Naples & Marco Island Tarpon Season

Tarpon season is in full tilt boogey in the Naples fishing and Marco Island fishing area. We had a great week with some new and some returning clients hooking tarpon almost every day and landing a good percentage.

We’ve been leaving the dock at 5:30am and head out the pass running along the beach to the spot we chose that day. It’s a nice ride as the first hint of sunrise peeks above the horizon. 

Tarpon (megalops atlanticus) are an interesting and unique fish species for many reasons. One unique aspect of the tarpon is that it has the ability to supplement the oxygen it gets through its gills by coming to the surface of the water and gulping air, we call it “rolling”. This is extremely important in helping us spot fish. They also do a behavior where a school of tarpon swims in a circle which we call a “daisy chain”. Besides being a really cool thing to see, it also helps us spot fish. 

Snook fishing along the beaches has been great, meaning there’s been good numbers of fish, they don’t always eat our presentations but it’s great fun. Of course live bait works best but we’ve had some luck using small soft plastic minnow imitations also. 

The tides are picking up as we approach the new moon. We have nice incoming water all morning with a hard falling tide in the afternoon. Both tides are good for tarpon fishing and fishing in general as fish tend to bite better with moving water. 

The tarpon migration will continue through the mouth and I do have some openings after the 14th so give me a call and we’ll get you out for a chance to catch a fish of the lifetime. 

Below Andrew Guild (in green) handles a tarpon he caught in the backcountry in 5′ of water. He booked to just catch some fish and have some action, surprise surprise. 

Also had a good day with Stanton and his son Eric catching snook and redfish in the backcountry.

Are you ready to plan your Naples fishing trip?

Experience the backcountry saltwater mangrove estuaries of Naples, Marco Island, the 10,000 Islands and Everglades National Park. Light tackle sport fishing for snook, redfish, tarpon, trout, pompano, bonita, sharks and other saltwater species. Contact Capt. Mark to plan your Naples fishing charter, call: (239) 450-9230

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