Shrimp Fest Kick Off at Amelia Island

 

I finished my week and kicked off Shrimp Fest weekend by fishing with David Vice, his son Nathaniel and friend Seth, meeting them yesterday morning out at Goffinsville Park boat ramp.  We had an outgoing tide so we made a short run across the river to fish an edge south of Back River, working the bank with float rigs and live shrimp. The first stretch produced only a couple of nibbles but as we worked along Nathaniel had made an excellent cast just up current of an exposed oyster bed and as it drifted around, BOOM! Fish On!  Nathaniel played it perfectly and soon landed a nice 21" Slot Redfish. We continued moving down that bank and shortly afterwards it was Seth's turn to battle the big fish. He patiently fought it to submission and brought to the net another Slot Redfish. 

We then ran down the Nassau and fished a couple of areas from Spanish Drop up to Twin Creeks. The trioput a handful of feisty Reds in the boat, Seth had an epic battle with a Bonnethead Shark and then David put a nice keeper sized Seatrout in the boat. And then he added another fat keeper Trout. We fished Bubblegum Reef very briefly where Seth added a couple of small Mangroves to his catch total, then we finished up fishing some docks at Nassauville where we found one more keeper size Mangrove Snapper. 

It was a beautiful day, we had some good fish in the box and with Shrimp Fest kicking off tomorrow, we counted it as an other great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Pretty Good Species Count at Amelia Island

Redfish, Bonnethead Shark, Seatrout, Flounder, Mangrove Snapper, Black Sea Bass, and Silver Perch -
not bad if we were in a "species tournament"!  But the ones that counted were a couple of Slot Redfish, three keeper sized Seatrout and a Mangrove Snapper. I had met Eric Stevens and his friends Mike and Steven out at Goffinsville Park early this morning and our first stop was down at some docks fishing jigs and live shrimp on a tide that still had a couple of hours of going out to do. We fished it good, had a few bites, but no takers, which surprised me just a bit.

Our next stop was down at Spanish Drop, working exposed shell beds with jigs and the shrimp and even though all three anglers were making excellent casts, we had not takers, which worried me just a bit!  But after moving up the river we set  up outside a large drainage and in no time all three were catching fish. Steven hooked up off the stern and expertly played to the net a keeper sized Seatrout, then Eric and Mike were trading turns catching feisty Redfish, then Mike had a strong bite, one that ripped some drag, and he fought to the net the first Slot Red of the day. He followed that up with a battle with a Bonnethead Shark then shortly added another, bigger, Slot Redfish. Steven, fishing off the stern, found a keeper sized Seatrout out deep. 

After fishing one more stretch of shell beds we headed over to Seymore's Pointe and fished some dock pilings. Not much happening there but we did get some Mangrove Snapper and a small Sea Bass. We then made the run down to Broward and fished under the watchful eye of a Bald Eagle. I thought I saw him smirk as he flew off, we didn't get much of a bite, other than another Black Seabass. 

Our final stop was at Pumpkin Hill, drifting floats along the marsh line and here we had a good flurry of nice Seatrout catches. Steven got hot and put a couple more keepers in the boat, the biggest being right at 18".  And then Eric caught the sole Flou8nder of the day. We had beat the wind and had a couple of spots where we had good flurries of fish catching so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Flroida. 

Ups and Downs

 My "theory" this time of year is that the water temperature rises with the air temps, and it falls with the air temps and the fish get confused.  And of course, there's the theory about fishing during a full moon!  All week we've had beautiful weather, a full-ish moon, and cooler temperatures than last week and the fish bite had been somewhat down. Thursday was pretty good but yesterday, not so much. But luckily I had some anglers that had the right mindset - getting out on the water during a beautiful day and spending some time tossing a line!  I had met David Gray and his fishing partner Dick Conley down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp and knowing that we had the first of an incoming tide, we made the long run up and then around to Broward Island. 

The two anglers were casting live shrimp on a jigs and we had umpteen "hard" bites and finally hooked some up - small but feisty Sheepshead. I kept waiting for a good Redfish bite - we had one, but never that "big one".  We moved down the way few times, fished the bank, and picked up a couple of hungry Seatrout out deep. 

We then ran back to Nassauville and fished between two docks and here Dick found a couple of Seatrout out deep, one of which was of keeper size. Moving around the corner we fished float rigs on the last of an incoming tide and caught a handful of Mangrove Snapper, just undersized. 

After fishing Spanish Drop with the floats, we ran thru Horsehead and fished a stretch of flooding grass with the floats, to no avail. We had caught a few fish, enjoyed some great sunshine, seen Bald Eagles, Herons and Oyster Catchers, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Fish Bite Better Today

 

All week long we've had beautiful days, today included, but for the most part, we had to really work to get some fish in the boat. But today we had the beauty and we caught more fish!  I had met Robert Stettner and David Vice out at Goffinsville Park early and with a tide that had been coming in for about an hour, we made a quick run down to Broward Island and set up to fish jigs and live shrimp. After tossing the baits up close, we let the slow current slide the bait down the river bottom.

David got on the board first with a strong bite, a hookup and after playing it expertly, he landed a nice feisty Jack Crevalle. From then on the two were getting bites and fish. Robert racked up on some feisty Sheepshead, a good handful of them, then he added a "barely legal" Slot Redfish. David put a hungry Seatrout in the boat. We moved down just a bit and added a couple of more Sheepshead to the catch total.  After fishing further down the island for a bit, we moved on. 

Our next stop was over at some docks at Seymores where didn't get much more than a nibble, then we
made a short run down the Nasau to Twin Creeks and tossed some float rigs up current and had it drift across the mouths. In just a few casts Robert was hooked up and it was big! The drag was ripping at the big fish headed north, then it turned and headed out to deeper water. I made the mistake of calling it a shark, because after Robert expertly worked it to the boat we saw that it was a huge Redfish!  Robert played it patiently and after a good battle landed a 28.75" over sized Redfish which we photographed and released.  Boy what a fish! And shortly after that he went thru another huge battle to land a 3' Bonnethead Shark while David put another Seatrout  in the boat. 

We fished down at Spanish Drop for a bit where Robert put a keeper sized Flounder in the boat,  then headed back over to Back River, fished s stretch, then finished up at Pumpkin Hill. The duo landed a Bluefish, another Trout, then David, after making an excellent cast to a grassy point, had a his float dissapear with a vengeance and Fish On!  David fought it expertly to the boat and landed a big 18" Seatrout. After fishing around the corner for a bit we called it a day and headed back to the ramp counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

One Fish Per Spot

 It seemed like we were in line to get one fish per spot that we hit today. I had met Phil Bailey up at Old Town Bait and Tackle on another beautiful day and with a tide that had been coming in for about 4 hours, we ran over and up the Bell River to set up on a point with plans to toss float rigs to the grass. If it wasn't Phil's first cast, it was is 2nd and Fish On!  He played it to the boat and landed a hungry Seatrout. But after that, we had no luck. 

We then ran thru Tyger and around to the downed trees and  briefly fished some jigs deep, then continued on up to the Jolley River and fished a stretch of flooding marsh. We were seeing some big fish "smash" bait but none took our offerings. The next stop was up the river, fishing a point and again, within a cast or two, fish on!  This was a fat Seatrout that was right at legal size. And after that, no real bites.

Further up the river, at Snook Creek, we worked the bank with the floats and picked up a feisty Bluefish,

then went inside and tossed jigs for a bit and barely had a nibble. The tide had hit high and was forecasted to be going out back towards Fernandina so we made our run back to the outside of Tyger and fished a corner and sure enough, BAM!  Phil had a hookup He fought it expertly to the boat and netted a nice Redfish. But other than a Needlefish catch, we had no more bites. After working a bank back out to the river, we called it a day and headed back to the boat ramp We had had a little bit of action, had been fishing on a beautiful day, so as we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Enjoy What You Got

What a super beautiful day we had today!  I met Dennis Brizzi and his fishing crew Bob and Jeremy out at Goffinsville Park mid morning with plans to fish the first of an outgoing tide. It was still coming in at Goffinsville so we ran over to Pumpkin Hill and drifted float rigs and live shrimp along the flooding marsh line. 

As it turned out, we didn't "tear them up" today but with a somewhat cool temperature, sunshine, and a slight breeze, I could tell these anglers were enjoying being out on the water. Jeremy did have a good bite at that first stretch, and when we moved around the corner Dennis put a small Seatrout in the water, then Bob hooked up and played to the boat a nice 18" Seatrout, and then he had an epic battle with a 3' Bonnethead Shark, the first of the year. He played it patiently, fought it from Starboard to Port, from stern to bow, and back to stern, then settled in for the fight. It took a while on that light tackle but we eventually landed it for photograph and release. 

It was a real treat to be fishing under the watchful eye of a Bald Eagle setting on an shell bank. 

We fished Seymore's Pointe on the outgoing tide and here Dennis, after breaking off initially on a bigger fish, put a handful of Mangrove Snapper in the boat. After running thru Horsehead we fished Pompano Pointe, to no avail, then we fished over off of Jackstaff, a couple of spots, then back thru Horsehead we went. 

After a long run up the Nassau River we dipped into a creek and worked the bank and Jeremy persevered and hooked up and landed a nice Flounder. He also put two Blue Crab in the boat!  The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, we had caught a few, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Storm Behind Us

 We had a pretty good thunderstorm come thru last evening, enough so that our dog, Jasper, was hunting security. It was still raining when I went to bed but when I got up this morning it had quit and we had just a breeze as I made my way to the bait shop. Afterwards I met Frank and Joanne Wytiaz down at Sawpit Creek and we made our way up the Back River on a high and still coming in tide to make our first stop around at Pumpkin Hill with plans to fish float rigs  and live shrimp. With the north wind at our back, both anglers were getting good casts to the flooding grass line and good drifts too, but it was to no avail, we only had a nibble or two. 

But when we inched around a point and drifted that side Joanne battled a nice Catfish to the boat then Frank battled a rather big Jack Crevalle to the net. We then got out of the wind that had picked up and ran over to Christopher Creek and worked the bend with jigs, but again, no luck.

Our next stop was around at Seymore's Point, fishing a large drainage with the float rigs and here we picked up a few Mangrove Snapper, one of which was of keeper size. (all fish caught today were released). Back around at Nassauville and back to fishing jigs deep, the two anglers picked up another Mangrove and Joanne put a couple of  Seatrout in the boat, one of which was of keeper size. 

The final stop, after running thru Horsehead, was over at Pompano Pointe, drifting the float rigs. It seemed the wind may have died and Frank and Joanne were getting good drifts but we only had a nibble or two. The sun had come out, it had cooled from yesterday, and as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Good Start and Good End

 I wrapped my week up yesterday fishing with Glenn and Patti Langford. We met up at Old Town Bait and made our way over to the outside of Tyger to fish floats and live shrimp on a tide that had been going out for about an hour. As it's been all week, it was a beautiful day and as we eased up to some flooded grass we could see all kinds of bait activity moving around. It didn't take long for Glenn and Patti both to be getting bites and Glenn soon had a Slot Red in the boat, Patti a Seatrout. We caught a handful of fish before they quit biting then we moved across the creek, fished some edges, then move on. 

Heading to the Jolley we made a stop at a large drainage and pitched jigs, then move around to Jolley Bank and worked along it tossing the floats. This duo was getting good casts and good drifts, but we had no takers so we moved on up the river and fished two more spots, but to no avail. Everywhere we fished was looking really good and were fishable, but the fish weren't cooperating. 

Our final stop was around at Bell River, fishing some docks and here we had good luck. Patti found some Seatrout down deep and put a good handful in the boat, Glenn picked up a few, then Patti reeled in another beautiful Slot Red, and then added a keeper sized Weakfish to wrap up the day. We had a few fish in the box, had had action early and late, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Twenty One. And a Blue Crab.

 Just another beautiful day fishing here at Amelia Island!  I had met John Raker and his mother Betty out at Goffinsville Park early and as we headed out the sun was already shining and we had just enough breeze that the sand gnats were not a problem. We made a short jump over to Back River and began fishing a stretch of exposed shell with float rigs and live shrimp.  We had a Blue Fish catch to get things started and as we eased along John had a strong hookup and Big Fish On!  John played it expertly and when we saw a couple of boils we knew it was a big Red. After a good battle John brought to the net a nice 24.5" Slot Redfish. 

\Continuing on down the bank we saw a commotion and a wake move away from us.  John made an excellent cast south of th wake, let his bait drift with the current back and BAM! Another big fish on! He played this one expertly and soon landed a 21.25" Slot Red. 

We then came back and fished some docks at Nassauville where John put a small Flounder in the boat, then Betty brought a keeper sized Flounder to the net. Our next stop was around at Seymore's Pointe, fishing some dock pilings and here we had a flurry of action, catching a keeper sized Seatrout, a small Black "puppy" Drum, and a Betty reeled in a couple of feisty Redfish. She also patiently played to the boat a brilliant blue, Blue Crab!

After running down to Broward we worked the bank slowly, tossing jigs and live shrimp. It took a while but we began to get fish. Betty put two Slot Redfish in the boat, John added another, and they teamed up to catch a good handful of hungry Trout. John had kept count and we had caught 21 fish, and a Blue Crab, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Two Big Trout Makes For an Engaging Fishing Trip

 Boy what a beautiful morning we had today!  I met Tatum Nolan and her NEW fiancé Victor Jelici down at Sawpit Creek early and we made our way around to Sawpit bridge with slip floats and live shrimp, to no avail. I have fished with Tatum and Victor a few times in the past but this time they announced that they were newly engaged!  We made our next stop at up Spanish Drop, fishing the exposed shell beds on a tide that still had a couple of hours of going out to hit bottom. We worked along that bank and could see some bait movement up along the edge, but we had no real bites.

After running up the river a bit we fished some dock pilings with jigs and live shrimp and here we finally "knocked the skunk off". Tatum reeled in a small but feisty Black "puppy" Drum then she went back to the same spot and BAM! -Right off, had a hookup. She played it expertly to the net and landed a big 20.25" Seatrout, boy what a fish! This fish moved Tatum into 3rd place in the 2024 Anglers Mark Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). We added one more fish, a Jack Crevalle, before we moved on.

Our next stop was up the Nassau, fishing between two docks. The duo added a small Flounder then it
was Victor's turn to battle the big fish. Had cast up shallow, let his bait fall down the river bottom, and in about 20' of water, Big Fish On!  Victor played it patiently and after a good battle landed another 20.25" Seatrout to tie his future spouse in that Bragging Rights Tournament!

We came back and fished Bubblegum Reef and caught a Mangrove Snapper, then made our way down to Broward Island to fish the very last of that outgoing tide. They had a flurry  of catching a small Seatrout, a small Flounder then Victor had a strong hookup. He fought it to the boat and landed Slot sized Redfish. 

We had had good weather, caught some fish, and celebrated a new engagement with a fishing trip, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Wind Made It A Challenge

 I wrapped my week up today, fishing with Bob Kossman and Larry Westfall before they head north forthe summer. This was a a "Share-A-Trip" - contact me if you'd like to be added to the list. We met down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp with a weather forecast that called for clear skies and 8mph  west winds to start, increasing to 13mph. We made the long run up the Nassau and around to Broward Island and fished a stretch as the tide was still going out. I could tell right off that the water was real murky which didn't bode well for a our chances and sure enough, we had no bites. We moved down the way a bit and fished, trying to stall for the tide to turn around, but eventually we had to leave - that west wind, the murky waters, and no bites made it the smart thing to do. 

We headed back to Seymore's Pointe, somewhat out of the wind, and found a dock to fish on that lower incoming tide, and this did the trick. The duo caught a few feisty Redfish, a keeper Seatrout that had only a few spots(I called it a weakfish initially) and Bob landed the 2nd Mangrove Snapper of the year while Larry put probably the biggest Black Sea Bass I've ever had caught in the boat. 

After fishing back around at Nassauville with jigs and live shrimp and getting a couple of small trout, we came back around to Seymore's and fished float rigs now that the tide was up. No luck with them but Larry found that we could set up out deep and get Seatrout off the bottom,  one of which was 17", and we also got  a couple of Blues. By now that wind was kicking! I checked my weather App and saw that it was at 17mph!  We had struggled to stay out of the wind, but it was a beautiful day and we had caught a few fish so was we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

She Should Have Backed Away From The Table

 Storm a'coming tomorrow!  But we the water was like glass this morning when I launched at Sawpit
Creek and after meeting Allen Webb, we made a long run up the Nassau, all the way to Broward, and pulled  up to fish jigs as the tide had been coming in for about an hour.  It didn't take long and Allen was on a fish - he played it perfectly and landed a "just in the slot" Redfish. He also picked up a keeper sized Seatrout down deep with the jigs. We moved down the way and fished the bank close and this paid off with a couple of more feisty Redfish catches and a good handful of just undersized Sheepshead. After fishing down with the Bald Eagles, we moved on. 

Our next stop was back at Nassauville, fishing between a couple of docks and here we had a handful of Seatrout caught, again, down deep, and also a Catfish.  We then made the run way  up the Nassau, and into a creek to fish a log lined bank. We both marveled at the beauty and peacefulness of the area, but I think we only had one bite that was a fish, and one Blue Crab that we brought to the boat. 

Our final stop was back down the Nassau, around at Seymore's, fishing the last of an incoming tide with float rigs. We caught another small Trout or two, a Bluefish, and then our float disappeared with a vengeance. Allen fought it patiently, kept that rod bent while it ran and the drag ripped, and we both were guessing, "Redfish". But when Allen got it to the boat and I went to dip it, Boy What a Trout!  We got it in the the boat and she measured right at 24.75". A whopper of a Trout -she just couldn't pass up one more shrimp for her morning meal!  That fish moved Allen solidly into the Anglers Mark 2024 Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings).  

We fished a bit more but the wind was now up so we headed back. We had a few good fish in the box, Bragging Rights in the bag, so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.  

We Were On The Hunt

 

We had a beautiful morning today when I met Chris Pyle and his fishing buddy John down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp, and after running up the Nassau we pulled up at Pumpkin Hill Creek to try our hand with some float rigs and live shrimp, drifted down the bank with a high and incoming tide. It didn't work - I don't think we had a nibble. We then fished a point, doing the same thing down the other side, then dropped back and fished a grassy patch and, to no avail.

Our next stop was over in Christopher Creek at the last of that high tide, where we tossed jigs and the shrimp but had not a nibble. Once the tide was high we came back out and around to Seymore's Pointe, switched back to float rigs, and here our luck changed. Both anglers had good hookups and played to the boat some keeper sized Seatrout. We had a few "hungry" but small trout and we had probably the biggest of the day to the boat before it tossed the hook. 

After running thru Horsehead and over to Pompano Point we tried the floats - no luck - then moved
back to Jackstaff and fished a large drainage where we did pick up another Trout or two. Back thru Horsehead we went and down to some docks at Nassauville and again, our "action" picked up. John put another keeper Trout or two in the boat and Chris added another keeper or two. We had two small Flounder brought to the net, too. 

Our final stop was back at Seymore's on a lower tide, fishing dock pilings with the jigs and we had a bit of action.  John put a couple of Bluefish in the boat, another Trout and then we battled something big, had it to the boat, and again, hook thrown! Ouch.  But these anglers had a a good handful of Seatrout in the box and as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

:Handicapped from the Start

After I got the boat ready and was having a cup of coffee I saw AIBT's Facebook post that they were out of live shrimp and minnows and I knew we'd be a bit handicapped from the start. But I luckily I had some fresh frozen shrimp in the freeze, which I grabbed, and I loaded up with a quart of fiddler crabs at the bait shop and then met Doug Massey, his son Mark and grandson Evan up at the Old Town boat ramp.  And then Capt Jesse Scruggs gave me a dozen mud minnows, so we were set!

We headed out of Eagans and over to Tyger and set up off a point to fish float rigs and drifted the mud minnows across an oyster flat with the outgoing current. The trio of anglers were getting good drifts but if we had a nibble, it wasn't much.  We crossed over the creek and fished a corner of grass with the floats, but again, no bites.

After coming out of Tyger and around to the outside we did pull up at a drainage and switched to jigs and the minnows and worked it pretty good, to no avail.  The wind was supposed to start picking up and sure enough, it was as we headed around to the Jolley River and fished another drainage, this time with the floats, and again, no bites. Ouch.  We were two hours in to the trip and the skunk was still on the boat!

But our next stop was around at Bell River, fishing the jigs with everything we had -live minnows, fresh dead shrimp, and fiddler crabs and this did the trick. Just a few minutes in Evan "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. He followed that up with a small Sheepshead caught on one of the fiddlers, then Mark got in on the action and expertly played a keeper sized Trout to the net. After a good cast up into a pocket behind some pilings he had another good bite, a hookup, and fought to the boat a nice Slot sized Redfish

We were getting bites now with the tide down and we were blocked from the growing wind.  Doug found a couple of Trout that were almost legal, Evan garnered a type of Slam with a Black "puppy" Drum catch (Trout, Sheepshead, Drum) and then he wrapped things up with a Whiting catch. As we headed back to the ramp, and out from the land mass, we soon found that the wind was howling, but with some good fish catches, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Making the best with Fiddler Crabs

 The last thing I expected when walked in to the bait store this afternoon was for them to be (temporarily) out of live Shrimp AND Mud minnows. Oh lordy!  But they did have some fiddler crabs so I purchased a pint and a few packages of artificial baits and headed out to Goffinsville Park thinking we may be in for a long afternoon of fishing. I met William and Dara Blalock and their friends Brian and Janet Roach and we headed over to Broward Island to fish a tide that had been coming in for about an hour and half.

 I did have have some left over mud minnows so we used them and the crabs and it didn't take long before Janet "knocked the
skunk off" when she hooked up and landed a feisty Redfish. And just minutes later Dara had tossed back to a large drainage, had a bump, set the hook, and landed a keeper sized Flounder. 

We fished that area pretty good and caught a good handful of fish with William adding a keeper sized Seatrout to the box. The fiddler crabs were getting fish - Reds, a small Sheepshead, and even a Seatrout hit 'em.  We then ran way up the Nassau and dipped into a creek and fished the bank, alternating between the minnows and crabs and both caught fish. They added another keeper Flounder, another keeper Trout, and three small Slot Redfish to their catch. 

The wind had picked up as we came back down the river and fished Seymore's Pointe with float rigs, which produced nothing. But in behind the land mass, we were out of the wind and  it was pleasant fishing so we decided to work the docks with those crabs and it paid off. They caught Trout, a couple of feisty Redfish, then Brian topped things off with a good bite, and better fight, and he eventually landed the biggest Red of the day, a nice 23" Slot fish. We had made do with what we had and we had a nice box of fish so as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Dara's Super Duper

 Back at it today, fishing south early this morning. I had met William and Dara Blalock out at Goffinsville as the sun came up and we made a quick run down the river to fish between two docks on a tide that still had a few hours to hit bottom. The two anglers were tossing jigs and live shrimp and makjng excellent casts and it paid off. 

Dara kicked things off with a nice, keeper sized Seatrout catch, then added another, then another with each betting respectively bigger, the biggest measuring right at 19". All fish caught today were released. Dara also added a keeper sized Flounder to her catch total. 

We moved around the corner and fished some dock pilings and here William hooked up and landed  Sea Bass. We moved over to fish Bubblegum Reef, a spot I hadn't fished in years, and it was a good move. William caught and landed another, bigger, Sea Bass, then Dara put a small Sheepshead in the boat, then hooked up and landed a respectable 17.75" Sheepshead to give her a Slam for the morning. But She wasn't finished!

After running down to Broward Island we fished a spot on the last of the outgoing tide, really just killing time, and boy did we get into some fish. Dara found some nice Seatrout deep, then William began to get feisty Redfish off the stern. Then Dara's drag went off and the battle was on!  Dara played the big fish patiently, let it run down river, then worked it back slowly, let it run, worked it back, and finally brought to the net a big oversized 28.5" Redfish, boy what a fight, boy what a fish!

The duo continued to catch fish - I lost count at 8 keeper sized Seatrout, but Dara did add a couple of Black "puppy" Drum for her Grande Slam, then later, fishing a jigs and Gulp minnow, added a keeper sized Weakfish to get her Super Duper Grande Slam for the day. The Redfish, Trout and Sheepshead put Dara on the Bragging Rights list in three Categories - maybe a first! (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). We had caught a bunch of fish, had a beautiful 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 Run

 I wrapped my week up fishing with the Conforti guys today, meeting them up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp early. The weather had cleared from yesterday and it was a bit cooler, but winds were expected to pick up as the day went on. We made our first stop over at Tyger Island, fishing the logs with jigs and live shrimp but the first area produced nothing.  After moving down the way Fred(the middle) hooked up and expertly landed a feisty Redfish. Then Fred(the younger) had a strange bite, a hookup, and he landed a nice Flounder. 

The wind was already picking up as we ran thru Horsehead over to the Bell and down to Lanceford where we headed up the creek to fish some docks with the jigs. We were somewhat sheltered here but after fishing a couple of docks we had no real bites, so we moved on.

I had intended to run way up the Bell River and fish those docks but I figured it was about the same distance as running south  to where we had some good action yesterday, so we made the run. We did stop off at one spot to fish a deep hole, but again, no bites.

Reaching Seymore's Pointe we all switched to float rigs and tossed them up wind to get good drifts across a shallow oyster pocked flat and here we had some action. Leo put a keeper sized Seatrout in the boat, then Fred(the senior) had a strong hookup, one that ripped some drag. He fought it valiantly and after battle landed a Slot sized 21" Redfish. Fred(the middle) had the same kind of fight, played it perfectly and put another Slot Redfish in the boat. The anglers added another couple of smaller Reds, smaller Trout,and a Bluefish before Leo topped things off with another keeper Seatrout. 

We were a long way from the ramp and running into the wind but as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Big Bang at the End

 I was wondering who was crazier, me or my guests for wanting to fish this morning, especially when I
stepped out of the house and it was pouring rain. I got the boat ready to go, came in for some coffee, and as I headed to the bait shop it was still raining, and they were surprised to see me or anyone else heading out to fish. But the forecast called for the rain to stop mid morning, so when I met Steve Locke and his fishing buddy Jason out at the Goffinsville boat ramp we all had on our rain gear, and we headed out.

The first stop was down at Broward Island, fishing jigs on the very last of an outgoing tide. The water was a bit muddy, which had me worried, but Steve soon knocked the skunk of when he hooked and landed a feisty Redfish. Jason followed that up with a keeper sized Seatrout, then added another feisty Red to the catch total.  We picked up one or two more Reds and a Blue, fishing under the Bald Eagles, and we missed a couple of fish, too. 

We made our way around to Seymore's Pointe and fished some dock pilings, got a few nibbles, and Steve put another Trout in the boat.  After heading back around to some docks at Nassauville and here the water was calm with the wind blocked by the land mass. It took a few minutes but eventually both anglers began to get bites, and hookups. Steve took his chances up near a submerged log and caught another Red, a hard fighting Blue Fish, and then both he and Jason got in to some Flounder, catching and landing 5 of them with two being of keeper size. And we missed a few. 

Back Seymore's we switched to float rigs and they caught another Red, another Flounder, and another Blue Fish. On further around we fished a large drainage at the last of an incoming tide and this is when we had the Big Bang!  The duo began to get Seatrout of nice size, the biggest was 18.5" caught by Steve.  After Jason had made a cast that got him up alongside a grassy point, his float drifted and, BAM! Fish On!  He worked the fish out fairly quickly and we were thinking maybe a small Red, especially when it boiled, but then it began to rip drag with a vengeance and we knew it was big. There was a chance it may cut off on the shallow oysters but Jason stayed with it and finally brought to the net a big 26.5" "tournament" sized Redfish, boy what fish. They added a few more Trout to the boat, 6 keepers in all and of course there were a few that we missed. But as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as a wet fishing trip that turned out pretty good!

It Began and Ended With a Flurry

Boy what a wind we had yesterday! I had to cancel the trip with winds 17-20mph plus, but we thought we could get one in today. I met Derek Poon with his two sons Zach and Tylge down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and the wind had died down to a comfortable 8mph so we made the run up the Nassau and around to Broward to try and catch the incoming tide before it got too high. I think first cast we had a hookup - Zach was on the rod and he played it perfectly to the net - a feisty Redfish and first fish of the day!

Shortly after that "dad" got hot -Derek caught and landed a Slot Red, then a nice keeper sized Seatrout. We moved down the way and fished back a little bit, under a Bald Eagle, and here Derek hooked up and landed a keeper sized Flounder - he had a "Slam" in the box!

We then came back up to Pumpkin Hill and switched to float rigs. The wind had picked up and it was making it difficult to cast into the wind but we did our best and caught a couple of small Seatrout. After fishing a grass patch for a bit we moved on. 

Our next stop was between two docks, back to fishing the jigs and shrimp and although we didn't have much action, Tyler did put another Flounder in the boat. We now had some high winds AND a high tide and I was thinking we had probably did all we were going to be able to do but we tried one final spot around at Seymore's, still tossing the float rigs and boy was I wrong All three anglers began to get bites - Seatrout. They had a handful of smaller Trout but Derek added 4 more keeper fish to his tally, Zach added a keeper Trout to his count, and Tyler put a big Blue in the boat. 

When we got back to the ramp we had a mess o' fish in the box so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

A Seatrout Kind of Day

 

We lucked out with the weather this morning - the forecast had changed by the time we got on the water and for the most part, we had clear skies and low winds. We did have two rainbows that graced us with their presence! I had met Pete Nolan hand his high school fishing buddies Sam and Steve down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and we ran up the intercoastal, then into Back River and around to the Nassau to set up fishing an edge at Pumpkin Hill. We almost immediately began to get bites - a good handful of small but hungry Seatrout, and also a couple of Bluefish. 

We worked around the corner and fished a grass patch and here Pete put a keeper sized Trout in the boat and Sam tangled with a Bonnethead Shark. 

After making the run around to Seymore's Pointe we set up at a large drainage and drifted floats on the first of an outgoing tide, and again, some small Trout, and a couple Blues.  After running thru Horesehead and around to Pompano Point we again got a few Trout.

Our last stop was fishing a bank along Jackstaff with jigs and shrimp and minnows and again...more Trout! Sam added a nice Whiting to the box before 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.