Morning Full of Variety

 We had a foggy morning for most of the trip today. I had met Kimberly Manek and her friend Jeremy up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park boat ramp and we headed down the river to fish some dock pilings on a tide that had been coming in for an hour. Jeremy got busy quick and put a handful of hungry Seatrout in the boat then both he and Kimberly reeled in some feisty Redfish.  We made our way over to Soap Creek and fished some oyster beds with the jigs but we had no takers. 

After a run up the Bell River we anchored and cast up current and this did the trick . Jeremy picked up a a couple of Trout out deep, one of which was of keeper size, then he hooked up and landed a hard fighting Sheepshead. Kimberly reeled in a couple of more Redfish then she hooked up and landed a Bull Whiting. We added another one of those shortly after that. 

We fished Snook Creek with floats then moved on down to Jolley Bank where Kimberly battled a huge Gar Fish to the boat, which we netted and photographed and release. Somewhere along here Jeremy boated a Skate, then as we worked along a grass bank Kimberly finished up the "variety show" with a keeper sized Flounder catch. And wouldn't you know it, as we headed back to the dock the fog began to lift and the sun came out, so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

The Bite Was Hot Early

 Well, the fish bite was OK early, but the Sand Gnat bite was really hot! But boy what a pretty day! I had met Mitch Vollmers, his dad Dale, and their friend Marvin Leininger down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and as the sun came over the trees, we were heading up the intercoastal to turn north into the Nassau. We made the long run up to Broward Island with the intent of catching a tide that had been coming in for about an hour and half. Dale and Mitch were tossing live shrimp on a jig while Marvin tested some plastic grubs off the stern. Dale had the hot hand early and boated a hungry Seatrout to "knock the skunk off".  Mitch hauled in a feisty Redfish but when Dale had a strong hookup and that drag made the ripping noise we felt sure we had a "big one". And sure enough it boiled up - a tale-tale sign that this fish had some size to it. Dale played it patiently and after a good battle landed a nice Slot sized 23" Redfish. 

We worked that bank pretty good, picked up another Trout or two, one of which was right at 18", a respectable "keeper size", then we made another good run up the Nassau to dip into a shallow creek. If I had to have made a bet on where we would have caught fish today, it would have been along this bank, but although all three anglers were making excellent casts, we barely had a decent nibble. 

After moving back to Pumpkin Hill, we switched to fixed floats and fished a flooding shell bed. Here, we picked up another Seatrout.  On the way back to the ramp we stopped at Spanish Drop and worked a bank with the fixed floats and got another keeper sized Trout. Marvin was fishing the stern with a slip float, going a bit deeper and this did the trick when he hooked and landed a couple of nice Trout. And with that, we called it a day, another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Good To Be Back Fishing!

My first trip back from "bad engine nightmare"!  I met Len Pelletiere and his grandson Scott down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and we headed up the intercoastal, turned west into Back River and cut around to the mouth of Pumpkin Hill to set up fishing with float rigs and live shrimp on a high and incoming tide.

First drift, BAM! We had a fish on! Young Scott was on the rod and he quickly dispatched the fight with a expert landing of a Jack Crevalle. We drifted that stretch for a bit and Scott caught a Catfish and a hungry Seatrout. After moving around the corner Scott had made an excellent cast to a grassy island. His float drifted out and just before retrieving it, he had a bite and a hookup. When the fish headed east knew it was a Shark. Scott followed it to the stern of the boat, then back to midship, then back to the stern before we netted a hard fighting Bonnethead Shark.

We buzzed back to Seymore's Pointe, fished a large runout and here we picked up a good handful of keeper sized Mangrove Snapper, then we fished back around at Nassaville and again put some Snapper in the boat.  After buzzing thru Horsehead and fishing a drainage and picking up one more Jack, we came back to the Nassau and fished a couple of drainages there. 

Scott ended up catching another Seatrout, another keeper sized Manrove, and then he put a feisty Flounder in the boat to rap up another great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Nary a Trout Today

 I was out to Goffinsville Park today where I met Dennis Abercrombie and his dad Jay. We had a clear, sunny morning and a tide that was just hitting dead low as we headed up the Nassau River with plans to fish Broward Island. Our first stop was down at the south end where we tossed jigs and live shrimp. We worked a large drainage for a bit, then dropped down the island and here Jay "knocked the skunk off" with a nice Flounder catch. 

The tide began to turn and come back in so we moved down to the north end and fished deep with the jigs. Jay had made an excellent cast to the up current side of a stump and a he let it fall down the river bottom I saw the line go tight - Jay set the hook and, Fish On! Jay played it perfectly and after a good battle he wore out and landed a nice Slot sized Redfish (all fish caught today were released).

We came back to Seymore's Pointe and fished some  dock pilings and here Jay outsmarted some rather big, keeper sized Mangrove
Snapper. We fished down at Spanish Drop with float rigs and the duo of anglers caught Jack Crevalle, Ladyfish, a Catfish, and Jay battled a 12lb Bonnethead, which he landed and I gave a quick release. Dropping back up the river we continued to catch a fish here and there - Jacks and Ladyfish.

Our next stop was between some docks at Nassauville, fishing with jigs and live shrimp. We had Mangrove bites but the highlight fish was a nice Flounder that Dennis hooked up and landed. Our final stop was back at Pumpkin Hill, fishing floats, and we wrapped up the day with a large Bonnethead Shark that Dennis fought and landed. We had caught a good variety, but surprisingly, no Seatrout, but with the action we had, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Getting Away From It All Today

 

Fishing north again today, I flipped a coin this morning - fish the docks up Lanceford or stay away from civilization. Heads one and after I picked up Craig and Paula Rutledge and their friend Brent, we headed over to fish the backside of Tyger on the first of an incoming tide. The trio of anglers were tossing jigs and live shrimp, letting it fall in the deep water, and retrieving it slowly. They were getting good casts but all we got were "nibbles", here and there. 

The sun was up and we had clear skies and a nice little breeze as we came out of Tyger and rounded around to the Jolley River where we set up fishing the "bank". Craig "knocked the skunk off" when he boated a small flounder then he hooked up and gallantly battled what I believe was a shark, but eventually it tired of playing with us, broke off, and went on it's way. He then had a good bite on his jig, up near the oyster banks, and Fish ON!  Craig played it expertly and soon landed a nice 21" Slot Redfish. Paula, fishing from the stern, had seen a swirl up near the bank, made her cast just to the side, let it sit and when her line tightened she set the hook and, Fish On! She patiently brought it to the boat and landed a beautiful Seatrout. 

We ran further up the river and fished Snook Creek thoroughly, to no avail. Our next stop was back around
at Tyger, now fishing the outside with float rigs and here Craig and Brent tangled with the high flying "poor mans Tarpon" - Ladyfish. Paula added another Seatrout catch to the board, then we moved on, stopping at a flooding point up Bell River, briefly, then we moved on.

Our final stop was up Lanceford Creek, then into Soap where we fished a flooded shell/grass island with float rigs. Craig had a float drifting between the island and the marsh and as the float slipped under Craig tightened up his line, lifted the rod and let the circle hook set and had another good fish on. He played it perfectly - I thought it was a small Red, but when brought it to the surface and to the net we saw that it was another 21" Slot sized Redfish, which made for a good way to wrap up a great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Two Slot Reds To Start The Day

 I fished with the Gandler family today, Brian and Laura and their adult sons Mike and Bill, meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early. There wasn't a whole lot of breeze but the bugs weren't too bad as we made our first stop at Spanish Drop on the Nassau. The oysters were about half showing so we went with float rigs and live shrimp, tossed up near the bank. We could see bait and fish working the bank and it was only a matter of time before Brian had a hookup and, Fish On!  He played it perfectly and patiently worked it to the net to land a nice 20" Slot sized Redfish.

Mike had switched out to a jig and was fishing out the stern and he had a hookup. He was getting a good pull but he stayed with it and soon landed a feisty Bluefish. Up front, Bill had a hookup - another nice fish. We worked it to the boat and landed another 20+"  Redfish. 

We later fished the  docks at Seymores, then we motored down to Broward where Brian caught a hungry Seatrout. We fished back at Nassauville, then made a tour thru Horsehead to wrap up another great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Trout Gone Wild

 I don't know what it was but we had a Trout explosion this  morning! I had met David Michael and his fishing buddies Cole and Kyle down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and with the tide just have started in we decided to make the long run around and down to Broward Island to catch that incoming tide there. And boy did it pay off! First Cast -BOOM! Cole was on the rod and perfectly played a Slot Redfish to the boat. That 's a good start!

From then on the trio of anglers were picking up Seatrout down deep, many of which were (finally) of keeper size. Some were throw backs, but some were rather large -17"-20". We were tossing 1/4oz jigs up to the bank and letting the current drop the jig down along the river bottom. The bite was subtle and you had to be ready! David ended up putting the biggest in the boat, a 20 1/2" Trout, moving him in to first place in the Anglers Mark 2021 Bragging Rights Tournament -Seatrout Category(scroll down the right side of this report for standings).

We came back to some docks at Nassauville and this time pitched the jigs up current, let them fall, and then let the current drop them down the river bottom. Yesterday we had got one keeper Trout at this spot but today we got a good handful of keeper sized Trout.

After moving around to some more docks we switched to float rigs and tossed them up shallow. I was just about to leave when Kyle had something engulf his bait and the battle was on! Kyle worked it to the boat and landed another big Trout - this one 19 1/2", which moved Kyle into 2nd place in the Bragging Rights Tournament! We added one more keeper Trout then moved on. 

Our last stop was thru Horsehead, around to the mouth of Jackstaff, drifting float rigs again. We picked up a slimy Catfish but nothing else, so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

40 Plus

 It was a tad bit cooler this morning, but clear and only a slight breeze, which made for an absolutely
beautiful day. And to top it off, the fish bite was on fire! I had met William and Bob Blalock out at Goffinsville Park and we made our coldest run down to Broward Island to fish with jigs and live shrimp on the last couple of hours of an outgoing tide. My first stop didn't produce much but as we drifted back with the current the two anglers began to pick up fish. They caught a good handful of Redfish, a couple of which were in the Slot, but were released to see another day. Bob also put a big Black "puppy" Drum in the boat and William had a keeper sized Seatrout.

Our next stop was back at Nassauville -we fished a deep spot that I had had success at but not today! At William's suggestion, we moved up to one of our old "honey holes" and BAM! It was lights out. He and Bob both began to catch one Seatrout after the other. Most of the Trout were 14-14 3/4" in length, but they did get a couple of more keepers. Then Bob had a strong hookup and put another nice Black Drum in the boat, then he had weird bite, a hookup, and landed a big 18" Sheepshead. We caught 'em (Trout) until we got tired of catch'n 'em!

Our next stop was around at some docks at Seymore's Pointe. The tide had just started back in  and it didn't take long before we were catching fish. They put a few more Slot sized Redfish in the boat, then another big Drum. We moved a dock down and BOOM! Multiple catches of feisty Redfish. We tried to guess how many fish we had caught but couldn't, so we estimated 40 plus!  Boy what a day! Another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

They Even Looked Like Fall Redfish

 I fished with William and Dara Blalock this morning, meeting them out at the Goffinsville Park boat

ramp early enough to see the sun coming up over Amelia Island. We made a quick run down the Nassau to the Spanish Drop area, turned into the current and began working up alongside a shell bank that was beginning to be exposed on an outgoing tide. Both Dara and William were making excellent casts but it seemed Dara had the hot hand early, landing a good amount of hungry Seatrout, along with a hard fighting Jack Crevalle.  We worked that bank up to it's end then William began to put fish in the boat. He landed a couple of feisty Redfish, another Jack and a couple of Flounder, one of which was of keeper size. (All fish caught today were released). Dara finally put a keeper sized Seatrout in the boat while William landed another Red.

We moved on up to Athens Drop where I had high hopes for some quality fish but all we managed was a Catfish!

Our next stop was over at some docks at Seymore's Pointe. Dara had offered William her rod that was already baited with a mud minnnow - he made the cast and, BOOM! Big fish On! It took all that William could do to keep the fish out from the dock pilings and it made a run or two towards them. But Willliam worked it out for good, played it perfectly, and landed a beautiful copper colored Redfish that was so big we would have to have debated with the Game and Fish guys if we had wanted to keep it!  Dara was fishing live shrimp and caught a handful of Mangrove Snapper.

After a 8 minute rundown to Broward Island we set up to fish the bank. Dara was on the stern and beat

William to a stump, making a perfect cast right up along side of it and it had only hit the water before, BAM! Fish On!  Dara played it like a pro, worked it out to deep water, and landed a nice22" copper-Red, what a beautiful fish. We eased down the bank where Dara put another Trout in the boat then it was Williams' turn for a big Redfish. 

I saw his line moving up current and so did he!  William let the fish take it, eased his line in tight and set the hook! Another big fish. William played it paitently, worked it to the boat, and we netted another23" copper Red. We had one more battle with a big Red later but this time this one fittingly won the battle. And with that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Fly Fishing Amelia Island

I fished today with James and Nicole Bush, meeting them up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park boat ramp early. We had cloudy skies with a forecast of 60% chance of rain before the morning was over but these anglers were game to fish so we headed out and over to the back side of Tiger to try our hand with some fly gear.  James was casting the fly off the stern in deep water with an intermediate sinking line and a weighted black Troy James Fly while Nicole fished from the bow with a a jig and live shrimp on spinning gear.  James was making excellent casts and putting the fly up close to the bank, letting it slide down the river bottom before the current really got to coming in. He had a few "bumps" but no takers. We eased down the bank working in and out of the logs and it was Nicole who put the first fish int he boat,  hungry Mangrove Snapper that was just a smidgen below the size limit. 

Then it was James' time to hookup. I had just commented about a perfect cast he had made up near the shore and alongside a log when, BOOM! A slot sized Redfish hit it and

came out of the water. James had done a strip set and had the fish. He worked it perfectly out of the logs and into deeper water. I inched the boat out deeper and felt for sure that we had the fish. But James said he felt the fish "lock down" - a sure sign that it was wrapped around a log or stump and, BAP! Fish Off! Boy what a bummer.

We fished the island up and down and Nicole, fishing the bait, hooked up and landed a feisty Redfish before we moved on. Our next stop was over at Lanceford Creek. I had switched Nicole to a float rig, gave her a demo cast, and float disappeared!  I lifted the rod, hooked the fish and handed it off to Nicole who battled it valiantly from Stern to Bow and back to Stern. The fish was ripping drag and made multiple runs but Nicole was up to the task and soon brought the beast to bay - a 4' Bonnethead Shark.  Nicole added a Seatrout to her catch before we moved on.

James had been dealing with the wind that had picked up after we left Tiger but he was making the most of it, getting in some fine casts. We added another Trout and a Ladyfish before we headed in. Just as we were getting back to the ramp we spotted a Submarine cruising thru the channel up by Cumberland which made for a great way to wrap up a good day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Fun Catching Flounder (and a whole bunch of other stuff)

I went south today, meeting Garrett and Brooke White down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early with plans to make a short run up the Nassau River to our first stop at Spanish Drop. We had a bait well full of live shrimp and a couple of dozen of mud minnows to bait our jigs.  The tide had about 30-40 minutes of going out before it hit bottom and there was tons of bait getting smacked as we started pitching the jigs to the exposed oysters. Garrett was an experience angler but Brooke was new to saltwater fishing but within minutes she was making excellent casts and catching fish. Garrett landed a Ladyfish, a Jack, then Brooke got in on the action with a Seatrout catch.

We moved up to Athens Drop, fished just briefly, added another feisty Redfish, then BOOM! Garrett had a strong bite, his drag ripped, and Fish On! Garett played it expertly and landed a nice 21" Slot sized Redfish. Not to be outdone, Brooke made an excellent cast and, BOOM! Fish ON! She patiently worked it to the boat and landed a 21.5" Slot Red.

Our next stop was fishing some docks at Seymore's Pointe. We added a couple of small Mangrove Snapper to the catch, then a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. We fished some rocks around the Pointe and caught a handful of Mangroves and a Trout, then moved on.

We hit the north end of Broward but had no bites then moved south a bit. Here things picked up. Brooke found a "honey hole" that held Flounder and caught a "mess" of 'em.  A couple of them were of keeper size. Garrett stepped his game up and put the biggest Flounder of the morning in the boat, one that measured at 18".  They both caught multi-spotted Reds, one had 12 spots and one had 13 spots but they weren't quite legal. The duo also had a couple of more Trout and a couple of Mangroves.  We ended the day fishing a stretch at Pumpkin Hill, then called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Adding Them Up

We didn't catch anything real big today, but if you added the variety of fish caught, it was almost like a marine biology class!  Flounder, Redfish, Seatrout, Jack Crevalle, Mangrove Snapper, Croaker, Stingray, Catfish...I may have missed one!  Laura and Lane Outler and their son Landon fished with me this morning and after running over to Tiger Island we set up and pitched jigs and live shrimp to the downed logs on the last of an outgoing tide. Laura got things started off early and pulled into a commanding lead on the "fish count" - she caught a keeper sized Flounder and a feisty Redfish.

Then Lane took over and caught a Jack Crevalle and a Croaker. Then all three began to catch fish - Mangrove Snapper, feisty Redfish, more Flounder, another which was of keeper size.  We fished the island thoroughly then ran up to the Jolley and fished the "bank" as the tide was coming in. Lane put a healthy Seatrout in the boat, we caught  a few Croaker that were keepable, then we continued on up the
river.

Our final stop was fishing some cut-bait and that paid off with another Croaker or two, a Stingray caught by Laura, and a Catfish caught by Landon.  The clouds had blocked the sun most of the trip, we had a slight breeze and it made for another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

Drum City

I fished with Bob Blalock this morning, meeting him out at Goffinsville Park early with plans to fish the back waters of Amelia Island. We headed  north from the ramp to fish a particular dock but the owner was out doing some exercises so we kept on going as not to disturb him!  We picked another dock and Bob began tossing jigs and live shrimp to the pilings - he got a few nibbles but no takers - then, BOOM! He had a hookup. Bob played it to the boat and landed a nice18" Black "puppy" Drum. Fishing the pilings with shrimp paid off. Bob landed a good handful of the Drum, a couple of more "keeper" sized, some of which he threw  back. He also picked up some Croaker, some small Mangrove Snapper, a small Sheepshead, and a couple of small Seatrout.

We eased back around the corner and the exerciser was gone so we set up off of some rocks and began floating shrimp along the edge and began to get bites. You had to be on your toes but the Mangrove Snapper were feeding and Bob put 5 nice 12-13" fish in the boat before we moved on to find bigger fish.

Our next stop was down at Broward Island, fishing the first of an incoming tide, an ideal tide to be there. But the fish didn't get the message!  Bob landed a couple of small Mangrove's and a small Flounder but that was it. We made a final stop up at Pumpkin Hill, fishing the float rigs. We picked up a small Redfish then one drift we both saw something "pop" the float. Seconds later the float disappeared, Bob tightened up and the hook set and, Fish ON! He worked it patiently to the boat - we were thinking "Redfish" but when it came to the net we saw it was a large 22" Seatrout, big enough to move Bob into a 2nd place tie in the Anglers Mark 2020 Bragging Rights Tournament -Seatrout Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). That was a great fish to wrap up the day - a great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Big Flurry At The End

I fished with some young anglers, Kyle Smith and his brother-in-laws David and Braden, meeting them up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park early this morning. We made a run over to and up the Bell River, stopping along some exposed oysters beds on the last of an outgoing tide. The trio of anglers were tossing live shrimp on jigs and making excellent casts and it paid off with a couple of hungry Seatrout catches.

We continued on around to some docks at Pirates Woods and fished a few of those docks thoroughly. We had just set up to fish when Braden spotted a small alligator cruising out into the river and keeping an eye on us. At one of the docks, Braden had made a good cast to a "cave" in  a mud bank and a fish took his bait and ran. Braden set the hook and worked to the boat a keeper sized Flounder.

We fished Jolley Bank with the jigs and about half way thru the run David switched to a float rig, fishing off the stern, and found a feisty Redfish to bring to the boat.  Again, Braden saw the wildlife, this time a huge Manatee out in the middle of the river. We continued on around to the outside of Tiger and here we had our most action of the day. All three anglers had switched to the float rig and used the last of our live shrimp before switching over to mud minnows. David hooked up and landed a nice keeper sized Seatrout then Kyle did the same, bringing in another keeper sized Trout. Then David cast just north of a pocket, let his bait drift over a shell bed, and hooked up with another keeper sized Flounder which he brought to the net.

Our final stop was back around at a point on Bell River and here they caught a couple of more hungry Trout before we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Hot Morning Good Fishing with Friends

After an early morning run to St. Mary's, Ga to haul a kayaker participating in the Cross The Line Foundation fundraiser, I met Todd Johnson and his fishing buddy at the Dee Dee Bartels Park boat ramp for a mid-morning start. It was already getting warm but these two anglers were eager to get out on the water and enjoy spending some time fishing the back waters of Amelia Island.

We made a quick run over to the outside of Tiger Island and fished some marsh grass on the first of an outgoing tide with live shrimp under a fixed float. Although we didn't catch anything big we did "knock the skunk off" with a few hungry Seatrout catches. We then buzzed thru Tiger, around to Bell, and up the Lanceford to fish a small grassy island. Here, Brady hooked up and landed a keeper sized Flounder that went in the box.

After that we came back to Soap Creek, fished a run out, BOOM! Trout on!  It wasn't big but boy did it happen quick. We moved up the bank and both anglers found a small Redfish to tangle with, then Todd had a stronger hookup, one that pulled some drag, and after a good battle landed a Slot sized Redfish.

Back to Lanceford, fishing some docks and here Todd got into some small but feisty Black "puppy" Drum. Being a weekend there were tons of boats and anglers out on the water so we decided to make the long run up the Bell River and have the area to ourselves. We had just been fishing one set of dock pilings when Brady felt a "bump", set the hook, and hooked up with an even bigger Flounder to go into the box!

Our final stop was around in the Jolley, fishing the MOA. There was ton's of bait getting "popped" but they didn't like what we were presenting, so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Jack Crevalle Takes The Big Fish Award

The Richardson's were in town for a break, Mark and his dad Allen and son Braden, and they decided to take in a half day of fishing here at Amelia Island. I met them early down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and we made a short run up the intercoastal and into the Nassau River, stopping at the Spanish Drop area to fish jigs and live shrimp along the expose oysters with a tide that still had a couple of hours of going out.

We had fished just a short time when Mark woke us all up with a shark hookup. He quickly handed it off to his son Braden to do the heavy lifting and Braden was playing it perfectly but the Shark had other plans - it ran fast and deep and BAP! Broke the leader.  That must have gotten Braden in the groove because he later hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout(all fish
caught today were released). Allen added a feisty Redfish to the catch total.

Our next stop was up at some docks at Seymore's Pointe. Again, it was Braden with the big hookup. This fish took his bait and ran deep, away from the pilings so we followed it with the trolling motor as Braden took up slack. But then the fish dove deep, went east, went west and took us for a  ride as Braden battled it with the light tackle spin gear, size 1000 reel. The fish turned out to be no match for Braden who eventually subdued it and brought it to the net, a nice 5lb Jack Crevalle.  We went back to the dock where both Mark and Allen caught some Black "puppy" Drum then we had one huge bite that took the line up into the pilings and broke off.

After buzzing down to Broward Island and setting up off the logs with the tide still going out we got into some hot action. Braden caught a Slot Redfish, then the trio added a couple of more.  We picked up a couple of small Seatrout then began to work our way down the bank as the tide started back in.  Mark did battle with another huge Jack Crevalle. At the last spot Allen found a "honey hole" and reeled in a couple of Redfish, one of them being in the Slot. Then he had a strange bump, a hookup, and reeled in a nice 16" keeper sized Flounder.  We caught fish at almost every stop so as we headed in, we counted it as another great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

 

 

 

Everyone Is a Winner With Big Fish at Amelia Island

Brad G. and I were keeping a sharp eye on the weather and when I talked to him last evening we both agreed that we'd probably get wet today with a 45-50% chance of rain throughout the morning. But when I met him and his adult kids Ashley, Jake and Jake's fiancé Sidney up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park boat ramp, the skies were clear, the sun was coming out, and not a hint of rain!

We took advantage of that and made a run up to the Jolley River, all the way to Snook Creek, and began pitching to the oysters with jigs and mud minnows. We fished along, had a few nibbles, then Ashley had a strong hookup, and, Fish On!  She played it perfectly to the boat and landed a nice
18" Flounder to "knock the skunk off" the boat!  We then eased around to the MOA, again pitching jigs and minnows, and here both Jake and Brad reeled in some fat Trout, Jake's being of keeper size.

After crossing the creek we fished another oyster bank and just as I thought
we were about to run out of oysters, BOOM! Sidney had a strong bite! This fish was ripping some drag but Sidney applied the pressure and BOOM! Brad had a hookup!  Brad worked his to the boat quickly - another keeper Trout - then

Sidney brought hers to the net - a nice Slot sized 21" Redfish.

We dropped back to fish "Jolley Bank" where Brad landed a keeper sized Flounder and Jake reeled in a feisty Redfish that was just shy of the Slot then we made the run back to Tiger Island. Ashley found another small Flounder there then we moved to the outside and tangled with a couple of high flying Ladyfish. Although the day was forecast to have rain, it turned out to be a beautiful day and another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Capt. Lawrence Piper is a back country light tackle, fly fishing guide based out of Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and specializes in Redfish, Seatrout, Flounder, Black Drum, and Sheepshead. If you’re looking for things to do a fun family outing or a day out with your angler friends,  then plan a Charter on The Anglers Mark.

Mangrove Snapper Are Back at Amelia Island

We had a beautiful morning today with plans to fish with the Braynard Fishing Team - Scott and his adult kids Sarah and David. I met them down at the south end boat ramp and we headed up the intercoastal and dipped into Jackstaff to begin fishing along the exposed oysters with jigs and live shrimp. All three anglers were making excellent casts, fishing the last of an outgoing tide, but all we had were nibbles. We crossed the creek, fished a sandy pointe, and again, only nibbles.

After running thru Horsehead we pulled at a dock and fished the pilings. Here, David "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up with a ferocious fighting big Jack Crevalle. After a good battle, he landed the fish for pictures and release. We fished a few docks to no avail, then moved on.

Our next stop was around at some rocks at Seymore's Pointe and here things heated up. Now fishing fixed float rigs with live shrimp, this trio of anglers began to get bites then Scott hauled in a fat Mangrove Snapper. It was like a light switch was flipped because we began to get one bite after another. David reeled a few keeper sized fish in, Sarah got the hang of it and caught some, and Scott added a couple to the catch.

We decided to move on and see if we could get some bigger fish so we made the run down to Spanish Drop. After working along the flooded marsh grass Scott, fishing off the stern, had some hookups. he tangled briefly with a high flying Ladyfish, then put a keeper sized Seatrout in the boat. Sarah hooked up and landed another Ladyfish to top the day off and with that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Capt. Lawrence Piper is a back country light tackle, fly fishing guide based out of Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and specializes in Redfish, Seatrout, Flounder, Black Drum, and Sheepshead. If you’re looking for things to do a fun family outing or a day out with your angler friends,  then plan a Charter on The Anglers Mark.

Back With a Vengeance at Amelia Island Fishing

After a safety layoff from fishing, Dennis Brizzi and his fishing buddy Hal O'dell were back to fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.  We met out at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp early on the last of an outgoing tide and made a quick buzz over to Pumkin Hill to fish some exposed oyster beds with jig rogs and a special rig that Hal had brought along. Hal was also toasting his bait with some "special sauce" to get every bit of edge he could get!  Fairly quickly, Dennis was battling a 3' Bonnethead Shark and as we were putting it in the boat, Hal landed a keeper sized Weakfish.

We moved down to Broward Island, with the tide still going out, and here things heated up for Hal. He hooked up and landed two nice 18" Black "puppy" Drum, a Croaker, and a keeper sized Sheepshead at that spot. We moved down the island, fished some logs, came back to "Hal's Hole" but had no more bites, so we moved on.

Our next stop was down at Spanish Drop and here it was Dennis who had the hot rod. He tangled with 2-3 hard fighting Jack Crevalle, then did battle with another Bonnethead, this one at least 4' long, and then he hooked up and landed a good 21" Slot sized Redfish.  It was a good day to get back to fishing for these two anglers so we called it a great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Capt. Lawrence Piper is a back country light tackle, fly fishing guide based out of Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and specializes in Redfish, Seatrout, Flounder, Black Drum, and Sheepshead. If you’re looking for things to do a fun family outing or a day out with your angler friends,  then plan a Charter on The Anglers Mark.

Big Redfish Starts and Big Trout Ends Amelia Island Fishing Trip

We got in another Amelia Island back country fishing trip today during this great Memorial Day
weekend when I met Chandler Bailey and his son Philip down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp for a half day of fishing on the first of an incoming tide. We made the long run around to Broward Island and set up to fish with jigs and live shrimp and minnows. Both anglers were making excellent casts but we fished to no avail. We moved up and down the island, fished under the Bald Eagle, fished the logs, fished the run outs, but no bites. Ouch.

I had planed to run back to Spanish Drop but as
we were running by Pumkin Hill I noticed that the oysters were flooding and there was a lot of activity so we pulled up, switched to float rigs, and began to ease along the  bank. Philip was fishing out the stern and as he drifted his bait up near the oysters, BOOM!. Big Fish On!  This fish putting up a furious fight but Philip was up to the task and brought the brute to the boat and landed a big Oversized 28.5" Redfish. Boy what a fish to "knock the skunk off".

We then continued on to Spanish Drop, fished a marsh grass bank and then it was Chandler's turn to catch the big fish. He had a hookup and although his fish tried to stay up by the bank, Chandler worked it out, fought it to a standstill ,and brought it to the boat, one that measured in the Slot at 21". We photographed and released it (too). We drifted down the bank working our floats up close and then Philip had the strong hookup. This one took off to Jacksonville but finally Philip slowed it down, wore it out, and landed a 4' Bonnethead Shark.

Back to Pumpkin Hill we went and stayed with the float rigs.  Chandler got hot and landed a keeper sized Flounder (released), a feisty Bluefish, then he set the hook on something pretty big. After playing it patiently, Chandler landed a big 19" Seatrout, big enough to move him into 2nd place in the Anglers Mark 2020 Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category(scroll down the right side of this report for standings).  And with that, we called it day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Capt. Lawrence Piper is a back country light tackle, fly fishing guide based out of Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and specializes in Redfish, Seatrout, Flounder, Black Drum, and Sheepshead. If you’re looking for things to do a fun family outing or a day out with your angler friends,  then plan a Charter on The Anglers Mark.