Charter Fishing Trip Types, Rates and Details

Redfish are caught year round in our lagoons and are the primary target on most trips. Reds can often be spotted cruising on the shallow flats or feeding with their tails out of the water (“tailing”), providing exciting sight-fishing. Typical lagoon redfish range from about 16” to 30” and 2 to 10 lbs., but much larger fish, occasionally in excess of 50” and 40 lbs., can be caught in deeper channels and, during later summer and fall spawning season, sight-fished with light tackle on the flats.

Technically known as “spotted seatrout” but more commonly referred to simply as “trout” or “specks,” these beautiful fish aren’t trout at all, but rather members of the croaker family. Our lagoons are known for trophy-size “gator” trout upwards of 25” and 5 lbs. or so. Smaller fish provide fast action perfect for kids, and fish within the 15” to 20” slot limit are great eating. Spring and early summer typically provide the best trout fishing, but we catch them year-round. Trout seem to love chilly, windy weather.

Closely related to redfish, black drum are less willing then their cousins to bite artificial lures and flies but will readily take live or dead shrimp. Under 25” or so, they’re handsome fish with wide silver and black bars on their sides and make great table fare. Larger specimens lose their bars and are sometimes referred to by the unfortunate nickname “big uglies.” Nonetheless, they’re powerful, dogged fighters than can push 40 lbs. in the lagoons. Most that we catch run 5 to 15 lbs.

Snook fishing in the Indian River and Mosquito Lagoons is seasonal, peaking in the heat of summer. Snook numbers and size also vary year to year. We are near the northern end of snook’s range on the Atlantic coast, so cold winters can kill large numbers of fish and/or push them farther south. Several warm winters in a row mean great snook fishing — which we experienced in 2021! We also target larger snook around the jetties of Port Canaveral on our Inlet Fishing trips.