Palmetto & Manatee CountyWorth the drive over the Skyway
Palmetto, Ellenton and Bradenton anglers cross one bridge and get a boat rigged for water most local day trips never reach.
From Manatee County the Sunshine Skyway drops you onto the Pinellas side and Gulfport is a straight shot from there. It's a real drive, and we won't pretend otherwise — the reason people make it is range.
This is a federally permitted operation running a 35' Contender on twin Mercury Verados, built for the Middle Grounds, deep drop rigs, and overnights. Those are day formats that a smaller inshore or nearshore boat simply cannot offer, and they're what a Palmetto angler is usually driving north to find.
If you're organising a group from Ellenton, Terra Ceia or Bradenton, the Private charters are the ones to look at — you set the target and the departure time during planning rather than fitting into someone else's schedule.
- Route
- North over the Sunshine Skyway to Gulfport
- Why the drive
- Range a nearshore boat can't cover
- Popular trips
- Middle Grounds, Deep Drop, Overnight
- Best for
- Palmetto, Ellenton, Terra Ceia, Bradenton groups
Charter options
What Palmetto anglers book
Every trip includes bait, tackle and everything else you need on the water.
We also fish for
Dates go fast in season
We're not satisfied until you're hooked.
Tell us when you want to go and what you want to catch. A captain answers personally, usually the same day.