Fast Start, Quality Finish

I wrapped up my week today with a great fishing trip with Mike Snider, his son Ethan, and his father Danny. It was a beautiful day - when we got to the Jolley River I commented that it was so calm it was almost like fishing on a pond! We started working a flooded marsh line with float rigs baited with live shrimp and mud minnows. The tide had been going out for about 30 minutes and it was perfect conditions. And the anglers began to get bites right off, with both Mike and young Ethan fending off the "baitstealers" to
pick up fish. Mike was reeling in the small but feisty Redfish and Ethan was hooking up with hungry Seatrout, one of which was of keeper size. Danny was getting bites and persisted and soon got in on the action, landing a nice fat Trout of his own, then he went for variety and put a high flying Ladyfish in the boat and then a feisty Bluefish. It was fast and furious for a while with a "double" catch in there somewhere.  We moved on up to "Snook Creek", fished another grass line, then we move in to the creek and switched to jigs. They landed a small pinfish or two and a small Croaker, then
we got out the cast net and picked up some more bait. Our next and final stop was around at Bell River, fishing some docks, and right off Mike hooked up with a  Flounder. We bounced up and down the docks and found a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum which Ethan expertly reeled in. We continued to fish, had bites, then had a strong hookup and, FISH ON! Ethan was on the rod and despite the coaching from Dad, Grandad and the Guide, he patiently reeled in a nice 22" Slot Redfish! Danny went back to the same spot and in  short while had a very good bite. He and Ethan teamed up on this one and reeled in the biggest Trout of the day. It had gotten real hot and we were at the bottom of our bait inventory, so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

One Handed Catch

The weather pattern is holding all week...beautiful mornings, no clouds, and a slight breeze. Then by 10am, it's getting pretty hot! I met Greg Adams and his son Chris, along with their friend Kent down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and we ran up the Nassau River to Seymore's Pointe to catch a high and just outgoing tide. We fished float rigs with mud minnows in hopes of getting some keeper sized Mangrove Snapper. The fish were there and all three anglers put some of the sneaky critters in the boat, but they didn't have much size to them. We ran back down Nassau and
found a bump out in the marsh grass and switched to jigs and minnows.  There a few nibbles here and there then Chris had a strange bite, one that just hung on until it got to the surface, then he made short work of landing a nice keeper sized Flounder. The three angles picked up a small handful of short but feisty Redfish here and there, landed a couple of small Flounder, then we ran back to some docks at Seymore's. Kent had his "Slot Arm" working and we picked up a couple of more Reds and a Flounder. Then, after we had set up in a tight squeeze between two docks, Greg had cast up under some pilings and while he was fishing, turned to hand his sunglasses to Chris and, BOOM! FISH ON! And a one handed hook up!  This was a big fish and it was trying it's best to stay up in the pilings. The boat was squeezed in between the docks and I was having a terrible time trying to get out to deeper water and keep the fish away from the pilings, but Greg gambled and applied some serious pressure and...we were out!  But as I was getting out the fish decided to do the same and it went under the boat with me pushing the boat right over the top of it! All we could do was hope the braid and fluorocarbon leader held as Greg leaned out and tried to keep the fish off the keel. It was a good battle. Greg did an outstanding job and luckily the tackle held and he eventually landed a fat 25" Slot Redfish. Boy what a mad scramble! We fished the docks for a while, hit Broward Island, made one more stop at some now exposed oysters, then headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island water.

Slowly Built a Nice Fish Catch

We had another beautiful day today. The skies were clear as the sun came up and we had a slight breeze the entire day. I had the pleasure of fishing again with Mark Richardson, his dad Allen, and his son Braden. We met down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and I had a bait well full of mud minnows. We ran up the Amelia River and into Jackstaff with plans to fish a long edge of still flooded marsh grass. I started all three anglers off with float rigs with the plan to toss their bait up near the grass and let it drift

naturally along the bank. They worked those for a good 30 minutes and had no real bites. When Mark switched to a jig and minnow he got a bite real quick, a nice keeper sized Flounder that Braden reeled in. We continued to fish and when Marked picked up a 17" keeper sized Trout, all three anglers switched to the jigs! Young Braden made an excellent cast and hooked up and caught a feisty Catfish. We ran around to Seymore's Pointe, fished some rocks and picked up a couple of small Mangrove Snapper, then ran down the Nassau River and fished some now exposed oysters. They had a another weird bite...Braden was on the rod...and after a good fight he landed the largest Flounder of the day. They put one more small Flounder in the boat and a couple of hard fighting Jack Crevalle before we headed down to Broward Island. The conditions were looking right but the bite was slow until a fish chased our bait out from some tree limbs and, FISH ON! Braden played the fish patiently..it took him from the bow to the stern but he kept the pressure on and after an extended battle, landed a Slot 21" Redfish, which ended up being a great way to wrap up a great fishing trip here at Amelia Island, Florida.

The Tide Got Right

We had another beautiful day that greeted us this morning, not a cloud in the sky and only a slight breeze as the sun  came up. I met Cory Relling and his father-in-law Keith down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and we made a run up and into the Nassau River with a few hours left on an outgoing tide. Our first stop was at a small marsh run out and even though the conditions looked perfect with bait getting busted all along the bait, we had no real luck other than picking up a hard fighting Stingray. We trolled the bank for a while then ran down to Broward Island to fish the logs as the tide got lower. Finally, Cory hooked up and hauled in a feisty Redfish. We were getting bites here and there but had no more takers so we ran back to Seymore's Pointe to fish Bubblegum Reef. Again, we had bites, but no takers. We hit another marsh run out and with the tide down and the oysters showing, this did the trick. The anglers had a good flurry of fish bites and fish catches, landing a handful of Redfish then Keith said he had a fish that hit and hit and hit his bait as he slowly worked it back, then it picked up the bait and ran with it. Keith set the hook and patiently worked in a nice keeper sized Flounder. Today was one of those days where I think the fish were there but the tide had to be just right for them to bite. But it still was another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Slot Reds and a Grande Slam

I fished north of the island today, meeting Dennis Brown and his sons Jeb and Sam down at the City marina. We had about an hour and a half of an outgoing tide remaining so we ran over to Eagans Creek to fish some dock pilings with jigs and shrimp and mud minnows. I think it was Jeb's first cast and he hooked up and landed a keeper sized Seatrout! Now that 's the way to start a trip. We continued to fish - Dennis picked up a feisty Black Drum and Sam landed another Trout. We worked the docks up and down and was
about to leave when Sam had a strong bite and, FISH ON! He played the fish patiently and after a good battle, landed a nice Slot Sized Redfish. Then it was FISH ON! for a while! Sam had another Slot Redfish then Jeb got in on the action and landed the biggest of the day, a 24.5" Red. Dennis had a big one on too, but it through the hook after an extended battle, but he came back and got his Slot Red catch. We caught a keeper sized Flounder to make it an Amelia Island Back Country Grande Slam of Seatrout, Black Drum, Red Drum and Flounder, and added a couple of smaller Reds, too. When the bite finally slowed we ran around and into the Jolley River, fished Snook Creek with no real bites (other than some Shark sitings) then we finished the day up at Jolley Bank, catching more fish. The trio of anglers landed Trout, Flounder, a whole bunch of small Reds, and then Jeb put another Slot Red into the  boat. Sam tangled twice with Lady Fish and somewhere in there Dennis tangled with a Jack Crevalle. It was a super "Fish Catching" day and another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Wow! Fish Catching Day!

I fished north yesterday but went back to the south today, meeting John Ellington and his two sons Trey and Jason down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp. I had a baitwell slam full of live shrimp and mud minnows-about 11 dozen total-and we ran up and into the Nassau River with plans to fish the very last of an outgoing tide. The oysters were exposed, the current was running slow, the sun was just up and.....from the start these anglers were busy catching fish! They caught small flounder, keeper sized flounder, small Trout, keeper sized Trout, small Redfish, and a feisty Black
Drum (making it a "Amelia Island Back Country Grande Slam"). John tangles with a Shark for a few minutes then Jason put a hard fighting Jack Crevalle in the boat then Trey hooked up with another big fish and finally, we had a nice Slot Redfish. They caught more Jacks, more Reds, more Trout, with a few of them being of keeper size, and more Flounder with a keeper sized one now and then. We blew through all 11 dozen shrimp with most of them being used on fish caught! Boy what a way to start the day. With just a few baits left we found a small pool and tossed out a minnow trap then eased
down the bank to continue fishing...and BOOM! Big Fish ON!  Trey put another Slot Redfish in the boat then they had another strong hookup. Jason was on the rod this time and he had to play this big fish patiently. After a good battle he landed a big 28" oversized Redfish, boy what a fish! While he was battling his fish John caught a released a just undersized one, too. We retrieved our bait trap and with another couple of dozen minnows, we were back in business. We fished the oysters for awhile longer, picked up another couple of fish, then hit some docks at Seymore's Pointe. After picking up one small Snapper we crossed over and fished some now submerged oysters. Trey added one more keeper Flounder before we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Manatee Sighting Started The Day

I had met Matt Sedgwick and his son Luke down at the City marina this morning and as we left the dock Matt spotted a big Manatee swimming just ahead of us! We slowed down to a stop and let it move on out of the marina then we headed north and up to Tiger Island to fish the logs on the very first of an incoming tide. And a perfect tide it was...but we had no real bites. We ran out and around to the Jolley River, fished the Bank, and right off we had a bite. Luke worked the fish in patiently and landed a nice fat Seatrout. A
little later he had a Flounder hookup and got it to boatside for a "quick release". We ran around to Bell River, fished some docks, and a picked up a small Sea Bass. We came back closer to the marina, fished one flooding oyster beds with no luck then made one final stop outside of Tiger where Luke hauled in a feisty Redfish. It was a beautiful day, with sightings of Manatee, Dolphin and a ton of birds here at Amelia Island, Florida.

A Flounder Kind Of Day

Boy what a beautiful morning!  I had met Bob McKee and his friend John down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp this morning with clear skies and a slight breeze blowing. We made the long run up and around to Broward Island - I hadn't fished there in a while - but we had the first of an incoming tide which is the best for me.  Sure enough, when we got there bait was being popped along the shore. We had mud minnows to fish with on jigs and the two anglers began making their casts to the shoreline and slowly working them back. Within minutes John had a strong hookup -this was a nice
fish! He kept the pressure on and when he saw it heading for some tree limbs he tried to horse it out but the wily fish got around a limb and "pop", fish off! It woke us up though! Both anglers began to get bites and began to land fish. They had some small but feisty Reds, a "just undersized" Seatrout, a small Flounder, then Bob put a nice keeper sized Flounder in the boat. We worked up and down the island and picked up a few more fish then headed back towards the mouth of Nassau River to fish some oyster banks. The Flounder catching continued! Bob put a couple of bigger, keeper sized Flounder in the boat, then John followed that up with one of his own. The bite slowed a bit and just when I thought that we were through catching for the day, BOOM! FISH ON!  John had a strong hookup, one that stayed up near the shore for a good while, and I knew it was a bigger Redfish. He played the fish patiently and after a good battle landed a nice 23" Slot Redfish. We bounce down the river and Bob put one more keeper sized Flounder in the boat. After fishing some docks briefly, we headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

You Never Know What You Are Going To Catch

I fished today with Josh Snow and his son Ben, with the trip being set up by Patrice Paton. We had arranged to meet down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp early this morning with plans to fish the first of an incoming tide. After a brief safety orientation, we ran up the Nassau River and made a stop at some exposed oyster beds, tossing live shrimp and jigs up current and slowly fishing them back...and....FISH ON!  First Cast! Ben was on the rod and patiently worked in a nice feisty Redfish! Both anglers began to fish
and landed a keeper sized Flounder and another Redfish or two. We ran further up the river, fished some more oysters, and found a Catfish and Sea Robin to add to the variety count. We eased over to some docks, fished the dock pilings and Josh quickly found the knack of catching small but feisty Mangrove Snapper. Ben landed a rather large Pinfish then another keeper sized Flounder before we went around the corner, switched to float rigs, and tangled with some bigger Mangrove Snapper. We made one final stop over at the mouth of Jackstaff where Josh landed a hard fighting Jack Crevalle to round out another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Quick Start to a Slam and Slot Red

After a great July 4th weekend, I was back to fishing today, this time with Dean Jensen and his two sons Elijah and Tyler. I met them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning and we ran north and west up the Nassau River to make our first stop at a marsh point lined with old oysters and bordered by a small marsh runout. The had been coming in a few hours but we went with the jig rods, baited with lively mud minnows and tossed up current and near the shore. These young anglers could cast! All we had to do was take up the slack as the jig and minnow bounced down the river
bottom and in just a short while Elijah had a hookup and expertly reeled in a fat Seatrout!  Then Dean hooked up with a fish and when it fought funny I thought,...."hummm" and sure enough, a feisty Flounder. Then Elijah found another Trout and while he was bringing it to the boat Dean had a strong bite and, FISH ON!  Young Tyler jumped on the rod and began to work it slowly the to the boat. After a good battle, Tyler won out and landed a nice Slot Sized 22" Redfish, boy what a fish! We continued to fish the same spot and picked up a handful of Seatrout (and even had a double Trout hookup). After Dean briefly tangled with a Ladyfish, we ran over to fish some docks at Seymore's Pointe, but had no bites. We ran down to fish Christopher Creek on the last of the incoming tide, then bounced back to Seymore's Pointe to see if the Mangrove Snapper were there. Both Dean and Elijah outwitted them and landed a couple of small ones, but we had no keeper sized bites. After a run through Horsehead we made one last stop to fish the marsh grass as the tide reached it's peak then headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing Amelia Island waters.

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