[dropcap]F[/dropcap]inally, summer weather is here and the water temp is where it needs to be and the long winter delay to good flounder fishing is over!
Here is a short list of baits that I like to use for catching flounder from my kayak. For soft plastics, I like curlytail grubs and paddletail shad. If you are fishing close to the grass, rigging a jerk bait with a weighted weedless hook is another great option. From this time of year and through the fall, another no-fail bait is a Carolina Rig with a live finger mullet fished on the bottom. When I’m fishing with live bait on the bottom I just don’t let it sit in one spot until something happens. If I have not gotten a hit in five or ten minutes I will reel it in a few cranks and let it sit again. If you want to work multiple rods from your kayak you can put your rods rigged with live bait in your rear rod holders and then cast a soft plastic at the same time.
If I am flounder fishing in a new area, I like to head out at low tide. That way you can see where all the deep holes will be and easily locate the shallow flats. Fishing on dead low tide can be a little slow but it will give you a good read of the bottom for when the tide starts to move back in. This will also give you an idea of where the oyster bars and points are…another favorite place I like to fish for flounders.
A great trick I just learned form a fishing buddy of mine is to fish off little outcrops of grass. I know I have done this before but never really was aware of it until I had a con- versation with him the other day. His theory is these grassy outcrops change the current flow, so working them just off the point in the slacker water and just on the other side of the current produces fish. It always helps to listen to your fellow fishermen…sometimes you can pick up those little pearls of wisdom.
One other thing I have started doing this year is fishing all the places that I have passed up. I don’t know why I thought some of these places did not hold fish. The fact is, as of now I have been more wrong than right. Flounder will get into places you would never think of and they still want to eat. Remember in your kayak you can get into a lot of tight places to fish.
Summer arrived a little over a week ago, so get out there and start fighting doormats. You know as we move into fall they will only get bigger. Enjoy, be safe and always wear your PFD.