Hello fellow anglers!  The summertime temps have warmed up the Gulf and American Red Snapper (ARS) season is open until the end of the month for those that have reef permits, AKA for hire reef permits.  I am pleased to announce that I now have these permits and will be able to take anglers out to the red snapper depths!. I trailer my boat so I travel to the areas that are convenient to my clients and to reach offshore in a timely manner. This could be from Englewood in the Northern part of the area I cover or to Pine Island to the South. I was brought to Charlotte County in 1959 as a infant where I learned to fish and walk in S.W. Florida (not in that order :)  I also learned to SCUBA dive just after High School and have been fishing and diving along the East & West Coasts since 1980. I feel this gives me an advantage for fishing. I have physically been down there and understand the layout of the structures which helps me fish these areas more successfully. We usually find the red snapper at around one hundred feet plus. This means that you need to travel out approximately thirty miles offshore to reach these depths. The newest addition to my fleet is a 30 ft. SCARAB fishing boat that cruises at 30 kts which translated to mph is about 35 mph. So, we could be thirty miles offshore in one hour which saves a lot of time traveling out and back. We can do a thirty mile trip on a eight hour charter which gives us approximately two hours riding and six hours fishing. This is nice to be able to reach the one hundred foot depths quickly and be able to target grouper, mangrove snapper, yellow tail snapper, vermillion snapper, and several great eating species.  We may also find dorado’s at these depths, black fin tuna, or maybe even a sailfish. This is also where the red grouper are still plentiful, and maybe even a scamp grouper to harvest for dinner. It all depends on how the sea conditions are on any given day. On an ARS 8-hour trip through the end of July we have a minimum of four anglers or less at $1000.00, and an additional $250.00 per angler up to a maximum total of six anglers. We also offer a normal 8-hour trip (meaning we don't target ARS) where we have a minimum charge of $800.00 for four anglers or less, and an additional $200.00 per angler up to a maximum of six total. That means if we were to catch some ARS on one of these eight hour trips in July we would keep them as long as they are legal length, we just don't target them. The authorities keep close tabs on the ARS, so I must comply with their rules. I'm really excited about our 30 ft. SCARAB with Yamaha power, a porta potty for the ladies and plenty of comfortable seating for the ride. On all our trips we always have plenty of bottled water for our guests, and all tackle & bait is included for our anglers. There is also a large shade canopy on the boat to beat the heat. If you are interested in a offshore adventure with Capt. Bart Marx please call 941-979-6517 to check availability and for a quick response or you can e-mail captbart@alphaomegacharters.com. And always remember, singing drags and tight lines make me smile. <*(((((>{