WATCH: Ultimate Catch Host, Space Coast Daily Outdoor Editor Capt. Eric Ciocher Reels in Monster 33-Inch Redfish

SPACE COAST DAILY TV SPECIAL PRESENTATION

ABOVE VIDEO: Ultimate Catch Host, Space Coast Daily Outdoor Editor Capt. Eric Ciocher Reels in Monster 33-Inch Redfish. (Ultimate Catch TV Video)

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – Ultimate Catch host and Space Coast Daily Outdoors Editor Capt. Eric Ciocher reeled in a monster 33-inch redfish in Grant.

For Capt. Ciocher, the pursuit of fish is more than a sport or even a vocation. It is a philosophy of life.

Capt. Ciocher’s latest Spacecoast Fishing Report details what’s biting:

■ Inshore Brevard saltwater Redfish

■ Sheephead, Black Drum,

■ Seatrout bait shrimp

■ Surf Pompano,

■ Margate

■ Offshore King Fish

■ Mangrove Snapper, Lane Snapper, Red Snapper on the Reefs Spanish sardines

Several times a week, someone asks fisherman extraordinaire Captain Eric Ciocher to name his favorite fish.

Ciocher always has the identical succinct response: “The next one,” he said.

His hesitancy to name a particular favorite is understandable, for all kinds of fish have been very, very good to Ciocher, who has the enviable career of fishing around the world for a living

The Melbourne resident produces the “Space Coast Daily Fishing Report,” which streams on SpaceCoastDaily.com and Space Coast Daily Facebook page.

With the help of Ciocher and his many fishing-savvy guests, Brevard anglers should get the scoop on the hottest locations for the best catch.

“We have local pros and captains discussing in-shore, off-shore and freshwater fishing,” he said.

Being in front of the camera to talk fishing is part of doing business for Ciocher, who for a dozen years has produced and hosted “Ultimate Catch,” a half-hour fishing show seen in the World Fishing Network.

The show has enabled Ciocher to hook fish from the Carolinas to Texas, and from the Bahamas to Baja, a dream that as a fishing-crazy kid in New Jersey Ciocher could not have imagined.

Each week, he joins some of the nation’s best anglers to fish in world-class fishing destinations.

It’s hard for Ciocher to imagine a time when he did not fish.

“I think I was three when I started,” he said.

His 15-year-old son, Joey, has picked up on Eric’s passion for angling and Ciocher has cut back on accepting gigs as a fishing guide in order to join Joey by the water at least a couple of times a week.

His first 28 years were spent in Jersey until he headed to the Space Coast and its more abundant outdoor opportunities and better fishing weather.

After a stint as a boat captain and professional fishing guide, with numerous tournament wins in the saltwater arena, in 2000 Ciocher began a career writing about the outdoors for local and national publications.

He was eventually asked to co-host a televised fishing show, which led to his current adrenaline-packed endeavor as an independent producer for the World Fishing Network.

“I go to different areas of the country and fish with the best captains and professional anglers, who teach me about the area,” said Ciocher, who also does commercials for sporting equipment manufacturers.

He had previously toyed with the movies as an extra; among his “film credits” is being part of two episodes of the 12-part HBO series “From the Earth to the Moon,” co-produced by Ron Howard and Tom Hanks, among others.

There is no tackle, from fly-fishing to spinning gear, that Ciocher hasn’t tried, because he has fished all types of bodies of water where fish can be found.

Among his career highs was a tarpon-seeking trip to Puerto Rico, where he was told he had broken the record for the most tarpon hooked in 72 hours.

Fishing in Brevard keeps him occupied in between taping of his shows, and he admits to admiring the tarpon and the snook he can find here.

Although red tide and pollution have caused disturbing fish kills locally, Ciocher sees brighter times ahead for the Space Coast waters.

“Fishing here has been pretty good lately, and I believe it’s on the upswing,” he said.

His globetrotting angling has provided Ciocher with an in-depth look at declining fish populations and has led him to support any measures that help restore bodies of water around the world.

“I’m a strong advocate for clean waterways on a global scale,” he said.

“Catching the next one means I’m alive and well,” he said. “I enjoy every moment of fishing as if it were my last.”

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