M.R. Montgomery’s Reef. 70 degrees from end of jetties, 8.5 miles. This natural depression in the ocean floor has the greatest depth of water in a 9 mile area from the St. Johns River, 76 to 78 ft. In the northern part of the area lies a ledge or reef 3 to 4 feet in height. There are appliances and miscellaneous junk scattered throughout the area. We have placed a barge full of concrete culverts to help replenish this reef. Fishing seems good all year round.

In late 1975, between 2,500 and 3,000 old tires were added to the club’s original reef, Montgomery Reef. In 1977, 400 tons of concrete culvert pipe were placed on Montgomery Reef.

This artificial reef area is named for Monty Montgomery. Monty owned Monty’s Marina and allowed the JOSFC to meet there until the building was sold. I don’t know a lot about Monty, but he was a strong supporter of the Club. His facilities provided a place and the atmosphere that was needed to make the club successful.

The M.R. area was the first artificial reef constructed by the JOSFC. At that time, just about any and everything that would not float was considered to be acceptable material for building a reef. There were car bodies, stoves, refrigerators, tires and assorted pieces of junk. But, when properly placed they made what any modern art critic could consider to be a master piece of epic proportions.

During that period of time I was very active in diving as well as sport fishing. At a diving club meeting one evening, everyone was taking their turn reporting on the previous week’s diving and spear-fishing trips. When Fred’s turn came, he appeared to be enthusiastic and excited.

Fred began, “We dove the art work at M.R. last Sunday. I know you’re not gonna believe this, but it is the best trip I’ve ever had. As I started over to the reef I could see grouper and snapper all over the place

As I approached the main structure, I saw a big snapper, probably about 25 pounds. That sucker, believe it or not, was in the oven of an old gas range. I was just about ready to put some steel in that dude, when I saw out of the corner of my eye, this big Mamma grouper puttin’ the eye on me. I slammed the oven door shut on the snapper and told him I’d be back for him later.

Fred paused, furrowed his brow and continued. “It took 5 minutes, but I finally got into position behind a water heater and then I let the rod fly. Blast! Wouldn’t ya know it… bad hit… too far to the rear and above the spine. When that line came tight, he yanked me off that water heater like I’d taken 220 volts of electricity.”

“The only time I managed to slow him down is when he ran into an old Sears 18 Cubic foot upright freezer. It took him just about two seconds to break the back out of it and only slightly longer for him to pull me through it, behind him. Then he bounced me off more junk than you can imagine.” Fred paused for breath and then continued, “Finally, he broke away from the main reef and started across the sand with me in full tow!” Fred shouted, “What a ride!”

“All of a sudden, the grouper spots a Nash Cosmopolitan, makes a hard right and runs straight over and tries to get into it. Won’t work… cars’ to small.” Fred stopped, got a real serious look on his face and began to speak in a low, almost quiet tone.

“Then the strangest thing happened. He stopped, turned around, and looked me square in the eye. Then he did a slow 360 degree turn and looked at me again. Then, I saw it. Just about 20 feet away was the biggest shark in the Atlantic, and commin’ right at us!”

“Well, I turned back to get to the main reef, when the line tightened up and this time we’re doing mach one, headed for an old ’49 Buick Roadmaster. The grouper took the back seat and I took the front. It took me just about 5 seconds to shut both doors and get the windows rolled up.”

“That shark must have swam around that old Buick 50 times. One time, he even put his face on the windshield. Finally, the shark left. I looked in the back seat and this big ole grouper was lookin’ at me with his mouth and gills opening and closing like a dog doin’ some heavy pantin’.

“Don’t really know if man and fish can bond, but if it’s possible, it happened that day. Anyway,” he said, “I removed the shaft and he seemed grateful. I got out of the car and opened the back door for the grouper. He kinda looked at me as if to say, ‘I’ll stay here awhile.’“

“Yes sir,” Fred mumbled in a low voice, ” that was some trip. Yep, a real good one.” Fred left the podium and started back to his seat. “Hey!” someone yelled. “What about the snapper?”

“The snapper?” Fred asked. “Oh, the snapper.… Well, it took a while to get that old stove to the surface, but we finally got it dried out and that sucker lit right off. We just baked the snapper right there. He was so big, we called all the boats in the area to come over for lunch and then…“

“Fred!” the group yelled, “Sit down and shut up!”

“Well?” Fred mumbled as he walked back to his seat, “It’s the truth!”

I don’t think I’ll ever go to the M.R. and not think about the old group that used to meet at Monty’s and of course, Fred.    (return to top)

The general geographic location was probably responsible for the naming of the Nine Mile area. Some of the earlier JOSFC charts give the distance and bearing from the Sea Buoy, rather than the Jetties as the more recent charts show. The old 1971 chart shows the Nine Mile area located eight miles from the Sea Buoy on a heading of 90 degrees. The ’86 chart shows the location at 10.5 miles from the jetties, on a heading of 93 degrees. To further confuse the issue, the ’76 chart shows the location to be 10.4 miles from the second set of double buoys off the jetties, on a heading of 90 degrees.

Let’s see… One chart has it located at 10.5 miles, one has it at 8 miles and one has it 10.4 miles out. If we average those distances, it would be a total of 28.9 miles, divide that by 3… That would equal 9.6 miles. Well, NO WONDER it’s called ‘Nine Mile!’ Who in the world ever heard of a nine-and-a-half-mile area? Given that, you no longer have to be confused as to how the area got its name or, better yet, even how to get there. The numbers given in the new JOSFC “Offshore Reef Guide” will accurately direct you to some of the most productive spots in the Nine Mile area.

In reality, the area probably became popular in the early days of recreational fishing for several reasons. First and most important, the area naturally holds fish. Additionally, the distance offshore and the ease at which it could be navigated by “dead reckoning” made it a very popular area.

Ninety degrees out, two-seventy in, how much easier could it be? Incidentally, “dead reckoning” is the method of navigation used before Loran and GPS. Remember? I’ll bet. And, considering the size and speed of the recreational boats thirty-five years ago, not to mention the reliability of outboards… nine or ten miles was probably considered far enough for most weekend anglers.

Nine Mile Reef is not just a single location. It’s a blend of natural bottom and areas of controlled material placements which spans over several miles. The JOSFC originally developed the artificial placement in this area and has maintained them for over thirty years.

Seasonally, the area produces excellent catches of bottom fish and many, many fine catches of striking fish have been brought to the dock from the Nine Mile area. King, Cobia, Cuda, Bonito and Spanish are generally plentiful throughout the summer and it’s not uncommon for a Sail or Blackfin Tuna to show up in the area either. During the winter and spring, when weather conditions are fishable but you don’t want to make that long haul against a cold northeast chop, it’s good area for bottom fishing. Achored up bottom bumping, drifting cigar minnows, slow trolling live bait or fast trolling natural bait… just stop by the Nine Mile any season of the year and you’ll bend a rod.    (return to top)

Paul G. Mains Reef was built in 1967 with approximately 300 tons of concrete culvert pipe 2 1/2 feet to 6 feet in diameter plus 200 old automobile bodies.

As new volunteers like Bob Engel, Ed Kalakauskis, and Royal Van Horn became the club’s "Reef Experts", their efforts were bolstered by the club’s first $25,000 federal grant which was used to build up the Paul Mains reef.

One half mile Southeast of PG. This bottom made up of concrete culverts, which have created good fishing from sailfish to mutton snapper.

The PM Reef was named for one of the club's most supportive members, Paul Mains. Paul worked in the sporting goods department at Finkelsteins, located on West Bay Street between Broad Street and Jefferson Street. In its day, Finkelsteins was somewhat like a Sports Unlimited and Wal-Mart rolled up into one.

Paul also wrote a fishing article for the Times-Union. Working in the sporting goods department was an excellent place to gather information on where the action was and who was catching what. Any day, around Noon, you could go into Finkelsteins and find several club members swapping tales, giving their reports to Paul and making plans for the coming weekend.

Paul, and his wife, Gunshy (who was always with him), were extremely supportive of the Offshore Club and seldom missed a meeting. His articles about the club and their activities helped build interest and membership. He always managed to slip the time, date and place of the next J.O.S.F.C. meeting into his article.

Another gimmick he used was to print the angler's name and give the number and type of fish that the angler caught. When you gave Paul a report, you couldn't wait to get the paper and see your name in print. This was equivalent to being recognized on a statewide basis.

If someone came into the store to buy fishing tackle, you could bet your last dime that Paul would talk them into going to the next club meeting. Many times he would convince them to join the club, on the spot.

Paul Mains was a fine man and a close friend to the club. It is just that his memory be preserved in the form of an artificial reef that bears his name.    (return to top)

P.G. Pablo Ground. 111 degree from end of jetties, 9.9 miles. Quick changes in depth, 56 to 78 feet and good live bottom makes this area good for all striking fish during summer months, halfway between 9 mile reef and J.W. It is in the middle of sailfish alley, also good bottom fishing.  (return to top)

Just nine miles off the coast of Jacksonville Beach, some fifty feet below the ocean surface, lie the remains of a commercial tanker named the SS Gulf America.

The date is April 10, 1942. It is a Friday evening and the old Jacksonville Beach Pier is filled with people partying and dancing to the music of the “Big Bands.” At 10:20 P.M., there is a tremendous explosion and fire on the horizon. Everyone on the pier has just witnessed the German submarine, U Boat 123, torpedo and sink the merchant ship S.S. Gulf America. The reality of war being so close to our shoreline was devastating.

The following Sunday, my father took the family to the beach and I remember well the scene that greeted us when we arrived. For several miles in either direction the beach was covered with debris and bunker C oil. As a kid of eight, I delighted in running up and down the beach, picking up bits of debris and returning them to my father for identification. However, I was too young to understand the full impact of what had happened.

Thirty years later, I was working for a mechanical contractor and we had been awarded a contract for the construction of a powerhouse on Stock Island, just outside Key West. I was the project engineer on the job and Lee was the on-site superintendent. Although Lee and I had known each other for several years and were friends, he seldom spoke of his private life.

I had been to Key West on a routine inspection trip and was getting ready to leave on a Friday afternoon. One of my associates, Lee, and I were killing time while waiting for my plane when he asked, “What ya doin’ this weekend, Gator?” “Well, we gotta long weekend ‘cause it’s the 4th of July and I’ve got plans to dive the Jax Beach Wreck on one of those days,” I answered.

“Jax Beach Wreck? Well I tell ya what, if you get on the stern and face towards the bow, you’ll see two hatches. If you can get into the room on the starboard side, you’ll see a dresser against the back bulkhead. In the top drawer of that dresser you’ll find my wallet and dog tags. There’s a hundred dollars in the wallet, you can have the money,” he laughed. “Just bring me my dog tags.”

“What? I answered. “You mean to tell me you were on that ship?”

“Sure was, Gator. That was one of two I had blown out from under me.” That was the first time he had ever mention being on the S.S. Gulf America.

My attempts to make that dive were foiled by boat troubles that almost sank my little dive vessel. Just a little later, a salvage company claimed the propeller and, in the process, destroyed the stern of the vessel.

Then, in 1982, I received a call from a friend inviting me to be a guest at a presentation signing of a book that had been written about U-Boat 123 and the Commander who sank the S.S. Gulf America. In addition, Lee and Commander Hardegan were to meet face to face for the first time since that fatal night off the coast of Jacksonville. The hunter meets the hunted.
I was there when the two men met for the first and only time. There was a brief moment of silence, which seemed like an eternity, while the two men looked at each other. Then Lee smiled slightly and said, “I’m Lee.”

“Rienhart Hardegen,” the Commander replied.

The S.S. Gulf America was on her maiden voyage out of Texas when U-Boat 123 picked her up south of St. Augustine. They had been warned of sub activity in the area, so the S.S. Gulf America set up a zig-zag tacking course. This prevented the sub from being able to get into position to fire a torpedo. They were near St. Augustine around sun down when the S.S. Gulf America stopped its zig-zag maneuvers. However, the chase continued on into the night, and U-Boat 123 finally got into position off of Jacksonville and released one torpedo which found its mark on the starboard side of the vessel. Commander Hardegen then surfaced and moved around on the port side to finish the sinking with his deck guns. The Commander said he could see the lights along the beach and chose this maneuver in order to prevent shelling the mainland, should he overshoot the S.S. Gulf America. Lee’s story is different. “Bull****!” he said. “There was a west wind blowing that night and the fire was being blown offshore between us and the U-Boat. He couldn’t see us so he came around on our port side so the fire would silhouette the ship and he could get a better shot. That German was trying to kill us, that’s a fact.”

Commander Hardegen was truly an amazing skipper with a remarkable record. He averaged almost 100% for every torpedo he carried and he made several trips between Germany and the United States. On one of his return trips, Commander Hardegen was put on the bottom just off our coast by an American destroyer. He was ready to try an escape from the sub in seventy to eighty feet of water when one of the crew gave word they had the situation under control. They discharged bilge and debris from the torpedo tubes and fooled the destroyer into believing they had made a clean kill. After the destroyer left, they rebuilt one engine with parts from another and returned to Germany on one engine.

When I look back on this strange chain of events and think about the fact that my friend managed to survive the sinking of the S.S. Gulf America, Commander Hardegen managed to survive the disaster of almost losing U-Boat 123, and I survived near disaster of sinking in the spot, it is truly a strange feeling.

Even today, I can not go into that area without visualizing what it must have been like that fateful night when the S.S. Gulf America was torpedoed by U Boat 123 and 12 of the 29 crew were killed. I can also visualize a small bead chain with a set of military dog tags embossed with my friend’s name, still buried somewhere in the sand and rubble, at the “Jax Beach Wreck.”

Another Installment on the JW - Click Here.
  (return to top)

Just six miles off the coast between Jacksonville and St. Augustine is one of the most innovative and ambitious reef building projects in the long history of the artificial reef development of the First Coast area. 500 reef balls, varying from the size of a basketball to the size of a sedan were deployed in 2000.

The project is in honor of Charles H. Kirbo, who served as an advisor to President Jimmy Carter and was a trustee of the Carter Center and a trustee of the T.M. and Irene B. Kirbo Charitable Trust. The reef was built thanks to a grant from the Kirbo Charitable Trust and the Reef Ball Foundation.

With the volunteer work of students at Mandarin and Fletcher High Schools, St. Augustine High School and Jacksonville University and local organizations such as the JOSFC and the Jacksonville Reef Research Team, construction of the Reef Balls was done by Reef Innovations. Designed to mimic and provide the same environment as natural coral heads, the modules provide habitat for many types of marine life. They are designed to be stable on the ocean floor, and have been proven not to move even after hurricane force winds have passed. Local schools and the Reef Research Team will be studying these deployments as they develop and habituate with sea life. Students from local high schools and colleges will be trained to collect data, like water quality and fish counts, to contribute to a database of information on the productivity of the placement.

The project is far from over. Placement of additional Reef Balls is planned for the future and the study project is ongoing.  (return to top)

50 degrees from the St. Johns River jetties at 15.8 miles. Large hole with crescent shaped ledge. runs Southeast to Northwest, coral and rock bottom. Good bottom for snapper, grouper and sea bass.  (return to top)

The RL area was named for one of the original members of the JOSFC, Linden Heston. Linden had a 20-foot Thunderbird named the Rapid Rabbit. So it would be only fitting to name this natural bottom reef as the Rabbit’s Lair.

Linden was a devoted Club member and dedicated a lifetime of work to help make this club what it is today.

When I first joined the club and volunteered for different committees, Linden was always on them. It didn’t matter whether it was banding tires together or building buoys, you could count on Linden to always be there.

Several years, Linden was at home, working on preparing his boat for a fishing trip when he passed away. He loved boats, the ocean, fishing and the JOSFC.

It is great to have the memory of Linden Heston left behind in the form of a natural reef, such as the Rabbit’s Lair.  (return to top)

Capt. Jimmy Capo (pronounced Ka-po) was one of the earliest members of the JOSFC. This newly-permited area for future development was named in honor of Jimmy, a text-book fishing enthusiast. Already at the area and producing good catches is a tug from the Monohan fleet and a considerable drop of concrete rubble, famous for quickly developing into prime fish habitat.  (return to top)

B.B. Busey’s Bonanza. 80 degrees from the end of jetties 12.4 miles. This is another area made up of sunken vessels to create fishing which was worth the effort with good results. It was replenished with concrete culverts along with rubble from the Acosta and Buckman bridges to produce a trolling alley, keeping these grounds producing. (Photo is a link.)  (return to top)

Like the movie The Gladiator, today the Gator Bowl Press box sits upright on the bottom of the sea watching the grouper and snapper doing battle to the death with the sharks and the barracudas. The press box is exactly that, where the press reported during all the football games and sporting events. At that time, the City of Jacksonville had no Jaguars, and didn’t even have a football team. The big event for the Gator bowl was the Florida Georgia game. The first time the Gator Bowl was dismantled, the press box was saved for the Jacksonville Shipyards to turn into office space.

It was a cold winter day and Bud White as a member of the JOSFC, the captain on a 42-foot vessel headed offshore for the purpose of building a reef. He was accompanied by 2 divers. They stopped at what they thought would be the right to put the press box. Two divers went into the water to check out the bottom. They reported that it was live bottom and the water was too shallow for the 15-20 foot tall sections of the press box. The water temperature was about 50 degrees.

At EF, only one diver went in because he was the only one that wore a dry suit and who could stand the cold water. Meanwhile, the tugboat and barge with the four sections of the press box hanging 10 to 15 feet over the edges of the barge hovered nearby. This gave it a resemblance to a biplane flying very low on the surface. The weather was starting to blow up and because of the poor communications with Capt. Bud and the tugboat captain, two sections were dropped with the diver on the bottom. The diver was experiencing his own problems. The visibility was 12 to 18 inches. He found the bottom by bumping into it. He swam along the bottom and something latched onto his right heel. This was his turning point. He started to the surface. The visibility was still real poor, but he noticed that the water around him was getting darker and darker.

He made it to the surface and all kinds of large pieces of timber were shooting out of the water. Several of them almost skewered him. The dark shadow was the 2 sections of the press box on their way down while he was on his way up. Getting into the boat was a challenge to his physical ability because of the rough seas. Looking down at his right heel, he found a 2 foot Moray eel which latched on to his bootie. Now the weather blew up harder—4 to 5 foot seas.


Two more sections went off with no control from any of the crew members. Capt. Bud called the tug captain and told him he had to go back to shore. Captain Bud put the boat on auto pilot and went down below to smoke a cigar and eat pizza and play cards in rough seas. One of the divers could not take the current conditions of eating pizza and playing cards in rough seas, so he returned topside to see that the seas were 6 to 7 feet. Noticing the anchor rope was not secure at the bow, he made his way and secured the rope and on the way back he slipped overboard. Grabbing a cleat and hanging on he yelled for help, which seemed like an eternity. A rogue wave hit him and threw him back in the boat. He went down below to explain to the crew what happened. They wouldn’t have believed him except that his clothes were soaking wet.

Bud White was talking to some fishermen on the radio. They wanted to know who was responsible for putting the press box in the place it was at because they wanted to hang him.  (return to top)

Clayton’s Holler was a popular stop for some of the earliest fishermen in the club. It has some good rocky bottom and a shallow ledge heading west from the inshore side. As you can see below, it has been greatly enhanced since those early days and is often overlooked as a prime area for both bottom specie and palegics.  (return to top)

M.F. Main 14 & 15 Fathom ground. 115 degrees from jetties, 16.5 miles. Good stretch of reefs and ledges running North and South, also a sunken tug boat 50 feet inshore of ledge. Bottom fish all year. Water depth 75 to 92 feet.  (return to top)

When I first joined the Offshore Club, we were meeting at Monty's Marina. I can assure you there isn't much difference between the meetings then and now. It was fun then and it is fun today.

I didn't own an offshore boat when I first joined the club, but I enjoyed many rides with a lot of fine people. One person was a guy named Norman Dunn.
Norman was a “Damn Yankee” and I don't really remember how he ended up in Jacksonville. I met him because we worked in the same building at that time.

I got him interested in offshore fishing with stories I shared on Monday mornings after a good weekend of fishing. I talked Norman into joining the Club. Shortly thereafter, he bought a what-cha-ma-call-it boat powered by a 50 or 60 HP Scott-McCulloch outboard and we started fishing together on a regular basis.

When Norman first got the boat he was as proud as any new boat owner and invited me over to have a look at his stately craft. I recall the first time I ever saw that boat. I walked up to it, took one look at the motor and said, “Scott McCulloch, huh? What ya gonna name it? Chain Saw?” That conversation almost broke up a good friendship and fishing team.

In those days Loran A wasn't in existence. Marine radio was all AM band and limited to a select few people that could afford them. Navigation was mostly by dead-reckoning. Factoring in time, distance, speed and the ability to hold a compass heading determined when or if you arrived at your planned destination. The compass Norman had in Ole Chain Saw was similar to the stick-on windshield type. This compass was also about as big as the eye on a rag doll and would spin like the drums on a slot machine. This called for even more acute seamanship. The only way to assure you were heading in a relatively close course was to bring the boat to rest, wait for the compass to stop spinning, get lined up and take off again.

To resolve the navigation problems, Norman almost always fished the same area. As you left the jetties, you turned to a heading of 110 degrees and ran for two hours. This also solved the safety problem because everyone knew where we were going and we could always get a tow if we needed one. We always needed one.

Norman got very active in the club and became one hell of a fisherman. Just a few years after joining the club, he decided to vacation in Flamingo, down at the tip end of the Florida mainland. Yep, you guessed it, just ole Chain Saw and Norman for 10 days in the flats around south Florida. The clearest water that yank had ever seen, including New Jersey drinking water.

The following year he went to the Keys and that did it. Shortly after that trip, he bought an old run down fish camp, just outside of Marathon, called Grassy Key Fish Camp and built it into a real fine marina.

Norman eventually became the Evinrude Dealer for Monroe County and his business became quite large. He sold the business for “big bucks” and went some place down into the islands and set up a big house boat rental business.
During the time Norman was active in the club, he served on several committees, including the Chart Committee.

You guessed it, Dunn's Run (DR) is named for Norman and ole Chain Saw.

Wonder why his fishing buddy, didn't also get his name tied to that area. After all, he was brave enough to make more than one trip out to that spot in ole “Chain Saw.”

Editor’s Note: In one of the saddest events of recent club history, David Miller, just 17 at the time, was lost in a diving accident in Key West. The family decided to scatter David’s ashes at one of his favorite fishing spots, a highly productive ledge at Dunn's Run that David had been fishing for most of his life.

It was a tribute to David’s legacy as a truly fine young man that an entire fleet of club boats accompanied the King Neptune on that somber occasion. We fondly remember David every time his “favorite spot” produces a quality day of fishing  (return to top)

M.G. Middle Ground. 115 degrees from end of jetties, 13.0 miles. The halfway mark on the ESE course to the S.S. grounds. Several good ledges and a sunken vessel near the flag. Good surface and bottom fishing for all species, depth 75 to 89 feet.  (return to top)

These grounds have a small hole near the flag and several small ledges with live coral bottom. There is another 80 foot hole 1 and a quarter miles on a 25 degree course from the flag. This area usually has the clearest water with the exception of offshore, a good place to start for sailfish and dolphin.  (return to top)

Alton Meeks was affectionately known as the honorary mayor of Mayport. He was one of the first members to start forming and coming to the club meetings. He was at every club meeting. He was always taking pictures at the ramp and club house, both for individuals and the sports section of the local newspaper. He was a notary public and married quite a lot of people at his little white house in Mayport. His family was also very active in the club.   (return to top)

A.H. Amberjack Hole. 61 degrees from end of jetties, 18.6 miles, depth of water 75 to 85 feet. This ground consists of a small area of heavy coral and rock formations. Ledges are short, 5 to 10 feet in height and lie in a North to South heading. The heavy concentration of amberjack was responsible for the name of this hole. Cuda, cobia, kingfish and dolphin are plentiful here. Good snapper and grouper fishing year round.

Charlie Hamaker, the JOSFC’s “Unofficial Historian” remembers that the A.H. was named for the club's first President, Fred Morrow. At that time, J.O.S.F.C. stood for Jacksonville Outboard Sports Fishing Club.

The original name of this area was Peanut King's Amberjack Hole. Peanut King was the name of Fred's 20 foot Thunderbird and it was one of several that were in the club.

I can still recall the first time I ever saw a 20 ft. Thunderbird. It was decked out with twin 30 or 40 H.P. engines and it had to be the biggest thing afloat. I also remember the first time I ever rode in one. They were flat bottomed and about as rough as a square tire dune buggy in a rock pile.

By actual count, I am sure that if you had all the fish put into the Peanut King, you could supply Captain D's for a year. Some of the earlier members were innovative and came up with some very interesting ways to catch fish. Imagine this, amberjack on a cane pole. Yep, the same way you would fish for specks in Crescent Lake. The only difference is the cane pole and live bait are larger. Visualize the action of having jacks all around the boat and laying out a live bait with a cane pole and you've got a picture of Fred and his crew. If that's not enough, what about tarpon?

Fred and Ed Schugart tried this and actually hooked up a tarpon on a cane pole. The fish made one jump and the hook was thrown directly back at the boat. It passed between the two anglers, missing them by inches, and shattered the boat’s windshield.

In the early and mid sixties, amberjack were plentiful and big. Fred, Ed Schugart, Burt Clyborn and Wimpie Sutton set a record I predict will never be broken. Forty-two amberjack were tagged and released in one day of fishing. But the single fish that won a tournament for Fred and started the name of Peanut King's Amberjack Hole was a 72 pound amberjack taken at “the Hole.”

Fred went through several boats after the Peanut King. There was the Ronnie J, Ronnie J II, Lady Yvonne and finally the Little Yvonne which he charters for river and jetty trips today.  (return to top)

It was 1962. I was nine, and it was raining.

I hadn’t slept in days. Here I was standing on the dock at Mayport Yacht basin staring at a huge ocean-going fishing boat. She was shiny and sleek, and the giant letters spelling out WYNEMA on the bow, meant I had finally arrived at my destiny. I was going deep-sea fishing. Forget heaven, I was going somewhere much better, I was going deep-sea fishing… Except that it was raining.

My dad tried, he really did. He explained to me that the boat probably wouldn’t be going out. It was raining, and we had to be safe. So even though I could reach right out and touch the magical Wynema, it looked to dad and I like my maiden voyage was gonna have to wait.

I looked up, thankful for the rain to hide my broken heart just as a figure far more impressive than Capt. Ahab walked up to me, and spoke the words I’ll never forget. “I’m Captain Walter Floyd son, what do you think about the weather. Should we go?”

LET’S GO!! I screamed, and without cracking a smile Capt. Walter said “Well folks, you heard the man let’s go”

Oh My God, I can remember thinking. What’s he doing? I didn’t mean it. What if we sink? What if I’ve sent 30 people to a watery grave? Why did he leave it up to me?

That was my introduction to the great Capt. Walter Floyd. Before we had a Mayport Princess, or a King Neptune or even a Miss Jacksonville, we had Capt. Walter on the Wynema. Want to know how good he was? He was, and still is for that matter, as good a snapper fisherman as there’s ever been. Think you could fish all the airplanes around BR without a loran? Think you could drive around the party grounds all day without getting lost, using a stopwatch and a compass? I don’t think so.

Gerald Pack will tell you in a minute that Capt. Walter, who is now older than he’d want me to tell, is still the first line down, and the last one up every time they fish together.

The club owes a lot to this pioneer of our waters, from helping lay out the original charts to towing home more club members than he’d care to remember.

The next time you’re fishing the FF area, go ahead and turn your loran off and run to your next spot. Captain Walter could.   (return to top)

This area is one of the largest of all marked spots on the Jacksonville Party Grounds. There are groups of reefs and ledges that extend for approximately three miles in a Northeast to Southwest direction. Also, some reefs run Southeast to Northwest. Watch for a considerable drop-off, often marking in the 110-feet range!  (return to top)

Most of these reefs run from Southeast to Northwest, with ledges from offering from 5- to 10-foot drop-offs. There are also several deep holes in the area. The HG is typically an early hot spot for amberjack and bonito, followed by other striking fish.  (return to top)

In 1932 a proud new 225' freighter was built in Leith, Scotland. With cabins of inlaid wood from around the world and tall masts she was as graceful as she was functional. For years she was a coastal freighter in European waters. During World War II, she was a supply ship ferrying arms and supplies between England and Sweden, and in 1947 she was sold for use as a coastal freighter in the North Atlantic. Along the way she acquired the name Anna, and her pristine image became tarnished. In 1981, off the coast of South Florida, she was seized in a drug bust.

From 1981 until 1986 she sat idle, her bottom gathering barnacles, her brass fittings turning green, and her magnificent wood trim drying in the Florida heat. No longer would the freighter carry cargo around the world, but she has been reborn and has a new assignment to fulfill. She has become a home for fish and an attraction for fishermen.

The Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament, in cooperation with the Jacksonville Offshore Sport Fishing Club, purchased the Anna to create a new artificial reef for offshore Jacksonville. Over $25,000 was spent in purchasing, preparing and sinking the ANNA.

With cheers and shouts from the boatloads of spectators, the Anna exploded from charges placed by the Explosive Ordinance Disposal teams from Mayport Naval Air Station and Cecil Field Naval Air Station, and quickly sank to the ocean floor in 110' of water. With her sinking, she was renamed Tournament Reef, in honor of the group who made her new life a reality.

She sits on her starboard side on the sand, her port side rising 30' off the bottom, her once tall masts cut off before sinking. Her anchor line slants forward from her bow and disappears under shifting sand, her anchor somewhere ahead, under a sand drift.

With her sinking, Tournament Reef (TR) became an instant “home” for many marine animals. Within minutes of her arrival on the ocean floor divers reported that hundreds of baitfish had appeared, seeking safety from their predators in the shelter of the ship. Over the next few months algae and barnacles grew on the surfaces of the ship, providing food for the baitfish who in turn attracted larger game fish. Within six months of her sinking, TR had become home to snapper, grouper, atlantic spade fish, sheepshead and other bottom fish. Above the wreck amberjack, cobia and kingfish came to prey on the baitfish.

Today TR is a busy place. Numerous white sea urchins can be found on the hull, which is covered with marine growth. Clouds of baitfish surround the ship. Grouper peek out from beneath pieces of metal. Black sea bass dart in and out, and amberjack cavort in large schools. The explosives and the sea have taken their toll and the midsection of the hull has collapsed outward onto the sand. However, the bow and the stern have excellent high profiles, attracting the types of fish that like high profiles such as amberjack, bluefish and kingfish. The midsection, with its lower profile, is more likely to attract the bottom fish such as grouper and flounder. As it turns out, TR has something for everyone, and should provide excellent fishing for many, many years to come. It is a reef the Greater Jacksonville Kingfish Tournament and the JOSFC can be proud of—a job well done! (Photo is a link.)  (return to top)

Tanzler’s Waters was so named to honor the first truly environmentally-sensitive mayor of Jacksonville. Famous for his water-skiing event in the St. Johns River, he did it to prove that the river was once again an acceptable recreational resource.

The TW is a legacy of a friend to the environment and the fishery.
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Named after Pappa Jack Currans. Jack owned D&D Bottle Gas company. He not only was a club member but he and his wife, Elaine were recognized because they did more cooking and held more fish fry’s to raise money for the club than just about anyone. It would be the 4th of July, when it was 100° in the shade and there Jack and Elaine would be, hanging over those cookers. They did the whole thing. He would be cooking, he and Bill Love, and Elaine would be cooking and selling box lunches for $5 to raise money for the club to someday have their own clubhouse. He would go fishing in Alaska and bring a halibut back. Probably more than a few people had their first taste of halibut thanks to Pappa Jack.   (return to top)

EEF was at first named casually, to describe an area east of the EF flag that was, for many years, a secret so well guarded that the folks who knew about it would hoist their anchor and leave if anyone approached on the horizon. It is a ledge that marks clearly on modern depth-charting electronics and holds such profile-loving specie as snapper, grouper and sea bass.  (return to top)

The H.L. is named for one of the original members and pioneers of the club, Gus Harms. Gus owned a service station that was located at the corner of Hendrix Ave. and Prudential Drive. Several years ago I passed by that area and noticed that someone had opened a restaurant in the original building. I don't know if it is still open, but it sure brought back memories.

If fishing was off or if the weather was bad enough to keep the fleet in, you could kill the time waiting for better weather by running between Gus's service station and Finkelsteins; just like the "Tackle Junkies" of today.

When you stopped by Gus's, the biggest problem was parking so you didn't block the gas pumps or service bays. The same problems that the "Tackle Junkies" have today. One of the service bays was usually filled with buoys or a boat. There were a lot of buoys assembled there and many cans of beer swallowed at Gus's Service Station.

A nice memory of a nice man and a good natural reef to fish. H.L., Harm's Ledge.
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Blackmar’s Reef is named for Ray Blackmar, one of the original members of the Jacksonville Offshore Sport Fishing Club (JOSFC).

Charlie Hamaker, the JOSFC’s “Unofficial Historian” remembers meeting Ray Blackmar in 1963, after attending several club meetings at Monty's Marina. He took Charlie under tow and gave him one-on-one lessons on how to twist wire and how to make rigs correctly.

“Ray was free with information and would gladly share his knowledge with club members,” remembers Charlie. “At that time, he was probably one of the best fishermen in the club.”

“At a time when electronic navigation (Loran or GPS) was unheard of (or unaffordable), Ray would ‘Dead Reckon’ to the area known today as B.R. He could do it on a consistent basis regardless of sea conditions.” Because of modern day electronics this is a skill which is being practiced less and less.

But Ray was a good club member and a good seaman.
94 degrees from jetties at 28.1 miles. This area has good natural bottom along with three sunken vessels to create artificial reefs. This has proved to be very successful for fishing. Good catches of striking and bottom fishing all year. 105 to 110 feet of water.  (return to top)

The “Casablanca” is a 365’ LST that was sunk in 1972. The intent was to make this drop in the BR area, but bad weather, combined with a trapped air pocket inside the vessel made the drop go awry. It floated over four miles almost due south before finally sinking and remained “lost” for years before it was discovered.

It is a quality deep water wreck that produces fine catches, both trolling and bottom, when conditions such as water temperature and clarity allow. If you make the trip to the Casablanca, don’t leave the area without working some of the other areas marked in the vicinity. Plane wrecks and other unidentified structure produce well when carefully found and marked.  (return to top)

The placement of Dry Dock AFDM-9 is probably one of the most unique artificial reefs ever developed by the Jacksonville Offshore Sport Fishing Club (JOSFC). Size alone places it in a category of one of the largest placements ever made, and by far the largest for the club to date. AFDM-9 was constructed in 1940’s and had an overall length of 608 feet. She was 124 feet in width and stood 57 feet from the keel to top of the wing walls.

I don’t recall exactly how I learned of the unit becoming available, but I think it was probably through our Artificial Reef Committee. Grover Starratt was Chairman of the committee at the time and was a main player throughout the entire project. In the process of running down leads, it became my pleasure to have met a true “Officer and a Gentleman.” Vice Admiral Richard Kennebrew, Ret. He depicted everything you ever heard or saw in movies about Naval Officers, or big ships, or the military. He became a key player in putting things together so that this placement could become a reality. I am grateful for his assistance on this project.

The AFDM-9 actually belonged to the Navy and had been on lease to one of the local ship yards for twenty years. The agreement stipulated the unit had to be returned to the Norfolk Shipyards upon completion of the lease. In order to make the return voyage in the open sea, the unit would have to be retrofitted at a cost of about 2 million dollars. The dry dock was old, somewhat out dated and probably wouldn’t fit the needs of the Navy’s modern fleet. To put a large amount of money into the vessel, just to tow it to Norfolk, seemed like a waste. I suggested to Admiral Kennebrew that he might want to consider donating the AFDM-9 to be used as an artificial reef.

This was the offer. The JOSFC would provide the necessary permits, and locate a suitable offshore area that was about 120 feet deep. This depth of water was needed to insure the vessel would have the required 50 feet of clearance after placement. In addition, the JOSFC would have the area surveyed to insure the unit would not be placed on any live bottom, and they would provide LORAN coordinates for the area of placement. The shipyard would prepare the unit to U.S.Coast Guard specifications, tow the dry dock to location and make the placement. All of this could be accomplished at fraction of the cost it would take to scrap the vessel or to have it retrofitted and returned to Norfolk. The Admiral agreed we went to work.

The following weekend Grover and I checked out an area about 45 miles Northeast of St. Augustine. Bob Engles had provided the LORAN numbers and suggested we look at this area because it would make the placement an equal distance between Jacksonville and St. Augustine. This way both communities would benefit from the placement.

The next order of business was to have the placement area surveyed. We called upon the expertise of the Reef Research Team of The Jacksonville Scubanauts to provide these services. They are an extremely capable and very technical group of individuals whose work is looked upon as being authoritative.

Admiral Kennebrew suggested that we contact Congressman Bennett. He had a lot of influence in Washington and could probably make things happen if we could sell him on the idea. Grover wrote to him and a short time later we had a one-on-one conversation with him in his Jacksonville office. It’s seldom you get the opportunity to “ sit-n-chat” with a Congressman of the stature of Charlie Bennett, it was a pleasure, very interesting, and he agreed to help with the project.

Everything was now working and all that remained was to let paper work and the slow wheels of bureaucracy turn to a completion. As it turned out, the vessel could not be donated to a private entity or, for that matter, even a public entity. It could only be donated to the State. Arrangements were made for the State to accept the vessel then turn it over to City of Jacksonville, who in turn guaranteed placement.

On September 13,1989, the giant dry dock AFDM-9, with four tugs at her side, left the St. Johns River for the last time. When they cleared the jetties two of the tugs returned to port. The remaining two continued on for another 45 miles to the Southeast and spotted the giant vessel above her final resting place. The equipment barge, which had accompanied the tow, was pulled along side the dry dock. The crew hurried to make ready all systems so the automatic valves that flood the bilge could be opened. Finally, the switches were engaged and within 30 minutes the giant vessel came to rest 120 feet below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean.

Before the last breath of air had finished leaking from her old seams, divers were descending to make an inspection and record the heading in which the vessel landed. Everything had gone as planned, it had landed flat on the keel line with the huge wing walls extending vertically toward the surface of the ocean. The placement was finally completed.

However, the forces of Mother Nature would take their toll. A later inspection revealed that the ground swells from hurricane David, which had passed near our coast, had collapsed one wing wall and rotated the huge vessel about 14 degrees from its original heading. Later, the effects of the devastating hurricane Hugo would collapse the one remaining wing. Today the vessel is one huge flat reef which measures approximately 180 feet in width, 608 feet in length and stands over 14 feet tall. This represents an area approximately the size of two foot ball fields placed side by side, which is a nice reef, a real nice reef.

In the past several years there have been reports of wahoo, tuna, sail cobia, king and even a white marlin being caught in the Dry Dock area. The area abounds with bait fish so you can also expect plenty of action from the barracuda.

With the average speed of the today’s recreational fishing boats, the run to the Dry Dock can be made in about an hour and half from either Jacksonville or St. Augustine depending on weather, of course. Another 10 miles to the East and you’re on the “Roll-Down” at the edge of the Gulf stream. Both areas can easily be fished on the same day. However, on long trips like these it goes without saying to check the weather conditions before starting out. This is the cardinal rule. Additionally you need to monitor the VHF weather channels during the day to keep yourself appraised of any changes .

“The Dry Dock,” a great place to fish, and a great achievement by the Jacksonville Offshore Sport Fishing Club.   (return to top)