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The line tugged, and I started to reel in. The pole bent; I leveraged the great beast out of the water to reveal—a catfish. Those bottom feeders. We took a quick look and threw him back.
For the August issue of Gulfshore Life, I was assigned to write a story about fishing in Southwest Florida (I know, tough job). The problem: I haven't fished in years.
Luckily, Tyler Hawes was willing to help me out. He's a young guide out of Naples, knowledgeable of the local waters and well-liked within the fishing community. In addition to helping me out with my feature story in the magazine, he volunteered to take me and my boss out one afternoon.
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We ventured out of Bayview Boat Landing on his 2014 Morada Bay 24 on a cloudy afternoon, just avoiding a storm that had brewed off shore. He had a chartered trip later that day, so he took us out for his usual pre-trip ritual—gathering by cast-net dozens of bait fish (right).
Then, it was off for a couple hours fishing. We snuck into the canals of Venetian Bay, setting anchor around a few choice spots (under docks tend to be where the fish congregate). Aside from the catfish, I also caught a decent-sized tree branch that didn't put up too much of a fight. My boss, a much more experienced angler than I, caught a few snook.
We sped back in before another storm started to swell with promises from Tyler that my next time would be a bit more successful now that I've got a better handle on casting. Hey, I guess a catfish is better than nothing.
A couple helpful links about fishing in Southwest Florida:
We've run stories in the past about fishing our Gulf waters. Our most comprehensive is called Hooked, a guide on what to bring, where to go and what you'll find.
Also, in our "Fun on the Water" section last year, we ran a guide to the top fishing spots locally. It will at least help you get your bearings if you've never been out in Southwest Florida before.