Twenty-seven years ago, my wife and I were looking for a quiet beach vacation. We dreamed of a quiet place where we could get away from it all. Our good friend Alan Schleimer operated a small business in Cleveland, Ohio called Condo Search. He recommended a little-known island resort on the Gulf Coast called Palm Island. Palm Island is located in Cape Haze Florida, in Lemon Bay near Englewood Florida.

Once we got to Palm Island, also known as Little Gasparilla Island, we quickly learned that an island vacation is a little different. Palm Island has one restaurant, which is also home to a very small van-sized general store. Our island paradise was car-free, and since Palm Island is one of Florida’s true developed islands without a land bridge, the only way to get there was by ferry.

The ferry to Palm Island left every hour on the hour and returned to the mainland in half an hour. The 20 minute ferry ride dropped us off at the Rum Bay Restaurant dock where the first mate ushered us onto a trolley and took us to our condo unit. The tram also made its trip around the island every hour so getting on and off the island was very easy…it took about 45 minutes to get off.

Being too young and too poor to rent a gulf cart, Kathy and I turned to bicycles for transportation. On the second or third morning, we continue to explore our new island. We had seen many great beaches, but we just weren’t ready to discover the beauty when we came to an estuary where Rum Bay meets Stump Pass. Since the tide was out, we were able to wade through the shallows and discover loads of unusual creatures that we had never seen before.

Among other species, we saw live starfish, numerous mollusks, something we call sea cucumbers, many schools of baitfish, many crabs, and all kinds of shells. Not more than 20 meters away, a great blue heron was stealing shrimp from a fisherman’s bucket. There were all kinds of sea birds, osprey, cormorants and others like we had never seen before.

Seeing one of the fishermen pull a yellowtail trevally out of the waves encouraged me to try fishing myself. Fortunately, Palm Island Resort was able to rent me a fishing rod with some tackle for $10. For the rest of our island vacation, I was able to try fishing almost every day and did manage to catch a few fish, but really didn’t have much luck.

Over a period of several years and several return visits, we “discovered” many delightful aspects of Palm Island and the surrounding area. But it wasn’t until I decided to hire a fishing guide in hopes of catching some fish in Lemon Bay, that my love affair with fishing in the remote waters of Southwest Florida began.

Most of the known fishing guides in the area were already booked on my available days. One of the veterans told me about a new fishing guide who had fished the waters of Charlotte Harbor his entire life, had recently started as a part-time fishing guide and was looking for new clients. So I called Captain Les Hill and arranged for him to take me out in his Tarpon Hunter boat.

Since then I have fished the waters of Lemon Bay, Charlotte Harbor, Gasparilla Sound and Stump Pass with Captain Les over 25 times over many years. A day of fishing in these waters with the right guide seems almost like an existential experience. Fishing aside, each day is filled with detailed explanations of the interplay of various fish, bird and plant life. There are thousands of small mangrove islands, oyster beds, and deep holes where fish congregate.

Except for the occasional fish set aside for dinner, all of our fishing is catch and release. Also, we generally don’t use live bait.

Most of my trips to the Charlotte Harbor – Englewood Florida area include two to three days of fishing with guide Les Hill. With my son and I fishing on the boat, we have landed up to 13 species of fish in the span of three days. I think this also includes the fish we take from the shore.

These include Reds, Snook, Sea Trout, Lady Fish, Flounder, Permit, Shark, Jack, Mangrove Snapper, Saltwater Sheepshead, Spanish Mackerel, Grouper, Blue, and some junk fish.

Still, we haven’t caught our first tarpon yet.

Most of the waters we fish in are between 3 and 6 feet deep. The fish tend to hide in holes that are a few feet deeper. Les can spot a hole that is likely home to Lady Fish and Trout as he runs his Tarpon Hunter at full speed, almost on demand. Because the water is deeper in the hole, you can see the difference in color. Most of the fish hang out right on the edge of these holes.

When we hunt Redfish or Snook, Les gets on the platform and goes along the mangroves. Here you can usually see the Redfish or Snook tailings, long before we make our first release in the area. This increases our chances of catching a fish.

If you’ve ever fished as a kid but drifted away from it, or if you’ve never spent a lot of time saltwater fishing, I highly recommend visiting the Charlotte Harbor area and finding a good fishing guide.