Every Other Cast

The wind finally died down today and I felt like we'd have a pretty good day of fishing...and it turned out we did. I met Jason and Alicia Ash down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp for a "couples day out" of fishing (thank you grandparents!). We headed up the intercoastal and made our first stop at the mouth of Jackstaff and began fishing float rigs with live shrimp up near the grass. I thought for sure these anglers would be catching fish in no time, but, no real bites, other than a hard fighting Bonnethead Shark.   I switched Jason to a Jig and alternated shrimp and mud minnows

and he began to put fish in the boat. Feisty Redfish, a Black "puppy" Drum, a Jack Crevalle, and a Ladyfish. We switched Alicia to the jig and she promptly caught a really nice Mangrove Snapper. Then she put another one in the boat.

We crossed over the creek, fished the sides of a submerged sandbar, and landed two hungry Seatrout, caught on the bottom with jig and shrimp.

After running through Horsehead and down the Nassau River to Spanish Drop, we set up along side an shell bed that was just beginning to show. While Alicia took a break, Jason worked from the bow and put small but feisty Redfish after Redfish  in the boat. It seemed like he had a hookup every other cast. Then, after baiting up with a minnow and making an excellent cast to the shoreline, BOOM! Fish on!  The minute it hit the water. Jason commented that he didn't think it was very big, but I could hear the drag ripping and his rod was bent - I felt sure it was a big fish. And when it settled in, Jason agreed with me!  This fish took him from the bow to the stern and from starboard to port as it dug deep to get away, but Jason kept the pressure on and after a good, long battle, landed a big 24.5" Slot sized Redfish. Now that's a nice fish!

We hit another outlet along the Nassau, caught few more smaller Reds, fished some rocks and docks at Seymore's Pointe, then called it day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

Another Windy Day But We Caught Fish

Those NE winds kept on blowing today, but we had a plan and it worked! I met Doug Russell, his son Doug, and his grandson Ben down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp this morning and we made our way up to the mouth of Jackstaff to fish an outgoing tide with mud minnows. Granddad and dad fished forward with jigs while Ben tossed a float rig out the back. Ben struck first with a hookup and catch of a keeper sized Seatrout!  I believe he added another couple of feisty Redfish then his dad put one into the boat.

We worked the bank, picking up a fish here and there. When we crossed the creek to a submerged sandbar Ben got hot, picking up a couple of Seatrout as he tossed his jig/minnow out deep then let it bounce across the bottom with the current.

After running through Horsehead we made a brief stop at some docks at Seymore's Pointe, fished some pilings, caught a small Jack

Crevalle, had a few good bites, but no takers. We then ran down the Nassau River and set up outside some shell banks. The anglers caught a few feisty Redfish before we moved on up the river, fishing run-outs here and there.

Doug Sr. battled a big Jack Crevalle and landed it while his son and grandson hooked up with a double of Redfish before Doug Sr. wrapped things up with a keeper sized Flounder. Although it has been windy the last two days, we've been able to get in behind the marsh grass and have some successful fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Shelter From The Wind

When I looked at the weather forecast last night it called for 13-15mph winds today. When I left the bait shop and checked, the winds were already up to 17mph. Ouch. I met John Conlon and his two sons Josh and Zach down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp and we went fishing anyway, with a plan to try and fish areas out of the NE wind.

We first crossed over to the Longpointe docks and pitched jigs and minnows up to the pilings on an outgoing tide. The anglers were

making excellent casts, but we had no bites. I thought we'd "bite the bullet" so we ran up the Amelia River and dipped in to Jackstaff and it turned out that my fears were unwarranted.  The marsh grass was blocking the wind somewhat and we were able to ease along the grass line. Josh got hot early, catching a hard fighting Jack Crevalle, then a feisty Redfish, then a Ladyfish.  Zach got on the board when he boated a Croaker then another Redfish. We had a nice Flounder to the boat but par-for-the course - it threw the hook right at the boat!

We ran through Horsehead and around to the Nassau River and set up to fish some shell beds. Josh and Zach had a "double" hookup, landing a Flounder and Redfish respectively.  John got on the board when he got hot, catching a keeper sized Flounder and a feisty Redfish. The anglers added a couple of more Reds then we ran back to some docks at Seymore's Pointe, where we had no real bites.

Staying out of the wind, our last stop was at the rusted old barge along the Nassau River and here Zach wrappeg things up by putting a couple of Mangrove Snapper in the boat, one of which was keeper size. And with that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Who'da Thought a Black Drum?

I wrapped my week up fishing today with the Maloff family - Seth and Valeria and their two kids Talia and Asher, meeting them at the Altantic Seafood dock with plans to fish the very last of an outgoing tide. We ran up to Tiger and after a brief orientation, tossed out the first jig and live shrimp and BOOM! Asher had a fish on!  He worked it to the boat and after a valiant battle, landed a nice keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum. I haven't seen one of those in months! After getting some pics and tossing him back (all fish were released today), we got all four anglers fishing and we caught fish for a good hour.

Talia reeled in the biggest fish of the day, a feisty Redfish and all the anglers mixed it up with Mangrove Snapper and saltwater Perch. Seth picked up a nice Red with six spots, Valerie added another Mangrove, then Asher put a fairly nice size Mangrove in the boat.  The bite eventually slowed so we ran up to the Jolly River to fish the "bank".

The wind had picked up (forecasted to get up to 11mph today - kinda aggravating), but it did keep the heat off. We worked the bank slowly, had a bunch of nibbles, but no real bites. Our next stop was up into Snook Creek, hoping for a shark, but again, nibbles but no bites. We made one last run around to Bell River and the land mass blocked the wind, making it very easy to fish the dock pilings.

Within a few short minutes both Asher and Talia had found a "hot spot" and caught Mangrove Snapper one after the other. Seth was patiently fishing forward and he too landed fish, nice feisty Redfish. Catching fish at the last stop made for a great way to wrap up a day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Flounder Top's The Board

It's kinda hard to decide whether to highlight the huge Flounder we caught today, or the three Slot Redfish that were also caught. I had met Heather Floyd, Josh and Larry, up at the north end boat ramp and with a baitwell full of mud minnows and just a slight breeze blowing, we made the quick run around to Tiger with plans to fish the very first of the incoming tide.

The three anglers were making excellent casts and we were quick to get bites - they all caught a small but feisty Redfish or two, then

Larry put small Flounder in the boat. We continued to hit the pockets then Josh had a strange bite and a hookup. Typical of a Flounder, we could tell he had a fish but it was like a dead weight, with just a little bit of pull, until it got close to the surface and went wild. But Josh was up to the task and patiently worked it to the boat, a Big 22.5" Flounder, the biggest on my boat this year, and big enough for Josh to corner first place in the Anglers Mark 2017 Bragging Rights Tournament -Flounder Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). Man what a fish!

Our next stop was up at the Jolley "bank" and as we worked along, the anglers picked up a few small Reds, then as we reached the end of our troll, Larry had  a good bite and, FISH ON! This was a big fish, ripping drag and digging deep, but Larry fought it expertly and soon landed a big 23.25" Slot Redfish! Another nice fish!

We ran further up the Jolley and around to the MOA, fished it until the oysters were covered, then dropped back to fish Snook Creek. As we worked along they caught another couple of Reds, Josh added a small Grouper, then it looked like Heather was going to finish things off when she landed a hungry Seatrout and a Jack Crevalle. But nope, Larry wasn't finished. Tossing float rig and minnow up to the marsh grass garnered him another, even bigger, 23.75" Slot Red. And as we drifted back along the grass, he had another hookup! Another 22" Slot Redfish. Now that's the way to wrap up another great day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

A Couple of Slot Reds

It was muggy this morning but luckily the cloudy skies blocked the sun and we had some pleasant fishing. I met Claiburn Hartigan and his friend Chuck down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp early and we made a short run up the Nassau River on slick water to make our first stop at some exposed oyster beds. Bait was moving and fish were popping and the two anglers picked up a couple of small but feisty Redfish and a Catfish.

We moved further up the river and again fished some oysters as the tide began to move in. Chuck tangled with another Catfish then Claiburn hooked up and landed a nice keeper sized Trout. Chuck had a good fish on that gave him quite a battle - a Jack Crevalle.  After crossing the river to fish some docks, we pitched to the pilings with jigs and minnows and caught a few small Mangrove Snapper, then a keeper sized one. Then Claiburn had a strong bite and we knew when the drag ripped that this was a good

fish. He played it patiently and soon landed a 19.25" Slot sized Redfish.

The tide had been coming in for a while so we ran down to Broward Island and fished the logs. I was a tad bit disappointed on the catch which was Chuck hauling in small Mangrove Snapper one after the other. But as we moved down the island we did pick up one good fish when Chuck hooked up and a expertly landed another 20.5" Slot Redfish.

Our next stop was up at Pumpkin Hill and again, more Mangroves. They did find a couple of feisty Reds and a high flying Ladyfish. After one more stop back at Twin Creeks on the Nassau, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Big Amelia Island Summertime Trout

I fished the south end today, and again we had just a tad bit of breeze. When I met Bill Lavery and his buddy Joe down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp we made the long ride to Broward Island to try and catch the first of the incoming tide - and we got there just as it had stalled.  The two anglers began tossing jigs and minnows and shrimp to the pockets and I think first cast we got a bite - a hungry Mangrove Snapper.

They worked the area thoroughly and after Bill had decided to work

his bait deeper, BOOM! He had a good bite. This was a nice fish, ripping some drag, but Bill kept the pressure on and after a good battle landed a big 19.5" Seatrout! We picked up a few small but feisty Redfish, then Joe had a strange bite on the bow. He worked it patiently to the surface and sure enough it was a nice keeper sized Flounder and typically - a thrash- and fish OFF! Ouch! But Joe continued to work the bank and hooked up again and this time he landed a nice 17" Flounder. We caught a few more fish - small Reds, small Mangroves, then we eased down the bank and set up to toss our jigs up current and let them bounce down the river bottom. The two anglers were getting bites, then Bill had another hookup - another big fish. He played it perfectly and landed an even bigger Seatrout, this one measuring in at 22.5", a fish that put's Bill tied for second in the Anglers Mark 2017 Bragging Rights Tournament -Seatrout Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings).

We made our next stop at the mouth of Pumpkin Hill, picked up one or two small Trout, one or two small Mangrove's then continued on back down the Nassau. After making one stop to tangle with some high flying Ladyfish, we made a stop back at some docks at Seymore's Pointe. Joe put one keeper sized Mangrove Snapper in the boat.  After hitting Twin Creeks briefly (and having a big fish break us off once), we headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

One Stop Makes The Trip

Back to "work" today after a day off! I met Brant Kelch, his friend Mary and his daughter Kara down at the Big Talbot Island Park boat ramp early this morning and we headed out under some ominous skies - dark and heavy with rain sheets showing to the south of us. But as we started fishing we could see a rainbow between two storms and they passed us one to the north and one to the east, leaving us with just a brisk breeze to fish some flooding oyster beds on the Nassau River on an incoming tide.

The three anglers were tossing jigs with minnows AND live shrimp, the first time I've used them in over a month, but we had no real bites at the first stop. We then ran up to fish some docks at Seymore's Pointe and sure enough, we found some Mangrove Snapper. Mary got things started when she put a nice keeper sized fish in the boat. Both Kara and Brant hooked up and landed fish. We fished the other side of the same dock, fished one more dock, then headed further up the river.

Our next stop was up Pumpkin Hill. We had switched to float rigs and even though the conditions looked good, we were having to toss our rigs directly into the wind, making it very difficult to keep our bait up near the grass line. So we worked our way around a point, got the wind to our backs and BOOM! This did the trick. Mary caught a hungry Seatrout, then Kara put a nice keeper sized one in the boat. Mary followed that up with another keeper Trout and then they added another hard fighting Mangrove Snapper, then another keeper sized Trout. We had a few more good bites, one that ripped some drag but threw the hook, then we made one more run back to Seymore's.

Fishing a dock the trio tangled with Mangrove Snapper, putting two large ones in the boat along with a couple of puny ones. It had taken the whole trip but these anglers had worked up a nice mess of fish! And with that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

One Heck of A Hot Spot

I was lucky to be included today in a "group" fishing trip set up by Capt. Scott Thompson and I had Zach and Elizabeth Powell and their friend Dale on my boat to do some Amelia Island Back Country Fishing. We had a high and still incoming tide so we left the City marina and headed up Bell River to set up alongside some flooded oysters. All three anglers were making excellent casts and although we had a few nibbles, we had no real bites.

So we ran through the marsh around to the outside of Tiger and the
fish "catching" turned out to be on fire!  They began to hookup with Seatrout after Seatrout then picked up some feisty Redfish then a couple of Jack Crevalle. It was almost non-stop action for a good hour. When it slowed we eased across a creek and BOOM!  Elizabeth picked up the biggest Trout of the day. 


We could see a bunch of feeding activity behind us on a pointe of grass so we dropped back and the bite got hotter. We had a number

of "double" hook ups and  a couple of "triple" hookups.  Dale was at the stern and drifting his float "to Cumberland" and he was picking up Jacks and Trout. Zach was making pinpoint shots to the point and found a Flounder hole, picking up four in a row, and then Elizabeth followed him in and got one, too.  We let the boat drift back and all three anglers were able to fish beyond the pointe and the catching got even hotter. They landed Trout, Redfish, Flounder, a big Bluefish, Jack Crevalle, and a handful of Spanish Mackerel and had a high flying Ladyfish to the boat. It was crazy.

The feeding frenzy eventually slowed so we made a quick run up to the Jolley River, fished the "bank" and the highlight was when a huge Tarpon lunged at Dale's minnow right at the boat -startling us all! And with that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Working Thru to Catch Some Fish

I think the high and incoming tide today - we're approaching a new moon - had some affect on the early fishing today. But my guest anglers were game and eager to get out on the water and get some fishing done. I met Tim and Jeanne Carson, Jeanne's sister Janice and her husband Rafael down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning and under clear skies, we ran up the intercoastal and dipped into Jackstaff to begin fishing with float rigs and mud minnows tossed up by the flooded marsh grass. The tide was still

coming in and even though the anglers were making excellent casts - we had nibbles, some bites, but no takers.

We ran thru Horsehead and down to Twin Creeks, set up again with the float rigs, and again, nibbles, bites, but no takers. Our next stop was up by some docks at Seymore's Pointe, fishing for Mangrove Snapper. Again, some good bites, but no hookups. Darn it!  We bounced around to some more docks, the tide was coming out of the

marsh, and finally, Rafael "knocked the skunk off" when he landed a keeper sized Flounder. We added one more hard fighting Jack Crevalle before we picked up and ran.

Pumpkin Hill was looking good as the current flowed out of the creek and it did produce a couple of feisty Redfish that Jeanne put in the boat. Janice had probably the biggest fish of the day right to the boat but it broke the leader and was gone!

Our final stop was back at Spanish Drop and here things picked up - finally! All four anglers were getting bites and they put a good handful of feisty Reds in the boat. Tim's rod got hot and as he hooked up a number of times. Boy was it hot! Luckily that last stop gave us some action so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida