Surprisingly Big Trout

 

I met David Vice and Robert Stettner out at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp early this morning, and boy was it a pretty day...and we had a bit of breeze for the most part. We made a run thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Cut to set up fishing a tide that had just started out, tossing float rigs and live shrimp.  David was once up on the bow while Robert took up the stern, and drifting long off the stern paid off! Robert hooked up and landed a couple of nice 18" Seatrout. We tangled with a shark, and David put a feisty Redfish in the boat as we eased forward, and when we dropped back to the original spot, David put another keeper sized Seatrout in the boat. He also added a keeper sized Mangrove Snapper to the box.

After fishing around a the pointe, we ran back thru Horsehead and down to Back River where we set up and drifted a bank again with the float rigs. We had a handful of feisty Reds caught, a nice Jack Crevalle and we tangled with a couple of Ladyfish. 

Our final stop was back at some rocks at Nassauville, now throwing jigs and live shrimp. The bite was immediate and you had to be ready! This duo of anglers had to weed thru some small Mangroves, but they were able to box a good handful of keeper sized fish, the biggest being a bit over 14" that David caught. The sun was overhead and the breeze had stopped but as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

School Was Out

 

I fished south today, meeting Garland Clark and his son Kris down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early. We made the run up the intercoastal and made our way to Poteat Cut to set up tossing float rigs and live shrimp on a tide that had been going out for about two hours. The "flip of the coin" paid off - we had only been fishing a few minutes when Kris, fishing off the bow, hooked up and battled to the boat a large Seatrout. Garland tangled with a Shark or two and boated a feisty Redfish, then Kris, fishing in almost the same spot, had another big hookup and another big Trout brought to the boat. 

We fished up in Jackstaff with the floats for a bit - picked up a couple of nice Mangrove Snapper,  then made a run thru Horsehead and down to Back River and set up drifting the floats along some now exposed shell. They must have "let the school out" because these two anglers caught caught 12" Redfish, one after the other.  Garland battled a hard fighting Jack Crevalle to the boat, then we move on.

After fishing Spanish Drop on the last of an outgoing tide, we made a short run over to some rocks at Nassauville and filled our limit catching Mangrove Snapper, the biggest being right at 13". We were fishing jigs and shrimp on the bottom. As we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

Found a Trout Hole

 I

hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend and holiday! I was back at it this morning, meeting Mike Livatino and his son John and daughter-in-law Deb out at Goffinsville Park boat ramp early. The tide had been coming in for about an hour so we made a quick run down the Nassau and began working a shell bank at Spanish Drop with jigs and live shrimp. As we got to a corner we had a good bit of action, hooking up some small Jacks and Ladyfish and we had a quick battle and SNAP with a Shark. 

Wanting to fish Broward Island on that first of an incoming we made our way down there and worked the bank pretty thoroughly. These anglers were getting good casts to the banks but all we really caught were a couple of submerged logs!

We then eased up to Pumpkin Hill and drifted floats long and had some good action, again - Jacks and Ladyfish. But the current was making a good rip on the other side of a point and just as we repositioned we began to get bites. John had made a good cast up to the grass, let it drift around the point and when floated into that chance in water, BAM! Fish On1  John patiently brought it to the boat and landed a nice keeper sized Seatrout. Then all three anglers were making that drift and it paid off with another handful of Seatrout, another, bigger, of keeper size.

We fished some docks at Seymores and caught some small Mangrove Snapper, then fished some rocks at Nassauville and here Deb put the first and only keeper sized Mangrove in the boat. We had some good action throughout the day and had a few fish in the box so as we headed back to the dock we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

NOTE: we had a bunch of bites today - a lot of "baitstealers" and eventually ran out of shrimp.  Try to have some minnows on the boat. Also, I dug out my cast net but didn't see a big enough school of mullet to cast to. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

It Was a Hot One

 Driving home today after my trip I noticed on my truck screen that the temperature was right at 100 degrees! Although it didn't feel quite that hot fishing this morning, it was getting there! I had met Ed Brown, his son Spencer, and son-in-law Chris down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and after running up the intercoastal and cutting thru to Poteat Cut, we set up at a point to fish float rigs on a tide that was coming in, already high, and already covering the oysters. It was only minutes into the fishing when Ed's live shrimp was hammered and his drag began to rip - a Shark bite. It kept going north. 

We picked up a small Jack and a big Catfish there, and tangled with a couple of Ladyfish, then we moved over to Jackstaff  and fished some pockets. After running thru Horsehead and down to Pumpkin Hill we again drifted floats, long, and this produced some good bites. Chris had followed Spencer across a point and a feisty Redfish liked his bait best! Further down the way Spencer had made a cast up shallow, near some sparse grass and it paid off with a strong bite and it paid off with a rod bending fight. He played it perfectly, worked it to the boat patiently and ....right at the boat...Fish Off! Ouch! We all agreed that we saw a flash of Redfish before the fateful moment.

Back down the Nassau we went, around to Seymore's Pointe, fishing a large drainage and almost immediately this trio began to put Mangrove Snapper in the boat. Spencer added a hungry Seatrout to the mix. We had a few keep-able Snapper, then moved around to some rocks at Nassauville and picked up a few more, bigger, to make a meal. Just when I had about given up on a nice Redfish, Spencer had a hookup and we knew right off it was NOT a Mangrove. He kept the pressure on and worked to the net a nice 20" Slot Redfish  to wrap up another hot day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

Chamber of Commerce Fishing Day

 I met Danne Webb down at Sawpit Creek boat ramp this morning and boy what a beautiful day it was! Clear skies, sunshine, and just enough breeze to make it comfortable for a back water fishing trip. We made a long run up the intercoastal, up the Back River and around to Pumpkin Hill. I  had hoped that the tide would still be coming in but unfortunately it was a dead stop - our floats wouldn't drift, right or left. After fishing a bit along one shoreline we moved around the corner as the tide started out and this did the trick.  There was all kinds of "movement" along the shoreline and after a big commotion Danne made a good cast and within seconds we saw a Bonnethead tracking down his bait and BAM! Fish On!  I was impressed how patient Danne was with the fish fight and it paid off - he worked it in and landed a nice 4' Shark.

Just a few minutes later Danne battled another Shark to the boat for release, then after a good cast up to the grass line we saw his float slowly go under. Danne lifted his rod and let the circle hook set. I was guessing "Flounder" by the way that float went under but when he got it to the net we found it was a feisty Redfish. 

We motored down the Nassau to Twin Creeks and fished the mouth, then worked up along the bank to Athens Drop, now fishing a jig and shrimp. Again, there was movement everywhere - bait fish, and bull wakes, and shark fins, but we had no takers. Needing some action, we pulled up and headed to the docks at Seymore's where we set up current and pitched to the pilings. It only took seconds and we were hooking up on Mangrove Snapper. Most were of keeper size and we had a few right at 12" and we began to "cull" out the smaller ones. Then, after he had made an excellent cast, Danne had a stronger hookup and, Fish On!  He worked it out of the pilings, kept the pressure on, and landed a perfect sized 16" and good eating Sheepshead. 

With our Mangrove limit in the box, we decided to move around to the Nassauville side and fish some rocks with float rigs. Although we were a bit worked about "leaving fish to find fish", the move paid off. In addition to catching a few more bigger Mangroves we had a nice surprise:  While drifting or floats, we heard and saw a big fish "bust" up near the rocks. I had just handed off a baited rod to Danne and he made the perfect cast up from the bust, let it drift and BAM! Sure enough, it was a bigger and when he expertly brought it to the net we found it was a feisty Redfish. What good way to wrap up a great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Grassberg Sightings!

 I fished south today, meeting Allen Richardson and his grandson Walker early at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp. We made the run up the intercoastal and around to Poteat Cut to fish jigs and live shrimp on the last of an outgoing tide. Both anglers were getting good casts, we had some nibbles, but no real takers. After fishing one drainage over in Jackstaff, we made the run thru Horsehead and fished some docks at Seymore's.

Walker had the first hookup and a good battle it was! He played the fish perfectly and after a hard fought battle landed a nice Jack Crevalle. And just a short time later, he put a keeper sized Mangrove Snapper in the boat.  As we were leaving we passed a huge mass of seagrass floating on an incoming tide. I had a friend tell me he had scene one recently up in the Jolley.

We ran down to Broward Island and attempted to fish that stretch but the SW wind was kicking up the mud and we had no real bites. Back to Nassauville we went where we tangled with Mangrove Snapper and ended up putting a good handful of keeper fish in the box.

We finished up fishing Spanish Drop and here Allen finished things off with a feisty Black "puppy" Drum catch. Although the wind was a bit unexpected, we had some action here and there, and Grandad was getting to fish with Grandson, so as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Tale of Two Tides

 I was back at it this morning, fishing with the Wolfe's - Tim and Laura - and meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early. While we were in the area, and with the tide still going out, we bumped around to the old Sawpit bridge and set up current to drift slip floats back to the bridge with live shrimp as bait. It only took a few drifts before Laura "knocked the skunk off" with a Seatrout catch, one of keeper size.  And a little later she picked up another, then she landed the first Ladyfish of the year.

We then ran up the intercoastal, just beyond Jackstaff, and fished some exposed oyster beds with jigs and the shrimp. I was encouraging Tim to toss up near the oysters with his casts but Laura was fishing out deeper and again, she hooked up and landed a few hungry Seatrout. Tim finally hooked up and landed a Seatrout  to get on the board, then tangled with another Ladyfish.

After running thru Horsehead and around to Seymore's Pointe we fished some dock pilings and Tim added to his numbers by boating a good handful of Mangrove Snapper. The tide had finally started in and that's when things went downhill. We fished Nassauville Rocks, Broward Island, Twin Creeks and Spanish Drop and only had nibbles. But we had some great weather and had caught fish early so as we headed back to the dock we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Fishing With Dad and Pappa

 We were able to squeeze in a fishing trip this morning, before the heavy rains rolled in after noon. I had met Cameron Beadle who had his son Roman and father-in-law Jason along as his fishing team!  We made a short run from Dee Dee Bartels and set up fishing some dock pilings on the last hour and half of the outgoing tide. We started slowed but built to a crescendo!  All three anglers began to catch fish - Roman was holding his own with the older anglers. They put a good handful of Black "puppy" Drum in the boat and another handful of feisty Redfish. 

The bite slowed so we made a long run up the river to fish some more docks at the very last of the outgoing tide. In short order they picked up a couple of keeper sized Seatrout then Cameron and Jason had a "double" - Jason brought his keeper Trout to the net but Cameron's was being a bit belligerent - it ripped some drag a couple of times but Cameron stayed patient and eventually landed a nice 19" Seatrout, boy what a fish! The trio added a couple of "early bird" Mangrove Snapper and a couple of keeper sized Whiting, then it was Roman who hooked up, battled valiantly, and landed the first Bonnethead Shark of the day!

Continuing on around, we set up on the outside of Tyger and fished the bank, but it was Jason who had the "hot rod" fishing out of the stern. He hooked up and landed a few Seatrout and then a feisty Bluefish. Roman moved back and was intently fishing when I saw him set the hook and, Fish On!  He fought it by himself and landed a big, Big Bluefish. Jason wrapped things up with the big fish of the day, a hard fought battle with a big Bonnethead and with that, we headed in and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Birthday Kid

Although the weather forecast last night predicted a good chance of rain for this morning, we had clear skies the whole time! Garland Clark and his friend Suzanna elected to begin Garland's "Birthday Celebration" by  fishing the back waters of Amelia Island. We met down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and ran up the intercoastal, turned into the Nassau and found our way to an exposed oyster bed with a tide that still had a couple of hours to hit bottom.  We had live shrimp  and a handful of small mud minnows that I had caught at the ramp. 

As we worked the bank both anglers were making excellent casts and after Suzanna had tangled with a Ladyfish, Garland put a feisty Redfish in the boat. As we reached the end of some oyster beds where a bar was jutting out both anglers found Redfish and landed them. Then Suzanna had a huge bite, her drag began to rip and, Fish On! Suzanna played it patiently, keeping the pressure on, and soon landed a big Jack Crevalle.

We then made the run down to Back River, fished a good stretch of oyster beds on the last of that outgoing tide, to no avail, then continued on down to Broward Island, passing under the pair of Bald Eagles who seem to have returned after their Summer vacation - time to repair and touch up that nest! We fished a large marsh runout, then drifted backwards down the bank. Garland was on the stern and quickly landed a couple of Croaker then had a good bite, set the hook and brought to the net a large Mangrove Snapper.

Our final stop was back at some docks at Nassauville, fishing the jigs on the first of an incoming tide. Once the duo got to rolling, they began to outsmart the Mangroves and weeded thru them to keep seven more large fish. But boy was it getting hot! We called it a day and as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

Granddads Anglers

 I wrapped my week up fishing out of Goffinsville Park this morning where I met Wayne Flanders and two of his adult grandsons, Jacob and Joshua. We made a short run, over to the back river and set up along side some exposed oyster beds on a tide that had been going out for 4-5 hours. As we worked the bank we could see all kinds of bait fish moving about, and once in a while, a bigger fish busting that bait. It didn't take long before all three anglers were getting bites. We had started off with live shrimp and were getting picked on every cast so we switched to some mud minnows and this did the trick. They caught small but feisty Redfish, a couple of Seatrout, and a couple of Catfish. We also had a couple of "big" takes- fish that ripped some drag, but unfortunately they came unplugged.

Our next stop was down the Nassau, fishing the last of an outgoing tide, working thru a large drainage. We caught a small Flounder there and when we got to the far end of a shell bank, it was feisty Redfish on almost every cast. Wayne figured it out and found that there was a submerged shell "reef" that came out from the shore and the fish were laying on the back side of it. We fished that stretch up and back for a good while, catching fish. Before we left we tossed the cast net and got a dozen or so nice finger mullet to replenish our bait. 

Both Joshua and Jacob were making excellent casts all day and it payed off.  We fished some dock pilings and picked up a couple of keeper sized Mangroves then ran down to Broward Island to fish the first of an incoming tide. To no avail. Not a real bites.  After running back to Nassauville, we fished a small drainage with jigs and everything else we had!  This trio of anglers added a good handful of keeper sized Mangroves and Jacob wrapped things up with a keeper sized 18" Flounder. As we headed back to the dock we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Family Day

I fished south again today with the Dees family, Josh and Jen and their two kids Benny and Karlynn. We
ran up the intercoastal to Jackstaff and fished a stretch of bank at almost dead low, pitching jigs and live shrimp. The "baitstealers" were out in full force and made it a challenge, but this family was up to the task. Benny hooked up and landed a hard fighting Jack Crevalle and Jen caught a keeper sized Mangrove Snapper.

We ran thru Horsehead and around to Spanish Drop on the Nassau and fished a stretch of shell beds on the first of an incoming tide. I was expecting fish but we fished a good 30 yards with no real bites. But when the fish started biting, boy did they start! All four family members were catching fish with Jen leading the charge, catching one feisty Redfish after another. They also had Jacks, Ladyfish, and a couple of small Flounder.

After moving back up the Nassau we worked another shell bank. The numbers weren't there but Jen did hook and catch a keeper sized Flounder. Our next stop was over between some docks at Nassauville. Again, things started slow but when the Mangrove Snapper started biting we were hooking regularly. Benny and Karlynn took turns netting fish, mom "coached us up" and Josh filled the box with the Mangrove Snapper. We went thru all our bait then called it a day and as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.  

Fish at Every Stop

 

It looks like the whole week is going to have pretty mornings, and today was one of them. I met Tommy Gray and his grandsons Alex and Henry down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp. We headed up the intercoastal and dipped into Jackstaff, then into a small creek and began tossing live shrimp under a float on a high tide that had just started out. Just like yesterday, it started slow - Henry had a hookup and brought to the boat hard fighting Jack Crevalle, then he landed a feisty Redfish. We eased along the bank and could see some large wakes and sure enough, Alex, after making an excellent cast to the grass, had his float slowly ease under. He tightened up his line, lifted his rod, and let the circle  hook do it's thing and, Fish On! Alex played it expertly, let it run when it wanted to, kept the pressure on, and soon landed a nice Slot Redfish. Then Henry had a strong hookup - another Big Fish one - he fought it to the boat and landed a nice 18" fat Seatrout. Then Alex hooked up  and battled another Slot Redfish to the boat.

I don't normally stay at one spot more than about 20-45 minutes but we were getting bites so we made another pass. Henry had a BIG bite, had him on for a while, then the fish tossed the hook - when Henry reeled it in we saw that the hook was bent! We picked up a few more feisty Reds, had few other big bites, caught some keeper Manrove Snapper, and when we left I noted that we had fished that spot for 1 hour and 45 minutes!

Our next stop was around at Seymore's Pointe where we stuck with the float rigs and played cat and mouse with some more Mangroves. All three anglers soon got the hand of it and boated another handful, some of which were of keeper size. Moving down the way, we fished between two docks and again - Mangrove Snapper and then Henry had a good bite and reeled in a keeper sized Flounder. We caught a good handful of smaller Flounder there, too.

The last stop was down at Spanish Drop and just when I thought the heat had run off all of the fish - BAM! The trio of anglers began to get hookups. Alex got hot on the bow of the boat and landed one feisty Redfish after another. Tommy was fishing off the stern and picking up Flounder and Jacks and Seatrout. Henry, fishing mid ship, began to catch the feisty Reds, then he had a good bite, set the hook, and Fish On! Henry kept the pressure on and fought a nice Slot Sized Redfish to the net, to wrap up another great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

The Two Fish Kid

 Luckily those thunderstorms are holding off until late afternoon's.  Today met Sean and Kathy Higginson and their son Judah down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp - we had clear morning skies that greeted us. After running up the intercoastal and into the Nassau, we made our first stop at Spanish Drop to fish a large marsh drainage, and then a shell bed. I gave Kathy and Judah a quick tutorial to refresh their casting and in just a short time, Kathy had a hookup on her jig and live shrimp. She patiently brought to the boat a nice Flounder. Shortly after that Sean hooked up and brought another Flounder to the boat. We eased along that bank and as we worked along that shell bed Judah had a "bump", set the hook, and had hookup. As he fought it to the boat Kathy hooked up and we had a "double". Both anglers landed their catch -Judah a Seatrout and Kathy a feisty Redfish.

We moved up the river to Twin Creeks, fished it for a bit, then made a run over to some docks at Nassauville.  It didn't take but a few minutes for me to see that this just wasn't going to work - the current, albeit almost dead low, was still ripping and any cast to the bank would result in a sweep into some dock pilings. So we moved on, making our next stop around at Seymore's Pointe.

Again, Kathy had gone in with the first cast and it paid off with a tremendous bite -Big Fish On!  But this fish was already up in the pilings and ripping drag, it pulled further thru and, BAP! Fish Off! Ouch!  But these anglers weren't to be deterred - they went back to the pilings and began to catch keeper sized Mangrove Snapper (all fish caught today were released). Eventually some small ones moved in so we moved on.

Our next stop was down at Broward Island, fishing deep with the jigs with a tide still going out. We drifted with the current, working the bank and Kathy, who seemed to have the hot hand all day, hooked and reeled in a nice Mangrove then she caught and expertly landed a nice 18" Seatrout.

It was getting hot but we wanted to make at least one more stop so we went back to where the big fish broke off, fishing some dock pilings. We didn't catch any big Reds but we did get a few more Mangroves. Judah had made an excellent cast, felt the "bump", set the hook and, Fish On! This fish seemed to be pulling harder than one of the Mangroves and sure enough, when Judah landed it, it was TWO Manroves - he had caught two fish on one hookup - a first for the Anglers Mark!  And that made for a good way to wrap up a great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Solid Lead

We had an uncharacteristic(for the week) forecast for some winds today, 11-14mph which ended up being correct, and made for some challenging fishing. But we persevered, fished, and ended up with a fairly decent day of "fish catching".

I had met the Latino family down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning. Pete and Robin and their kids Marin and Jake were eager to get out on the water so we headed up the Nassau River and all the way around to Middle Marsh where we set up alongside some flooded marsh grass on a tide that had been going out for about two hours. I had fished this spot only once before but we had caught a nice Slot Redfish there. I wasn't feeling real confident when I

saw the west wind murkying up the water. Marin and Jake were out first with their casts, Marin on the stern and Jake on the bow and I think it was Jake's first drift when he had a hookup and a nice fish on! Jake fought the fish valiantly and soon landed a nice 21" Slot Redfish! That's the way to start a day! We fished that spot a bit, moved up to Pumpkin Hill and fished some edges there, then moved on. As I figured, that west wind was really making some mud along the shore.

We came back to Nassauville and tried to fish some rocks with the floats but the current was ripping so we moved around and fished some dock pilings, now out of the wind. Robin was helping out, coaching and encouraging as the other trio of anglers began to do battle with Mangrove Snapper. I think I'd have to say that Marin was making the best casts of all, but little did I now that Jake was keeping count of the fish caught! At one point he announced the total and with a solid lead, sat down to take a break from the action.

Pete finally had a solid hookup and this one was pulling some drag - no Mangrove this time. He played it patiently and soon brought to the net a nice 18" keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. He and Marin caught Mangroves until it was time to leave and as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

It Got Better, Later

 You have to say that we're having the best fishing weather this week that we've had in a long time. Today was no exception - clear skies, sun shining, no wind, but just  slight breeze, and even a bit cool as we made that first run. I had met Adam Mizell, his son Whitt and his father-in-law John Ayers down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early and we made the long run up the Nassau to take advantage of a first of an incoming tide at Broward Island -my favorite tide to fish Broward. But I would have "lost a dollar" if I had bet on this spot. All three anglers were making excellent casts and we worked the bank thoroughly, but had no real bites. I couldn't believe it! 

We came back to Seymore's Pointe and fished some dock pilings where we played with some Mangrove Snapper for a bit. Moving down the Nassau to Spanish Drop, we fished some flooding shell banks with jigs and shrimp and here the bite began to pick up. Whitt picked up a nice Flounder then he did battle with what I believe to have been a Shark, but it found its way around a crab buoy and eventually broke off. 

After moving back up the Nassau and turning into the current, we again fished some flooded banks and again, we had some action. John started it off by hooking up and landing a keeper sized Seatrout, then they caught a Whiting, and a couple of small Jack Crevalle. Then John and grandson Whitt teamed up to tame a 4' Bonnethead Shark.

We fished some rocks at Nassauville with float rigs and outsmarted a few Mangrove Snapper, a couple which were of keeper size. Then we wrapped things up down the way at another couple of docks. Adam got on roll and pulled another Flounder out, then a few keeper sized Mangroves, then John hooked up an landed a nice 17.25" Flounder. The day had started out really slow but we found some action later so as we headed back to the dock we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Hoping For an 8 Rabbit Day

Heading south this morning, after passing the three round-abouts at the Omni, I counted the rabbits on the side of the road from there to the bridge. Today was an "8 Rabbit Day". I wondered, "could that be a sign of how the fishing was going to be?"  Could 3 rabbits mean a "just OK" day? Could  6 rabbits be a pretty good day? It was EIGHT Rabbits I saw this morning!

I met Allen and Laverne Webb at Sawpit Creek and we headed up the intercoastal, turned into the Nassau and ran up to a large drainage. Allen was on the bow tossing a topwater Zara Spook while Laverne followed him in with a float and live shrimp. Not much was going on but Laverne did pick up a couple of small Mangrove Snapper. 

We then ran thru Horsehead to the other side of Jackstaff, turned into a creek, and fished stretch of marsh grass on the high and outgoing tide, to no avail. We then fished Jackstaff for a bit and unfortunately the wind was picking up and made it tough to fish - but Allen did hookup and land a small Catfish. After running back thru the marsh (a shortcut), we pulled up at Seymore's Pointe and did battle with the Mangroves. The duo of anglers were getting bites on almost every cast, especially if they were near the rocks, so much so that I started breaking the shrimp in half. We left the area with two keeper sized fish in the box.

The wind was really kicking now - white caps were out in the river, so we headed down to Broward Island and sure enough we had calm waters. We switched to jig and shrimp and fished the bottom, working the bank, and finally Laverne had a strong hookup. She played the fish patiently and after a valiant battle, landed a nice 18" Black "puppy" Drum, boy what a fish!

As we headed back we were bucking the waves so we had to take our time to get back to the dock. Although the idea that seeing 8 Rabbits may equate to a banner day of fishing didn't pan out, we had some good views of wildlife, we caught some fish, so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Good Bite, Felt Good

 After a miserable slow bite yesterday I was back fishing south today, meeting Eddie Byrd and Bob Kossman down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early. We made the run up the intercoastal, turned in to Jackstaff, and dipped into a side creek to fish a marsh edge with a tide that had been going out for about an hour and a half. The two anglers were tossing float rigs and live shrimp to the bank. Eddie had made an excellent cast  up into a pocket and as his float drifted around a corner it disappeared. Eddie tightened the line up and let the circle hook do its job and Fish On! The fish fought for a little while up near the grass and we were thinking "surely Slot Redfish" but then it got out into a little deeper water, bulled down, and had its way for a while. It did boil up a time or two so we knew it was now a Redfish but the way it fought made us wonder, and sure enough, when Eddie brought it to the net, it was a 28.25" Oversized Redfish, but boy what a fish!

We continued to work along that bank and at a large drainage Bob hooked up and landed a keeper sized Flounder. We then motored (slowly) thru the marsh to the Nassau River and fished the eastern edge of Middle Marsh with jig, to no avail. We crossed over and fished Spanish Drop with float rigs but had no luck, but when we switched to jigs, BAM! We had a hookup and landed a feisty Redfish. Bob went back to the same spot and had a good, strong bite and, Big Fish On! I thought for sure it was going to be another big Redfish, but when it got out deep it dug down, and stayed down which led us to suspect a Shark. Sure enough, after a long and patient battle, Bob brought to the boat a 4' Bonnethead Shark, photographed and released.

Moving up to Seymore's Pointe we fished some docks and caught a good handful of Mangrove Snapper, a few which were of keeper size. Eddie battled a hard fighting Jack Crevalle to the boat, had something big enough to rip some drag that came off, then we moved on. After fishing some rocks at Seymore's with float rigs, and getting a couple of small Mangroves, we move down the way, and tangles with a couple of Ladyfish.

Our last stop was back at Twin Creeks, fishing at almost a dead low tide with jigs. Eddie caught and landed a hungry Seatrout and Bob added another big Ladyfish to the catch, then we headed back to the ramp and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Flatties and a Slam

 I wrapped my week up today fishing south after launching at Goffinsville and meeting John Raker and his fishing buddy Kenny early. We made a quick run over to Spanish Drop with plans to fish some exposed shell beds with jigs and live shrimp on a tide that still had an hour to hit bottom. Kenny "knocked the skunk off" with a nice Flounder catch and shortly after John added one that went in the box at 17".

We then made a short stop at Bubblegum Reef where we had another small Flounder to the boat, then we jumped over to some docks and fished the first of an incoming with the jigs. We were in the right place at the right time where Kenny made short work of bagging an Amelia Island Back Country Slam - he put a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum in the boat then he added a keeper sized Seatrout.  We picked up a couple of more smaller Drum and then added to the box a good handful of Mangrove Snapper.

After moving around the corner we switched to float rigs to fish
some rocks and here the duo dueled with more Mangrove Snapper and almost reached their limit. Those Mangroves aren't real big(todays biggest was 12"), but you can keep 5 apiece and get some nice little fillets off for a fish fry or fish taco!

Our final stop was back at Spanish Drop, now fishing that incoming tide with float rigs. Kenny was on the stern and caught a hard fighting Jack Crevalle and a Ladyfish then John, fishing the bow, saw is float go slowly under. He tightened up the line, lifted his rod and let the circle hook set and, Fish On!  John played it patiently to the boat and landed another, even bigger, Flounder. After one more Ladyfish fight we called it a day and headed to the dock, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Super Grande Slam Today

Although the weather forecast predicted fishable wind early today, it called for increasing force into the 20mph range, so all I hoped was it be able to get in an hour or two of fishing before we had to buck the wind, which would make for a small window to catch fish. I met Dan and Kay Jones down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and we headed up the intercoastal, cut thru Middle River, and made our way around to Pumpkin Hill and set up along a flooding marsh line on the last few hours of an incoming tide.  Both anglers were getting good drifts but it took a while to get some bites. Truth be told, I was getting a little worried that our "window" may not be very big to catch fish. But, slowly, the duo began to get bites, then hookups, and began to catch fish - hungry Seatrout, with a couple caught of keeper size (all fish caught today were released). Kay even reeled in a hard fighting Catfish that surprised us!

We eventually moved around and fished another bank, had not real bites, then moved down to Broward Island, checked out the Bald Eagle, then set up and fished the very last of the incoming tide. Wouldn't you know it, the first two bites were HUGE! Both Kay and Dan had strong hookups and drag ripping, rod bending fights but it was not to be - both fish threw the hook! Ouch. But these two anglers were not to be deterred and continued to fish, catching feisty Redfish, a keeper sized Sheepshead(to make it a Slam), and a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum(to make it a Grande Slam). We also had a fly-by from the Goodyear blimp!

I could tell out in the river the wind was kicking up so we made the run over to Nassauville and fished some rocks, and again had good action. Both Kay and Dan caught some "almost keeper sized" Mangrove Snapper, another Trout or two, another Catfish, and two Flounder, one of which was of keeper size, but also giving them that "Super Grande Slam" of Seatrout, Redfish, Sheepshead, Black Drum and Flounder.

Yep, the wind was really kicking around the corner, coming out of the north as we headed back, but with the wind at our backs, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Feeling LIke Fall

 

We've had a couple of days now where there has been a "nip" in he morning air and you can almost believe that Fall is really here. Except we are still seeing Rosette Spoonbills and catching Sharks and Mangrove Snappers! But it's only a matter of time! Today I met the Tuten trio, James and Joyce and their son William, down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp as the sun came up. We made a short run up the intercoastal, in to the Nassau, and pulled up at a big marsh run out. The bait was moving and getting "popped" and we felt like we'd have some good action, and we did. Joyce "knocked the skunk off" with a hungry Seatrout catch and James followed that up when he felt a strange bump - he let it have it for a second then set the hook and boom, he had a fish. James brought it to the boat patiently and landed a keeper sized Flounder.

We worked that bank for a while -Joyce picked up a feisty Jack Cravellle, James picked up another Trout, then it was William's turn to finally get in on the action. He had a strong hookup and when the drag began to rip we knew it was a decent fish. James played it perfectly and brought to the net a 21" Slot Redfish. Only minutes later he hooked up with another and brought it to the net, this one just undersized. After a few more fish, we moved on.

Our next stop was up at some docks at Seymore's Pointe. It may have been William's first cast and BAM, a hookup. William applied the pressure and got it out from the pilings, then slowly brought it to the net - a 15" Black "puppy" Drum.  The trio added a couple of small Mangrove Snapper to the catch before we moved on. 

We passed under a pair of Bald Eagles as we approached another marsh runout. Just these anglers began to fish we could see a big fish busting bait up near the edge. Both William and James went with their cast and BOOM! William had a big bite then, BOOM! James had a good bite - we had a double!  James worked his in and landed a feisty Redfish but William's fish was a bit more determined. William played it patiently as it got out into deeper water and dug deep but it was no match for William. After a good battle he landed a 24.5" beautiful copper colored Red which was photographed and released.

After fishing one more spot and getting a couple of more Mangroves, we made the run back to Seymore's, thru Horsehead and over to the mouth of Jackstaff where we finished up the day catching high flying Ladyfish on float rigs. It was an absolutely gorgeous day and we had had some good action so we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.