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BEACH INSIDER

Fall for fishing with private charter boats

Jan Waddy
jwaddy@pcnh.com
'Mark from Michigan' catches a redfish Nov. 6 aboard the Reel Screamer private fishing charter on his day off volunteering with the Red Cross. [CONTRIBUTED PHOTOS]

PANAMA CITY BEACH — While Capt. Anderson's Marina head boats won't be back till March 1, several private charter boats are docked at the marina and ready for fishing.

On Nov. 6, Capt. Chris Nguyen's Reel Screamer ran its first charter since Hurricane Michael — "taking Mark from Michigan fishing on his day off of volunteering with the Red Cross."

"He caught six or seven redfish," Nguyen said Nov. 8. "I have been helping friends and family out, and it was nice to have normalcy to get out fishing. I went out again yesterday, just playing around, and we caught 30. I had my brother and my cousin with me. We all grew up fishing with each other."

Nguyen's parents came to the U.S. in the '70s and have stayed in this area. Though Nguyen — born and raised in Panama City — has been fishing all his life, this is his first year to run his 22-foot Capehorn at Capt. Anderson's Marina, 5550 N. Lagoon Drive.

"I live at the beach, and we were scared of the storm surge," said Nguyen, who has two Capehorns and a 28-foot Contender.

He moved his boats to Southport during the hurricane, but none were damaged. Reel Screamer is back at Capt. Anderson's Marina in slot 15E, docked next to dive boats.

"I haven't been offshore to look at the wrecks, but I have heard more toward the south they have moved or are not the same," Nguyen said. "Personally, I haven't been able to get offshore, but inshore fishing is what I mostly do and it's been fine."

He charges $100 per hour for the charter fishing trip and his boat can carry up to four people — who can share the cost. For more about Reel Screamer, call 850-691-3876 or visit Facebook.com/ReelScreamerCharters.

When Capt. Bryan Jones got word it was safe to return to Capt. Anderson's Marina, he also was back with his boat, Showtime.

"We're charter fishing out of Capt. Anderson's Marina," said Jones, whose 42-foot boat was docked at Dolphin Bay Marina during Hurricane Michael. "We were lucky, luckier than most. Dolphin Bay was one of the few marinas that survived. ... Most people call us and the first question is, 'Is Panama City Beach still alive?'"

Showtime, an Ocean Yacht Sportfisher, is alive and well at Slip 1W at Capt. Anderson's Marina and accommodates up to six passengers.

"We're catching a little of everything right now. Laws require us to throw back red snapper and trigger fish — though we can still get a picture. But everything is biting — vermillion snapper, white snapper, gag grouper, red grouper, King Mackerel and Amberjack; that's our targeted species," said Jones, who added large storms also can stir up rare catches in the days following.

Jones, a father of six, was a Coast Guard licensed captain before becoming captain of Showtime.

"I've been fishing for 20 years, out of Capt. Anderson's for eight or nine and before that Treasure Island," Jones said. "It means everything to me, the fellowship. People we meet fishing, smiling and having a good time makes the whole day go by a little easier."

Trips on Showtime range from four to 18 hours. The current rate, which runs through December, is $140/hour.

"It's $140 for an hour whether it's one or six people," explained Jones, who added friends and families can go in on the price together. "Six hours is a fun trip. Bring food and a drink, and smile. We provide rods, reels and bait, and a deckhand works with them."

For more details, visit Showtimefishingcharters.com or call 850-258-0705.

Other boats from Capt. Anderson's Marina were taken to Watson Bayou, such as the Anderson fleet, and Miller Marine in Southport. Not all boats at Miller Marine fared well, but Reel Commocean was another one that was fortunate.

"We were one of the first boats back up from Miller Marine," said Capt. Brad Foran, who had to give his boat "a good scrubbing." "Once I put my eye on the boat, I knew it was fine. I will need to do some paint work come December."

While his main business is from April to October, he is willing to schedule fishing trips this month for anyone who's interested.

"They'll just have to work around a little bit of scheduling," said Foran, who has taken on a second job to help provide for his family — including his wife and their 5-month-old.

Foran's 58-foot custom-built Resmondo fishing yacht was docked back in its 4C slot at the marina by October's end.

"Three years ago, they built a spot wide enough to accommodate the boat and I moved it to Capt. Anderson's from Lighthouse Marina," Foran said.

Reel Commocean can hold up to 24 passengers. The base price is for six people, whether it's one person or six — $960 for six hours, $1,280 for eight hours, $1,600 for 10 hours, plus an extra $100 per person after six people.

For more about Reel Commocean, call 850-630-0424 or 850-236-0056.

"The hurricane definitely changed things," Foran said. "It moves a lot of artificial reefs. They will kind of collapse. It will be like starting over when finding new places to fish. Some of it will be good. A lot of people knew places to fish before which caused them to be overfished."

See what's going on beneath the service first-hand with Wreck-Reation Dive Charters. Diver's Den offers daily dive charters on a Delta Dive Boat for up to 13 divers, led by a boat captain who is U.S. Coast Guard certified and a PADI dive instructor. Spearfishing and dive trips are available. For more information, call 850-234-8717 or visit DiversDenPCB.com.

For a full list of private charters available at Capt. Anderson's Marina, visit CaptAndersonsMarina.com/charter-boats.