The hot spot Now is the time to grab the fishing pole and head for the beach, where whiting, pompano and bluefish are waiting to feed

The hot spot Now is the time to grab the fishing pole and head for the beach, where whiting, pompano and bluefish are waiting to feed

Offshore Mayport: Grouper still holding on close-in wrecks, along with snapper. Nine Mile area has been productive. Partyboats still catching some kingfish. Whiting in surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Lots of small snappers, along with a few legal fish on inshore wrecks. Deep water has been unreachable. Whiting in surf. Pompano at Matanzas Inlet.

George Zajewski (County Pier) said that you could see the bottom better than halfway out. He also observed some excellent sheepshead catches along with intermittent runs of bluefish and whiting.

There were still a few Spanish mackerel to be had in the early hours.

Another common remark heard throughout the region was not so much the number of bluefish, which was expected, but rather the size.

Ken Morse, working St. Augustine inlet Friday, said that it was impossible to keep live bait away from marauders, some of which weighed over four pounds.

Miles said Matanzas also yielded some large bluefish.

Finding a haven from the blues may be the only way to fish live bait for flounder.

Flatty aficionados have been closed-mouth about it, but there's been a steady bite of flounder going on for awhile. The fish haven't been that big, and they have had to be worked for, but they have been there both at Matanzas and St. Augustine/Vilano areas.

As evidence, Bill Kerr (Hook, Line and Sinker) cited Tommy Coleman's catch of nine flounder on Friday. He said he's been finding fish every time out.

Kerr also reported very good whiting catches from the Gate Station surf in North Beach.

12-3-2000

NORTH BEACH -- Late Wednesday afternoon, I was researching the weekly fishing forecast -- I went fishing -- and was approached by a man on the beach north of St. Augustine.

"How's the fishing?" he asked.

Slow, I responded. A few small whiting were about it for the previous hour.

Then, as we chatted, my rod tip began vibrating in its holder, and I reeled in a nice eating-size whiting. I rebaited and cast to the same general area, and immediately the rod bowed and began dancing again. Another whiting for the pan.

The stranger became more interested in what was happening, curious about my rig, hook, bait, etc. In succession, I caught five more whiting. They were suddenly fired up, slamming the bait as soon as it hit the bottom. But the sun was sinking fast, and I already had enough for supper, so with some reluctance I left them biting.

The timing of the bite had been perfect, making me look like a pro. Enthused, the stranger announced he was going to try surf fishing for the first time the next day.

Surf fishing is, indeed, infectious, and this is the time of year to go. There are whiting, bluefish and pompano out there, and you don't have to step over sun-bathers to get to them.

12-7-00

Run of Whiting Sunday morning at county pier. Zajewski said that the unusually clear water of the week was responsible for inconsistent but respectable runs of whiting. The clear water probably drew them into places that are normally be muddy and un-whiting like. Catches along north beach ranged from 10 to 70. They hit all the way into Ken Morse’s spot in capo creek.

Kingfish, some blackfin tuna at 21 fathoms. A few wahoos, tuna at the Stream. Snapper, cobia on the wrecks. Whiting in the surf.

12-21-

Snapper fishing has been consistent at 21 fathoms, along with kingfish. Mostly small stuff on inshore wrecks. Whiting off and on in surf.

Published Thursday, December 21, 2000

Once again we've been fortunate in the respect that cold has not caught us by surprise. Water and air temperatures have been gradually dropping for some time, and most species have taken adaptive measures, unlike some years when precipitous drops resulted in massive fish kills.

I thought things might take a turn for the worse last weekend when the first cold front blew through on Saturday night, but to my surprised I learned that the whiting were as good -- if not better -- after the passage.

George Zajewski (County Pier) reported that one angler had 35 on Sunday that were described as big.

The winds were down by Monday morning, and the water was once again clear, resulting in catches of 12-15 fish by those working the planks.

Bill Kerr (Hook, Line and Sinker) said he, too, was somewhat taken by the numbers of whiting biting against the Sunday wind at North Beach. He cited a report of 29 that came from North Park (County Park located between McMulveis and Guana).

1-4-01

1-11-01

1-18-01

Bad fishing

1-25-01

The same could not be said at the County Pier or most of the other surf. George Zajewski (County Pier) put it like this: "I hear that the surf fishing is good in Flagler County, and then Flagler fishermen show up here looking for fish. Then I'll hear that it's good in North Beach or Jacksonville, and fishermen from there will come looking here."

2-1-01

Offshore Mayport: Red snapper, beeliners remain good bets for those running 20-plus miles offshore. Sea bass so-so. Not much happening in the surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Quite a few sea bass available inshore. A few tuna, wahoo at the ledge. Beaucoup whiting in and around St. Augustine inlet. Surf is slow.

Surf fishing was poor, with few doing it and even fewer succeeding. The cold water has definitely been detriment participation. Just a thought here: It's been years since we've had a winter like this, and it has also been years since we've had a warm spring. When you stop to think about it, the weather has been uncomfortable during Easter and spring break for some time. Perhaps this year will bring the return of a warm spring, thick Spanish mackerel and/or cobia.

2-8-01 JAX

BEST BET

2-15-01

Offshore Mayport: Snapper, beeliners, scattered cobia continue to eat on the deeper wrecks. Some kingfish out 40 miles or so. Mostly sea bass inshore. Whiting scattered.

Offshore St. Augustine: Tuna on and off at the Stream. Some wahoo, too. Snapper, grouper at 21 fathoms. Sea bass on local wrecks. Whiting around St. Augustine inlet.

2-22-01

Offshore Mayport: Big beeliners remain the mainstay on offshore wrecks. Not much on kingfish. Sea bass inshore. Whiting at S. Ponte Vedra.

Offshore St. Augustine: Tuna, wahoo at the Gulf Stream. Sea bass on the local wrecks. Whiting have picked up in surf. Whiting also at St. Augustine inlet.

Doug Poe (Hook, Line and Sinker) said that boaters working the St. Augustine Inlet found plenty of whiting before Sunday and their respective sizes were up as well. On Friday and Saturday I counted at least 15 boats working that one spot where the ICW meets the inlet.

George Zajewski (County Pier) reported some torrid fishing earlier in the week.

He said that they were caught the length of the pier, were good size, and bountiful in numbers. By Saturday, the action had slowed considerably with most of the fish coming from the middle of the pier.

3-1-01

Offshore Fernandina: A few more legal snapper are showing on close-in wrecks, along with the usual sea bass. Good whiting reports in surf. Sheepshead at St. Marys jetties.

Offshore Mayport: Nice sea bass on the local wrecks. Quite a few legal snapper at 21 fathoms. Tuna, a few wahoo at the ledge. Whiting at St. Augustine inlet and in the surf.

Trout season reopens today in Northeast Florida. Some bluefish and Spanish mackerel were reported at St. Augustine Inlet. Migrating cobia are between Port Canaveral and Patrick AFB.

3-1-01

It showed in the water, too. Charter captain Kevin Faver reported pogies in Salt Run and up North River. These aren't the little pogies (5 to 6 inches) we see during the mackerel runs but rather their larger relatives (a pound) more akin to mossbunkers and shad. Perhaps they are the spawning stock, I don't know.

The whiting run heated proportionally to the temperature. I went by the County Pier on Saturday to buy my beach pass and George Zajewski informed me that they were slamming them on the planks. They had been all week, he said.

I took a walk out to see for myself and he was right. The pier was crowded and just about everyone had some fish. The best anglers had 30 to 60 fish. By my own observation, the bigger fish were coming from farther out on the pier than those near the shore. On the other hand, it was pretty rough near shore.

The Whting in the North River were much bigger than in the inlet. Many were 2 pounds and looked like Reds. Bob Conroy “Mikes Place”

March 2, 2001|By Don Wilson of The Sentinel Staff

1. Daytona Beach, New Smyrna

Bottom fishing is excellent for grouper and snapper from 85 feet out to 210 feet. Inshore, bluefish are plentiful at Ponce Inlet, while whiting are the main catch in the surf. The best sea trout fishing in the Halifax River is around lighted docks at night.

3-8-01

Offshore Fernandina: Good bottom action on the deeper wrecks for snapper, grouper. Mostly sea bass on the close-in bottom. Whiting, drum at St. Marys jetties.

Offshore Mayport: Snapper, some nice grouper, beeliners on the offshore wrecks. A few kingfish, dolphin out 40 miles or so. Scattered whiting in the surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Bluefish around St. Augustine inlet. Spanish mackerel should be showing, too. Tuna, wahoo at Stream. Scattered whiting in surf and at inlet.

Sabo

Whiting continued to hold most of the interest close to shore. George Zajewski said they were the main attraction in a mix that saw some Spanish mackerel, reds, and bluefish.

Inshore south of the St. Johns River: Trout hard to find in waterway. No big numbers of redfish, but size is generally good. Whiting at Vilano pier. Bluefish scattered.

St. Johns River/jetties: Drum, including a few 50-plus-pounders, at Mayport jetties and in the St. Johns. Reds, sheepshead at jetties, too. Trout around Blount Island.

Offshore Fernandina: Sea bass on the close-in wrecks. Most boats fishing for reds, drum at St. Marys inlet. A few giant drum and lots of smaller ones have been caught.

Offshore Mayport: Partyboats had solid catches of sea bass, snapper the last time out. Sea bass on inshore wrecks. Dolphin at Elton Bottom. Scattered whiting in surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Lots of snapper at 21 fathoms. Blackfin tuna at the Stream. Small Spanish mackerel around St. Aug inlet. Whiting in the surf when seas moderate.

3-22-01

BILL SABO

Published Thursday, March 22, 2001

As you might expect, with one exception, everything written about in this column came before Sunday, and Sunday's report was just an extension of Saturday by people who chose not to come in out of the rain.

"More whiting than I've seen since I've been here," was how George Zajewski described the fishing at the County Pier. "They were catching them at the middle of the pier at all times, all week."

That's a pretty powerful statement.

Zajewski went on to say that the fish were not only numerous, they were big, too.

He added that another employee at the pier, Ron Joiner, went out to fish for Spanish mackerel with a jerk jigger lure, and when he let it sink to the bottom, he caught whiting. He caught three before he went back to Spanish mackerel.

Dave Privett (Oldest City Bait and Tackle) reported good whiting catches coming from some of the more unexpected sites like the St. Augustine Shores dock and Fish Island Marina docks. Ken Morse braved the rain Sunday and said he had a bucket of big whiting -- 16 inches -- that he liberated from the channel near Pine Island. Sue Glass (Devil's Elbow) had good reports from the beaches south of Matanzas and noted the addition of pompano from the same region. She said those fishing for the pompano caught them with sand fleas. When the inlet was fishable, it also held whiting. Bill Moore (Sea Love) said that one boat came into the Sea Love dock with about 40 whiting that they caught at the inlet.

The County Pier also gave up a few Spanish mackerel and bluefish throughout the week, with the Spaniards being the larger of the two. Privett said that a few anglers came into his shop with mackerel of about 18 inches that they caught Saturday evening.

All the reports indicated that the bluefish are barely legal (10 inches) size.

3-23--01

Pompano have moved into the surf north of Ponce Inlet. Use cut clams or sand fleas. Fish the inlet itself for flounder, sheepshead or bluefish. Use live mullet fingerlings for flounder, fiddler crabs or shrimp for sheepshead, and mullet strips for the bluefish. Offshore has been blown out all week, so what you'll find is anyone's guess.

3-29-01

Offshore Mayport: Red snapper, mangroves, sharks and beeliners keeping partyboat anglers busy on offshore wrecks. Some sea bass inshore. Whiting fair along beach.

Inshore south of the St. Johns River: The trout bit pretty good in the waterway yesterday, but they're in tight schools. Scattered reds in the creeks. Lots of bluefish in St. Augustine area.

The whiting action wasn't as torrid as a week ago, but it was still interesting. I saw some very nice fish caught at the Vilano surf and pier. The fish were big (over 16 inches) and were caught on the incoming tide of both days I witnessed. Bill Moore said that the incoming tide was kind at the pier for the last several days. On the other hand, catches from the inlet and the County Pier were down considerably.

Pompano action improved -- but not by much. It was quantity, not quality south of Matanzas. Many of the pompano were small according to Henry Miles (Devil's Elbow). I didn't hear anything from North Beach although I understand the stretch from Matanzas through Crescent Beach was occasionally rewarding.

It was hard to get a handle on the inside waters. Rumors abound over big drum but no names were confirmed. A 50-pound fish was caught at the County Pier, and one angler was reputed to have caught and released five fish in Pine Island.

Other uncorroborated numbers included a 73-pounder, a 60-pounder and several in the 25-pound class.

It was not that long ago that today's report might belong to one angler, but such is not the case today. Why is open to a number of opinions' especially in light of good drum runs still in existence in Nassau County and Mayport.

Bluefish are a species subject to annual fluctuations, and currently a lot of little fish are moving through the area. An encouraging sign that we might have some big fish this year is the 11-pounder that Marvin Shaak brought into Devil's Elbow.

4-5-01

Saltwater

Inshore south of the St. Johns River: Scattered redfish in the creeks. Trout fishing improving in the waterway and creeks. Lots of small bluefish, and jacks are around, too.

St. Johns River/jetties: Sheepshead, black drum, redfish, whiting around Mayport rocks. Trout around White Shell, Fort Caroline areas of St. Johns. Drum near mouth of Trout River.

Offshore Fernandina: Action picking up on black drum off south end of St. Marys jetties and off the beach. Sea bass, mostly throwback snapper on the wrecks.

Offshore Mayport: Snapper, big beeliners on offshore wrecks -- a 4-pounder was caught on Mayport Princess. Some snapper inshore. Whiting fair in the surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Blackfin tuna, a few wahoo at the Stream. Snapper hungry in 21 fathoms. Sea bass, a few legal snapper on local wrecks. Scattered whiting in surf.

Brisk winds on Sunday made for a less-than-perfect weekend, but it was still one of the best in quite some time. For one thing, it was warm; for another, it didn't rain.

That loaded the ramps and beaches but not necessarily the scales. The fishing, like the weather, was good but not great -- unless you like little bluefish. There was no shortage of the little meat shredders, but I didn't hear of any big blues. Not much in the

way of Spanish mackerel, either. Ken Morse said that he saw a ton of them way up North River near Pine Island but couldn't get them to take any lures. Several boats trolling the

Whiting catches weren't up to what they had been weeks earlier. Still, they were the best activity at the County Pier. Bill Kerr (Hook, Line and Sinker) told the story of how a number of boaters went to fish the inlet -- the hot spot of recent weeks -- and only came back with a few fish, while an unidentified angler planted himself in front of the Castillo and returned with 74 large fish. As they say, "location, location, location."

4-12-01 Sabo

Not much news on the pompano beat. Internet bulletin boards and bait shops alike had little to say about the much sought after jack. A few were caught south of Matanzas but nothing to write home about. What there was to write about at Matanzas were the bluefish and jacks. The blues were some of the largest in the area and weighed six to eight pounds. Most other bluefish throughout the rest of the county were quite small. The County Pier reported a bunch of little bluefish taking on all anglers.

Historically, big bluefish used to gather at the south jetties during this time of year and high tide was the time to fish for them. They may still be there but you can only fish the area by boat since DEP and the Florida Park Service have put beach driving off limit.

4-19-01

4-26-01

Offshore Mayport: Lots of red snapper around. Areas to northeast of Mayport productive. A few cobia reported outside mouth of the river. Whiting, blues, a few pompano in surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Some tuna, kingfish reported in 90 feet of water. Bluewater trolling off and on. Scattered cobia with rays on beach. Bluefish at inlet. Blues, a few reds, pompano in surf. Whiting out a little deeper.

At least one big blue was caught at the County Pier, according to George Zajewski. He said it weighed seven pounds, matching the 7-pound Spanish mackerel that was brought into Oldest City Bait and Tackle but not quite as big as the 8-pound cero mackerel that Dave Privett (Oldest City) reported.

Privett indicated that there were recognizable numbers of 10-pound class bluefish in St. Augustine Inlet and its environs, which was also where the big Spaniard was caught. He didn't have the name of the angler but said that he was trolling a big spoon for kings when it hit. Which brings us to the Spanish and king report.

This is shaping up as a good year for Spanish mackerel. Numbers were up modestly, and size was up considerably. Zajewski said that Spanish were the main attraction at the county pier and were good size. Oddly enough, the big blue was caught near the rocks and not farther out where the mackerel were.

5-3-01

The anticipaed pompano run has not materialized this spring. A few in the two-pound category were landed at the County Pier, and an unidentified angler came into Oldest City with four that weighed about two pounds each, but overall it has not been good. It wasn't much of a week for whiting or Spanish mackerel either; both of which looked promising a week earlier.

From the south, Karen Miles (Devil's Elbow) said that the fish were thick at Matanzas Inlet with many of them coming from the bridge. Moving northward along the surf, George Zajewski (County Pier) said that the early morning hours were the time to work the waters between the first bench and shore. He added that the end of the pier yielded a few Spanish mackerel, one of which measured 21 inches.

5-17-01

Some of the better reports came from the County Pier where George Zajewski said that they started to pick up a few flounder but they came at the expense of a great drum report from a week ago.

Zajewski said that the big ray hung around the pier over the weekend, and although I did not see that particular ray, I did see one at St. Augustine Inlet (Monday) that was pretty big. It got air between the inlet and the Vilano jetty.

5-31-01

Flounder seemed to have taken up some of the anticipated slack, however. A modest run was already under way, and while it didn't get explosively better it didn't go away either. George Zajewski and Ron Joiner (County Pier) each reported some limit catches at the pier and adjacent rocks. Likewise in the Vilano area to those fishing the early morn. One person told me that he had spoke with a gigger who went to market with 64 flatties.

Another good week, what's going on? We haven't had a streak like this in some time. I might even find myself writing about a good month. But let's not get too optimistic even though there was just about something for everybody. On the dark side, nothing absolutely dominated.

Zajewski figured most of the unknowns to be sharks, rays, reds and the occasional tarpon. He added that there has been a rash of undersized cobia making life interesting, as well. On the keeper side, whiting led the charge with Spanish mackerel being a staple of the morning.

6-14-01

That's typical for summer; flounder, reds. and trout made most of the noise last week. Flounder catches continued very good throughout the Intracoastal Waterway as exemplified by Alex Harrel and an unidentified fishing partner. Although they could only keep 10 each, they landed 17 and 15 respectively on Sunday, according to Frank Timmons (Sea Love). They fished North River.

7-12-01

The big yawn continued in toward the beach where surf fishing was just about non-existent except for flounder at the County Pier. Ron Joiner (County Pier) said that anglers who knew the tricks had double-digit catches of the flatties on several days.

Offshore Fernandina: Few boats have been offshore. Best bet is probably still redfish at Fernandina inlet, along with some sharks.

Offshore Mayport: Fishing has been slow this week around the close-in reefs. Ocean is still cloudy. The surf should be getting right for whiting.

Offshore St. Augustine: Beeliners, sea bass on inshore wrecks. Deeper water should produce legal snapper, a few grouper. Whiting on the beach.

10-11-01

Offshore Fernandina: Grouper, snapper were biting on close-in reefs before the winds started. Redfish at jetties. Not much in the surf.

Offshore Mayport: Bottom action out 20-25 miles has been good for snapper, beeliners, grouper when the ocean lays. Surf has been too rough to fish.

Offshore St. Augustine: Snapper bit offshore Saturday -- the last fishable day. Also, wrecks 12-14 miles out were holding kingfish. Some pompano in surf.

10-19-01

Drum for 3^rd week in a row

I feel bad. It seems that every week we talk about the negative aspects of the weather as it relates to fishing. From a living perspective it's been rather nice with comfortable temperatures and no rain. But the wind, that's another story. Winds churn the seas, raise the surf, erode the beach, lower the temperature, and roil the inside waters.

It's hard to find fish and when you do, it's hard to get their attention.

Fortunately, there are a few fish and places that come through under adversity.

Drum is one of those species and continued to be the best bet for the third week in a row.

10-25-01

It was a tough go along the beach for most of the week but even at that there were some nice catches of whiting and the occasional pompano. The word from Oldest City Bait and Tackle, and the County Pier, was that the whiting were big. No one had a handle on the best time or tide but when the runs took place, the fish were worth the wait.

11-1-01

Whiting reports were mixed. There were a few good moments at the County Pier and throughout the inlets and ICW in general. The Vilano Pier was one of those areas as well. The good news was that the whiting were big, the bad news was that the surf was unfishable most of the time. A few pompano were caught at the Matanzas Bridge earlier in the week according to Karen Miles. Trout were few and far between for the most part although Faver did say he found good numbers but they, like the reds, were short. The best trout catches remained those found under the dock and bridge lights at night.

11-8-01

11-08-01 JAX

Offshore Fernandina: Nobody has been offshore because of the rough seas. Grouper, sea bass and snapper should be hungry when the boats get back out.

Offshore Mayport: Now that the wind has calmed down, grouper should be ready to eat on the inshore wrecks. But the most consistent action will probably be offshore.

Offshore St. Augustine: Bottomfishing should be good in the 21 fathom area. There may be kingfish at 21 fathoms, too. Whiting should be biting when the surf is fishable.

11-15-01

Offshore Mayport: Lots of legal snapper on the deeper wrecks, along with some grouper, cobia, jacks. Whiting should eat when surf moderates.

Offshore St. Augustine: Sailfish, a few wahoo at the Stream. Good bottom action in 100 feet and deeper. Whiting biting in the surf.

Working your way toward shore, the surf was semi-productive with burst of intense catches interrupted by long periods of little bluefish or monotony.

The whiting appeared to have been at their best bite during the high tide window.

At the County Pier, Ron Joiner reported big reds were the word of the week. Many of the fish measured 40 - 44 inches.

They were more a fish of sport (you can't keep them) but made for some great exercise. The whiting were intermittent but the sheepshead were co-operative to the few looking for them.

Cumbie said that the whiting fleet was out in force in St. Augustine Inlet, a sign of the season. Reds were in pretty good number along the jetties and charter captain Chuck Stearns led a fare of his to a 27-pounder just outside the jetties. Cumbie added that some of the more experienced whiting fishermen turn to squid for bait at this time of year instead of the traditional shrimp.

11-22-01

Offshore Mayport: Good numbers of snapper, beeliners on the offshore wrecks. Inshore, the bottom has been spotty. Whiting should be happening in the surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Snapper, grouper on bottom in 21 fathoms. Wahoo should be at ledge when boats can get there. Whiting, a few reds in the surf.

11-29-01

In saltwater, whiting have been hammering shrimp baits in the surf and around inlets. In freshwater, speckled perch are inhaling minnows and jigs in Crescent Lake and Dunns Creek.

Offshore St. Augustine: Sailfish at the ledge. Snapper, kingfish in 21 fathoms. Lots of whiting in surf and at St. Augustine inlet.

Appearances can be deceiving. I walked the Surfside/Porpoise Point stretch on Sunday and only saw one thing worth mentioning. Little did I know that to the north of Surfside, in the surf and just offshore, that the whiting were eating at a torrid pace. Kerr said the sales of over 650 pounds of fresh dead bait shrimp between Thanksgivng and Monday were an indication that something was up, and he was right. He knew several fishermen who easily went into triple figures with the whiting. Many of the fish were big too, exceeding 1.5 pounds. The size was consistent with the County Pier but the stringers from North Beach were much more full. Al Cumbie (Avid Angler) said that he found plenty of whiting off North Beach while fishing in 20 feet of water. An Internet report (floridasurfishing.com) noted a 60-fish catch.

Cumbie's experience is common at this time of year. Surf conditions being as they are, the whiting frequently reside from just outside the far break to about the 20-foot depth. Conversely, they sometimes hug the shore sloughs that provides and assortment of crustaceans for dinner when conditions are right. I didn't see any whiting caught in the sloughs during my tours, but I was surprised to find some very fat bluefish in there.

Two anglers south of Surfside had about a half-dozen blues that easily went three pounds. They (the bluefish) were short, but fat. It was low tide and they were only about 15 feet from the shore. Kerr said that people coming into his place reported a wealth of such blues along the sand bar just outside the Vilano boat ramp.

The blues shouldn't have had any problem finding food because finger mullet still prevail heavily in the feeder creeks. The same was not the case for roe mullet, a commodity much sought at this time of year. Roe mullet were non-existent for the most part in the northern waters although several good reports (Devil's Elbow) came in from Matanzas. The Matanzas mullet were said to be hugging the rocks and one had to be very good with a net to keep it. Drum fishing at the bridge was also quite good, which probably played a part in the fatal altercation that took place there Saturday.

12-6-01

Offshore Mayport: Quite a few cobia around the offshore wrecks. Plenty of snapper both inshore and offshore, along with beeliners, sea bass, some grouper. Whiting in surf.

Offshore St. Augustine: Cobia being caught in 100 feet or so of water. Bottomfishing in general has been good. Tuna, wahoo, sailfish at the ledge. Whiting, small pompano in surf.

12-6-01

Ron Joiner (County Pier) noted that the week saw intermittent whiting but all the reds caught were oversized (over 27 inches), and missing from the equation were sheepshead -- a staple for the last few weeks. Interestingly enough, Bill Moore (Sea Love) said that he sold loads of fiddler crabs but didn't have any reports to pass back.

Over the years, I've heard a number of theories as to why certain fish don't bite during the full moon, and their variety speaks to the lack of firm data. One says that the high water gives the inside species access to habitat normally inaccessible to them, such as grass flats harboring snails and crabs. Another says that the moonlight gives fish 24-hour visual feeding. A third postulates that the full moon concentrates forage fish for spawning, thus the heavy feed by predators, and yet another puts the predators having parties of their own. Then there's the soft-mouth theory where they change dining because they can't bite hard. It goes on and on. There are moon-oriented spawning cycles for sure but how they relate to a full annual cycle is the stuff of argument. I think most agree that 2-3 days before and after a full moon is the best bite of all although you are welcome to offer a counterpoint. On the other hand, I find it interesting that humans bite most (and hardest) on the full moon.

12-13-01

Offshore St. Augustine: Scattered dolphin, kingfish, tuna at 21 fathoms. Cobia in 100-120 feet of water. Bottomfishing remains good offshore. Whiting fair in the surf.

You didn't necessarily have to go offshore to find big fish. Ron Joiner (County Pier) said that big reds were caught at the county planks every day. The end of the pier was the place to fish, and cut bait was the way to go for fish that ran 15 - 25 pounds. You can't keep those but if you fished long enough or closer to the rocks, chances improved for a legal red (18-27 inches).

There were also a few bouts with whiting, and an occasional pompano. The whiting were pretty consistent throughout the day and are usually the main attraction at this time of year. He also saw the first flounder in some time. A few more flounder also found their way into Devil's Elbow but the reports of flounder throughout the ICW (Intracoastal Waterway) would best be described as flat. Not so with whiting to the south. Matanzas on down through the surf at Marineland yielded nice catches of the popular fish as well as a few pompano.

12-27-01

Offshore Fernandina Inshore bottom had been holding lots of snapper, but that could change as water temperatures fall. Whiting, bluefish at south end of Amelia Island.

Offshore Mayport Cold temperatures may push grouper, snapper off the inshore wrecks. Offshore fishing should remain good. Some whiting, bluefish in the surf.

Offshore St. Augustine Sailfish, tuna, wahoo had been available at the ledge before cold snap arrived. Good bottom action should continue. Whiting in surf and at St. Aug inlet.

1-3-02 Saint aug

The surf had temperatures fluctuate in the 62 to 65 degrees range and was of Waterford quality most of the time. On Saturday, however, north winds kicked up some silt, and Ron Joiner (County Pier) said that the whiting turned on like a light.

The low tide was the time to work and the slough was the place to fish. One can extrapolate that the same formula should work for all the surf, not just the pier. Other pier doings for the week included a few nice pompano before New Year cold set in.

Of course, oversized reds were still in vogue and Spanish mackerel were caught by the few actually looking for them. A few cobia were even spotted swimming near the planks. Like the inside waters, there were legions of small bluefish running the beach. Internet reports put them from Georgia on down through Canaveral.

Around here, most of the fish were quite small (snapper blues) although Dennis Goldstein reported one of his fares caught a blue Hun that weighed about four pounds. One angler at Devil's Elbow reported releasing 43 bluefish. The finned shredders can be great for introducing kids to fishing or testing your fly-fishing skills.

1-10-02

There weren't many whiting and they weren't always big. Much was left to luck. We haven't yet had the big whiting run this winter that we're used to getting and to those wondering: yes, we usually have a pretty bite between Thanksgiving and Christmas. It usually slows down with the January cold and re-emerges in the spring. On Monday, however, reports started to come on the Internet about a whiting bite from North Beach on up through the Gate Station. The reports said that the fish were not only in good numbers but good size, too.

1-15-02

WHO CAUGHT IT? -- Clinton Batten and his granddaughter Danielle reeled in the same fish -- a whiting that had both of their hooks in its mouth -- at Nassau Sound Saturday. Batten, his son Brian and Danielle totaled 34 whiting during the trip. The day before, Batten caught 40 whiting at the sound.

Whiting got quite a lot of attention the last 7 days by anglers who target such and almost as many strikeouts by other vets. Low tide was bad unless you could wade out and throw over the sanbar. Most were good size. The bite was just unpredictable. No waves on Saturday last

1-24-02

The blues were everywhere.

One guy said that you could catch trout in North River if you could get your live shrimp to the bottom before bluefish hit it up top.

Bill Kerr (Hook, Line and Sinker) spoke of one angler who caught (and released) double-digit number of reds along the Porpoise Point/Vilano shore while using live bait. I asked him how he got past the blue Huns and he said that he fished right along the walls and rocks.

"If your bait went out more than five feet from the edge" it was curtains, according to Kerr. If this winter is any indication, bluefish stocks are back on the way up.

Whiting continued to play dodge ball, occasionally getting nailed hard but just as often eluding their protagonists.

South of the State Road 312 Bridge and near the mouth of Moultrie Creek was blistering one day and barren the next. Likewise for other hotspots throughout the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW).

Some who do it commercially had 70, 80 and 100-plus pound catches according to Kerr.

It was just as much a hide-and-seek game along the surf, too. The McMulvei's Reef region northward was respectable, and by at least one account, best during the higher water. Bob Conroy cited the downturn of the tide as productive. Boaters working outside the break -- what little there was -- also did quite well.

Sue Glass (Devil's Elbow) added that whiting catches were pretty good along the surf in the souther part of the county and a few pompano made the board as well.

I don't know how the sand flea situation is, but I saw a catch one as I rode my bike along the surf at low tide in North Beach. Glass went on to say that fishing was very good overall.

"If you can't catch fish now, something is wrong", she said.

1-29-02