First Fish Oversized!

We squeezed in a late afternoon trip yesterday, Mike DuBartell and I, meeting down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp. At the time, we had partly cloudy skies and still some serious heat, but, it was time to fish! We headed up the intercoastal and dipped into Jackstaff, first checking to see if the tide was going to get up for tailing Redfish (no) so we eased into a smaller creek and set up fishing with float rigs and live shrimp. The tide high and still coming in and even though Mike was getting excellent drifts, we had no real bites.

After running thru Horsehead we made a stop at some rocks at Seymore's Pointe, drifted the float, and again, no bites. Knowing that we had high water for a while, I thought it'd be a good idea to try Christopher Creek. After the short run we were tossing jigs and shrimp to the dock pilings and rocks. Mike noted that he had a bite or two, then he had strong bite and BAP! Leader broke!  But Mike kept at it and finally, BOOM! Big Fish On!  I thought it was odd that the fish boiled to the surface in 10" of water so quickly and even as quickly as Mike worked it to the boat. But when we saw that it was a huge Redfish I knew that the battle had just begun! Sure enough, the big fish began to make some surges to the bottom, but Mike kept the pressure on, working the fish left to right to left and he soon wore him out and landed an oversized 27.25" Redfish, boy what a fish! After pictures the fish was gently released to swim back to the depths. (All fish caught were released).

We worked the banks for a while, had some bites, landed another Slot Redfish, then moved on out of there before the tide dropped too much. We made another pit stop at the rock of Seymore's, had a few nibbles, and caught one "baitstealer" then we moved on down the Nassau River to fish some banks that were now beginning to expose oysters.

Mike was still tossing the jig rod, up current, and after one particular cast,  hooked up and landed a fat Seatrout.  He later tangled with a high flying Ladyfish. We had been keeping our eyes on the dark thunderstorms to the north of us and had having sprinkling rain for the last hour, but we never did get really wet, so as we headed in, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Islands, Florida.

BooKoodles

I met the Owensby's, Tom and Kevin, down at the south end early this morning - their first time fishing "south" from the many times that they have fished here at Amelia Island. It was a beautiful morning as we ran up the Nassau River with a couple of hours of the tide still going out. We stopped at a large marsh drainage and both anglers began to pitch jigs and live shrimp to the bank. It took a while but when the "bite" began" they were catching bookoodles of fish. Many of the fish were juvenile Redfish but every once in a while they would get one that had some size. Then they'd tie into a hard fighting Jack Crevalle and have fun fighting that battle. A couple of Ladyfish were landed in the mix.

We moved on up to some docks at Seymore's Pointe and again, we had some good action. The duo landed a good handful of small but feisty Black "puppy" Drum, a couple of Croker and, a Catfish. We hit Bubblegum Reef briefly, picked another Catfish or two, another Croaker, and a golden colored Seatrout,  then bounced over to the rocks at Seymore's to try our luck with float rig. The tide was still going out and although these anglers were making excellent casts, we had no luck.

Our final stop was down at Broward Island and boy was the tide down....and STILL going out!  The water was a clear Coca-Cola color and almost all of the stobs were exposed. We worked almost the entire island, bait was everywhere, but we didn't have much luck. Although the bite slowed as the day warmed, we had some really good action early so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Redfish Boil

We had a beautiful day today, with almost no wind, clear skies, and sunshine! I met Jeff and Jess Kamenski up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park midmorning with plans to target tailing Redfish when the tide got a bit higher around noon. We made an initial run up to Jolley Bank and began working back against the current. Jess was on the bow tossing float rigs with live shrimp while Jeff unlimbered his fly casting arm. We worked the banks slowly while both anglers were making excellent casts, but we had no real bites. As we ended our run, Jeff switched to a float and shrimp, made a cast into shallow water, and we
all so a boil, his float disappeared, and Fish On! The fish came deep, Jeff's drag ripped, and we had a battle on our hands!  Jeff played the fish patiently and soon landed a nice 22" Slot sized Redfish!

We moved down the river and fished either side of Snook Creek. We had nibbles here and there then Jeff reeled in a large Gar Fish, then he battled a high flying Ladyfish. The tide was getting up and we had one more stop to make before we began to check the marsh for flooding so we made our way back to the outside of Tiger. Jess made a cast forward to some submerged oysters, her float disappeared and...no fish! But she was not to be denied and went back to the same spot and BOOM! She had a hookup! Jess played the fish perfectly and soon landed a keeper sized Seatrout (All fish caught today were released). Then Jeff had a strong hookup and his drag began to sing. And Sing. And Sing. Big Fish on!  But Jeff was up to the task and after a long battle, landed a big 4' Bonnethead Shark.

We then began to check the marsh and even though the forecast called for a 7.0' high tide, there just was not enough water up in the grass. We checked 3-4 areas but it wasn't to be. We finished up fishing Bell River and here Jess hooked up with another nice Seatrout. Although we didn't have a chance to target tailing Reds, it was still another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Father's Day Fun

The Owensby's were back in town - Tom and his son Kevin and grandson Jake - and we fished the early morning here at Amelia Island. I met them up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park and with the tide just starting in, I thought it'd be best to start fishing the logs at Tiger, a perfect tide to fish. Although we did pick up some small fish - Trout, Drum, Flounder, and Reds (a Grande Slam!) the anglers spent most of their time feeding "baitstealers", getting a nibble on almost every cast. After fishing the bank up and down, we moved on.

Our next stop was up at Jolley Bank and after easing along, tossing up current with jigs and live shrimp and working a float rig out the back, we hit a "hot spot". Kevin put a big Seatrout in the boat, Jake added Redfish, then Tom had a strong bite, and Fish On!  He played the big fish patiently and when it ripped drag a few times we know he had a nice fish on. And when rolled we know it was a big Redfish!  After a good battle, Kevin netted the 23" Slot Fish.  We tangled with a couple of Ladyfish, added another Seatrout then moved on up the River.

Fishing Snook Creek, we didn't get a whole lot of bites but when Jake's float slowly went under, he lifted the rod to set the circle hook and caught a nice keeper sized Flounder. We went back to the outside of Tiger and fished the edge of a flooding oyster bed and BAM! Multiple hookups quick. Jake and Kevin landed Seatrout, once of which was of keeper size, Tom battled a Ladyfish, then he had a real battle with a Bonnethead Shark, then, like someone turned a light switch off, the bite was gone.

We made one final stop back at the mouth of Tiger and even though there was a lot of bait movement there wasn't much action, until Tom caught one last fish, a keeper sized Flounder. It took all trip but we slowly put together a "mess" of fish so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Trout Action

I wrapped my week up fishing with David Foster and his friend Tim and Tim's son Mathew, meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning. The tide had been coming in for an hour or so but the oysters were still fully exposed and I though for sure some dock pilings would be holding fish. We ran up the Nassau River and set up current from a dock and began to pitch jigs and live shrimp to the pilings. Guess what - the Croaker are here! We picked up a few, a bait stealing Spot, a slimy Catfish, and had one feisty Redfish to the boat for a "quick release" - but no big fish.

The tide was still somewhat low so we ran down to Broward Island, fished the north end with jigs, then moved down to the south end and fished the logs. Tim had a hookup - dang it - just a Toad Fish - but we kept working the bank, tossing up current, and it paid off. Tim had a strong bite and we knew it was big when the drag began to rip. He played it perfectly and we soon landed a big Seatrout that was just shy of 20" -now that's a nice fish!  And shortly after that David hooked up and he too put a keeper sized Seatrout in the boat. We did land a small Redfish along the bank.

Our next stop was up at Pumpkin Hill, drifting float rigs and shrimp along the marsh grass. David got hot, landing a Bonnethead Shark and a big Ladyfish - the "poor man's Tarpon". We had another couple of small Reds and a small Seatrout.  We fished Christopher Creek for a bit with jigs -and again, a small Red, then called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Jigs Got the Bigger Fish

We've been fishing the high and incoming tides this week and it was the same today when I met Justin and Jacqueline Bogle down at the south end ramp early this morning. We headed up the intercoastal and into Jackstaff with the plan to pitch float rigs up current  to the marsh grass. We had a good bite but the fish thru the  hook then later Jacqueline hooked up and landed a hard fighting Ladyfish - her first fish! We worked that bank thoroughly then ran thru Horsehead, over to the Nassau River and down to Pumpkin Hill where we set up along a flooding grass line.

This did the trick! Jacqueline began to get some fish - a couple of hungry Seatrout, a small but feisty Redfish, and even a persistent Blue Crab! Justin added a nice Whiting to the catch.   After moving around the point and switching Justin to a Jig and shrimp combo, he had a strong hookup and, Fish On!  He played it patiently and soon landed a nice 2' Bonnethead Shark.

The tide was up so we ran over to Christopher Creek and both anglers were now tossing the jigs. Again, we had a strong bite, and the drag began to rip. Justin kept the pressure on, worked it in slowly, and put a Slot sized 21" Red in the boat.

Our final stop was at Seymore's Pointe to check for Mangrove Snapper, but they just haven't arrived. What a crazy Spring we had. But we caught some fish earlier so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

Nibbl'n Puppy Drum

I had the pleasure of fishing again with Tim Carson -  his birthday trip - and he brought along his step-son Cody and grandson BeBo to enjoy a great day out on the water here at Amelia Island. And a pretty morning it was! We met down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and headed up the Nassau River with the tide still coming in. Our first couple of stops were at some marsh runouts (running in now!) and even though the trio were making excellent casts, we had no real bites.

We buzzed further up the Nassau and to Pumpkin Hill and this did the trick. Tim "knocked the skunk off" when he landed a hungry Seatrout. Then Cody's rod got hot and he caught a couple of Black "puppy" Drum, a feisty Redfish, and a Ladyfish that wasn't so "high flying". Tim fished long and picked up a good keeper sized Seatrout before we moved on.

After dipping into Christopher Creek we went to jigs and shrimp
and now all three anglers got in to the action. BeBo and Cody teamed up to reel in  the biggest Redfish of the day - a six spotter - then BeBo, after making an excellent cast to the marsh line, hooked up and, Fish On! He worked the fish patiently to the boat and landed a nice Black Drum. 

We fished some docks at Seymore's Pointe, then ran thru Horsehead and fished the mouth of Jackstaff, but the sun was up, it was getting "warm", so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Good Times Fishing

It's always great to get to fish with old high school friends and today I had the pleasure of fishing with Chuck Lynch, his father Buddy, and his son-in-law Matt. We met early up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park boat ramp and made a quick run over to Bell River to fish the last of an incoming tide with live shrimp under floats. It didn't take long and we were getting hookups - Seatrout that were just a tad bit undersized, but fun to catch. Although we saw Reds tailing up by the grass, we had no takers from them.

After running thru Tiger we pulled in on the outside of the Island
and boy were things hopping! There was a Sheepshead tailing by some sparse grass and on down the line a big 'ole Redfish tail was flopping around. The trio "got to it" and started catching fish! Chuck had a strong hookup - one that was ripping drag - but this fish didn't get big by being dumb! It pulled right under the boat and down into the oysters and BAP! Fish off! But Chuck went back to the grass and pulled out a nice feisty Redfish. Matt stayed on fire the entire trip. He put the first 3-4 "keepers" in the boat. First a big

bull Whiting, then a 17" Flounder. We worked the bank thoroughly and caught a couple of small Reds and Trout.

We made a pit stop at a large marsh run out and pitched some jigs and mud minnows on the now outgoing tide. but had no luck. Our next stop was way up the Jolley River and again Matt came thru when he hooked up and landed a big 22" Slot Redfish. After battling a 4' Shark on light tackle we made our way along the bank. Somewhere along there we caught a Black "puppy" Drum  and another Red or two.

Jolley Bank was looking good so we eased along it. The oysters still were not showing so we stayed with float rigs. Matt put another Slot Red in the boat and Chuck added a keeper sized Seatrout. We had some good bites along the way and landed another couple of feisty Reds.

Our final stop was back at Tiger, fishing the logs, and here Buddy got on the board with a Redfish catch of his own. It was a great day to get out on the water and do some fishing with friends and family here at Amelia Island, Florida.

No Mangrove's Yet

After a good day off I was back to "work" today, meeting Jim Kotopka and his buddy Mike down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp. We buzzed up the river and made our first stop off a feeder creek of the intercoastal and fished with float rigs and live shrimp. Although we had a small shark irritate our bait, he wouldn't take it. We ran thru the marsh and made a stop over at Seymore's Pointe where Jim "knocked the skunk off" by quickly landing a feisty Redfish.

After fishing that spot a while we moved down
the Nassau River to fish some marsh runouts on the outgoing tide. We had stayed with float rigs but the minute Mike switched to a jig, he picked up a hungry Seatrout!  We had some strong bites that broke the leader at the 2nd runout but it was the 3rd that heated things up. Jim picked up a couple of fish quick - a feisty Redfish then a hard fighting Jack Crevalle then Mike had good bite, his drag began to sing and, Fish On! Mike played it perfectly and after a good battle landed a 22" Slot sized Redfish. Only seconds later they both had hookups - we had a double - and they both reeled in some nice Reds.

The tide had gotten down so we went back to Seymore's to fish some dock pilings and here Jim found a "honey hole" loaded with Black "puppy" Drum.  The fish were only 12-13.5" in size, but were fun to catch. Mike was able to inch over and pick up a few Drum of his own. We moved over one dock and found a keeper sized Flounder out deep, which was a bit unusual.

Our last stop was at my traditional Mangrove Snapper hole but they still haven't made it in yet, so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Grande Slam Keepers

We could tell that it was a tad bit cooler this morning (nowhere near cold, just cooler) and with some cloud cover it made for a very pleasant fishing morning. I met Jeff and Penny Parks down at the south end ramp and we ran up the intercoastal to dip into Jackstaff and then even further up into a creek. Both anglers were tossing float rigs on a high and outgoing tide and even though all three of us spotted a tailing Redfish up near the marsh grass, we had not takers.

After dropping back to fish the mouth of Jackstaff, we worked the bank thoroughly, we

Penny manning the stern and fishing a float rig while Jeff took the bow and tossed a jig and shrimp. Again, no takers. But after we had crossed the creek and fished a submerged sandbar, and after Penny had switched to a jig herself, she had a hookup. She worked the fish patiently to the boat and landed a nice keeper sized Seatrout.

We ran thru Horsehead and around to some docks and set up-current from the pilings. Penny and Jeff were both dropping their jigs up near the pilings and it paid off. First, Jeff had a strong bite and, Fish On!  It was a ripping drag and digging deep but Jeff kept the pressure on and slowly worked it to the net, a nice 22" Black "puppy" Drum. Then the duo landed a couple of Redfish, one of them being in the Slot, then Penny reeled in a fat keeper sized Flounder, giving them an Amelia Island Grande Slam of Seatrout, Redfish, Black Drum and Flounder.

Our next stop was some rocks over at Seymore's Pointe but we had not luck so we ran down to Broward Island and fished the logs on the last of an outgoing tide. We wrapped the trip up catching three small Redfish, another Black Drum and a Seatrout. It was a great way to finish up a good day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.