After over a two year wait the Stoney Bayou Pond on the St. Marks LH road has been filled by the recent rains. I paddled across the very windy pond to the new dike and operable culvert system. It is about 50 feet feet from the pond to the upper reaches Stoney Bayou and not a difficult protage up one side of the dike and down the other. Once in Stoney Bayou the paddling was not difficult but the tide ( 3 feet ) was very strong and moving lots of water. I entered the bayou at 12:00 so I was a lttle surprised that that much water was moving that far up so early in the tide. I stayed in the Bayou for three hours throwing a gold weedless spoon and a 1/16 oz. gold jig head with a paddle tail with only two hits. About 2pm I started seeing plenty of trout and reds along the banks but they were very spooky, and no takers. I suspect that had I got there later and stayed longer the action may have picked up once the water slowed down. The paddle across the pond was about 20 minutes which is a lot shorter than going to the light house and then along the outside to the mouth of Stoney Bayou.
On the return trip I saw a large boil up along the bank and padled to the action. Once there I saw a trout floating head up. I gave it a flip with my paddle and saw what was left was about 20" of fat trout with a large diameter crescent just behind where dorsal fin would have been!
Yestreday was my first time crossing the pond then into the bayou but the potential there will have me returning again in the future.
Scouting trip 21 Mar.
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Jumptrout51
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