Going to venture into saltwater for the first time

[saxrulez]

Originally Posted by phatdaddy

if you are not staying at the beach, i would try to avoid the state park ramp. it is very convienent tothe pass, but cost about $12 every time you use it. i'm guessing you are coming down from ft rucker and the beach is closer than town, but there are no good public ramps at the beach. you can cross the bridge and there is a ramp of the east side with good parking and easy launch. further in town there is the ramp at the st andrews marina, and a good one at the downtown(panama city) marina. either one of those is going to put you about 3 miles from the pass. right now with all the fish closures in the gulf, about all that is going on is trolling for kings. triggers and bee liners are available, but you need gps & bottom machine to get on the structure. the next big bay thing is the fall run of pompano,flounder, & reds starting about mid sept until mid nov.
i would suggest a fl sportsman chart for this area, gives you a nice overview of the bay and has some pretty good info on bay spots

pd

You guys are awesome. Thank you for all the links. PD you just saved me about $16 on boat launch! I think I'll be heading to PC Marina now to launch. I can come down on 231 instead of using 79, should drop me right on top of the ramp. I think this weekend I'm just going to launch and explore a little bit. See what looks like good fishing areas and probably hang out at shell island with the wife for an hour or two.

I have the bimini top and hardware that was on my boat originally but it is in kind of rough shape, I really need to look around and find someone that can repair it and clean it. It has one rip about 6" or so in it. It would be really nice to be able to cruise around in the shade!

The boat was in really really rough shape when I bought it. Had to replace stringers, deck, and transom. Learned that lesson well! It came out pretty nice though and we are very happy with it.

[phatdaddy]

if you are coming down 79, you can launch at west bay bridge. there is a new, nice public ramp under the south side of the ramp. you would have a 15-20 mile run to the pass(one-way). if you launch at west bay, that is real close to some of the hottest trout & redfishing in the bay. this time of year, the afternoon showers seem to pop up north of the bay and drift down into town, so you have to keep a sharp weather eye out up there. they hardly ever reach shell island, so island time is a good idea right now.

as far as the bimini rip, dental floss does wonders

pd

[saxrulez]

Originally Posted by phatdaddy

if you are coming down 79, you can launch at west bay bridge. there is a new, nice public ramp under the south side of the ramp. you would have a 15-20 mile run to the pass(one-way). if you launch at west bay, that is real close to some of the hottest trout & redfishing in the bay. this time of year, the afternoon showers seem to pop up north of the bay and drift down into town, so you have to keep a sharp weather eye out up there. they hardly ever reach shell island, so island time is a good idea right now.

as far as the bimini rip, dental floss does wonders

pd

Would you mind recommending a tackle shop as well? I'd like to stop by one on my way to the bay to pick up the basics for catching some spanish mackeral, trout, and/or redfish and of course get their advice on good spots! I only own freshwater stuff right now. I am leaning towards launching at the Panama City Marina right now.

[phatdaddy]

there is one on 79 right before you get to hwy98 called sunjammers ( i think). i have never been there, but have heard they are very helpful and well stocked. i live in town and go to howell on 98 in st andrews. half hitch is located on thomas drive past the navy base and before bay point.

the ramp at the city marina is a local favorite and tends to get a little crowed on the weeked. it has room to launch or retrieve 2 boats at once and nice finger piers on either side. be careful of how far you back down. the ramp is off the bottom about 4 feet, so if you back your wheels off the concrete, the trailer will bottom out. usually not a problem with boats under 20 ft and only in the winter when the tides are real low.

pd