| Exciting king mackerel fishing highlights summer fishing action at
Amelia Island, headed up by the 22nd annual Nassau Sport Fishing Association's Tournament
of Champions, June 24-27. Tournament teams will be able to launch their kingfish boats
from the new Dee Dee Bartell boat ramp and park, while the weigh-in will once again take
place at the foot of Centre Street and the Fernandina Harbor Marina. Look for lots of big
fish to be weighed in, with a large crowd of spectators on hand as well. First prize in the popular event is $25,000 for the largest king mackerel. For more information, contact Rick Langford at (904) 277-3327.
Summer is the season for kingfish on Amelia Island! The months of June and July offer some of northeast Florida's premiere king mackerel fishing, as big schools of kingfish weighing to over 40 pounds prey on large schools of menhaden, mullet and cigar minnows. One of the more popular fishing techniques for the highly sought after mackerel includes slow trolling live baits while chumming with ground chum and menhaden oil. Look for the Nassau Sound and the St. Mary's inlets to offer some of the best king mackerel fishing for tournament-winning sized kings. However, offshore fish havens including FA, HH and East FC also harbor their share of tournament-sized kingfish. Blue water fishermen can also expect to find dolphin, barracuda, Spanish mackerel, cobia, amberjack and the occasional sailfish at many of these close to shore fish havens. Further offshore at northeast Florida's 30-fathom ledge, wahoo, blackfin tuna, sailfish, schooling dolphin and blue marlin can be targeted by deep-sea fishermen. Trolling large plastic lures, including the "C&H Wahoo Whacker", "C&H Stubby", "Islander" and the "Cedar Plug" all work well for blue water species. Closer to shore, the highly regarded tarpon are numerous just off from the beaches of Amelia Island and inlet mouths where they feed on schools of menhaden, mullet and greenies. Tarpon often weigh over the 100-pound mark, with the more common size weighing from 60 to 80 pounds.
Fishing for redfish is excellent during the warm summer months. Setting up a chum slick of ground and cut chum is the best tactic for attracting tarpon to your barbed baits. Here, tarpon fishermen anchor their boats where a current carries their chum slick to the foraging tarpon. Once the tarpon picks up the chum slick, its only a matter of minutes before the fish moves up the chum slick and takes your barbed tarpon bait. Successful tarpon tackle includes 30 to 50-pound fishing gear rigged to a six-foot section of 100-pound fluorocarbon shock leader. An 8/0-circle hook completes your terminal tarpon tackle. Some of the better tarpon baits include menhaden, mullet, croaker, yellow-mouth trout, or green backs. Hook the bait right through both nostrils and cut the tail so that the scent of the baitfish is detected by nearby tarpon. When fishing in deep inlet waters, tarpon fishermen often use a "Fish Finder" setup, which involves tying a 4 to 8-ounce sinker to a slider sleeve. A small piece of copper wire attaches the sinker to the sleeve allowing the weight to break free during the first leap of the tarpon. Bottom fishermen will find grouper, red snapper, black sea bass, amberjack and cobia holding at the many offshore wrecks and rock ledges. Fishing right on the bottom with a live cigar minnow is a very successful fishing tactic for catching all of the above species. Backwater fishing for redfish is excellent during the warm summer months where large schools of redfish can be found holding over flooded oyster bars during the flood tide and on shallow flats during the falling tide. Working a topwater plug through a hungry school of redfish is the best summer fishing tactic for these hard-fighting game fish. Some of the more successful topwater plugs includes the "Top Dog", "Chug Bug" and the "Skitter Walk". Plastic jerk worms, spinner baits and spoons are also popular redfish lures.
Largemouth bass can be found in many area lakes and rivers. Sea trout weighing to over five pounds are common during the summer months, and will blast a top water plug as well. Try a "Zara Spook" or a "Chug Bug". Flounder weighing to over five pounds can be caught at creek mouths and next to rock jetties with finger mullet or bullhead minnows. Good numbers of sheepshead can also be found holding next to jetty rocks and barnacle-clad dock pilings. Fiddler crabs are by far one of the more popular sheepshead baits. Surf fishing is excellent during the summer fishing season for whiting, blues, pompano, trout, flounder and redfish. Try the high outgoing tide while fishing right on the bottom with fresh shrimp. Look for the best largemouth bass fishing to come from Thomas' Creek during the falling tide while casting a white spinner bait or a dark colored, weightless plastic worm. Crabbing is great summer family fun in many of the backwater estuaries. Try fishing right on the bottom with a long piece of string tied to a chicken neck, with a 4-ounce weight tied to the end of the string. Keep the crabs alive in a bucket of saltwater until its time to cook. Bring a large pot of water to boil, add crab seasoning and then add the live crabs. Boil until the crabs turn a bright pink and enjoy! Non-Florida residents will need a Florida saltwater fishing license when fishing from piers, bridges and land. For more fishing and charter information, call (904) 321-5090 or visit online at www.ameliaangler.com.
|
