Fishbuster Charters' Captain Dave Hanson reported, "Chuck Collins and his dad, Steve, were weathered out of a planned offshore trip last month, and rescheduled for Monday, 3/2. The winds were blowing hard, and seas were rough, but they opted to fish near-shore in the Gulf, rather than in the backwaters, since they had not fished offshore before. Using shrimp and squid at the near-shore reefs, the guys boxed ten Spanish mackerel between 22 and 24 inches, along with a lone grunt. They released a small gag grouper, a dozen crevalle jacks, and a dozen blue runners.


Lee Larsen, with friends, John and Mark, decided to fish the backwaters Tuesday morning, 3/3, since winds were still strong, and we expected rough conditions offshore. The guys used shrimp in southern Estero Bay to catch and release twelve sheepshead to 14 inches, two ladyfish, one short mangrove snapper, and three crevalle jacks.


I spent a windy Friday morning, 3/6, fishing with Mike and Bethany Lischer in southern Estero Bay, on a catch-and-release trip, using live shrimp for bait. The tide was good, but the water was muddy, following the weather-front that moved through the area overnight. The couple released twelve sheepshead, a ladyfish, a few puffers, and an 18-inch redfish.'