Grande Slam and Nasty Weather

 

It didn't rain on us this morning, it wasn't freezing cold like earlier in the week, but it was a little cool and the wind was the worst we had had all week, and it was overcast, making for a nasty looking day. But my guests - Craig and Christina Jones and their son Craig were up for the challenge and met me early down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp and with that NE wind blowing in our face, we headed up the intracoastal and up the Nassau River to the first stop at a large outflow at Seymore's Ponte where we began with float rigs and live shrimp, tossed up current to drift back with the outgoing tide. We didn't get any real bites there but we did claim two nibbles!

We came back around to Nassauville to the shelter of the lee and boy was it nice, and the fish cooperated! The trio had switched to jigs and the shrimp and in short order they were all hooking up with hungry Seatrout. Christina found a hot spot right near the boat and would feel the slight "bump" and would expertly give her rod a quick hook set and fish on! Craig the Younger was fishing off the stern and found a good handful of the Trout back there, along with a few feisty Bluefish. Craig the Senior was fishing off teh boy and getting his share of those Trout then he battled a feisty Black "puppy" Drum to the net. He did put one nice 17" Trout in the box. 

After running way up the Nassau we eased into a small Creek and worked the bank with jigs and this paid off with the Redfish. They caught a good handful of smaller but fun to catch Rat Reds  then Craig the Senior had a drag ripping hit and it was Big Fish On!  I was holding my breath thinking about the possibilities of that big fish getting into a log or tree branch but Craig kept the pressure on, worked it out and we soon netted a nice, bulky 26" Redfish, boy what a fish! Shortly after that Craig the Younger had a big bite off the stern and his battle was on! He played it expertly, letting it run when it wanted to, worked it in and landed another nice 21" Slot Red. 

We ended the day back over at Nassauville, the same spot as before, but out of the wind where Craig the Senior landed a feisty Sheepshead to round out a Grande Slam of Seatrout, Black Drum, Red Drum and Sheepshead, then we headed back to the ramp (with the wind at our backs) and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

We Caught a Bunch

 Another cold and sunny day greeted us up at Old Town Bait and Tackle this morning when I met Bob and William Blalock with plans to fish the last hour of an outgoing tide. We were right there in Eagans so we eased up the creek and found some docks to anchor up current and fish back into the pilings. It was a slow start but it was a good move. The duo pulled a couple of Redfish out from under the  dock, then we moved to the outside and pitched up in there again and boy did this pay off! They caught Redish - the fish did hit hard but they just picked the bait up with a subtle bite - you had to concentrate. There were a couple of small Slot Reds caught then Bob hooked up with what we thought was going to be  big Black Drum by the way it was digging deep, but after a patient battle, he brought to the surface a huge Redfish- we netted it and it measured right at 29.25" - big enough to move Bob into first place in the 2026 Bragging Rights Tournament-Redfish Category. 

The continued to pitch, and about the time I'd mention moving, BAM! Another big fish. Both anglers hauled in some really nice Black "puppy" Drum (all fish caught today were released). Then Bob had another strong bite and Fish ON!  As he fought the big fish William had a good bite, set the hook, and we had a Double! I didn't know which fish to net first! But William kept his in the water and after netting Bob's 25.5" Redfish, I went forward and netted Williams big Drum. The duo put a few more fish in the boat - Bob guestimated 15 fish, then we moved on. 

We fished the Tyger logs and William picked up one hungry Seatrout but the wind was kicking out of the south west which doesn't bode well, so we ran around to the Jolley, fished some oysters, then finished up over at Bell River. We were blocked from the wind with very pleasant fishing conditions, but the fish didn't cooperate, so we headed back to the dock and counted it as another great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Woulda Coulda

 Not once but Twice! That was how many Big fish were on, and off!  The day had started early, cold, but sunny out at Goffinsville Park where I met Bob Blalock, his two sons William and Robby, and Collin, the "Legend".  We were all bundled up as we ran down the river to the first stop where we opted to pitch jigs and live shrimp in some deep water by some docks. William "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up and landed a keeper sized Seatrout. He followed that  up with a nice 17" Sheepshead to kick off that Category in the 2026 Bragging Rights Tournament. 

The tide still had about 30 minutes to go out so we headed down the Nassau and fished a drainage until the tide stopped. Then, back up to a dock at Seymore's Pointe where we pitched to the pilings on that first of an incoming tide. It wasn't long before Collin had a strong hookup, a BIG fish - he was playing it patiently as it dug deep. It did come to the surface once, a big Black Drum, then BIP, it threw the hook! That Woulda been a big fish! Collin went back to the same area and within a few minutes BAM! Another big fish on. We think this was a big Red because it ran thru the pilings, heading to Georgia - it caught on the pilings and BAP! Fish Off. If we Coulda got that fish in.....

But these anglers were not to be deterred. We fished down the docks for a bit, picked up a Seatrout, then pulled up and ran to Broward where we set up and tossed to the bank as the tide started in there. Here, they picked up a handful of Reds, a couple of which were in the Slot and we also got a Seatrout. Our last top was way  up the river and into a creek where we worked the bank and got another good handful of Redfish. A couple of those were in the Slot, one had 9 Spots, and we had a double hookup at one time. Robby also added another keeper sized Seatrout. Most of all these fish were released. We kept 2 for dinner!  The sun had finally warmed us up, we had 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. 

Found a Hot Spot

 

Boy what a beautiful morning!  Getting out on the water, sun shining, mild temperatures, and wetting a line - you just can't beat it!  I met Craig Jones and his son Andrew down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning and we made our way up the Nassau River on a tide that had been coming in for about an hour. We ran to some docks to take advantage of that incoming tide and pitched jigs to some dock pilings. The bites were few and far between but Andrew did manage to "knock the skunk off" when he hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. 

We then ran down to Broward Island and fished the bank with the jigs. I had a good handful of small live
shrimp leftover from Thursday and I had bought a quart of fiddler crabs. Neither caught a fish at Broward!  There was a boat just south of us that we saw catch a couple of Reds, one of them slot - that's never a good 'look" for a fishing guide - to have someone catching fish  within sight! But we worked that bank good, then pulled anchor and ran way up the river (almost to Callahan) where we eased in a pitched the shrimp and fiddlers, and this did the trick.

Both Craig and Andrew began to catch fish - Redfish - they took turns hauling them in. I know we had at least 4 slot fish and a whole bunch of smaller Reds that we tossed back. Most were in one area and we milked the spot for a good hour and a half. We then came back down the Nassau, stopped at Littlefield for a bit, then finished up at Twin Creeks, fishing floats at the peak of he high tide. We had good weather, some good action, and a couple of 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. 

Back In Action With Some Slot Reds

 We're back! After a month and a half layoff, we were back fishing today, and with a few trips lined up in the next few days I should have some fishing reports.  Today I met Ed and Madonna AndrewLavage down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp - the tide had been coming in for a couple of hours but I thought it wouldn't hurt to make the run up the Nassau to Broward Island and pitch our jigs and live shrimp, and we did just that!  We had a little bit of fog as we ran but it was no hindrance and as we pulled up to the island there was not much of a breeze (we did break out the insect repellent later). Both anglers were getting good casts  btu se didn't get much more than a nibble. We eased down the bank, did the same, and again, not hardly a nibble. We moved down the island, passed the Bald Eagles, fished the bank and....not a nibble. Ouch. So much for a plan. 

We then made along run up the Nassau and eased into a secluded creek, turned into the current and worked back and this did the trick. Ed had the first hookup to knock the skunk off and he expertly played to the net a 17 and 15/16" barely undersized Redfish to the net. We eased along the bank, pitching to the deep edge and Ed noted that the fish weren't aggressive at all - he'd just tighten up, feel the weight, and set the hook. At one spot he picked  up 4 more Redfish, all of them in the Slot size, one of which had 14 spots(eventually released) and the biggest, a 26.25" fish, big enough to set the bar for 2026 Bragging Rights -Ed battled it expertly to the net. 

We came back down to Pumpkin Hill and fished float rigs and did get one hungry Seatrout, then we made our way down to Seymore's Pointe where the tide had started out -Madonna's Spot we called it. Just when I thought it was going to be a bust, Ed had his float disappear- he tightened up and let the circle hook set and Fish On!  Ed played Madonna's Redfish perfectly, let it run, worked it in, and soon landed another nice Slot Redfish, this one measuring a little over 24". Madonna followed that up with a nice fat Seatrout catch to get on the board. After fishing one more spot with the float rigs awe called it a day and headed back to the ramp, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

New Seatrout Regulations

 

(Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.) For immediate release: Feb. 4, 2026 Media contact: FWC Press Office, 850-488-4676, Media@MyFWC.com FWC approves holistic management approach for spotted seatrout At its February meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC)  approved new management regions and  regulations for spotted seatrout as a part of FWC’s holistic regional management approach.  These new regulations will go into effect on April 1, 2026. The rule changes: Establish nine management regions for spotted seatrout. Establish regional regulations for recreational and commercial bag limits,slot limits and closed seasons. These regions and regulations are part of the FWC’s holistic management approach for  Florida's most popular inshore fisheries. This approach takes a more holistic view of the fishery by evaluating multiple metrics, including fishing, stakeholder experiences and environmental factors, at a smaller regional scale. It improves our understanding of regional differences in environmental conditions and stakeholder experiences and provides greater flexibility to address localized concerns. Panhandle Recreational Open season: March 1–Jan. 31. Closed season: February. Bag limit: Three fish per person. Slot limit: 15-19 inches. Over-slot allowance: One fish over-slot allowed per vessel or per person if fishing from shore. Commercial Open season: Jun. 1–Oct. 31. Closed season: 1–May 31. Bag limit: 50 fish (1 SPL);100 (≥2 SPLs). Slot limit: 15–24 inches. Big Bend Recreational Open season: Year-round. Closed season: None. Bag limit: Five fish per person. Slot limit: 15-19 inches. Over-slot allowance: One fish over-slot allowed per vessel or per person if fishing from shore. Commercial Open season: June 1–Oct. 31. Closed season: 1–May 31. Bag limit: 50 fish (1 SPL);100 (≥2 SPLs). Slot limit: 15–24 inches. Over-slot allowance: None.  Tampa Bay, Sarasota Bay, Charlotte Harbor, Southwest, Southeast Recreational Open season: Year-round. Closed season: None. Bag limit: Three fish per person. Slot limit: 15-19 inches. Over-slot allowance: One fish over-slot allowed per vessel or per person if fishing from shore. Commercial Open season: June 1–Oct. 31. Closed season: 1–May 31. Bag limit: 50 fish (1 SPL);100 (≥2 SPLs). Slot limit: 15–24 inches. Over-slot allowance: None. Indian River Lagoon Recreational Open season: Jan.1–Oct. 31. Closed season: 1–Dec. 31. Bag limit: Two fish per person. Slot limit: 15-19 inches. Over-slot allowance: None. Commercial Open season: May 1–Sept. 30. Closed season: Oct. 1–April 30. Bag limit: 50 fish (1 SPL);100 (≥2 SPLs). Slot limit: 15–24 inches. Over-slot allowance: None. Northeast Recreational Open season: Year-round. Closed season: None. Bag limit: Three fish per person. Slot limit: 15-19 inches. Over-slot allowance: None. Commercial Open season: June 1–Nov. 30. Closed season: Dec. 1–May 31. Bag limit: 50 fish (1 SPL);100 (≥2 SPLs). Slot limit: 15–24 inches. Over-slot allowance: None. This innovative regional management strategy has been implemented for some of Florida’s most popular inshore species, including redfish and snook, and now spotted seatrout. This management approach has been met with strong support from stakeholders across the state. For the full Commission Meeting February 4-5 agenda and links to background reports, go to MyFWC.com/Commission and select “Commission Meetings.” For current spotted seatrout annual reviews, visit MyFWC.com/Marine and click on “Recreational Regulations” and “Spotted Seatrout.” These documents provide a summary of the management metrics in each new management region.