Fish Catch'n Picking Up

You can't beat these beautiful mornings we're having here at Amelia Island. I had met Rusty and Staci Byrd and their adult kids Austin and Elizabeth, down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp this morning. We had clear skies and a slight breeze (which lasted all morning) as we headed up the Amelia River to fish Jackstaff on an outgoing tide. The oysters were just starting to show but we started with float rigs and live shrimp and mud minnows. There wasn't much biting these but when we switched to jigs the anglers started
getting bites immediately. Austin knocked the skunk off when he landed a feisty Redfish then Rusty put a rather large Ladyfish in the boat after a high flying battle. We fished the deep side of a sandbar and here things heated up. Both Austin and Rusty were hooking up with 14" Seatrout so Staci and Elizabeth picked up a rod and caught some, too!  Rusty added hard fighting Jack Crevalle then a Flounder  and Austin hauled in a small Stingray. We actually left the Seatrout biting, gambling that we might find something bigger. The gamble paid off as we set up off a dock over at Seymore's Pointe: The whole family was hooking up with Mangrove Snapper, small Redfish, Flounder and then Rusty had a bite that ripped some drag on his reel, FISH ON! He played the big fish patiently and soon landed a nice 19" Seatrout. Shortly after that Austin hooked up with what was probably the biggest fish of the day, but this big fish was having none of it and went right through the pilings, broke the leader, and kept going! We made  final stop at Broward Island, caught another keeper sized Flounder and a small Red, then called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Snapper Action

We had another beautiful morning here at Amelia Island. I had met Matt Sedgwick and his son Luke down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and we made a run up the Nassau River to fish Twin Creeks with float rigs and live shrimp. We did get one bite but I believe the tide had already gone out too much so after a few minutes of fishing, we continued on to fish some docks at Seymore's Pointe. There was a lot of "bait busting" action going on and soon Matt had hooked up with a high flying Ladyfish. Luke
took over and worked the big Lady in and soon landed it for a picture and release. I was expecting Mangrove Snapper here but we didn't get a one so we moved around to fish some dock pilings and this did the trip. Both Luke and Matt had some good bites and landed a good handful of Mangroves up to about 14" in size. Our next stop was down at Broward Island and here we picked up a feisty Redfish. There was tons of bait in the water and all kinds of fish smashing the bait. Luke had one fish that he found right up in the logs. He got the hookup but this fish was smart and stayed in the structure until the leader broke. We made one more stop over in Jackstaff then headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Flounder Action

I fished today with the Kilborn family, Bill and Shannon and their two young anglers William and Kaitlyn. We met down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning and headed north up the Amelia River, easing in to Jackstaff to fish the last hour or so of an outgoing tide. Just like Monday, the demo cast picked up a fish, this time a nice hungry Seatrout that Kaitlyn reeled in. We fished the entire bank, tossing mud minnows and dead shrimp on jigs up to the exposed bank and later had a funky bite, a hookup, and William
worked in a keeper sized Flounder. We fished the area thoroughly, saw some Bonnetheads, but they wouldn't bite, then ran around and down to Broward Island. The tide was still going out here as we fished the deeper water. Then Bill had a hookup and he too landed a keeper sized Flounder. Our last stop was back at some docks at Seymore's Pointe and although we had few bites, we had no takers. We saw a ton of bird life - Egrets, Cranes, Osprey and Rosette Spoonbills which made for another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters.

Four Guys Fishing

Ricky Williams and his two sons Riley and Cooper were in town and brought along their friend Jackson to do some back country fishing here at Amelia Island. We met down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and headed up the Amelia River then eased into Jackstaff to fish an extremely low tide with jigs and mud minnows. All four anglers were making excellent casts but it was Riley who knocked the skunk off, reeling in a high flying Ladyfish and then a hungry Seatrout. We worked the entire bank, crossed over to fish a sandbar, then ran through the marsh to fish
Bubblegum Reef. Cooper picked up a fairly nice sized Croaker then we moved over to fish some dock pilings. Here, Ricky got on the board when he caught a hungry Mangrove Snapper. Jackson wrapped the catching up when he patiently played and landed a feisty Redfish. We tried our hand at Tarpon fishing with some heavier tackle that I brought along, using dead Pogies as bait and we had about 12 Tarpon roll near us but they wouldn't bite. It was cool to see though and it's only a matter of time before we hook one up. The fish catching was kinda slow today but we didn't get skunked and had a great time fishing the back country of Amelia Island.

Red Dawn

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend! After the long weekend, I fished today with Brian and Patti Harnish and their daughter Megan, leaving out of the City marina early this morning and heading over to Eagans Creek to fish the first of an incoming tide. We had just gone over the "demo" cast, tossing a mud minnow on a jig up to some dock pilings when , BOOM, FISH ON! This fish was a nice fish and Brian played it perfectly, landing a nice Slot Redfish to start the day! All three anglers got there rods going and within a short while, they were catching more Redfish. Brian and Patti reeled in a couple then Brian had a really strong bite and boy this fish was BIG! He worked it patiently out from the dock pilings, kept the pressure on, fished it from port to starboard, from bow to stern and eventually landed a "tournament" sized 26" Redfish.  Then Megan followed that up with a nice 23" big Red of her own. We picked up a few more fish then ran around to fish the logs of Tiger Island. There were a couple of boats already there so we skirted them, picking a few spots to fish, and just before we left Brian put another Slot Red in the boat. We made the run up to Jolley River, fished a now flooded oyster bank, Patti found a hungry Seatrout and a feisty Redfish, then we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Trout Fest

I had the pleasure of fishing with Roy Carter and Rodney Mills today, meeting down at the Atlantic Seafood dock with plans to run up Bell River a short ways and fish a flooded oyster bank on a high and still coming in tide. The two anglers mixing it up with live shrimp and mud minnows and it didn't seem to matter as both put a couple of small but hungry Seatrout in the boat. We ran through Tiger Basin and to the outside of Tiger and eased along a flooded grass line and again found Seatrout to catch. There was ton's of bait in the water and bigger fish were popping everywhere but we couldn't get them to bite. Our next stop was up in Jolley River and we had only been fishing for a short time when Roy's float got sucked under and, FISH ON! He played the fish patiently as it dug into the marsh grass, slowly working it out into deeper water, then taking his time to bring it to the net, a nice 22" Slot Redfish! We worked that bank thoroughly then made one last stop back at the mouth of Jolley, picking up another Trout or two then calling it a day , another great one to be fishing Amelia Island waters!

Big Trout and Bigger Shark

I fished this morning with Steve Moore and his friends and workmates Brent and Eston, meeting them down at the City boat ramp this morning. We ran north and made our first stop outside of Tiger Island, tossing live shrimp under floats to some flooded oysters on the last of an incoming tide. Right off, the anglers were getting bites but they were small "baitstealers". But they kept at it and picked up a handful of small but hungry Seatrout. We ran through Tiger and over to Bell and again set up off some flooded
oysters. After picking up one or two small Trout Brent had a different kind of bite which he hooked up and landed - a nice keeper sized Flounder. He went back to the same area and in a short while had a much stronger bite. This was the biggest fish we'd had all day and Brent played it perfectly and soon landed a 21.5" Seatrout and boy was it fat! This fish moved Brent into 3rd place in the Anglers Mark 2015 Bragging Rights Tournament-Trout Category (scroll down right side of this report for standings)  We made a pit stop to pick up more live shrimp then headed up to the Jolley River and fished a grass line. It took a while but they found a couple of multi-spotted Redfish (giving them and Amelia Island Back Country Slam) and a trout or two. When Eston switched to a jig and shrimp it wasn't long before his rod bent over and the drag began to sing, FISH ON! He played the big fish patiently and a after a long battle landed a 3'+ Bonnethead Shark. We moved back down the river, fished some oysters that were now exposed, picked up another Redfish, then Brent did battle with another large Bonnethead. He also put a high flying Ladyfish in the boat and Steve added a keeper sized Whiting. After fishing one more bank in the Jolley, we ran around to fish some docks at Bell River. Although the sun was up and the bite had died, Steve persevered and picked up a hard fighting Black "puppy" Drum to round out a "Grande" Slam and wrap up another great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

High Tide Redfish

We had a nice breezy morning today, fishing with Jim and Tawee Langston, starting our day fishing the last hour or so of an incoming tide. We had met at the Atlantic Seafood dock and headed up to fish outside of Tiger Island with float rigs baited with live shrimp and mud minnows. The two anglers had bites right off and it didn't take long for them to begin to pick up hungry Seatrout. There wasn't a whole lot of size to them but that made it challenging to hook them up and I'd say it was an even "draw" with Jim and Tawee landing a handful and the Trout stealing a good number of baits! We ran
around and up into the Jolley River and found a bank to fish with oysters flooded underneath. Jim and Tawee were making great presentations, getting a few bites, then it paid off when Tawee had a strong hookup, FISH ON! She played the fish patiently as it made some strong runs, most of them up near the grass and over the oysters, but Tawee kept the pressure on and soon landed a nice 22" Slot sized Redfish. Now that's a nice fish! Then Jim got in on the action and landed two of his own feisty Redfish, and then Tawee put another Slot Red in the boat. We worked the length of the bank then made one final run around to Bell River and fished a dock, switching to jigs and shrimp. Jim made it pay off when he had a strong bite. This fish was pulling hard and staying deep but Jim applied the pressure and worked the fish out from the dock and landed another Slot Redfish, a great way to wrap up another day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

They Were Huge

We had overcast skies all morning long but it made for some very comfortable fishing. I had met Smith Marks, his dad Tim and his brother-in-law Jonathan down at the City marina and we made a run north and into the Jolley River to fish the very first of an outgoing tide. We set up outside a marsh run out and got a few bites on live shrimp under floats, but no real takers. We then eased along the flooded marsh grass as the anglers tossed their shrimp and mud minnows to the edge. Jonathan "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up and battled successfully a nice 4' Bonnethead Shark. Then Smith got in on the action when he tangled with a Ladyfish, and BOOM! While he was battling his high flying fish Tim had a strong hookup. This fish was pulling hard but not like the Shark and we thought for sure he had a nice Redfish. After patiently fighting the fish, Tim landed a nice 22" Slot Redfish. Shortly after that Jonathan put another Red in the boat and Smith landed another of the Lady's. We fished at the mouth of a large creek, had a few bites, then eased up into the creek and again, a few bites, but no takers. We ran back to the mouth of Jolley, fished the "bank" and before we left the anglers caught a hungry Seatrout. We ran back to the dock and dropped Tim off and picked up Smith and Jonathan's wives - Kristin and Katie and then came back to Tiger to fish the logs. There wasn't a whole lot of action here but Katie had a couple of hookups, one being a nice Trout (actually huge) that she had to the boat, but it threw the hook. And on another occasion she hooked up with what had to have been a huge fish, but it too tossed the hook. And with that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing Amelia Island waters.

Texas Size Mangroves

I fished today with Bob Hampton and his son Jason and his wife Cally. They also had young angler Myles, Bob's grandson and nephew to Jason and Cally. We met down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp, headed up the Amelia River and into Jackstaff to fish the exposed oysters on a tide that had been going out for about 2 hours. Tossing jigs and shrimp, the anglers worked the bank and it wasn't long before Myles announced "Fish On" and he soon landed a nice keeper sized Flounder to "knock the skunk off" the boat. We continued to fish the bank and in a short while Cally had her first
fish, another keeper sized Flounder. We crossed over and fished a submerged sandbar and the anglers picked up a couple of Seatrout. First Jason, then Bob. Then a school of small shark must have come through and Cally landed one then Jason landed a couple. Jason also tangles with a high flying Ladyfish. We ran around to Nassau River and fished some docks and here things heated up.  Myles, Jason and Cally all three had hookups and all three threw the hooks! But they were not going to be denied. Myles put a nice Mangrove Snapper in the boat then Cally had a real strong hookup and, FISH ON! She battled the big fish valiantly  and despite the coaching, landed a nice feisty Redfish! Then Jason put another one in the boat and then another. Bob found a hard fighting Jack Crevalle.They had numerous bites but no real takers so we hit Bubblegum Reef briefly but had no bites. Our last stop was back at some docks and here they found the Mangroves Again. Jason put one in the boat then Bob wrapped it up with a "Texas Sized" Mangrove Snapper. It was another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida!