Slot Reds and Snook as Icing on the Cake

 It's always a surprise when we put a Snook in the boat and today we did just that!  I had met Brad Goodwin and his son Gray, his father-in-law Jack, and brother-in-law Tyler down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp and we made a short run up the intracoastal then up the Nassau to make our first stop at Spanish Drop where they began to toss jigs and minnows to the shore line on an outgoing tide. The bite wasn't "on fire" but they stayed busy catching fish, now and then. I think it was Brad's first cast when he had the "thump", set the hook, and brought to the net a keeper sized Flounder.

We worked four drainages along there and they caught more flounder, a couple of Seatrout, and a couple of small but feisty Reds. Jack was fishing off the stern and letting his jig/minnow bounce down the bottom and hooked up. He patiently played to the boat a feisty little Snook! Boy what a surprise. Also caught along there was a slimy Catfish. Each drainage produced fish. Jack added another keeper sized Flounder and Brad expertly landed a 20" 12 spot Redfish.

After fishing a drainage between two docks over at Nassauville (we added a flounder to the catch there), we moved around to fish some pilings at Seymore's Pointe. I wasn't expecting much but boy was I wrong! After Gray got an ugly old Toad Fish out of the way, he put a fat Sea Bass in the boat. Then he and Tyler had simultaneous hookups and Fish On! They played their fish patiently and worked them slowly in. Gray's was first to the boat, what appeared to be a Slot Red, but the Net Man missed it and, Fish Off! Ouch. Tyler worked his in next and landed the biggest of the day, a 24" Slot. We had another strong hookup and Gray was not to be denied. He expertly worked it in and landed a 19" Slot Redfish. That was a good spot.

We were almost out of minnows - it had been a good morning, but we ran down to Broward Island and worked that bank until we were out of minnows, then we switched to DOA Shrimp and some GULP Minnows. All four anglers were getting excellent casts and we had a couple of "bumps"  but no takers. The sun was up the nice breeze that we had had all morning long had subsided and it was getting hot, so we headed back to the ramp and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.