Category: Uncategorized
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November 2025 – Saltwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
With the inconsistent weather in November, it placed a greater importance on game planning and fishing tactics. On breezy days, the challenge was to find areas out of the wind while still yielding success. Additionally, it seemed if the bite was slightly off we could still catch fish if we placed our baits in the perfect spots. Fish caught this month included a multitude of species including speckled trout, mangrove snapper, ladyfish, Spanish mackerel, and gag grouper. The gag grouper can’t currently be harvested, but are always fun to catch! Thank you to all my November clients, whom often remind me how wonderful the Florida weather is in comparison to the northern states. Thank you for reading, and we look forward to seeing you on the water!
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August 2025 – Saltwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
This may be the first time here at Martin Family Charters that we’ve seen the East Coast and the West Coast fish so similarly. Normally, the speckled trout and redfish are the primary catches inshore, but in August our success was with the smaller jacks, weakfish, snapper, and catfish. Every day we communicate with the local bait shops and other captains in the area, and it seems as though this is common across the board. However, if the seas were manageable, the offshore bite has been solid for croaker, weakfish, grunts, porgies, snapper, and grouper. Also, this month we were reminded of some small tips for going offshore which you can ask the captain prior to your trip.
As we move in to September, the bite should keep on improving. It’s our suggestion to run offshore on the calm days, and stay inshore on the windy days with high seas. Here at Martin Family Charters we always want to focus on the clients having fun! Thank you for reading, and we look forward to seeing you on the water.
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July 2025 – Saltwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
It’s been a while since I’ve seen the overall health of both coasts look so good. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have taken the necessary steps to help replenish the fisheries, and the results are wonderful. Here at Martin Family Charters, the speckled trout, redfish, mangrove snapper, Spanish mackerel, and lady fish are starting to bite well if the conditions allow. I especially would like to thank a few of my July fishing charter groups that braved some of the windy days. It’s always tough to forecast, but hopefully August will be amazing. Thank you for reading, and we look forward to seeing you on the water!
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June 2025 – Saltwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
What a wonderful month for the seas! It’s that time of year where we really have to pay close attention to the radar, and watch for the afternoon pop-up thunderstorms. However, with our casting off around 7 in the morning, it cuts out that variable (most days). Inshore, this has been a few months in row of lots of species being caught, but not a lot of keeper fish. Considering most of our groups are down on vacation this is a non-issue, although we strive to catch the biggest fish possible all the time. Just offshore, we have had manageable seas from 1-3 ft. It’s sometimes a long ride from Bing’s Landing, but it is fun to target snappers, amberjacks, and grouper! Below is a beautiful AJ caught on a pinfish. Thank you for reading, and we look forward to seeing you on the water!
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June 2025 – Freshwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
With it getting warm so quickly, it was imperative for us to get started early in June. Almost every day the largemouth bass were chasing bait around sunrise. This led to some awesome topwater action, even though it was for a short amount of time. Later in the day, we had to find humps or ledges next to deeper, cooler water to have success catching fish. This is a welcomed challenge, and depending on the day can be a little difficult to figure out. On one trip in particular with repeat clients, we finally got in to them right at the end of the trip! Either way, at Martin Family Charters we’ll always do everything we can to have success on the water. Thank you for reading, and I hope to see you in October!
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May 2025 – Freshwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
I appreciate these summer months, as it really puts an emphasis on strategy and techniques to catch fish. When using artificial lures it is imperative to slow down your retrieval. The fish are lethargic, and as long as the lure can be presented at the same pace, it will yield success. For live bait, there are two different tactics we use. First, using about two feet of fluorocarbon directly tied to braid, we keep the bail open and let the bass slowly drag the bait away before setting the hook. Second, just like when we were kids, we use a live or dead bait under a float. This increases our chances of catching a variety of species including long nose gar, bowfin, chain pickerel, and largemouth bass. Come and put this to the test, and we look forward to seeing you on the water soon!
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May 2025 – Saltwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
It was wonderful to see all the boats, families, and fishermen on the water! For us, when we were out on the water the fishing was a little tough. We could see schools of redfish that were mixed in with the mullet, as the snook cruised under the mangroves. However, as soon as the bait would hit the water they would get spooked. Simply put, they may have been a little pressured with so many boats on the water. Anyway, we changed it up and started to fish for anything that would bend the rod. Our catches included speckled trout, small jacks, ladyfish, catfish, mangrove snappers, and a few other species. We hope for an even better June, and we look forward to seeing you on the water!
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April 2025 – Freshwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
With the water starting to warm up a few degrees, there is tons of scattered baitfish. This worked out well first thing in the morning, especially when targeting schooling fish. Successful artificial baits included topwater poppers and walk-the-dog lures. However, many days we quickly switched to live bait as soon as the fish stopped busting the surface. Plus, with more than two fishermen on the boat the live bait is the safest technique for beginners or experts alike. This time of year it’s important to have fun, enjoy the weather, and appreciate every fish landed. Thank you for reading, and we look forward to seeing you on the water!
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April 2025 – Saltwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
In April, there were a few different variables that impacted game planning for charters. First, wind was the biggest factor. If the wind was blowing out of the east, we primarily tried to fish the Tampa Bay area. Or, if we had a cold front rolling in with winds from the northwest, we tried to fish the Space Coast. This way, even if it was breezy we could have some fun and fish. Secondly, we found that casting with precision played a role in April, as well. Most of the time, a cast in the general vicinity of the fish yielded success, but the fish were holding real tight to their territory which placed an emphasis on casting. Lastly, there were no nearshore(up to 10 miles offshore) runs whatsoever. The seas were simply too rough. Anyway, when we were in a good spot out of the wind that was paired with a solid cast, we could whack em. The mangrove snapper were snapping, but they would also try to cut us off on the rocks after biting. Another fish that we caught a good amount of was sheepshead, mostly found under the bridges off both coasts. Other catches in April included speckled trout, ladyfish, black drum, hardhead catfish, gafftopsail catfish, Spanish mackerel, and bluefish. Thank you for reading, and we look forward to May!
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March 2025 – Saltwater
BY: Tim / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Uncategorized
Saltwater fishing was pretty awesome this month! It was still hard to know exactly what species to target on a daily basis, but we were able to get the rods bent one way or the other. Special thanks goes out to all of our March clients, as they were flexible on the fishing locations. To be specific, there has been another green algae bloom in the Indian and Banana rivers, so we had to have a plan B. Ponce Inlet, Port Canaveral, and Tampa Bay are all great alternatives to Titusville, but I hope the algae goes away soon. Fish caught in the month of March included some small snook, redfish, mangrove snapper, sheepshead, and a good amount of jacks. Also, there were a couple of charters where our guests simply wanted to visit the sand bars, dock-bar hop, and see the dolphins or manatees. Either way, it was great to be on the water!
