Trout Come Alive Part One

I fished with Tim Ayers again today, along with his son Andrew and his dad Stan, so a three generation fishing trip! We met down at the Atlantic Seafood dock early and headed north and up to the outside of Tiger Island to fish some flooding oyster beds with live shrimp under floats. Tim "knocked the skunk off" when he landed a nice keeper sized Trout, then both Andrew and Stan landed one each, too. We fished that area for a while, had  few bites, but no takers then crossed over to fish another area, and had no real luck.
We ran through Tiger and around to Bell River and again set up to fish the edge of some flooding marsh grass, and again, no real bites. Our next stop was over in Lanceford Creek and this did the trick. Tim made a long cast to the other side of small grass island and had a strong bite and, FISH ON! He played the fish patiently and soon landed a nice big Seatrout. From then on it was a fish catching time.  Both Stan and Andrew landed big Trout and all three landed smaller Trout, then they added a few more big ones (to 18").  Andrew had a weired bite and after a good battle, landed a Bonnethead Shark. We had a good stretch of Trout catching there for a while and it was a great way to wrap up a good day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Mixing Fishing and Sightseeing

We had a beautiful morning today, a great one to get in a little fishing and some sightseeing to wrap things up. I met Joe and Barbara Conlon down at the City marina and we headed over to Bell River to fish some still flooding oyster beds with live shrimp and float rigs. And wouldn't you know it, first cast, BAM! Fish on!  That's the way to start a fishing trip!  Joe worked the fish in patiently and landed a nice hungry Seatrout. We fished a grassy point for just a while then moved around to the  outside of Tiger Island and now that the tide had started out we were set up in a
good spot. We had another float go under and this one came in fairly easy. After fishing one more stretch of grass we ran out and toured Fort Clinch then cut across the inlet to the south side of Cumberland Island where we were greeted by a herd of wild horses to view. We eased up the island then into Beach Creek and sure enough, there was a little alligator in his same spot. Can you spot him in the pic below? On the way back we toured the old Pogy Plant and Old Towne then we headed in and counted it as another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters.

From Nice to Breezy

We were back fishing today after a long stretch of high winds that kept us off the water. Today's forecast started out with about 2mph winds increasing to 12 but it felt like 15+ before the day was over. But the three anglers I had today were all about getting out on the water and wetting a line and that we did! I met Kurt Miller and his friends Bob and Steve down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and we made our first run up the Amelia River to dip into
Jackstaff and fish some flooding marsh grass on the last of an incoming tide. Kurt was tossing a topwater lure up on the bow and Bob and Steve were using float rigs with live shrimp to fish the edges. We fished a good stretch with no bites so Steve switched to a jig and shrimp and this did the trick when he "knocked the skunk off" by landing a fat Seatrout. And seconds later Bob picked up a Trout of his own, this one on the float rig. We fished that stretch pretty good then moved further up into a creek. Bob found a hot spot and landed a couple of  more Trout, then Steve landed another. A couple of these were in the keeper sized range. We ran through
the marsh and stopped at a dock to fish some pilings with the jig rig. It wasn't long before Kurt had a strong bite and FISH ON!  He played it perfectly but this hard fighting fish had a mind of its own and made a dash to the pilings and sure enough, wrapped around one of them. But Kurt worked the fish carefully, gave it some slack, and it came out, then Kurt applied the pressure as we eased away from the docks. I thought for sure it was one of the Drums - Red or Black, but after a good battle Kurt landed a nice hard fighting Jack Crevalle. The wind had really picked up so we ran down to Broward Island to get some relief and it was like fishing on a still pond. The trio caught a few more Trout beyond the island along the marsh, but we had no real bites around the logs. Our last stop was back towards Seymore's Pointe, fishing an old oyster bed and here Kurt landed a feisty 9-spot Redfish. We fished Jackstaff one more time but the wind was kicking up the mud so we headed in and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

First on a Fly

There was a fog warning this morning on the radio but when we launched it was cloudy but not fog. The wind was forecast to pick up so when I met Mark Deprimo we planned to hit Eagans Creek with a fly rod in hopes of picking up a Seatrout down deep and be out of the wind. Mark was making excellent casts and stripping the fly back slowly, letting it fall down the river bottom, but we had no hits. When the tide  hit rock bottom we ran around to Tiger Island and began to fish the exposed logs as the tide started back in. Mark made a pinpoint cast to the edge of some logs and as his fly slipped
along he felt a thump and a heaviness and, FISH ON!  He worked the small but feisty fish to the boat and put his first fly caught Flounder in the boat. We fished up and down the island, staying out of the now brisk wind, but had no real bites. On our third pass we switched to live shrimp and spin gear and this did the trick. We had a strange and subtle "bump" out from the limbs and immediately knew that this was a big fish. Mark played it perfectly and when the fish took him from bow to stern and from port to starboard, he stayed with it, keeping the pressure on. After a good battle, Mark landed an exhausted 29.75" oversized Redfish, putting him in first place of the Anglers Mark 2016 Bragging Rights Tournament -Redfish category (scroll down right side of this report for standings). Boy what a fish. And it had 25 spots on it which would have made some one very happy to be fishing in the recent Spot Tournament -IF it had been caught about a year or two ago! After fishing the island we ran around to Bell River, fished some still exposes oysters, and Mark picked up a feisty Bluefish and Spotted Seatrout to round out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam of Flounder, Redfish, and Trout. With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Weeding Out The Dumb Fish

No wind for a change! Whoooee! After weeks of aggravating wind, the flags were laying limp when I met Gary Elder, his sister Karen and her husband Jim down at the City marina. It was a right at low tide so we ran north up to Tiger Island and caught the first of the incoming, fishing with jigs and live shrimp. It didn't take long before the fish began to bite. Karen put a nice keeper sized Seatrout in the boat then Gary added a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. They picked up a few more Drum, a couple of small Trout, then
another keeper Trout, a small Flounder, then Gary landed a nice Slot sized 24.5" Redfish, all of them evidently not too smart, according to Jim. When the bite finally slowed we ran around to Bell River and fished some slip float rigs deep. Jim figured it out early and put a couple of fat Trout in the boat. Gary stayed with the jig and landed another Trout fishing deep on the outside of some docks. Our last stop was back near Tiger fishing with Cajun Thunder float rigs up near the flooded grass and Jim found some more Trout to wrap up another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Girls Just Want To Have Fun

We had a great morning forecast today so I met the Fields family, Bob and Amy along with their two daughters Page and Clare, down at the south end boat ramp with plans to fish the first of an incoming tide. We ran up the Nassau River and made our first stop at Bubblegum Reef. We had two anglers on the bow and two at the stern tossing live shrimp and jig combo's to the river bottom and dragging them slowly back. Our first bite was a slight "bump" then FISH ON! Page had the rod and she worked the big fish patiently to the boat and soon landed a nice 17" Sheepshead. We fished until
the structure covered then moved over to fish some docks at Seymore's Pointe. All the anglers were making good casts to the dock pilings and when Page yelled, "I've got a fish", we could tell it was a good one by the way her rod was bent. She fought the fish furiously and landed another 17" fish, this one a fat Flounder. The wind had picked up and was rocking us pretty good so we ran down to Broward Island and it was like fishing on a pond! We had another slight bump and young Clare got on the board when she worked in a hungry Flounder. Bob was fishing  patiently and persistently and he found a few Seatrout to add to the catch then Amy wrapped it up with a nice keeper sized Sheepshead round out another great day to be fishing Amelia Island waters.

Persistence Kept The Skunk Off

We had a beautiful day to fish yesterday evening -sunshine, balmy temperatures, but a bit breezy. I had met Adam Castelucci and his two sons Andrew and Alex, down at the Atlantic Seafood dock and we headed up Bell River to fish an outgoing tide. I had two of the anglers drifting deep slip float rigs and one of them tossing jig - all fishing with live shrimp- and although we had few bites, we had no takers. We buzzed around to fish the Jolley River and boy was it a low tide. I don't think I've seen it that low. We fished some seriously exposed oysters and again, a few bites, but no takers. Our next stop was around at Tiger Island, but the tide was down so low we couldn't get through the entrance. We made a short stop at Eagans Creek then ran back to the marina to pick up Adam's wife, Angie. Waiting for the tide to turn and come back in, we did a tour of Old Towne, the Pogy Plant, Fort Clinch and Cumberland Island then we crossed over to fish the backside of Tiger. The conditions were actually pretty good as the island was blocking a now Southerly wind. In just a short while Andrew had a strong hookup and FISH ON! Boy this was a big fish!  Andrew was doing everything right, keeping the pressure on, but...FISH OFF! It had thrown the hook!  That happens.  So I'm thinking, "here we go". We fished up and down and up and down but only had a nibble here and there until finally a hookup. Young Alex fought the fish in and landed a nice, fat Speckled Seatrout to knock the skunk off!  Whoooeee!  Although it was a slow day of fish catching it was still a great day to get out with your family and spend some  time on the Amelia Island waters fishing.

A Fish Here and a Fish There

I also did an afternoon trip today, fishing with Wes Methaney and his wife Mary Beth. The wind had picked up somewhat out of the South East so we made our first stop down at the Rayonier warehouse to fish with jigs on the very last of an outgoing tide. Mary Beth kept up her record of being the first to put a fish in the boat when she landed a hungry Seatrout. Our next stop was around behind Tiger with plans to fish the first of the incoming tide. Boy was it a low tide! We barely scraped across the entrance, kicking up sand as we went but when we got to the deep side of the island we
were able to fish some seriously exposed logs. Wes had quickly got the knack for detecting the subtle bite of the Black "puppy" Drum and landed a couple while were there. We also had a good strong bite and hookup. Wes played it patiently and perfectly and landed a feisty Redfish. Trying to take advantage of the wind block, we stayed behind the island for a while but eventually we made our way out and back to Eagans Creek.  Fishing jigs to the bank, Mary Beth made an excellent cast to a small marsh run out and hooked up with a nice sized Seatrout to wrap the day up.

Bulky Slot Redfish

The winds of yesterday afternoon died down just a bit for today, so I met Jimmy Haverstick and his two sons James and Henry down at the City marina early and we headed out to fish the last of an incoming (and very high) tide. We ran a short ways up Bell River and fished some flooded oyster beds with no luck then we moved around to fish the outside of Tiger Island. All three anglers were tossing float rigs and live shrimp. Jimmy, myself and Henry all saw Henry's float submerge slowly, come up, then go under again and when Henry lifted his rod and reeled, we knew he had the first fish
of the day, an hungry Flounder. The wind was still kirking pretty good so we moved around behind Tiger and fished the logs on a high and outgoing tide, which is very difficult. But we were out of the wind so we did the best we could, and it paid off. Henry tossed his bait into a likely spot and had a strong hookup and FISH ON! He worked hard at getting that fish in and even though it took him deep and from one end of the boat to the other, he stayed with it and landed a big, fat, Slot sized Redfish, boy what a fish!  Later, James had a strong bite and he too had a nice fish on. He played it patiently and soon landed a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. We fished the area thoroughly then made the long run back up and into Bell River to fish some docks with deep slip float rigs. Although we worked 2-3 docks, up and down, we had no real bites.  Our last stop was over in Jolley River and as the guys wrapped it up, Jimmy picked up a nice keeper sized Whiting. Although fishing was difficult with the wind blowing, it still turned out to be a great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Slam Then a Grand Slam

I had the Hardy family this morning - Tom, his son-in-law Bryan and grandsons Jake and Ethan, fishing out of the City marina with plans to fish the very first of an outgoing tide. I set up all the anglers with float rigs, set shallow, and we made our first run up a short distance in the Bell River to fish some flooded marsh grass. We got a few good bites and then Jake "knocked the skunk off" when he landed a hungry Seatrout. After Bryan put another Trout in the boat we ran over to Eagans Creek to fish some docks with float
rigs set deep. We had to work 2-3 docks but we found a Trout here and there. Bryan landed a couple with one of them being a keeper sized 18"s. Ethan was drifting a float closer to shore and when he had a bite he set the hook and had a good fight on his hands. He played the fish perfectly and put a keeper sized Sheepshead in the boat.  We continued to fish the docks, picked up a Trout or two, then headed over to Lanceford Creek to fish some docks. After Bryan found one Trout, we made our last stop at Tiger Island. Bryan was fishing a pocket with a jig and shrimp when he felt
something heavy on his line and as it began to pull back, he set the hook and had the fish on. He worked it slowly to the boat and we netted a nice 17" flounder, rounding out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam of Trout, Sheepshead, and Flounder. But they weren't finished yet! Tom had been pitching here and there in between the young anglers and he finally had a window to make his cast where he produced a feisty Black "puppy" Drum to make it a Grand Slam and another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.