Big Trout and Tourney Red

 This morning I launched at Old Town Bait and Tackle and after a Bait Shop sausage and egg sandwich, made the run over to Oyster Bay to pick up David Vice, Robert Stettner and their fishing buddy Greg. We came back around Tyger and as we were heading up to the Jolley, we made a stop on the outside of Tyger, turned into the incoming current and began pitching jigs and live shrimp and minnows. In Davids first cast or two he had a hookup and landed feisty Flounder.  We worked along that edge for a few hundred yards - the trio landed a couple of keeper sized Flounder, a couple of small Trout, a small Red, and then they battled some 4' Shark to the boat for photograph and release.

We then bounced around to the Jolley River and worked the "bank" and here, Robert, fishing off the stern and letting his float drift, picked up a nice 16" keeper Seatrout. We had a couple of more smaller Trout and a smaller Redfish. We moved on up the river to Tyger Cut and fished the point. Greg had a strong bite that ripped his drag - he fought it expertly, but this fish knew the ropes - it ran up to the shallow bank and cut itself off, boy what a fish1 We continued up to Snook Creek, worked that grass line and after David had made a good cast up to the grass line, BAM! If I was betting, I would have lost! The fish pulled some drag a few times and I was thinking "Redfish" but as David worked it to the net we saw it was a big Seatrout. David landed it and we measured it to just over 20"!  

We worked that bank pretty good until the tide came to a standstill then we ran back to Tyger Island and set up at a drainage. All three anglers were getting bites - Seatrout, a small Red or two, some Jacks, then David, fishing off the bow, went forward alongside some submerged oysters and when his float disappeared and he tightened up to let that circle hook set, it was Fish On! This fish was ripping drag and digging deep and making runs. We felt sure it was a big Redfish - David played it patiently and worked it in to land a big "Tournament sized" Redfish that measured right at 26.75", boy what a fish! We had caught a good bunch of fish throughout the day, had a good mess in the box, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

The Red Hook Gaurantee

 I fished yesterday with the Frost's - Steve and Carron, meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat rampearly, and good for that - the day turned out very still and hot! We ran up the Nassau and made our first stop at Twin Creeks to fish float rigs and live shrimp and mud minnows on a tide that had been coming in a few hours. We worked that spot and hit a few more along the Nassau and it was Steve that had the hot hand early - he caught a couple of Trout, a small flounder, and then battled a nice Slot sized Redfish to the boat. 

We fished down at Pumpkin Hill and both anglers were getting good drifts  - we couldn't believe that they weren't getting bites but it seemed the fish had taken a siesta as the tide peaked. .We dropped back to Seymore's Pointe - Carron fishing the jigs while Steve and I tossed floats to the rocks, but again, no real bites.

After running thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Point we worked a grassy bank as the tide started out. This time it was Carron who had the big bites. She first hooked up and battled to the boat a big 20.75" Seatrout - big enough to move her into 2nd place in the Anglers Mark 2025 Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). Boy what a Trout! Then as we worked forward she had a big bite on red hook baited with a mud minnow and the drag was ripping, Big Fish On!  Carron took the fish across the bow, down the port side and around the stern a couple of times. She worked it in, let it run, worked it in, and eventually brought to the net an Oversized 29" Redfish!  Shortly after that Steve battled a big fish, too. We were thinking another Redfish but then it made those tale-tale signs of digging deep and holding the bottom and sure enough, it was a Bonnethead Shark. We had some good catches, and great weather, albeit a bit hot, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

The Limit and One Oversized

 I met the Pinkston boys out at Goffinsville Park boat ramp this morning, Ray and his brothers Tommy and Jimmy. The tide still had a couple of hours of coming in so we made a quick run over to Pumpkin Hill and set up to drift floats and live shrimp with the incoming current along the flooding grass line. I was looking for Trout but all we found was one measly Croaker! We fished down the river a bit then made a move, running down the Nassau River to Twin Creeks and again anchored up to drift the slip floats.

Jimmy was on the stern and after opening his bail, he let his float "go deep" and it paid off - his float disappeared, he slapped his bail, caught up to it, and had a hookup!  Jimmy worked it in patiently and landed a nice 17" Seatrout. As it turned out, Tommy would be the Flounder Man today - he expertly landed three 14.75" of them in a row. As we worked down the bank Jimmy had another good bite, lifted to let the circle hook set, and Fish On!  He worked it to the boat and landed a nice 25" Slot Redfish. After the crew caught one more just undersized Flounder, we moved on.

After running up to Seymore's and fishing a large outflow as the tide started out, to no avail, we ran thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Cut and again stuck with the floats. At first it was kinda slow but then Tommy picked up a feisty Redfish. I had switched Ray to a mud minnow and after he had cast up above a grassy point, BAM! Float Gone!  And Ray had a battle on his hands!  He fought the big fish out from the bank, over to the port side, down the gunwale, under the boat and back out into deeper water. The fish ran shallow then deep, but Ray kept the pressure on. He worked it slowly in and eventually landed an Oversized 29.75" bull of a Redfish, boy what a fish!

We stayed there and picked up two more Slot Redfish (to get their limit) and a handful of smaller ones. We then moved back over to Jackstaff and worked one area where the trio added one more Redfish to their catch. We fished Jackstaff "bank" but after a Catfish or two we called it a day and as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

We Made The Top 50!

Note that the blog Amelia Island Fishing Reports was selected by FeedSpot as one of the Top 50 Florida Fishing Blogs on the web. We're #18 and moving up!

If you scroll down the right side of this report you will see that ALL TIME visits to the page is well over 2 million! (It's right under the Waxhead banner) 

Last month alone there were 43,061 visits to the blog. 

And yet, only ONE local advertiser!  

Let me customize your promotion here to those 40,000 visitors.   CLICK HERE for advertising rates.

Old Dog Teaching Tricks

 I wrapped my week up fishing with the Verner boys, Patrick and his sons Bryan and Patrick and grandson
James. We met early down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp and then made a long run up the intracoastal, all the way up to Poteat Point where we set up to fish float rigs on a tide that had only been going out for about an hour. Using live shrimp as bait, the anglers drifted the marsh grass with the current and right off, the younger Patrick had a hook up off the stern - he played it perfectly and soon landed a nice hungry Seatrout. Bryan was on the bow and found a hard fighting Jack Crevalle that he worked to the boat, then he battled an even bigger one - we thought it might be a Redfish, but boy what a fight! Patrick SR fought a high flying Ladyfish to the boat then they teamed up to land a couple of Bluefish. Young James was "coaching them up" up well thought out suggestions.

After fishing across the river for a bit, to no avail, we ran thru Horsehead and then up the Nassau River to a point at Back River and sticking with the floats, we had good drifts, but no takers. Back down the river we came to Twin Creeks and they all switched to jigs. We fished that drainage then eased down to another drainage and here Patrick SR hooked up and landed a keeper sized Flounder. He put another Flounder in the boat, then a Jack Crevalle. After fishing Spanish Drop for a bit, we made the run up to Seymore's Pointe and fished some dock pilings with the jigs. Again, it was Patrick Sr, teaching lessons, who hooked up and landed a nice 17" keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. We fished along those docks and added a Pinfish, a Croaker and a Toad fish to the catch variety. James helped his dad work a couple of those fish in.  Our final stop was around at Nassauville fishing some rocks - we fished floats and jigs, had plenty of bites but no takers, then we headed back to the ramp, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Had To Work For 'Em Today

 We went out of Old Town Bait and Tackle this morning, after meeting Joey Shiver, his son Casey, and son-in-law Brett early for a half day of fishing. We eased out of Eagans Creek then made a run up and around the outside to Tyger. I had all three anglers tossing jigs and live shrimp to a nice drainage in hopes for a Flounder, but all we had were nibbles. (for most of the day I was noting muddy water-it didn't bode well). We eased around to the mouth of the Jolley and worked the "bank" - here the trio of anglers, who were making excellent casts, caught a undersized Flounder then just about everything we didn't want - Pinfish, Croaker, Bluefish, and Catfish.

After running further up the Jolley. we fished another large drainage. Joey couldn't have had a better drift on his first cast, letting his line out and letting it drift closely down the shoreline. Casey and Brett followed him and all had good drifts, but no real bites. We moved up to Snook Creek, worked it with floats for a bit, then switched back to jigs and worked along the now exposed oysters. Casey picked up another nice Bluefish then Joey, fishing deep off the stern had a strong "thump" and after setting the hook, he patiently brough to the net a big 18"+ Seatrout. Finally! A nice fish!

Further up the Jolley we fished a bend in the river and worked along some exposed shell. Again, Pinfish, and Croaker and even a small Sea Bass, then Brett, after tossing to a cut in the oysters had a strong bite and a hookup. He fought it expertly to the boat, let it run, worked it in, and landed a nice 21" 7-spot Redfish. After fishing the MOA for a while, we ran around to Bell River and fished some docks for a bit, then ran back, all the way around to the Tyger logs and worked them. Joey was making that stern work, he hauled in a Flounder, then Casey followed that up with another Flounder. I think that was the last fish of the day. These anglers had to work for the fish they caught today, but we had a few in the box, so as we headed back to the ramp, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Big Redfish In The Rain

 I uncovered the boat this morning in the rain, and it rained from the bait shop down to Sawpit, and it
rained when John Foreman, his son Chase and grandson Nate and I ran up the intracoastal to make our first stop at Poteat Point. It rained for about two hours into the trip, but the fish were biting! I think John's first or second cast produced a nice 17" keeper sized Seatrout (the only one caught today), then Chase had a strong hookup on his float rig with live shrimp, and the battle was on!  And Chase was up to the battle - he played it perfectly, let it run ripping drag, worked it in, let it run and after a good fight landed an Oversized 28" Redfish, boy what a fish. 

We worked that bank good - John hooked up and expertly landed a Slot sized Redfish and the trio caught a handful of smaller Reds. Then Chase was again in for the big battle, and this fish was a BIG! Chase fought it from one side of the boat to the other as it dug deep and headed down river but he turned, it worked it in, and wore it out and eventually landed an even bigger Oversized Redfish, this one measuring 29.25". We crossed the creek and fished that for a bit, then made our way around to Jackstaff "bank" and worked it with jigs and live shrimp. We may have picked up a Catfish or two. 

After running thru Horsehead and down the Nassau to Twin Creeks we stayed with the jigs and fished
there and a few other drainages. Chase picked up another Slot Redfish, Nate landed a feisty Sheepshead, then he and John tag teamed a big 4' Bonnethead Shark.  John had a strange "thump", hooked it up and brought to the net a keeper sized Flounder, then further down the river it was Nate's turn to battle a big Slot Red. He played it perfectly, stuck with it, fought it in, and landed the biggest Slot Redfish of the day. We finished up fishing over at some docks where they caught a couple of Catfish before Chase hauled in the last keeper fish, a nice Flounder. 

We had gotten wet, but caught big fish, and had a good mess in the box so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Flounder Bragging

 We had movement on the Bragging Rights board today - Flounder category. I had met Clint Davidson, his wife Kat, and her father Brian up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp early this morning, and after easing out of Eagans Creek and running up to the intracoastal, we pulled in to a small drainage on the outside of Tyger to try our hand at catching some Flounder, and it paid off - after a few casts Brian had a good hookup and landed a nice Flounder.

After moving around to the Jolley River and working along the "bank", Kat had another good "bump", out deep - she set the hook and Fish On! Kat played it perfectly and soon landed a keeper sized Flounder. We worked along there for a bit, then ran further up the Jolley and fished a deep bend with the jigs. Here both Clint and Brian tangled with some hard fighting, deep diving Bonnethead Shark. 

We puttered a short distance away to the MOA and began pitching the jigs. In just a short few minutes Clint was hooked up. This fish was ripping some drag and took Clint from the bow, back to the stern, around from starboard to port, then back up to the bow. He played it expertly and after a good battle landed a nice 19" Slot Redfish. There was plenty of bait movement and a bunch of feeding fish but that was all we caught there. We fished back at Tyger logs, worked it good, then made a long run around to Lanceford Creek.

BM1 produced no fish - the wind and current was not working in our favor. We moved further up the
creek, with minutes to go in the trip and Brian, fishing long with a float had decided to reel in and BAM! Big Fish On!  Brian worked it in slowly, eased it up off the bottom and glided it into the net - a nice 19" Flounder, big enough to move in to first place in the Anglers Mark 2025 Bragging Rights Tournament - Flounder category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). We had a few fish in the box, had had some decent action throughout the day, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Seatrout Symposium Scheduled

2025 FWC Seatrout Symposium

 

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is excited to announce the 2025 Seatrout Symposium, which will take place on August 27th at the Daytona Beach Hilton Oceanfront Resort in Daytona Beach, Florida.

This one-day event will bring together stakeholders, scientists, and fisheries managers for an in-depth look at the spotted seatrout fishery in Florida. Attendees will hear highlights from the newly completed FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute stock assessment for spotted seatrout, explore the critical role of habitat and water quality for this fishery, and share regional insights and perspectives on this popular recreational and commercial species in Florida.

This symposium also marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in the management of spotted seatrout. Building on the success of FWC’s holistic management strategies for redfish and snook, the FWC is now exploring a similar approach for spotted seatrout: use multiple metrics to manage on a smaller regional scale.

We invite all interested stakeholders to join the conversation shaping the future of this fishery.

 

Mark Your Calendar – Full Details Coming Soon

Registration instructions, hotel booking information, and full event details will be available soon. In the meantime, please visit MyFWC.com/SeatroutSymposium for the latest updates.

Fishing The NSFA Tournament with High School Buddies

 We've been getting together for about the last 5 years - my High School football teammates and yesterday
we fished the NSFA Rodeo Tournament. Tony French played linebacker our Senior year, Daniel "bubba" Rhodes anchored one side of the line at offensive tackle while I anchored the other side at tackle. A few years ago we lost teammate Raymond Keen who had fished with a couple of those years prior and we always miss him. 

We launched early out at Goffinsville Park and made a quick run over to Spanish Drop on the Nassau River and began pitching jigs and live shrimp and mud minnows. We hit a bunch of spots that day - we fished from 6:30am to about 4pm and at least two of us were complaining about sore knees and ankles as the day wore on. Tony "knocked the skunk off" when he caught a keeper sized Flounder, and I followed that up later with another keeper Flounder. Neither were big enough to warrant running them to check in, but they did go in the box!

We fished a few spots up and down Nassau River and picked up a good amount of small Redfish and a couple of Slot sized Reds. One of those that Dan caught was of legal size and had 4 Spots, again, probably not enough  to run to check in. We ran thru Horsehead and fished Jackstaff "bank" and caught another handful of Reds, and Jacks. Throughout the day we battled a couple of Sharks to the boat and released. Fishing back in the Nassau we landed more Redfish  on float rigs now, over the oyster beds. We ended up catching 4 Slot Reds for the day - Dan had the biggest at 25". We had to release two due to bag limits.

Also caught  were TWO oversized Redfish! The first ended up measuring at 27.5", just a half inch over the size limit. You can imagine the excitement when you know you've got a BIG Redfish on in a Tournament. That happened twice - the 2nd was FAT and measured well about he Slot at 29.5". Oh well - we had a great time catching up and reminiscing about growing up and going to school at FBHS so as we headed back to the ramp we counted as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.