Came for the Catching

 I hope everyone had a great and Merry Christmas!  I was back fishing today with William and Dara
Blalock and boy what a crazy morning it was! Old Town Bait had run out of shrimp just as a I was pulling up so I made my way back south to Amelia Island Bait and Tackle and it seemed everyone with a boat was going fishing today - it was a zoo! But the staff at AIBT handled it with skilled efficiency - I was back on the road and back to Old Town to launch and meet the Blalock's. We eased out of Eagans Creek and made a run all the way up the Bell River where we pulled up at some docks and fished jigs and live shrimp deep on he first of an incoming tide. The duo had to weed thru the baitstealers but they put a good handful of Seatrout in the boat - most all were right at 14".  William hooked up and landed a feisty Sheepshead around one dock. We bounced down the docks and caught more Seatrout and one of them was of keeper sized, photographed and released.

We then motored over into the Jolley River and fished some still exposed shell beds with the jigs, then moved down to Tyger Cut and switched to floats. Both spots didn't produce a bite. On around the outside of Tyger, we worked the bank with jigs, William on the bow tossing forward while Dara worked the stern, fishing backwards and as Dara said, "she came for the catching" - she landed a good handful of Seatrout and an "almost legal" Flounder. 

We fished over at Bell River with the floats, Soap Creek with the floats where William landed the only Trout, then wrapped things up around the corner in Lanceford. The sun had shone all day, it had warmed nicely, and we had some good Trout action so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Christmas Came Early

 After a howling windy day yesterday, today was "picture perfect" - zero winds, and sunshine when I met William and Dara Blalock out at Goffinsivlle Park. The sun had just come up, the tide had started in about an hour earlier, so we made short run up the Nassau River to try our luck with jigs and live shrimp at Broward Island. These two anglers are always getting good casts and today was  no exception - they were tossing their jigs baited with live shrimp to the bank and letting that incoming current bounce the bati down the river bottom, and it paid off!  Dara hooked up off the stern and expertly reeled in a hungry Seatrout - the skunk was off!  We worked along the bank for a bit and picked up a handful of Trout, two of which were of keeper size. We moved down to the other end, fished under the Eagles, and picked up another Trout or two, and  one feisty Sheepshead.

Our next stop was way up the river where we found a small creek to dip into and work a shallow bank. Right off, Dara hooked up and landed the first Redfish of the day, then William went in behind a tree hanging over the creek and BAM! He hooked up, then Dara hooked up, we had a "double". They both landed Redfish. We worked along and had another Double hookup or two, then they landed a few Slot sized Reds, then we hit another spot where they put more feisty Reds in the boat It was worth the run  up there!

Back down at the mouth of Pumpkin Hill we switched to float rigs and drifted the bank, on each side of the point, but got not much more than a nibble. Back down the Nassau and around to Seymore's Pointe -we set up on a large drainage and drifted the floats. The tide was just trying to start out and it was slow for a bit, then the duo caught a few feisty Redfish. Then Dara had strong bite and this one was ripping drag. I was worried that it would dig down deep across a visible oyster bed in front of us but she worked it across and landed a bulky 23" Slot Red.  William got in on the action when he battled to the boat a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. We had made a cast and dropped the rod into a rod holder when William yelled "fish" - that rod was bent over and ripping drag. Dara scooped it up and battled another 23" Slot Red to the net. Boy what a beautiful day, and we topped it off with an early Christmas present of a box full of good eating fish, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.  

Hug'n The Bank

After seeing the weather forecast last night I figured we'd be hug'n the bank today to keep out of the wind It wasn't expected to be too bad - up to 14mph but enough to make things interesting. I met Bob Kossman down at Sawpit Creek early and we made a run up the intracoastal, then up the Back River and around to Pumpkin Hill where we set up with float rigs and live shrimp on a tide that had about 30 minutes to hit high.  That current was still creeping in as Bob tossed to the grass, opened his bail, and let it drift. It didnt' take but a drift or two and BAM! Fish ON! Bob cranked, and the fish swam to us, and he cranked and it swap to us and when it realized it was about to be landed it turned and ran and, Fish Off! Ouch! We fished that stetch for a while, fished around the corner for a bit, then moved on - no more takers. 

I had been stalling, waiting for the tide to change back at Seymore's Pointe, so as we eased up to a drainage there, sure enough, the tide was coming out. Bob was working that current and it paid off - it wasn't "on fire" but he caught fish, nice fish, slow and steady. He put a few keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum in the boat, a handful of small but feisty Redfish, then a couple of Slot Redfish and a couple of Seatrout. Bob kept a few fish but threw back a couple of "keeper sized" fish.  Those Black Drum sure do pull!

We came back around Seymore's and down to Littlefield and went to jigs and the shrimp and like yesterday, caught Seatrout until we got tired of catching them. 99 percent were 14" but we did have one that was keepable - we tossed it back. But we did get a keeper sized Flounder. That West wind was blowing - we hugged that land mass, went back around to Seymore's and tried out hand at fishing the traditional Trout "slip floats" with some success. -we caught a handful of feisty Bluefish. DAVID NEASE/TANDY MORTON, if you are reading this, both Bob and I are not sold on the slip float technique - I'd rather be pitching a jig! But with that said, it was still a great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

The Eighties Are Killing It

 Get up outa that Easy Chair!  Yesterday I had an 83-year old fishing with me and today, another 83-year
old fished on the Anglers  Mark - Betty Raker and her young son John. We met out at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp early on a tide that had just hit high. We made our way around to Seymore's Point and fished a large drainage with float rigs as that current started out. It started off slow but every now and then we got a bite. Betty started it off with a big battle - she fought and expertly landed a nice 17" Black "puppy" Drum, then she and John both hooked and landed a handful of feisty Redfish. After John landed another Drum, Betty hooked up and battled another keeper sized Drum to the net. 

We ran thru Horsehead and fished a point with jigs, deep, and here Betty brought to the net a small Flounder  - she had her Amelia Island Back Country Slam! We moved around to Poteat Point and fished floats and first cast John hooked an landed a hungry Seatrout - the had a Grande Slam! Back thru Horsehead we went and down to Nassauville, fishing between some docks with jigs, and we stayed busy catching hungry Seatrout - we guestimated about 18 fish caught, all in the 14.5" range, but one was of keeper size. 

Down at Broward we fished jigs deep and John did find one lone Seatrout, and back at Back River he caught another Trout. Most of the spots we fished today produced at least one fish, some produced a handful, some produced a lot, and the rain had held off so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Reds Over The Oyster Beds

 Fishing today - I met Macie Russell, her boyfriend Brennan, and Al Long up at the Old Town Bait and
Tackle boat ramp. The tide was just starting out so we headed over to the outside of Tyger and began to toss float rigs and live shrimp. Brennan got hot early when he found  some Reds up on a corner of grass - he expertly played a couple  to the net, one of which was of keeper size, but released. Macie stepped up and filled in when Brennan wasn't looking and BAM! Fish On! She worked the fish patiently to the net and landed a  nice 20" Slot Redfish. The duo added a couple of more Reds to the catch before we moved on. 

Just across the way we switched to jigs and fished 12' of water with shrimp and this paid off with a good flurry of fish catching. Al had been quite all morning but he got busy catching fish off the stern - he hooked and landed a good bunch of hard fighting Bluefish and a couple of hungry Seatrout. Both Macie and Brennan, fishing off the bow, figured those jigs and put fish in the boat. We probably could have stayed there and played with those Blues and Trout, but we moved on in hopes of bigger fish. 

We tried our luck at a drainage up towards St. Mary's fishing jigs but had no bites, then we moved
around to the mouth of Jolley and switched back to floats and again, no luck. Further up the Jolley we fished JC's Spot with the jigs and again, no luck. Ouch. But then we motored further up the Jolley and around to the Bell where we fished a deep bend with the jigs and this paid off. We were tossing the jigs in 20' of water, letting the current bounce it along the bottom and would feel the "bump bump", and set the hook. Trout On!  The trio of anglers caught a handful of those Trout, one of which was of keeper size, one was fat but just short, and then Macie wrapped things up with another feisty Redfish catch. The wind had stayed down, it wasn't unbearably cold, and we had good action at 3 of 6 spots so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Zero to Sixty in about an Hour

 Finally, back to work today! And boy what a pretty day it was - sunshine, a bit cool, and no wind, water like glass! I met Frank and Joanne Wytiaz down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp this morning and we proceeded up the intracoastal, turned into the Nassau, and made a short run up to Spanish Drop where we started tossing jigs and live shrimp on a tide that still had a couple of hours of going out. That water was already way down- we could see banks of oysters that I haven't seen in a while, and I was expecting good fishing to kick things off. Boy was I wrong! We worked that first bank and only had a few nibbles, then moved up to a drainage and worked it - as we approached fish "blew out" of there - big wakes and I thought for sure we'd get a couple, but no, not a bite. We then moved up to Twin Creeks and worked that drainage as the tide began to hit bottom and finally Joanne "knocked the skunk off" with a nice feisty Redfish catch. 

We then ran further up the Nassau and fished some docks -the tide was still going out here - and fishing deeper, it paid off. The duo began to get Seatrout catches, one after the other, most in the 14" range, but every once in a while they would get a "keeper" sized Trout. We probably could have stayed there and caught fish but the tide had changed and had started back in and I had a spot in mind so we pulled up and made a short run. We backed the stern up to some pilings and began pitching to them and BAM! Fish On! Joanne had a good fish that was putting up a fight - she played it patiently and soon landed a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. And from then it was a flurry of action, catching those puppy Drum. A couple were up in the 20" size and about to lose their stripes. We ended up with 6 keeper Drum at that spot, and tossed back a handful of smaller ones.

Down the River we went to fish some structure on the first of an incoming tide. Joanne had the first
hookup but as the fish ripped drag, off it came. But Frank went in there and in short order had the strong hookup -he battled it expertly, letting it run, working it in, letting it run, and then he worked to the net a nice 25" Slot Redfish. We dropped back a little bit and continued ot fish and the duo hauled in another keeper sized Trout, another huge Black Drum, a couple of small but feisty Redfish, a nice keeper sized Sheepshead, and a small Flounder. We had started slow but boy did things take off when that tide changed, so as we headed back to the ramp with a big box of fish we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

It Snowballed

 

A little bit cooler today - 46 heading to the ramp this morning, but clear skies and sunshine for  3/4 of the trip. I met Gregg and Dannie Fitzgerald out at Goffinsville Park as the sun was coming up and with a tide that still had a long hour of coming in, we ran down the Nassau to Twin Creeks and tossed float rigs with live shrimp to the flooded grass line. Dannie was on the stern and she made good use of her drifts, picking up a good handful of hungry Seatrout, most in the 14" range. We then ran back up the Nassau to Pumpkin Hill and drifted the floats and again put those small Trout in the boat until finally, Gregg hooked up and landed a barely legal 15" Trout. But it was legal - I measured it three times!

We then came back to the Seymores Pointe area and fished a large drainage and this really kicked things off. The duo caught Seatrout, almost one after the other, but a couple were up to 17".  Dannie had to tangle with a school of Bluefish, which were fun to catch but we tossed them back. We then dropped down the grass line a bit and again caught fish. Gregg put a handful of small but feisty Redfish in the boat, another 17" Trout while Dannie tried out a jigs fished on the bottom. When that area slowed we moved back up to the original spot and this paid off again! Dannie hooked an landed a nice 16" Black "puppy" Drum, then she expertly battled another big Slot Redfish to the net. They added another couple of keeper Trout before we moved on.

Further down the Nassau we went with jigs and the live shrimp, bumping them on the bottom, and got another handful of small Seatrout. The clouds had rolled in but we had fish in the box, some good action, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Weeding Thru Trout For Elusive Redfish

 

I was back to work today after a fine Thanksgiving break - I met Jeff and Ande DeNight and their friend Dan down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp early. It was cool and cloudy, a little windier than I expected, but that died down a bit as we began to fish. We had run up the intracoastal, then up Back River and over to the Nassau where we set up on a point to drift float rigs on a tide that was almost high. Dan was first in the water and it paid off with a nice Seatrout catch. Jeff followed that up with another Trout catch and we were off to a good start!  We drifted that area, then pulled up and fished down another stretch - had some bites, then we picked up and moved.

Back at Seymore's Pointe we stuck with floats and drifted with an outgoing tide and this did the trick. All three anglers began to get Seatrout. Ande joined in and found a "hot spot" and picked up a good handful of those Trout. The trio weeded thru some small ones but every once in a while we'd get a "keeper" sized fish, the biggest being right at 17".  After running thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Point we worked a bank and here Dan, fishing off the stern, caught another couple of Seatrout. Jeff and Ande were making excellent casts forward into a pocket and getting good drifts but they had no takers. Back over in Jackstaff we switched to jigs and fished deep. Jeff had the hot rod, picking up another couple of Trout. 

We then ran back thru Horsehead, back down to Back River, fished a bank with the floats again, then ended our day back down the Nassau fishing the drainages with jigs and the live shrimp. Ande stayed with the float and got a Trout at Twin Creeks. We moved down to another drain and within a minute Jeff yelled, "Fish On" - his drag was ripping as the big fish boiled up. He handed the rod off to Ande to let her feel a big fish and she played the fish expertly, working it in, letting it run, working it in, until she brought to the net a "Tournament sized" bulky 26.5" Redfish, boy what a fish! We had good action with the Trout, some nice fish in the box, and a Big Fish battle so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.