How to Triple Tail Fishing Techniques in Florida
The best way to catch triple tail is to cruise crab pot buoys or any boating sign in deep water from a distance and look for a tripletail near them. Pitch a live shrimp or small whitebait with a 1/0 circle hook and a 15 pound leader and wait for the hit.
When you see a tripletail make a wide loop and come back to the buoy with the fish and pitch a live shrimp to the triple tail.
You will need a 3500 series reel filled with 10 pound braided line and a 15 pound leader. Couple this with a medium/heavy 7 foot rod and you will catch many triple tails the next time that you target them.
Many fishermen are learning just how much fun it is to target and catch triple tail all over Florida waters during different seasons.
There are triple tail to be caught inshore and offshore in certain parts of Florida all year long. You just have to figure out where they will be; when they will be there and learn the best techniques to use.
The triple tail to the right was caught by my nephew using a live shrimp off of a channel marker buoy a couple miles offshore in the Atlantic Ocean.
The buoy was torn from its tethers during a hurricane and was off the coast of Flagler Beach. Lucky for my nephew because it was full of triple tails.
Triple tail are one of those fish that are usually overlooked and not targeted very often in spite of their delicious meat and fun fighting characteristics.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the mangroves and grass flats all over Florida for more than 40 years.
Triple tail are one of those fish that are usually overlooked because very few fishermen have ever heard of them. I am sure that the triple tail like it that way. To me, they look like some sort of big dinosaur bluegill on steroids.
In the article below, I will teach you everything that I know about triple tail fishing all over the state of Florida.
The best way to catch triple tail is to cruise crab pot buoys or any boating sign in deep water from a distance and look for a tripletail near them. Pitch a live shrimp or small whitebait with a 1/0 circle hook and a 15 pound leader and wait for the hit.
When you see a tripletail make a wide loop and come back to the buoy with the fish and pitch a live shrimp to the triple tail.
You will need a 3500 series reel filled with 10 pound braided line and a 15 pound leader. Couple this with a medium/heavy 7 foot rod and you will catch many triple tails the next time that you target them.
Many fishermen are learning just how much fun it is to target and catch triple tail all over Florida waters during different seasons.
There are triple tail to be caught inshore and offshore in certain parts of Florida all year long. You just have to figure out where they will be; when they will be there and learn the best techniques to use.
The triple tail to the right was caught by my nephew using a live shrimp off of a channel marker buoy a couple miles offshore in the Atlantic Ocean.
The buoy was torn from its tethers during a hurricane and was off the coast of Flagler Beach. Lucky for my nephew because it was full of triple tails.
Triple tail are one of those fish that are usually overlooked and not targeted very often in spite of their delicious meat and fun fighting characteristics.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the mangroves and grass flats all over Florida for more than 40 years.
Triple tail are one of those fish that are usually overlooked because very few fishermen have ever heard of them. I am sure that the triple tail like it that way. To me, they look like some sort of big dinosaur bluegill on steroids.
In the article below, I will teach you everything that I know about triple tail fishing all over the state of Florida.
Check out the video below to learn how to catch more triple tails.
How to catch a triple tail fishing techniques-- INSHORE
Triple tail are one of those fish that move inshore and offshore and North and South based on water temperatures. If it is too cold inshore then they will move offshore. If it is too cold in the waters of North Florida then they will move towards South Florida.
You really never know where they are going to show up. One day they will be all around the inlets on the East Coast of Florida or the crab pots along the beaches on the West Coast; Then the next day they will be 6 or 7 miles offshore.
This is one of the things that can make targeting triple tail extremely frustrating and extremely fun is their unpredictability. You can expect to use a lot of gas finding triple tails.
Another fun characteristic about triple tails is the varying ways that they will fight. Some triple tails will make a big first run like a snook. Some will jump 5 or 6 times just like a juvenile tarpon usually does. Other triple tails will dive straight down just like a grouper will do once you pull them out of their holes.
Fun Triple Tail Facts:
- Triple tails get their names from their elongated dorsal and anal fins that make it look like they have three tails.
- The Florida state record triple tail was 40 pounds and 13 ounces.
- Triple tails can change color in a similar way that chameleons do.
- Spawning occurs along the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coasts during the Summer.
Catch Triple Tails Around Bridge and Dock Pilings
If you want to find triple tails in any numbers inshore, then you will want to target some sort of structure. Bridge pilings and dock pilings adjacent to deep water is a good starting point. Triple tails can be found around pier pilings, dock pilings and bridge pilings all over the state of Florida.
Triple tails like to act like a piece of floating debris to hide from predators and to hide from their potential prey. This behavior makes them easy to sight fish for. When you see them around the structure the number one bait that you should pitch to them is a small or medium sized shrimp. DO NOT USE THE JUMBO SELECT SHRIMP FOR TRIPLE TAILS!
Triple tails have a small mouth and will hit a smaller shrimp before they will hit a bigger shrimp. It is as simple as that. If you cannot find any shrimp, then you can use small blue crabs or fiddler crabs or small baitfish that are 3 inches long or less.
Just pitch your offering up to the from of the fish and get ready. These fish can be finicky and refuse the best looking bait in the world but they will eventually turn on and bite.
The best lures to fish for triple tails with is a shrimp imitation. Any shrimp lure will work but keep in mind that these fish like little baits. DOA lures has a 2.75 inch shrimp that works well for these fish. (I am not sponsored by DOA Lures but I use them often.) I like to use natural colors with gold or copper colored glitter in them based on water clarity.
I like natural colors or gold glitter for clear water conditions and natural colors with copper glitter when the water is a little dirty.
Triple tails will also hit a small silver or gold spoon. Another good lure is a DOA CAL 3 inch swimming shad. This is especially true if the triple tails are feeding on schools of small bait fish wherever you find them.
*If you do everything correctly, then you might have a cooler that looks something like this one.
Catch Triple Tails Around Crab Pot Buoys and Markers
The number one way that fishermen target triple tails inshore is cruising the crab trap buoys in the estuaries and bays or nearshore waters. The way to cruise the buoys without spooking the fish too much is to be at least 25 feet away from the lines.
Crab pots are like big chum bags for all kinds of fish. There are usually fish heads, pig parts, whatever is stinky and might attract hungry crabs. All of that stuff attracts little fish and shrimp and that attracts hungry predators like triple tails.
Once you get the eye for spotting triple tails you can cruise on plane twenty to thirty feet off of the crab pots and buoy markers. By cruising the pots at a decent speed you can cover a lot more water and hopefully find a lot more fish.
When you see a fish take 5 minutes or so to circle back around to the buoy with the fish on it. This is usually enough time to get the fish to come back towards the surface so that you can effectively target them.
The best baits are small to medium sized live shrimp, small blue crabs or fiddler crabs or small white baits like pilchards, scaled sardines, anchovies...….
It is a good idea to check out every channel marker that you see too. Any floating structure that is tethered to the bottom will attract lots of prey items for the triple tails to feast upon.
Catch Triple Tails Around Floating Sea Grass
Most of the triple tails that I see are around floating clumps of sea grass around the grass flats that I am usually fishing on or near. I fish the flats probably 80% of the time and my main target species are spotted sea trout, tarpon, redfish and snook. So when I see a triple tail it is usually by happy accident.
It usually happens like this: I will see a clump of grass with an abnormally large sea grape leaf or two floating next to it. Once I investigate the leaves more closely I will see that the large leaves are actually camouflaged triple tails.
Then I panic to find a shrimp imitation lure in my tackle box and tie it onto my line as quickly as possible without spooking the fish.
I am usually in a kayak so I will try to drift with the fish about 10 feet away from them and pitch to them until they bite or spook.
I often end up cussing a lot and saying "Those lures were perfect. Why didn't you bite? Stupid triple tails!"
Of course the best bait is...……… wait for it...……..you guessed it LIVE SHRIMP. Just pitch your live shrimp under a popping cork or just free lined to the fish and wait for the hook up. They rarely refuse live shrimp offerings.
How to catch a triple tail fishing techniques--OFFSHORE
If it gets too cold in the inshore bays and estuaries around Florida, then the triple tails will often move offshore until the water temperatures heat up. Look for structure or anything floating. It can be a pallet, a trash bag, a clump of weeds or anything floating.
You will want to use the same baits and lures that you use inshore and nearshore. The live shrimp is the number one bait followed by small crabs and small bait fish.
Crab Pot Buoys/Channel Markers
You can find crab pot buoys out in the middle of Florida Bay and find triple tails or around markers out 20 miles offshore in the Atlantic Ocean. They will gravitate towards structure as a rule. You just have to make sure to investigate any structure that you see if you want to catch a triple tail.
Weed Lines
When you say fish the weed lines most people think of dolphin fishing. BUT there are often triple tails of all sizes hidden in the weed lines too. The juvenile triple tails use the sargassum weeds to hide from predators and find some prey items to eat. There are also big 10 or 15 pounders in the weed lines too.
That thing that you think is a piece of plastic might just end up being a nice big triple tail.
Flotsam
Fish around any trash that you see floating offshore. It can be a piece of floating plywood, a trash bag, a bucket, a palm frond......whatever. If it floats, then it will attract fish. If it attracts little fish, then bigger fish will be there to eat them.
If it gets too cold in the inshore bays and estuaries around Florida, then the triple tails will often move offshore until the water temperatures heat up. Look for structure or anything floating. It can be a pallet, a trash bag, a clump of weeds or anything floating.
You will want to use the same baits and lures that you use inshore and nearshore. The live shrimp is the number one bait followed by small crabs and small bait fish.
Crab Pot Buoys/Channel Markers
You can find crab pot buoys out in the middle of Florida Bay and find triple tails or around markers out 20 miles offshore in the Atlantic Ocean. They will gravitate towards structure as a rule. You just have to make sure to investigate any structure that you see if you want to catch a triple tail.
Weed Lines
When you say fish the weed lines most people think of dolphin fishing. BUT there are often triple tails of all sizes hidden in the weed lines too. The juvenile triple tails use the sargassum weeds to hide from predators and find some prey items to eat. There are also big 10 or 15 pounders in the weed lines too.
That thing that you think is a piece of plastic might just end up being a nice big triple tail.
Flotsam
Fish around any trash that you see floating offshore. It can be a piece of floating plywood, a trash bag, a bucket, a palm frond......whatever. If it floats, then it will attract fish. If it attracts little fish, then bigger fish will be there to eat them.
Best Tackle and Gear for Triple Tail Fishing
In my opinion, the best rod and reel combo for a triple tail is probably an 8 foot medium/heavy rod and a 4000 series reel. You can get away with a 2500 series reel if you are catching smaller fish but the 4000 series will catch the big ones too.
I would rig that with a 20 pound braided line and a 20 pound monofilament or fluorocarbon leader. Again, you can probably downsize to 15 pound braid and 15 pound leader but it just depends on the size of the fish.
Triple tails have small mouths so a 2/0 circle hook is probably your best bet. You can get away with a 1/0 but a 3/0 might be a little too big.
You will need polarized sun glasses to catch triple tails. This is a fish to sight fish and if you can't see them, then you won't be able to catch any. You can pay from $5 to $250 for a pair of polarized sun glasses. Only you know how much that you are willing to pay.
When you are selecting a good pair of glasses you will need to think about the lens colors. Blue and gray are the best for clean water and copper and rose lenses work the best for dirty water.
When is the best time to catch Triple Tail in Florida?
Triple tails can be caught in Florida waters all year long. In the cooler months you will have to target them in the warmer waters. This means that you will most likely be fishing in South Florida and the Florida Keys if you are fishing in the coldest months.
Winter- In the Winter months you can target triple tails in South Florida inshore and offshore. You can find them offshore a little further North.
Spring- In the Spring months you can target triple tails just about everywhere in Florida as long as it was not an unusually cold Winter. One of the triple tail hot spots in the Spring is the Apalachicola area of Florida and that is all the way up in the Panhandle if you are not familiar with that name.
Summer- In the Summer months you can target triple tails everywhere in Florida.
Fall- In the Fall months you can target triple tails in the Central Florida regions and South. The Treasure Coast and the Space Coast are triple tail hot spots in the Fall.
In summation, you will do best inshore from March through November. You will do best offshore in the Winter months unless you are in South Florida.
Triple Tail Regulations for Florida Gulf and Atlantic Waters
- The minimum size limit at the time of this writing for triple tails all over the state of Florida is 18 inches.
- The daily bag limit is 2 fish per person.
- The triple tail season is open all year long.
- Gear regulations include no nets and no spearing.
- All triple tail harvesting must come from a single hook and line.
- Multiple hook use in conjunction with live or dead bait is prohibited.
Conclusion:
Many fishermen are seeing the benefits of targeting triple tails. They can be quirky and you must learn how to catch them using various fishing techniques to be successful. You will increase your probability of catching some if you bring a couple of dozen live shrimp. That is by far the number one bait choice for all of the "trip" slayers out there.
They are very delicious and are pretty good fighters too. The next time you see a plastic bag or big leaf floating around a channel marker it might be a good idea to cast a bait to it. Your plastic bag might end up being a delicious and fun to catch triple tail.
Want to catch more Triple Tails?
- Learn the best baits and lures.
- Learn when and where to find fish.
- Learn how to catch fish more consistently.
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