Colt James Strikes Again With Another St. Marys River Record

Colt James strikes again with his latest redbreast record from the St. Marys River. This panfish weighed 12.16-ozs.

Colt James has struck again, raising the bar on another GON Lake and River Record. If the 11-year-old’s name sounds familiar, it should. Colt currently possesses four record fish on three different south Georgia rivers. His latest catch is a 12.16-oz. redbreast that bested his previous river record he set on the river earlier this fall.

“The bite this fall has been pretty darn good in the upper portion of the river. We’ve averaged 30 to 40 fish each morning trip we’ve made over there,” said Craig James, Colt’s dad.

The anglers put in at daylight on Nov. 9 and began to work their way upriver from the boat ramp and immediately connected with some really nice fish.

“My dad caught a good one, and a minute or two later I did. We were catching a nice fish every few casts,” said Colt.

A 9:15, the pair had already managed to catch 15 or so fish between them. Coming around a bend in the river, Craig positioned the kayak so Colt could fire the Swamp Spider he was fishing into a pocket of water that was sitting just out of the swift current. Colt tossed the foam bug up next to some cypress knees along the bank and gave it a couple twitches before letting it pause.

Suddenly a flash of red engulfed the bug, as it disappeared from the surface of the blackwater.

“He exploded on it, and I told my dad he was a good one because he was pulling hard in the current,” said Colt.

Colt played the fish up next to the two-man Crescent Crew kayak they were fishing out of and Craig was able to grab the line and sling the big rooster into the boat.

“We knew he had a good chance to break the record, so we tossed him in the cooler bag with a half dozen other fish we had kept for supper that night,” said Craig.

The anglers fished another hour or so and finished the fall morning catching nearly 30 fish, a mixed bag of mostly redbreast with a few big bull bluegill also in the mix.

“We checked him on our digital kitchen scales at home, and they had him at 11.8 ounces, so we knew he was bigger then Colt’s previously set record. I kept him in ice until Monday and then took him to the Waycross Fisheries Office to be certified,” said Craig.

The fish was measured at 10.25 inches and weighed a solid 12.16 ounces.

“I’m happy I got another big one, but I know the record is going to get broken again soon, and I hope it’s me that’s gonna catch it,” Colt said with a smile.