Not In My House

 I fished Friday with Mark Caldwell and his son-in-law, a trip set up by Mark's wife Shelly - to get them out on the water and away from the day-to-day grind, and boy did we catch some fish! After picking them up at Goffinsville Park, we headed down the Nassau River and picked a shell bed to fish on the very last of an outgoing tide. It didn't take long before the two anglers were catching fish - Jacks and small but "feisty" Redfish.  

Daniel had a strong hookup and this one was ripping some drag. Daniel played it perfectly, working from the bow back to the stern and then kept the pressure on until he subdued a hard fighting Jack Crevalle.

But up ahead of us we could see a Dolphin move in to the "honey hole" we were heading for and as it began thrashing about, busting Reds for it's breakfast, I thought for sure our fish catching was over. He eventually moved on, working up the river, so we eased onward. We still caught a couple of more smaller Reds but then Mark, after making a perfect cast to the backside of submerged bar, had a fish take his bait with a vengeance and, Big Fish On! It boiled up almost immediately so we knew it was a big Redfish. Mark played it perfectly and after long battle landed an Oversized 31.5" Redfish - big enough to move him into 2nd place in the Anglers Mark 2022 Bragging Rights Tournament-Redfish Category(scroll down the right side of this report for standings). We speculated that this Red was so big he must have told that Dolphin, "not in my house!".

We fished that stretch pretty good, then tried a dock up at Seymore's Pointe, to no avail, then came around and fished between some docks at Nassauville where the two anglers picked up a couple of big keeper sized Mangrove Snapper and a fat keeper sized Weakfish. I had saw on the weather report that the wind was going to pick up thru the morning and sure enough, they got it right!

Our last stop was over at Pumpkin Hill, drifting float rigs and after getting a Jack or two Mark had a hookup and he could tell by the fight that it was a different kind of fish than we had caught all morning -it was digging deep and hard. Needless to say, I was bit surprised to see a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum come to the net - we haven't seen on in a while! And with that, we called it day and as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Copper Reds

I fished this morning with Bob Blalock, this time meeting him north, up at the Dee Dee Bartels Park boat ramp. Although forecasts called for some increasing winds, it was very pleasant when we left the dock. We made our way over to Lanceford Creek and fished some docks with jigs and live shrimp and mud minnows on a tide that had just started in. It only took a few minutes before Bob was hooking up with Redfish.

These fish weren't very big but we both commented that it was nice to see these juvenile Redfish in such quantities - it has to mean a healthy stock. We didn't keep count but estimated that we had landed and released over two dozen fish. Bob also caught a couple of hungry Seatrout, one of which was of keeper size.

The day before yesterday we had hit a "new spot" down south that was pretty cool and it popped into my mind that with just a little more time  on the run up river, we could hit an area that I had never fished. Bob was game so off we went. We made a pit stop at some docks and fished the jigs and picked up a couple of more Trout, then we continued on - a total of about a 20 minute run. 

Bob worked the bank thoroughly with the jig and we found that we had some deeper water so we had to let our jig fall, sit, and retrieve extra slow. This technique paid off and we boated another half a dozen feisty Redfish. Being up river all of these reds had a deep, dark copper color - just beautiful, and as we headed back, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Monster Bait Monster Fish

 

When Lisa up at the Amelia Island Bait and Tackle shop this morning mentioned the mud minnows "may be big" she wasn't kidding! They were monsters! After getting bait I met Bob Blalock out at the Goffinsville Park early. The tide was perfect, the first of the incoming, so we headed south up the Nassau and fished Broward Island with those mud minnows on jigs. Big Mistake. We fished a couple of areas and I don't think we had a single bite.

We stopped by Back River and fished some exposed oysters then continued on down to Spanish Drop and began to work the already flooded bank. Bob had a couple of "bumps" then we had a strong hookup. Bob played it perfectly and soon landed a nice 21" Slot Redfish. We worked up that bank and then switched to float rigs. Bob was getting a good drift when his float disappeared and after catching up his line and letting the circle hook do its thing, Fish On!

Bob played it patiently and during the battle he commented that he was getting some head shakes and sure enough when it came to the surface we saw it was a massive Seatrout! Once netted we measured it right at 24", big enough to move Bob into 2nd place in the Anglers Mark 2022 Bragging Rights Tournament-Seatrout Category. (scroll down the right side of this report for standings) Boy what a fish!

We fished Twin Creeks, and beyond, picked up a small Flounder, then ran thru Horsehead to try our luck over there, but to no avail. Then back to Pumpkin Hill where Bob picked up a hard fighting Jack Crevalle,  a Ladyfish, and a fat Seatrout. We wrapped the day up "exploring" then we headed back and counted it another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

All fish caught today were released.

Double Slot Redfish after Labor Day

 The Graff's were in town for a long week of relaxation and they took in an Amelia Island Back Country fishing trip the day after Labor Day. I had met Jim Graff and his wife Sarah and his daughter Casey down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning. The tide had just started out up at Nassauville so I made a bee-line for the "Spot". Maybe I should call it the MOA2? That might jinx it!

The trio of anglers set up with float rigs and live shrimp and began to toss their baits to the grass and were getting good drifts along the edge and it paid off. Almost immediately they were putting fish in the boat. They tangled with a couple of high flying Ladyfish then Casey "knocked the skunk off" with a feisty Redfish catch. Then her and Sarah doubled up, both with small but hard fighting Redfish. 

But it was after Casey had made a long cast forward, got a good drift, and BAM! Float gone and drag ripping! You can always tell when it's a bigger fish because it doesn't come right to the boat, and it almost always "boils" up, and this one sure did. Casey kept the pressure on and played it perfectly and after a good battle, landed a nice Slot sized 24" Redfish, boy what a fish!

We caught a good handful of Reds there, and Jim added a hungry Seatrout,and of course the Ladyfish, then we moved on, making our way back down the Nassau River and over to Twin Creeks. Again, we had good action early on the float rigs. Casey and Sarah were drifting long and picked up a couple of more Ladyfish, a Jack, and a couple of Seatrout while Jim, on the bow, switched to a jig and shrimp and caught a couple of Redfish on the bottom. Then it was Sarah's turn for the big fish. She had tossed her float rig up near the bank and it sure enough, the good cast paid off. Down went her float and zing went her drag -big fish on! Sarah worked it to the boat expertly, battle thru a couple of deep runs, and landed another Slot sized 21" Redfish.

After moving down  the river further Sarah caught a Flounder to round out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam while Jim stuck to catching Redfish. The sun was up and the bite was slowing and the Captain was getting hungry so we called it a day and as we headed back we counted it as another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Tulsa Time at Amelia Island

The closest I've gotten to Tulsa, Oklahoma is listening to Don Williams "Tulsa Time", but today I had a couple of anglers who had ties to the State and following it's motto paid off - Work Conquers All!

I had met Keith Mason and his fishing partner Michael down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning and we made a quick run up the intercoastal and then into the Nassau River and we pulled up at an exposed shell bank on a tide that had been coming in for about an hour. The two anglers began pitching jigs and mud minnows to the edge of the oysters. They had a few nibbles here and there then Keith outsmarted a hungry Flounder. After moving down the way to Twin Creeks, we stuck with the jigs and here Keith picked up another, "almost legal" Flounder. Then he had a strong hookup and the fish immediately boiled up by the shell bank - a Redfish for sure. Keith kept the pressure on and worked it to the boat. The fish thrashed and boiled but Keith was up to the task and brought to the net a nice 21" Slot Sized Redfish. 

We fished some docks at Seymore's Pointe to no avail, then move down to Nassauville where we picked up a good handful of keeper sized Mangrove Snapper.  Our next stop was down at Pumpkin Hill, drifting float rigs and the minnows on an incoming tide. The duo had a few "bumps", and had a couple of fish roll at their baits, but no takers.

After fishing some rocks at Seymore's we took the shortcut thru Horsehead and began working along a grass bank with the float rigs. Michael had been doing everything right but evidently had forgotten his lucky hat - until this stretch of fishing. He had made an excellent cast to a small point of grass and when his float disappeared he tightened down and let the circle hook set and, Fish On! Michael expertly reeled in a hungry Seatrout. Almost in the same area, but just to the left, he had a quick bite and put our 6th keeper Mangrove in the boat. And as we worked past a grassy island, again a pin point cast produced another "almost legal" Seatrout. Michael's good effort paid off and Conquered the Amelia Island back country so as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.  

Ladyfish Overload

 I wrapped my week up fishing with Jon Freund and his fishing buddy's Peter, Sandy, and Lewis - meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp. You could sum up the fishing trip with two sentences:

 1) We caught a bunch of fish                                                                                   2) There were a whole lot of Ladyfish caught!

Not that we didn't catch decent fish. These anglers put a couple of feisty Redfish in the boat, a couple of hungry Seatrout and made it a slam with a couple of "just under the mark" Flounder. They also battled Jack Crevalle, had a big (I mean huge) Toadfish to the boat, and boated a few Mangrove Snapper. But I don't know if I've ever seen so many Ladyfish!

We had run up the Nassau and fished some flooding shell bottoms with mud minnows under floats on the last of an incoming tide. We ended up fishing a number of spots along the Nassau on that last of the incoming, and then on the first of the outgoing tide. We had good action all morning long so as we headed back to the boat I counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Big Fish Makes Up for Slow Start

 We had a tide that still had about an hour to come in, maybe less than that, when I met Dennis and Carol
West down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning. We made the run up the intercoastal and passed two large flocks of Roseate Spoonbills sunning on the high tide on some shell bars, then we made our way into Jackstaff and then into an even smaller creek where we set up with float rigs and live mud minnows. Both anglers were getting good casts and we had some nibbles, but no takers. 

We then buzzed thru Horsehead and around to Seymore's Pointe and fished a large bay drainage on a the first of an outgoing tide and again, some good bites, but no takers. Our next stop was down the Nassau fishing a stretch of grass lined with flooded oysters and here we had some action. Both Dennis and Carol hooked up with some seriously hungry juvenile Redfish. 

Then, after we had dropped back to fish a point, Dennis had a strong hookup and the big fish headed east, ripping drag all the way. We both wondered was it going to slow down! But Dennis kept that pressure on, turned him, then battled him for a good while. It was really neat to see a big 'ole Redfish tail flail up a few times. Dennis worked him out of the shallows, got him back in the current, then slowly brought o the net an oversized 29.5" Redfish, boy what a fish! And big enough to move Dennis into third place in the 2022 Anglers Mark Bragging Rights Tournament -Redfish Category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings).

The duo added a couple of more of the "rat" Reds, then we fished a couple of run outs with jigs and the minnows. Again, we had some bites, some drag rips, but no takers. But it had been a nice overcast day, we'd had a slight breeze and as we headed back, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island.

What Started As a Slow Day

 ...turned out to be a Fish Catch'n day here at Amelia Island! I had met Darryl and Tanya Gainsford down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early this morning. We ran briefly up the intercoastal but turned into the Back River to make the short cut thru to the Nassau River. Once there, we found a flooded shell bank to drift float rigs and mud minnows on the first of an outgoing tide. Both anglers began getting bites, but they weren't takers - the float would disappear, they'd tighten up, but not takers.  Finally, Tanya hooked up and landed a fat Seatrout and that seemed to open the gates. They tangled with Ladyfish, caught a couple of small Jack Crevalle, and landed a couple of feisty Redfish.

We moved up the river and fished another flooded shell bottom on that outgoing tide, and again tinkered with some small but fun-to-catch fish. After moving around the corner and as we were about to leave, Darryl had a good hookup - he played it perfectly and when we saw the huge maw of a Trout mouth, we new it was a good fish! Darryl worked it to the net and landed a 20.5" beautiful Seatrout. (all fish caught today were released).

After running back down the Nassau we set  up at Twin Creeks, still fishing with the floats. I don't think we got a bite on those floats but after we switched to jigs and the minnows Darryl had a nice "thump", set the hook, and landed a (big to me and Tanya) 18" Flounder. Tanya followed that up with a feisty Redfish catch.

That spot worked pretty good so we moved down just a 100 yards and fished another large drainage and here the duo got in to a mess of Flounder. Both Tanya and Darryl reeled in the flat fish and put 4 more keeper sized fish in the boat. Again, we moved down, fished thru a drainage, and along some exposed shell beds. Tanya caught another feisty Red, then was we neared the end of that shell bank Darryl had a strong hook up and, Big Fish On!  It rolled up near the bank which signified "big Red" - and rolled up a couple of more times during the battle. Darryl couldn't have played it any better, patiently working it to the boat and the net to land a 23" Slot sized Redfish. 

We fished one more stretch, picked up another small but feisty Redfish, then headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Gone Fish'n at Amelia Island

I picked up Robert Stetner and his fishing buddy David out at the Oyster Bay marina this morning and we made short trip around the corner to fish some docks at Lanceford Creek on a tide that still had about 2 hours of going out. No minnows at the bait shop today, so we went with live shrimp and sure enough, we were feeding the 'bait stealers".  The two anglers did team up to catch a couple of feisty Redfish and a small Sheepshead.

We then made the long run down Lanceford, around the outside of Tyger and over to the Jolley River were we set up fishing the "bank", tossing jigs and shrimp to the exposed oysters. We had a good flurry of catching those small, but feisty Redfish - one of those Reds had 15 spots - maybe it will be big enough by the time the Spot Tournament rolls around! David also put a Flounder in the boat to round out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam of Redfish, Sheepshead and Flounder.

After moving up the creek we fished the mouth of Snook Creek and we may have had one more Red there. We also had a couple of Croaker caught. Back down the Jolley we went and around to Tyger Island logs on an incoming tide. Feisty "rat" Reds must have been on the order form because, again, that's what we caught. And another small Flounder.

The final stop was on the outside of Tyger, now fishing a float rig. Every cast produced a "nibble", but no takers. But we had had some good action thru-out the morning so as we headed back we 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