During our two weeks in Gulfport competing in horse shows at the Harrison County Fairgrounds, we spent one of our Mondays off fishing in Gulfport. Due to poor planning, actually no planning at all, we had to drive to Biloxi, 45 minutes away, in order to charter a boat.
When we looked into our options, most of the fishing companies in Gulfport were already booked. The only ones left were pricey and operating out of Biloxi.
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Tips for Booking a Fishing Charter
So, my first piece of advice is book at least a week early. Second, check the weather. It’s no fun to be out on a boat when it is cold and windy, which was the morning forecast. Fortunately, Shearwater Charters, who won the Anglers Choice award in 2021, took us in the afternoon around 1:30 pm, and the sun slowly burned off the cloud cover, resulting in a marvelous day!
I also advise asking about the plan with simple questions like “where will we be fishing” and “what type of fish are biting this time of year”. While we caught around 30 fish in two hours, the unseasonably cool weather affected the fishing season in Gulfport which resulted in a trip to a dock (more on this later).
Crossing the Bay to Ship Island
Feeling lucky to get on a boat, given I had only a partially coherent conversation with Captain Brandon who I woke up upon calling him at 9pm, we arrived in Biloxi eagerly awaiting to board his 37’ boat.
Just returning from a morning charter, PJ and Brandon were fileting fish to send off with their previous guests and prepping the boat for us to embark. Along with pelicans patiently waiting for fish scraps, we cooled our heels for about 30 minutes until they were ready to go.
Once we left the harbor, we took a 40-minute boat ride across the choppy bay to Ship Island, which ironically is located directly south of Gulfport! Upon arriving at Ship Island, they tied the boat off to the pier and said, “OK, you can fish anywhere on the boat or pier.”
My first thought was, “Seriously?!?!? We just charted a boat to fish off the pier? We could have done that in the Gulfport Harbor!” In my limited expeditions; sheepshead fishing in Hilton Head, piranha fishing in the Pantanal (I highly recommend), and fishing in Tulum, I have never chartered a boat to fish on land.
At first, I was completely annoyed, but then I realized two things:
- We got to go to Ship Island. I was interested in the Ship Island excursion from Gulfport to see the historic civil war fort, but the opening date was taking place in late March after our departure.
- They took us where the conditions basically guaranteed catching fish. The redfish were currently small due to the huge dolphin pods decimating the population. And due to unseasonably cold weather, the water was still on the cooler side for other peak fishing.
Fishing on Ship Island
With that in mind and having immediate luck hooking fish, my irritation quickly turned to jubilation. The five of us ladies didn’t have a ton of fishing experience, but it didn’t seem to matter. Sadly, we didn’t even have to cast. All we did was drop the line, baited with live shrimp, into about a foot or two of water. We let the shrimp do the work on the bottom by the pier pylons.
When the fish nibbled, we jerked the rod. In minutes, Avery hooked the first fish, a sheepshead. A few minutes later Lexi caught a small redfish. Lexi went on to reel in a fish on average about every eight minutes!!
At one time, four of the five of us had a fish on. PJ exclaimed in his southern drawl, “This is UNBELIEVABLE!” You guys are stressing me out. And I do this for a living. I’ll just leave the pliers here.”
PJ and Brandon went from baiting our hooks and not letting us touch the sheepshead we caught for fear of us accidentally getting finned, to letting us handle our own rods while they fished too.
We selected the feistiest shrimp out of the bait bucket without getting poked, baited our hooks, yelled “fish on”, and helped each other scoop up our catch with the net before the fish snapped the line on barnacles.
Mississippi State Record Catch
Every now and then we needed PJ’s strength to get the hook out of the sheepshead toothy mouth, and when Avery hooked a giant, he pronounced, “That’s a state record! Where’s my phone?” as he darted to the boat for his phone. You know the fishing in Gulfport is good when the guide wants to snap a photo!!
After about an hour, all of us had caught several fish except Julie. She was fishing on the opposite side of the dock from our boat when two anglers motored up on top of her. Well that bristled the hairs on the back of PJ’s neck!
He promptly declared, “I’m going to give them a piece of my mind.” He strided over to Julie’s side where he formed an authoritative stance. With his arms crossed over his chest and his legs wide, he stared them down. He was too nice to say anything though. And the fishermen left shortly thereafter, as they gave up in frustration when they didn’t catch anything as we girls kept hauling in sheepshead!
A Fever of Stingrays
Once Julie finally foul hooked a sheepshead the size of perch, three of us laid down our rods to explore the civil war fort. As we walked along the dock, a fever of stingrays glided through the shallows. There had to be 25 of them!
History of Ship Island and Fort Massachusetts
Soon we reached Fort Massachusetts which is one of many forts on the Gulf Shores National Seashore operated by the National Parks Service. Construction of the brick structure in the shape of a D was authorized in 1847 after the government determined that Ship Island was important to the defense of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast.
The fort was known as the Fort on Ship Island and was occupied by Mississippi militia and later Confederate troops when Mississippi seceded from the Union, becoming the second state in the Confederacy in 1861.
Fort Massachusetts only saw about 20 minutes of battle when the Union’s USS Massachusetts came under fire from the Confederate cannons. The 20-minute skirmish caused little damage to either side.
Despite strengthening the fort’s walls with sandbags and timber and defending the island in the partially constructed fort, the Confederates ultimately abandoned the fort and Ship Island just three months later.
As a result, the Union forces took over the fort and used Ship Island as the staging area to capture New Orleans in 1962. It’s hard to believe 18,000 troops were stationed on the small island with over 230 soldiers being buried there during the Civil War.
Ship Island operated as a repair and supply station for the Union forces for the rest of the war. Consequently, the Army Corp of Engineers completed the construction of the fort as well as more than 40 other buildings including a hospital, barracks, mess hall, and bakery. It was during this time, the fort took the name Fort Massachusetts.
After the Civil War, the fort remained in a state of readiness until it was turned over to the Ship Island lighthouse keeper who cared for the structure until 1903. Over time, it fell into disrepair. A “Save the Fort” movement started in the 1960’s by Mississippians led to the establishment of the Gulf Islands National Seashores and its restoration.
Fort Massachusetts and Ship Island Excursions
Today, the fort built from bricks procured from both Louisiana and the East Coast with distinct color differentiation is protected through beach nourishment since it cannot be relocated affordably. When the dredgers remove sand from shipping channels, it is pumped toward the fort, creating a protective barrier and sandy beaches.
Visitors may take an excursion to the island for a lovely and historical day at the beach. We felt particularly lucky that we had the whole island and fort to ourselves! After we wandered around, we returned to the dock to find the captain had hooked a baby shark and Avery got to reel it in!! OK, I have to say I was a little envious of that.
Fishing on the Dock of the Bay
We tried our hand at fishing once more. I caught the same fat sheepshead with shark bite scar across its top as I did an hour previously. I know a cat has nine lives, how many do fish get? This one has already used up three lives! I tossed it back in with a bit of a splash. Admittedly, I did not do the best job releasing it as the water was quite low below the dock.
Heather shouted, “Belly flop.”
And PJ chimed in with his southern accent, “That even made my belly red!”
I don’t know why, perhaps it was because we had just finished saying PJ was funny as we left the fort, but I started laughing and could not stop. Soon tears were pouring down my face and my side ached. At that point, Julie and Heather lost it too. Avery and Lexi couldn’t figure out what was funny.
Nothing really. But it was such a fun day of fishing! And it continued all the way back to Biloxi! While Brandon and PJ said we could fish as long as we wanted, we had to get back to our dogs.
Albino Dolphin
Upon our return across the bay, we cast some bait fish into the bay and trolled for a few minutes with no luck. But that’s OK. We spotted lots of dolphins and one was white. Avery remarked, “An albino.”
PJ turned to Julie and me and over the loud engine noise and declared in disbelief that “He saw an albino person the other day!”
Julie looked at me and quietly questioned, “Did he just say…”
“Yes, yes he did,” I responded.
Choking in our laughter, we were even more astonished when we heard about the dolphins taking over the bay after hurricane Katrina destroyed Sea World. We also learned a seal swam up the river! Knowing Sea World no longer kept Orcas, I sarcastically asked, “What happened to the killer whale?”
Well, then Brandon chimed in. He blurted, “My wife had a tatoo of a dolphin on her bikini line, and when she got pregnant, it turned into a whale!”
Then he added, “It’s still a whale!”
We could not contain ourselves! I can’t even begin to say how entertained we were during our four-hour fishing charter in Gulfport!
Invited to Come Fishing in Gulfport Again
PJ invited us to fish with them any time. I replied, “Well we don’t fish very often. We are just beginners.” Heck, I had to teach the girls to hold the fish away from them and toward the camera to make it look bigger! We definitely were no experts.
He corrected me. “No, you aren’t beginners. Those girls can fish! The last group we had held the reels upside down.”
At the end of the day, aside from Lexi who assuredly caught 14 fish, we stopped counting. We hooked at least thirty and threw all of them back except a few big ones, and of course the “state record fish”.
It turns out, after being weighed a day later, it was 9 lbs, 3 oz and a little less than a pound short of the record for Avery’s age group. Regardless, our fishing trip in Gulfport was an unforgettable experience, and we will likely charter a boat every March to fish in the Gulf! And next time, we’ll leave enough time to have McElroy’s cook up our fresh catch for lunch or dinner! ETB
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What fun experience! I love seeing this part of the state and it makes me ready for another visit there so I can go to Gulfport 🙂