Best Tackle for Flounder Fishing (The Complete Guide)
The best tackle for flounder is a 7 foot medium heavy rod coupled with a 3500 series spinning reel. You will want to spool your reel with 20 pound braided line and a 20 pound clear or pink mono filament leader.
Flounder are one of the most popular inshore fish to catch in the United States and you will want to make sure that you have the correct tackle because it is trickier than you might think.
Flounder are extremely abundant in the shallow waters and estuaries all over the state of Florida. These fish are voracious predators but can be very cautious and downright finicky at times.
Florida has two species of flounder that you can catch. There is the Gulf Flounder that is smaller and only has 3 eye spots on its back. The Southern Flounder has multiple spots and is usually bigger than the Gulf Flounder.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the grass flats and oyster bars for more than 40 years all over the state.
The article below will teach you the best tackle, tips and techniques to catch yourself tons of flounder.
Let's get started.
Watch the video below and learn about the best tackle for flounder fishing.
The best tackle for flounder is a 7 foot medium heavy rod coupled with a 3500 series spinning reel. You will want to spool your reel with 20 pound braided line and a 20 pound clear or pink mono filament leader.
Flounder are one of the most popular inshore fish to catch in the United States and you will want to make sure that you have the correct tackle because it is trickier than you might think.
Flounder are extremely abundant in the shallow waters and estuaries all over the state of Florida. These fish are voracious predators but can be very cautious and downright finicky at times.
Florida has two species of flounder that you can catch. There is the Gulf Flounder that is smaller and only has 3 eye spots on its back. The Southern Flounder has multiple spots and is usually bigger than the Gulf Flounder.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the grass flats and oyster bars for more than 40 years all over the state.
The article below will teach you the best tackle, tips and techniques to catch yourself tons of flounder.
Let's get started.
Watch the video below and learn about the best tackle for flounder fishing.
Best Tackle for Flounder Fishing--Oyster Bars/Mud Flats
Oyster bars and mud flats are a great place to target flounder. Flounder are one of those fish that will find a good ambush point and just sit there for a while waiting for their prey to come to them. They do not actively hunt for prey in other words.
To catch a flounder you have to think like a flounder. You will want to find a spot where a flounder can bury itself in the mud, sand or small rocks and let the current bring it some food.
I like to find a set of oyster bars or mud flats that have a deeper cut between them. This usually happens at the mouth or up some tidal creek somewhere. I especially like them to be skinny enough to cast across.
A scenario might look something like this. You have an oyster bar on one side of the creek and a mud flat on the other. Intersecting them is a deeper channel that has been dredged out by the movement of the incoming and outgoing tides.
That is a perfect scenario for catching flounder in the channel and along the banks at the higher tides. The flounder will be hiding in the channel and facing into the current. They will be patiently waiting for an unsuspecting shrimp, crab or fish to come close enough for them to pounce on them.
Your best bet to catch them is with a live shrimp under a split shot in this scenario. You will want to use a 2500 or a 3500 series reel filled with 8 to 10 lb. braided line. You will want to couple this with a 7 to 8 foot medium action rod.
Cast your live shrimp presentation up current and slowly bounce it back to you on the bottom about as fast as the current is moving. You will feel a slight "thump" when the flounder grabs it. Do not set the hook!!! Give it a 3 or 4 second count and then set your hook if it is a J hook. If you are using circle hooks just start to reel after the 4 count.
I wrote another article that covers in much more detail how to catch a flounder. You can read that article by clicking right here.
Flounder like to grab the bait and hold it in their teeth for a few seconds before swallowing it down. You have to let them get it further in their mouths before setting the hook.
The best lure for flounder fishing are Berkeley Gulp baits. I like the imitation shrimp and the swimming mullet Gulps the best. You will want to rig them with a 1/8 ounce jig head if the water is less than 6 feet deep. You may want to go to 1/4 or 1/2 ounce jig heads if it is deeper or the current is very strong.
You have to get your lure to the bottom of the creek and slowly bounce it with the current back to you. Flounder don't like to swim very fast after a lure so you want it to be easy for them to catch up to it.
My favorite color Gulps are white and natural color combination with a chartreuse jig head. This is my preference but I am sure that the color of the jig does not make as much difference as the color of the Gulp.
Watch the video below to learn about using a tandem Gulp flounder rig.
Best Tackle for Flounder Fishing--Inlets
Flounder can be found in and around most inlets. They will be buried in the sand or small stones facing into the current near some sort of structure.
Inlets are very hard to fish because they usually have a lot of current to contend with. They also have a lot of fishermen to contend with as well.
Inlet fishing for flounder consists of long up current casts and slowly letting your bait come back to you with the tide. If you are using a live mullet or some other live fish, then you will want to have an egg sinker on the line above your hook and bait.
This set up allows your bait to roll with the current on the bottom of the inlet. This is the easiest sinker and live bait combination to use. You can also use a barrel swivel to keep the sinker a specific distance from the bait but I do not think that is necessary for flounder fishing. The flounder do not seem to care as long as your live bait is active.
If you are using a lure to catch flounder in the inlet, then a shrimp tipped feather jig can be an excellent lure choice. This lure is heavy enough to get to the bottom where the flounder are hiding. The action of the lure and the smell of the shrimp will attract any nearby flounder to your rig.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in great detail the best baits and lures for catching more flounder. You can read that article by clicking right here.
A Gulp bait on a jig head will work well in the inlet too. You will have to increase your jig weight to 1/4 or 1/2 ounce to get it the bottom in a strong current. Just cast it up current and bounce it very slowly back to you.
Flounder fishing in the inlet will require a 4000 series reel filled with 20 lb. braided line and a 7 to 8 foot medium/heavy rod to deal with the depth and the current of an inlet setting. You will often have to lift the flounder out of the water over some rocks or a sea wall and you don't want your line to snap as you do that.
In the winter months flounders will leave their estuaries, bays and tidal creek and head out to the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean to spawn. This is a great time to target them in the inlets. You just have to figure out when they begin to move in the Fall.
You can catch a ton of flounder if you can figure out when they are all triggered to run out the inlets to spawn offshore. This can happen very quickly some years and all of the big ones will move out within a week or two so be ready for the Fall migration offshore.
They will usually come back inshore around March depending upon what part of the country you live in. This is another great time to target those Spring flounders when they come back inshore.
Watch the video below and learn how to catch more flounder.
WANT TO CATCH FLOUNDER? BOOK YOUR FISHING CHARTER TODAY!
Best Tackle for Flounder Fishing--Docks
Docks are another one of my favorite spots to target flounder. Flounder love to set up ambush points right next to some sort of structure. Docks have dock pilings that make excellent places to set up ambush points.
The older the dock, the better it is for fishing. The older docks have substantial amounts of marine growth covering the pilings. They will have sponges, mussels, oysters, aquatic plants, barnacles and many other creatures attached to them. This life attracts other marine life like shrimp, crabs and small fish that the flounder are interested in.
That is why docks are such a great place to find predatory fish like a flounder. You will be amazed at just how shallow some of these predatory fish will go in search of food. You may catch a flounder in just 6 or 7 inches of water if the glass minnows, shrimp or whatever they are interested in are hugging the shoreline.
I like to make a cast parallel to the dock all the way to the beach and work the live bait for lure back to me very slowly. You will want to be as close as possible to the dock pilings because often the flounder will be right next to them.
You will also want to cast under the docks as well. Often the flounder will be hiding in the shade of the dock waiting for an unwary shrimp or fish to come too close so that they can pounce on them.
A live shrimp or finger mullet are excellent baits for fishing around the docks. A shrimp with a split shot is my favorite choice.
Just cast it under the dock or as close as you possibly can get it and wait a few minutes. If there is a hungry flounder around, then it will find your bait.
You will want to use your 4000 series reel filled with 20 pound braided line and a 7 to 8 foot medium/heavy action rod for dock fishing. Flounders are not great fighters but they can wrap you around the dock pilings. The pilings with oysters will cut right through a mono filament line so braided line is a better choice.
The best lures for flounder fishing around the docks are the Gulp swimming mullet or a Gulp shrimp with a jig head. My favorite colors are white with a red head or a natural color combination with a red head. Cast this lure to the pilings or under the dock if you can.
Work the lure back very slowly along the bottom and wait for the hit. Often times a flounder will follow your lure for a long distance and hit it right next to your boat so don't stop working your lure until it is all the way to you.
Another great lure for flounder fishing is the shrimp tipped feather jig. You will fish this lure exactly the same way that you fish the Gulp lures. Slow and steady along the bottom is the best way to catch flounder with lures.
Another great flounder lure is a DOA CAL. This is a 3 inch soft plastic shad imitation with a paddle tail. I like the white ones and the natural color combinations coupled with a red 2/8 ounce jig head. You will fish this lure just like the others by bouncing off of the bottom with a very slow retrieve.
Watch the video below and catch more flounder around docks.
Best Tackle for Flounder Fishing--Grass Flats
Flounder can also be found on the grass flats. They like to find a spot that they think their prey will be eventually. They also want to cover themselves with whatever the bottom is made up of too.
On the grass flats, the best place to do this is in the sandy pot holes within the grass flats or just on the outskirts of the grass flats. They will cover themselves in sand or mud and face into the current waiting for the tide to bring them some food.
The best live bait is the live shrimp with a split shot. Cast that into the pot holes or to the edge of the grass flats where you think a flounder is hiding and wait a few minutes. If there is a hungry flounder around, then they will find your bait.
The best lures for the grass flats are ……….. you guessed it. The Gulp shrimp and swimming mullet or a shrimp tipped feather jig. Cast them up current and work them through the pot hole or down the edge of the grass flats slowly on the bottom.
You can use your 2500 series reel filled with 8 to 10 pound braided line and your 7 to 8 foot medium action rod for flounder on the grass flats. They have nowhere to cut you off or wrap your line up so you can go light with your gear.
Watch the video below and catch more flounder with lures.
Best Tackle for Flounder Fishing--Mangroves
Flounder can be caught around the mangroves especially when there is a sand bar or mud flat adjacent to them. They will be facing into the current right next to the roots of the Red Mangrove Tree waiting for lunch to swim by them.
A cast up current and parallel to the line of mangrove trees is your best bet. A shrimp under a split shot is your best bet in this scenario. But if the water is less than 2 feet then you can use a free lined pin fish, finger mullet, pilchard, sardine or any other white bait. Just make sure that they don't get tangled up in the mangrove roots and branches.
The best lures are the white Gulp shrimp and the white Gulp swimming mullet. You know the drill by now. Cast up current and bounce them slowly back to you.
Your best bet for tackle around the mangroves will be your 4000 series reel with 20 lb. braided line and your medium/heavy 7 to 8 foot rod.
Conclusion:
Flounders are one of those fish that many anglers catch on accident but you can target them and have a lot of fun doing it. Your tackle box can be limited to some white Berkeley Gulp shrimp, swimming mullet or jerk baits and a jig head that will get you to the bottom wherever you are fishing and you are good to go.
Flounders are very indiscriminate about eating and will definitely eat your lure if you get it close enough to them and present it properly. You just have to keep in mind that a Gulf Flounder or a Southern Flounder will not aggressively follow and hit your lures. Flukes will do that but flounders rarely will.
You need to get your bait or lure within a couple feet of a flounder and keep it within a foot or the bottom to get a strike. That is why you need the right tackle to maximize your catch of flounder then next time you go out targeting this species of fish.
The video below is all about wade fishing for flounder with white paddle tails and a jig head.
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