Fishbuster Charters' Captain Dave Hanson reported, "Monday morning, 3/30, after a windy weekend, seas had calmed down to two-to-three feet, and I headed twenty miles offshore with Paul Kikendall and friends, Greg, Rick and Tom. The guys did very well snapper-fishing with live shrimp, and caught forty keeper lane snapper to 14 inches. They released tree red grouper shorts.



Tuesday, 3/31, frequent customers, Ron Musick and Eddie Alfonso, joined by friends, Bob Meyer, Bob’s son, Brian Meyer, and Terry and her son, Brennen, fished nineteen miles west of New Pass with me, using live shrimp. The snapper bite was good for mangrove and yellowtail snapper, and the group caught six keeper mangs, all 12-to16 inches, along with three keeper yellowtails to 14 inches. They added twenty-five porgies, all nice ones about 15 inches, along with a mess of grunts to 15 inches. The group released red grouper shorts to 18 ½ inches and gag grouper shorts to 20 inches.

Angler Buzz Norris with an 31-inch king mackerel, on of three nice kingfish he and his dad caught on shrimp 20 miles west of New Pass on a recent offshore Fishbuster Charter.



Rob and Sherry Steffen enjoyed a calm morning of fishing offshore with me on Wednesday, 4/1/15. We fished 23 miles west of New Pass, over rocky bottom, and did well with grouper and snapper. The couple caught three keeper red grouper, at 21 inches, 22 inches, and 23 inches. They released forty additional red grouper shorts, including a half dozen that were only ¼ inch short of keeper size—heart-breaking! But they ended up with plenty of good eating fish, adding to the box a mess of nice, keeper lane snapper to15 inches. They caught one of the keeper red grouper on a bait-fish, one on a piece of octopus, and one on a shrimp. The snapper all bit shrimp.

Angler Bill Crockett with a 19 1/2-inch sheepshead, caught on shrimp in Estero Bay on a recent inshore Fishbuster Charter.



Bill and Marie McSkimming, daughter, Jenn McSkimming, and grandsons, Austin and William Spooner, fished 20 miles west of New Pass with me on Thursday morning, 4/2, using live shrimp for bait. The family caught two king mackerel, one at 26 inches and one at 34 inches. They did well with lane snapper too, culling twenty-five keepers to 14 inches. They released fifteen red grouper shorts to 17 inches, along with some blue runners.



Friday, 4/3, I headed offshore with Gary Brooks, his son-in-law, Justin Herman, future son-in-law, Sean Montellese, and friend, Hans Cooper. The lane snapper bite was hot again, as it has been recently, and the guys caught twenty keeper lanes on shrimp. They added to the box a couple of nice red grouper at 21 inches and 22 inches, both of those also caught on shrimp, and they released another seventy-plus red grouper shorts to 18 inches. A half dozen nice-sized grunts topped off a full fish box.



Saturday morning, 4/4, I fished a catch-and-release trip in the backwaters of Estero Bay with Tom Anderson and his two sons, Ben and Chris. The guys used live shrimp to catch three mangrove snapper, one sheepshead, one snook, and five stingray. One of the stingrays was a big one at about 10 pounds, making for a worthy battle."