still a chilly 35 degrees first thing that morning, and seas were residually rough offshore, so Andy Oliver and Pat O’Neil opted to leave later in...

Monday, 1/16, after a weekend of rough offshore conditions, seas were calming down, with a forecast for two-to-three foot seas out to twenty miles. It was rougher than that, but it was calm enough for my hardy anglers, Bud Glanzer, Lee Larsen, and Alan and Wendell Bronson, all long-time customers....

The week of 1/30/12 began with a cold-front that brought high winds and seas and small-draft advisories, which forced me to cancel both offshore trips planned for those days.Wednesday morning, 2/1, began a little rough offshore, but quickly calmed down and was flat by afternoon. I fished about 20 m...

After a couple days off the water, due to a cold front that brought frigid temps, high winds, low tides and rough seas, I headed to the near-shore reefs Monday, 2/13/12, to fish a catch-and-release trip with Richard and Trish Burdow. Seas had calmed to two-to-three feet near-shore, and the sheepshea...

Although, after a windy, rough weekend, seas were calming to two-to-four feet on Monday, my planned gulf-trip canceled, as they thought seas would still be too rough. So I missed that day on the water. But, I got back offshore on Tuesday, 2/28, with Kari Vilamaa, George Dyer, Paul Kikendall, and Don H...

Monday, 3/12, after a windy weekend, winds were predicted to calm somewhat, and seas were forecast at two-to-three feet near-shore, and three-to-five feet beyond twenty miles. But, as I approached the near-shore reefs with Mark McCarthy, Mark and David Hatch, and Rich Jenkins (who was celebrati...

Monday morning, 3/26, I fished over hard bottom in 35 feet, with Chris Ernberger, his dad, Jerry, and Chris's son, Carter. There was about a 3-foot roller left over from the windy Sunday that preceded our trip, so we didn't venture too far offshore. The guys used live-shrimp to catch six keeper mangro...

Monday, 4/9, seas had calmed at last, and I headed out to fish in spots between 22 and 28 miles west of New Pass with Bill Conklin, his son, Eric Conklin, and friend, Rick Weigand. Bill caught a keeper red grouper at 21 inches, and we released lots of red grouper just short of keeper size. The group also ca...

After about six days off the water, due to high winds and seas offshore and shallow, muddy conditions in the bay, I finally got offshore with Ron Musick, Eddie Alfonse, Dick Arnett, Bob Mayer, and Matt Watson on Thursday, 4/26. We headed out of New Pass to 36 miles, where we fished with live shrimp and pi...

Monday, 5/7, I fished at the near-shore reefs with Joe and Donna Corso. The couple used live shrimp to catch a 14-inch keeper-pompano, two keeper flounders at 14 and 18 inches, a keeper mangrove snapper, a keeper sea trout at 20 inches, a half dozen Spanish mackerels in the 22-23-inch range, and three...

Tuesday, 5/29, I spent the day fishing in 47 feet, using live shrimp, with Robert Pierce, Brian Clark, and Julie Meng. The trio hoped to catch some good table-fare, along with doing some sport-fishing for bigger fish. I had hoped to put them on some goliath grouper for the latter, but the goliaths wer...

We have had a lot of rain recently and, prior to that, I was off the water for a couple of weeks, due to a family reunion. So there isn’t a whole lot to report, but I did do a couple of trips inshore and near-shore. Last Monday morning, I headed to the near-shore reefs with Steve and Lori Greiner and their two y...

After several weeks off the water because of a family reunion trip, followed by lots of rainy days unsuitable for fishing, I finally got offshore on Friday, 7/20/12 with John Hamilton and friends. We fished 36 miles west of New Pass, where we got into some red grouper. We didn't get a keeper, though, o...

Monday, 8/6, I headed out to 35 feet to fish with Brian Woeste, Adam Bodkin and Tim Powers. The guys wanted to experience the thrill of big game, but also wanted some food fish. We started out catching blue runners and Spanish mackerel for goliath grouper bait. The guys caught and released a 70-pound go...

Monday, 8/20, I fished with Steve Spitzer and Jalissa Reever again. They had fished with me the previous Wednesday and caught a couple of keeper gag grouper. But, Monday, conditions were different. Despite forecasts for one-to-two foot seas and 5-10 knot winds, we encountered steady 15-18 knot...

Labor Day Monday, 9/3, I fished at the near-shore reefs with Brian Lucas and his two young sons, Grady and Grant, along with Cadrin Cojanu and his two young children, Ben and Emily. The group used live shrimp to catch four Spanish mackerel to 23 inches, five pompano, all around 14 inches, a keeper mang...

After some rainy days, one no-show customer (that makes twice within a month, and is oh-so annoying), and a few seasonally slow days, I finally got out fishing again on Tuesday, 10/9, when I fished 22 miles west of New Pass with Scott Severaid, Gregg Hass, Todd Vershaw, Jason White and Mike Wernsman. W...

Saturday, 10/20, I fished with long-time customer Marshall Swain, along with his family and friends. We used live shrimp, about 22 miles west of New Pass, and the group caught twenty-five keeper lane snapper to 12 inches, along with one keeper mangrove snapper at 13 inches. They released a half doze...

Monday, 11/5, I fished about 22 miles west of New Pass with Mark Cavanaugh and friends. The four guys used live shrimp to land five gag grouper, three of which would have been keeper-size, to 23 inches, except for the fact that season closed for those five days ago. So we released all of those, along with...

Monday, 11/5, I fished about 22 miles west of New Pass with Mark Cavanaugh and friends. The four guys used live shrimp to land five gag grouper, three of which would have been keeper-size, to 23 inches, except for the fact that season closed for those five days ago. So we released all of those, along wit...

Tuesday, 11/20, I fished inshore in Estero Bay with Al Tooley and his thirteen-year-old son, Aiden. The guys caught a 20-inch, keeper redfish, along with five keeper sheepshead to 15 inches, all on shrimp. They released seven smaller sheepshead and two stingrays. Wednesday morning, I again fish...

Tuesday, 1/8, I headed well offshore, 37 miles west of New Pass, with frequent customer Ron Musick and friends, Eddie Alfonso, Dick Arnett and Ralph Lussluer. We had a good day fishing with live shrimp, and the guys landed four keeper red grouper, 21 ½ inches, 22 ½ inches, 24 inches and the prize winner...

Monday, 2/4, I headed offshore with Barry Pflueger and friends. I hadn’t been offshore in nearly a week, due to rough conditions out there. Seas were still fairly choppy early on, but they calmed down by mid-morning. Fishing was kind of slow although, if it weren’t for grouper season closing, we migh...

Monday, 4/29/13, seas were supposed to be two-to three feet, out to sixty miles, when I headed offshore with Scott Savaraid and four of his friends. But it was a lot rougher than that, in windy conditions, and we ventured out to 18 miles, where the group used live shrimp to catch fifteen keeper lane snap...

Bob and Jo-Ellen Exby fished 18 miles offshore with me on Tuesday, 10/22, just ahead of a cool-front due in the next day. The day began calm, and seas of one-foot were predicted by NOAA, but we had two-to-three foot seas most of the morning, as winds picked up to 15 knots prematurely. The couple used live...

Tuesday, 2/4/14, I headed out 35 miles from New Pass to fish with frequent customers, Ron Musick, Eddie Alfonso, and Dick Arnett. We used live shrimp to catch four snapper—one huge lane snapper at 19 inches and three mangrove snapper all 15 to 16 inches—along with a keeper hogfish at 14 inches, and fif...

Monday, 2/2/15, brought a cold front, right on the heels of a previous front. It was raining by early in the day, and winds and seas kicked up to small craft advisory levels—not a happy way to begin a new month of fishing! Tuesday, 2/3, brought an even more blustery day, with seas of 4-6 feet offshore, wh...

Sunday morning, 2/25, I headed out to 19 miles west of New Pass to fish with Charles Bisgaier and his friend, Andy. The red grouper bite was active, and the guys released twenty red grouper shorts to18 inches, along with two mangrove snapper shorts. They loaded the cooler with twenty-one grunts, all a...

	Forum	Replies	Views	Last Post
sal****er offshore backwater bay gulf Bonita Beach flats Naples Ft Myers Capt Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters bottom-fishing live-bait light-tackle flats-fishing guide charter trout snapper cobia grouper sheepshead SW FL-Bonita Beach: Mostly Bay with a bit of Gulf mixed in (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1776	Apr 26, 2010 by fishbuster
Tuesday, 4/13, the wind was howling through the tree-lines of Estero Bay, where I fished the backwaters with Richard Kostrcewa and his son, Stephan. We used live shrimp to catch and release nine sheepshead, a mangrove snapper and two crevalle jacks. Wednesday was another windy morning in Estero B...
sal****er gulf bay offshore backwaters bottom-fishing live-bait flats-fishing light-tackle CaptainDaveHanson FishbusterCharters Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers guide charter mackerel snapper shark flounder amberjack kingfish SW FL-Bonita Beach: Summer Fishing Heating Up-Kings Here! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1787	Jun 15, 2010 by fishbuster
First of all, our hearts go out to our fellow fisherman and all the residents of the Gulf coast who have been impacted by the BP oil spill. Our thoughts and prayers are with all of you, and we feel fortunate to have escaped this crisis on our shores here in SW FL. We also want all our potential customers to kn...
sal****er offshore gulf Gulf of Mexico SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson mackerel kingfish yellowtail mangrove snapper gag grouper goliath grouper trout bottom-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle SW FL-Bonita Beach: Yellowtail, Grouper, Hogfish, Kings (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1738	Jul 13, 2010 by fishbuster
Pat Fitzgerald and his sons have fished with me for years. This year, the boys brought some friends along for a boat-load of six, including Pat, sons Jimmy and Tommy and friends, Matthew, Jacob, and Brandon. We headed out of New Pass Thursday morning, 7/1, to fish in 44 feet. The boys caught a mess of yel...
sal****er gulf Gilf of Mexico bay backwaters Estero Bay Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers SWFL Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters live-bait flats-fishing bottom-fishing light-tackle red grouper grouper snapper trout reefs SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red Grouper, Snapper & Trout (Preview)	Florida West Coast	1	1801	Aug 17, 2010 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoilOur Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Estero Bay was my fishing grounds on Tuesday morning, 7/27, when I fished with Chris Polumbo and his young daughter, Miranda, along with Miranda's two friends, Bridget and Rachel. We caught two 17-inch trout and two keeper mangrove snap...
saltwater offshore grouper snapper hogfish goliath Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters Bonita Beach SWFL bottom-fishing live-bait spinning tackle SW FL-Bonita Beach: Grouper-fest! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1692	Nov 16, 2010 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Wednesday morning, 11/3, I headed offshore just ahead of an approaching cold-front for the last day in the next several that would allow offshore fishing. Seas were a little sloppy at two-to-three feet about nineteenmiles west of New Pas...
saltwater offshore grouper snapper hogfish Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters Bonita Beach SWFL bottom-fishing live-bait spinning tackle SW FL-Bonita Beach: Mixed Bag Offshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1731	Dec 13, 2010 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” After a rainy cold-front pushed through the area on Wednesday, 12/1, seas were rough through Thursday. Predictions were for 15 knot winds and 2-4 foot seas on Friday but, when I headed offshore with Greg Bauer and friend, Jim, we hit three-...
saltwater offshore snapper sheepshead Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters Bonita Beach SWFL bottom-fishing live-bait spinning tackle SW FL-Bonita Beach: Big, Winter Sheepshead are Here (when weather lets us fish) (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1556	Dec 28, 2010 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” I was in port for several days the week of December 12th, due to a strong cold-front that elevated seas offshore to 12-18 feet, as winds gusted and temperatures plummeted. By Thursday, conditions were calming, but the trip I had scheduled f...
saltwater offshore gulf gulf-of mexico SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson flats fishing live-bait bottom-fishing light-tackle snapper hogfish porgies redfish trout sheepshead SWFL-BonitaBeach:Snapper fill the grouper void;Trout Inshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1699	Feb 7, 2011 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday, 1/24, seas were calmer and I took advantage of those conditions to head out to two spots, one 28 miles west of New Pass and one 36 miles out, to fish in about 65 feet with long-time customer Barry Pflueger and his friends, Glen Ray, brot...
saltwater offshore inshore gulf bay Estero Bay flats-fishing Gulf of Mexico bottom-fishing live-bait Naples Ft. Myers Bonita beach SW FL Captain Dave Hanson. Fishbuster Charters snapper mackerel hogfish sheepshead trout SW FL-Bonita Beach: Inshore & Near-Shore Report (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1622	Mar 21, 2011 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoil Our Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday, 3/7, I fished with (I kid you not) Dave Hanson! After we laughed about captain and client having exactly the same name, Dave introduced me to the rest of his angling party, which included his son-in-law, Ryan Seipp and friend, Way...
saltwater offshore SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson kingfish mackerel grouper snapper almaco jacks banded rudder fish shark trout redfish live-bait bottom-fishing spinning-tackle flats-fishing inshore bay backwater Estero Bay Gulf of Mexico guide charter SW FL-Bonita Beach: Grouper, Snapper, Shark, Kingfish & More (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1788	Apr 18, 2011 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoilOur Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday morning, 4/4, I fished the near-shore reefs off Bonita Beach with Tim and Stephanie Cobb and their two children, Spencer and Sydney. We were fishing just ahead of a weather-front predicted to kick winds up to 25 knots by early afte...
saltwater offshore gulf Gulf-of-Mexico Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers deep-sea bottom-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle flounder snapper grouper mackerel sheepshead shark Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters guide charter SW FL-Bonita Beach: 150 lb shark, keeper grouper, lanes, flounder (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1814	May 16, 2011 by fishbuster
“No oil—No spoilOur Beaches are Clean—Our Waters Pristine” Monday, 5/2, was another one of those breezy day, but the wind direction made it possible to at least get my party of four out to the reefs. Long-time customers Dennis & Jamie Riddell brought Dennis' brother, Tom, and sister-in-law,...
saltwater offshore cobia shark permit grouper snapper goliaths inshore flats snook redfish sheepshead trout Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers SWFL Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters live-bait bottom-fishing flats-fishing spinning-tackle Gulf of Mexico Estero Bay SW FL-Bonita Beach: 30-pound Permit & Goliaths to 425 pounds! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1689	May 30, 2011 by fishbuster
After a few days off the water, with high winds and seas persisting into mid-week, I got back offshore on Friday morning, 5/20, with long-time customer Casey Miller. This time, Casey was in town for a wedding, and he invited the groom and friends to fish with us. The group, consisting of ( in addition to...
saltwater offshore gulf of mexico gulf live-bait bottom-fishing spinning tackle grouper snapper macjerel porgies shark Fishbuster Charters CaptainDave Hanson Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers SW FL SW FL-Bonita Beach: Offshore Report & Goliath Videos (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1571	Aug 1, 2011 by fishbuster
Monday, 7/4, Tony Herring, son Jacob, friend, Josh Schneider, and Tony's two nephews celebrated the Fourth of July with a fishing trip offshore. We fished in 60 feet, using live shrimp and cut-bait. We caught a 13-inch keeper mangrove snapper at our first spot, but the dolphin showed up right after t...
saltwater offshore gulf inshore bay backwaters Gulf of Mexico Estero Bay Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers SW FL Florida Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters live-bait bottom-fishing flats-fishing spinning tackle shark goliath grouper bonito redfish sheepshead snapper SW FL-Bonita Beach: Shark, Goliaths, Bonito, Snapper & Reds-new videos (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1826	Sep 26, 2011 by fishbuster
After a long time off the water, nearly a month, due to our very slow slow-season, along with a couple weeks of consistent rains, I finally got out fishing again on Monday, September 12th. I fished with live shrimp in central Estero Bay with long-time customers Steve Spitzer and Jalissa Reeve...
Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters saltwater offshore gulf of mexico backwaters Estero Bay SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers live-bait spomnning tackle bottom-fishing flats-fishing bonito shark mackerel snapper hogfish goliath grouper porgy sheepshead redfish SW FL-Bonita Beach: Good action inside and offshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1731	Oct 17, 2011 by fishbuster
Wednesday, 10/5, I had an offshore trip planned with Bryan Smith and friends, Tony and Kevin. There were small-craft-advisories in effect that morning, and seas were forecast to be two-to-four feet. The guys didn't want to fish inshore, preferring to go after some bigger game, so we decided to try s...
saltwater gulf bay Gulf of Mexico Estero Bay SWFL Bonita Beach Florida Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters offshore inshore bottom-fishing flats-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle drum sheepshead redfish snapper yellowtail grouper amberjack goliaths SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red Grouper Offshore; Redfish Inshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1688	Nov 28, 2011 by fishbuster
With rough seas persisting into the weekend, my Saturday charter was deferred to Monday, 11/14/11, when seas calmed to two-to-three feet. I headed about 22 miles offshore, out of New Pass, with Bob and Stephanie Rose. We caught a bunch of grouper, but no keepers. Using shrimp and pinfish, we caught...
saltwater offshore gulf Gulf of Mexico inshore bay flats backwaters Estero Bay Bonita Beach SW FL Captain Dave Hanson FGishbuster Charters live-bait spinning tackle bottom-fishing redfish sheepshead hogfish grouper snapper SW FL-Bonita Beach: Big Sheepshead are Back! Grouper, Snapper, Hogfish too (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1768	Dec 19, 2011 by fishbuster
Just as busy season was gearing up, the first week of December brought not only high winds and rough seas, but also red tide conditions in the gulf and up into Estero Bay. The good news is that the weekend's wind direction helped push the red tide out to sea. And, the backwaters, at least the spots I fishe...
saltwater offshore inshore gulf bay SW FL Bonita beach Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters bottom-fishing flats-fishing live-bait grouper snapper sheepshead porgy snook redfish trout SW FL-Bonita Beach:Grouper to 32 inches reluctantly released! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1473	Jan 16, 2012 by fishbuster
After two days of windy, rough, unusually cold weather, thanks to a strong cold-front, I finally got back out fishing on Wednesday morning, 1-4-12. It was still a chilly 35 degrees first thing that morning, and seas were residually rough offshore, so Andy Oliver and Pat O’Neil opted to leave later in...
saltwater gulf of mexico SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson spinning-tackle live-bait bottom-fishing flats-fishing bay backwater Estero Bay grouper gag red grouper mangrove snapper hogfish SW FL-Bonita beach: Excellent Grouper Action; Hogs & Mangs Too (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1912	Jan 30, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 1/16, after a weekend of rough offshore conditions, seas were calming down, with a forecast for two-to-three foot seas out to twenty miles. It was rougher than that, but it was calm enough for my hardy anglers, Bud Glanzer, Lee Larsen, and Alan and Wendell Bronson, all long-time customers....
saltwater offshore deep-sea gulf of mexico bottom-fishing inshore backwaters estero bay flats-fishing live-bait spinning tackle redfish snook snapper hogfish mackerel shark grouper SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson SW FL-Bonita Beach: Shark, Hogs, Mutton, Mangs & Mackerel (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1823	Feb 14, 2012 by fishbuster
The week of 1/30/12 began with a cold-front that brought high winds and seas and small-draft advisories, which forced me to cancel both offshore trips planned for those days.Wednesday morning, 2/1, began a little rough offshore, but quickly calmed down and was flat by afternoon. I fished about 20 m...
saltwater gulf gulf-of-mexico grouper snapper shark hogfish mackerel triggefish porgies inshore bay Estero Bay redfish snook trout flounder live-bait bottom-fishing flats-fishing spinning-tackle Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers SW FL Ft. Myers Beach SW FL-Bonita Beach: Shark-Battles, Snapper, Sheepshead, Hogs (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1990	Feb 27, 2012 by fishbuster
After a couple days off the water, due to a cold front that brought frigid temps, high winds, low tides and rough seas, I headed to the near-shore reefs Monday, 2/13/12, to fish a catch-and-release trip with Richard and Trish Burdow. Seas had calmed to two-to-three feet near-shore, and the sheepshea...
saltwater gulf bay gulf of mexico estero bay flats-fishing bottom-fishing spinning-tackle live-bait Naples Bonita Beach ft. Myers SW FL Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters grouper snapper hogfish mackerel porgies shark trout redfish snook sheepshead SW FL-Bonita Beach: Nice Grouper & Snapper, Hogfish & Trout (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1837	Mar 12, 2012 by fishbuster
Although, after a windy, rough weekend, seas were calming to two-to-four feet on Monday, my planned gulf-trip canceled, as they thought seas would still be too rough. So I missed that day on the water. But, I got back offshore on Tuesday, 2/28, with Kari Vilamaa, George Dyer, Paul Kikendall, and Don H...
saltwater offshore gulf gulf-of-mexico bay backwaters estero bay Naples Ft. Myers Bonita Beach SW FL Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters live-bait bottom-fishing flats fishing spinning tackle snapper hogfish shark king mackerel kingfish Spanish mackerel SW FL-Bonita Beach: 20lb. Kingfish, sheepies, mangs, hogs, shark, Spanish (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1658	Mar 26, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 3/12, after a windy weekend, winds were predicted to calm somewhat, and seas were forecast at two-to-three feet near-shore, and three-to-five feet beyond twenty miles. But, as I approached the near-shore reefs with Mark McCarthy, Mark and David Hatch, and Rich Jenkins (who was celebrati...
saltwater gulf offshore bottom-fishing live-bait spinning tackle gulf of mexico inshore bay backwaters estero bay flats fishing Naples Ft. Myers Bonita Beach SW FL Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters grouper snapper hogfish mackerel shark porgies sheepshead redfish SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red Grouper are Back! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1927	Apr 9, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday morning, 3/26, I fished over hard bottom in 35 feet, with Chris Ernberger, his dad, Jerry, and Chris's son, Carter. There was about a 3-foot roller left over from the windy Sunday that preceded our trip, so we didn't venture too far offshore. The guys used live-shrimp to catch six keeper mangro...
saltwater offshore gulf of mexico live-bait bottom-fishing spinning tackle Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters SW FL Bonita Beach Ft. myers Naples shark grouper hogfish snapper mackerel backwaters bay estero bay flats-fishing redfish seatrout inshore SW FL-Bonita Beach: Lane Snapper Plentiful. Red Grouper, Shark & Goliath Battles (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1863	Apr 23, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 4/9, seas had calmed at last, and I headed out to fish in spots between 22 and 28 miles west of New Pass with Bill Conklin, his son, Eric Conklin, and friend, Rick Weigand. Bill caught a keeper red grouper at 21 inches, and we released lots of red grouper just short of keeper size. The group also ca...
saltwater offshore shark snapper grouper SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters bottom-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle gulf of mexico SW FL-Bonita Beach: Grouper, Snapper, Shark, and lots of rough seas (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1418	May 7, 2012 by fishbuster
After about six days off the water, due to high winds and seas offshore and shallow, muddy conditions in the bay, I finally got offshore with Ron Musick, Eddie Alfonse, Dick Arnett, Bob Mayer, and Matt Watson on Thursday, 4/26. We headed out of New Pass to 36 miles, where we fished with live shrimp and pi...
saltwater offshore cobia shark snapper grouper SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters bottom-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle gulf of mexico SWFL-Bonita Beach: Cobia, Shark, Snapper, Goliaths & Grouper (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1821	May 28, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 5/7, I fished at the near-shore reefs with Joe and Donna Corso. The couple used live shrimp to catch a 14-inch keeper-pompano, two keeper flounders at 14 and 18 inches, a keeper mangrove snapper, a keeper sea trout at 20 inches, a half dozen Spanish mackerels in the 22-23-inch range, and three...
saltwater offshore cobia shark snapper grouper SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters bottom-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle gulf of mexico SW FL-Bonita beach: Great Fishing Offshore & a 500-lb Goliath Battle! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1783	Jun 18, 2012 by fishbuster
Tuesday, 5/29, I spent the day fishing in 47 feet, using live shrimp, with Robert Pierce, Brian Clark, and Julie Meng. The trio hoped to catch some good table-fare, along with doing some sport-fishing for bigger fish. I had hoped to put them on some goliath grouper for the latter, but the goliaths wer...
saltwater offshore snapper mackerel redfish SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters bottom-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle gulf of mexico SW FL-Bonita beach: Recent trips, before the rains came (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1400	Jul 16, 2012 by fishbuster
We have had a lot of rain recently and, prior to that, I was off the water for a couple of weeks, due to a family reunion. So there isn’t a whole lot to report, but I did do a couple of trips inshore and near-shore. Last Monday morning, I headed to the near-shore reefs with Steve and Lori Greiner and their two y...
saltwater offshore gulf Gulf of Mexico Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson Naples Ft. Myers Bonita Beach SW FL live-bait bottom-fishing spinning-tackle grouper snapper hogfish mackerel porgies triggerfish redfish sheepshead SW FL-Bonita Beach: Abundant Hogfish, Mangs, Lanes, Grouper and more (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1434	Aug 6, 2012 by fishbuster
After several weeks off the water because of a family reunion trip, followed by lots of rainy days unsuitable for fishing, I finally got offshore on Friday, 7/20/12 with John Hamilton and friends. We fished 36 miles west of New Pass, where we got into some red grouper. We didn't get a keeper, though, o...
saltwater offshore gulf-of mexico inshore bay Estero Bay flats-fishing bottom-fishing spinning-tackle live-bait Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson Bonita Beach SW FL Naples Ft. Myers goliath-grouper red-grouper gag-grouper shark cobia mackerel snapper redfish snook flounder trout SW FL-Bonita Beach: Goliaths, Gags & Snapper (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1682	Aug 20, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 8/6, I headed out to 35 feet to fish with Brian Woeste, Adam Bodkin and Tim Powers. The guys wanted to experience the thrill of big game, but also wanted some food fish. We started out catching blue runners and Spanish mackerel for goliath grouper bait. The guys caught and released a 70-pound go...
saltwater offshore gulf of mexico Bonita Beach SW FL Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters live-bait spinning-tackle bottom-fishing grouper goliaths snapper shark flounder mackerel porgies SWFL-Bonita Beach:Nice Gag Grouper, Goliaths, Shark, Snapper (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1575	Sep 3, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 8/20, I fished with Steve Spitzer and Jalissa Reever again. They had fished with me the previous Wednesday and caught a couple of keeper gag grouper. But, Monday, conditions were different. Despite forecasts for one-to-two foot seas and 5-10 knot winds, we encountered steady 15-18 knot...
saltwater offshore gulf bay inshore flats-fishing bottom-fishing live-bait SW FL Bonita Beach Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave hanson Fishbuster Charters spinning-tackle grouper snapper mackerel porgies redfish trout flounder sheepshead SW FL-Bonita Beach: Nice variety--even caught a scamp! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1497	Sep 24, 2012 by fishbuster
Labor Day Monday, 9/3, I fished at the near-shore reefs with Brian Lucas and his two young sons, Grady and Grant, along with Cadrin Cojanu and his two young children, Ben and Emily. The group used live shrimp to catch four Spanish mackerel to 23 inches, five pompano, all around 14 inches, a keeper mang...
saltwater offshore gulf of mexico red grouper lane snapper yellowtail snapper mangrove snapper porgies porkfish SW FL Bonita beach Naples Ft. Myers Fishbuster Charters Captain Dave Hanson live-bait bottom-fishing spinning-tackle SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red Grouper & Snapper (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1480	Oct 15, 2012 by fishbuster
After some rainy days, one no-show customer (that makes twice within a month, and is oh-so annoying), and a few seasonally slow days, I finally got out fishing again on Tuesday, 10/9, when I fished 22 miles west of New Pass with Scott Severaid, Gregg Hass, Todd Vershaw, Jason White and Mike Wernsman. W...
saltwater inshore offshore flats-fishing bottom-fishing gulf of mexico estero bay SW FL Bonita beach Naples Ft. Myers Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters grouper snapper sheepshead shark redfish snook SW FL-Bonita Beach: Snapper, Grouper, Shark, Sheeps, Reds, Snook (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1615	Nov 5, 2012 by fishbuster
Saturday, 10/20, I fished with long-time customer Marshall Swain, along with his family and friends. We used live shrimp, about 22 miles west of New Pass, and the group caught twenty-five keeper lane snapper to 12 inches, along with one keeper mangrove snapper at 13 inches. They released a half doze...
saltwater offshore inshore gulf estero bay bottom-fishing flats-fishing live-bait Captain Dave Hanson Fishbuster Charters Bonita Beach naples Ft. Myers SWFL snapper grouper hogfish shark porgies redfish trout snook permit SW FL-Bonita Beach:Good Action and Variety Inshore& Offshore (Preview)	Florida SouthWest	0	2069	Nov 20, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 11/5, I fished about 22 miles west of New Pass with Mark Cavanaugh and friends. The four guys used live shrimp to land five gag grouper, three of which would have been keeper-size, to 23 inches, except for the fact that season closed for those five days ago. So we released all of those, along with...
saltwater offshore inshore gulf estero bay flats-fishing bottom-fishing live-bait fishbuster charters naples bonita beach ft. myers captain dave hanson snook redfish trout snapper porgies grouper hogfish shark SW FL-Bonita Beach:Good Action and Variety Inshore& Offshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1513	Nov 20, 2012 by fishbuster
Monday, 11/5, I fished about 22 miles west of New Pass with Mark Cavanaugh and friends. The four guys used live shrimp to land five gag grouper, three of which would have been keeper-size, to 23 inches, except for the fact that season closed for those five days ago. So we released all of those, along wit...
saltwater gulf of mexico offshore estero bay inshore backwaters captain dave hanson fishbuster charters bonita beach naples ft. myers swfl live-bait bottom-fishing spinning-tackle light-tackle flats-fishing grouper snapper porgies sheepshead redfish hogfish SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red Grouper Gulfside; Big Sheepshead Inshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1668	Dec 3, 2012 by fishbuster
Tuesday, 11/20, I fished inshore in Estero Bay with Al Tooley and his thirteen-year-old son, Aiden. The guys caught a 20-inch, keeper redfish, along with five keeper sheepshead to 15 inches, all on shrimp. They released seven smaller sheepshead and two stingrays. Wednesday morning, I again fish...
saltwater offshore gulf of mexico hogfish snapper grouper mackerel porgies triggerfish sheepshead swfl captain dave hanson fishbuster charters bonita beach naples ft. myers bottom-fishing live-bait spinning-tackle SW FL-Bonita Beach: Lots of Action & a 20-inch Hogfish! (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1553	Jan 21, 2013 by fishbuster
Tuesday, 1/8, I headed well offshore, 37 miles west of New Pass, with frequent customer Ron Musick and friends, Eddie Alfonso, Dick Arnett and Ralph Lussluer. We had a good day fishing with live shrimp, and the guys landed four keeper red grouper, 21 ½ inches, 22 ½ inches, 24 inches and the prize winner...
saltwater offshore inshore gulf of mexico estero bay backwaters flats-fishing bottom-fishing light spinning tackle live bait swfl bonita beach naples ft. myers captain dave hanson fishbuster charters hogfish grouper snapper porgy triggerfish trout snook redfish sheepshead SW FL-Bonita Beach: If only the winds would stop... (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1517	Feb 18, 2013 by fishbuster
Monday, 2/4, I headed offshore with Barry Pflueger and friends. I hadn’t been offshore in nearly a week, due to rough conditions out there. Seas were still fairly choppy early on, but they calmed down by mid-morning. Fishing was kind of slow although, if it weren’t for grouper season closing, we migh...
saltwater gulf of mexico estero bay swfl bonita beach naples fort myers beach captain dave hanson fishbuster charters grouper snapper mackerel shark redfish live-bait bottom-fishing flats-fishing light-tackle swfl florida gulf coast SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red Grouper Offshore; Redfish Inshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1445	May 13, 2013 by fishbuster
Monday, 4/29/13, seas were supposed to be two-to three feet, out to sixty miles, when I headed offshore with Scott Savaraid and four of his friends. But it was a lot rougher than that, in windy conditions, and we ventured out to 18 miles, where the group used live shrimp to catch fifteen keeper lane snap...
saltwater offshore inshore swfl bonita beach naples ft. myers live-bait bottom-fishing flats-fishing light tackle spinning tackle grouper snapper hogfish shark flounder redfish sheepshead SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red grouper, Hogfish, Shark, Redfish & Sheepshead (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1350	Nov 11, 2013 by fishbuster
Bob and Jo-Ellen Exby fished 18 miles offshore with me on Tuesday, 10/22, just ahead of a cool-front due in the next day. The day began calm, and seas of one-foot were predicted by NOAA, but we had two-to-three foot seas most of the morning, as winds picked up to 15 knots prematurely. The couple used live...
saltwater offshore gulf of mexico estero bay backwaters bottom-fishing flats-fishing light tackle spinning tackle live bait captain dave hanson fishbuster charters swfl florida bonita springs bonita beach naples ft. myers porgies shark hogfish grouper snapper redfish black drum drum sheepshead SW FL-Bonita Beach: Big Sheepies, Bull-Red & 8-foot Shark (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1569	Feb 17, 2014 by fishbuster
Tuesday, 2/4/14, I headed out 35 miles from New Pass to fish with frequent customers, Ron Musick, Eddie Alfonso, and Dick Arnett. We used live shrimp to catch four snapper—one huge lane snapper at 19 inches and three mangrove snapper all 15 to 16 inches—along with a keeper hogfish at 14 inches, and fif...
saltwater offshore gulf of mexico live-bait bottom-fishing inshore backwaters estero bay light tackle swfl florida gulfcoast bonita springs bonita beach fort myers naples porgy grouper snapper captain dave hanson fishbuster charters SW FL-Bonita Beach: Challenging conditions, big porgies, nice lanes, grouper & more (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1409	Feb 16, 2015 by fishbuster
Monday, 2/2/15, brought a cold front, right on the heels of a previous front. It was raining by early in the day, and winds and seas kicked up to small craft advisory levels—not a happy way to begin a new month of fishing! Tuesday, 2/3, brought an even more blustery day, with seas of 4-6 feet offshore, wh...
saltwater offshore inshore bottom-fishing flats-fishing swfl+ bonita beach naples captain dave hanson fishbuster charters estero bay gulf of mexico snapper grouper cobia shark mackerel triggerfish hogfish porgy porkfish sheepshead permit pompano trout redfish black drum snook crevalle jack SW FL-Bonita Beach: Lots of nice catches offshore and inshore (Preview)	Florida West Coast	0	1378	Mar 17, 2018 by fishbuster
Sunday morning, 2/25, I headed out to 19 miles west of New Pass to fish with Charles Bisgaier and his friend, Andy. The red grouper bite was active, and the guys released twenty red grouper shorts to18 inches, along with two mangrove snapper shorts. They loaded the cooler with twenty-one grunts, all a...