May 20, 2024 | Destin Fishing Season, Red Snapper
The 2024 Destin Fishing Season is upon us!
2024 Red Snapper season for For-Hire fishing vessels.
Increased Fishing Days for the 2024 Red Snapper Season|
Book with the Double Time Charters, a federally permitted vessel for more summer Red Snapper fishing days.
Federally permitted vessels are getting 88 Red Snapper fishing days in the summer!
Here is some information regarding our fish seasons for the upcoming year, and there is good news for Red Snapper anglers! The NMFS (National Marine Fisheries Service) has finalized the rule for the 2024 Red Snapper season for For-Hire fishing vessels and we are getting a longer season than last year, and this summer it will be 88 days beginning on June 1st, 2024, and running through August 27. This is great news, as the reason we are getting more days is because we did NOT OVERFISH our quota for 2023 so we get some of that leftover quota this year, which equates to MORE DAYS!
Please note that all of this Red Snapper seasonal information only pertains to Federally-Permitted for-hire vessels in the Gulf of Mexico, which Double Time is one of those vessels.
State guide boats (non federal-permitted) should get a 61 day summer season with 42 more days in the fall on the weekends starting in September.
From here on out we have more species available to harvest as spring progresses into summer.
March 1st brings the opening of Grey Triggerfish, a mighty fighter (and great bait-stealer!), and a very tasty eating fish. This adds to the Vermilion Snappers we are already catching along with White Snappers as well. Spanish Mackerel will show up in March, and their larger cousin the King Mackerel usually shows up in April. A local saying is “The kings are here when the Magnolias bloom”, and this holds true! May 1st we will have the Gulf’s “Reef Donkeys“, the hard-fighting Greater Amberjack available for harvest until June 1 when the Red Snapper and Gag Grouper open.
We are spooling new line and tying new rigs at Double Time Charters in anticipation of another great fishing season, so get your reservation in and call Captain Tim! Tight lines and Screaming Drags!
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Book Now – Call Captain Tim at 850.685.1932
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Mar 1, 2019 | Federally Permitted
Federally Permitted Fishing in Destin
Many charter fishing anglers fishing out of Destin have asked me to explain the differences in vessels that are “Federally Permitted” and those that are not, and what difference it makes, if any, to the angler, or customer of a charter boat. Here is a brief summary of what it is all about.
2019 Destin Red Snapper Season Announced
Federally permitted vessels are getting 62 Red Snapper fishing days and state boats (non-federally permitted) are getting only 32 red snapper fishing days.
Charter Boats for-hire vessels and Charter boats WITHOUT Federal reef and pelagic permits
First, I am only going to talk about charter boats (for-hire vessels as they are properly called), and not recreational, private boats as they have their own regulations. Charter boats WITHOUT Federal reef and pelagic permits, (state boats), may only fish in state waters.
- A state charter boat out of Destin, Florida may only fish out to 9 nautical miles from shore, which is the limit of Florida state waters.
- After nine miles out from shore you are in federal waters. To be able to harvest ANY FISH in federal waters you must have Federal Permits, one allows you to catch and keep reef fish, the other allows keeping of pelagic (migratory, free-swimming) fish. Now it gets more complicated.
Some fish species such as most of the important food fish like Red Snapper are Federally managed AND state managed, depending on whose waters are you in.
So for example Red Snapper season in Federal waters will begin on June 1st and end in July for around a 60 day season in 2019, whereas the State of Florida Red Snapper season is slated to begin on June 11 and end on July 12, a season of 32 days, with “a possible fall reopening if quota is available”.
Charter boat DOUBLE TIME is a Federally Permitted vessel, so we will have a summer Red Snapper season almost double that of the state season!
Wow, that’s a big difference, so it may matter to an angler who wishes to target those fish in the summer. Another example is Triggerfish. Although they are managed by both state and Federal agencies, the season is the same all year.
However, Double Time can fish in STATE OR FEDERAL WATERS for Triggerfish as long as they are open, whereas a state-only charter boat cannot fish in federal waters at all. Confused yet? Having the Federal Permits also opens up a HUGE amount of the Gulf to be able to fish, even for species that are open in state waters or for species not seasonally regulated such as Vermilion Snappers, Mangrove Snappers, etc.
All in all having the Federal Permits is a great plus for a charter boat, and allows for much greater opportunity and flexibility to catch the “big ones”! Whew! I feel like I just explained the U.S. tax code!!! 🙂
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Call Captain Tim at 850.685.1932
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