# Flounder action picking up



## sweetyak (Jul 26, 2012)

Was out testing out some new electronics and stopped for 30 minutes to make some casts. Was working a mirrolure paddle tail on a jig head and caught 3 flounder. 2 undersized and one that was 14 inches. Nothing huge but was nice to see since I wasn't really targeting anything. All fish were caught near some dock pilings.


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## Magic Mike (Jun 30, 2009)

What retrieve were you using if you don't mind? Just bumping it off the bottom?


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## sweetyak (Jul 26, 2012)

Was swimming it real slow along the bottom.


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## Ocean Master (May 20, 2008)

I caught 5 of my dock sitting in the same spot and throwing in different places each time. Close to Shoreline Park. Just a plain old grub...


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## Kim (Aug 5, 2008)

This cold snap will really turn on the Flounder bite.


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## Cornflake789 (Oct 10, 2008)

We went out yesterday and caught about 13 with 7 keepers, not a lot of big ones but they are definitely thick


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## Magic Mike (Jun 30, 2009)

Do you prefer an incoming or outgoing tide? Or is it a "as long as the tide is running" type bite


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## servo765 (May 25, 2013)

Anyone care to cough up _general_ locations on where to locate flounder? I read three months worth of posts that had 'flounder' tagged but so far I have come up dry when I target them. I have caught an obnoxious amount of reds in the process but I haven't found the magic pattern for flounder.

I understand they are running out of rivers and estuaries for the gulf at this time. So far I have mostly been bumping soft plastics off the bottom on jigheads around structure that I can find. 

In the last two weeks I have fished both banks of Garcon point, and every which way out of Oriale Beach boat ramp and no flounder. One short flounder off the oyster beds near Garcon Point.

Do I need to get farther down the bays, nearer to the pass at this point? 
Are docks, canals, creekbeds the wrong type of structure? 
Am I hosing myself by not Carolina rigging live bait?

I appreciate any input,

Servo


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## Magic Mike (Jun 30, 2009)

Same boat Servo... swear, Flounder are my unicorn.


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## Kim (Aug 5, 2008)

I fish them in the ICW, concentrating on spots that are grass flats that drop off into the channel. Right about now they should be starting to stack up at all the bridge rubble piles outside of the passes.


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## recess (Oct 8, 2007)

Most sandy bottom that drops off fairly quickly say for instance 2-3 ft that drops to 8-10ft with in 10-15' then flattens back out at the bottom is prime , with the flounders laying at the deep part of the drop waiting to pounce . Jig heads with stingray grubs or short bodied plastic baits do the trick and scented baits seem to do better. retrieve is very slow almost a drag along the bottom with the occasional pop-pop then drag slowly . Points and docks out of the current or where current rushes over is a great start but mostly drops . But with that said there are areas of muddy bottom which for some reason just hold flounder year around . The bay around the outskirts of wrecks is a great spot but that is usually done with bull minnows on Carolina rigs. You just have to pick your poison and put in the time scouting for the next great flounder hole. But the bite has started to pick up a bit got 22 earlier this week but nothing big just standard size but should start seeing some big females soon.


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## Team Angela Rose (Oct 22, 2013)

Recess is right! Figuring out the whats and wheres.. sandy drop offs, outskirts of structure, match the hatch, water temps, moons, tides, and flowing migratory patterns will definitely help your numbers go up!

As far as general location, :laughing: fish swim! 

I fished for a living a few years back (charter captain) with summer and winter flounder as my most targeted species. I'd be more than happy to help ya out!


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## servo765 (May 25, 2013)

I appreciate all the responses. I spent six or seven hours on Saturday drifting dropoffs and casting on visible structure around Big Lagoon and got skunked until I gave up and trolled up some Spanish to make myself feel better.

Something is clearly wrong with my approach but I'll figure it out eventually


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## Ocean Master (May 20, 2008)

Just remember Flounder aren't going to chase a bait unless they are really hungry. They lay in waiting for a bait to come close to them. Fish slowly the better and it you feel any tug, STOP for a few seconds then slowly lift the rod. If you feel any pull drop back down before setting the hook. With live bait you can let them eat for a while to make sure it's in their mouth before setting the hook.

When you catch one there are more in the same area. Keep casting in segments in the area and another will show up.


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## servo765 (May 25, 2013)

Well, persistence finally paid off. After being skunked in six different locations, I got the rig and presentation right, now I need to go a few more times to draw some patterns on when and where because even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while.

Thank you to everyone who chimed in with information!


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## recess (Oct 8, 2007)

Way to go servo !!!


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## Team Angela Rose (Oct 22, 2013)

Awesome!!!! Dinner at your place & I'll bring beer!!


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## flounder (Nov 14, 2007)

I grew up catching flounder in New York and lived in Pensacola for 11 years. Flounder was a huge frustration for me. They are much easier to catch in new york as it's one of the more common fish than others. I finally got into catching all kinds of fish and enjoyed flounder as part of my catch rather than the target species. It looks like persistence has paid off from these posts. I live in Texas now and it took me a long time to figure out crappie.

Now one of the main reasons for my post was to share this guy's videos. He is fishing in Long Island, NY and I believe the fishing patterns are different, but I also believe some of the same basic behaviors of flounder are the same. What I really enjoyed was the underwater footed this guy has while drifted for flounder (a.k.a Fluke). By the way, I used his buck tail rig at Orange Beach Fishing Pier while I was on vacation in August right before school and caught two flounder right away. Enjoy the videos, take what you can use and leave the rest. Notice, they have to be 19 inches to keep in NY and the previous year they had to be 22". Growing up the limit was 14" also note: Bull Minnows in FL = Killies in NY

http://www.youtube.com/user/jskinner5278/videos


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## dorado74 (Oct 16, 2007)

Servo. I have had pretty good luck this year with them....I'm always looking for a fishing buddy during the week. Let me know if you want to go some time.


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## Fish-n-Fur (Apr 2, 2009)

Good job, you found what works for now. Good lookin' mess of flatties! :thumbsup:


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## reelndrag (Feb 20, 2013)

Glad to see things worked for u Servo!! I went with a coworker yesterday and between the 2 of us we caught 30.. bad thing was only 6 were in slot  but was fun catching them anyways! 
Tight lines guys!


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