Fishing the Flats in Florida Tips and Techniques
Fishing the flats in Florida waters will require you to get yourself a good all around fishing rod like a 7 foot medium heavy intra coastal rod coupled with a 4000 series spinning rod. Fill your reel with 15 pound braided line and use a 20 pound leader. Master the 3 to 5 inch soft plastic paddle tail lure and a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce jig head or weed less hook and you can catch just about every fish that swims the flats.
Fishing the flats in and around Florida is an amazing experience. If you haven't done it yet, then you should add it to your bucket list.
Some of the amazing species that you can catch in Florida include tarpon, snook, redfish, sea trout, pompano, permit, flounder, black drum, sheepshead........ and many more.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida. I have been fishing the beaches and grass flats all over Florida for more than 40 years. In the article below, I will teach you everything that I know about fishing the flats. Let's get started.
Watch the video below and catch more Tarpon on the flats.
Fishing the flats in Florida waters will require you to get yourself a good all around fishing rod like a 7 foot medium heavy intra coastal rod coupled with a 4000 series spinning rod. Fill your reel with 15 pound braided line and use a 20 pound leader. Master the 3 to 5 inch soft plastic paddle tail lure and a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce jig head or weed less hook and you can catch just about every fish that swims the flats.
Fishing the flats in and around Florida is an amazing experience. If you haven't done it yet, then you should add it to your bucket list.
Some of the amazing species that you can catch in Florida include tarpon, snook, redfish, sea trout, pompano, permit, flounder, black drum, sheepshead........ and many more.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida. I have been fishing the beaches and grass flats all over Florida for more than 40 years. In the article below, I will teach you everything that I know about fishing the flats. Let's get started.
Watch the video below and catch more Tarpon on the flats.
Fishing the Flats for Tarpon
I consider myself a tarpon fishing specialists. When the tarpon are around in my area from May through December in decent numbers, that is what I fish for most of the time. They are a bucket list species for many fishermen from all over the world.
The great thing about tarpon is that they show themselves to you most of the time. They are part of an ancient order of fish that have a rudimentary lung for breathing. This enables them to thrive in water with low dissolved oxygen levels. They can gulp air to oxygenate themselves.
This gives them an advantage over other fish species and gives fishermen an advantage when it comes to figuring out where the tarpon are. You will see them gulp for air and a line of bubbles will show you what direction the fish are swimming off to.
This is your chance to pitch your bait or lure in front of the fish as it swims away.
Where do you find tarpon on the flats?
This is the tricky part most of the time. Tarpon like to cruise the flats when there is lots of prey items for them to eat but they don't usually stray too far from deeper water. A great spot to start your search for tarpon is a fertile looking grass flat that is adjacent to a deeper cut or channel.
My favorite scenario is to find a deep cut on the side of an island. A channel or a cut that is between the island and a grass flat is perfect. It can also be a deep cut between two grass flats or a grass flat and a sand bar...... You get the idea.
I wrote another article that covers in great detail how to catch a tarpon. You can see that article by clicking on the link right here.
Once you figure out where the tarpon are then start pitching your baits and lures to them until they move. In the hot summer months you will only have a few hours in the morning to target these fish because the water will get too hot and they will stay down deep until the water cools. Night fishing for tarpon on the flats can be amazing but it is often hard to figure out where they are at night.
This is the tricky part most of the time. Tarpon like to cruise the flats when there is lots of prey items for them to eat but they don't usually stray too far from deeper water. A great spot to start your search for tarpon is a fertile looking grass flat that is adjacent to a deeper cut or channel.
My favorite scenario is to find a deep cut on the side of an island. A channel or a cut that is between the island and a grass flat is perfect. It can also be a deep cut between two grass flats or a grass flat and a sand bar...... You get the idea.
I wrote another article that covers in great detail how to catch a tarpon. You can see that article by clicking on the link right here.
Once you figure out where the tarpon are then start pitching your baits and lures to them until they move. In the hot summer months you will only have a few hours in the morning to target these fish because the water will get too hot and they will stay down deep until the water cools. Night fishing for tarpon on the flats can be amazing but it is often hard to figure out where they are at night.
What are the best baits and lures for tarpon on the flats?
I like to fish for tarpon with live baits. I like to use a finger mullet or a white bait like a pilchard, sardine, herring.... My favorite set up is to use the live bait with about 3 to 4 feet of leader under a popping cork.
Using a cork helps you keep track of where your bait is and it also makes your hook up ratio increase. I am always amazed at how often a tarpon will miss a bait fish that is burdened by a hook through its body and a cork. BUT they still miss a lot of the time.
The best lures are any soft plastic from 3 to 5 inches long. This seems to be the best length for catching tarpon. I like a 3 inch DOA CAL white shad with a paddle tail. Another great one is a DOA Big One Terror Eyz or smaller Terror Eyz.
Any walk-the-dog type of top water lure is another great choice in the early mornings when there are mullet in the area. The key is to match the hatch. Try to match your lure to the bait that the tarpon are feeding on.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in much more detail the best baits and lures to catch a tarpon. You can read that article by clicking right here.
The video below shows you a day of snook fishing the flats.
Fishing the Flats for Snook
Fishing for snook on the flats should be another bucket list item for all fishermen. Snook are one of those amazing fighting fish of the flats. Their first run is usually a blistering one. A big snook will run off 50 or 60 yards like it is nothing when they are hooked on the flats.
Snook are voracious feeders and can get well over 30 pounds. Be careful if you plan to harvest a snook because they are closely protected. There are strict regulations for size limits and seasons. You also need a separate snook stamp to keep one.
Where do you find snook out on the flats?
Snook like to hide around sandy pot holes that are in the grass flats. Let's assume that you found a nice healthy grass flat. You will want to focus your efforts on fishing the sandy pot holes within the grass flats or deeper cuts and channels adjacent to the grass flats.
The key to fishing the flats if to keep moving until you find life. Look for birds diving, bait fish, predatory activities, pin fish in the grass..... You might be in a spot that looks like the fishiest place on the planet but if there are no fish there, then you will not catch any. It is a simple as that.
PRO TIP: Do not waste your time fishing dead zones.
Snook are not one of those fish that like to chase around their food. They are a stealthy lie and wait type of predator most of the time. They will hide in the grass facing into the current near a sandy pot hole waiting for prey items to come to them.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in more detail how to catch a snook. You can read that article by clicking right here.
The best way to target snook in the sandy pot holes is to approach from down current if you are fishing with lures. That allows you to cast up current to the pot hole and work your bait back with the current. This is a much better presentation that coming up behind the snook. That will often spook them and give them a bad case of lock jaw.
When I am targeting sandy pot holes with live bait, I like to use a float and approach from up current. That way I can let the current bring the bait to the snook that are waiting to ambush unwary prey. This technique is much less likely to spook the fish too.
What are the best bait and lures for catching snook on the flats?
My favorite search baits on the flats are a white DOA CAL 3 inch shad with a red 1/8 ounce jig head. That lure accounts for maybe 80% of the fish that I catch on the flats. Another great choice is a white Berkely GULP with a 1/8 ounce red jig head.
Those two lures catch snook, tarpon, redfish, trout, flounder, bluefish, jacks...... You name it. You definitely want those two lures in your tackle box.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in detail the best baits and lures for catching a snook. You can read that article by clicking right here.
The best like bait for snook is big shrimp in the Winter months and any bait fish like a pin fish, finger mullet, any white bait...... for the rest of the year. Use the cork and float it or just free line them and drift the flats. That is a great technique to figure out where the fish are hanging out.
The video below shows you how to avoid DEAD ZONES.
Fishing the Flats for Redfish
Fishing the flats for redfish is another great day of salty adventure. Redfish will show themselves in shallow water as they bury their noses in the grass eating shrimp, crabs and small fish. You can often see their tails break the surface of the water as they feed.
A well placed bait or lure will often lead to a great tug-o-war. The redfish fights very differently from a snook or a tarpon. A snook has the amazing first run; a tarpon will jump and jump; but a redfish just pulls and pulls and pulls until they can't pull anymore.
WANT TO CATCH SNOOK, REDFISH, TARPON? BOOK YOUR FISHING CHARTER TODAY!
Where do you find redfish on the flats?
Redfish that you can sight fish are the best ones. They are often preoccupied with their heads literally in the sand as they search for something to eat. This is when you can stealth right up to them and get them to bite your bait or lure.
You have to get yourself a good pair of polarized sunglasses if you want to sight fish on the flats. It is as simple as that. I have a really good pair that cost around $200 and three or four pairs that cost less than $20. The expensive ones are definitely built better and the lenses are better but I am always worried that I will ruin them.
So I usually don't bring them on my hard core fishing trips. The cheap ones work just fine and I won't cry if they fall overboard or get all scratched up.
PRO TIP: You will want to get rose or copper colored lenses for dirty water fishing and gray or blue for clean water fishing.
If you can't seem to sight fish for redfish, then focus on the sandy pot holes on the grass flats. It is not just the snook that like to use those as ambush points.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in more detail how to catch a redfish. You can read that article by clicking right here.
What are the best baits and lures for redfish on the flats?
I think that shrimp and crabs are your best bet for redfish on the grass flats. A close second is a pin fish, finger mullet or any white baits. You will want to sink these baits within the sandy pot hole unless you are fishing in 3 feet or less of water.
Redfish are not very good at looking up. They are usually looking down so a bait above them is not in their strike zone like a bait on the bottom is. If you can get their attention, then you can get them to hit on top of the water or near the surface but near the bottom is definitely better.
Redfish have an extremely evolved olfactory system. They are very good at tracking down delicious smelling baits in the water. They even have 4 nostrils to help them do it.
The best lures of redfish are smelly ones. A Berkeley GULP shrimp or a Berkeley swimming mullet are my two favorites for redfish. You can just cast these baits and let them sit on the bottom and still catch a redfish. I don't suggest using this technique but I have and it works.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in great detail the best baits and lures for catching a redfish. You can read that article by clicking right here.
A gold spoon is another great lure for finding redfish. Just work the spoon on top of the grass for best results. If yo can get the spoon to just skim the top of the grass without getting snagged you are right in the redfishes' strike zone.
Watch the video below and catch more trout on the flats.
Fishing the Flats for Spotted Sea Trout
Spotted sea trout and grass flats go together like peanut butter and jelly; college football and beer; hockey and fights; chicken wings and ....... you get the idea. Sea trout are grass flat specialists.
They are perfectly evolved to live in the grass flats of Florida. They love to ambush unsuspecting shrimp and small fish that get too close to their ambush points. In recent years, their numbers have come down quite a bit but there are still some around to catch.
Trout are not very good fighters in spite of being members of the drum family. This is a fish that you want to use a 2500 series reel and a medium action 7 to 8 foot rod to catch. Do not use braided line when fishing for trout. You want the stretch that mono filament line gives you.
Sea trout have a delicate mouth and you will tear it with strong no stretch hook ups that braid gives you. Use a 6 to 8 pound mono filament line for best results.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in extreme detail how to catch a spotted sea trout. You can read that article by clicking right here.
Where do you find trout on the flats?
Everywhere! These fish hang out in schools and move around on the flats. Once you find them, stop and fish that area until the bite stops. Trout like to hang out around the sandy pot holes too.
The best way to find trout is to drift the flats until you start catching fish. You have to figure out if the wind or the current will win the battle of moving you around the flats. Once you figure that out, decide what part of the flats you want to fish for sea trout.
When I don't know where the fish are I like to use lures to fan cast the area as I drift. This is a great way to figure out where the fish are. If you start to catch, jack crevalle, ladyfish, or any other predatory fish you can bet that there are sea trout around that area too.
Predators will all be around the same spots because they all feed on the same stuff. There might be mullet, or small white baits or even shrimp in that area. You are just trying to figure out where all of the predators are.
What are the best baits and lures for sea trout?
The best lures for sea trout are white DOA CAL swimming shad with a 1/8 ounce red jig head or a white Berkeley GULP shrimp or swimming mullet. If you ask 10 different trout fishermen you might get 10 different answers on what the best bait is. BUT that is what I use to consistently catch trout from the Everglades up to the Panhandle of Florida.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in detail the best baits and lures for catching spotted sea trout. You can read that article by clicking right here.
Another great lure is a fake shrimp under a popping cork. You will want to find a natural looking imitation shrimp and put it under about 18 to 24 inches of leader tied to a rattle cork of some kind. Just cast that set up out and give it a couple of twitches every 10 feet if you are drifting. When the cork goes under set the hook.
My favorite live bait for sea trout is shrimp. I almost exclusively use the rattle cork technique when fishing the flats for sea trout. The only time that I don't is in the Winter months when the trout will be in the deep channels adjacent to the flats. You will have to weight the shrimp to get it down to where the trout are.
Fishing the Flats for Flounder
Fishing the flats for flounder is all about finding sand, gravel or mud spots in the current. Flounder like to cover themselves with sand, gravel or mud to camouflage themselves from predators and prey. They will sit patiently in a spot where they think that some food will swim close enough to them to strike.
Flounder are the ultimate lie and wait predator so you have to figure out a good spot with current and bait fish if you want to catch one. Out on the flats, the sandy pot holes are once again the best spot to find a flounder. You have to keep in mind that their strike zone is maybe two feet from the bottom. They will not swim up four or five feet off of the bottom to hit your bait.
Where is the best place to find flounder on the flats?
Like I mentioned above, the best spot to find flounder is the sandy pot holes within the grass flats that you are fishing. Another great spot is the sandy, muddy or gravely areas adjacent to the grass flats. You need to find current, bait and a place where a flounder can hide. If you find those three things, then you might be having a flounder sandwich later that day.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in more detail how to catch a flounder. You can read that article by clicking here.
If there is some sort of structure in the water out on the flats, then you should try there too. It might be a submerged log or some rocks or an oyster bar. They like to use structure to ambush their prey.
What are the best baits and lures for flounder on the flats?
The best lure is by far a Berkeley swimming mullet with a 1/8 ounce red jig head. I am not sponsored by Berkeley or DOA lures. I use them because they work. BUT if Berkeley or DOA are reading this article you can send me some free ones if you want to. Help a broke fisherman out.
The technique for flounder fishing is very different from snook, trout, redfish, tarpon..... You have to barely move the lure on the bottom. It should take you 4 times as long to retrieve your bait as it would if you were trout fishing. Flounder like it slow and low. Bounce it off of the bottom and let it sit for 20 seconds then bounce it a few more times and let it sit again. Repeat...….
If you like to use live bait, then you will want to fish in super skinny water if you are free lining a finger mullet. Mullet like to swim on the top of the water so you need to be in 2 feet or less or you are out of the strike zone.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in more detail the best baits and lures for flounder fishing. You can read that article by clicking right here.
You will want to sink your white bait, shrimp, mullet.... in the middle of one of the pot holes for best results on the flats.
Watch the video below to learn more about GULP baits.
Fishing the flats for flounder is all about finding sand, gravel or mud spots in the current. Flounder like to cover themselves with sand, gravel or mud to camouflage themselves from predators and prey. They will sit patiently in a spot where they think that some food will swim close enough to them to strike.
Flounder are the ultimate lie and wait predator so you have to figure out a good spot with current and bait fish if you want to catch one. Out on the flats, the sandy pot holes are once again the best spot to find a flounder. You have to keep in mind that their strike zone is maybe two feet from the bottom. They will not swim up four or five feet off of the bottom to hit your bait.
Where is the best place to find flounder on the flats?
Like I mentioned above, the best spot to find flounder is the sandy pot holes within the grass flats that you are fishing. Another great spot is the sandy, muddy or gravely areas adjacent to the grass flats. You need to find current, bait and a place where a flounder can hide. If you find those three things, then you might be having a flounder sandwich later that day.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in more detail how to catch a flounder. You can read that article by clicking here.
If there is some sort of structure in the water out on the flats, then you should try there too. It might be a submerged log or some rocks or an oyster bar. They like to use structure to ambush their prey.
What are the best baits and lures for flounder on the flats?
The best lure is by far a Berkeley swimming mullet with a 1/8 ounce red jig head. I am not sponsored by Berkeley or DOA lures. I use them because they work. BUT if Berkeley or DOA are reading this article you can send me some free ones if you want to. Help a broke fisherman out.
The technique for flounder fishing is very different from snook, trout, redfish, tarpon..... You have to barely move the lure on the bottom. It should take you 4 times as long to retrieve your bait as it would if you were trout fishing. Flounder like it slow and low. Bounce it off of the bottom and let it sit for 20 seconds then bounce it a few more times and let it sit again. Repeat...….
If you like to use live bait, then you will want to fish in super skinny water if you are free lining a finger mullet. Mullet like to swim on the top of the water so you need to be in 2 feet or less or you are out of the strike zone.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in more detail the best baits and lures for flounder fishing. You can read that article by clicking right here.
You will want to sink your white bait, shrimp, mullet.... in the middle of one of the pot holes for best results on the flats.
Watch the video below to learn more about GULP baits.
Fishing the Flats for Sheepshead
Flats fishing for sheepshead can get hot and heavy for sheepshead in the Winter months. The sheepshead spawn offshore on reefs and wrecks then come inshore from November to April in big numbers. There are always some sheepshead around but the big ones become plentiful in the colder months all over Florida flats.
For me, flats fishing for sheepshead is all about sight fishing for them. They do not blend in well with sea grass so they are easy to spot. The problem is that they can see you too so make sure that you have a good pair of polarized sunglasses and have a shrimp or a fiddler crab ready to cast to them.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in more detail how to catch a sheepshead. You can read that article by clicking right here.
Your job once you find the fish is to figure out which way it is heading and send a bait to where you think they will be. Sheepshead will smell your shrimp or crab but you have to get it within 5 or 6 feet from them without spooking them. That's all that I do to catch sheepshead on the flats.
Fishing the Flats for Pompano
Finding pompano on the flats is all about finding sandy spots adjacent to the flats. Pompano like to eat crustaceans like shrimp and crabs. Those prey items like to bury in the sand so you have to fish where there is sand. A sand bar close to a grass flat is a great place to find pompano.
The pompano come through Florida in the cold months in large numbers from November through April. They are mostly caught off of the beaches but you can find plenty of them inshore too.
The best lures for pompano are banana jigs. You will cast the jig up current and bounce it on the sandy bottom until you find some fish. It is really that simple.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in great detail how to catch a pompano. You can read that article by clicking right here.
The best live bait is sand fleas a.k.a. mole crabs and shrimp. Go to your local tackle shop and ask for 4 or 4 pompano rigs and some 1 to 3 ounce pyramid sinkers and that is all that you need to catch some pomps.
Finding pompano on the flats is all about finding sandy spots adjacent to the flats. Pompano like to eat crustaceans like shrimp and crabs. Those prey items like to bury in the sand so you have to fish where there is sand. A sand bar close to a grass flat is a great place to find pompano.
The pompano come through Florida in the cold months in large numbers from November through April. They are mostly caught off of the beaches but you can find plenty of them inshore too.
The best lures for pompano are banana jigs. You will cast the jig up current and bounce it on the sandy bottom until you find some fish. It is really that simple.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in great detail how to catch a pompano. You can read that article by clicking right here.
The best live bait is sand fleas a.k.a. mole crabs and shrimp. Go to your local tackle shop and ask for 4 or 4 pompano rigs and some 1 to 3 ounce pyramid sinkers and that is all that you need to catch some pomps.
Conclusion:
Flats fishing in my kayak is my happy place. It is amazing to fish a very fertile grass flat somewhere in Florida. This ecosystem and fishery are shrinking because of pollution, overfishing, habitat loss and multiple other reasons but there are still some good spots around Florida.
Many of the fish that you will find out in the oceans will begin life in the estuaries and grass flats around Florida. There dozens of different species that can be found on the flats. The big 4 in my area are snook, tarpon, spotted sea trout and redfish.
If you are ever in the Treasure Coast of Florida book a kayak fishing trip with me. We can target all of the fish mentioned above on the grass flats from our kayaks. It is an absolute blast to drift the flats catching fish on kayaks all day.
I hope that this article helps you catch more fish or at the very least helps you have a lot more fun trying to catch them. Let's get some lines wet.
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