How long of a leader do you need for inshore fishing?
The answer is 36 inches. A 36 inch leader will be just short enough to allow you to cast lures all day without the leader knot or swivel damaging your rod guides. It is also just long enough for effective live bait and dead bait inshore fishing scenarios.
This is obviously an oversimplification when it comes to leader lengths. The 3 foot leader length is the best length if you can only choose one.
You can have any length that you want and sometimes you will want a shorter or longer leader length depending upon what types of lures or baits that you are using. BUT if you only want to use one length, then 36 inches is a great length to choose for inshore fishing in most scenarios.
The author of this article is an INSHORE FISHING GUIDE on the Treasure Coast of Florida. He has been fishing the beaches, mudflats, mangroves and oyster bars all over Florida for more than 40 years.
In the article below, we will talk about the best leader length for different inshore fishing scenarios using different baits, lures and techniques.
Let's get started.
Watch the video below to learn how to tie a leader to a braid or mono filament main line.
The answer is 36 inches. A 36 inch leader will be just short enough to allow you to cast lures all day without the leader knot or swivel damaging your rod guides. It is also just long enough for effective live bait and dead bait inshore fishing scenarios.
This is obviously an oversimplification when it comes to leader lengths. The 3 foot leader length is the best length if you can only choose one.
You can have any length that you want and sometimes you will want a shorter or longer leader length depending upon what types of lures or baits that you are using. BUT if you only want to use one length, then 36 inches is a great length to choose for inshore fishing in most scenarios.
The author of this article is an INSHORE FISHING GUIDE on the Treasure Coast of Florida. He has been fishing the beaches, mudflats, mangroves and oyster bars all over Florida for more than 40 years.
In the article below, we will talk about the best leader length for different inshore fishing scenarios using different baits, lures and techniques.
Let's get started.
Watch the video below to learn how to tie a leader to a braid or mono filament main line.
How long of a leader is best for fishing with top water lures?
When you are using a top water lure like a Zara Spook or a Skitter Walk, then you will not want a long leader length. You will want a small leader length that is maybe 18 inches or less when you are fishing with top water lures.
The reason that a short leader works best is because the zig zag pattern that you want your lure to achieve is easier with a short leader. Your lure is also less likely to get wrapped around your hooks when the leader is shorter.
The leader length really doesn't matter that much for top water from a visual perspective because the fish will be hitting the lure from behind and won't get a chance to see the leader anyways.
I like to use a leader that is about 24 to 36 inches long when I am using a walk the dog type of lure inshore. This is just a habit that I am comfortable with. I could easily go down to a 12 inch leader without hindering the performance of the lure or the effectiveness of hooking a fish.
I like longer leaders so that I can just cut off the line that gets nicked or scraped by the fish when you are fighting them. A snook will usually require you to cut the six inches closest to the lure after you release them.
This means that you can cut the damaged line 3 or 4 times before having to re rig your leader to your main line.
You will have to decide what works best for you.
WANT TO CATCH SNOOK, TROUT, REDFISH AND TARPON? BOOK YOUR FISHING CHARTER TODAY!
How long of a leader is best for fishing with fast retrieve, power or reaction baits?
When you are using a lure that requires a fast retrieve, then you can get away with a shorter leader length. Those types of lures are paddle tail swim baits, twitch baits, jigs and spoons.
Most of time you will be fishing those lures very quickly. They are great search baits when you are trying to figure out where the fish are inshore.
The fish that will hit a lure like that will never get a chance to see the leader. Those fish will be hitting the lure from behind 95% of the time so they will not get a good look at the front of the lure or the line attached to it.
My go to leader length for power baits is 24 to 36 inches. Once again, I could get away with a 12 inch leader but I like to go a little bit longer so that I won't have to re rig after every fish.
You can figure out what you like the best by trial and error.
How long of a leader is best for fishing with finesse baits?
Finesse baits are baits that are necessary for finicky fish and fish in super clear water conditions. Finesse fishing requires very slow retrieves and allows the fish to get a really good look at your lures and leaders.
You will need a long leader of 36 inches when you are finesse fishing. You will also need to downsize your leader strength to as low as you can get away with. Often times fish will be very leader shy in clear water so you will want to go as light as you can so that you will get the strikes.
If you are losing every fish, then you will have to go heavier. I would rather get the strike and lose a few fish than not get any strikes at all because the leader is too heavy.
Good finesse bait examples are a bucktail jig or shrimp imitation lure that you will bounce or drag slowly on the bottom.
You will often allow the lure to come to a complete stop on the bottom followed by a twitch, twitch that will illicit a strike lots of the time. You need a longer leader for this type of fishing or you will spook the fish.
A shrimp lure is a good lure to twitch, twitch higher in the water column and then letting it sink a few feet before twitching it again. Shrimp are slow swimmers so a slow presentation is a must for it to look natural to spooky fish.
Watch the video below to see some top water fishing for redfish.
How long of a leader is best for fishing with a popping cork for speckled trout and redfish?
A short leader that is just above the bottom is your best choice when you are fishing with a popping cork for redfish in the shallows.
ex. If the water is 24 inches deep, then you will want a leader length that keeps your lure or live bait 6 to 12 inches from the bottom. That is the strike zone for a feeding redfish.
If you are fishing in 4 feet of water then you would want to have at least a 36 inch leader under your popping cork. Redfish like to be close to the bottom but a speckled trout can be caught anywhere in the water column.
You can use a leader as short as 18 inches when you are fishing for speckled trout with a popping cork. They are usually not scared off by the popping corks movements. I love to use a popping cork with a Berkeley Gulp shrimp or swimming mullet for catching speckled trout and redfish under a popping cork.
When I am fishing over grass flats that are 4 to 5 feet deep then I like to have a longer leader 36 inches or more. That is deep enough where a redfish might swim out of the grass to eat it and speckled trout will hit it just about anywhere in the water column.
Speckled trout will hit your lures in all levels of the water column depending upon the water temperatures and the baits that they are feeding upon. They are an amazingly aggressive species of fish.
It is hard to beat a popping cork with a live shrimp or artificial lure under it for speckled trout.
I wrote another article on this website all about fishing with a popping cork. You can read that article by clicking right here.
How long of a leader is best for inshore fishing with live bait?
A 36 inch leader is best for free line fishing with live baits. That will keep the swivel or leader knot far enough away from the live bait to keep it from spooking the game fish that you are targeting.
If you are fishing with live baits on the bottom then you will have to go with a 48 inch leader. You have to keep the bait far enough from the sinker to make sure it doesn't spook the fish that you are targeting.
They will often feel the extra weight of the sinker after they pick the bait up and swim off. This might make them drop the bait before they hook gets set.
How long of a leader is best for inshore fishing with dead bait?
I like to use a leader that is at least 36 inches long but preferably 48 inches or more. The longer the leader, the harder it is to cast but long leaders are better when you are fishing with dead baits.
You will often have a weight pinning the dead bait to the bottom. Those weights will often spook a fish before they can get hooked. Often times you will feel the fish pick up your bait only to drop it after running a few feet.
This is probably because they felt the weight and knew that something wasn't right so they let go.
I love to fish for tarpon and huge snook with dead bait around mangroves and deep channels. The leaders will be at least 3 feet in length and sometimes 4 or 5 feet when I am targeting large tarpon.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in great detail how to fish for tarpon with dead bait. You can access that article by clicking right here.
The key to dead bait fishing is getting the leader length and strength just right. You will want to use the lowest pound test that you can get away with without losing every fish that you hook.
I would rather get the bite and lose a few fish versus not get any bites because the leader is too thick and spooks all of the fish.
Watch the video below to see dead bait fishing for tarpon inshore.
Conclusion:
You have to select the best leader length depending upon how you are fishing inshore. When you are using lures with a quick retrieve then you can get away with a shorter leader because the fish will be hitting the lures from behind and will not get a good look at the line.
When you are fishing with finesse types of lures or free lining live baits then you will want to use a longer leader of 36 inches or more.
Dead bait fishing for tarpon you might want to use a leader that is 48 inches or longer in order to not spook the fish with the weights that you are using.
Your best bet for an all around leader length inshore is 36 inches. That leader length will work for pitching lures all day or dead bait fishing. So if you can only choose one length, then pick that one.
I hope that this article helps you catch more fish or at least have more fun trying.
Do you like articles like this one? If you answered yes, then get on our email list because we will send you a new how to fishing article every week. Sign up now.