The location proved to be a good one. It didn't take us long to boat and release dozens of red drum ranging from 15 pounds upwards to more than 40 pounds. The biggest obstacle in the angling was that my arms were weary from holding the rod and reeling in the large number of big bull reds in such a short amount of time! Sheer excitement helped me to overcome that, along with a rod holder placed in the belt of my pants to support the butt of the rod while fighting the larger fish.

These fertile waters and associated marshes at the mouth of the St. Marys River provide ideal habitat for a number of other species, including seatrout and flounder. The beautiful unspoiled shores of Cumberland Island lie nearby as well, providing a great backdrop for the action. The island, which was once owned and occupied by the Andrew Carnegie family, is now a National Seashore, open to the public and home to wild horses that roam its beaches.

Long before the town of St. Marys was established in the late 1700s, the Guale, Timucuan, Creek, and Yamacraw Indians lived off the riches of the land and water. Once founded, the town became an important colonial seaport for the state, hosting ships laden with cotton, hides, furs, dried meats and honey. The area later prospered from the lumber trade, shipbuilding, shrimping and fishing.

Today the town of St. Marys still maintains a quaint air reminiscent of its early years. Locals say: "You may leave St. Marys, but St. Marys will never leave you." If you're an angler, that saying's even truer.

ALTAMAHA RIVER
Situated almost midway on Georgia's coast is the quiet town of Darien, which sits atop the bluffs near the mouth of the mighty Altamaha River. The slow-moving waters of our state's largest river flow 137 miles from the confluence of the Ocmulgee and Oconee rivers to the Atlantic Ocean, dumping 100,000 gallons of fresh water into Altamaha Sound every second. Unhampered by dams, the Altamaha basin encompasses 1.2 million acres as the river winds through 10 counties. Its watershed, one of the three largest basins on the Atlantic seaboard, drains approximately a quarter of the Peach State. It's no wonder that the marshes and sound at this great river's terminus attract shrimpers and fishermen alike.

The quiet fishing village of Darien today shows little physical evidence of its colorful history and periods of devastation. Indians had inhabited the area for centuries, but it was the Scots under James Oglethorpe who established the town of Darien. Prosperous plantations later sprang up, producing cotton and rice for world markets. The Altamaha provided a highway for rafts of oak, pine and cypress lumber to be floated down from the interior of the state.

Along the way the small town survived disastrous times, ravaged by fire in 1813 and a severe hurricane just a year later. In 1863, Darien suffered a worse fate at the hands of Union troops who burned nearly every building.