June’s “Best Bet”
Spotlight on Northeast Florida Flounder “Gigging” …
By Terry Newsome
With the significant lack of rainfall this spring, coastal anglers continue to experience crystal clear water conditions at area inlets, the lower St. Johns River and the Intracoastal Waterways. Increased visibility in deeper water will increase your fishing success rate substantially; especially when you are targeting flounder. In fact, “flatfish” are ambush predators that feed primarily by sight. “Flatties” can be difficult to catch with a hook and line, but with the clean water conditions, June is an excellent month to catch (or gig) your limit!
There are three unique species of flounder that can be caught in Florida coastal waters. In Northeast Florida, the overwhelming majority harvested are the Southern Flounder species (which have both eyes on the left side their face!) The left or “up” side is light olive brown to dark brown (or nearly black,) with many blotches and spots. The eyeless “down” side is completely white. When feeding on top of oyster mounds, the blotches and spots provide camouflage. Flounder will also bury themselves on the bottom in sand (or mud) to avoid being detected by targeted baitfish. Flounder average 2 to 4 pounds but “doormat” sized flounder can be 10 to 12 pounds or more! The minimum size limit is 12 inches and the daily bag limit is 10 per harvester per day. There is no closed season for flounder and the official Florida state record is 20.9 pounds (caught locally at Nassau Sound!) The flounder fishery throughout the state of Florida is great shape! (The status of the Southern Flounder is listed as “Least Concern” on the IUNC Red List for Threatened Species… proof positive that recreational fishing and “gigging” for flounder has had little negative impact.)
And when it comes to seafood favorites, many coastal anglers tell you that there is “nothing better” than the taste of fried flounder filets or fresh flounder stuffed with crabmeat! The flounder have arrived in Northeast Florida! So, get out there and have some fun!
ALTERNATIVE METHOD FOR HARVESTING FLOUNDER
Flounder are NOT only caught on conventional hook and line tackle, but can also harvested by an exciting alternative technique called “gigging.” Simply walk, pole (or use a trolling motor) to navigate a small boat along the shoreline at night in very shallow water. Use a high-candlepower/lumen spotlight (or attach bright lights to the front of your boat) to shine light onto the bottom. Successful gigging also requires clean water and a calm night with little or no wind (that may cause ripples on the surface of the water.) You will be amazed at how easy it is to see the “football-shaped” outline (or the eyes) of a camouflaged and buried flattie!
Flounder gigging is truly exciting and is one of my all-time favorite outdoor adventures! I have been flounder gigging for over 30 years and can tell you without hesitation that once you experience the thrill of seeing a huge flounder buried in the sand in 12 inches of water… you will be “hooked on gigging” for life! In fact, 25 years ago, I had the opportunity to take my good friend and avid outdoorsman Mark Young “flounder gigging” (for his very first time.) We traveled down to St. Augustine Inlet and had a very successful trip gigging several flounder in the 5-pound class. After several gigging trips, he bought his own flat-bottom skiff and has been gigging in Northeast Florida on a regular basis ever since! In recent years, Mark has become an expert and graciously takes me flounder gigging with him on a regular basis.
MARK YOUNG’S 10-POUND FLOUNDER (See Photo)
Two years ago, Mark took me Flounder gigging in the lower St. Johns River near Mayport. It was dead low tide when we first arrived at the Mayport boat ramp. As we approached our first “secret spot” (near the mouth of Haul-over Creek at the west end of Huguenot Park,) the tide had just turned and the clean ocean water began to slowly move in. “I like to gig the first of the incoming tide” Mark explained, “because the water is cleaner and it triggers the Flounder to move up into shallow water to feed.” In less than 5 minutes, Mark had already put a nice three-pound Flounder into the cooler! I was amazed at how clean the water was and the abundance of small baitfish and “finger” mullet hovering near the shoreline. “The flounder bury themselves in 12” to 18” inches of water waiting to ambush small baitfish that move into the shallows at night” Mark added, “…another reason I like the low, incoming tide is that the small baitfish will move up into the small feeder creeks as the tide rises helping to keep the water clean. Spooked finger mullet stir up the bottom which affects visibility.” Mark likes to move frequently to locate feeding flatfish. In fact, we moved to Mark’s second “hot spot” after just 10 minutes. “I like to check several spots in a specifically-targeted area while the tide is still moving slowly… then quickly move up the St. Johns River following the first phase of incoming tide” Mark explains, “… this gives me the opportunity to look for flounder just after low tide in major feeder creeks and the Intracoastal Waterways. Once the incoming tide is moving too swiftly, it stirs up the bottom which can have a negative impact on the visibility of the water.”
After gigging 4 or 5 nice flounder in less than an hour, we moved up river to our next hot-spot and after just a few minutes, I heard Mark say: “There he is!” Without hesitation, Mark lifted a 10-Pound “doormat” flounder into the boat and said… “Looks like my neighbors will be eating fresh flounder for dinner tomorrow tonight!” We headed to the boat ramp and were home before midnight! It was an outdoor adventure I will never forget! Until next time, be safe and enjoy the great outdoors!
With over 25 years of corporate experience as a writer, director and producer, Terry Newsome has personally filmed and produced over 100 outdoor television shows and instructional fishing videos internationally. He is an avid coastal angler and is a former co-owner of Pine Island Fish Camp on the Intracoastal Waterway just north of St. Augustine, Florida.