St. Marys Record Redbreast Eats The Swamp Spider

Colt James with a nice 10.94-oz. redbreast from the St. Marys River. It’s just one of four different river records he holds on south Georgia rivers.

For the second time this year, the St. Marys River redbreast record has been broken. Colt James, 11, of Waycross, was fishing with his dad, GON writer Craig James, on Oct. 9 when he caught what proved to be the new record fish. The catch now makes Colt a GON Lake and River Record holder for four different species of fish on three different south Georgia rivers. It’s an impressive feat for an 11- year-old, no doubt.

“I was fishing with my dad and his friend, and we were fishing out of our kayaks on the St. Marys River near St. George. It was a rainy day, but the fish were biting really good,” said Colt.

Colt and his dad, Craig, were fishing out of their two-man Crescent Crew Kayak and were pitching topwater bugs along bluff walls to pockets of slack water as they went.

“Anywhere we could find to pitch our spider just outside of the current was proving to be productive. The first hour or so we already had at least a dozen big panfish in the cooler,” said Craig.

Around 8:45, Colt pitched a menthol-colored Swamp Spider to a tiny pocket of slack water on the backside of a cypress tree. He gave the bug a slight twitch and paused for a few seconds. Just as he gave the bug another twitch, a flash of red engulfed the foam bug.

“I told my dad he was a good one, I was fighting him pretty hard in the swift current,” said Colt.

Colt kept the pressure on, cranking the handle of his Zebco Delta Reel, as the fish continued to pull drag for the next few seconds. Luckily, the fish had more strength than endurance, and after a few moments, Craig was able to slip a net under the fish.

“ I was hollering and so was my dad. We both were really excited,” said Colt.

The anglers fished on until about 3 p.m. and caught more than 50 fish in the process.

“It was really cloudy and nasty, and it would continuously try to rain, then start, then stop. The weather was in our favor, and it really had them clicking. We kept 25 or so of the biggest ones we caught and threw the rest back,” said Craig.

The next morning the anglers took Colt’s fish to the Waycross Fisheries Office to have its weight confirmed. After being measured at just shy of 10 inches long, the fish pushed the scales down to 10.94 ounces, securing its current place in the GON Lake and River Records.

“I’m excited I caught it, and I know there’s got to be some in there way bigger. I hope me and my dad get back down there real soon to catch some more,” said Colt.

GON’s Official St. Marys River Record Fish

Catch A Lake or River Record? Requirements For Record Fish

• Fish must be caught legally by rod and reel in a manner consistent with WRD fish regulations.

• Catch must be weighed on accurate Georgia DOA certified scales with at least two witnesses present.

• Witnesses to the weighing must be at least 18 years old, and they must not be members of the angler’s immediate family nor have a close personal relationship with the angler.

• Catch must be positively identified by qualified DNR personnel. GON can correspond with DNR when high-quality, multiple photos are taken of the fish and emailed to GON. All record submissions and photos must be sent to [email protected].

GON’s records are compiled and maintained by GON, to be awarded at GON’s discretion. Additional steps may be required for record consideration.

View Benchmarks For GON Lake & River Records