First Fish and Most Fish

The weather only got better today as the day progressed.  After an early morning fishing trip I met Harold Blanton, his son-in-law Roger and Roger's daughter Amanda at the Sawpit Creek Boat Ramp and again headed north to fish the Horsehead area.  We made our first stop at Bubblegum Reef and Amanda quickly knocked the "skunk off the boat" by landing a hungry Seatrout for the first fish of the day.  The anglers continued to fish and had to work through some pesky bait stealers and just when I though that this spot was going to be a bust, BOOM!  FISH ON!  Harold's rod was bent double and his drag was singing.  This big fish stayed deep and  was all fight but Harold patiently played the fish.  He had to go from bow to stern and back but he kept the pressure on and after an extended battle we finally landed the largest Black Drum we've landed of the year - a 25" 15lb Black Drum!  We made a move to Broward Island to fish the first of an incoming tide and here all the anglers began to land fish.  Amanda had a nice Redfish and so did here dad, Roger.  They caught Seatrout and more Reds and then Harold landed another keeper sized Black Drum.  After catching a few more fish we made a run to the Jackstaff bank and now the light breeze had dropped to no breeze making the water like glass as the sun crept downward.  The anglers were fishing float rigs now and picked up a few more Seatrout.  We tallied up the count and it appeared that Amanda had caught the most fish during the trip, too!  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

One Two Three Slams

The Blalocks -Bob, William, and Dara- were back in town, visiting Amelia Island before attending the Gator Bowl game, and took in an Amelia Island back country fishing trip.  And boy what a beautiful day it was!  Sunny skies and very little wind were forecast and the weatherfolks got it right!  We met at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp at 8am and headed up river bundled tight in warm clothing. We made our first stop at Twin Creeks and fished with jigs, Cajun Thunder floats, and the traditional Trout rigs - and had no real bites on the first of an outgong tide.  I ran around through Jackstaff and the anglers fished some still flooded oyster beds with float rigs - and had no real bites.  We fished the Jackstaff bank and although Bob did pick up a feisty Bluefish we had no other real bites.  Darn it!  We made a stop at Seymore's Pointe and again had no real bites then we made a run to Broward Island as the tide had dropped and this did the trick!  The anglers began to get hookups on their jig and shrimp combo's caching Seatrout and feisty Redfish.  Bob rounded out his own personal Amelia Island Back Country Slam by also picking up a Flounder then Dara matched it by catching a nice Sheepshead.  William wrapped it up when he added a Flounder to get his Slam, too.  It took a few hours of fishing but these anglers were patient and continued to fish  and it paid off, making another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Recipe of the Month: Cheese Ball (Loaf)

This Cheese Ball recipe is a great appetizer for the holidays:

1 ½    packages Cream Cheese

1        tsp Worcestershire sauce

4        Oz. grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

1        Tblsp finely crumbled Blue Cheese

¼       Cup celery chopped fine

¼       Cup bell peppers chopped fine

2         Tblsp green onions chopped fine

3        dashes Franks Hot sauce

½        tsp  garlic powder

4         Oz.  pecans, finely chopped (the finer chopped the better coverage you’ll get)

Set out Cream Cheese to soften.  Mix everything thoroughly in a bowl, except pecans.  Chill mixture in refrigerator overnight.  Roll cheese ball in chopped pecans and chill again before serving.  I like to make it a loaf – you get more pecans with each bite!

Making The Most of Lousy Weather

There was a window of opportunity to get out on the water this morning before the rain came through and Dori and Aaron Stibolt were game to get out and give it a try.  We left the marina at 8am with cloudy skies and wind at 10mph and headed north to fish behind one of the only available land masses.  The wind was somewhat blocked and the anglers picked up a few feisty Redfish.  We made a run around to Lanceford Creek and fished a protected creek and here the fish catching picked up as the tide reached it's bottom and began to come back in.  Both Dori and Aaron had good hookups with Redfish.  Dori was fishing a jig and shrimp while Aaron worked a Cajun Thunder float rig.  Aaron was able to add a nice keeper sized Sheepshead to the catch before we called it  day.  As we headed in the rain began to fall but we still counted it as another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Drum Drum and Drum

I had the opportunity to fish with the Bremer boys again today, Chris and his son Nik.  We knew that it would be hard to top the Christmas Eve trip but these anglers were game and even though we had an overcast sky, we headed north to make the most of an Amelia Island back country fishing trip.  The tide had just hit bottom and began to turn when Nik made his first cast and when I heard the drag rip I knew that he'd knocked the "skunk off" early!  He fought and landed a nice feisty Redfish.  We continued to fish and a little later he landed a very nice keeper sized Black "Puppy Drum".  We made a run around to another creek and here things heated up.  Nik had the hot rod early and landed Redfish, one after the other.  Chris was fishing patiently with his new rod and reel combo (that Nik had given him) and he too began to pic up fish.  He first landed a hungry Seatrout then picked up a Redfish and later landed  nice keeper sized Puppy Drum to round out his personal Amelia Island Back Country Slam on his new rod!  The anglers landed a good mess of fish but when it slowed we made one more stop with the tide well up and covering all the oysters.  Nik picked up a few Redfish but Chris had the big fish.  His new rod bent over and the drag ripped as the big fish strained against the braided line.  Chris playhed it the fish perfectly and after a long battle landed a nice 21" Drum, this one a little past the "Puppy" stage!  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Amazing Wildlife Photo's

These photos were taken by Nik Bremer, who fished with me along with his father Chris.  You can see more of Nik's work at NikBremer.com
Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Seeing Red(s) on Christmas Eve

Today was one of those mornings when you stand at the boat ramp with 17mph winds blowing and wonder if you shouldn't cancel the trip.  But my guests Chris and Nik Bremer were game for some Christmas Eve fishing so we headed out with our jackets held tight and heads bowed to the wind.  We finally found a land mass to get out of the wind and the two anglers began to cast their jigs and shrimp to the oyster beds and dock pilings.  I think Nik said it was his second cast and BOOM!  FISH ON!  He played the feisty Redfish to the boat and quickly knocked the skunk off the old Anglers Mark.  Shortly after that, BOOM!  Fish ON!  This big Red measured just in the slot at 26.75"!  And that's how the fishing went for the next 4 hours.  Of course Chris was not be out done and he caught and landed his share of Slot reds and the smaller feisty Reds, too.  I counted at least 9 slot Reds landed and we had 2-3 lost to be caught another day.  We lost track of the smaller feisty Redfish caught released.  They also had 7-8 nice Black "Puppy Drum" with 3 of those of the keeper size, landed one nice keeper sized Sheepshead and threw back one hungry Seatrout - all adding up to an Amelia Island Back Country "Grand" Slam of Redfish, Black Drum, Sheepshead and Seatrout.  The sun was shining, the wind was blocked and the fishing was hot all day so we counted it as another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Trout Are Down Deep

With the Christsmas holiday fast approaching I was able to squeeze in an early morning fishing trip set up by Shaun Payne who brought along his two brother-in-laws Eric and Cade and his father in law Jay.  We met at Atlantic Seafood at 7:30am after the tide had been coming in for about an hour and headed up to the Tiger Island area to fish with jigs and live shrimp.  The water temperature had risen from 59 of last week to 62 but just like last week the anglers had to fish the jigs sloooow!  Cade knocked the skunk off the boat by hooking up with a nice feisty Redfish.  From then on all the anglers got in on the  action, catching a good handful of Trout, a Blue, a bunch of baitstealers, and another Redfish or two.  The wind picked up or changed directions so we made a fairly long run around to the docks of Bell River and got out of the wind.  It wasn't long before this bunch from Texas were "Guns up", landing Seatrout after Seatrout!  Cade pulled it all together by landing a keeper sized Sheepshead to round out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam.  When we ran out of bait, we switched to Temptation Bait white flukes with red heads and picked up a few more Trout to wrap up another great day out on Amelia Island waters!

Amelia Island Slams for All

The weatherman said today was going to be a perfect 10 and he nailed it!  I met tom Teasdale and his friend Justin Crandall at the Atlantic Seafood dock at 1pm to take advantage of a falling afternoon tide and we headed up Lanceford Creek to fish the back country on a beautiful Amelia Island afternoonI had planned to fish some docks but I guess some of the local anglers had taken the day off because they were out in full force!  We made a detour to fish some flooded oyster beds but had no real bites so we headed north to fish the Tiger Islands.  This turned out to be the trick because Tom and Justin began to pick up some fish.  We found the Trout down deep and by fishing a shrimp or mud minnow slowly we could entice them to bite. Justin knocked the skunk off the boat by landing a couple of Seatrout then Tom got in on th action.  Justin countered with a feisty Redfish but when Tom had a strong hookup I thought, "Big Red", and the fight was on.  He played the big fish patiently but when it finally came to the surface we saw stripes, and landed a nice Sheepshead!  The anglers continued  to fish the area, picked up more Trout and then Justin landed a sizable Sheepshead, too.  More Reds were caught, more Trout were caught, and a couple of feisty Sheepshead, then Tom had another strong hookup and I thought, "Big Red".  But no, this time it was a sizable Puppy Drum!  The anglers caught fish until they ran out of bait then switched to artificial Temptation Baits and landed a few more fish.  The water was slick as a pond, the skies were clear, and the sun was going down when we called it a day, another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Power of Perseverance

There was a small window between the winds earlier in the week and the rain that was to come Saturday evening so when I met Anne and Bob Owensby down at the Marina ramp under cloudy skies we realized that we had a perfect day to get out fishing on Amelia Island's back waters.  We headed north to fish the outgoing tide with float rigs and live shrimp and when Anne hooked up with a fish early I thought that surely we'd be in the fish for a Trout catch'n good time.  But it must have been a lone fish because for the next two hours both Bob and Anne fished and fished but had no real bites. OUCH!  But the great thing about these two
anglers was that they were out to have a good time and were enjoying the outing.  We made our 5th stop of the morning behind Tiger Island as the tide had dropped enough to see the logs.  We'd switched to jigs and shrimp which Bob was expertly casting to the base of the logs and tree branches and BOOM!  FISH ON!  I knew that this fish was big because the rod was bent over, the drag was ripping and all Bob could do was hang on!  He played the fish patiently and after a while it rolled to the surface and wave a big 'ole red tail at us - a BIG Redfish!  Bob

worked the fish closer and closer to the boat and we eventually netted an oversized 30 1/2" Red!  Boy what a fish! Bob and Anne's perseverance had paid off.  We continued to fish the area and the bite picked up.  The anglers landed 4-5 feisty Redfish, 7-8 hungry Seatrout with three of them being of keeper sized and then they wrapped up the trip with an Amelia Island Backcountry Slam by landing a very nice keeper sized Sheepshead.  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Looks Like a Manhole Cover

Boy what a beautiful day we had today!  I had met Kay and Dale Bullard at the southend boat ramp at Big Talbot Island Park this morning, a little later due to the high tide - and we even waited a little longer because the parking lot was flooded.  But once it receded we launched and headed north up to the Horsehead area to fish the first of the outgoing tide with float rigs and live shrimp. The water was very still and it was almost like bream fishing with bobbers on a lake - except they weren't biting!   But these anglers were persistent and it paid off.  They picked up a feisty Bluefish then a little later we switched to a jig and shrimp and as Kay perfected her cast she picked up a nice Seatrout along the banks of Jackstaff.  We made a second swipe and when Kay thought she had hung on an oyster she applied some pressure but the drag began to rip!  FISH ON!  And what a fish it was!  She played the fish perfectly and when this wiley fish found a crab trap rope to wrapt itself around we deftly repositioned and the fight was back on!  When the big fish came to the surface Dale commented that "it looked like a manhole cover"!  I had thought that it may be a big Redfish but when I saw the stripes I knew that it was a huge Sheepshead. Kay worked the big fish to the net and landed the big 23 3/4" fish.  All of our hearts were pumping after this fish fight!  This fish put Kay into first place in the 2013 Anglers Mark Bragging Rights Tournament and set a new record for The Anglers Mark!  (Scroll down right side of this report for standings)  We it a couple of spots in the Nassau River then headed over to Broward Island where both Dale and Kay had good hookkups with feisty Redfish and we also picked up another Trout.  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

1000 Fish Should Make the Leader Board

Hooray!  Today was the first day in over a week that we didn't have double digit winds!  I had met the Wasserman family - Michael and Ali along with their two kids Annie and Corie, down at the City marina for an early morning Amelia Island back country fishing trip. We headed north with only a slight breeze, but overcast skies and made our first stop outside Tiger Island at "Manatee Creek" to fish with live shrimp under floats.  We had no bites there and across the creek so we moved on up into the creek as the high tide finally started to come out of the marsh grass.  After not getting any real bites we moved back around to the front side of Tiger and even though we only had one "bait stealer", I could see that some fish were beginning to get active.  We made our last stop as the tide began to really move out and the fishing heated up!  Young Annie hooked up and boated a feisty Redfish, then landed another shortly after.  Corey had a hookup and the two young anglers began to "double team" the fish with one holding the rod and the other reeling!  They worked out a great system and landed fish after fish from their secret spot.  Then dad Michael got in on the action and picked up a few hungry Seatrout then began to pickup Redfish, too.  Ali was snapping pictures of the fishing team as the action continued.  Corey reeled in a nice Flounder to round out the family's Amelia Island Back Country Slam and they all stayed busy fishing up until the last minute.  I had told the kids that they should always tell the truth but it was sometimes OK to fudge the truth in fishing so when Corey announced that they had caught 1000 fish we all had a good laugh!  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Beating the Wind

After getting in a great Friday morning fishing trip I also had the opportunity to get out that afternoon, too.  I met Doug and Joan Paul along with their college age son Lawder at the Atltantic Seafood dock down at the City marina just after lunch and with the wind whipping whitecaps we eased out of the marina.  These Connecticut anglers were game as we crossed the river to the safety of the marsh and eased in behind a land mass to get in some jig and shrimp fishing on the first of an imcoming tide.  It was still a little windier than the morning trip but we made the best of it and the anglers began to hookup.  Lawder "got the skunk off the boat" first by landing a very nice Flounder then they all joined in catching feisty Redfish.   We hit a couple of other spots but they were all buffeted by the wind so we called it a day, another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Post Thanksgiving Fish Catching

Fat from yesterday's Thanksgiving meal(s), we decided to get in some Amelia Island back country fishing Friday morning.  I had met Matt Block and his sons Dempsey, Copeland and Hunter down at the Atlantic Seafood dock and with a pretty good breeze blowing we headed north to fish the Tiger Islands.  I had thought we'd get in some float fishing but as we entered Tiger Basin I saw that the oysters were well exposed on the outoing tide so we went with the jig and shrimp combo.  And boy was the fishing on fire!  These young anglers didn't waste any time putting fish in the boat, almost one after the other.  They landed umpteen Redfish with at least three going 23", 24" and 25" and probably had a few others in the slot.  Copeland had the biggest Red  while Dempsey put the most in the boat.  Hunter added a very large Flounder and caught a nice fat Trout, too.  The Block brothers had what I'd call an "Amelia Island Grand Slam" by landing Redfish, Seatrout, Sheepshead and Flounder.  We had a great time catching fish and headed then headed in, counting it as another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Wet'n a Line

That's what Patrick Verner's dad used to say when he needed to get out of the house and go fishing.  That was our plan yesterday when I met Patrick and his wife Michele down at the marina to get out into Amelia Island's back waters for an afternoon of light tackle fishing.  Patrick and Michelle were visiting Amelia Island from the Orlando area and staying at the Elizabeth Pointe Lodge to celebrate their 17th wedding anniversary and knew of no better way to top the weekend off than to get out on the water and "wet a line".  We had somewhat of a breeze out of the north east so I headed up to Tiger Island to have the land mass block the wind but when we rounded the island there were at least 3 boats fishing the area, maybe even 4.  I knew that there was a Trout Tournament going on and knew that there would be more boats than the usual weekend traffic.  Nevertheless, we found a spot to squeeze in and set out to toss some live shrimp on a jig to the shoreline.  Our first cast was up near some logs and as Michele worked it back slowly, BOOM! FISH ON!  And a big fish it was!  She played the fish patiently  and after a long battle, landed a nice 24" Slot Red!  From then and about 2 1/2 hours it was FISH ON!  FISH ON!  The couple caught and landed at least 9 Slot sized Redfish, more than we could count undersized Redfish, a good handful of Seatrout of which at least one was keeper sized, and then Michele rounded out her personal Amelia Island Backcountry Slam by boating a 14" Flounder.  (IF we had been in the Tournament,  Michele could have entered her catch in the Slam category).  Crazy.  That's what we were all saying about the fishing trip.  Just Crazy.  With only about 45 minutes to go before sundown, we headed around to the outside of Tiger and set up behind an oyster bed and immediately began to catch fish on float rigs and live shrimp.  Here, Patrick had the hot rod as he boated Seatrout after Seatrout with three being keeper sized to 17".  He also had a feisty Redfish which we hoped was going to be a Big Seatrout then he hooked up with something even bigger, FISH ON!  He played this fish perfectly and patiently and eventually landed another big Slot Red, measuring in at 24".  Crazy. Just Crazy.  We headed in as the sun was going down, counting it as another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Father Daughter Fish'n

Jacksonville Florida  resident Mike Kaiser had set up an Amelia Island back country fishing trip for yesterday morning with his daughter Kathryn so I met them at the Atlantic Seafood dock at 8am to fish the first of an outgoing tide.  We headed north to fish the flooded oyster beds outside of Tiger Island with live shrimp under float rigs.  Good for me that Mike and Kathryn were patient anglers because the water was still way up in the grass and we had no real bites at the first areas we fished. But we were treated to the procession of a submarine leaving Kings Bay and heading out to the ocean.  We eventually made run up to the Jolley River and found a nice marsh runout to fish.  Mike hooked up with a nice hungry Seatrout then Kathryn followed it up with one of her own.  We fished Snook Creek with no luck then headed back to fish Jolley Bank.  I switched the two to jigs/shrimp even though the oysters were still covered but these two worked the rig perfectly and both landed some feisty Redfish.  Our last stop was at Tiger Island and here the anglers patience paid off.  Kathryn had the hot rod, landing a number of Redfish, Seatrout and a Sheepshead to round out her very own Amelia Island Backcountry Slam, and Mike got his too, by picking up a Flounder along with Reds and Trout.  It was a beautiful morning and a great day to be fishing out on Amelia Island waters!  Can you find the raccoon in one of the pictures?

BIG Red Tops On Early Morning Fishing Trip

Jay Bogdan was in town for work and we squeezed in a super early Amelia Island back country fishing trip this morning.  We met down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and launched the boat with a high tide pushing water up into the parking lot.  After running north up the Amelia River we eased off into Jackstaff and tossed a topwater lure with no luck.  We moved on up into the marsh, switched to live shrimp under a float and began to fish the flooded marsh grass.   We found a nice run out to fish and Jay began to hookup with hungry, hard fighting Seatrout.  He landed 5-6 in a nice flurry then as the bite slowed we moved on to fish a bank with the oysters beginning to show.  Jay commented it was his 3rd cast with a jig/shrimp combo and something bumped his bait then bit it hard, FISH ON!  This fish bulled down deep then rolled at the top, nd I knew it was a big Redfish!  Then the line went slack.  OUCH!  Fish Off?  Nope, he was running right at us!  Jay quickly reeled up the slack and he was back in action, keeping the pressure on the big fish.  We battled the fish down the creek with Jay going from bow to stern to midship to stern and back to midship before we landed the big 32 1/4" Redfish!  Boy what a fish fight!  This fish placed Jay in 3rd place in The Anglers Mark 2013 Bragging Rights Tournament(scroll down right side of this report for standings). We continued to fish the bank and it's runouts, had a few nibbles, then called it a day, another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Catch'in Fish Before The Wind Blows

We had a very nice day forecastd today, except for the wind.  I'd set up a morning trip with Kent Hendershot and his friends Nick and Mark and we met at the Atlantic Seafood dock.  They were staying at the Addison on Amelia, just a short walk to the marina.  It was already blowing but there were clear skies so we decided to give it a shot.  And a shot it was, almost like one of those Red Bull's!  We headed up Bell River to fish some dock pilings and after turning The Anglers Mark into the current and wind, the anglers began to cast a jig/shrimp combo up to the pilings and an adjacent oyster bed on an incoming tide.  It wasn't long before the fun started!  All three anglers began to get hookup after hookup.  I had pruchased 6-7 dozen live hrimp this morning and we were going through them like wildfire.  Redfish, Seatrout, Black "puppy" Drum, and Sheepshead were caight, one after another.  In an hour and half time iI guestimate these anglers landed 30-40 fish!  They weren't real big -only about 4 were "keeper" sized (and all were thrown back), but they were real aggressive and fun to catch.  However, the wind changed directions and picked up and the party was over.  WE tried one more spot but it was just too difficlult to fish so we all agreed it was time to head in and count it as another great morning to be fishing Amelia Island!

Bonnetheads Still in the Backcountry

Yesterday morning was some really tough fishing.  The Northeast winds had blown the water in and made the high tide even higher and we struggled to find a bite, much less to find a fish!  But yesterday afternoon as the water came out of the grass we found some fish.  The Raynor group had set up two boats through Captain Jeff  Crumpton and I was the lucky 2nd boat!  I had Anne Raynor, her sister Judy and brother in law Herb and their friend Mary on my boat and we pointed it south to fish the Horsehead area on the outgoing tide.  We found an oyster bank to cruise and when Mary hooked up with something big I thought "big Redfish".  But this fish kept going then held on the bottom and I knew it was a late season shark.  It was group effort landing the 3 foot long beast but these ladies were up to the task and after a long battle we landed the fish, snapped some pictures and threw it back.  Again, Mary had a strong hookup and a long shark fight insued.  And again the ladies landed an even biger Shark.  Then a third shark was caught by Anne and landed.   Three big Bonnethead Sharks were landed on light tackle by these ladies!  When Judy had a strong hookup I thought, "oh boy, here we go again", bu this fish, even though it was putting up a good battle, didn't hang to the bottom but zipped around the boat.  Judy played the fish perfectly and we soon netted a nice Jack Crevalle.  We made a move around to the Nassau River side of Horsehead, fished a nice runout, and here Anne pefected here jig fishing technique.  She landed three feisty Reddfish, a hungry Seatrout and a keeper sized Flounder.  We hit one more spot, caught a few baitstealers, then headed in, counting it as another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Counting on Fingers and Toes

Boy, yesterday sure was a pretty day with the sun shining out on Amelia Island waters.  I had Fernandina Beach resident Bill Mooney and his son Cody meet me at the docks at 8:30am, just as the tide peaked, and we headed over to Lanceford Creek to fish some flooded marsh grass.  We only had a nibble or two so we made a run around to the outside of Tiger where Cody got the "skunk off the boat" by landing a hungry Seatrout. Bill followed that up with a hard fighting Bluefish.  We moved on up into Mantatee Creek and fished a couple of spots but had no real bites.  I next stop was on the south end of Tiger Island even though the anglers had a few nibble ( and one Whiting)  I was beginning to wonder if the day wasn't going to be made for "catchin".  But luckily both Bill and young Cody were out to have a good time and practiced their patience and it paid off!  The tide had dropped  and the logs were showing and the fish began to bite. BOOM! Fish on!  Boom! Fish on! Cody found a secret spot and landed a couple of feisty Redfish.  Bill picked up a Snapper and Cody landed another Redfish.  Then Bill began to catch feisty Redfish one after another at his spot and Cody joined him.  I had lost count of how many Redfish they had caught but Cody was keeping track of them as his dad told him he'd have to count on his toes!  Bill landed a nice Slot 25" Redfish and before we left Cody added a big 19" Sheepshead.  With that, we called it a daym another great one to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Dawg Gone Good Fish'n

I had another group of Georgia Bulldawg fans in for some Amelia Island fishing Friday afternoon. David Martinez, his son Garrett, and David's brother in law Jeff met me at the Atlantic Seafood boat ramp at 2pm and we headed up to the Tiger Island area to fish an incoming tide with a jig and shrimp combo.  It wasn't long before all three anglers were hooking up with feisty Redfish, Black "puppy" Drum and a couple of Sheepshead.  It was great fishing but when then we had a real strong hookup with drag ripping, FISH ON!   Young Garrett worked the fish patiently and after a good battle he landed a nice 26 3/4" just-under-the-slot Redfish!  The anglers added a couple of hungry Seatrout to the mix then we headed up to Jolley River to fish and exposed oyster bank.  The fish catchin heated up and the anglers landed a good amount of Seatrout and feisty Reds. We fished Snook Creek with no real bites then wraped the day up back at the outside of Tiger with a few more Trout on float rigs.  With that, we called it a day, another great one to be on Amelia Island waters!

Honeymoon Fish'n

Friday I had as guests Chuck and Sharon Sherrhouse, passing through Amelia Island on their honeymoon. We met early at the downtown Fernandina Beach marina and headed up to fish the outside of Tiger Island with float rigs and live shrimp on the first of an outgoing tide.  The two anglers picked up a few hungry Seatrout then we headed up to Jolley River where they picked up more Trout and had a good bite from feisty Redfish and a Sheepshead.  The couple continued to fish through the small ones and ended up taking a few nice keeper sized trout home to Lakeland.  What a great way to wrap up a new marriage and honeymoon here at Amelia
Island!

Georgia Florida Football Fishing

The Blalocks were back in town for the annual Georgia Florida football game this year and took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip on The Anglers Mark.  This time William and Dara brought along William's parents Bob and Martha to round out a great group of anglers. The tide had just started in so we were fishing a jig and shrimp combo and our first stop was up at Tiger Island.  The anglers picked up a good  handful of hungry Seatrout and feisty Redfish and William added a keeper sized Flounder.  We soon ran to the Jolley River where they caught a few Trout and Martha hung a huge Gar Fish that wouldn't fit in the net!  We fished Snook Creek where Dara picked up a keeper sized Trout and William had  good strong Shark bite that just kept going.  We made our last stop in Bell River where we picked up a few more Redfish to round out another great day of fishing at Amelia Island!

Nice Slam at Amelia Island

I had Ray and Heidi Stone along with their brother in law Louis Fagre fishing with me last Thursday here at Amelia Island.  We met at the Atlantic Seafood dock down at the City marina at &:30 and headed north to fish Nissan's spot but had no real bites.  But when we made our way around to the outside of Tiger Island, it wasn't long before we had started getting bites and all the anglers were pulling in hungry Seatrout.  We made a run up to the Jolley River and here things heated up real good.  They were all catching feisty Redfish on a jig and shrimp combo when Louis hooked up with something big, FISH ON!  He played the fish perfectly and we soon landed a nice 23" Slot Red!  We conintued to fish and Heidi boated a keeper sized 19" Seatrout then Louis rounded out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam by  catching a nice 19" Flounder. We continued to fish the bank and at one time all three anglers had a Red in the boat - Triple Reds! We later headed in, counting it as another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!

Pre Fishing Amelia Island

Bill Godek and his fiance Rachel had everything set up for their wedding, including a fishing trip today, just one day before they say their vows.  The couple were staying at the historic Fairbanks House which is just a few blocks from the Fernandina Harbor Marina.  I met Bill and Rachel early this morning even though we had overcast skies and forecasted rain.  But these two anglers were not to be deterred by a little rain! We headed out of the marina, pointed north, and ran up to Tiger Island to fish the logs with the tide having been coming in for about 2 1/2 hours.  Fishing with live shrimp on a jig, both Bill and Rachel began to catch fish.  Bill hooked ip early with a feisty Redfish and Rachel landed a Seatrout.  Then they both landed a few more Redfish.  We had the usual baitstealers - Snapper and even some rather large Pinfish.  Our next stop was up at Jolley River and with the water completely covering the oysters and up in the marsh grass, we switched to float rigs with about a 3 foot leader.  The wind had picked up a little bit and the anglers were casting into the wind. They got a few nibbles here and there and peresevered to pick up a few more hungry Seatrout, with Bill landing the largest of the day.  We rean further up into Jolley to "Snook Creek", fished it with jigs, but had no real bites.  Then we made a long run around to Lanceford Creek and fished a flooded grass patch to get another Trout or two, then made our last stop at Soap Creek where we picked up a couple of baitstealers and then  feisty Black "puppy" Drum to round out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam, and another great day to be out on Amelia Island waters!