Wild Card Charters is the value way to fish the Outer Banks Gulf Stream on a private boat. It is a 35 foot Bertram out of Wanchese, run by Captain Frank Smith, who has 45 years on the water and a 100 ton master’s license, and it posts the lowest full day offshore price in the port at $2,100 cash, with the license, gear, fuel, and bait all included. It even sells a makeup seat at $350 per angler for solo anglers who want a Gulf Stream day without booking the whole boat. The catch is the boat itself: a 35 foot hull is small and old for the offshore run, so a rough day rides hard.
The verdict and where it ranks
At 7.8 Wild Card is a strong choice and sixth in the port, and it wins on value and honesty about it. Every trip has a posted cash price, the full day offshore is the cheapest private Gulf Stream day on the board, and the makeup option gives a single angler a private boat seat for $350, where the alternative is usually a packed head boat. Captain Smith’s experience is real and the reviews back him. The clear trade is the boat. A 35 foot Bertram is the smallest hull in the ranked field, and on a long run to the Gulf Stream and back in a chop it is a wetter, harder ride than the 50 foot class boats. For more hull at a still fair price, Hatteras Blue is the pick; for the widest menu nearby, the Fishin’ Fannatic is the other Wanchese boat. Compare the field on the Outer Banks ranking.
The boat
The Wild Card is a 35 foot Bertram sportfisher on twin diesels, a classic offshore hull but a small and older one for the Gulf Stream. This is the factor that holds the boat back. A 35 footer fishes a calm or moderate day offshore well, but on a rough day, or on the long run home into a head sea, it moves around more and rides wetter than the bigger boats in the port, and it has less cabin to get out of the weather. As a six pack it takes six anglers, which on a hull this size means a full but workable deck. If your priority is a comfortable ride on a snotty day, weigh the size honestly before you book.
The fishing and what you target
Wild Card fishes the full range, from the beach to the blue water. The full day offshore Gulf Stream trip trolls for yellowfin, bluefin, and blackfin tuna, wahoo, mahi mahi, and white marlin, with an offshore variety trip that mixes trolling and bottom fishing for tilefish. Closer in, the nearshore and inshore trips work for the seasonal run of fish along the beach. The winter bluefin run off Oregon Inlet is on the menu, mostly catch and release under the boat’s HMS permit, with retention set year to year by NOAA Fisheries. Confirm the current tuna and billfish rules before a targeted trip.
Trips and prices
This is where Wild Card shines. Every trip carries a posted cash price: a full day offshore Gulf Stream is $2,100, a full day inshore $1,450, a three quarter day nearshore $1,000, a half day nearshore $700, and a makeup offshore seat $350 per angler. The license, gear, fuel, and bait are included for all anglers, with a 3 percent surcharge on credit cards stated upfront. That is the clearest, lowest priced private offshore option in the port, and the makeup seat is a genuinely useful way for one or two anglers to reach the Gulf Stream without a head boat crowd. Our cost guide and the private versus head boat guide put the value in context.
The crew
Captain Frank Smith is the boat. He owns and runs it, holds a 100 ton master’s license with radar and towing endorsements, and has 45 years of fishing behind him, and the reviews reflect a captain who works hard to find fish and looks after his anglers, with a 100 percent recommend record across his Facebook reviews and steady praise on TripAdvisor and Yelp. The review volume is lighter than the busiest booking platform boats in the port, which is the main reason the track record score is not higher, but the direction is unbroken and positive. As a one boat, owner run operation, the captain you book is the captain you fish with.
Booking and what to know
Book direct by phone, and ask about the makeup list if you are one or two anglers wanting an offshore seat. Pay cash to skip the card surcharge. Arrive early for the full day offshore, which is a 10 and a half hour day, and bring food, drinks, sunscreen, and a cooler; the license, gear, fuel, and bait are covered. Given the boat size, bring motion sickness medication if you are unsure of your stomach.
How we scored it
Wild Card earns its 7.8 on the best value and the clearest pricing in the port, a veteran owner captain, and a flexible menu that even includes a makeup seat, held back by the small, older 35 foot hull and a lighter review volume than the booking platform leaders. Value and transparency is its top factor. See how we scored this boat and the Outer Banks ranking for the field.