Big Trout Kicks It Off

 I met Keenan Bell, his grandfather Tom and uncles Tommy and Ricky out at Goffinsville Park early this morning. There was a tide still coming in so we made our way over to Pumpkin Hill and set up to drift floats long, baited with live shrimp and mud minnows. (Note, the shrimp seemed to do better than the minnows today).  Ricky did pick up a small Jack Crevalle fairly quickly but it was Keenan who "made the headline" when he hooked up. It didn't seem like much but then as he worked it in patiently it began to rip drag and put up a battle. Keenan stayed with it and soon brought to he net a 20.5" Big Trout, boy what a fish!(and tied for 3rd place in the Anglers Mark 2023 Bragging Rights Tournament)  We continued to fish that bank and caught a couple of more Jacks, tangled with a couple of  high flying Ladyfish and experienced a couple of quick rips and breakoffs from Shark.

Moving down the way, Tommy, fishing out of the stern, hooked up and landed a small Flounder, and we had another quick rip from a Shark bite.

We then came back to Horsehead, ran thru, and around to Poteat Cut and set up again along a marsh line.  Tom drifted long and caught a hungry Seatrout and then we also got another Jack or two.  Moving back into Jackstaff, we worked another bank and this paid off. Ricky had made a good cast to a point of grass that had some oyster shell extending from it and just as he began to reel it back in, BAM! Big Fish On!  Ricky played it perfectly and after a good battle landed a nice 20" Slot sized Redfish.

We fished Twin Creeks for a bit and picked up a couple of small Redfish then fished then Tom had a good hookup, patiently brought it to the boat, and landed a keeper sized Flounder to round out an Amelia Island Back Country Slam. Tommy had a strong bite, played it beautifully, and landed the only Bonnethead of the day.  We wrapped the day up fishing some rocks at Nassauville and put a good handful of keeper sized Mangrove Snapper in the boat, and then we headed in, counting it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

 

Surprisingly Big Trout

 

I met David Vice and Robert Stettner out at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp early this morning, and boy was it a pretty day...and we had a bit of breeze for the most part. We made a run thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Cut to set up fishing a tide that had just started out, tossing float rigs and live shrimp.  David was once up on the bow while Robert took up the stern, and drifting long off the stern paid off! Robert hooked up and landed a couple of nice 18" Seatrout. We tangled with a shark, and David put a feisty Redfish in the boat as we eased forward, and when we dropped back to the original spot, David put another keeper sized Seatrout in the boat. He also added a keeper sized Mangrove Snapper to the box.

After fishing around a the pointe, we ran back thru Horsehead and down to Back River where we set up and drifted a bank again with the float rigs. We had a handful of feisty Reds caught, a nice Jack Crevalle and we tangled with a couple of Ladyfish. 

Our final stop was back at some rocks at Nassauville, now throwing jigs and live shrimp. The bite was immediate and you had to be ready! This duo of anglers had to weed thru some small Mangroves, but they were able to box a good handful of keeper sized fish, the biggest being a bit over 14" that David caught. The sun was overhead and the breeze had stopped but as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

Mike Maron. We lost a good one this week.

 I've fished with the Maron family for over 10 years. When they would visit Amelia Island Mike Maron would make sure to arrange a fishing trip, and sometimes two, to get everyone out on the water and get some family fishing time in. It was always a pleasure to get to fish with Mike and his family and I looked forward to seeing them each year. 

Unfortunately I learned that Mike passed away this week. I went back into my archives and found some old photo's of Mike and his family fishing on my boat. I have to admit that it saddens me greatly to hear of his passing. Mike was a good guy. We lost a good one this week.

School Was Out

 

I fished south today, meeting Garland Clark and his son Kris down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp early. We made the run up the intercoastal and made our way to Poteat Cut to set up tossing float rigs and live shrimp on a tide that had been going out for about two hours. The "flip of the coin" paid off - we had only been fishing a few minutes when Kris, fishing off the bow, hooked up and battled to the boat a large Seatrout. Garland tangled with a Shark or two and boated a feisty Redfish, then Kris, fishing in almost the same spot, had another big hookup and another big Trout brought to the boat. 

We fished up in Jackstaff with the floats for a bit - picked up a couple of nice Mangrove Snapper,  then made a run thru Horsehead and down to Back River and set up drifting the floats along some now exposed shell. They must have "let the school out" because these two anglers caught caught 12" Redfish, one after the other.  Garland battled a hard fighting Jack Crevalle to the boat, then we move on.

After fishing Spanish Drop on the last of an outgoing tide, we made a short run over to some rocks at Nassauville and filled our limit catching Mangrove Snapper, the biggest being right at 13". We were fishing jigs and shrimp on the bottom. As we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

Did I Lose Count?

 

Croaker, Redfish, Jack Crevalle, Stingray, Ladyfish(kinda), Bluefish, Flounder, Whiting, Catfish,Toadfish and a Seabass.  I think I got them all. 11 different species caught today!  I had met Jen and Ted Hessing and their kids Adele and Henry up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp early this morning. We made a run up to the outside of Tyger and fished a drainage with jigs and shrimp and minnows. Jen caught the FIRST FISH, a Whiting to get things started. We eased around into Jolley River and fished the "bank" with float rigs and here we had some good action.

Henry hooked up and landed a hard fighting Jack Crevalle, the PRETTIEST FISH, and Jen followed it uip with another sharp toothed fish, a Bluefish. Ted caught a couple of small Flounder then he put a keeper sized Flounder in the boat. They tangled with a couple of high flying Ladyfish

We then ran up the river to the MOA and here, we had more good action. The family of anglers caught a good handful of feisty Redfish then Adele, after making an excellent cast, hooked up and FISH ON!  She hung with it even though it was ripping drag and had a bend in her pole and after a good battle landed the BIGGEST FISH of the day, a huge Sail Catfish. Jen boated a couple of deep digging Stingray, and they also landed a keeper sized Croaker to add to their catch. Ted put another, bigger, keeper sized Flounder nt he box before we left. 

Our final stop was back at some rocks at Fernandina. Jen came close to matching the Prettiest Fish when she landed a magenta throated SeaBass, and to wrap things up, Ted hooked up and landed another , even bigger, Flounder to claim the MOST FISH caught for the day. As we headed back, we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

A Different Kind of Grande Slam

 I fished with the Sleeth brothers this morning, Brad and Jared, meeting them out at the Goffinsville Park boat ramp early. We had a tide that was still going out for a couple of hours so the "plan" was to motor down the Nassau, turn into the current at Spanish Drop, and fish back along the exposed oysters, tossing jigs and live shrimp and minnows. Brad was on the bow tossing the shrimp while Jared took up the stern tossing mud minnows and all told, they were about even on the "catch rate". 

Brad "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up out deep, and after playing it perfectly, brought to the net a keeper sized Weakfish (Yellow Mouth Trout, Sand Trout). We worked along the bank and both anglers hauled in some small but feisty Redfish.  We also tangled with some Ladyfish and Jack Crevalle and a Catfish.. After moving up to a large drainage, we added another couple of small Reds and  a couple of hungry Seatrout (which made it an Amelia Island Back Country Slam).

 We then moved up to Twin Creeks and here we could see the bait getting busted and Jared zeroed in to a small pocket and pulled out a couple of keeper sized Flounder - we now had a Grande Slam! Working up the bank just a little bit further and it was Brad's turn for the big fish. He had a strong hookup and as the fish got out deeper it began to rip some drag. I was "negative Nellie", thinking it was just another big Catfish but when it flashed to the surface we saw that it was a nice Slot Redfish. Brad kept the pressure on, played it perfectly, and landed the 21" Slot Red.

We fished a dock at Seymores and pulled out one keeper sized Mangrove Snapper, then made our way down to Broward Island to catch the first of an incoming tide. Which was a waste - we didn't get a real bite. We then moved up to Pumpkin Hill and fished it thoroughly and had some good action catching small "Rat" Reds, and a handful of Seatrout. We had stayed busy with action for the most part so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.  

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

Capped It Off With Mangroves

 

I fished with my son-in-law Nathan Taylor and friend Michael Silver this morning. We launched out at Goffinsville Park and made a short run down to Spanish Drop to turn into the current and toss jigs and live shrimp to the exposed oysters on the very last of the outgoing tide. Nathan "knocked the skunk off" when he hooked up and landed a hungry Seatrout. Michael followed that up with hard fighting Jack Crevalle catch and then when we reached corner that had a submerged "bar", the duo of anglers began to catch feisty Redfish. 

We moved up to a large drainage and here Michael put a keeper sized Flounder in the boat and we picked up a couple of more Seatrout out deep. We then fished some dock pilings on the first of an incoming tide and although not much was biting , we did catch a small Croaker. After running thru Horsehead and fishing the mouth of Jackstaff with the jigs, we came back thru and set up to fish some rocks with float rigs and pieces of shrimp. And almost immediately, we were putting keeper sized Mangrove Snapper in the box. We caught fish until this duo reached their 5-a-piece limit, then we culled a couple, then we moved on.

Our final stop was down at Pumpkin Hill, drifting floats long. Nathan caught another Seatrout here and Michael tangled with a big Ladyfish.  

During the trip both anglers had brief battles with Sharks but we did land one for a quick release. The breeze had blown all day and we had some good action so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.  

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

Steady Catching

 

I fished with William and Dara Blalock this morning, meeting them up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp early. As we eased out of Eagans Creek we were greeted with some clear skies and just a slight breeze to make for a perfect day to get out on the water here at Amelia Island.  We had a "plan" and that was to make a long run up the intercoastal, over to the Jolly River and up the river to the MOA in time to fish the exposed oysters on a tide that had been coming in for about an hour. Normally I just fish the MOA on the last of an outgoing tide but the last time William and Dara were here we fished it on a "first of incoming" and it paid off with some fish catches. And it paid off today, too!

This duo were making perfect casts to the shell and started off catching some small but feisty Redfish, then Dara hauled in a small Flounder. They picked up a Seatrout then William caught a keeper sized Black "puppy" Drum to make it an Amelia Island Back Country Grande Slam. William also had a big fish bite right at the boat, but down deep. He worked it up and landed a huge Catfish!  But later,  to put some icing on the cake, William had a strong bite and after he set the hook and the drag began to rip, we were left speculating "Catfish? Jack? Shark?  No, it was a nice Slot Redfish! William worked it to the boat and landed a 22" Slot fish. 

We moved around to fish the outer edges of Snook Creek and boy was there a bunch of bait moving! I was feeling optimistic about that stretch but even though it looked real good, I think all we got was a small Redfish that Dara reeled in. 

Back down the river, fishing a point with float rigs, things heated up. They caught a couple of small Reds along the right grass line, then they began to catch Seatrout. William hauled in a Trout that was a bit over 18" and Dara hauled in one that was right at 18". Dara also picked up a couple of Flounder just over a submerged shell bed. They had a good handful of smaller Trout too, but one which was of keeper size.

Our final stop was on the outside of Tyger, fishing a flooding bank with jigs and minnows. We found out that the cast had to be right up next to the grass, if not in the grass, and as you worked it out, BAM! Flounder Bite!  They had 5-6 Flounder caught along that stretch with a couple of them being of keeper size. The breeze had kept the heat off most of the morning and we marveled at the green marsh grass and shore birds feeding and as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

Found a Trout Hole

 I

hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend and holiday! I was back at it this morning, meeting Mike Livatino and his son John and daughter-in-law Deb out at Goffinsville Park boat ramp early. The tide had been coming in for about an hour so we made a quick run down the Nassau and began working a shell bank at Spanish Drop with jigs and live shrimp. As we got to a corner we had a good bit of action, hooking up some small Jacks and Ladyfish and we had a quick battle and SNAP with a Shark. 

Wanting to fish Broward Island on that first of an incoming we made our way down there and worked the bank pretty thoroughly. These anglers were getting good casts to the banks but all we really caught were a couple of submerged logs!

We then eased up to Pumpkin Hill and drifted floats long and had some good action, again - Jacks and Ladyfish. But the current was making a good rip on the other side of a point and just as we repositioned we began to get bites. John had made a good cast up to the grass, let it drift around the point and when floated into that chance in water, BAM! Fish On1  John patiently brought it to the boat and landed a nice keeper sized Seatrout. Then all three anglers were making that drift and it paid off with another handful of Seatrout, another, bigger, of keeper size.

We fished some docks at Seymores and caught some small Mangrove Snapper, then fished some rocks at Nassauville and here Deb put the first and only keeper sized Mangrove in the boat. We had some good action throughout the day and had a few fish in the box so as we headed back to the dock we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

NOTE: we had a bunch of bites today - a lot of "baitstealers" and eventually ran out of shrimp.  Try to have some minnows on the boat. Also, I dug out my cast net but didn't see a big enough school of mullet to cast to. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator

It Was a Hot One

 Driving home today after my trip I noticed on my truck screen that the temperature was right at 100 degrees! Although it didn't feel quite that hot fishing this morning, it was getting there! I had met Ed Brown, his son Spencer, and son-in-law Chris down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp and after running up the intercoastal and cutting thru to Poteat Cut, we set up at a point to fish float rigs on a tide that was coming in, already high, and already covering the oysters. It was only minutes into the fishing when Ed's live shrimp was hammered and his drag began to rip - a Shark bite. It kept going north. 

We picked up a small Jack and a big Catfish there, and tangled with a couple of Ladyfish, then we moved over to Jackstaff  and fished some pockets. After running thru Horsehead and down to Pumpkin Hill we again drifted floats, long, and this produced some good bites. Chris had followed Spencer across a point and a feisty Redfish liked his bait best! Further down the way Spencer had made a cast up shallow, near some sparse grass and it paid off with a strong bite and it paid off with a rod bending fight. He played it perfectly, worked it to the boat patiently and ....right at the boat...Fish Off! Ouch! We all agreed that we saw a flash of Redfish before the fateful moment.

Back down the Nassau we went, around to Seymore's Pointe, fishing a large drainage and almost immediately this trio began to put Mangrove Snapper in the boat. Spencer added a hungry Seatrout to the mix. We had a few keep-able Snapper, then moved around to some rocks at Nassauville and picked up a few more, bigger, to make a meal. Just when I had about given up on a nice Redfish, Spencer had a hookup and we knew right off it was NOT a Mangrove. He kept the pressure on and worked to the net a nice 20" Slot Redfish  to wrap up another hot day of fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Captain Lawrence Piper is a fishing guide in Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida and is a 

 US Coast Guard licensed charter boat operator