Making a Meal with Mangroves

You may have noticed I haven't reported trips the last week or so. That's because the couple of trips that I had around Shrimp Fest there wasn't much to report, other than not much biting in the back water. I hear the big bull Reds can be had out at the jetties if  you're in to that kind of fishing, but the backwater, coupled with high winds, has been kinda tough.

 But I fished yesterday with some regulars, Dennis Brizzi and his buddy Hal, meeting them out at the Goffinsville Park early morning. We made a quick run over to Pumpkin Hill, set up along some oysters and began to ease along the bank, tossing jigs and shrimp on the first of an incoming tide. Although conditions looked right and the shell banks looked enticing, we only picked up a couple of high flying Ladyfish.

Being in the area, we made a quick stop down at Broward Island and set up outside a large marsh runout. The two anglers were still tossing the jigs and within minutes Dennis had a hookup, called it "small", then his drag began to sing! It was a big fish. He played it patiently and eventually landed a nice 23" Slot Redfish.


Dennis had his spot picked out, went back to it a few times, had a good bite, but no take, then he had another hookup and landed a nice keeper sized Flounder.  We moved up a ways, tossing jigs forward and letting them bounce back with the current and found a hard fighting Jack Crevalle, then a fat keeper sized Seatrout that Hal worked to the boat.

Our next stop was back at the Horsehead area, fishing a now covered oyster bank, looking for Reds. The two anglers were tossing float rigs with a short leader along the oysters and began to pick up Mangrove Snapper. They've been getting bigger over the last month and these were of keeper size. I had one strong hookup that I felt like was a Redfish but within in seconds it dashed across the oyster bar as drag was ripping and cut itself off. Darn it!  After getting a good mess of the Mangroves, we made one last stop around at Seymore's Pointe and limited out on the Mangroves (5 a piece). With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Against The Wind

We had a really nice morning today when I met Rob and Shannon Holbrook and their daughter Ginny up at the north end boat ramp. The tide had only been coming in for an hour so we made the short run around to Tiger Island and set up, tossing jigs and live shrimp to the shore line. As we fished we could see the wind picking up and blowing by the island. These anglers were making excellent casts to the  pockets and it was young Ginny who "knocked the skunk off" with the first catch of the day, a feisty Black "puppy"
Drum.  Minutes later Rob had a thump the minute his bait hit bottom and he worked in a keeper sized Flounder. Although the conditions were right, the bite was slow so we ran out and around and up into Jolley River and fished the incoming tide at large creek inlet. We had a few nibbles, but no takers then as we worked around a point Ginny had her float disappear and she hooked it up perfectly, landing a hungry Seatrout. We fished further up the Jolley, had a nibble or two, then ran around to Bell River and fished some docks. Again, just nibbles. Our final stop was back towards Fernandina on the Bell and one of Rob's first casts produced another Seatrout. After leaving Tiger Island most of the trip was spent dealing with the wind. It was fishable but the wind made things difficult. These anglers were up to the task and made the best of it and we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Slot Reds Big Trout Good Variety

With forecasted winds this afternoon getting up to at least 18mph, Wayne Hackett and I agreed that it'd be best to fish this morning, so that's what we did!  The good news is that I've been having some good luck fishing that high and still coming in tide which is what we had today. I met Wayne and his dad Harold down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and we made the quick run up the Nassau River and made a stop at some flooded oyster beds with plans to toss float rigs and live shrimp to the marsh grass. The two anglers started right off making excellent casts and it wasn't long
before we got a few bites. Wayne put a keeper sized Seatrout in the boat and another smaller one. We bounced down the river and Harold had a good fight with a feisty Jack Crevalle. Then Wayne had a strong hookup and after a patient battle, landed a 20" Slot sized Redfish. We inched down the bank, had a fish or two caught, then when things slowed to a halt we cranked the big engine and ran down to Christopher Creek to fish some shallow, flooded oysters.  Harold picked up a Trout, then battled a Black Tip Shark. Then Wayne had a strong bite and worked in a big 19.5" Seatrout.
And as quick as the bite started, it quit! We ran around the bend and fished with jigs and shrimp. Wayne picked up a keeper sized Flounder to round  out their Amelia Island Back Country Slam of Seatrout, Redfish and Flounder, then it was Harold's turn to have the big bite. He played it patiently and perfectly and soon landed another Slot sized Redfish. We picked caught another small Trout or two then headed back, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

One Fish Per Spot

Well, that's what if felt like today. We had a beautiful mid morning trip set up when I met Nancy and Bill Hohenshelt up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park and boat ramp. We made a quick run over to the outside of Tiger and set up at two large creek outflows, tossing live shrimp under floats. Both anglers got a nibble here and there, but no takers, so we bounced across the creek and fished some more flooded marsh grass. Again, we had some good nibbles, and then Bill landed a feisty Bluefish. We then ran out and around and up the
side of Tiger and found another outflow. I switched the anglers to jigs and live shrimp because I new the bottom wasn't rough. Within minutes, Bill had a hookup and landed a nice hungry Seatrout. But no more bites were had. So we continued on around to the Jolley River, fished the "bank" and here Nancy got on the board when she landed another nice Seatrout. We worked up the bank, had a bite now and then, and finally, Bill hooked up and caught a keeper sized Seatrout. We fished further up the Jolley at Snook Creek, had no bites, then hit the MOA. It was the right tide and the conditions were right, fish were popping, but they just weren't eating what we werew offering. We made one last stop back at the logs of Tiger. After getting a few bites, Bill had a strong hookup. He  played the hard fighting fish patiently and soon landed a feisty Redfish. Although we didn't slay the fish, we did have a few catches, so we counted it as another great day to be out on the water here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Battle With A Beast For Bragging Rights

Celebrating his daughter's 16th birthday, Duane Schumaker treated his girls to an Amelia Island Back Country fishing trip on the Angler's Mark. Duane had birthday girl Jasmine along with her sisters Samantha and Savannah "the Legend",  when they met me out at the Goffinsville Park and boat ramp early this morning. We made a quick run around to Christopher Creek and began tossing float rigs with mud minnows (no shrimp available today). It didn't take long before the girls were getting bites with their floats disappearing and within a few tries they got the hang of hooking
up!  Jasmine put the first fish in the boat, a nice keeper sized Seatrout. Samantha followed that up with one of her own then we added a couple of smaller ones. We were fishing the minnows shallow over some flooded oysters and when one float went under and the drag began to sing, we knew we had a big fish - FISH ON! Jasmine was on the bow fighting the fish with her sister Samantha and as their line plowed thru some marsh grass, Duane had a hookup - another big fish on! He and Savannah were battling their fish while the crew on the bow battled theirs - we had
a double!  It took a while but we got the first fish in and netted, which turned out to be 26" and in the Slot and then we got the second fish in, an oversized 28" fish. Now that will wake everyone up! We fished the area thoroughly, had a bite or two, then ran around and thru the marsh to Jackstaff. I eased  up the bank with the anglers tossing their floats but we had no bites. We crossed over to fish a sandbar and began to get fish. Duane was tossing a jig and some dead shrimp that we'd dug out and he picked up a couple or three hungry Seatrout out deep. Then Jasmine caught a hard
fighting Jack Crevalle on the dead shrimp and later, when her drag began to rip on another fish I proclaimed "SHARK". This fish was big and was ripping drag and had no plans of coming to the boat. But Jasmine kept the pressure own and played it patiently. When the big fish got back in the current I released the anchor and followed it down the river. It took Jasmine from the bow to the stern and from starboard to port and back to starboard and back to port as we drifted down the creek. It was a battle of wills and Jasmine won - eventually landing a whopping 34" oversized Redfish and grabbing first place in the Anglers Mark 2017 Bragging Rights Tournament - Redfish Category. Boy what a fish! (Scroll down right side of this report for standings). We fished a good handful of spots, picked up another couple of small Reds, a nice Bluefish, a hard fighting Ladyfish, then called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Morning Fishing's Best

Louis Welch consulted his secret book which told him that today it would be best to fish in the morning, so we did. I met Louis and his brother Kenny out at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp and we made a quick run around to Christopher Creek and began
tossing float rigs with live shrimp to some flooded oyster beds on the very first of an outgoing tide. It didn't take long before the two anglers began to hookup and one of the first fish was a huge Seatrout that Kenny hooked up with. It took his bait with a vengeance and was ripping drag, but Kenny kept the pressure on and landed a fat 22.5"
Seatrout - squeezing him into 2nd place in the Anglers Mark 2017 Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category (scroll down right side of this report for standings)  Boy what a nice Trout. From then on it was fish catching! Louis fought and landed a 23" Slot Redfish then both anglers were trading Trout catches. Louis added another big 21.5" Trout(tying him for third in the Bragging Rights Tournament)  then Kenny had a strong bite and landed another Slot Redfish. The fish catching was fast and furious for almost two hours, then it went cold. Really cold. We ran down the Nassau River and fished some marsh run outs, picked up a small Redfish and a couple of more Trout, and a couple of Jacks, too. We fished the docks at Seymore's, picked up one more Jack, then ran through Jackstaff to fish it's mouth. The tide was down, the sun was up, and it wasn't morning so we headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Battling Fish and Bugs

Today was a "10" according to the weather folks and I agreed with them. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and the wind was listed as "calm". I met Rick Mowery and his friends Kathy and Don down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning and we headed up the Nassau River, making our first stop at a marsh line that had oysters just beginning to show on an outgoing tide. Don and Kathy were tossing jigs and shrimp forward and up to the bank while Rick followed them  at the stern tossing a float rig and shrimp. It was Rick that knocked the skunk off when he hooked up and landed
a nice Slot sized Redfish. Then all anglers began to battle the first Ladyfish of the year and Jack Crevalle's. There was action going on all around us with fish popping bait and the anglers getting a bite now and then. Things got real calm and the sand gnats began to swarm and we were all heading for the bug spray! Then Don had a strong hookup. He played it perfectly and soon put a another Slot Redfish in the boat. Kathy added another Jack Crevalle and a huge Ladyfish then Don hooked up and landed a keeper sized Seatrout. We fished that bank thoroughly, and when the bite slowed we made
the run down to Pumpkin Hill and fished some fully exposed oysters. Although there was a ton of bait movement, we had no real bites. We made our last stop down at Broward Island, fishing jigs, and after fishing two or three spots, Rick wrapped things up when he caught another keeper sized Trout. With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Dodging The Manatee

The beautiful days just keep coming! Today I met Greg and Myrna Gray down at the City marina and we made a quick hop over to the Bell River to fish some exposed oysters on the last of an incoming tide. Greg was on the bow tossing a fly rod while Myrna was at the stern pitching a jig and live shrimp. Both were making excellent casts but it took us a while to hookup. Myrna had a couple of good bites on the shrimp then she had a strange one and when she reeled it in we saw that it was a feisty Flounder. When the tide hit bottom
we ran around to Tiger Island and fished the logs. Myrna reeled in a hungry Black "puppy" Drum and Greg battled a Redfish that was right at Slot size. But the bite was somewhat slow, even though the conditions were perfect, so we ran around to the Jolley River and fished the "bank".  There was all kinds of movement along the bank and even though we had bites, we had no takers. We did see a  huge Gar fish swim right up to the boat. We ran further up the Jolley and around to the MOA where Myrna picked up a Seatrout to round out her very own Amelia Island Back Country Slam of Flounder, Black
Drum and Seatrout.  We made one final stop up "Snook Creek", pitching jigs and live shrimp and sure enough, we got Shark bit. After a couple swirled at the boat Greg had a hookup with a large shark that had no intentions of being caught today - it spooled the reel and broke when it reached bottom!  Shortly after that Myrna had a hookup and we could tell this was another Shark, albeit a tad bit smaller. She played it perfectly and during the battle, a big Manatee came and checked us out! It eased right past the boat and under Myrna's line while she was battling the Shark. But Myrna maintained her composure, kept the pressure on, and soon landed a nice 24" Bonnethead Shark. Now that's the way to wrap up another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

Quality Fish Makes For Bragging Rights Contender

You can't make the days any prettier! Sunshine, slight breeze, mild temperatures and a game plan for fishing! I met Olin Williams up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park and boat ramp for a "birthday" fishing trip.  The tide was still going out and I had a "plan" to hit different spots as it continued to drop and then come back in. First, we made a run over to Lanceford Creek with an hour to go in the tide and set up from a dock within casting distance of our jigs and live shrimp. Olin was making excellent casts to the pilings - we worked them thoroughly, then moved on along some exposed oysters teeming
with bait, but had no real bites. We made the run back to the mouth of Bell River and fished some more exposed oysters banks with the jigs and shrimp. We weren't there long when we had a strange bite, not much, then BOOM! Big Fish On!  Olin was on the rod and played the big fish masterfully. It made some long, deep runs, but Olin kept the pressure on. The fish went 'round and 'round the boat and after a good battle we landed a big 29.5" oversized Redfish - big enough to slide Olin into 2nd place in the Anglers Mark 2017 Bragging Rights Tournament-Redfish Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). Now that's a nice fish! We went back to the jigs and shortly after that  Olin had another hookup. Not quite as big, but big! He worked it to the boat and landed a 19" fat Seatrout. Our next stop was around at Tiger Island. The conditions were absolutely perfect. The sun wasn't up over the trees, the tide was low and just creeping in, and Olin was making pinpoint casts to the pockets. And no fish. I couldn't believe it. So we ran around and up into the Jolley, fished a couple of oyster banks with float rigs then the jigs - had no bites, then continued on around to make a pit stop at the MOA. And wouldn't you know it. Boom, Trout. Boom, Trout. Boom, Trout. We had a good handful of Trout then it shut down completely. Our final stop was at some docks on Bell River and I think it was first cast when Olin hooked another Trout (All fish were released today). We found a couple of more out deep then called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Working for a Fish Bite

I fished this afternoon, too, meeting the Pleasant family - William and Shannon and their sons Alex and Benn up at the north end ramp at 2pm with plans to fish the first of an outgoing tide. We had live shrimp, Slip Float rigs, Cajun Thunder rigs, and jigs so we were ready! We made our first stop at a flooded oyster bank on Bell River and caught a couple of small Sea Bass. After running up Bell River further we fished some docks with jigs and Slip Floats and this produced a handful of small Seatrout - but  none of the nice
keepers we've been getting. Our next stop was around at Snook Creek in the Jolley River, going to back to Cajun Thunder rigs, and, no bites. We hopped down to the mouth of Jolly, fished the Bank, and caught baitstealers. Our last stop was over at Tiger Island and boy were the conditions were perfect.  The wind was blocked, the tide was fairly low, and the sun was going down. We fished and fished and fished  and finally, Alex put a hungry Seatrout in the boat. It was a beautiful afternoon and although the fish didn't cooperate, it was another great day to be out on the water here at Amelia Island, Florida.