I can't say enough positive things about Captain Phil and his guide service. He was born and raised in the area and has been fishing around Destin his entire life, so he knows the waters exceptionally well. In fact, one of the most enjoyable parts of the trip was hearing him tell stories about fishing the bay and bayous as a boy, as well as the history of many of the areas we fished.
In addition to his knowledge of the area, Phil made a great guide because of his friendly personality and professionalism. He was very easy to talk to, enjoyable to be around, and never once treated me like "just another tourist." Further, he was never pushy or obtrusive while giving instructions about how to fish. He was happy to do as much or as little coaching as I liked.
Other things I liked about Phil are that he seemed well prepared, his boat was clean and organized, and he was incredibly fast baiting hooks or tying new hooks on when a fish broke off. The only time I had to bait a hook was when Phil was in the top part of the boat trying to spot redfish or black drum for me to catch - and this was something he made sure I was OK with before doing. Another thing I liked about Phil is that he prefers to use light tackle - which I also prefer. I believe we were using 10 or 12 lb line on all the rods. This made each catch a challenge and lot of fun.
Phil was great at putting me on a lot of fish. He knew I was most interested in Redfish, so that's what we focused on initially. While I only landed one, it was nice 27" fish. I also came away with a couple black drum, (which I was just as excited to catch), speckled trout, and pompano. I also caught a lot of fish like pinheads, hardtails, black snappers, and ladyfish; none of which ended up on my table but were nonetheless fun to catch.
In short, I had an incredible time fishing with Captain Phil and I would highly recommend him if you're looking for a guide in the Destin/Fort Walton area. Don't judge him by his website - it needs work, (probably because he's out catching fish); give him a call and talk to him. I could tell 30 seconds in to the conversation I had found a great guide - the time on the water just confirmed it. From here on out, Phil will be the first person I call whenever we travel to Destin. read more