Most boat trips out of Englewood put you on a big pontoon with people you have never met, on a schedule somebody else set. This is the other thing. One booking takes the whole boat, your crew is the only crew, and the day gets built around what you actually want to do out there.
Captain ET runs it single-handed. He is a Coast Guard licensed captain, a world champion skimboarder and a competitive wakesurfer, he grew up on this water, and the dolphin footage he shot in Lemon Bay ran on ESPN and has passed 50 million views. You get him, not whoever was rostered that morning.
Four ways to spend the day
Wakesurf Charter
Pro instruction, an adjustable wave, boards for every level. Most first-timers are riding inside the session.
Dolphin & Wildlife Tour
Wild bottlenose dolphins in Lemon Bay, plus manatees, turtles and rays. The trip that ended up on ESPN.
Sunset Cruise
Golden hour on the Gulf, smooth water, your own music. One departure a day and it books out fast.
Day on the Bay
Sandbars, swimming, snacks, no schedule. Birthdays, bachelorettes, or a family with nothing to prove.
Every one of those prices is for the whole group, up to six guests. Full pricing and what's included.
The boat
A Heyday H22, which is a purpose-built wake boat rather than a pontoon with a tower bolted on. Three thousand pounds of adjustable ballast means the wave can be set for a complete beginner or for somebody who actually knows what they are doing. There is a bimini top for shade, two onboard heaters for a cool morning start, a sound system worth using, and enough room that six people are not sitting on each other.
Where we go from Englewood
Lemon Bay is the home water: protected, shallow, full of wildlife, and calm when the Gulf is not. Stump Pass opens onto the Gulf when conditions allow. Captain ET picks a launch that is convenient for your group and confirms it when he approves the booking, and because the boat is on a trailer, a dock pickup is usually workable if you are close to where the charter runs.
We also run up the coast regularly, to Sarasota, Siesta Key, Venice, Boca Grande and Punta Gorda and Port Charlotte.
Book a private charter
Pick a date and Captain ET confirms personally, usually within a few hours.
Questions people ask
Your group and nobody else. One booking takes the whole boat, so there is no sharing it with strangers, no fixed departure you have to fit around, and no waiting at a dock while a tour fills up. You pick the date, Captain ET builds the day around your crew.
Captain ET holds a six-pack licence from the Coast Guard, which caps him at six paying passengers. The boat seats fourteen comfortably, but six is the legal number and he does not bend it. Larger groups run as a second boat with a second captain, priced as two charters.
No, and this is the part people double-check. Every rate covers your whole group up to six. Two people or six people, the number is the same. Fuel, boards, vests, water and the captain are all in it.
A Heyday H22 wake boat. Three thousand pounds of adjustable ballast for the wave, a bimini top for shade, two onboard heaters for cool mornings, and a proper sound system. It is a purpose-built wakesurf boat that happens to be very comfortable for a sunset cruise.
Somewhere convenient to you. The boat is on a trailer, so the launch gets picked on the day based on conditions and where your group is coming from, and Captain ET confirms the exact spot and time when he approves the booking. If you are staying somewhere with a dock close to where the charter runs, he can usually collect you from it.
Weekends and holidays go first, and there is one boat. A week or two out is comfortable in the shoulder season, longer in the winter high season. If you want a specific Saturday in season, book it early.
You are not charged for a day the captain calls off. If the forecast is genuinely unsafe or the water is unusable, ET moves the trip to another date or refunds the deposit. He would rather reschedule than take you out on a bad day and have that be your memory of it.
More on the trips
If it is the wildlife you are after, the Englewood dolphin tour page goes into what is out there and when. If you want the wave, charters and pricing has every rate and everything included. And the local guide to Englewood covers where to eat and which beaches are worth the drive while you are here.