Sunshine and Rocky

We squeezed in a morning fishing trip before the storms hit here at Amelia Island today. I had met Chris and Jessica Cafarelli and their two kids Bryce and Grace, down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp. The tide was high and still coming in so we made the long run (15 minutes) up to Pumpkin Hill to fish with float rigs and live shrimp along the flooding marsh grass. The "demo" cast picked up a Seatrout!  Chris and Jessica were fishing while the kids tended to the bait and we had a good flurry of fish catching. Although no fish were kept today, they landed a few Seatrout that could have went in the box, along with a solitary Weakfish that was kinda cool to see.  Jessica tangled with two hard fighting Jack Crevalle and won both battles then Chris had strong bite up on a flooded mud flat and, BOOM! Big Fish On. It was a battle. But Chris was up to the task even though the fish took him from starboard side stern to port side, then up to the bow and back. He kept the pressure on and eventually landed a big Oversized Redfish that measured in at 29.5", boy what a fish!
He followed that up with a big Bonnethead Shark catch.

We eased around the corner and fished a grassy island and here Jessica boated the first Mangrove Snapper of the day, Chris worked a Redfish from around the island, then he battled another Bonnethead to the net for release.  I think it was about this time that Bryce and Grace began to name their "pet" bait - I had broken out some mud minnows - one was Sunshine and one was Rocky - and the fish catching began to fall off - I mean what fish wants to eat Sunshine?

Our next stop was back at Seymore's Pointe where we picked up a couple of Mangroves, one of which was of keeper size.  Our final stop was down at Spanish Drop and after landing one more Seatrout and a feisty Redfish, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Fish'n AND Catch'n

Susanna Braun and Garland Clark treated themselves to a back water fishing trip today to celebrate Garland's birthday and boy was it a pretty day!  We met up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park early and headed over to Soap Creek to fish a large marsh run out with mud minnows under a float rig. Susanna got things started off quickly when she hooked up and landed a Seatrout. We eased up to an exposed oyster island and the fish catching commenced!  Both Susanna and Garland were getting good drifts along the oysters and both were catching feisty Redfish. Almost every drift produced a bite. The fish weren't very big - all under the slot, but they were fun to catch.

Eventually the bite slowed so we bounced out to another oyster "island" and again picked up a few of he Reds. We then fished some docks over in Lanceford briefly, got a few bites but no takers, then ran back to Bells River to fish some oysters shell banks. Here, Susanna picked up a couple of more Reds using a jig and minnow.

Our next stop was around at Tiger Island.  We worked along the logs pitching jigs and Garland found a hungry Flounder and we also picked up a couple of Mangrove Snapper. The sun was out, the breeze had died but we'd had a good morning of fishing so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Quality Fish

I fished with the Duma team, today- Scott and his adult kids Will and Kate - meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early. The tide had been going out for a couple of hours as we ran up the intercoastal to dip into Jackstaff, and then even further up a creek. This trio of anglers were tossing float rigs with live minnows up to a large runout and we did have a few nibbles at the first spot and then Kate "knocked the skunk off" when she hooked up and landed hard fighting Jack Crevalle.

We dropped back to Jackstaff and worked the bank, switching to jigs and minnows. Again, it was Kate who had the hookup. She had pitched to a small drainage in the marsh, had a bump, set the hook and patiently worked in a keeper sized Flounder.  Will followed that up with a Catfish catch!

We ran thru Horsehead, down the Nassau and pulled up at Spanish Drop to work that oyster bed.  Up ahead of us a Dolphin was wreaking havoc on our intended target, but luckily he/she didn't get them all. We had a good flurry of catches - feisty Redfish and hungry Seatrout and another Jack.

Our next stop was up at some docks at Seymore's Pointe. We had the stern to some pilings and were getting excellent casts to the pilings. Scott had went in between two, let it sit, and BOOM! Big Fish On! This fish was ripping drag and had no plans of coming in. But Scott played it expertly, let it run, worked it in, and landed an "almost too big"  26.875" Slot Redfish, boy what a fish!  Then Will got in the action  and landed a Trout that was just a tad bit short then he had another hookup and put a nice keeper sized Trout in the boat. Kate was fishing shallow and found a Mangrove Snapper hole - she caught 5-6 of those and at least two were of keeper size. We had a good well full of quality fish so we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida

ReShuffle Bragging Rights With a Bang

We did a 2nd trip today with the Maron crew, this time Mike had his oldest daughter Haley, her friend Josh, and Mike's son Troy with him. We met again down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp, but mixed it up just a bit. Our first stop was over at the Long Pointe docks, fishing jigs and mud minnows. Both Troy and Josh got on the board early - Josh with a feisty Redfish and Troy with a Jack Crevalle, and he had a keeper sized Flounder right to the boat.

After running up the Nassau River we fished a large marsh run out and here Troy started off hot, fishing the stern of the boat. He hooked up and landed another Jack, a Seatrout, and a Stingray. Haely got in on the action with a Ladyfish catch. They also had another feisty Redfish or two, and a couple of Trout. Mike had yet to put a fish in the boat, but I could tell he was just laying back. Drafting.

I didn't realize it but I had pumped my live well so full and the protective screen over the overflow was missing and....half our minnows swam down the tube to freedom!  We were almost out of bait half way thru the trip. But I knew where there was a pool backed up on the back side of a shell bank (Twin Creeks) so we beached the boat, climbed to the shell bank, and netted a good amount of finger mullet and some that were 8" in length.

Our next stop was on up the river with plans to fish some dock pilings. Most of the Team were fishing live finger mullet. But I had also "fileted" the larger mullet and I had found out a year ago that the carcass of the mullet made a good bait - just the head, skeleton, guts, and tail. Mike was using the carcass, pitched to the pilings on a jig and, BAM! Big Fish On! Mike worked it patiently to the boat and landed a massive 25.25" Seatrout, a big enough fish to move him squarely into first place in the Anglers Mark 2020 Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category(scroll down the right side of this report for standings). 

Then Josh put a nice 17" keeper sized Seatrout in the Boat, Haley added another one, then another. Josh caught  a couple of Mangrove Snapper then BOOM! Haley had a big bite. This fish was ripping drag and headed right for the pilings. Here line "locked" down, but Haley kept her composure, held the pressure, and gently worked it out of the pilings. She then expertly worked it to the boat and landed a fast 28" Oversized Redfish!  Only a few minutes later Mike had another big hookup - this one was ripping some drag too and I thought for sure it was a nice Slot Red. But as he worked it to the boat we saw that it was another massive Seatrout. When landed, it measured right at 25". Boy what a fish!

We fished Seymore's Pointe briefly with float rigs where Haley put a 12" Mangrove Snapper in the boat, then we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Family Fishing At Amelia Island

Mike and Shannon Maron had their whole family visiting Amelia Island this week and decided to take in a Back Country fishing trip. I met them, their daughter Libbie, and her friend Mark  down at Sawpit Creek and we headed up the Nassau River to make our first stop just off some exposed oyster beds with jigs and mud minnows.  We had a slow start but just as we got up to an outcrop of oysters they began to get bites. Mark started things off with a huge Bonnethead battle then Mike landed a couple of Seatrout.

The team put a couple of feisty Redfish in the boat, then Shannon battled and netted a big Jack Crevalle. Libbie wrapped that spot up with a keeper sized Flounder catch.

We moved up the river, fished some more oysters, landed one more feisty Redfish, then moved on.  Our next stop was down at Broward Island. I think we caught one more Redfish down there and we worked it pretty good.

Our final stop was back at some rocks along Seymore's Pointe and this paid off. We went through ab out two dozen minnows, caught a few handfuls of Mangrove Snapper with 6 of them being of keeper size - most in the 11-12" range. It was a good flurry of fish catching and a great way to wrap up a good day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Snappa Time

South again today! I met Eddie Byrd and his son-in-law Dan down at the South End early and we ran up the Nassau to fish Spanish Drop. The tide was going out and the bait was getting popped. Both anglers were making great pitches with their jig and minnows (yesterday the minnows caught fish and didn't have near the "pecks' from the bait stealers so I went all minnows today).  Eddie got things started catching a high flying Ladyfish, then a small Trout then Dan got in on the action and put a hungry Trout in the boat. We eased up the bank a bit and after Eddie had let his bait bounce on the bottom out deep he had a strong hookup. He played it perfectly and landed a 21" Seatrout!

We fished Athens Drop for just a bit and landed one feisty Redfish then we moved on - making the run up to Broward Island. The tide was still going out here and in no time we were catching fish. Small Seatrout, small Reds -many with multiple spots-and a small Mangrove Snapper or two. Then Eddie had a good "thump", hooked it up, and brought to the boat a keeper sized Flounder. Later, he landed another fish - a big Trout that I thought for sure would have to go back but it was just under the 19" limit, so in the box it went!

Our final stop was back at Seymore's Pointe. We only had a about 30 minutes to go in the trip so we started tossing the minnows under a float to the rocks and it was non-stop action catching Mangrove Snapper down to the last minnow. Some of them were in the 12" range and went in the box for future dinner. We caught fish down to the last minnow then headed in, counting it as another great day to be 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.

Three Fish On One Minnow

I fished this morning with Mark and Angie Smith and their son Zach, meeting them up at the Dee
Dee Bartels Park boat ramp early. We made a quick run over to Tiger Island to fish the logs with the a tide that had been coming in for about an hour. This trio of anglers were making excellent casts but we had a barrage of "bait stealers" and within 30 minutes our bait inventory was already feeling the strain!  So we picked up and ran up to the Jolley River.

I ran all the way up into the river and we pitched jigs and live shrimp to the oysters  Angie "knocked the (real) skunk off" when she hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. We fished  couple of oyster banks along the river and landed a small handful of fish - Trout, Mangrove Snapper, Grunts, and Croaker.

Our final stop was around at the outside of Tiger and here we found a handful of Flounder. Zach was acting as First Mate and "netman" while his dad caught and reeled in Flounder. We were down to our last mud minnow and Mark caught a fish, went back for another, then went back for another. I firmly believe he'd of caught a 4th if the minnow hadn't dropped off the hook after the 3rd fish!  Although we didn't get any big fish, we did get some action later in the trip so we counted it as another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Getting Out On The Water to Remember Our Friend Raymond Keen

It was sad news to get that our friend and fishing buddy Raymond Keen passed away suddenly Saturday evening. He and I were "tied at the hip" thru out high school and many of us knew him from school and playing on the Fernandina Beach HIgh School Pirate football team together. A few years ago Tony French, Raymond, Daniel Rhodes and myself decided to re-unite on the "field" of fishing so we set up a back water trip here at Amelia Island. We had an outstanding time, caught many fish and planned to repeat the trip annually. We fished two more times together (Daniel missed last year due to a bad oyster he ate) but unfortunately, we had our last fishing time together with Raymond. Since his passing I've given a lot of thought to what drew me to Raymond as a friend. I think I recognized way back that Raymond had a "good heart" - he meant well, wanted to do the right thing, and didn't have any meaness within him. He was a good guy.


Tony came in from middle Georgia last night for the service this afternoon. We put out an invite out to Daniel but he had to work with such short notice. So Tony and I went fishing, partly to honor Raymond with one more fishing trip, and partly to get out and enjoy a day of fun fishing for ourselves! We launched out at Goffinsville early and made the short run over to Broward Island. The tide was still going out, but was due to stop at anytime. I found out early that Tony's "strategy" was to catch fish quick and keep me busy netting fish and keep my bait out of the water! He landed a couple of feisty Redfish, a keeper sized Flounder, and a Jack before I could even wet a hook! Finally I hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. From then on we were catching fish -Raymond really would have enjoyed it! More small Reds and keeper sized Flounder. I went in between two logs and hooked up and landed a nice Slot sized 21" Redfish. We worked down the bank for hour or so, then moved on north.

 Now knowing Tony's strategy, I had a jig baited and ready to go, and tossed it to the bank, let it drop, and, BOOM! Big Fish On! It was a good battle but we won it and landed an oversized 28.5" Redfish.

Our next stop was back down the Nassau River where we fished the flooding grass with float rigs. We added to the catch a couple more of keeper sized Flounder. We hit Seymore's Pointe to try for Mangrove Snapper, then made one final run down to Pumkin Hill.

I picked up a small Jack Crevalle then Tony, drifting his float up close to the grass, hooked up and landed a keeper sized Seatrout. It had been hot the last hour and we were really feeling it but Tony gave it one more drift, this time baited with a mud minnows, and BOOM! Big Fish On! The drag was ripping and the fish was digging deep then it came up and boiled and we new it was a big Redfish. Tony played it perfectly, fought it valiantly, and soon landed another Big Oversized 30" Redfish, boy what a fish! And with that, we called it a day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, and a good time to remember our friend Raymond Keen.

Positive Energy Down The Line

We had another beautiful day today when I met Russell Beard and his two sons Russell and William up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park.  The sun was out, we only had a slight breeze and there weren't but a handful of boat trailers in the parking lot. We made the short run up to the Jolley River and set up fishing the bank with float rigs and live shrimp. I could tell that I was going to have an easy day when I saw that these three guys were anglers and could make the casts.  But the fish weren't cooperating, other than a flounder that William got right up to the boat.

But after running further up the Jolley, just past Snook Creek, things picked up. The trio landed Jack Crevalle, Seatrout, Mangrove Snapper and then William hooked up, battled, played perfectly, and landed a nice Bonnethead Shark. Russell The Younger hooked up and landed a feisty Black "puppy" Drum. No Cap.   We then came back towards the mouth of the Jolley, fished it briefly, then continued on.

Our next stop was on the outside of Tiger where Russell Sr. Battled a huge

Bonnethead (for our light tackle). Russell was zeroing in on the fish and credited the "positive energy" he was sending down the line! Moving further closer to the mouth of Tiger, we fished some flooded oysters, then both Russell Sr. and I saw a Flounder bust some bait, coming out of the water. Russell made an excellent cast with a mud minnow as bait, waited a bit, then saw his float begin to move off. Russell tightened the line, set the hook, and Fish On!  Russell worked it to the boat and landed a keeper sized Flounder.

The final stop was around in Bell River. Although the action wasn't much, Russell The Younger did put one Mangrove Snapper in the boat to claim the GPK.  It was a beautiful day and a great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida