The mangrove snapper size limit in Florida state Gulf waters is 10 inches total length measured from the tip of the snout to the tip of the tail with the tail fins pinched together. The daily bag limit is 5 fish per person. There is no closed season. Mangrove snapper are open year-round in Southwest Florida. That is the short answer. But catching k...

Yes there are sharks in Fort Myers. Plenty of them. The warm Gulf waters abundant baitfish and diverse habitat around Fort Myers Beach Sanibel Island Pine Island Sound and the Caloosahatchee River support a healthy and thriving shark population that includes at least eight regularly encountered species. Are there sharks in Fort Myers is probably th...

In the spring of 2020 as the world locked down and outdoor recreation became one of the only acceptable forms of escape something remarkable happened to the kayak industry: it ran out of kayaks. Not metaphorically. Literally. By summer 2020 most kayak manufacturers were backordered for months. Dealers couldn’t get inventory. Customers were waiting...

If you walked into Economy Tackle fifteen years ago looking for a kayak you would have found a very different selection than what fills our showroom today. Long sleek touring kayaks. Recreational sit-insides. The occasional fishing-rigged sit-on-top for the more adventurous customer. The industry’s center of gravity was somewhere between flatwater...

One of the best-kept secrets about kayaking in Sarasota is that a paddle craft gets you somewhere a powerboat a car or a walking trail simply cannot. The same shallow water and tight mangrove creeks that make Sarasota Bay so productive for fishing also hide some genuinely beautiful genuinely quiet spots beaches and sandbars and […] The post Best K...

It’s BACK! The Weekly Fishing Report with Captain Juan Leon. Listen to Capt Juan give you the lastest happenings in Sarasota Bay and surrounding beaches near and off shore for your full fishin report!   The post Fishin Report June 11th 2026 – Video appeared first on Economy Tackle/Dolphin Paddle Sports.

Choosing the right charter length is the single most underrated decision when booking fishing trips in Fort Myers. Most visitors default to the cheapest option (the 4-hour half-day) without realizing that an extra two hours can transform the entire experience. Other anglers book a full 8-hour trip when their group’s stamina or target species would...

Pedal-drive kayaks have changed inshore fishing in Sarasota Bay more than any other single piece of equipment in the last decade. Keeping both hands free while you cover water hold position in current and cast to tailing redfish isn’t a luxury anymore; it’s the standard for serious kayak anglers. But once you decide you want […] The post Fin Drive...

Captiva Island sits at the top of the Sanibel-Captiva barrier island chain separated from Sanibel by Blind Pass to the south and from North Captiva by Redfish Pass to the north. That position surrounded by two of the most productive passes in Southwest Florida defines what Captiva fishing is all about. Where Fort Myers fishing focuses on volume and...

Cape Coral is unlike anywhere else on the Gulf coast for one specific reason: the city has more than 400 miles of saltwater canals connected directly to the Caloosahatchee River Matlacha Pass Pine Island Sound and the open Gulf. That number is not a typo. Cape Coral has more navigable canal mileage than Venice Italy and that geography defines what...

Of all the inshore species that call Sarasota Bay home the red drum universally known as redfish stands out as the ultimate kayak fishing target. They’re powerful aggressive and found in water shallow enough that a kayak gives you a significant tactical advantage over motorized boats. When the water is clear and the tide is […] The post How to Cat...

There’s a moment most kayak anglers hit usually sometime after the fifth or sixth time struggling to lift a 75-pound polyethylene kayak onto a car roof or after wrenching a shoulder at the boat ramp when they start asking: “Is there a better way?” There is. Lightweight kayaks have never been better more feature-rich or […] The post Lightweight Kay...

May is one of the best months to be on Sarasota Bay. Snook are waking up cobia are still in the passes redfish are tailing on warm flats and the water clarity is excellent. It’s also the month when many anglers start thinking about upgrading their setup and one of the fastest-growing upgrades in the […] The post Kayak Fishing with an Electric Moto...

Choosing the right fishing charter near Sanibel is less about the boat and more about strategy. Sanibel is an island but the smartest move for many visiting anglers is launching from a mainland marina that delivers you to the island fishing grounds without the bridge toll the parking hassle or the lost time. Where you depart shapes which water you...

May has lived up to every expectation so far. Water temperatures are sitting right where we want them in the upper 70s and low 80s the bait is thick across the flats and the fish are responding. We’ve been running trips across the full Southwest Florida fishing grounds this month from Pine Island Sound down through Sanibel and into Estero Bay and t...

Fort Myers Florida is home to one of the most diverse fisheries in the entire United States. The fish species Fort Myers Florida produces range from hard-fighting inshore gamefish like snook and redfish to heavyweight reef dwellers like grouper and snapper seasonal migrants like tarpon and cobia and everything in between. Over 50 catchable species...

Sarasota Bay is one of Florida’s premier inshore fishing destinations a shallow protected estuary teeming with redfish snook trout and tarpon. For anglers looking to get close to the action without the noise or expense of a motorized boat a fishing kayak is the perfect solution. But not every kayak is built for the unique […] The post Best Fishing...

Understanding the difference between inshore and nearshore fishing is the single most important decision you will make when booking a Fort Myers charter. Both put fish on the line. Both create memories. But the experience the species the water conditions and the physical demands are completely different. Picking the wrong one for your group means a...

Sarasota Bay stretches roughly 35 miles along the Gulf Coast of Florida offering an extraordinary variety of fishing environments within easy paddling distance of public launch points. From the shallow grass flats of the upper bay to the deep mangrove channels of the barrier islands every section of this estuary holds fish year-round. We’ve identi...

Ask ten anglers whether they prefer live bait or artificial lures and you’ll get ten different answers usually delivered with strong opinions. The truth is that both have a place in your arsenal and knowing when to reach for each one is what separates a productive day on the water from a slow one. If […] The post Live Bait vs. Artificial Lures for...