Trout Carry The Afternoon

 I fished this afternoon with Eric Stevens, meeting him up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp. We had a high and still coming in tide as we eased out of Eagans Creek and I wasn't feeling very confident in our prospects. We ran over to Lanceford Creek and fished between a couple of docks with float rigs and did pick up one Seatrout which got my hopes up...but then we had no more bites. After trying our luck around the corner at a grass patch, to no avail, we moved on. 

After running back down Lanceford, up the Bell, thru Horsehead and around to the outside of Tyger we set up on a corner of grass as the tide started out, and my confidence level was now up. Eric was making excellent casts and getting good drifts and I waited for the bite, and waited, and waited, again, to no avail. My confidence was shattered!

We then made the run up to the Jolley River and seeing another boater sitting on the spot I was heading to, we continued on around to the Bell and found some docks to fish. My demo cast with the jig  produced a bite and from then on we were catching fish. We worked thru a bunch of smaller fish but Eric got his limit in keeper sized Seatrout, and we thru back a couple that were of legal size.  Eric added a Redfish catch, a few Black Drum catches and a few "baitstealing" Perch. 

The afternoon had started real slow with that high tide but as it started out we had begun to get fish and as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

Barely Legal

 I fished with the Langfords this morining, Glenn and Patti, meeting them up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp. We had the first of an incoming tide so we made our way over to Tyger Island and fished the logs. An incoming tide, no wind, and just a few bugs made for what I thought were ideal conditions, but the fish didn't cooperate with the plan. They did catch a Bluefish and a small Flounder before we moved on. 

Our next stop was over at Lanceford Creek, fishing some docks, and this paid off. We worked a few different docks and picked up fish, caught on jigs and live shrimp. They put in the box two Redfish that measured a little over 18", a Seatrout that measured a little over 15", and a Black Drum that measured a little over 14" - all "Barely Legal", but keepers just the same.  They also had a few more smaller Redfish caught. 

We then fished the outside of Tyger in a couple of places with float rigs. We may have had a few bites, but no real takers. We had a handful of fish 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, Fl.orida. 

Grande Slam For The Day

 I fished with the Prolog's Hand and Mary and their daughter Mollie to day, meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning. And after running up the Nassau to our first stop at a dock at Seymore's I was feeling pretty confident that we were going to get in to some fish today. The tide was supposedly low and just starting in, and it was at this spot, but we struggled with bait stealers swiping our live shrimp off the jigs. We did outsmart a couple of them but had no luck with any bigger fish. 

Our next stop; was down at Broward Island and even though it had been "low tide" for about 45 minutes, it was still going out. We fished a good bit and dealt with the bait stealers again, then we moved on down the way and fished back. Here, we finally got into some fish - Mollie "knocked the skunk off" with a nice Seatrout catch. But again, that was it. 

Back up the island we went and now that the tide had begun to come in, we finally started catching.  Mary put a keeper sized Sheepshead in the boat, then all three anglers were catching Redfish, one of which was in the Slot. Mary had a Seatrout catch which gave here an Amelia Islands Back Country Slam. When the bite slowed, we move on, heading back to Nassauville. 

Fishing between two docks we didn't get too much action, but Mary did have a strange bite, a hookup, and patiently brought to the net a almost legal Flounder to round out her very on Grande Slam. 

Our final stop was up the Nassau and into a Creek where we worked bank with logs. It was some finesse casting but they were up to it and caught a couple of Seatrout and Redfish. We had had a beautiful day and had pulled in some fish so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Mover Over Bragging Rights

 I was feeling a little uneasy when after hitting our first spot today and the weather seemed like it was going to be a factor in our success.  I had met Todd Schroeder, his daughter Allana, and his dad Dennis up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle early this morning and we eased out of Eagans Creek with the nav lights on. That first stop was around at Tyger Island, thinking that the tide had only been coming in for a couple of hours and maybe the downed trees would still be showing but when we arrived the tide was already up and the North wind was blowing right down the pipe. When my first "demo" cast hung on a stump it went downhill from there. We moved up the island and fished deep but had no luck and moved on. 

After running thru Tyger Basin and over to Bell we set up between two docks and fished back to the pilings. Todd had two quick good bites and then he hooked up on the third - he played it patiently and brought to the boat a Slot Redfish to "knock the skunk" off. We sat there and tinkered with bait stealers but also caught Redfish. Allana did here share, hooking up and landing multiple Reds, one Slot that had 4 Spots. Granddad Dennis was stuck on the bow so I had him drifting a fixed float down the adjacent grass line. The next thing I new he had a hookup, a bend in his line and the drag was ripping. That drag ripping made me think it was a Redfish but then it started thrashing on the water and sure enough, we he landed it, it was a big 20.5" Seatrout - the biggest Trout of the year and big enough to move Dennis into first place in the 2024 Anglers Mark Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings).  When the bite slowed, we bounced down the docks and found another Redfish or two. 

We then moved around the corner and fished a bulkhead and Todd picked up the action. Fishing a fixed float in about 6' of water, he had his float disappear and, Fish On!  Todd worked it expertly to the boat and landed a big 19" Seatrout, a fish big enough to move him in to 2nd place in the Bragging Rights Tournament.  He added one more Trout to his catch total there. 

The tide had gotten up really high and we tried a couple of other spots but had no real bites so we headed back to the ramp and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island Florida. 

Trout Getting Bigger

 The last couple of trips I've noticed we're picking up bigger Seatrout - in the 17"-18" range, and today was no exception. I had met Kimberly Manek and her friend Jeremy up at Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp. As we eased out of Eagans Creek the wind was blowing around 10mp but it was expected to get up to 17mph before the morning was over. We made a quick run over to Bell River, up the river, and found a flooded point of grass to fish with float rigs and live shrimp. The anglers were throwing right into the wind, but they were still getting good drifts, but also had no bites. 

 

We then ran up Lanceford Creek and got in between two docks and stayed with the floats and out of th wind, we caught fish. Both anglers had good hookups and brought to the boat a handful of Seatrout, the biggest being right at 18". We then moved around the corner and drifted back to a dock and caught another Trout. After easing over to a flooded grass patch, Jeremy managed his float along side it and picked up a couple of more Trout. 

After running back down Lanceford, up the Bell, and cutting thru to Tyger we fished a large outflow with the floats, but had no luck. 

Back thru Tyger Basin we went, over to the Bell, and then a long run up it to fish some docks. Kimberly got hot here, picking up one Seatrout after another off the stern. Then Jeremy went in closer to the bank and caught the first Redfish of the day. We bumped the boat in and fished a dock and caught 2-3 more Redfish. After dropping back and fishing another dock, to no avail, Kimeberly went to the bank with a cast and on the retrieve she had a "bump", set the hook, and caught and landed another big 18" Seatrout. 

We had avoided the wind for the most part, found Seatrout action here and there, had 8 soon-to-be-filets 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 

Good Trout Bite Early

 We had a very high and outgoing tide to fish when myself, Bob Kossman, and Larry Westfall made to it to our first spot this morning. We fishing  a large outflow up the Nassau River with float rigs and live shrimp. My 'demo" cast produced a bite (I missed him) but after that Bob and Larry stayed busy catching Trout. We missed a you but caught more than we missed. A few of them were of keeper size with two being right at 17" 

When the bite finally slowed, we ran thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Cut and fished a stretch but the wind in our face made it a bit difficult. We came back to Jackstaff and fished a run out but had no bites.

Back thru Horsehead we went and down to some docks at Nassauville and here Larry got hot fishing a jig deep. He picked up a handful of Trout, had a big fish rip drag and come off, then he hooked up and landed a big 18,5" Trout, big enough to kick off the 2024 Bragging Rights Tournament, Seatrout Category.(scroll down the right side of this report for standings). 

We then fished Pumpkin Hill with the float rigs but had no luck then made our way up the Nassau and into a creek to fish the jigs. And here it was Bob's turn to get hot. He hooked up with a big fish that was ripping drag but it made its way under a log - we could feel it tugging and sawing back and forth when we pulled the line. We tried repositioning the boat, opening the bail, but to no avail - it finally broke off. 

But Bob was not to be deterred - he hooked up and landed a nice 20" Slot Red (no pic- accidently dropped it over the side!), but then he saved me and caught and landed another Slot Red. We added one more feisty Red before we called it a a day. And as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Fog Makes it Difficult to Get Started

 We had a fog that blanketed Amelia Island this morning and when I met Joseph Mahoney, his dad Norm, and nephew Mike up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp, we had to ease out of Eagans and down the Amelia River to make it to our first spot. Joe was up front, on the cooler, braving the cooler wind and keeping a second set of eyes out for crab pots, channel markers and anchored boats. We made it safely to that first spot and began to fish some dock pilings with jigs and shrimp and I felt sure we would get some fish. We did not. All we had were nibbles and nibbles and nibbles from "bait stealers". 

We then slowly made our way back north and around to Tyger Island where we set up to fish the first of an incoming tide. Mike "knocked the skunk off" with a keeper sized Seatrout catch, but that was it until we moved down the way and evidently the switch flipped. It was fast and furious fishing for a while. Both Mike and Norm put feisty Redfish in the boat - at one time we had a "double" hookup and at one time we had a "triple hookup" when Joe hooked up. They added a couple of smaller Black "puppy" Drum to the catch then Mike had a strong hookup and, Fish On! He played it perfectly, battled it patiently, and soon landed a big 26" Slot Redfish, boy what a fish! Norm added a keeper sized 15" drum to the box.

After running up to the Jolley we fished the MOA with the oysters still showing, had no luck, then continued around to Bell River and fished some docks. Joe outsmarted and landed a Sheepshead, and keeping with the "striped fish" theme, caught and landed a Puppy Drum. The trio added another feisty Red to the catch and another keeper sized Seatrout. 

The fog had lifted and we were able to make the long run back to the ramp and as we eased down Eagans we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

The Legend Grows

 When he stepped out of the truck it was almost like all sound stopped - the seagulls quit screeching, the marsh wrens quit chirping and as the sun came up, the world stopped spinning as the  young angler made his way to the dock at Old Town Bait and Tackle. I don't know if I've ever seen such a slow, confident walk as he glided down the gangway in his camo fishing outfit, his knit hat pulled down to his eyebrows and his red bandana tied loosely around his weathered neck. I was thinking we might catch some fish today but I knew we would when The Legend quietly said, "Let's Fish".  

This was Bob Blalock, his son Robbie and their nephew Colin (The Legend). I met them yesterday out
at Goffinsville Park boat ramp as the sun came up and we motored quickly over to Broward Island and set up to fish a tide that had been coming in for a couple of hours. We quickly found that we'd have to deal with "bait stealers' all day, but Robbie did find a nice keeper sized Seatrout out deep. 

We then ran further up the Nassau, dipped into a creek and fished jigs to a bank as the tide came in. This did the trick. All three anglers were catching fish, including the Legend. I believe we had 4 Slot Reds along with a some smaller ones.  We then made our way around to the other side of Seymore's Point and fished float rigs on a high and outgoing tide. This paid off too - the caught a good handful of hungry Seatrout as their floats came across and oyster bed.  We hit two more spots fishing the floats, but the tide was up and we had no action, 

Today, as mentioned, we met up at Old Town, eased up the creek and found some dock pilings to fish on an incoming tide. Both Robbie and Colin worked thru some Redfish and weeded out a couple of smaller, Slot Redfish. 

Our next stop was down the river, fishing some structure and boy did this pay off!  Colin (The Legend) got off to a hot start and he put 2-3 feisty Redfish in the boat before Bob and Robbie could get unlimbered. Bob was on the bow and put a good handful of feisty Reds in the boat then Robbie went wild. He hooked up and played to the boat a Big 24" Slot Redfish, then followed that up with another big 23" Slot fish, then followed that up with a nice 17" Black "puppy" Drum.  

Colin was patiently fishing and landed two Flounder, one of which was of keeper size. Our final stop was over at Tyger where we added one more Seatrout to the catch. As we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Young Angler Teaching Old Dogs New Tricks

 

Back to work after a long weekend off in Charleston, I met the Andreasen fishing party early up at Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp. It was Pat Andreasen, his son-in-law Bryan, grandson Mason, and friend Frank as we eased out up Eagans Creek and found some dock pilings to fish on a tide that had been coming out for a couple of hours. We weren't ready for the "demo" cast of live shrimp on a jig because right off, BAM! Big Fish On1 Before we know it, the fish was around  a piling and off. Ouch. 

But these anglers were not to be deterred. Young Mason put a couple or three feisty Redfish in the boat before the adult anglers could blink. Finally, granddad Pat, who was tossing a float rig up over some oysters picked up a couple of Seatrout, one of which was of keeper size, then he added a feisty Redfish to his catch. 

We then ran down the Amelia River to fish some structure, casting to the edge and letting the jig fall down the river bottom. I was beginning to think that we may need to move when BAM! Pat hooked up and battled a big 25" Slot Red to the net. Then BAM! Mason was catching Redfish, one after the other. Then BAM!  Pat hooked up and battled and landed a "Tournament" sized 26.75" Redfish. He and Mason had their number for a good while then Bryan finally joined in to put a Trout in the boat. 

Our next stop was back up north, fishing deep with jigs and here we got in to some Seatrout. Frank had been "laying back" but he joined in to put some Trout in the boat. All four anglers were catching fish and added three more keeper sized Trout to the box. As time wound down, Mason took home the hardware, the coveted GPK! And as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

From Slow to a Good Mess

I must have read the forecast for today wrong last night - I saw it with temperatures in the mid 50's, partly
sunny, and only a slight breeze. When I met Ed and Madonna up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp it was in the 50's, just a slight breeze but no sun. Granted it was 7:15am, but we never saw the sun, and the wind picked up as the day went along until it was blowing as we headed back!

But we made our first stop over at some dock pilings on a tide that had been going out for a few hours, fishing jigs and live shrimp, and when Madonna reeled in a feisty Redfish that almost measured legal I thought sure we were going to "get busy".  But the current never seemed to pick up and the tide never got to where the oysters were showing and the fish never bit again!

We hit another dock down the river, fishing the jigs and here the oysters were showing and even though I felt like we were in the right spot at the right time, not a bite. Ouch. While we were in the area we decided to fish one more dock system and this paid off. 

Madonna got things going when she hooked up and landed a Slot Redfish, then caught another feisty Redfish. Then Ed hooked up - it was a heavy fish and even a bit "haughty" -it didn't put up a real big fight for what turned out to be a 26.5" Slot Red, and big enough to take first place in the 2024 Anglers Mark Bragging Rights Tournament. The two anglers teamed up to catch a small Black "puppy" Drum, a small Seatrout and another Redfish or two.

We then made a long run up to Tyger Island and fished the logs, working the bank with the jigs and here Ed added a keeper sized Sheepshead and Madonna added a keeper sized Seatrout. They also put another Sheepshead in the boat and a couple of Puppy Drum. 

We had started slow but as we headed back to the ramp busting thru wind and waves, we counted it as another great day of fishing with a good mess of fish in the box here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Brothers Team Up For Slam Apiece

42 degrees, clear, and no wind when I launched this morning down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp with plans to meet brothers Ray and Tommy Pinkston for a back country fishing trip. We made the run up the Nassau with a baitwell full of live shrimp and a few mud minnows left over from Friday. Our first stop was at a dock at Seymore's Pointe and both anglers began to expertly work the dock pilings with jigs and shrimp. It took a few casts but Tommy finally "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. I don't know what happened to this dock but it just is not producing any fish!

We then made our way down to Broward Island just in time to fish the first of an incoming tide. Ray was fishing off the bow, fishing up current while Tommy fished off the stern, letting his jig bounce down the river bottom with the current. I was getting a bit worried that we had no bites until Tommy had a sluggish, bite - he tightened up and set the hook and, Fish On!   I was thinking "small Slot"  as he battled it for the fist minute but when it made a couple of deep drag ripping runs I changed my mine. Tommy played it perfectly and eventually landed a bulky 26" Slot Red - the biggest one we've had in a couple of months, and big enough to set the bar in the 2024 Anglers Mark Bragging Rights Tournament-Redfish Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings) Tommy also added a keeper sized Seatrout and a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum to his catch and rounded out a  (type of) Amelia Island Back Country Slam.

After fishing down Broward for a good while, to no avail, we pulled up and ran. We did have a Bald Eagle sighting. 

Our next stop up the Nassau and into a creek where we worked the bank with the jigs. Ray had been "laying back" but he came alive here!  The both caught some small but feisty Reds, then Ray hooked up and battled to the boat a nice Slot Redfish. They added to more Slot's then Ray put a keeper sized Seatrout and then a keeper sized Flounder to round out his (type of) Amelia Island Back Country Slam. We also had a Salt Marsh Mink sighting. 

We fished a drainage on the way  back to the ramp but the tide was at its peak and we had not luck. But as as we headed in we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island Florida. 

2023: It's a Wrap with a Cold Send Off

 

Those high winds subsided over night but left us with clear skies and a 37 degree temperature this
morning when I met Mark Averbuch, his on Jared and grandson Max down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp. The winds were expected to pick up later in the day so we had to go early, but it paid off anyway! All of us were wrapped up with layers as we made our way up the intercoastal  and then up the Nassau to make our first stop along a shell bank at Spanish Drop.

 

Fishing with jigs I was hoping that these anglers would pick up some Seatrout out deeper, and
maybe have a shot at a Redfish up close, but "hope" wasn't cutting it - we had no real bites. Rather than try another shell bank we headed on up to Seymore's Pointe and fished some dock pilings and here we were getting some bites, but no takers. It wasn't until we pulled out a bit and began making long casts to the shore that we began to get hookups. They weren't very big but we were glad to be catching Seatrout on the  jigs.

Our next stop was around at Littlefield's, still tossing  jigs and live shrimp on that incoming tide and we did have a couple of good bites.

I knew the wind was picking up so we made our way up the river and into a creek where we turned into the current and began working back and right off, BAM! Jared had a hookup. He played it perfectly but as he brought it to the boat it thru the hook, OUCH!  But he was not to be deterred. As we worked the bank they began to get fish, here and there, feisty Redfish, but fun to catch. Then Jared put a nice keeper sized Red in the boat then we hit one spot and it was like the gates were opened!  

I counted at least 3 "double hookups" that they had and even though Jared and Mark were putting fish in the boat, Max was hanging right in there with them. He even began to call it "easy" to hookup and fight the fish to the net. The trio caught their limit in Slot Redfish and threw back a couple of more  in the Slot. Jared added a keeper sized Seatrout and on the last a bait, a big mud minnow, Max landed the final fish, a hungry Seatrout. 

We had had a cold morning and a slow start, and a hot finish so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Cool Fishing

 The high and incoming tide has been haunting me all week and we have been postponing trips until mid morning but today the wind was high and getting worse as the day wore on, so we went early, and with temperatures in the 40's, it was kinda "cool".  But John Beall and his son Brian were dressed for the weather and we had a plan to try to run to spots that would be out of the wind. 

We fished some dock pilings early  but didn't get much of a nibble, then we switched to float rigs and drifted over the flooding oysters and this did the trick. Brian got hot early - he hooked up and landed a keeper sized Seatrout, a small but feisty Redfish, then a keeper sized Flounder, then a couple of smaller Trout. We hit another couple of areas along that stretch and although we were out of the wind, we weren't getting any action. 

After pulling in to Soap Creek we worked along the bank and here John "knocked his skunk off". He began to pick up Seatrout over a submerged sandbar and after Brian followed him, he too began to gt Trout. Although they weren't very big they provided some good practice for later on! 

I was killing time, waiting on that tide to change so we stopped over in Bell River and fished a point
with the float but boy that wind was kicking our butts! It was now or never so we headed over to the outside of Tyger, found some shelter, and fished a point of grass, and BAM! Fish On!  BAM! Fish on! BAM! Fish On! They started tying in to Redfish and caught them one after the other. Many were "feisty" Reds, but we we counted 8 Slot Reds caught, along with a good handful of "almost legal" and a few handfuls of the smaller fish. 

Although it was somewhat cold, and the wind made it challenging, as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Could Have Been Snow

 

It was such a nasty day yesterday if it had been colder we may have had snow! We still had a high and incoming tide in the morning so we postponed the trip until 11am when I met William and Dara Blalock out at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp. The tide had just started out so we ran around Seymore's and set up on a point to toss float rigs and live shrimp and Dara's first cast produced a hungry Seatrout. The duo dabbled with those small but hungry Trout for a bit, then we moved on. 

After running thru Jackstaff and around to Poteat Cut we set up again along a marsh line and drifted the floats as we worked along the bank, tossing the floats, but I don't think we got a single bite. But we dropped back to a point and switched to jigs and shrimp and that did the trick, picking up another handful of Seatrout.  We then ran back to Jackstaff and up a creek and switched back to the floats, but to no avail. 

Back thru Jackstaff we went and down to Littlefields and here we scored deep with the jigs - Dara found some Seatrout at about 15' deep then she and William landed a few, some of which were of keeper size(all fish caught today were released).

The tide was getting down just a bit so we made a run up the Nassau and dipped into a shallow creek
and worked the log lined bank. We didn't "tear them up" but we managed to get about 6 Redfish with about 4 of them being in the Slot range.  We did tag one Slot Red and will be sending it in to Gray FishTag Research TAG ID GFR62479

Although it had been a dreary day, and we had gotten misted on a few times, as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day  to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Fish Math Added Up

 I sure hope everyone had a great Christmas holiday! I was glad  to be back in hopes of working off some of that great food I ate!  We had a high and incoming tide this morning so we put off meeting until 10am. That's when William and Dara Blalock and I left the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp and headed down the creek with plans to fish the first of an outgoing tide. We made our way over to Tyger Island and set up on a corner as the current swept around. Both William and Dara were making excellent casts and it too a few minutes to find the "hot spot" but boy did they!  And yes, I began to work off some of that food I ate!  They caught Redfish non-stop for about 45 minutes, fishing fixed float rigs with about a 3' leader and live shrimp. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM...and....BOOM! 3/4 of the fish were smaller "rat" Reds but a good handful of them were in the Slot, the biggest being about 21" caught by Dara. All of the Redfish were released.

When things slowed we made our way down the intercoastal and dipped into a small creek to try our hand with jigs and the shrimp, up by some dock pilings. I was about to "lose a dollar" when Dara saved me and hauled in a nice Slot Redfish. Then William had a good strange "bump", set the hook, and brought to the net a keeper sized Flounder. Although this spot wasn't as productive as I had hoped, we did put two good fish in the boat!  

But Dara had been eyeing a drainage behind us - it all added up - good current pouring out of the marsh and a funnel between a bank of marsh grass and a large, now exposed, oyster bed. She did a bit of "Fish Math" and suggested we give it a try, so we switched back to the floats and began tossing up current in the drainage and it paid off big time! Both Dara and William began to get keeper sized Seatrout, then a couple of Reds, then William hooked up and battled the biggest Red of the day to the net, for photograph and release.   This new spot, right next to a pretty good old spot, went in the back pocket for future use!

After fishing Soap Creek for just a bit, and the mouth of Bell, we called it day and as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Trout Flurry Redfish Flurry

 Boy what a storm we had yesterday! My wife and I went out to Main Beach yesterday to watch the waves
kicking up and it was crazy. Crazier were the surfers catching the waves!  But the wind was supposed to die down this morning, and it did somewhat -when I launched the weather app was showing 17mph out of the west, which made me cringe just a bit!  But I met Mark Smith and his brother in law Ryan down at Sawpit Creek and we had a plan to try and stay out of the wind.

We first ran up to Seymore's Pointe and pulled up to a dock on the very first of an incoming tide, and sure enough, it was very calm. Unfortunately the fish didn't cooperate!  We may have had a nibble or two, but we had no takers. We then move around and up the Nassau to a couple of other docks  and began to toss jigs and live shrimp on a tide that seemed to still be going out, and we soon found some fish. Ryan got hot, fishing off the stern and hooked and landed a good number of small but hungry Seatrout. Not to be outdone, Mark, on the bow, hooked up and landed a few Mangrove Snapper (odd that they are still here), one of which was of keeper size. He also found a few Trout to bring to the net. 

Our next stop was down at Broward Island, and after working the bank in a couple of spots, we found one Seatrout to take the bait.

The wind was still kicking but we had some beautiful skies, and some Bald Eagles hanging out above us. The tide was getting up a bit and rather than got to float rigs we decided to run up a shallow creek and try our luck with the jigs, and be out of the wind, and the plan paid off. 

As we worked the bank the duo began to catch Redfish at all the likely spots. As per the norm, they weren't real big, but probably about four of them were in the Slot, the biggest being around 20". But they others were fun to catch on our light tackle and we guestimated we had about 12 Redfish caught, so 10 released, and as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Casting and Catching

 I fished yesterday afternoon and even though the rain had passed us by, we had a bit of wind to deal with. But Chris Bremer and his grandson Matteo were "game" to go fishing! We left the Old Town Bait and Tackle dock and headed up to the Jolley River to fish float rigs and live shrimp on a tide that was still coming it. We worked a flooded grass bank for just a bit and it was Chris who "knocked the skunk off", hooking up with a couple of Redfish and a Seatrout. Matteo helped him out with the reeling in part!

We then ran up the Jolley and turned into the current and fished another stretch with the floats and picked up one more Trout, then we ran around to the Bell River and switched to Jigs. We caught one Mangrove Snapper, and moved on. 

Our next stop was up Lanceford, again fishing floats and here  things heated up a bit. Chris caught and landed a couple then Matteo found a hot spot off the stern of the boat. He was making excellent casts which paid off when he hooked up and expertly reeled in a couple of his own Seatrout. 

We had to "work for 'em" but that we did and as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Weakfish Made It A Slam

 Thanksgiving week and back to fishing!  I met Joey and Tanya Vasquez up at the Old Town Bait and
Tackle boat ramp early on a tide that still had about an hour of going out to hit bottom. We made a long run up to the Jolley River, up the river and around to the MOA to fish the oysters on that last of the outgoing tide. Both Joey and Tanya were making excellent casts and it paid off. They began to catch fish on the bottom with jigs and live shrimp and landed a good handful of Seatrout and feisty Redfish. 

When the tide slowed to a standstill the bite slowed too so we ran back to the mouth of the Jolley and fished the "bank", easing along the exposed oysters and tossing forward. It took a while but when that tide got to moving we began to catch fish. Again, we caught a handful of Redfish, one of which was in the Slot.

Back up the Jolley we went and turned into the current alongside some flooding shell. We switched to float rigs and drifted them along the bank. Here, Tanya got hot and caught Redfish, Seatrout, and then a Weakfish to round out their Amelia Island Back Country Slam. And Joey got in on the action and hooked up and landed another Slot Redfish. Then Tanya hooked up and landed another Slot Redfish and with their limit already in the box. we tagged this one for Gray FishTag Research. The fish can be followed HERE.

We made our way around to some docks on Bell River and switched back to the jigs and added another Trout, a couple of Mangrove Snapper, and a small Whiting.  As we headed back to the dock we had two Slot Reds, a keeper Trout, a keeper Weakfish, and a Whiting in the box so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

First and Last (spots)

 Hallelujah!  The bad weather finally let up and we were able to get out and do some fishing today!  I met Jason Ash and his buddy Tom up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp early - the tide had been coming in for about an hour and a half so we eased up the creek and found some dock pilings to fish with jigs and live shrimp. It took a few minutes then Tom "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. Then Jason, fishing a little shallower near the bank began to catch Redfish. He could make a cast up to one spot and BAM! Fish On!  He had brought a few to the boat before Tom took the "can't beat 'em join 'em" attitude and cast to the same area and caught fish too.. The duo ended up with a couple of Slot Redfish to go along with the dozen or so "Rat" Reds they landed. They also added another Trout or two one of which was of keeper size. Good start at the first spot!

We then made the run over to the outside of Tyger and fished a stretch of flooding marsh grass, had one small "bump", then moved on. Our next stop was up the Jolley River where we switched to Float rigs and the live shrimp. Both anglers were getting good drifts and picked up a couple of Redfish, one of which was in the Slot, then Tom had a good take and as his drag began to rip we knew, Big Fish On!  Tom kept the pressure on, played it patiently as it bulled up to the grass, worked it out, let it run, and eventually landed a big 26.5" "tournament" Slot Redfish! Boy what a fish!

After running on around to the Bell River we fished deep with jigs between some docks and found that we could hookup and land Seatrout out deep. They had a good flurry of catches and  put another keeper Trout in the box. Then they found that they could pitch closer to the shore and get feisty Redfish. Again, we had some great action at this last spot so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Offshore Inshore

Boy what a beautiful day we had! Sunshine, only a slight breeze, and just cool temperature to make it just right! I met Len Pelletier who had his son Scott and grandson Kevin with him to round out the fishing team. We left the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp as the sun was coming up and made our way over and around to the back side of Tyger to fish the "logs" with jigs and live shrimp and mud minnows. Len and Scott were fishing the shrimp and got nibbles regularly and eventually hooked up and landed small "baitstealers" - small Mangroves, Pinfish, Grunts, and Perch, and a wayward Sea Bass.  Kevin, fishing off the stern, stayed with the mud minnows. He wasn't getting near the bites but as we reached the north end of the island, BAM! He said it hit it hard, and Fish On!  Kevin played it perfectly and battled to the boat a nice 22" 4-spot Slot Redfish!

We then made our way around and on up to the Jolley River and turned into the "bank" and worked back, tossing float rigs to the flooding marsh. They stayed with the same baits all day, Scott and Len fishing the shrimp, Kevin fishing the minnows. We may have a had nibble along that stretch but nothing too big until Len hooked up and landed a hard fighting Bonnethead Shark. 

After running further up the river, just past Snook Creek, we turned again into the current and worked along the bank, and that paid off. Both Scott and Kevin caught a feisty Redfish, then Scott put two Seatrout in the boat, one of which was "having a bad day" - it had recent wounds from something trying to eat it!

Our next stop was back on the outside of Tyger, working the bank on the last of an incoming tide with the jigs. I was looking for Flounder but when Scott had a strong "take" and is drag began to rip I felt like we had something else. It didn't make a long run like a Shark but it didn't "boil" like  a Redfish so we had to wait - Scott played it patiently and worked it slowly to the boat and when it surfaced we saw that it was a big Redfish!  He brought it to the net and it measured right at 25".  Just minutes later Scott had another good bite and after a brief battle he landed a.....juvenile....Cobia! Hah!  We don't see them very often in the Back water!

We had a beautiful day to fish and caught some quality fish so as we headed back to the dock we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.