Reel Time Charters is one of the best run small boats fishing out of Morehead City, a 31 foot Carolina sportfisher under an owner captain who is on the bridge every trip, with one of the deepest review records in the port. Captain Cody Garner runs it full time, fishes the nearshore and the mid shelf hard, and has built a 4.9 rating across more than 170 trips on a boat built locally in Morehead City in 1990. It is the value pick of the field: a well crewed, fairly priced day for a family or a first timer, with the honest limit that a 31 footer is a calm day boat for the Gulf Stream.
The verdict and where it ranks
Reel Time is a strong choice and our second ranked boat in Morehead City, a notch behind Offshore Outlaw and ahead of the bigger sportfishers on the strength of an owner operator with the same captain every trip and a deep, consistent record. Where it gives ground is the boat: at 31 feet, with a single engine and only four anglers fishing at once, it is built for the nearshore and the bottom rather than living offshore in a seaway, and the 12 hour Gulf Stream run depends on a calm forecast. Book it for a well run nearshore or bottom fishing day, or the winter bluefin trip. For a full Gulf Stream trolling day with room for six, the Family Time or Sensation are the bigger tools.
The boat
The Reel Time is a 31 foot Sonny Raines custom Carolina boat from 1990, built in Morehead City, with a wide 12 foot beam that gives it more cockpit than most 31 footers and a single Cummins diesel that cruises around 27 knots. It runs up to date Garmin electronics and a private head, and it is kept clean and well maintained, which the reviews back up. It takes up to six aboard but four fish at once, so it is honest about being a small boat: roomy for its length and the right platform for the nearshore reefs and a calm Gulf Stream day, but not the boat for six anglers on a rough offshore haul.
The fishing and what you target
Reel Time fishes across three zones. The 6 hour trip stays in sight of land for Spanish mackerel and bluefish, with time to push deeper for king mackerel. The 8 to 10 hour trips run 15 to 25 miles out and combine trolling and bottom fishing for king mackerel, snapper, grouper, and amberjack, which is the heart of what the boat does well. The 12 hour Gulf Stream trip trolls the blue water for mahi mahi, wahoo, and yellowfin tuna when the weather allows, and the seasonal winter run, roughly November into January, targets the giant bluefin tuna that move in off the Crystal Coast. The captain matches the trip to the season and the forecast rather than overselling the blue water, which fits a boat this size.
Trips and prices
Reel Time sells by the whole boat, private only, and the pricing is clear and posted. Rates start at $575 for a 4 hour nearshore half day and run through $800 for six hours, $1,150 for eight, $1,400 for a 10 hour full day offshore, and $1,700 for the 12 hour Gulf Stream trip, with the seasonal giant bluefin trip at $800 for up to four. The fishing license, Avet and Shimano rods and reels, bait, and lures are included, and fish cleaning runs $1 per pound. For what it is, an owner run boat with a deep record, it is the best value in the port. Our cost guide sets these numbers in context, and because the boat is private only, the party boat versus private charter guide helps you weigh it against a walk on head boat seat.
The crew
Captain Cody Garner owns and runs the boat, with Holden Brown as mate across several seasons, and that continuity shows in the reviews: the same captain meets you at the slip every time, which is not true of the rotating crews on the head boats. The recurring themes across more than 170 reviews are a friendly, patient captain who is good with families and first timers, productive trips, and careful boat handling that puts safety first. It is the cleanest owner operator record in the port, and the consistency is the point. The one honest note is tenure: the operation went full time in 2021, so the record, while deep, is built over a handful of seasons rather than decades.
Booking and what to know
Book through the operator’s site or its FishingBooker listing. The boat leaves from 204 Atlantic Beach Causeway, on the Atlantic Beach side of Beaufort Inlet, a few minutes across the bridge from the Morehead City waterfront and the same water the rest of the fleet fishes. Arrive about 30 minutes ahead to park and load. No fishing license is needed, the boat covers it, and the crew cleans your catch for $1 per pound. Bring food, drinks, sunscreen, and motion sickness medication if you are unsure of your stomach, since the nearshore chop and a long offshore day can both turn one.
How we scored it
Reel Time scores just below the top of the port: an owner operator with the same captain every trip, the cleanest small boat record on the Crystal Coast, and the best value and booking in the field, held off the very top by the boat, a 31 footer that is a nearshore and calm day platform rather than a true offshore sportfisher. Captain and crew, value, and service are its strongest factors. See how we scored this boat, and weigh it against the rest of the Morehead City fleet.