Captain Josh C Host Profile

Hi, I'm Captain Josh

I've been a member since March 2020

I am a 4th generation native to Fort Myers, Florida. I grew up fishing the Caloosahatchee and surrounding waters of South West Florida. I started my salt water career in 1996 fishing with my dad and his buddies. I started guiding professionally in 2010. I am jack of all trades and master at catching Giant tarpon and big snook. I live to tarpon fish and I am one of the best. Please come join me and allow me to share my love and passion of fishing with you. I am here to show you the best possible time and give you a trip to remember for a lifetime.

I grew up fishing Bass in the canals of North Fort Myers and Cape Coral with my cousin “Bug”. Bug taught me how to fish, I would sit in the back of his three wheeled granny bike with a 5 gallon bucket, a bubbler, loaf of bread, two bass rods, a custom blue gill rod that I stole and made from the neighbors umbrella tree, and a tackle box. We would ride all over the neighborhood in search of uncharted bass waters. Bug and I would chop down trees and limbs to create underwater habits for bass so we could always have secret spots to catch if our explorations didn’t pay off. When I was about eight years old Bug started to take me to fish spill ways and the bridges of the Caloosahatchee for snook. In 1996 we got my dad into fishing. We guided my dad to his first snook one night; he was hooked on fishing just like I was. That next day he went out and bought brand new action craft. This is when my love for fishing soared to another level. I fished and guided on that flats boat until 2015. I caught my first big keeper Snook, my biggest snook, my first tarpon, my first redfish, kissed my first girl, won my first tournament, and explored thousands of miles of shorelines and water in that boat. It was an unbelievable fight. After catching that first big snook, the power was unlike anything I had ever felt before. I was on top of the world after that day. My freshwater fishing days ended right then and there. I never wanted to fish for rinky dink ole bass ever again! All I ever wanted to do from that day on was snook fish, until the night I discovered what a tarpon was. I remember one night sitting underneath the Cape Coral Bridge with my dad at 2 in the morning and we kept seeing these massive explosions! I said dad what in the world are those? Being beginners in the saltwater world, we had no earthly idea what they were or even how a fish could disrupt the surface of the water like that? It literally looked like someone was dropping cinder blocks of the top of the bridge. That’s when a good friend of my father said they were “Tarpon”! I was mesmerized by them, I had to catch one. One day, a charter captain friend of my dads, Jeff Koza took us to Boca Grande Pass to try to land our very first tarpon. They were everywhere! We hooked up and caught two that day. After seeing the size and sheer power of the Tarpon I fell deeper in love with fishing and with the tarpon, I was bound and determined to get one for myself. I spent years learning and trying to catch a tarpon, I never could get one boat side. I went 0 for 16 before I ever boated one. That didn’t stop me. Finally, after years of trying, searching, learning and never giving up I have figured how to catch tarpon on a consistent basis pretty much year round. I have become one the best tarpon fishing guides in Fort Myers. I could not have done it without a little help and thanks to my good friends Capt. John Landry, Stovester, Fishin’ Florie, numerous guides, and legends along the way. Ozzie Fischer (top 5 captains in the United States), Capt. Eric Davis, Capt. Randall Marsh, Capt. Ozzie Lessinger, Capt. Cameron Schurlknight and Capt. Chris Rush have all been idols and mentors to me. These guys are all legends, the best of the best, and veterans in tarpon slaying business. I wouldn’t be the tarpon angler I am today without their mentorship and friendships. Thanks guys. To beat them all those guys in 2018 during the 7th annual Ding Darling Doc Fords tarpon tournament was one of my greatest accomplishments in my guiding career.

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