Dave Hanson

Slow season is here for sure. Seasonal residents have fled our heat and humidity until October and the economy is not producing our usual number of summer vacationers this year. On top of that, a low pressure system that hung over our area for several days was still in effect Monday, 6/29, when I fished a windy Estero Bay with Bill Maybrook and friend, Andy. We missed the rains and were able to catch six keeper mangrove snapper on shrimp. We released nine smaller snapper, two snook to 16 inches and four sheepshead that were just short of keeper size.

The weather remained pretty unstable most of the week, with rains likely both morning and afternoon. Seas in the gulf remained rough. The next time I got out fishing was Friday morning, 7/3, in Estero Bay, with Paul Rosenberg and Cory Knight. We did well, using shrimp to catch three keeper trout to 18 ½ inches, a keeper sheepshead and four keeper mangrove snapper to 13 inches. We released 15 smaller trout and crevalle jack.

Tim and Amy Harwood, nine-year-old daughter, Emily, and eight-year-old daughter, Abby, fished central Estero Bay with me Wednesday morning, 7/8. The backwaters are very warm and that tends to slow down the bite, but we had pretty steady action with trout, using shrimp and popping corks. We caught and released nine of those, along with nine mangrove snapper and a small permit.

I was back in Estero Bay Friday morning, when I fished with Jerry Robertson, his son, and grandson. We again had good action with trout and snapper on shrimp with popping corks. We kept two mangrove snapper and a 16 inch trout.

The photo shown is of anglers, Bryant and Gary Click, with a pair of redfish and a 23 inch trout, caught on shrimp on a recent inshore trip.

Fish Species: snook, sheepshead, snapper, trout
Bait Used: live shrimp
Tackle Used: light spinning
Method Used: tree lines-oyster bars with popping cork
Water Depth: 1-4 feet
Water Temperature: 92
Wind Direction: S-SW
Wind Speed: 15 knots



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Dave Hanson

About The Author: Captain Dave Hanson

Company: Fish Buster Charters

Area Reporting: Bonita Beach

Bio: Captain Dave Hanson is a native of southwest Florida. He has been fishing local waters since childhood, and has been fishing professionally for over fifteen years. He is Coast Guard licensed, and is a member in good standing of the Bonita Springs Chamber of Commerce. He has been featured in several national fishing magazines, and he also appears weekly in the fishing reports sections of the Bonita, Ft. Myers, Ft. Myers Beach, and Naples, FL newspapers.

239-947-1688
Click Here For Past Fishing Reports by Captain Dave Hanson