Reviews

Great fun, great people!

We have done family fishing trips before, but this was magical! We only had 1/2 day, and Ross and Mike made it great fun for the whole family. We fished for snapper (and bait fish) in the shallower water, everyone caught tons of fish, then headed further out. Caught a 20 lb mahi mahi that was incredible, and nearly caught another, then went to 300ft and fished the deep stuff - lost some to sharks but landed a big amberjack. The best parts were: variety of fishing, lots of fish (some of which we brought to a restaurant and ate that night!), and, most importantly, the amazing enthusiasm that Ross and Mike have for catching fish! They obviously love what they do, and so did we...

Lacarey

Great People, Great Fishing

Just completed two 1/2 days of fishing with Captain Ross Early and his mate Mike. Friendly, professional guys who know what they are doing... I was with my wife and my 14-year old son and we had a great time. Ross and Mike are personable, and they do everything possible to get you to the fish and make your day enjoyable. We caught king mackerel on day one, and yellowtail/mutton snapper on day two....took the snapper to a restaurant that night and had it prepared for our dinner! Highly recommend the Early Bird!

RMandMB

Unbelievable

Captain Ross Early is amazing! Mike was a perfect first mate. These two guys are professionals, fantastic hosts and even better fishermen! Cannot say enough about the day we had yesterday. Truly a lifetime experience! THANK YOU! Highly recommend!!!!

Libby M

Great Times

Our family of four fished on 3/23 for a 1/2 day. We caught more Kings than we could keep. Then they put us on the Barracuda and had another great round. There were several times we had double hookups, and a couple of triples. Can't get any better than that . Capt. Ross and Mike were very helpful with any needs and all the stupid Questions we asked. They both had great personalities . We were considering a 3/4 day but they said the fishing was going to get worse in the afternoon and didn't want us to waste our money. That means a lot to me.

Would highly recommend and go again.

The King family from MO.

Russell K

Great day fishing!

We took a half day trip with Captain Ross and First Mate Mike. Some people want sport/trophy fishing, some want "eatin' fish," and they wanted to make sure we got what we wanted out of the trip. They will ask what you're looking for to make sure it's time well spent. It was actually pretty impressive just to watch them work together throughout the trip - they are clearly an efficient team.

A word about kids: some people seem to have a knack for working with kids, some don't. Ross and Mike were great with the two boys (10 and 9) on our trip. My 10 year old reeled up a king mackerel with Ross coaching him over his shoulder (and occasional hands-on assistance when it was needed). I'm pretty sure I saw him grow two inches after reeling that fish in.

I learned a lot that day because Ross, amazingly, didn't get annoyed by all of our questions and was happy to explain everything that was going on, what he was doing with the bait, what Mike was looking for while up in the tower, etc, etc. Friendly and patient with us the whole way through! Book a trip on the Early Bird!

Kevin C

Amazing experience

My boyfriend and I did a full day charter with my grandpa and his girlfriend today. We had a blast! It was my first fishing trip and no other will compare!!!

Captain Ross and Justin were great! They did everything to make sure we had fun and caught some good Mahi. We ended up with 20 mahi and about a half dozen tuna. They answered all of our questions happily and were good reel coaches for the less experienced on board (me!).

I would highly recommend the Early Bird with Captain Ross to anyone that wants to have fun and catch a ton too! I can't explain my excitement and satisfaction enough!

Amber B

Had awesome time - highly recommend it!

My friends and I had awesome time fishing with Captain Ross. We caught bunch of mani-mahi, groupers, kingfish and yellowtail. Most importantly we had a blast. Captain Ross and his mate were very professional, courteous and went to great lengths to ensure we had a good day. Highly recommend them, look forward to fishing again!

Alex P

Great day

Had a great day out. Drove down from South Carolina to take my brother-in-law fishing. Called and set everything up. We were baited up and on the fish by 8:30. Conditions were a little rough but Captain Ross put us on the fish. We caught our limit while other charters were coming back with small catches or nothing. If you want a good day out catching fish give Early Bird a call.

LMRobb

Early Bird is the ONLY place where this local sends friends and family.

Early Bird is the ONLY charter I send my friends to! I live in the Keys, and fish here too both on my own boat and charters...bit only one boat & Captain is a "sure thing" recommendation when going for a full day, 3/4 day or half day trip. Today 5/27 is the early bite for Mahi season, and we faced large seas of 5'-7' but pressed on to the Gulf Stream hoping for a good enough ride and maybe a okay catch in tough conditions. Ross' awesome mate hit enough live bait on the first cast net throw to land a blacked out live well! We had lines in the water by 8:30, and a few smaller dinner-kine Mahi onboard. Just a shirt break later we were in the larger variety, and prior to 11am had hit the limit of our species, all very good size - no "monsters" today, just a cooler filled with delicious Mahi Mahi. Full service complete with filets on ice, this happy group hit the road for lunch and souvineers by about 1pm. If you want a super friendly Captain, who is consistently in the fish - it's the Early Bird for this Keys local. You don't have to trust me, follow him daily on Facebook as well. COME GET YOURS, go fish!!! -Al

Biscayne B

Best Fishing Charter ever!!

If you are searching for a fishing charter with an experienced and pleasant crew, but more importantly can put you on the fish then look no further because the Early Bird is the boat for you. Captain Ross and his first mate Ryan turned what initially was shaping out to be a rather uneventful trip to the most memorable fishing experience ever!

First let me start by saying that Captain Ross is not all about the money and truly believes in providing his clients with a fun, safe and productive fishing trip. I say this because on June 3, 2015, the forecast called for heavy rain during my scheduled 6 hour trip. Instead of Captain Ross forcing my buddy and I to fish he gave us the option of canceling without incurring any fees or penalties. Some captains would simply say the trip was on.

To avoid the inclement weather occurring 20 miles offshore we stayed inshore by the reef. After a quick ride and a few minutes of chumming we were catching Yellowtail one after the other. Not big game fish by a long shot but fun considering how our fishing options were limited due to the bad weather. I requested to use my Van Staal VM 150 reel with 40lb braid in the hopes of landing something bigger than yellow tail. Captain Ross was receptive to my request and quickly rigged it up with live bait and attached it to a light action rod with a 3/0 hook. After losing a few fish that pulled the hook I finally snagged something heavy.

At first we thought I got stuck in the rocks but then the fish started taking a lot of line and a long grueling battle ensued. After 30 minutes of fighting Captain Ross took over to give me a breather. He too tired out and Ryan eventually took over. I later took control again but this time with a belt. Everyone except my buddy believed it was going to be a nurse shark. After about an hour of fighting there was finally color. The beast broke the surface and revealed itself - a Goliath Grouper estimated at 200lbs!! After anticipating a nurse shark the whole time we were momentarily stunned! But the crew quickly sprang into action. Captain Ross took the rod and he and Ryan held the fish as long as they could for us to take pictures. My buddy and I each took a video, which will be posted online shortly by Captain Ross. To land this rare behemoth was unbelievable to say the least but to land it using my own reel and line on a light action rod with a small hook made it that much more rewarding! To top it off, after releasing the fish safely and seeing that we were exhausted Captain Ross offered to cut the trip short and charge for four hours instead of the agreed upon six.

To sum it up, I want to thank Captain Ross for putting us on the fish, not trying to nickel and dime us and helping me land a rare and beautiful trophy fish. This was my first visit to the keys and will certainly not be the last. One recommendation my buddy had was a personalized T-shirt with a picture of all of us at the dock and a snapshot of the Goliath Grouper taken from the video. Until next time Captain Ross tight lines!

James Y