Post by cyclist on May 2, 2024 7:17:12 GMT -5
My buddy Dave and I hit the river a little after 8. On the way we stopped by Hershel's and got some sausage biscuits that were super nasty, cheesy, greasy delicious bombs that lasted the entire day. We never stopped fishing to have snacks. Washed down with a single natty lite (https://bittersoutherner.com/natural-light-is-your-friend-beer-ocean-city-maryland). We saved the pickled okra (delicious - from Herschel's) for the ride home.
Our rig was Dave's 16ft john, slightly modified for duck hunting, with a brand new 20 horse electric start Yammy. Very nice. Oh, and I brought 3 crab traps and some ten yo bait taking up room in the chest freezer. We use oars the old fashioned way, no trolling motor. I love to wade but the areas bottom was too soft, not enough shell to firm it up.
Fished on a falling tide with murky water from the river. First stop was a nice shore with some oysters and a submerged aquatic grass and a species of sargasso. Hooked a red on a gold spoon and fought it for a minute or so before it shook the hook at the net. Likely a keeper. Finally caught a 17 red on a chartreuse gulp. Through out a couple of dead shrimp (netted in the St Johns last fall) and caught each of our cats. We moved on to circumnavigate a large "island" near Turtle Creek Spooked some reds but no more bites. Tried a couple of oysters bars and holes in some larger tidal creeks to no avail. The tide was minimal during the day, not much moving water.
I checked my google maps and although I had no cell service it worked and the aerial photos were very good. We headed out of the creek area towards the greater Wacasassa Bay and the central marked channel. We were still very close to the island hundred yards or more and in water only 3 ft. I noticed on the maps aerial a bottom that was not oysters (see pics). This spot (see photo) had multi branched thin leaved dark /black seaweed of sorts. I don't know what it is, possibly Ruppia.
So we anchored on this 3 ft deep spot with the black non-osyter signature and flipped out some dead shrimp. In about 45 minuted we caught about 10 or 12 spotted sea trout most all 10 inches or less. Several catfish, a keeper whiting, small sand trout and a a pinfish. All of the fish were caught in a spot about 15 ft in diameter only 15 ft from the boat. No other spot anywhere else would even give us a nibble. Throw the shrimp in the "Spot" and immediately you caught a small fish.
Several thoughts, was it a small spring vent (didn't have a temp gage), an open spot in all the submerged grass that allowed the bait to get to the bottom? The "grass" was thick in most spots and maybe 2 ft thick (depth) and the bottom was clayey and silty with no oysters.
I should have jumped in and checked it out. We marked the spot to return to, I am sure there are big fish around at least some of the time, eating all those delicious tiny trout!
Any ideas? See the next post for the pics of the "grassy" area and a shot of oyster bottom,
