Culling Times Two

 Most folks know that my "wind cutoff" is at 15mph. So when I got in from yesterday's morning trip and sat down for a "picnic" at Old Town Bait and  Tackle and checked my cell phone for the weather report for an afternoon trip and saw 19mph I was somewhat chagrined. But the weather was nice, just a bit overcast and the wind was out of the west so I enjoyed the lunch and waited for Michael Monroe and his fishing buddy Phil.

With that wind blowing we decided to stay in the shelter and made or way up Eagans Creek to fish jigs and live shrimp up near some dock pilings on the last of an outgoing tide. In just minutes Michael had a hookup, a good battle, and landed a 23" Slot Redfish! 2 hours later, 12 Slot Reds later, 25 fish later, I checked my watch and the fish bite had finally slowed. At one point we had 4 Slot Reds in the boat and then it hit me ( this being my 2nd trip, I was tired and it just didn't click), the limit was 1 per person!  So we culled fish and continued to cull. In addition to those Reds, Phil put a keeper sized Sheepshead in the boat, and the duo had a good handful of small but fun to catch Black "puppy" Drum. We also had one "no spot" Redfish!

After that bonanza we made our way down the intercoastal, fished some rocks for just a bit, then continued on down to Seymore's Pointe to fish another dock. We caught fish again, one after the other - good eating Mangrove Snapper. Again, they caught their limit as we ran out of shrimp and we began to cull. I remembered that I had a handful of mud minnows left so we fished them and that's when we caught our biggest Mangroves! We had a long run back to Old Town and as we headed back we were able to reflect on what a great day of fishing we'd had here at Amelia Island, Florida

Big Battles Early

 I fished yesterday morning with Tom and Theresa Gaslin, who were taking in an Amelia Island Backcountry fishing trip to celebrate their new status as fist time grandparents, congratulations! Although the weather forecast improved from the night before with a small chance of rain, the wind stayed the same, hovering between 12-16mph. After meeting at Old Town Bait and Tackle we got started just at the tide reached its peak. Our first stop was over at Bell River, fishing a flooded shell point, and it didn't take long before Teresa was tangling with a couple of high flying Ladyfish. 

When the tide started out we made our way around to the outside of Tyger and here things heated up when Teresa got into an extended battle with a 4' Bonnethead Shark. She played it perfectly and patiently and got it up along side the boat for a "leader touch" and release. We then made a run up to the Jolly and Snook Creek where it was Toms turn to battle the big Bonnethead. Again, he fought it valiantly and got it up to the boat so we could release it. But then, as we made our way across the creek mouth, Tom had a good bite as his float disappeared with a vengeance and when his drag ripped and the fish stayed close to the shore, we knew it was a Redfish. Tom played it perfectly and soon landed a nice Redfish.

Our final stop was around at some docks in Bell River, fishing the pilings with jigs and shrimp. Although we had nibbles here and there, we had no takers so we headed back. We had had some serious action early and with thoughts of grandkids lingering, as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Sharks and Rays and Reds

 

It appears the thunderstorms were moving in early today but I was able to get out and fish this morning with Melody and Scott Norton and after meeting them down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp, we made the run up the intercoastal and thru the Back River and around to Pumpkin Hill where we stationed ourselves alongside a flooded grass line right at high tide.

The wind was kicking just a but it was coming over our backs so we were able to get some drifts and it paid off when Melody hooked up and  a battled a couple of high flying Ladyfish. We moved around the corner and fished it a bit but had no real bites. After running back down the Nassau and around to Seymore's Pointe we set  up at a large drainage and fished a point of grass with the floats. Scott got on the board with a keeper sized Mangrove Snapper catch (all fish caught today were released), and then we tangled with a few more of those.

We then ran thru Horsehead and around to a small creek and began working the edge. When we got to a small run out Melody made a perfect cast to the mouth of it and this paid of in a big way! Her float disappeared and after lifting her rod and letting the circle hook set, Fish On!  Melody played it perfectly and after a good battle landed a Slot sized 19.5" Redfish. Scott was fishing off the stern and had let his float go long and as he started to reel it up, BAM! Big Fish On!  We were in for a long fight. The fish did "boil" up once by the grass and I was speculating "Big Redfish", but then it made a couple of drag ripping runs so I switched my guess to "Shark". We ended up chasing it down the river, had to work it out from behind an abandoned crab pot, then continued on with the battle. Scott stayed patient and eventually landed a nice Bonnethead Shark for photograph and release.

After fishing Poteat Cut for a bit, to no avail, we ran back thru Horsehead and fished some dock pilings with jigs and shrimp. The duo landed a handful of keeper sized Mangrove Snapper, then we moved around to some docks at Nassauville. Melody had fished her jig out deep and when the rod bent we knew she had something big. Again, we had a big, long, battle. Melody stayed with it and an exhausting fight, landed a big Stingray.  Scott went in to the rocks and caught a 16" Flounder.

Kids and Sharks

 

We had a beautiful June morning today when I met Paul Johnson and his kids Henry and Grady up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp. Sunshine and just enough  breeze to make it pleasant to fish the back waters of Amelia Island. We eased out of Egans Creek and made our way over to the outside of Tyger Island and set up off a point of grass to drift float rigs an live shrimp on the first of an outgoing tide. It didn't take long before we were getting fish. After a huge fish rolled on Henry's bait, he later hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. Then Paul hooked up and landed a feisty Redfish then a small Flounder. All three anglers tangled with high flying Ladyfish. 

We moved across the way and where we picked up a couple of more Trout. Our next stop was up the Jolley River, where we fished another point briefly and here Grady got on the board with a nice Seatrout catch. Further up the Jolly, at Snook Creek, Henry had a strong bite and when his drag began to rip we knew he had a big Shark on. Henry played it patiently and after a good battle landed a big Bonnethead Shark. We caught more Ladyfish, a keeper sized Flounder, another small Redfish, then it was Grady's turn to battle the big Shark. She fought it valiantly and after a good battle landed another Bonnethead Shark.

Around at the MOA we caught a couple of small (really small) Redfish then we made our way around to Bell River to fish some docks. Paul put a Catfish in the boat and Henry wrapped things up with a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum catch. And with that, we called it day, another great one to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Count it as a Slam

 I fished with John Cipriani and  his fishing buddy John Givens this morning, and after meeting them out
at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp we made a quick run around to the other side of Seymore's Pointe with plans to drift float rigs and live shrimp on a tide that had been going out for about an hour. John was tossing the flat rig and had a few good bites before he hooked up and landed a keeper sized Mangrove Snapper and at the stern, John G. was throwing an 1/8oz jig with a rootbeer Gulp Shrimp with a chartreuse tail. He said he had just made a cast and the minute it hit bottom a nice fish picked up and, Fish On!  John played it perfectly and soon landed a Slot sized Redfish.

We then ran thru Horsehead and fished up a small creek with the floats. We were seeing some good movement and had a couple of fish "tail" out in front of us but we had no takers. After jumping over to Poteat Cut and fishing a point, to no avail, we made the run back thru Horsehead.

Our next stop was down at Back River where we fished floats long and here John C. put a hungry Seatrout in the boat, and then, over at Spanish John G. hooked up and battled a feisty Jack Crevalle to the net. We fished one stretch of now exposed shell then moved up the Nassau and fished a drainage before making the run back to some docks at Seymore's. Here we played with the Mangrove Snapper, a couple of which were of keeper size, then we landed a small but fun to catch Flounder that rounded out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam.

We finished up the trip fishing between a couple of docks at Nassauville. Again, we caught a couple of Mangroves and then John C wrapped things up with another Flounder catch. Although we had to work for what we caught, we did catch! And so, as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

The Bite Warmed Up a Bit!

 I wrapped my week up fishing with the Portfleet's, Tim and Lori and their daughter Danielle. After meeting them early this morning down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp we ran up the Nassau River to make our first stop at Spanish Drop on a tide that had one hour to hit bottom. All three anglers were tossing jigs - Danielle and Lori baited with live shrimp and Tim fishing with a mud minnow. That first spot didn't produce nary a nibble so we moved on up to a large drainage. Danielle had made an excellent cast to the mouth of the drainage and almost immediately, BOOM! Fish On! She played it expertly to the boat and landed a feisty Redfish to "knock the skunk off".

We moved on up to Twin Creeks and fished the very last of that outgoing tide and here Tim had the strong hookup. He worked it to the boat and landed a hard fighting Jack Crevalle. Danielle valiantly battled a Shark for a long while then it was Tim's turn to battle one. He patiently played it and after  long fight, brought it to the boat for pictures and release. Our next stop was up at some docks at Seymore's and here the trio played cat and mouse with the Mangoves. All three caught them and contributed to the dinner box. 

Our next stop was down at Broward Island and boy was it pretty! Not much wind today and it made it easy to work along the edge pitching. We had a few good bites and then Danielle took advantage of one of them and hooked up and landed a nice 17" keeper sized Seatrout.

I was timing the trip to end up at one of my Mangrove Snapper holes but as we were passing Pumpkin Hill I thought it might be fun to fish some float rigs, so we set up alongside a flooding shell bank and began to drift floats long with live shrimp and boy did it pay off! Right off Lori hooked up and brought to the boat another 17" keeper sized Seatrout and from then on these anglers were catching fish. We'd have a drag screaming run from a Shark Bite, then another. Danielle hooked up and while her Shark was ripping off to the west, Lori hooked up with a big fish too. As we were getting Danielle's fish to the boat I saw Lori's fish "boil" a few times and knew it was a big Redfish. After Danielle's shark was photographed and released all attention turned to Lori and her epic battle. She stayed patient, kept the pressure on, and eventually hauled in an 29.25" Oversized Redfish, boy what a fish. 

We caught a couple of more Sharks, another Jack Crevalle, and another feisty Redfish before we called it a day, and as we were heading back, we counted it as another great day to be 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.

Shark Battles

I did a quick trip this afternoon with Tom Pool and his wife Terri, meeting them up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle ramp. We ran over to the outside of Tyger and fished with float rigs on a tide that had been going out for just a bit and it paid off - Tom hooked up and landed Seatrout. We ran up to the Jolley River and fished the "bank" with the float rigs. Tom was getting excellent drifts and again, it paid off -his float slowly went under and he had a hookup!

Tom was playing the fish expertly and I had already grabbed the net  when I saw that it was a nice Redfish and just when Tom said, "I gotta get a picture of this"....fish off! Ouch!

But he wasn't to be deterred. We ran on up the Jolley and fished both sides Snook Creek and each side Tom battled a Bonnethead Shark, landing both of them for pictures and release. We tried our hand with the jigs at the MOA, then at a drainage on the outside of Tyger then toured Cumberland Island, Fort Clinch and Old Town before heading back to the ramp and counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida  

Hot Off The Stern

 I fished this morning with the Keller group- Tom Keller and his son-in-law Andrew and grandson Bryson. After meeting them up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp we made our longest run up to the Jolley River and all the way up to the MOA where we set up to toss jigs and live shrimp on a tide that had been coming in for about an hour. After Tom put a small Croaker in the boat Bryson had a strong hookup and boy was his drag ripping! I was quite impressed how he handled the big fish, keeping his rod up  and working it down as he fought the fish. Bryson battled it from the bow to the stern and from port to starboard and was playing it as patiently as anyone could when....BAP! Fish Off!

We came back a ways to Snook Creek and worked the edge with the jig and here Tom got hot fishing off the stern. He caught and landed hard fighting Jack Crevalle then after a weird bump and setting the hook, Tom brought to the net a keeper sized Flounder. We worked along that bank still and Tom put a keeper sized Seatrout in the boat and a large Bluefish.   Then it was Andrew's turn to battle the big shark. He fought it expertly and let it run and wear itself out and eventually landed a nice Bonnethead Shark

After moving even further back to the mouth of the Jolley we fished the "bank", then moved back to that cut thru Tyger Basin where we set up fishing floats and the live shrimp. Tom caught a Jack and another couple of Trout off the stern then Bryson, who had persevered the whole trip, found a Trout hole and caught and landed a couple of fat Trout.

We came back to the outside of Tyger, ran thru to Bell and fished a couple of spots (Tom got a Jack over here too), then we wrapped up back at the outside of Tyger where Andrew finished off the trip with another Bonnethead Shark catch. We had had some good action and had a couple of fish in the box so as we headed back to the ramp we counted  it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Wrapping Up With a Slam

I finished my week up fishing with Howard McClure and his fishing buddy Joe. I met them early this morning down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and even though we had some forecasted winds to get up around 14mph, we were eager to get out into the backwaters and get some fishing done. After making a 15 minute run up the intercoastal, thru Back River on a high and incoming tide, and around to Pumpkin Hill, we set up to drift float rigs. And the first casts paid off! Joe was on the stern and had a good bite, lifted the rod, and set the circle hook. He was playing it to the boat when Howard had a hookup on his first cast! Joe landed his, a hungry Seatrout, and Howard landed his, a feisty Jack Crevalle. 

Shortly after that Joe had another hookup. This fish was ripping some drag and fighting somewhat like a Redfish, but then it got out deep and began to shake and when Joe battled it to the surface we netted a big Jack Crevalle. We fished Pumpkin Hill pretty good, moving around a bit, getting a few bites, then we made a run around to Seymore's Pointe.

Again, tossing float rigs, drifting them by a grassy point, the two anglers had a few small bites, but no
takers. We ran thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Cut and fished into the wind. We had had not real bites and I was beginning to wonder when Joe, fishing off the stern and up near some flooded marsh grass, had his float slowly go under. I was already thinking "Flounder" and as Joe worked it to the boat It was confirmed, a nice 16" keeper sized Flounder (all fish caught today were released). 

We jumped over to Jackstaff and fished a large drainage and here it was Howard's turn to battle a nice Jack Crevalle, which he did expertly. Then he went back with a cast to the grassy point of an island and we both saw something hit  his bait with a vengeance and his float disappeared sideways and, Fish On!  Howard played the big fish perfectly and after a good battle landed a Slot Sized Redfish to garner this duo of anglers an Amelia Island Back Water Slam. 

We finished the day back at Nassauville, out of the wind, and getting some good "Mangrove Snapper Action". Again, all fish were released today but they had probably 6-7 keeper sized Mangroves they could have kept. They're getting bigger as the water warms. We had had some good action and as we headed back to the ramp we co8unted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.