What does a Manatee's Breath Smell Like?

Brandt Kessler was in town with his family for a much needed break as a small business owner, visiting from the Atlanta area, and was eager to take in some backwater fishing. I picked him up at Elizabeth Pointe Lodge (they were staying at the Captain's House) and we headed for the North end boat ramp, launching just a little after 7am. The tide had hit bottom at around 6:30am so we had the entire incoming tide to fish so we ran up to the Jolley River to get away from the weekend boat traffic and began a troll of the oyster lined banks. It wasn't long before Brandt was picking up small, but feisty Redfish, a few Croaker, and even a small Snapper.
It was great fishing, then BOOM, Big fish on! The drag ripped, the pole bent and Brandt settled in for a long fight. We knew it wasn't a shark because the fish hunkered down deep then it rolled a couple of times at the surface, signs of a Big Redfish! Sure enough, after Brandt battled the fish expertly, we brought to the net an out-of-the slot, 28" 8.5lb Redfish! We snapped some pictures, eased the big fish over the side to swim off to the depths. What a fish!
We went further up into the river, caught a Red at the MOA (Mother-of-All) spot, then came back around to "Snook" Creek and anchored. Brandt caught a couple of more feisty Redfish, a couple of Trout and then hooked up for another battle with a drag ripping Bonnethead Shark. We got it to the net and I tossed him into the floor of the boat to be grappled with for pictures. The tide was up so we headed back to Tiger Island with the intentions of fishing the outside marsh grass but as we eased up to the area with the trolling motor we were greeted by a herd of Manatee lolling and cavorting in the shallows. I eased the river anchor over the side and soon Brandt and I were surrounded by the herd. They were coming up to the boat, laying their snouts along the side; we watched as the rolled and lolled and nuzzled each others snouts, only a foot away from the gunwale. Fishing was forgotten for the moment as we both grabbed cameras and snapped away. At times they were so close we got a whiff of their breathes - my first impression - was the smell of "fresh cow manure"!
After about 30 minutes we eased out of the area, with a small group chasing us, and went around to a grass patch to finish up the day with a few more Redfish, Trout and finally a Flounder. What a great day of fishing and spending time out on the water!

Bait House Closes

I spoke with Knute and Rose Douglas this morning and it looks like I may have bought my last shrimp from them as they were shutting down their business, the Bait House. The Douglas's have been long time owners of the bait shop and have been a great asset to the fishing community. They'll be sorely missed. I wish them all the best as and hope they get some needed rest from the rigors of operating a bait shop.

Left 'em Biting

I fished with Jeff Haskins and his sons Lucas and Jacob again today and the guys picked up where we left off Monday...catching fish! Knowing that temperatures were predicted to hit 100 today, we got an early start from the Dee Dee Bartels boat ramp on the north end of the island, and headed up to Jolley River to fish the very first of the incoming tide. The anglers were making pin-point casts to the base of the oyster lined banks and immediately began to get bites and fish! Jeff got it started off with a feisty Redfish then the young men began to hookup as well, catching Reds and Trout and then Jacob thought he was hung up but no, it was a keeper sized Flounder! We made two passes of the same bank, catching fish on both passes, then we headed upriver to "Snook Creek" where they caught a few more Redfish then Jacob hooked up and expertly fought what we think was a Shark. He had him on for about 5 minutes then the beast pulled loose and went on his way. We moved around to the MOA spot, caught a Red and a Trout, then headed in to get some live shrimp. We fished the mouth of "Manatee Creek" and sure enough, we were treated to a visit from a "herd" of Manatee. The guys caught more Redfish and Croaker then we moved around to the front of Tiger Island where they completed the Inshore Slam when Jeff fought to the net a keeper sized Redfish. Lucas made sure of it by putting in the boat another keeper sized Flounder and a keeper sized Trout.

All three were catching fish - Reds, Trout, Croaker, and "baitstealers" when we ran out of shrimp and called it day, another great one to be out on the water!

Fast and Furious

Jeff Haskins was in town with his family, visiting from Tennessee, and scheduled to take in an Amelia Island backountry fishing trip for him and his two sons, Lucas and Jacob. We met at and left from the south end boat ramp at 7am this morning and ran up the Amelia River to the mouth of Jackstaff. I had been kicking around where to fish this morning with the tide coming in and expected to peak at around 10:30am. The oysters were still showing so we anchored up at the mouth of Jackstaff and began to fish the 1/4oz Sure Catch jigs with a live shrimp attached. After only a few casts the guys were hooking up. Jeff caught a feisty Redfish then Lucas had a major battle on his hands with something big that he fought expertly for 10 minutes. The fish went from bow to stern and back again then under the anchor rope.
Lucas passed the rod to me and I threaded the rod under the rope and then back to Lucas...and then I slipped and almost went overboard with one leg in the water and one around the trolling motor! Luckily, Lucas was there to lend one hand, with the rod in his other, and we got me back on board! The fish eventually broke itself off, but it was good practice because it wasn't long before Lucas had on a hard fighting Jack Crevalle. He fought this one to the boat and the waiting net.
While all this was going on, Jacob hooked up with another Redfish and battled it to the boat, then Jeff had a Bonnethead Shark take his bait and the fight was on! After playing the fish like a pro, we soon boated the 4' Shark for pictures and release. This went on for about two hours with Sharks, Jack Crevalle, Redfish, Trout and Flounder being caught, photographed, and released. It was a beautiful morning and the fish were biting! We eventually moved around to the Nassau River, fished Bubblegum Reef briefly, then headed down the Nassau to troll the marsh grass. They guys continued their catching ways, pulling in more Redfish, Trout and another Flounder. We left them biting, counting it as another great day to be out on the water!

Quality over Quantity

Trevor Ruble has been visiting Amelia Island for years - has done some offshore fishing here - but wanted to do some backcountry stuff. Trevor is Founder and Executive Director of Hooked for Life Ministries and is an accomplished angler, teaching classes on fishing at his local Community College. We left the south end boat ramp at 7am with an incoming tide that would peak at 9:30am. With the water already up to the marsh grass, we started a slow troll along the banks of the Nassau River, tossing live shrimp under a Cajun Thunder float. It wasn't long before Trevor hooked up with and fought to the boat a hard fighting Jack Crevalle. While we paused at a runout, Trevor made an excellent cast to the mouth of run out; the 10lb braided line drifted over a stalk of marsh grass and while Trevor eased the line over it, he hooked up with something that started its pull slowly then increased to a strong tug! We soon netted an 18"+ Flounder! We did see a small Redfish tailing up near the marsh grass but it wouldn't take our bait, so we headed up to Bubblegum Reef, anchored, and pitched the float rig up to the marsh grass. Something was chasing bait fish near a point of grass and Trevor got his bait in position; soon he was hooked up and in a major battle! The fish pulled and ripped drag then ran to the stern of the boat and back to the bow. When it rolled 30 yards from the boat we knew we had a big Redfish on and it was confirmed when Trevor worked 'em to the boat and net. Wow what a fish, measuring 26+"! We tried our luck at Broward Island just as the tide turned, picking up a small Redfish, then headed back to Jackstaff to fish the banks as the tide started out. Trevor caught a few more Redfish then hooked up to a BIG fish. Line ripped out, drag hummed, and the rod bent double. After what seemed like forever, we boated a 4' Bonnethead Shark for pictures and release. We had a few more of those, but they broke off and with that, we called it a day, another great one to be out on the water!

Red and Jack

Greg Barbaree and his family squeezed in a quick vacation to Amelia Island and he set up an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip with his son Brooks and friends Brett and Trey. We left the South end boat ramp at 7am with the tide expected to peak at it's highest at 8:30am. Our first stop was the mouth of Jackstaff where we anchored up and unlimbered the spinning rods. Greg hadn't cast but once or twice when he hooked up to a hard fighting fish, one that bent Greg's rod for sure, and we had a slot-sized 21" Redfish in the boat right off the bat! The rest of the guys joined in with Brooks pulling in a nice Jack and then Brett and Trey hooking up with Redfish. Brooks had a fat Trout take his jig and put up a good fight; it looked bigger in the water, but when measured was just under the size limit. Then Trey hooked up with something big that didn't run like a Shark so we thought it must be a Redfish. After a long battle he brought to the boat and Greg's waiting net a huge Jack Crevalle. We moved into Nassau River where Brooks hooked up and fought a 4' Bonnethead Shark on 10lb test; they went around the boat for probably 15 minutes until Brooks won out, bringing to the surface the worn out Shark. We broke it off then headed back to Jackstaff where the guys all caught more small Redfish and a few more Jack and with the sun getting high, we headed in, counting it as another great day on the water.

Redfish and Manatee Thick as Fleas

If you've kept up with this months fishing reports you've seen that almost every trip has seen anglers having huge success's with fish catching and the Redfish have been so abundant that I proclaimed them today "thick as fleas". I've never seen anything like it! With the exception of a few trips, most of these Reds have been small "Rat Reds", but they're fun to catch and if their numbers are any indication, it won't be but a year or two and we'll be wallowing in Big Reds! Madelaine Cosgrove of Jacksonville set up an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip for her grandchildren so we met at the Atlantic Seafood dock this morning at 7am. Son-in-law Sam Cutting came along to support his two sons, Henry and Charlie, and his niece Megan for a day of "catching".
There was very little wind and the temperatures were expected to reach the mid-90's so we headed up to Jolley River to fish a run-out. It wasn't long before Charlie hooked up with a feisty Redfish, then Megan did too. The tide was high and just starting out so all the anglers were using live shrimp under a Cajun Thunder float. We picked up a few more then headed back to a large creek mouth near Tiger Island and as we were easing up to the grass line with the trolling motor we was the Manatee rolling and lolling in the shallows. This had to have been the biggest herd of Manatee that I've seen; there were big ones and little ones and they were having a grand time cavorting in the water. We fished out the other side of the boat and soon everyone was catching fish with most of them being Redfish with a few Croaker thrown in to make it interesting. Henry hooked up with a nice Red and played it expertly to the boat and Sam picked up a few, too. With so many bites we eventually ran out of shrimp so we headed in to the Bait House for a few more dozen and took in a nice break to stretch our legs. We made a brief stop in Eagans Creek, picking up a few more Reds, then headed to the mouth of Lanceford Creek.
The tide had dropped considerably and the oysters were showing so we switched to the jig/shrimp combo and sure enough, started picking up Redfish again, with a few Croakers to add to the catch. We had a bump of excitement when Henry had a Bonnethead Shark chase down his bait, hookup and put up a brief battle before he broke off. The sun was now getting hot so we headed in; the anglers had kept track of their "catch" and we totaled it up: 31 fish caught, another great day out on the water!

New Law could Tax Fishing Guides

PLEASE call your Senators and Representatives and ask them to oppose H.R. 3619, Sec. 301. If enacted, this law would allow State and Local governments to tax the services of Fishing Guides. That means my 1/2 day trip fare of $350 could have an added cost of $45! Wow, when will these yahoo's every learn? Read more about H.R. 3619 here.

Family Day of Fishing

The John Fagan family was in town, visiting from Mississippi, and took in an Amelia Island backcountry fishing trip. We met up at the south end boat ramp this morning and headed up the Intercoastal, making a brief stop at the Longpointe docks to pitch some mudminnows to the pilings on the last of an outgoing tide. We had no bites so we cruised up to the mouth of Jackstaff and anchored just eastof a runout. John's wife, Nancy and youngest daughter Baileigh had the hot rods early, boating Redfish, Drum, Trout and hard fighting, hard pulling Jack. Ashleigh joined in on the action, catching a Redfish and then Bonnethead shark. We moved across the creek to fish a sandbar point where John hooked up and brought to the net a nice, fat, keeper sized Trout. We ran around to Nassau River, anchoring at a runout on the first of the incomiing tide and everyone joined in to catch Redfish. Baileigh added to the "species caught" list by catching the "poor man's Tarpon" - a Ladyfish. She also pulled in a Bluecrab which we promptly cut up for bait. It wasn't long before drag was being ripped off the reel of the crab baited rig! John fought the fish expertly and eventually brought the 4' Bonnethead to the boat for veiwing, then we broke it off to be caught another day. One more stop produced a few more Reds with John pulling in the biggest for the day, another great one to be out on the water!

Three Generations Fishing

John Orr fished with me Saturday, courtesy of his wife Lynn, cashing in a Father's Day gift certificate. He brought along his father, David Orr and his nephew John, meeting me at 7am, Atlantic Seafood dock. We left promptly, but headed south to fish the Horsehead area. We eased up in to Jackstaff creek anchored, and unlimbered the spinning rods. "Little" John had the hot rod early, catching Drum, Redfish and Trout. Grandad David joined in on the action, picking up a few Reds and Drum, too. Then "Little" John caught a Trout and a hard fighting Jack.
David hooked something BIG and it kept going, ripping drag, and kept going until it eventually spooled the entire line and SNAP, it was gone! We all speculated that it was a large Bonnethead Shark, but in subsequent days, I've seen Tarpon rolling in the same creek - so who knows? "Big" John finally got in on the action by hooking up with another BIG fish -he fought it expertly from bow to stern and around the transom and almost had it up to the surface when it threw the hook and was gone! OUCH! We moved on up the creek, stopping to cast net for some finger mullet and young John tried his hand with the cast net to pick up a few shrimp. We stopped at a runout further up and Big John picked up a Redfish and a Trout. After a brief stop at Bubblegum Reef, we moved on down the Nassau River and with the tide just starting to come back in, found an oyster outcrop to wind the day up with number of small Redfish brought to the net. David topped it off with the biggest Red of the day then we headed in, counting it as another great day to be out on the water!