Father's Day Surprise

Candace Carter, her sister-in-law Heather, and her mother-in-law set up a surprise Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip today for their husbands.  They rousted them out of bed early and had them at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp by 7am.  We headed up the Amelia River and started an easy troll of the exposed oyster beds as the tide began to ebb.  Using a jig/shrimp combo, Clifford was first to break the ice and hooked up with a nice Seatrout.  Al had a couple of hookups with the "Poor Mans Tarpon" - Ladyfish and landed them expertly.  Rashad grew quiet.  As the tide started in, we cranked the big Johnson and ran around to the Nassau River and the south end of Broward Island.  Al caught a feisty Redfish and Clifford had a nice Trout.  And Rashad grew quieter.  But then Rashad's rod bent and his drag ripped out and FISH ON!  He had a good fight with the fish hunkering down deep then rolling on the surface and he played the fish like a pro and we soon landed a nice 25" 5lb Redfish!  Game On!  Clifford hooked up with a big one, too and played it for a minute or so until the fish got into the tree limbs and broke itself off.  Rashad added a 16" Trout to the fish box then he had another powerful hookup and another big fish! He fought it to the boat and we soon netted another 26" Slot sized Redfish.  Things slowed down so we headed back, stopping at a couple of run-outs where Clifford caught another Trout and then Al had something take his live shrimp under a float and FISH ON!  His drag ripped out and the fish kept going until Al slowed him down and then the battle ensued.  15 minutes later Al landed a 3'+ Bonnethead Shark on the light tackle rod/reel combo.  We took pictures, released the fish, then headed in, counting it as another great Father's Day to be out on the water!

Big Lucky

Scott Omelia was visiting relatives on Amelia Island so he treated his 7 year old son Palmer to a morning of backcountry fishing on The Anglers Mark.  We had some severe thunderstorms last night and there was lingering wind and overcast skies as we headed up the Nassau River with a tide high and still coming in.  We made our first stop at a small creek and tossed out some live shrimp under floats.  It wasn't long before Palmer's float disappeared and his drag began to rip out!  FISH ON!  He held on tight and then his dad pitched in and they fought the fish around the boat a couple of times before we landed a nice 3' Bonnethead Shark for pictures and release.  Shortly after Palmer dubbed the rod he was using "Big Lucky"!  We hit another spot with know real bites then headed over to Broward Island to fish the flooded logs and limbs.  Although we were still using the float rigs, we also tossed out a jig and shrimp combo and it that turned out to be the trick because Palmer soon had a hookup and pulled in his first feisty Redfish.  He went back to the same spot and a little later had a hard bite and another fight on his hands.  I was retreiving the net when I heard him yell, "it's a Big Redfish" and then we saw it roll up behind the boat. He cranked the fish in and we netted a nice 19", 3lb Redfish for pictures and release.  We tried a couple of more spots then headed in, counting it as another great day to be on the water!

Florida House Inn Brings Back Homestyle Lunch

I had the pleasure of eating lunch at the Florida House Inn today and it was there "grand re-offering" of the home style lunch!  The wonderful Florida House Inn staff brought out homemade meatloaf and fried chicken, along with biscuits and jam, succotash, stewed squash, collard greens, mashed potatoes and gravy, iced tea and topped it off with a blueberry cobbler and ice cream! WOW!  It was a great meal and even nicer was that I got to meet some great people that I'd have never had met if I hadn't sat down at their table.  Innkeepers Emily and Karen Saltmarsh and their staff were gracious hosts, it was a warm atmosphere, and the food was delicious!  Lunch will be served 7 days a week from 11:30am to 3pm.

Trout, Blues, Ladyfish, Redfish

Jon Han and his wife Marilyn, along with their kids David and Grace, were in town visiting Amelia Island, all the way from Pittsburgh, PA and took in a backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock early and headed up Lanceford Creek to fish some docks on the last of an outgoing tide.  Although we had a few nibbles, no fish actually wanted our live shrimp on jigs and under floats!  So we pulled up anchor and ran up to the Jolley River to fish the very last of the tide.  When we began to troll the oyster lined banks, the family began to pick up fish.  Grace had the hot rod at first and she caught some ferocious Blues and jumping Ladyfish.  Marilyn joined in and picked up a nice Seatrout.  Fishing in the back of the boat, Jon had multiple hookups with Ladyfish.  We moved spots as the tide started in and had great oyster bank to fish and very little wind.   David's rod turned hot and he began to catch fish, putting a nice Blue in the boat and hooking up with Ladyfish.  Then we had a strong bite and David worked a feisty Redfish in to the boat with Grace handling the net.  Later, David was working his jig back to the boat and POW!, FISH ON!  This fish had some size and he played it perfectly to Grace's waiting net - a fat 18" Trout!  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on the water!

Smokey day on Amelia Island waters

Greg Metcalfe and his wife Diane along with friends John and Erin, all from Calgary, Canada were visiting Amelia Island and scheduled a backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock promptly at 7am and headed up to the Jolley River to catch the tide as it just started in.  I lowered the trolling motor and began to ease along the exposed oyster banks as the anglers tossed their jig/shrimp combo to the shallows.  It wasn't long before Erin had hooked up with a jumping Ladyfish and John hauled in a snapping Bluefish.  All the anglers had bites, but we didn't get a whole lot of hook ups.  We headed on up the river to the MOA and fished, again getting bites here and there until John hooked up with a juvenile Redfish and brought it to the boat.  About this time heavy smoke rolled in from the fires at the Okefenokee Swamp and I began to wonder if we would even be able to navigate!  Be we fished on and our next stop was outside the Tiger Islands and this turned out to be the ticket.  Diane caught an nice Seatrout, Gary and John caught Blues, then BIG FISH ON!  Erin's drag began to scream and she held on tight as the line ripped out.  She fought the fish for a number of minutes before it got tired of playing and spooled the reel until the leader snapped!  Shortly after Diane had a good hookup and FISH ON!  Another drag ripping run and Diane had a fight on her hands.  She also had a good battle until the fish crossed an oyster bed and cut itself off!  OUCH!  Gary saved the day when he had a strong hookup, a good battle, and then boated a nice 2' Bonnethead Shark.  With that, we called it a day, another great day to be on the water!

Pandemonium!

Barbara and Mike Van Beyrer and their kids Bailey and Cooper were visiting Amelia Island from Charleston, S.C. and took in a backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.   We left the City of Fernandina Beach marina on a rising tide at 7am this morning and headed up the river to the Tiger Islands.  Our first stop found the tide almost covering the oysters so the anglers tossed out live shrimp under Cajun Thunder floats.  It wasn't long before it was pandemonium with hookups happening right and left.  Cooper had the hot rod at first, catching a nice Seatrout and then a Bluefish.  Then Bailey yelled, "I got one" and her drag began to scream, line running out, and out, and out...and POP, fish gone!   But it wasn't long before she had another on and again, the drag screamed as the line ran out.  This time she cranked it in and then Barbara joined the fight and the two of them went 'round and 'round the boat with the rest of us moving bait buckets, nets, seats and rods.  Barbara fought the fish like a pro and after a 15 minute battle we netted a 3'+ Bonnethead Shark for pictures and tossed him back in.  Mike had a number of hookups and then brought to the boat a feisty "poor man's Tarpon" - the Ladyfish.  The anglers had a number of hookups, cut-offs, saw a manna ray, and caught more Blues.  Then Mike had a strong hookup, again the drag screamed, and he had a fight on his hands.  He played the fish perfectly and we boated another Bonnethead.  Cooper wrapped up the catching when he had a good bite and this time it didn't run like a shark, but made it's stand in one location.  He worked the fish in and his dad netted a great 19" slot sized Redfish!  We hit a few more spots, had some nibbles here and there, then called it a day, another great one to be on the water!

Double Trouble

Tom and Jean Priola, along with their grandaughters Jackie and Taylor,  were visiting Amelia Island from New Jersey and took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.  We left the Sawpit Creek boat ramp at 7am and headed up the Nassau River, making our first stop at Bubblegum Reef.  We got our float rigs with live shrimp out and the anglers were soon getting bites, having their floats dissapear on occasion.  Jean was reeling hers in and had it almost to the boat when her float took off and the line began to rip out! While she was fighting that large fish another float went under and we had a "double" fish fight going on!  The smaller fish turned out to be a Ladyfish and Jean's turned out to be a nice 2'+ Bonnethead Shark.  We eventually headed on up to Broward Island, tied off to a limb and fished in the shade of the island.  The girls caught a couple of nice SeaTrout, Tom had something to the boat and Jean hooked up again with something big!  She fought the fish (I'm pretty sure it was a Redfish - it rolled up a couple of times) but as she got it close to the boat it broke itself off on some logs- the Big One that got away!  The sun was up so we called it a day, another great one to be out on the water!

Must have been the Lucky Shirt

Greg Melasky and his wife were visiting Amelia Island from Texas and Greg decided to take in a backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark yesterday.  I had a baitwell of live shrimp and mud minnows so we made our first stop at the docks of Long Pointe and eased along the docks with Greg pitching his minnow up to the pilings.  We did have one good bite but what probably was a flounder turned it lose.  We then headed up Nassau River and a made a couple of stops along the exposed oyster beds as the tide turned and began to come in.  The weather was great but the wind made it almost impossible to work the bank the way we wanted and we had no real bites.  Greg had mentioned that he had on his lucky shirt and with a couple of hours of fishing under our belts and no fish, I was beginning to wonder! We made a run to Broward Island's south end, turned the bow into the wind and current and began to work the long strewn bank and ....FISH ON!  Greg had a strong hookup and then he fought the fish expertly, even though it was doggedly trying to throw the hook.  We eventually netted a nice 22" slot Redfish.  Not long after that Greg had another strong hookup, this one out deeper and shaking it's head.  Greg, an accomplished angler, again played the fish beautifully and we netted a 20"+ Seatrout.   NOTE that I almost titled this report "Keeper Streak" because Greg went on to catch three more nice Seatrout in the 18"-20" range before dropping down to some undersized fish.  We ended the day tossing topwater lures over the now flooded oyster beds and Greg saw more action by hooking up to a large Ladyfish and having his lure rolled on by something of size, then we headed in, counting it as another great day to be on the water!

Big Shark Makes the Day

The Calhoun family, Melissa and Wally, along with their two sons, Wade and Alex, took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark today.  We made our first stop along the shores of Tiger Island and Wally was the first to pick up a Trout, then Melissa hauled in the ferocious predator, a Bluefish.  We made another stop around the corner where the whole family caught Trout.  We made a run up to Jolley River to fish an large creek runout and Wally added to the species list by catching a Flounder and a Ladyfish.  Fishing a jig/shrimp combo on the bottom, Wally hooked up with a large fish that made the drag on his reel scream and he played the fish perfectly.  He got what turned out to be a Shark to the boat a couple of times and just when we thought the fish had tired, it broke off with a snap!  Wow, what a disappointment!  But the anglers were not to be deterred and persevered, soon hooking up with another  large fish.  This time Wally fought the fish around the boat and after period of time, wore the fish out which we promptly netted and tossed to the deck for pictures and examination!  This topped of the day, another great one to be out on the water!

Big Trout Bottom Fish

Gordon Duff of Tifton, Georgia treated his grandson Ethan to a backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark yesterday.  We made our first stop outside of Tiger Island, fishing the grass line just as the tide had started out.  It wasn't long before the anglers were hooking up to Seatrout, albeit just undersized.  We made a quick stop behind the island with no real bites then headed up to Jolley River to fish a large creek runout.  Ethan was manning a rod with heavy jig tipped with shrimp in hopes that we'd pick up a shark.  The rod tip jerked and Ethan grabbed the rod only to have it make a deep bend and the drag began to scream as the fish made a run. He fought the fish perfectly while I prepared the net and made my plan to toss the shark onto the deck of the boat when Ethan yelled, "TROUT"!  He finished the battle and we netted a very nice 22" 3.5lb Seatrout.  Later we had a huge Ray come out of the water as all three of us were looking out to the river and what an awesome site it was! We finished the day fishing 1/4oz jigs and shrimp along the oyster beds and picked up two feisty Redfish, then called it another great day to be on the water!

Father and Son Fishing Trip

Rick and Josh Weinberg took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip this Memorial Day weekend on The Anglers Mark.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock at 7am and headed up the river, making our first stop at a flooded oyster bed outside Tiger Island.  We didn't have any takers of our live shrimp under float, so we made our way around to the mouth of Tiger and fished some more oyster beds, picking up a few Seatrout.  We were treated to a Manatee cruising by as we fished.  Fishing behind Tiger island produced a feisty Redfish, still using shrimp under a float, then we headed up to the Jolley River where the guys caught another couple of Redfish.  On further up the river, Josh had a strong hookup and he soon had a good fight on his hands.  He fought the fish perfectly and we boated a nice Shark for pictures and release. It was a beautiful day to start off the Memorial Day weekend, another great one to be out on the water!

9.9 on the Great Day to Be Fishing Scale

Jimmy Hill of Statesboro, Georgia was visiting Amelia Island with his son Alex, a Pre-Med student taking a break from his studies.  We met at the Sawpit Boat Ramp at 7am just as the tide was hitting bottom and headed straight for Broward Island to fish the incoming tide.  We couldn't have asked for a better day as the temperature was still mild, no clouds and just a very little wind.  There were patches of fog but that soon burned off as the sun came up.  We started our troll along the log strewn island and it wasn't long before Alex had a firm hit on his 1/8 oz jig/live shrimp combo and the fight was on!  Alex played the fish perfectly and we soon netted the feisty Redfish.  Later, Jimmy hooked up with another Redfish and had a good battle.  We made a second pass of the island and when Jimmy yelled FISH ON,   Alex responded with FISH ON, too!  After the second pass we ran back to Seymore's Pointe where the first cast of a live shrimp under a float produced a strong hookup that Alex played perfectly, but the fish must have found one of the rocks to break off on.  Not to be deterred, Alex found another bite up near a dock piling and this time he prevailed, pulling in another Redfish.  We tried our luck at Bubble Gum Reef, then ran through Jackstaff to fish it's mouth where Jimmy briefly fought a Ladyfish, then we headed in, counting it as another great day to be out on the water!

Nebraska Slam

Don and Peggy Brown were visiting Amelia Island with their two kids, Matt and Madeline and scheduled a backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.  The Nebraska family and I met at the Atlantic Seafood boat ramp and headed up to Tiger Island for the last two hours of the incoming tide.  We baited up some live shrimp under popping corks and tossed them out...FISH ON!  Madeline had only  had her float out for a minute and she had a hookup and a fish fight on her hands!  She played the fish beautifully and we soon netted a 20+ inch Trout!  Peggy joined in by catching a couple of Bluefish then we headed around to the backside of Tiger.  The wind had picked up and the air temperature was uncommonly cool but the anglers perservered and Matt's patience paid off because he soon landed a nice keeper sized 16" Flounder.  The tide reached it's peak so we headed to the docks of Lanceford Creek and although the tide was still pushing in somewhat, Don found a feisty Redfish to battle with, completing the Brown Family Slam,  and Peggy hooked up with a nice Trout.  Our last stop was further up Lanceford and the family boated more Trout with Matt adding to the cooler another nice Flounder.  With that, we headed in, counting it as another great day to be on the water!

Saltwater Variety

Ricky Anderson and his friend Lisa arrived at Amelia Island on a motorcycle and wanted to take in some backcountry Amelia Island fishing during Ricky's first visit to Florida.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock at 2pm on The Anglers Mark and headed up to the docks of Lanceford Creek on the first of an outgoing tide.  The water temperature has dropped from last week to 72, but it hasn't affected the excellent fishing.  We anchored just south of a dock and tossed our live shrimp under Cajun Thunder floats to the pilings and like this morning, first cast, FISH ON!  Lisa played the fish expertly and we soon landed a nice Redfish for pictures.  More casts to the pilings produced more Redfish with a couple pushing the Slot size and the anglers totaled 5-6 fish in about 30-45 minutes.  We eventually ran around to behind Tiger Island  where they caught more Red's and Trout then Ricky hooked up with something big - it rolled and flashed and we both thought "BIG TROUT", but when he successfully fought it to the net we found it to be a very nice Sheepshead!   We cruised Cumberland Island to view some wild horses then we move on up to the Jolley River and trolled the oyster banks - the wind died down and it turned out to be perfect fishing weather.  Ricky caught a Ladyfish that landed itself with one of its jumps and we ended the day catching Trout on the jig/shrimp combo at dead low tide and headed in, counting it as another great day to be on the water!

First Cast, FISH ON!

Pete Parsons and his family were in town for a family reunion so he and his relatives Foster and Bob planned a Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark this morning.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock at 7:30 this morning with overcast skies and a brisk breeze.  The tide had been coming in for a couple of hours so we headed up to the docks of Lanceford Creek and anchored up-current for some easy casting to the pilings.  Pete's Uncle Foster was the first to get a live shrimp in the water and as he played the line out to allow his bait to drift to the pilings and, FISH ON!  The other guys hadn't had a chance to get their rods unlimbered and Foster was playing a hard-fighting Redfish to the waiting net and pictures.  We fished the docks and  had few bites after that and the SE wind was picking up so we headed to the shelter of Tiger Island and anchored in a good spot to present our baits.  Foster must have had a "hot" rod early because he soon boated a larger SeaTrout then Bob got in on the action by catching Trout and we also picked up a nice Flounder to complete our "Inshore Slam".  We moved on up to Jolley River where Bob hooked up and fought some hard jumping Ladyfish then the trio added a couple of more Trout.  We ended the day fishing a larger creek where Foster heated up his rod again, boating keeper sized Trout, one after another.  Bob had Trout, too, then Pete hooked up with a fish that caused his reel to scream and the fight was on!  Pete fought the fish expertly and soon tired the 2 1/2'+ Shark and we tossed it in to the boat for pictures. Then Pete added another Trout to wrap things up,  and we headed in, counting it as another great day to be on the water!

The Gato Roared!

I had the pleasure of fishing again this morning with Pinson and Tina Neal and their two kids P4 and Landon.  We had seen that severe thunderstorms were due to hit the area around noon so we planned to leave the Fernandina Beach Marina at 7am, just after the tide had peaked and started out.  We headed The Anglers Mark up Lanceford creek to fish the docks with live shrimp under floats.  I noted that the wind hadn't started yet and it was really nice conditions.  Tina started things off right by hooking up with a hard fighting keeper sized 18" Trout and brought it to the boat expertly.  P4 did the same, hooking and catching a nice Trout.  We moved on to another dock and it turned out to be the right move as all anglers began to catch feisty Redfish after Redfish, boating about 7-8 fish in all in about an hour.  Both Landon and Pinson hooked up for a "double" Redfish, causing Landon to exclaim, "let the Gato Roar!"  Then Pinson tossed a quarter ounce jig with shrimp out deeper and soon had his rod bent with something bigger than the earlier Reds.  He played the fish perfectly, pulling it out from around the pilings and landed a 20" slot Redfish.  The wind was picking up so we headed to Tiger Island but it offered no shelter and we had no bites.  Our next stop was Jolley River  where P4 got a small shark to the boat, but we had no other real bites after that.  We caught some finger mullet and made one more stop at a creek runout where Tina added to the box another keeper sized Trout caught on one of the finger mullet fished deep on a jig and with that, we wrapped up the day, counting it as another great day to be out on the water.

Gator Trout?

Josh Jenette was in town with his grandparents, visiting Amelia Island from Kentucky, and took in an Amelia Island light tackle fishing trip on The Anglers Mark yesterday afternoon.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock with some brisk winds out of the southeast so we headed to Tiger Island in hopes that it would shield the wind, and it did!  Josh caught a nice Redfish before we ventured back in to the wind to fish the outside of Tiger where we came across a nice school of Sheepshead feeding near shore around the oyster beds.  We shortened our leaders so that our live shrimp would float over the oysters, but we couldn't get the Sheeps to eat!  Our next stop was up in Jolley River and it wasn't long before Josh was reeling in Trout after Trout, then he had a good hookup and a nice battle with a 2' long Shark!  He caught a couple more shark and a few more Trout and nice Whiting then we headed back to Tiger Island to catch the  first of the outgoing tide.  It was a good move because Josh was a able to catch a couple of  keeper sized Trout for his Grandparents dinner.  We had almost decided to call it a day when a "nibbler" took our float down unimpressively, then the rod bent over and the line ripped out!  FISH ON!  We both took turns battling this monster and after a good battle we boated a huge 27"  7lb Gator Trout!  Wow, what a fish!  That helped wrap up another great day to be on the water!

Manatee Sighting and Big Shark

Pinson and Tina Neal were visiting Amelia Island from Virigina and took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip yesterday on The Anglers Mark with their two kids P4 and Landon.  We left the Sawpit Creek boat ramp at 7am and headed up the Nassau River to make our first stop at Spanish Drop where Tina started the catching off by hooking up with a nice Seatrout.  Later her line began to rip out and she had a fight on her hands!  She played the fish perfectly and we soon brought to the boat a nice 3' Shark for pictures and release.  Our next stop was Bubblegum Reef where Pinson caught a feisty Redfish.  The wind had picked up so we moved on to Broward Island and Pinson picked up a fat Seatrout.  The tide just wasn't right at Broward and after a short run we were fishing the mouth of Jackstaff, catching Seatrout.  Landon joined in to get things rolling with a Trout catch then P4 heated up the action, catching Trout after Trout. While anchored, we were all startled when a huge Manatee rolled out of the water, cruising rapidly up the creek!  We ended the day with a "double" hookup of trout, and counted it as another great day to be out on the water!

Pleasant Slams

I fished with the William Pleasant family Monday, doing a morning trip then taking a break to follow up with a late afternoon trip.  Visiting Amelia Island from North Carolina, William and his two sons, Ben and Alex, met me at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and we pointed The Anglers Mark up the intercoastal to the mouth of Jackstaff where the anglers soon began to pick up Redfish and Trout on their jig/shrimp combo.  The tide was still going out and the oyster beds were exposed with the water temperature at around 77 degrees.  We fished the area for an hour or so and Ben, who already had boated a Trout and Red, hooked up and caught a nice Flounder, completing his Inshore Slam.  William and Alex both came close on their own, but combined to complete a Slam of their own.  William had an 11 spot Redfish that would have been a "money fish" in the Jacksonville Redfish Spot Tournament.   We fished briefly at Bubblegum Reef where Ben picked up another Red then we headed to Broward Island and as soon as the tide changed to come back in the anglers were catching Reds and Trout.  Later that afternoon the trio added some help when William's wife, Shannon, decided to join us.  We started at the docks of Lanceford.  The wind had picked up and the tide still had not started back out so we headed to the shelter of Tiger Island where Shannon contributed by hooking up and expertly playing a couple of keeper sized Trout.  We caught a few more Trout there then headed up to Jolley River where Ben caught a big shark, then a couple of more keeper sized Trout.  Alex caught his shark, too!  After a day of fishing, we headed in, counting it as another great day to be on the water!

Call'in His Shots

Libby Wilkes had her daughter Margaret and her grandson Will visiting Amelia Island and wanted to take in some backcountry fishing on The Anglers Mark today.  We left the Atlantic Seafood boat ramp at 7:30am and headed up to fish the banks of Tiger Island as the tide started back in.  It wasn't long before Will had a hookup and was soon reeling in a nice Redfish.  As we trolled the log-strewn bank he caught a couple more Reds and a fat SeaTrout.  We eventually moved on and ran up to the Jolley River where I started trolling the exposed oyster banks.  Will had just said he sure would like to catch a shark when BOOM!  Fish On! and his line was ripping out, heading up river!  Will fought the fish expertly and went around and around the boat with the Finns Braided Line keeping the fish under control.  The catch became a team effort and we soon netted the Shark for pictures and release.  What a fish!  We continued on up the bank, fished a little, moved on to another creek where Will caught two more Sharks.  After a tour of Cumberland Island and Fort Clinch we called it a day, another great one to be out on the water!

4 Times Around the Boat!

Roger Edmiston, his wife Laura and their son Noah were visiting Amelia Island and took in a backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock yesterday afternoon and made our first stop on the banks of Tiger Island, but had no bites!  We move on up to the Jolley River and anchored at a nice runout where Noah hooked up with a Big fish;  he fought the nice Trout to the net and we measured it to 20"!  We caught a few more Trout at that spot then moved on up the river to Snook Creek where Roger caught a nice Redfish, Noah caught a couple of more Trout, then FISH ON!  Noah's FINS Braided Line was ripping out, but he held on and the fight was on.  His mother, Laura pitched in and the two fought this big fish around the boat, not once, not twice, but FOUR times!  Roger and I were getting out of the way as they went 'round and 'round but soon the duo subdued the beast and we used the net to toss this 3'+ Shark into the boat for pictures.  Boy, what a fight!  We  eventually moved on to Tiger Island and picked up a few more Trout, then headed in, counting it as another great day to be on the water!

Where's My Bobber?

Lisa Senecal was visiting Amelia Island with her sons Riley and Noah and took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.  We left the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and headed up the Nassau River to make our first stop at the log strewn banks of Broward Island.  The Lisa and the boys were pitching a jig and shrimp combo as the tide started in and it wasn't long before Riley hooked up to a large Seatrout. He played the fish expertly to the net.  He caught a couple of more Trout then Lisa and Noah got in on the action by catching a nice Redfish.  Noah soon found that he could toss a live shrimp under a float to the bank and it soon would disappear prompting him to exclaim "Where's my bobber?!"  He caught a few more Trout using this method!  We eventually ran to Bubblegum Reef but had no bites so we motored through Jackstaff to it's entrance where Lisa caught and fought a Shark to the boat.  Riley completed an "Inshore Slam" by catching a Flounder then the anglers wrapped the day up by catching a whole slew of SeaTrout.  We headed in counting it as another great day to be out on the water!

SeaTrout Bite Picking Up

Andy and Melanie Berlin and their two boys, Ben and Daniel, were visiting Amelia Island with their from Maryland and took in a great backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark this past week.  We left the Atlantic Seafood dock for an afternoon trip and headed up to the Jolley River to fish an outgoing tide with jigs and shrimp.  Ben started the catching off by catching some nice Redfish then Melanie and Daniel teamed up to pull in a Redfish, also.  We moved on up the river to a nice creek where Andy picked up some Red's and Ben hauled in a large keeper sized Trout.  We cruised Cumberland Island to view some wild horses, took a short break at Dee Dee Bartels Boat Ramp, tried our luck in Eagans Creek, then headed to the docks of Lanceford Creek to catch the first of an incoming tide.  This paid off and the group ended a great day on the water by catching few more Redfish and Trout.

Spanish Mack in the Back (country)!

Rick Echols along with his wife Chris and their two kids Ryan and Emily were visiting Amelia Island from Raleigh, NC and decided to take a fishing/boat tour on The Anglers Mark today.  Rick, Ryan and myself left the Atlantic Seafood dock this morning at 7:30am and headed up to Jolley River with a tide that was coming in and already covering the oyster beds.  We started trolling the bank with the anglers tossing their live shrimp up to the marsh grass;  each had a few bites then Ryan's float disappeared and his rod bent and the fight was on! The FINS Windtamer Braided line stood firm and he fought the fish like a pro and we were soon trying to corral a hard lunging Spanish Mackerel!  I was real surprised because I haven't had a Spanish Mackerel up in Jolley and we didn't have a wire leader, just one of fluorocarbon.  We netted the fish, took some pictures and released the brute to be caught another day.  Further up into the river Rick hooked up and we had another fight on our hands, this one turning out to be the first shark of the year.  Rick caught a smorgasbord of backwater fish, boating Trout, Blue and Whiting.  We picked the ladies up at the dock and toured Old Towne, Fort Clinch, and Cumberland Island before making one more stop where all the anglers pitched in,  Emily reeled in the "poor man's Tarpon", a Lady Fish, and Rick topped it off with a 6-spot Redfish. With that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on the water!

Trout come on strong

Joe Lobdell was in town visiting and he and his friend, Dave, and took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark yesterday. We launched from Atlantic Seafood at 7:30am and headed out of the marina with almost no wind, still cool, and a tide that had just started in.  Water temperatures are about 67 degrees.  Our first stop in Lanceford creek only produced a few nibbles from "baitstealers" so we trolled the oyster banks to find...more baitstealers!    We found a good dock with the tide coming in to pitch our jig/shrimp to the pilings and it wasn't long before the anglers were hooking up with feisty, hard hitting Redfish.  Joe landed a few and Dave hooked up to a large one that through the hook after a few seconds of fight. Ouch!  We moved on over to behind Tiger Island where the guys had some more good bites, landing Redfish and a couple of small Trout.  Our next stop was up to Jolley River where we trolled the now covered oyster's along the bank.  We had some good bites from undersized Trout on our shrimp/float combo and this experienced anglers landed and released them.   We moved on up into the Jolley to "Snook Creek", anchored and fished as the tide just started out.  After just a couple of casts Dave's float went under and the fight was on!  Dave fought the nice keeper sized Trout to the net then we had a good flurry of fishing with Trout bite after Trout bite. We boated a few of the keeper Trout, then headed in, counting it as another great day to be out on the water!

9 year old sets the bar high!

Hugh John McDonald and his two kids, Cameron and Heather, were visiting Amelia Island all the way from Hermosa Beach, California and took in two fun filled days of fishing on The Anglers Mark.  The first day we launched from the south end Sawpit Creek ramp and headed up to the Horsehead area, making our first stop at Bubblegum Reef.  Forest Gump would have been proud because we had out jigs and shrimp, shrimp under floats, and shrimp on the bottom!  It wasn't long before the rod with the bottom rig started bouncing and 9 year old Heather grabbed the rod and started cranking.  They whole crew pitched in and helped as the battle wore on but the large Redfish finally succumbed and came to Hugh John's net to be weighed in at 7.5lbs and 26 inches!  Wow, what a start!  We had a few bites there then moved on to Seymore's point where Cameron got in on the catching by expertly landing another feisty Redfish, doubling up with his dad who was hauling in another.  Our next stop was Broward Island where the anglers picked up another Red or two, a couple of small Trout then Cameron yelled, "Fish On!" and had a battle on his hands with a nice keeper sized 18" Sea Trout.  

The next day we launched from Atlantic Seafood, made stops at Lanceford Creek,  Manatee Creek, and Tiger Island where Cameron boated a nice Bluefish.  We got in behind Tiger Island to get out of the wind and caught a few feisty Redfish and a couple of Trout.  With the bite kinda slow, we headed up to Jolley River and fished the bank where all anglers picked up a few small Trout.   We were all a little hungry so we headed up to St. Mary's for some lunch (the kids had pancakes!) then headed back to the Jolley River to fish the outgoing tide.  Fishing shrimp under floats, the Trout started biting, and with Cameron on the hot rod, he soon landed some keeper sized Trout.  We did a little whiting fishing near the Fort, saw some wild horses on Cumberland Island, then headed in, with two worn out kids counting it as couple of great days to be out on the water!