Big Redfish In The Rain

 I uncovered the boat this morning in the rain, and it rained from the bait shop down to Sawpit, and it
rained when John Foreman, his son Chase and grandson Nate and I ran up the intracoastal to make our first stop at Poteat Point. It rained for about two hours into the trip, but the fish were biting! I think John's first or second cast produced a nice 17" keeper sized Seatrout (the only one caught today), then Chase had a strong hookup on his float rig with live shrimp, and the battle was on!  And Chase was up to the battle - he played it perfectly, let it run ripping drag, worked it in, let it run and after a good fight landed an Oversized 28" Redfish, boy what a fish. 

We worked that bank good - John hooked up and expertly landed a Slot sized Redfish and the trio caught a handful of smaller Reds. Then Chase was again in for the big battle, and this fish was a BIG! Chase fought it from one side of the boat to the other as it dug deep and headed down river but he turned, it worked it in, and wore it out and eventually landed an even bigger Oversized Redfish, this one measuring 29.25". We crossed the creek and fished that for a bit, then made our way around to Jackstaff "bank" and worked it with jigs and live shrimp. We may have picked up a Catfish or two. 

After running thru Horsehead and down the Nassau to Twin Creeks we stayed with the jigs and fished
there and a few other drainages. Chase picked up another Slot Redfish, Nate landed a feisty Sheepshead, then he and John tag teamed a big 4' Bonnethead Shark.  John had a strange "thump", hooked it up and brought to the net a keeper sized Flounder, then further down the river it was Nate's turn to battle a big Slot Red. He played it perfectly, stuck with it, fought it in, and landed the biggest Slot Redfish of the day. We finished up fishing over at some docks where they caught a couple of Catfish before Chase hauled in the last keeper fish, a nice Flounder. 

We had gotten wet, but caught big fish, and had a good mess 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. 

Flounder Bragging

 We had movement on the Bragging Rights board today - Flounder category. I had met Clint Davidson, his wife Kat, and her father Brian up at the Old Town Bait and Tackle boat ramp early this morning, and after easing out of Eagans Creek and running up to the intracoastal, we pulled in to a small drainage on the outside of Tyger to try our hand at catching some Flounder, and it paid off - after a few casts Brian had a good hookup and landed a nice Flounder.

After moving around to the Jolley River and working along the "bank", Kat had another good "bump", out deep - she set the hook and Fish On! Kat played it perfectly and soon landed a keeper sized Flounder. We worked along there for a bit, then ran further up the Jolley and fished a deep bend with the jigs. Here both Clint and Brian tangled with some hard fighting, deep diving Bonnethead Shark. 

We puttered a short distance away to the MOA and began pitching the jigs. In just a short few minutes Clint was hooked up. This fish was ripping some drag and took Clint from the bow, back to the stern, around from starboard to port, then back up to the bow. He played it expertly and after a good battle landed a nice 19" Slot Redfish. There was plenty of bait movement and a bunch of feeding fish but that was all we caught there. We fished back at Tyger logs, worked it good, then made a long run around to Lanceford Creek.

BM1 produced no fish - the wind and current was not working in our favor. We moved further up the
creek, with minutes to go in the trip and Brian, fishing long with a float had decided to reel in and BAM! Big Fish On!  Brian worked it in slowly, eased it up off the bottom and glided it into the net - a nice 19" Flounder, big enough to move in to first place in the Anglers Mark 2025 Bragging Rights Tournament - Flounder category (scroll down the right side of this report for standings). We had a few fish in the box, had had some decent action throughout the day, so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Seatrout Symposium Scheduled

2025 FWC Seatrout Symposium

 

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is excited to announce the 2025 Seatrout Symposium, which will take place on August 27th at the Daytona Beach Hilton Oceanfront Resort in Daytona Beach, Florida.

This one-day event will bring together stakeholders, scientists, and fisheries managers for an in-depth look at the spotted seatrout fishery in Florida. Attendees will hear highlights from the newly completed FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute stock assessment for spotted seatrout, explore the critical role of habitat and water quality for this fishery, and share regional insights and perspectives on this popular recreational and commercial species in Florida.

This symposium also marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in the management of spotted seatrout. Building on the success of FWC’s holistic management strategies for redfish and snook, the FWC is now exploring a similar approach for spotted seatrout: use multiple metrics to manage on a smaller regional scale.

We invite all interested stakeholders to join the conversation shaping the future of this fishery.

 

Mark Your Calendar – Full Details Coming Soon

Registration instructions, hotel booking information, and full event details will be available soon. In the meantime, please visit MyFWC.com/SeatroutSymposium for the latest updates.

Fishing The NSFA Tournament with High School Buddies

 We've been getting together for about the last 5 years - my High School football teammates and yesterday
we fished the NSFA Rodeo Tournament. Tony French played linebacker our Senior year, Daniel "bubba" Rhodes anchored one side of the line at offensive tackle while I anchored the other side at tackle. A few years ago we lost teammate Raymond Keen who had fished with a couple of those years prior and we always miss him. 

We launched early out at Goffinsville Park and made a quick run over to Spanish Drop on the Nassau River and began pitching jigs and live shrimp and mud minnows. We hit a bunch of spots that day - we fished from 6:30am to about 4pm and at least two of us were complaining about sore knees and ankles as the day wore on. Tony "knocked the skunk off" when he caught a keeper sized Flounder, and I followed that up later with another keeper Flounder. Neither were big enough to warrant running them to check in, but they did go in the box!

We fished a few spots up and down Nassau River and picked up a good amount of small Redfish and a couple of Slot sized Reds. One of those that Dan caught was of legal size and had 4 Spots, again, probably not enough  to run to check in. We ran thru Horsehead and fished Jackstaff "bank" and caught another handful of Reds, and Jacks. Throughout the day we battled a couple of Sharks to the boat and released. Fishing back in the Nassau we landed more Redfish  on float rigs now, over the oyster beds. We ended up catching 4 Slot Reds for the day - Dan had the biggest at 25". We had to release two due to bag limits.

Also caught  were TWO oversized Redfish! The first ended up measuring at 27.5", just a half inch over the size limit. You can imagine the excitement when you know you've got a BIG Redfish on in a Tournament. That happened twice - the 2nd was FAT and measured well about he Slot at 29.5". Oh well - we had a great time catching up and reminiscing about growing up and going to school at FBHS so as we headed back to the ramp we counted as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Scuttlebutt: Boat Ramp and Parking Under Fire From City

Charter Captain Jesse Stubbs has been leading the way lately to bring light to the absurdity of the City's management (and lack thereof) of our ONLY City boat ramp. He's uncovered some conflicts that may leave the City legally vulnerable as they attempt to develop our once working waterfront into Disney 2.0..

 

Signs, Signs Everywhere a Sign!

Conflict Between 24-Hour Ramp Access and Parking Restrictions

The City’s Comprehensive Plan designates this site as a .01 Boat Ramp Facility, a classification that requires adequate parking to support public water access. Moreover, the ramp itself is open 24 hours a day a policy that implies continuous, unrestricted access for boaters at all hours.

Yet under Ordinance 78-77, the City imposes restrictive parking hours (5am–7pm) and bans overnight parking of trailers without a permit a permit process which is neither visible nor accessible to the public. This creates a legal and functional contradiction:

How can 24 hour ramp use be offered if trailer parking disappears after 7pm?

This inconsistency:

• Undermines safe and reasonable boat launching and retrieval well before sunset, night or early morning

• Potentially violates the Florida Boating Improvement Program or FIND access requirements (if funding was involved) the .01 boat ramp facility list “adequate parking”

• Creates the appearance of policy manipulation to favor certain users such as commercial tour buses over local residents and recreational boaters.

This is a critical red flag: you can’t claim 24-hour public access and simultaneously restrict the very infrastructure needed to use it.

recommend appending this paragraph to the earlier drafted request for action, under a new section:

The City’s own policy contradiction must be resolved:

• The .01 Boat Ramp Facility designation mandates adequate and compatible parking infrastructure

• The ramp is open 24/7, yet boat trailer parking is prohibited overnight;

• No clear overnight permit process exists despite Ordinance 78-77(d) allowing it.

This incompatibility results in de facto denial of late night access for boaters especially for offshore fishermen, nighttime gigging and emergency users despite the ramp being technically “open.” If parking isn’t available when the ramp is, the access is functionally denied.

This may constitute a violation of both local planning code and the public trust doctrine.

Capt. Jesse Clyde Stubbs

We Found Some Trout

 I fished Friday with Bill Foran and his daughter Casey, meeting them up at Old Town Bait and Tackle
boat ramp. We made a quick run up and over to the Jolley River, turned into the  "bank" and worked back. Our first cast produced a bite and Fish On! That's the way you like to start a trip!  Casey expertly worked in a nice Flounder to kick the day off. 

The wind was kicking a little bit out of the west and pushing us up against the bank so we ran further up the Jolley and tossed our floats and live shrimp on the outside of Snook Creek. The wind was blocked and the anglers were getting good casts, but we had no luck. After coming back to Tyger Cut we drifted the point and this did the trick. The duo hooked up and caught some keeper sized Seatrout then they battled Bonnethead Shark to the boat from photograph and release. They also caught and released a few hard fighting Jack Crevalle.

We finished up the morning fishing over at Bell River then headed back to the ramp with a box of Seatrout ready to be fileted, and counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Big Ol Redfish

 After meeting Cary Bennett and his granddaughters Chloe and Zoe down at the Sawpit Creek boat ramp this morning, we made a quick run up the intracoastal to dip into Jackstaff, turn into the current that had just started in, and began to pitch jigs and live shrimp.  We worked a good stretch, the trio of anglers were making good casts, and finally Cary had a strong bite, a hookup, and after a patient fight, he landed a nice Slot sized Redfish. And then Chloe followed that up within minutes, expertly landing a 7-spot Redfish.

We then ran thru Horsehead and down to Broward Island to fish the first of an incoming tide down there. Great tide to be there right? We fished three different areas and didn't have a real bite. Ouch. I was beginning to worry a bit. Running back towards Nassauville we passed one spot between two docks that I wanted to fish but a boat was sitting there, so we made our way on down to Seymore's Pointe where Cary and Chloe fished jigs out off the bow and Zoe took up a float rig to try her luck. Cary hooked up right off and landed a nice 17.5" Flounder and minutes later, after Zoe had had a couple of "taps" that took her float under and stole her bait, but then she hooked up! And boy what a fish! That drag was ripping as the big fish dug deep but Zoe was  up to the task. She lifted it up, reeled it in, let it run, lifted it up and reeled it in. After a long battle Zoe landed an Oversized 29.25" Redfish for photographs and release. Boy what a fish!

After making our way down the Nassau further to Twin Creeks and all three anglers went to float rigs.
Chloe had "gone long" with  her drift off the stern and Cary had just started a short drift when Chloe hooked up. She was battling her fish to the boat when Cary hooked up - we had a "double" both landed their fish - two keeper sized Seatrout. We then drifted down the bank with the current and caught fish. They added two more Slot Redfish, a couple of small ones, a couple of hard fighting Jack Crevalle, and Cary battled another wiey Big Redfish. We were already counting him in the boat when he dug shallow and popped the line. Ouch. 

We caught fish right up until time to leave and with about four dead shrimp left in the well, we called it day but as we headed back we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida.

Recipe of the Month: Easy Shrimp Crab Chowder

 I was craving some Shrimp Chowder and after "googling" a few recipe's and getting the gist of what others were using, I threw this together. Most of the recipe's called for 1lb of Shrimp. I had 3lbs and used it all!  You know how you order something from a restaurant and get just a few shrimp? Why skimp if you're making it yourself!

2       Cups peeled and cubed potatoes.                                                                                                                              Put them in a large pot and boil until they begin to soften

2      Stalks celery, chopped                                                                                                                            1/2   Onion, chopped                                                                                                                                            1     teaspoon minced garlic                                                                                                                         1/2  stick butter                                                                                                                                                                            In a skillet melt butter, cook celery, onion and garlic until vegis begin to soften

Drain cooked potatoes, add 

1/2  stick butter                                                                                                                                                     4   Cups   seafood stock                                                                                                                                      1  Tablespoon Creole seasoning                                                                                                                     1    Cup fresh or frozen corn                                                                                                                               1    Cup heavy cream                                                                                                                                      2   cans 6oz crab                                                                                                                                              1     Teaspoon salt                                                                                                                                         1/2   Teaspoon paprika                                                                                                                                        

Bring to boil.  

Add   3lbs peeled and deveined shrimp.  Cook until shrimp turn pink (just a few minutes). Turn off and let rest for 20 minutes.                         

Switching to Jigs Did the Trick

 We had a beautiful morning today to wrap up the week before the holiday weekend when I met John Raker and his mother Betty out at Goffinsville Park boat ramp. We eased north and around Seymore's Pointe and tried some float rigs and live shrimp on a tide that had been going out for about an hour. Both Betty and John were getting excellent drifts - we had a few - but not a single nibble. We then ran thru Horsehead and over to Poteat Point and continued with the drifts. We worked the point, the grass line and the pockets and again, not a nibble. 

After fishing across the creek, again with no bites, we ran back thru Horsehead and down the Nassau to Twin Creeks, turned into the outgoing current, and began tossing jigs and the live shrimp. It didn't take long for this to produce. Betty had made an excellent cast, worked it just a bit and BAM! She had a strong hookup, battled it to the boat, and landed a feisty Redfish.  The duo picked up another small Red, a feisty Black "puppy" Drum then Betty had another big bite. This fish boiled a couple of times so we knew it was a bigger Redfish. She played it patiently, let the drag rip a few times, worked it in, and landed a nice 21" Slot Redfish. As we moved up the bank she had another strong bite, but this one took off like a freight train, leaving the shore and heading deep. Betty fought it from the starboard side to the port side, then fought it deep the brought it to the boat. I held the rod for a bit to make sure it was worn out good before we brought it into the boat for photograph and release.

Down the Nassau we moved and here the anglers hooked up and landed a couple of undersized Flounder. We fished Spanish Drop for a bit, fished Back River for a bit and other than a Catfish catch, that was it for the day. But we had a nice fish in the box and had beautiful weather so as we headed back to the ramp we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florida. 

Started Hot

We had a nice breezy morning today, just enough to keep it from getting hot. I had met David, Wanda and Charlie Morton up at Old Town Bait and Tackle on a tide that had been going out for about 2 hours. We eased out of Eagans Creek and made a short run over to Lanceford Creek to fish some dock pilings with jigs and live shrimp. Wanda "knocked the skunk off" after she had tossed a float rig over towards shore and let it drift over some oysters. Her float got "nibbled" all the way across and we thought sure it was a "bait stealer" but then BAM! Float Gone! Wanda tightened up and let the circle hook set and had a nice hookup. She played it patiently to the boat and landed a keeper sized Seatrout.

David and Charlie were fishing off the stern with the jigs and after Charlie had made a pinpoint cast up under the dock he had a strong bite and Big Fish On!  Charlie played it perfectly, let it run, lifted it up, let it run, then worked it in and landed a big 20" Black Drum, boy what a fish. Minutes later he landed a nice feisty Redfish, then a couple more of smaller Drum, another hand sized Redfish with 6 spots, then a hungry Seatrout. Charlie had the hot rod at that spot.

We made a long run back around Tyger, up to the Jolley and turned into the "bank" and fished it with jigs from the bow and float rig off the stern.  Again, Wanda kicked things off when she hooked up and landed a small Flounder. Charlie then got busy, picking up another keeper sized Seatrout then a small Flounder to round out an Amelia Island Grande Slam - Black Drum, Redfish, Seatrout and Flounder. On up the river he tangled with a Bonnethead Shark that eventually threw the hook. 

Around at the MOA we picked up a couple of Croaker, Wanda battled a Shark, then David brought a feisty Sheepshead to the boat. The bite had been better on the higher tide, which has been the norm the last few weeks, but we had caught fish, we had a few in the box, the weather was great so as we headed back to the rap we counted it as another great day to be fishing here at Amelia Island, Florid.