Fishing Reports by Capt. Dave Hanson

SW FL-Bonita Beach: Nice Red Bayside; Nice Gag Offshore - Monday, 4/13, the winds kicked up again—a familiar story here for the past three weeks or so. With seas offshore building four to six feet, I recommended inshore-fishing for George Flanders and his son. The bay has been tough recently too because of more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

These are the times that try Captains' souls... - Just ahead of another cold-front predicted to come through our area Monday evening, Bill Oswald and his eight-year-old daughter, Grace, fished Estero Bay with me Monday morning, 4/6. We had some gusts of wind but nothing like the winds expected on Tu more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

SW FL-Estero Bay & Bonita Beach Reefs - Monday, 3/30, looked like it might have to be an inshore day when I heard the marine forecast the night before. But by early morning, the forecast had changed and it was looking calm enough to head to the reefs. I fished there with Dave Kempston, his more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

SW FL-Bonita Beach: Inshore & Reef Report - With gusty winds and high seas Sunday morning, 3/22, Stuart Norris and Mike Holers took my recommendation to fish the backwaters. We fished central Estero Bay with live shrimp, where we caught a 23 inch black drum (see photo) and five keeper sheepshe more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

Kings, Mangs, Sheepies, Porgies, Pompano & Trout - Fishing with Lynn and Margie Harned and friends Dave and Jeannie Jenkins on Monday, 3/16, we had a productive morning in 45 feet out of New Pass, using live shrimp. We caught six keeper mangrove snapper between 15 and 17 inches, a dozen whitebone por more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

Calm Seas-Hogfish, Sheepshead & Snapper - What a treat Monday, 3/9 was offshore! For the first time in a very long time, seas were dead-calm and the fishing was good at the same time. I fished in 46 feet out of New Pass with brothers Mike & Paul Conneally and their friends, Rodney & Kass Bro more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

March in Like a Lion; Plenty of Sheep - March definitely charged in like a lion on my first scheduled day of the month. Monday, 3/2, brought extremely rough conditions offshore with seas to fifteen feet. The tide in the backwaters was low, and it was cold and windy. I cancelled my fishing more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

Bonito, Grouper, Snapper, Sheepshead (Inshore & Off) - Monday, 2/23 brought yet another windy start to this week. I headed out of new Pass with Jim Sistek, his son, Jim Jr., grandson and friend, Frank, in what was predicted to be two-to-three foot seas. We were barely out of the pass before we were con more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

SW FL- Snapper, Sheepshead, Hogfish & Porgies (the new grouper) - With a small craft caution in effect Monday, I didn't venture too far from shore with Ron Baldwin and friends. Seas were three feet even close-in at the three-mile reef and winds were twenty knots. We caught five keeper mangrove snapper and five keep more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach

SW FL-Bonita Beach: Red & Scamp Grouper, Hogfish, Snapper - The easterly wind on Monday, 2/9, laid the seas down nicely well offshore in 45 feet out of New Pass, where I fished with Ward Wester and his dad, Loren. We caught a keeper 23 inch red grouper (red grouper are still in season-see photo), a keeper hog more...
Capt. Dave Hanson - Bonita Beach