These will be short - it's getting late and I've got a trip early tomorrow...
I fished with Cal early today, meeting him out at Goffinsville Park boat ramp for a fishing trip and then a tour of the area - he's a new property owner and wanted to check the river out. We hit Twin Creeks down the Nassau and drifted floats with the current - Cal caught on to the game early and knocked the rust off his cast in no time. We had no bites, just nibbles, so we moved on. Over at Pumpkin Hill we hit paydirt.
Cal was getting excellent drifts and it paid off. He began to get keeper sized Seatrout, one of which was right at 20" - all fish caught on this trip were released. We caught a good number of fish before we moved on to the tour - we visited Broward Island, Seymore's Point, ran thru Horsehead and over to the Intracoastal, then down to Nassau Sound and the bridges before making our way back up the Nassau and to Goffinsville Park. It was a great day to be out fishing and touring the waters of Amelia Island.
This afternoon I fished with John Raker and his mother Betty, after having a lunch of cold pizza! It was an afternoon of quality over quantity! The tide was going out so we motored across the way to Back River and found an outflow to fish - John caught a small Redfish and Betty picked up a small Trout. Over at Twin Creeks we went to jigs, didn't get much, so moved down to a drainage where Betty perfected the "Betty Twirl" - a technique where she spins in the rear seat, brings the rod over her head, and the battle is back on! She expertly landed a bulky 25" Slot Redfish! Back at Nassauville John hooked up and landed a nice 19" Flounder (out of season) and down at Broward he followed that up with another Flounder, this one right at 16". We finished up the day north of Broward, working a bank. John caught a feisty Redfish and then a hungry Seatrout then Betty finished things up with another Slot Redfish, this one measuring at 23". We had some good fish caught this afternoon so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
We waited for the tide to turn before we started today - I met David Bolton and his grandson Michael over at their dock on Lanceford Creek at 9am - the tide had just turned and started out. It was a beautiful morning with sunshine, clear skies, and just a slight breeze. We didn't go far - we came around to Soap Creek and fished a large drainage with float rigs and live shrimp and I think it was first cast and BAM! Float Gone! Michael reeled it in expertly and landed a nice keeper sized Seatrout. Now that's the way to start a fishing trip. We fished that spot thoroughly and it paid off. All three of us stayed busy hooking up and catching Trout. We had enough int he box that I had to check once in a while to make sure we didn't go over their limit. Five year old Michael had a couple of times where he saw the "take", hooked it up and reeled it in.
I felt like it might be hard to beat that first stop but boy was I mistaken! We motored out of Soap, then down Lanceford for just a short ways and pulled up at another drainage and started pitching to some strong current where I was hoping for some more Trout, but got no bites. David had went up into a pocket with his cast where the current wasn't so strong, let it drift naturally and BAM! Big Fish On! This one was ripping drag and running south! David and Michael teamed up with Michael on the reel and David supporting the rod. They fought it from port to starboard and back and after a good battle landed a nice 23" Slot Redfish. We got busy again! I knew there as a shell bed over there and we could toss our floats up to either side and we got fish, one Redfish after the other. Again, Michael hooked his own up and expertly battled it to the net. I think we had 3 more Slot Reds at that spot, including some smaller "rat" Reds.
After running down Lanceford, up the Bell, thru Tyger and around to the outside of Tyger, we pulled up on a point and fished jigs and shrimp on the bottom and played cat and mouse with the pigfish. Around towards the Jolley, still on the outside of Tyger, we fished a sandy drainage, hoping for Flounder, but got skunked. Up in the Jolley we switched back to the float rigs and worked a bank, to no avail, then made one more run around to the "Super Secret Spot" where we switched back to jigs and worked some shell "cutsz'', and this did the trick!
Those smaller rods fit Michael pretty good and after a bit of instruction he was making his own casts (5 years old, mind you). As a trio we caught 3-4 more Reds, one of them beingin the Slot size, and Michael cast, hooked up and landed one of those all on his own. He also caught a couple of small Black "puppy" Drum to round out his Amelia Island Back Country Slam. We had caught our limit in Redfish, came close to the limit in Seatrout, learned to cast a spinning rod, had a beautiful day of fishing, so as we headed back to the dock we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
Boy what a beautiful morning! I met Bob Kossman and his friend Shelly down at Sawpit Creek early this morning - that time change makes it perfect for these cool mornings. We ran up the intracoastal, turned up the Back River and made our way around to Pumpkin Hill - set up today where the sun's glare wasn't so much in our eyes and it paid off. We had a good Trout bite - most of them undersized, but I think we did get one keeper sized. We moved around the corner, drifted our live shrimp on that last of an incoming tide, and had another couple of Trout caught. We then moved up the Nassau and fished a "pocket" with the float rigs and just as the tide came to a halt, BAM! Big Fish On! Bob was on the rod and fought it valiantly. It was ripping drag up in the shallows but then it came to the boat and Bob had to quickly take th slack up, then it ran under the boat and it was nip and tuck there for a while. But Bob stayed with it and eventually boated a 7-spot 25" bulky Slot Redfish. Boy what a battle!
We then made our way down the Nassau and around Seymores Point and set up at a large drainage. I was hoping for the best - this spot has NOT been producing, but today was an exception. Shelly picked up a keeper sized Seatrout after a good drift, then she hooked up and battled a hard fighting keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum to the boat, which made it an Amelia Island Back Country Slam for the boat. We tossed back a handful of smaller Seatrout before we moved on.
After running thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Point we drifted that stretch of grass with the floats and caught another couple of Trout, one of which was of keeper size. Back over at Jackstaff we finally switched to the jigs but didn't get much, other than a small Ray. Our last stop was back over in the Nassau River, specifically Twin Creeks and here we had a good flurry of Trout catches and then Shelly boated the first Flounder of the day-14" but out of season, but still it made for a Grande Slam! We had sunny skies, the wind never was a real issue, and we had a good mess 'o fish in the box so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
We kicked off the week (and month) with a trip out of Goffinsville Park this morning when I met brothers Gordon and George Piasecki early. Gordon had brought along a couple of crab traps to try out at each spot we fished and it worked out pretty good. We made a quick run over to Pumkin Hill on a high tide that still had about 30 minutes of coming in - so it was pretty high - but we still had a current so we went with float rigs and live shrimp. The duo was getting excellent drifts and we had some bites and it was George who "knocked the skunk off" with a nice Seatrout catch. We fished both sides of the point and picked up a couple of more Trout, but between the wind, the quirky current, and the sun glare, it made it difficult to see the floats, much less hook 'em up when they went under. George had dropped the traps over the side, baited with raw chicken necks, but we had no takers.
After motoring back around to Seymore's Pointe we drifted a large drainage, to no avail. We set the crab traps but they too went unmolested. We then made the run thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Point and stuck with the floats. We got a few nibbles then George went up into a pocket with his cast, worked it around a point and BAM! Fish On! George played it perfectly, worked it in, let it run, worked it in, and eventually landed a hard fighting Slot Redfish.
Back in Jackstaff we switched to jigs for good, and still dropping crab traps. We had nibbles but nothing. Back thru Horsehead we went and down to a couple of drainages where the second one paid off. Gordon was on the rod and this fish was ripping drag! He had to be patient but the fish saws no match for Gordon. He worked it to the boat and we netted a nice 21" Slot Red. We had dropped those crab traps at every stop but didn't get a one. But we had a couple of nice fish in the box so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
I fished Friday to wrap the week up - it was a bit cool when I met Willam and Dara Blalock out at Goffinsville Park. We made a good run down the Nassau and thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Point to make our first stop and I'm glad I had my heavier North Face on! The tide was still up so we went with float rigs and worked the grass. Not much was happening but Dara did pick a up a feisty Redfish to "knock the skunk off". We came back to Jackstaff and pitched to a large outflow. Dara said she saw some movement up in a pocket of grass, made a cast and missed, but she quickly went back to it and BAM! Another feisty Redfish was caught.
The wind wasn't real strong but it was blowing almost 10 and with it being cool it was a little uncomfortable. So we ran back thru Horsehead and began to work some docks at Seymore's. I'd pull in and let them fish the docks on either side of us, back out, moved down a dock and do it again. We were on about the 5th dock when William, after having made a great cast up into the pilings, had a strong "thump" and he had a hookup. He worked it at and played it tot he net to land a nice 20" Seatrout. Before I could get it unhooked Dara was hooked up. She brought in another keeper Trout and then for a while they were catching and landing Seatrout. I was huffing and puffing before it was over with! They finished with five keeper Trout in the box.
We moved down the Nassau and fished some drainages with jigs and shrimp and minnows. Dara hauled in a sizable Flounder (out of season) and William battled a what was probably a big Redfish for a good few minutes before it threw the hook. OUCH! It will have to be caught another day! The sun was up, we had some fish in the box, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
It was a bit chilly today! So much so that I ditched the fleece and went with the insulated North Face, and I'm glad I did! I met Bryan Roach and his fishing crew William and Shane up at Old Town Bait and Tackle and after easing out of Eagans Creek we made a run down the intracoastal to fish some structure on a tide that had been going out for a couple of hours. We went with jigs and minnows and shrimp tossed up close to some rocks. The bite wasn't "on fire" but we did get a big fish - Shane had gone up to the edge with an excellent cast, felt the "thump", set the hook, and patiently brought to the net a big 18" Flounder - out of season but still a nice fish to "knock the skunk off"! Almost at the same time Bryan was battling to the boat a nice feisty Redfish. We fished that area for a while, then ran back to Piney Island and fished some dock pilings, but had just nibbles.
Back at Soap Creek we stuck with the jigs - the oysters were really showing. Brian kicked it off with a Redfish catch, then the trio caught and landed a handful those smaller Redfish, a Seatrout, and another Flounder. We then made the long run back down Lanceford and up the Bell to fish some dock. Shane piut a nice keeper sized Seatrout in the boat. Around the corner and into the Jolley, at JC's Spot we set up and fished some oyster shells with a couple of gaps draining the marsh. Even though the wind was kicking up we still caught a good handful of fish - Redfish, Trout and again, Flounder. One of those Reds William hauled in was of Slot size and then he wrapped it up with another 18" Flounder catch - that was two big ones that had to go back! I think we had 4-5 Flounder for the day. We headed back to the ramp - it was cool but sunny, we had a couple of fish in the box, so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
The weather cleared up for today, although it was a bit "crisp" when I met William and Dara Blalock and their friend Brian out at Goffinsville Park this morning. We had a tide that still had a few hours of going out so we made our first stop just down the river at some docks to fish a small creek with jigs and live shrimp and minnows. There wasn't much action there but William did haul in a Flounder to "knock the skunk off". We then motored over to Back River and fished a stretch of shell beds and picked up a couple of small Trout there.
Back down the Nassau we came, down to the Spanish Drop area to fish a large drainage and here things picked up a bit. Dara was on the stern fishing the back side of the drain (like the guy yesterday) and she put two keeper sized Seatrout in the boat. The trio added another couple of Flounder to the catch (released) and then William and Brian teamed up to get some Trout. Our next stop was way up the Nassau fishing a small Creek where William and Brian both put a feisty Redfish each in the boat.
We came back to Broward Island as the tide began to come to a standstill - Brian stayed hot, catching another couple of Reds, one of which was keepable. We worked down the island and pulled up to a stump where William went in with an excellent cast and BAM! Fish on, and this one pulling some drag. He worked it in patiently and soon landed a nice Slot Redfish. After the team put one more keeper Trout in the boat we headed back to the ramp with a bag of fish, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida
There was no real rain forecasted for today but it misted the entire morning. The horizon stayed foggy and it was a bit cool which made for a dreary day to be out on the water. BUT, the fishing was great! I had met Ray Pinkston and his fishing buddies Jim and Tommy down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and we then made a short run up the Nassau to make our first stop at Spanish Drop with just an hour left on the falling tide. The anglers began pitching jigs and shrimp and minnows to the exposed shell bank but all they got for their efforts was the "tap, tap, tap" of bait stealers. With no fish caught a shadow of doubt began to creep in.
That was short lived though! We moved up at a large drainage with Ray and Tommy pitching to the middle of the drain while Jim worked the back edge and it was Jim who got hot quickly. He caught a couple of feisty Redfish then a good handful of hungry Seatrout, then finally, one that was of keeper size. Up at the bow the fish catching picked up. Ray got hot with the Seatrout and worked thru a good handful of smaller ones to get a good keeper. With Flounder season being closed, wouldn't you know the trio put a few Flounder in the boat, with a couple of them being over 14"! We stayed there for while and caught some fish!
Our next stop was up at some docks at Seymore's where we got a few nibblers, a bait stealer, and moved on. Down at Broward on the first of the incoming kicked things off again. Tommy came alive! He caught a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum, then a hard fighting 22" Slot Redfish. Jim followed that up with another keeper sized Black Drum and Ray added another 17" Seatrout. Again, legal sized Flounder were caught. After fishing on the south end with an eagle, we made one more stop back at Nassauville.
Tossing to a drainage and working it out paid off. Some more Trout were caught and then a nice sized Weakfish to top the box off. Also caught today were a couple of small Sea Bass, a Bluefish, a Catfish, and a Toadfish. Although the day was nasty with the weather, we had caught a bunch of fish, had a few in the box so as we headed back to Sawpit we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
I've got a short week with prepping for the AIGA Inshore Classic - Captain's Meeting tomorrow 6pm at Old Town Bait and Tackle. We had a bit of wind to deal with today but my anglers, Mike and Sharon Conlon were up for the challenge with support from their pup Foxxy! We met up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp and eased out of Eagans Creek to make our first run over to Lanceford Creek where we set up alongside a grassy/shell island with plans to drift float rigs and live shrimp (and a few mud minnows) on a tide that had been going out a couple of hours. Both anglers were getting good drifts and it paid off - Mike had his float disappear - he caught up the slack, lifted his rod and let the circle hook set and Fish On! Mike played it expertly and after a good battle brought to the net a nice 23" Slot sized Redfish. Dinner in the box! Not a bad way to knock the skunk off, right? We kept at it and just a few minutes Mike had another hookup and....another Slot Red. They had their limit in the first 15 minutes of fishing.
We fished around the corner at David's house, had no luck, then made along run back down Lanceford, uip the Bell and to some docks where we switched to jigs and shrimp, and minnows. It wasn't on fire but the duo caught a handful of Seatrout, one of which was of keeper size. Sharon got in on the action and caught a couple of those Trout.
On around the corner, and down the Jolley River, we made another stop at a bend in the river with some exposed oyster shell and here we got busy catching fish! They caught a handful of Redfish, three of which were in the Slot, a handful of Seatrout, two of which were of keeper size, and a nice keepable Weakfish. One of those Redfish Mike had hooked up and was bringing in and I realized that Sharon had a fish on too - we had a "double". I quickly netted Mike's Redfish, tossed it on the deck, then went to Sharon who we realized had a Big "Doormat" Flounder - It measured right at 20" - a great fish but unfortunately, out of season! After fishing the MOA for a bit on the last of an outgoing tide we made the run around Tyger and back to the dock, and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Islnad, Florida.
It's almost downhill when your first fish of the day is an oversized Redfish! I had met Scott Carter and his father-in-law Gary down at Sawpit Creek late this morning - we wanted to take advantage of some warmer weather and an outgoing tide. It was at the top of the tide when we arrived up at Pumpkin Hill and set out float rigs as the tide eased to a stop. I was hoping for Seatrout, and expecting them, but we had no real takers. We moved around a point and again drifted floats (slowly) and when Scott's float disappeared and his drag began to rip we knew it was a big fish. I'm about 50/50 on my guesses lately and I guessed this one wrong -"SHARK, I called it". Boy was a I wrong. This fish went long and deep and back again, ripping drag. Eventually we saw it was a huge Redfish. Scott worked it in and landed the 32.5" Oversized Redfish and put himself in a three way tie for First Place in the Anglers Mark 2025 Bragging Rights Tournament-Redfish Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings.)
We made our next stop over in Nassauville and switched to jigs and here Gary came on strong! He hooked and brought to the boat a Flounder, then probably one of the biggest Weakfish I've ever had on the boat, and then a small Sea Bass. Scott put a couple of Flounder in the boat, one which would have made "keeper" if it wasn't out of season, then he thought he was hung up on the bottom, but it moved! I saw his rod as he worked it in and it bounced every once in a while. Scott kept the pressure on and sure enough, when it came to the surface, we saw it was a Door Mat! The big Flounder made a couple of runs when it saw the boat, but luckily Scott kept that pressure on, and eventually landed a 25.5" Flounder, a fish that blows him right into the Bragging Rights lead for that category. Boy what fish. Note that Scott had the biggest Flounder last year, too!
We hit a couple of drainages down the Nassau, tossing the jigs, had some nibbles, caught an undersized Redfish and enjoyed the sunshine, then we headed back to the ramp and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.
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