Methodically Built a Very Nice Catch

For the second day in a row I fished out of the north end Dee Dee Bartels Park today. I met Tom Owensby, his son Kevin and his grandson Jake early and we headed over to Tiger Island to fish the last hour of an outgoing tide. The fish catching wasn't on fire but the three anglers got bites steadily, with Jake knocking the skunk off by putting a nice Slot Redfish in the boat.

We fished the pockets, caught a Mangrove Snapper, then Kevin landed a couple of nice keeper sized Flounder. We dropped back

and fished the stretch one more time and Jake came through again, landing a hard fighting feisty Redfish. When things slowed we ran around and fished the bank at Jolley just as the tide started back in.

Working the bank against a slight breeze, the anglers were getting bite regularly.  We added another keeper sized Flounder, thru a couple back, then we got into a nest of hungry "rat" Reds and had a good time plucking them out -for a while. We decided to run further up the river and around to the MOA and here we picked up a couple of Seatrout, one being a keeper that Jake landed.

Our last stop was across the river and sure enough, Tom found both a keeper sized Trout and a keeper sized Flounder. Jake reeled in a couple of Black "puppy" Drum, one of which was keeper size, then he added a keeper sized Mangrove Snapper. Kevin wrapped things up when he put one  more nice Slot sized Redfish in the boat. With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Catching Not Fishing

It seemed we had almost non-stop catching today! And it's the third day in a row that the fishing has been great here at Amelia Island, Florida. I met Matt Park, his friend Wren and his two sons Dylan and Joseph up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park where we launched and headed north and up to the Jolley River to make our first stop at an exposed oyster bank on the very last of an outgoing tide. All four anglers were tossing jigs and live shrimp to the exposed oysters and it wasn't long at all before the bite began.

Wren was first on the board, knocking the skunk off with a nice keeper sized Flounder. Then Joseph hooked up with something a big and an all out battle ensued. He played the big fish for a while then Matt took over for a while then Joseph jumped back in and together they landed a big 4' Bonnethead Shark, boy what a fight! Matt finished that spot with a Ladyfish catch and a small Redfish landed.
We ran further up the river and kept going all the way to the MOA

and this paid off. The group put a couple of more Bonnetheads in the boat and Matt found a honey hole for keeper sized Seatrout. Dylan had been making excellent casts and his perseverance paid off with a small Croaker catch then he two added to the keeper sized Trout catch. Wren added another shark and Joseph caught a hard fighting Jack Crevalle before we crossed over to fish some still exposed oysters on an incoming tide.

Again, it was "catching"  not fishing! Matt had a good bite and, FISH ON! This was a nice fish and when it rolled up near the bank we knew it was a good sized Redfish. He played it perfectly and patiently and soon landed a nice Slot Sized 24" Redfish. After catching a small but feisty Black "puppy" Drum, Wren had her big hookup. She too had a big fish and fought it perfectly. After a good battle she landed another 24" Redfish.

(Somewhere in there we had another Slot Red, and young Joseph put the only Black Tip shark in the boat - I lost track!)

We made one last stop at Snook Creek, added another Black Drum and a Jack Crevalle caught by Dylan, then we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island.

Quick Amelia Island Slam

It's crazy how you can almost feel that the fishing's going to be good a particular day. Like yesterday, the conditions were perfect when I meet Patrick and Lindsey McStotts down at the south end boat ramp. We headed up the Nassau River with plans to make the long run to Broward Island but I just couldn't pass up a shoreline with exposed shell bank - the bait was moving and the fish were popping!

We pulled up and began to toss shrimp and minnows on jigs to the

bank. Patrick got things started off quick when he hooked up and landed a nice Slot sized Redfish, a great way to knock the skunk off the boat! He followed that up in short order with a hungry Flounder then a keeper sized Seatrout (all fish were released today) to garner a quick Amelia Island Back Country Slam! We worked that bank, tossed a cast net and picked up some more bait, then made that run down to Broward Island.

The duo caught another Flounder or two or three, a small (small) Redfish, then Lindsey had a strong bite and, FISH ON! This was a big fish that was ripping the line off of her spool. But she kept the pressure on and after a good fight, and despite the coaching, landed a nice 24.25" Redfish, boy what a fish! We worked down the bank for a while, then ran back to Pumpkin Hill, switching to float rigs.

Patrick added a feisty Redfish before we made one more stop back at Horsehead where he put 4-5 keeper sized Mangrove Snapper in the boat. With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Hot Fishing Picks Up at Amelia Island

We're into our summer weather pattern - warm and muggy in the morning and today we had overcast skies with expected thunderstorms later in the day.  I met father and son angling duo Josh and Noah Thompson down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and after a brief safety orientation, we ran up the Nassau River and all the way around to Broward Island.

When we got there the tide was still going out so we set up to fish at the mouth of large marsh run out. Noah was first in the water and within a cast or two he was first on the board, hooking up out deep with a hungry Seatrout. His dad got his jig and live shrimp into the water and he quickly caught a high flying Ladyfish. Then, we had a big "bump", a hookup and, FISH ON! Noah was on the rod and this seven-year-old-going-on-eight played the big fish expertly, taking his time and soon landing a big 20.5" Flounder - the biggest of the year. Noah had snatched first place in the Anglers Mark 2017 Bragging Rights Tournament - Flounder Category! (scroll down right side of this report for standings)

We continued to fish this one spot and continued to catch fish. A small (small) Redfish, another couple of Flounder, and a fat Seatrout. We dropped back to fish some logs and BOOM! Fish on. Fish Off. Ouch. But we hung with it and a cast or two later Josh put a nice Slot sized Redfish in the boat.

We hit a few spots along Broward then ran back to Pumpkin Hill and no longer had we begun to fish when Noah landed his "poor man's Tarpon" - a Ladyfish. Josh added a Jack Crevalle then Noah found a beat up Slot Redfish to add to the catch. Our last stop was back at the Horsehead, fishing some structure, and the two anglers finished up playing cat and mouse with Mangrove Snapper. I think it was an even match! With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Squeezed In Some Fly Fishing

Wayne Lynn and I exchanged texts and phone calls yesterday and this morning, trying to determine if it was feasible to fish with the forecasted thunderstorms heading our way. We saw a window and took it, meeting up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park boat ramp.

Myself, Wayne, and his brother-in-law Ernie headed over to Tiger Island to fish the logs on an incoming tide with 8w outfits and my "Live Shrimp Fly" - a weighted version made to resemble the color of a live shrimp. The two anglers traded off, tossing that fly  up and

down the bank, making excellent casts, getting a bump here and there, but no takers. We did see a huge Osprey hanging out in the trees above us.

We ran around to the Jolley River and fished a large marsh run out, switching to a black "Troy James Fly". This did the trick. In short order Wayne had a bump and a bite. He strip set the hook and patiently hauled in a small Flounder.  People seem surprised when I tell them we caught a flounder on a fly but it happens more often

than  you'd expect. I guess they  will eat anything!

I wanted to continue on up the Jolley but there was a huge thunderstorm heading our way so we headed back and when we came out of the mouth of the Jolley we were met by a Coast Guard gun boat who advised us to wait until a passing submarine had passed through. We headed their advice! We made one more stop over in Bell River but the thunderstorms were inching closer, so we called it a day, another great, albeit short, day on the water here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Using Up The Bait

Thank goodness for Mangrove Snapper this time of  year! We had an absolutely beautiful morning today to fish when I met David  O'Flynn and his friends Lucas and Ryan down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning. We headed up the Nassau River, spun around, and began to fish some flooding shell beds with jigs and live shrimp and minnows. The conditions were almost perfect but I don't know if the heavy rains or the full moon affected the bite because fish catching was slooooow. Lucas did find a high flying Ladyfish along the first stretch, and picked up another one as we bounced north up the river.

We made a run around and up into Christopher Creek, fished it pretty good, and finally the guy withthe hot rod, Lucas, hooked up and, FISH ON! He played it patiently and perfectly and soon landed a nice Slot sized Redfish, finally! We actually worked the same area twice, got no more bites, then ran down to Broward Island to fish the very last of an incoming tide, a tide that I don't normally fish there at the island.



But it paid off when David went in deep to the shore and BOOM! He had a  hookup. He worked the fish in slowly, kept the pressure on, and soon landed another nice Slot Redfish. We fished the island for a while, had a couple of bumps but no takers, then ran back towards the ramp, making one final stop at some structure.

We had all switched to float rigs and live shrimp and although it took a few minutes, the Mangrove Snapper went into a frenzy of biting and we blew through the bait, catching one after the other, most of them being of keeper size. As we hit bottom on bait I dug out some dead stuff I had from the day before and we blew through that, too. Although they weren't big, big fish (12"), it was fun to fish 'em and finally we ran out of bait, called it a day, and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Almost Too Big For My Light Tackle

We had three days of down time with the rain but got back to it today with beautiful weather. I met Allen Richardson and his grandkids Anna Claire and Walker down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and we made a short run up the Nassau River, stopping at Twin Creeks to fish a high and incoming tide. Although we had few nibbles on our live shrimp and  minnows, we had no takers so I let us drift with the current for a bit. Anna Claire had a strong bite, a good fight, and soon landed a high flying Ladyfish.

We hit Seymores Pointe at the very last of the incoming tide and had no bites so we continued on to Pumpkin Hill and eased along the bank tossing float rigs. Walker got on the board when he landed keeper sized Seatrout then Anna Claire hooked up and landed a hard fighting Jack Crevalle. We rounded a pointe, drifted with the slow current and Anna Claire had something take her bait and run, and keep going, spooling her to breaking pointe, now that was a good bite!  Then, just minutes later, Walker had a good bite. His drag begin to rip as the line came off. This time I was able to get the boat turned and chase the big fish to relieve some pressure. It was good, long battle on my light tackle, sized 2500 Shimano Stadics, but Walker was up to the task and after fighting the fish to exhaustion, we landed a big, BIG Bonnethead Shark. Boy what a fish!

Our next stop was over at Christopher Creek. We had just starting casting with jigs and shrimp when Allen made a cast and he said the minute it his bottom, BOOM! Fish On! He turned the hard work over to Anna Claire and she patiently worked in a nice 20" Slot Redfish. We worked the bank thoroughly, had no more real bites, made one stop at the mouth of Jackstaff  to pick up one more Jack, then called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Lucky Shirt, Big Red, and Almost a Shark

The breeze had picked up today, which wasn't such a bad thing, and coupled with some overcast skies, it was somewhat pleasant to be fishing the back waters of Amelia Island. I had met David and Nance Skroko up at the north end ramp early this morning and we headed up and over to the outside of Tiger to catch the very first of an outgoing tide. We had both live shrimp and mud minnows and we deployed them both on float rigs, up near some sparse grass. After losing our shrimp a couple of times to "baitstealers" David

had a strong bite and his drag began to rip as the line came off the reel, FISH ON!  And in the first 20 minutes of the trip!  David played the big fish patiently as it made run after run and after a good battle landed a nice 22" Slot Redfish.

We fished that area, bounced across a creek and fished the opposite side, then ran further up the north/east side of Tiger to fish a large outflow with jigs. No bites. We ran around to the Jolley River,

fished some still flooded oysters with float rigs but didn't get anything for 100 yards until David found a fat but hungry Seatrout.

Our next stop was further up the Jolley and we now were fishing exposed oysters. David was tossing the float rig but Nancy was throwing jig/shrimp combo. We had very few bites until, BAM! Something took Nancy's bait and ran with it. SHARK ON! The reel was screaming and Nancy kept the rod up and the pressure on and

just as I was thinking turn the boat and give chase, BAP! Fish off.
Boy what a fish!

We made one more stop around the corner, again fishing some exposed oysters and wouldn't you know, David's lucky fishing shirt paid off.  He hooked up, played, and landed another Slot Redfish. Then Nancy put two Black "puppy" Drum in the boat. And just as we were about to leave we had another strong bite. BIG FISH ON! Nancy was on the rod and she fought it and fought it through the multiple times that it made it's deep runs. But she was  up to the task and after an extended battle, landed an oversized 27.75" Redfish. Now that's a nice fish!  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Jolley Good Fishing at Amelia Island.

I'd have to day that the week ended above average with today's catch being the best of the week. I had met Rick Guyer and his two grandsons Riley and Tim up at the Dee Dee Bartels boat ramp early this morning and boy was the river calm - it was like glass! We headed north and towards St. Mary's, makin gone stop on the outside of Tiger Island.

Two anglers were tossing jigs and mud minnows while a third drifted a float and minnow. Just when I thought we would be

skunked at our first spot, Riley hooked up with his jig and quickly reeled in a rather large Flounder. Skunk off the boat! Whoohee!

We bounced around to Jolley River, found a nice shoreline and began to work along it with Float rigs. Riley again had a hookup, his float disappeared and he easily landed a nice keeper sized Seatrout. Then Rick got on the board. He said his float disappeared with a vengeance and then his drag began to sing, FISH ON!  I was real impressed how patiently Rick worked the big fish and after a good battle it paid off - he landed a nice 22" Slot sized Redfish. As we finished that drift we hit a mouth of a small marsh run out and all three anglers put small but feisty Redfish in the boat.

Our next stop was further up the Jolley - we fished another bank and by this time the oysters were exposed with the dropping tide. We had a mix of float rigs and jigs working. Again, just as I thought we might be skunked at this spot Tim had a good bite and again, BIG FISH ON!  He fought the fish valiantly, working the fish up with his rod and reeling down as he took in line. The fish went from starboard to port and back then got back in the current. But Tim was up to the task and eventually landed a big 24" Slot Redfish. Nice fish!

We bounced around to the MOA, picked a small Trout, then Rick made a pinpoint cast to some skittish bait and BOOM! Fish on. I was guessing Redfish the way it was ripping drag but as it got close to the boat we saw it was a big Trout. After netting we measured it to be 20"+.  We made one more adjustment across the river and Riley wrapped things up with the biggest Flounder of the day, and with that, we called it, another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Amelia Island Flounder Flurry

I headed back to the south end today, meeting Trey Dennard and his friends Maria, Anne and Mark down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp, located at the north end of Big Talbot Island Park. We launched at 7:30 and ran up the Nassau River - the water was smooth as a pond - and stopped at Twin Creeks to fish an outgoing tide with float rigs and mud minnows.

It didn't take long for the anglers to get bites. Maria was first in the water and I think it was her first real drift when, BOOM! Fish on!  It fought ferociously but she played it perfectly and after a good battle, landed a hard fighting Jack Crevalle. Then Trey got in on the action and landed a feisty Redfish. Mark followed that up with a keeper sized Flounder that bit his minnow as it floated over the back side of a submerged shell bed. From then on the anglers were getting bites, picking up a keeper Flounder now and then.

We bounced down to Spanish Drop and fished another run out and here both Mark and Maria put some big Flounder in the boat, then Maria added a nice Slot sized Redfish.   We made a stop up at Seymore's Pointe to fish for Mangroves but had no luck, bounced around to some docks where Trey proved adept at catching the Mangroves on a jig and minnow - and he found another Flounder, then we bounced over to Bubblegum Reef where Trey picked up a few more Mangrove Snapper.

After running through Jackstaff we fished the edges of a sandbar with Anne wrapping things up with a nice Jack Crevalle catch. With that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.