# Capt. Craig Williams/Emerald C Charters



## drysideshooter (Nov 9, 2018)

My wife and I fished with Captain Craig Williams of Emerald C Charters this past Monday, the 5th. Absolutely great experience with a fantastic captain.

We met at the Navy Point ramp. He was early and the boat was sparkly clean, and he was obviously enthusiastic about what he does. Our primary target were bull redfish, but after cruising and looking a bit Craig said, "let's catch some fish". He took us to a spot and used the spot lock on the trolling motor. We landed quite a few red snapper and a couple of small grouper. It was a lot of fun. We cruised a bit more, looking for birds indicating bait fish and checked out a couple spots and made a few casts. Craig had brought some live shrimp and we checked out the pass area and he used the spot lock off of the jetty and we fished there for a while. My wife caught a sheepshead and we caught quite a few small pinfish. No slot reds or anything else, but still fun. Craig has a great sense of humor and loves fishing. We really enjoyed talking with him and learning about the area. 

We cruised a bit more and found an area where the pelicans were on a feeding frenzy over a big group of baitfish, but no redfish to be found. Craig was on a mission to find the bull redfish and he was constantly stopping and scanning with his binoculars. By this point we had already been out longer than the 5 hours we booked, but Craig wasn't the least bit concerned. He wanted to find the bull redfish. He was scanning and said, "I think I see something". He had his side scan on and after the run to the spot he had seen he told my wife and I where to cast our jigs. Within seconds we were both hooked up! For the next hour or so we spent most of the time hooked up and having a total blast. The fish moved a couple of times and he found them again. We landed quite a few nice bull redfish, with the largest being 39". This was our first bull redfish trip, and there was a lot of laughter and high 5's. 

We are now hooked, and plan to return next November and fish a couple of days with Craig. We live in Washington state and fish a lot. The fishing there in the bay was different than what we are used to, and we both really, really enjoyed it. Craig was incredible, and his picture should appear in the dictionary under "tenacious". His boat is very nicely equipped and very comfortable. He has great electronics and knows how to use them. Super personable and a lot of fun to fish with. Highly recommended.


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## Realtor (Oct 1, 2007)

very well written, this should be sent to a fishing mag for publication.


Oh, and welcome to the PFF! Great first post!


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## Bill Me (Oct 5, 2007)

Hope you gave him a fat tip. He went above and beyond


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## drysideshooter (Nov 9, 2018)

Thanks for the kind words. We gave him a good tip and plan to fish with him again for sure. Absolutely great guy.


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## SurfRidr (Apr 24, 2012)

Thanks for the report, and welcome to Pensacola!


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## wrightackle (Oct 29, 2007)

You touched on something that was interesting. Knowing how to use your electronics. I was sitting on a public wreck catching triggers and snappers. Here comes an inshore guide cruising by. I noticed he had a bunch of light rods rigged with slip sinkers. I asked him what he was looking for and he told me he was chasing a school of mingos. Sure enough he put the trolling motor down and everyone went down and started pulling up mingos. They caught them until the dolphins showed up and started grabbing them at the boat. We have the same tech with the side scan and clearvu but haven't really taken the time to know how to use it. Just punch in a spot, put the troller down and start fishing. Glad you had such an exceptional trip.


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## jwmd2010 (Oct 26, 2015)

Were you guys search for birds diving off the beach or in the bay?

Awesome report.


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## huntnflorida (May 24, 2008)

One fine summer day during snapper season, I had my 2 young sons out on a less than a foot day. I decided to head to my “honey hole”. As I drive ssw, I notice a boat that looks like it’s on “my number”. As I close the distance I realize that it’s emerald coast charters. Stunned as I’ve never seen another boat there, I decided I’d just stay my distance and share the spot. Normally I would have went else where, but I was on borrowed time with young kids. He had an Ipilot down, and I was drifting and staying my distance. He was more than patient with us, no dirty looks, no words, he worked his ass off for his clients, as did I for my kids. When he was packing up to go, I made a point to drive within 10 yards and thank him for the hospitality. They caught their limit, as did we. I do t believe I’ve ever been back to that number out of respect of him. (Number was purchased by me online)


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