Meet Your Captain

           Hello friends!  My name is Captain Billy Barton.  I'm a proud Southwest Florida native and passionate full time angler.  I grew up alongside my father, who was a commercial fisherman in the Gulf of Mexico for grouper and snapper.  When I was young, we would venture out for weeks on end and come back to the dock with thousands of pounds of fish (primarily grouper and snapper) to sell to the market. Not only would we fish offshore.  In our free time we also backbay fished on Charlotte Harbor.  Needless to say, I was introduced to saltwater fishing at a very young age.  This is a way of life.  It's "in my blood" and a big part of who I am.   

           The first job that I ever had was at the age of twelve catching a popular local bait fish known as pin-fish on rod and  reel.   My father would drop me off at the park and I'd catch these baits one at a time until I had a bucket full of them.  It  would take all day to catch a hundred baits if I was lucky, but I would get a quarter a piece from a generous local tackle shop (Fishin Franks).  They liked to see a young boy at work and doing what he loved.  If I made twenty or twenty-five dollars for the day I was lucky, but this was allot of money as a child!  When I reached my teenage years, although I had grown up in the deeper waters of the Gulf.  I began to set out and develop a love for inshore fishing on Charlotte Harbor.  

            I was lucky enough growing up to have some great mentors and versatile saltwater anglers that I looked up to.  Over twenty years later and the passion for my home fishery is stronger than ever.  At this point in my life though, rather than setting out to catch fish for my own gratification or for the market.  I put all of my focus and energy into making sure that other folks catch fish!  This gives me so much more joy and gratification!  Being a full time guide is a dream come true for me.  I take enormous pride in educating folks who are new to the sport locally and put a lot of focus in conservation and preservation as opposed to my past.   There is nothing wrong with harvesting food for the table.  It's important however, not to over harvest in the day and age that we live in.

            I'm dedicated and relentless to make the trip a great one for my parties.  Playing my role in so many of these exciting experiences is something that I just can't get enough of!  If you aren't sure who your next fishing charters are going to be with?  Let me lead the way to the fish and memories that you've been dreaming about making!  Charter Captains that work hard and truly care about your parties experience are not always easy to find.   I do everything that I can to make this a memorable trip for my parties.  Please call or send me an email if you're interested.   I'd love to put you and your crew on the fish!