Blackwater Creeks

By Terry Lacoss

Northeast Florida offers a unique mix of both salt and freshwater game fish further up its many tidal creeks where fresh and saltwater mixes.

A select group of Northeast Florida fishermen have struck gold where many fishermen dare not to explore. Further upstream of Jacksonville’s tidal estuaries the water clarity changes dramatically from a light coffee color to a black gold color. This is a direct result of decaying wood and vegetation mater from up river cypress swamps which ultimately creates tannic stained waters. Add the mixing of fresh and saltwater and you may just have discovered some of the very best fishing action that Northeast Florida has to offer.

During early fall when a major shrimp spawn takes place where spartina marshes are located just downstream of cypress tree lined black creeks, I have an unstoppable urge to unload my skiff into an area black water creek and enjoy their hidden treasures.

During one such fall fishing trip further up the Nassau River, my son Terry D. Lacoss and I drove to the Edwards Road public boat ramp and launched our Triton bass boat into the black gold water of Boggy creek. It had been an extremely dry summer where saltwater had pushed up into many of the brackish creeks along with an invasion of redfish.

Fishermen launching their skiffs from the Edward’s Road public boat ramp will then have plenty of options in fishing the brackish waters of the Nassau River System.

While running south from the boat ramp you will soon pass the mouth of Plummer’s Creek on the left, which is mostly a freshwater creek. However running a mile south you will find several feeder creeks that offer both fresh and saltwater species of game fish beginning with the mouth of Thomas’ Creek and running down some five miles to the mouth of Lofton Creek.

Navigating an 80-mph bass boat takes certain skills while running in the Nassau River system as sandbars and deadfalls are lurking just under the surface and will ruin your day of black creek fishing! I will typically turn on my Lowrance HD-7 to the split screen where half of the screen is showing the sonar and the remaining half is showing the chart. This way I can mark my trail for returning in bad weather and also the chart will show the main river channel in light blue. Also a safe boat speed in these snag filled creeks is less than 30-mph.

TD and I navigated just south of the I-95 Bridge and ran up into one of the many no- name feeders of the Nassau River. Employing our boats electric motor we began drifting down the creek with a preferable out-going tide. Our lures of choice were a single gold Colorado blade spinner fished with a 1⁄4 oz. jig head and chartreuse colored swim bait. We also rigged 1⁄4 oz jig heads to white and chartreuse colored Berkley Gulp shrimp as well.

Our standard fishing pattern is T.D. runs the electric motor at the bow of the boat and makes long casts with a spinner. I will typically make short casts to structure allowing the weighted jig and plastic to work deeper into the creek. Seconds after making just a handful of casts, T. D. hooked landed and released a nice 5-pound striper. A few casts later I was hooked into fairly large creek red that looked to weigh every bit of 6-pounds. At the end of our day, we had caught some 30-blackwater creek game fish including striped bass, sea trout, largemouth bass and our personal favorite, “Redfish.”

However the key to our success of black creek fishing was targeting small feeder creeks that drained marshes into large feeder creeks into the Nassau River. Look for feeder creeks that feed vast amounts of spartina marshes to harbor the best fishing action.

When black water fishing conditions are ideal, I prefer the high falling tide when shrimp are exiting the marshes. Also an early morning flood tide is preferred as well. A variety of lures work best in these black water creeks including the ever popular Storm “Chug Bug,” Strike King’s “Redfish Magic” and 1⁄4 oz. led head jigs rigged with Berkley Gulp Shrimp in the white and chartreuse color patterns. Fifteen pound spin or casting tackle is preferred.

Look for excellent black water fishing action this fall to come from many of Northeast Florida’s black water creeks including the Nassau, St. Mary’s and St. John’s river systems. Please visit www. googlemaps.com to get a better idea where prime marsh creeks empty into main backcountry creeks like Lofton.

Also keep in mind that you may be required to have either a fresh or saltwater fishing license!

Come by the Amelia Angler 1501 Lewis St Fernandina Beach, FL 32034 (904) 753-377

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