# Heading to Fort Clinch Aug 1st



## JodyP (Jul 21, 2007)

I'm heading to Fort Clinch for some camping and peir fishing for a few days, arriving Aug 1st. I grew up fishing the piers and brackish water with my dad, but having fished in more than 15 years (since I moved out and away from the coast). 
Anyways, I'm wondering what the fishing may be like off the pier at fort clinch? I planned on fishing for flounder and sheephead since that what I had some experience in. I might even try fishing for some bigger fish at night since I've never done that. Just wondering if you guys can give me some tips. I plan on using my dads old reels, which are the old school spincasters with Zebco 808s on them. Hopefully you pros around those parts wont laugh at me with my el cheapo rig, but I can't afford new stuff for a one time trip. I figured I'd fish with Skrimps and fiddler crabs, any other recommendations? Also, how the blue crab these days, I may bring my 10 year old with me and I'm sure he would enjoy that, I know I did at that age. Thanks for any input! Jody


Oh, almost forgot. I've never camped at fort clinch. You got any input on that. I bet it will be hotter than hell!


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## Surf Fish (Dec 16, 2005)

There are two campgrounds at Ft. Clinch - the beach campground near the pier, and the river campground on the west side of the park. At the beach campground, you can walk over the dunes and fish in the inlet from the beach, and also there's fishing in the river near the other campground. 

You have the hot part right. We were out on the pier one day last week when the wind stopped blowing, and it was drop dead ugly hot. Take a beach umbrella along if you have one, and don't forget plenty of drinks and the sunblock. 

Not the right time of year for sheephead, but you might get lucky; use the fiddlers around the pilings. Summer is basically just flounder time at the pier, use live mud minnows and just walk them up and down the sides of the pier. Best time is supposed to be low tide for flounder.

We didn't do much last week, only a few small whiting, but the Ft. Clinch pier doesn't hold fish; whatever you're going to catch is going to be swimming by, so one day can be nothing, next day be everything. 

Heard of a few small reds caught last week, but I didn't see them. The charter guys are catching reds out near the end of the jetty, and seeing some tarpon, so you never know, might be some passing thru by the pier. Might also be some sharks in the daytime. 

At night, probably nothing much but catfish and/or sharks. If you fish at night, be aware there is no security at the park. Don't leave any goodies in the car in the pier parking lot. There are no lights on the pier at night this time of year because of the nesting sea turtles. 

If you want to fish at night, I'd recommend the beach near your campsite vs. the pier, especially on the weekends; the beach is a lot more family friendly. 

Can't help you on the blue crabs, haven't seen anyone crabbing the last few times I was at the pier. 

Don't worry about pros, just bring whatever rods you have and enjoy yourself. We don't have any pros at Ft. Clinch; matter of fact this time of the year it's so hot that you might have the pier all to yourself on weekdays.


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## JodyP (Jul 21, 2007)

Awesome, thanks for your advice. I will surely use it. I've been reading this board for a few weeks know and can tell barty and you know your stuff. I will be camping on the riverside since they don't allow tent camping on the beach side, according to where I booked the spot. I have a few follow up questions to some of your suggetions.
"Summer is basically just flounder time at the pier, use live mud minnows and just walk them up and down the sides of the pier."
I've never fished with mud minnows, just live shrimp for flounder and really can't remember how I fished for them. If I recall I was fishing about 36" below the surface, is that how you suggest with mud minnows? I'll do some searches, but just incase I can't find the answer I thought i'd ask.



"If you fish at night, be aware there is no security at the park. Don't leave any goodies in the car in the pier parking lot. There are no lights on the pier at night this time of year because of the nesting sea turtles. 

If you want to fish at night, I'd recommend the beach near your campsite vs. the pier, especially on the weekends; the beach is a lot more family friendly."

Is it not safe to pier fish at night? Is it safe to even pitch a tent and stay the night? Those statements kinda catch me off gaurd. I read that the gates close at dusk, so I thought that meant others can't get in at night? I wondered how that works at night because my best frieind lives there and I hoped to come and go as I pleased, but just assumed I wouldnt' be able to after reading that. I've been to fort clinch many times, but never stayed the night. I'm very kind person and do my best to avoid trouble like the plague (I'm even kind when drinkingopcorn.
You might know my buddy since the island is so small, Mason Baker. He's been the manager of the Zaxbys there for years.


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## Surf Fish (Dec 16, 2005)

The way we fish mud minnows for flounder is right on the bottom; 12 to 18 inch leader, and an egg sinker. If we use dead shrimp or cut bait, usually just toss them out on a two hook bottom rig.

Look at the pictures RailRoader posted in this thread:

http://www.pierandsurf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=41773#16

I don't think you'll have any problems in the river campground in a tent, because the campground is usually full of other people who are camping. 

But I wouldn't recommend the pier at night unless you are with a group of people. 

The "security" at Ft. Clinch has always been a sore spot with me, because they present a false impression that they have security but in fact they don't. There is full time law enforcement/game warden officer in the park during the day who does a great job, but I don't think he works at night.

Yes, there is a gate to the park, always has been, they close it at sundown every night. Problem is that anybody with a season pass, and anybody who's stayed there in the last month, and anybody who has a friend who has a season pass, and anybody who's been on the pier when the new gate code was getting passed around has the code to open the gate. They change the code once a month.

Last week we were planning an early morning trip, and it was raining like crazy and I didn't feel like driving up to Ft. Clinch to make sure I had the current gate code, so I called on the phone. I was curious to see if they'd give it to me over the phone. I told them I had a season pass, and asked if the gate code had changed lately. The nice lady on the phone gave me the new code, without bothering to verify that I in fact had a season pass (it's numbered, she could have checked the computer).

Used to be that you needed the gate code to get back out after dark, now they have a new gate that will automatically open to let cars out. And stay open long enuff to let anybody in that wants to drive in. The gate only blocks cars, so if Jack The Ripper wanted to walk in, he'd just walk around the gate....

There is no night shift at Ft Clinch - the park staff packs up and goes home at dark, office and gate house are closed. 

There's a Coke machine at the bathrooms on the walkway to pier, which routinely gets rolled over and smashed, and I doubt that happens during the day. We do a lot of early morning fishing and seem to find a lot of "party residue" on the pier from the previous night, especially on Monday mornings.

I've never heard of anyone getting hurt or mugged in the park, but I've heard stories of cars getting broken into at the pier parking lot, and I've seen a number of smashed Coke machines, and I've met people on the pier that I wouldn't want to spend much time with in the dark.

Don't forget that as a non resident of Florida, you'll need a fishing license to fish on the pier, because there is no blanket license to cover everyone who paid to get into the park to use the pier, like there is on most other Florida piers. 

Even though there are two fish cleaning tables on the pier, there are no signs to remind you that it's illegal to cut up any fish with a size limit until after it's been removed from the pier, so you could be fined by the state of Florida for cleaning fish at the cleaning tables provided by the state of Florida. (That makes sense, huh?)

Take a trash bag with you, because there are no trash cans on the pier (too much trouble to walk out and empty them). 

Be careful when you're being kind (and drinking) in the park, because the rules say no alcohol is allowed in the park, even though half the people in the park bring alcohol anyway, and the rule doesn't seem to be actively enforced because you don't want to wind up being the exception to the rule not being enforced. 

If I think of more of my favorite Ft. Clinch sore spots that I've been complaining to Ft. Clinch about for years, I'll let you know


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## JodyP (Jul 21, 2007)

*Thanks*

Thanks once again. It a shame to hear some of the issues at the park/pier. Its sounds like all the issues could easily be resolved with a few late night pop in visits a month late in the night. I dont kwow the 'rules', but you'd think the local PD could even pay some visits since they gotta have some one working. The word would travel fast I'm sure. Though I do drink occasionally, I don't plan on drinking while fishing there!


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## Surf Fish (Dec 16, 2005)

The sad part with Ft. Clinch is that it would be REALLY easy to fix 99% of the ongoing problems, and that 99% of the ongoing problems are caused by regular users of the pier, who are breaking the rules mainly because they know they can get away with it. 

They just got a new park manager a few months ago, who "improved" the place by making a bunch of new rules. For example, you can't launch a kayak anywhere inside the park anymore. But if you pull up to the office and register for your two week campsite with three kayaks on the roof of your camper, nobody is going to bother to tell you about the no kayak rule. And when you launch them, nobody is going to bother to tell you not to. So why they bother making rules is beyond me  

Anyway, enjoy your vacation, hope you catch some fish....


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