Yellow Bluff Area Fishing Report from Captain

Captain Judy Helmey

"Kicking Fish Tail Since 1956!"

124 Palmetto Drive

Savannah, Georgia 31410

912 897 4921 or 912 897 3460 fax

www.missjudycharters.com

August 13, 2007

Captain Judy's Saltwater Fishing Report

Which includes:

Inshore report, Offshore Report, Freshies Suggestions, and "Little Miss Judy's Believe It or Not!" (Story)

Yellow Bluff Area August 2007 Fishing Report

Straight From the Helm of Captain "Wild" Bill Jarrell

Greetings from the Bluff! As we enter the month of August our waters continue their seasonal changes. There's an obvious dark green bloom in the warm inshore waters. Daylight is slowly shortening. The creeks, rivers and sounds are stirring with critters. There's a lot of life out there.

During this season, the white shrimp in our fertile marshes are increasing in size and abundance. Sea trout adapt with the seasons. They change and shift their diet, taking advantage of seasonal availability of prey. Large trout are dining mostly on small fish, but the more numerous smaller trout are feasting on shrimp. The trout bite has been very good this summer, and so has the flounder action.

Small red drums (red fish) are growing larger. Now they're large enough to display some strength on light tackle. At the start of this month, I'm catching plenty of feisty ones at 12.5-inches. Larger red drum (20 to 30-inches) can be found during high incoming water, in the shallows of the flooded out grass. At low water and first of the incoming tide, the large reds can be found in 15 to 25-foot holes near their usual habitat.

In the sounds and around the beaches, whiting are still running and I'm receiving report of tasty large bull whiting in the 12-inch range getting caught on chunks of shrimp along the rips and currents in channels off the sandbars. Another usual suspect found in those same swift waters is the always-impressive black tip shark. The black tips cruise the bars where currents and the rips are more dynamic.

Inshore sharks are a blast on light tackle. My good friend Capt. Jack McGowan often tells me this time of year, "If the tug is the drug, sharks are the answer." Most times they'll provide dependable intense high-energy action.

Talking about sharks and Capt. Jack... at the end of July, Jack came down from Savannah to fish with me. I took him to a dependable oyster incrusted creek point that's typically covered in food chain activity. He immediately took notice of the feeding bonnet head sharks working the bank. There were about a half dozen of them ranging from 5 to 10-lbs. Jack pointed out to me, the sharks were patrolling for blue crabs. Then I noticed the crabs gliding across the water swimming sideways near the surface. I'd see one go by the boat about every five minutes. As I watched both a blue crab coming off the bank and a bonnet head cruising the bank, I saw the shark turn with purpose and head right towards the crab. When the bonnet head was almost on top of the swimming crab, the water exploded as the shark jumped on its prey. About every 15 to 20-minutes the water would explode around our boat.

Bonnet head Sharks love blue crabs, and will jump on shrimp, mantis shrimp, squid, and lower on their list of groceries are baitfish too. How picky they are depends on what's available. The larger bonnet heads are primarily females, and typically they're carrying shark pups in their bellies this time of year. If you plan on keeping any, I would recommend releasing the large females. Till next time, I wish you all tight lines and good times.

Please don't forget that Miss Judy Charters is still offering charter trips taken from this area. "Yellow Bluff" is one of the those areas that is not fished much, which boils down to offering up some great fish catching opportunity! Captain "Wild" Bill Jarrell has fished this area for many years with great success. He has his own special proven techniques, ideas, and personal fishing spots! This all boils down to something real simple, "want something different? Give us a call 912 897 4921, ask for Captain "Wild" Bill and we will set you up! It's that easy!

Miss Judy Charters