Catching big Southern Flounder around Jacksonville
On a recent work trip to Jacksonville to shoot a bunch of outdoors segments, we also linked up with a few good friends to put us on some Southern Flounder along a nice area of docks on the St. John's River. We launched under the bridge crossing Haulover Creek on a overcast day hoping to catch some fish before the storms started.
We didn't even make it out of the marsh creek before Yak Mafia member and Flounder Pounder pro-staff member Jeff Altman hooked into a nice flattie!
Action Kayak Adventures guide and Jackson Kayaks & Werner Paddles pro-staff member Bart Swab was next on the board with another Southern Flounder, but not quite as big as Jeff's.
After landing two nice flatties we proceeded out of the creek to the docks we had planned on targeting that day.
These docks are located along the eastern side of the St. John's River, a major vein in the state when it comes to the maritime shipping industry. We saw a bunch of large cargo ships pass us by throughout the day, even a military warship that was being brought into the local Mayport Naval Station nearby.
Thankfully we were close to the shore so the massive wakes these enormous vessels make didn't affect us too much. I don't think we'll have a problem obeying this sign since we're just in kayaks!
The bite was hot under this short section of docks, it seemed like everyone was catching flounder left and right. So much so I only had time to catch a few photos since my job required me to capture video of everyone catching fish.
Despite being an overcast day, it was still hot and VERY humid so I spent most of the day hiding under docks in the shade as they all fished!
I mostly fish the west coast of Florida where you'll mainly find Gulf Flounder which don't grow nearly as big as the Southern Flounder (which are typically only caught on the east coast). Besides the size difference, there is one easy way to tell the difference between the two. Gulf Flounder have three distinct spots that form a triangle on their back, like on this little Gulf we caught that day.
The spots on Southern Flounder are much less pronounced and more blotchy.
After they all caught enough flounder to make a good fishing segment for TV, I was able to put down my video camera and get in on the fishing action myself. This rarely happens unfortunately but when it does I take full advantage! After just a few casts I caught what ended up being the biggest Southern Flounder of the day by about an inch.
Bart also caught a nice Black Sea Bass at the same time.
We all fished together for about two hours until the storms neared and we had to head back to the launch. I also ended up catching the last fish of the day as we made our way back to the creek we launched from.
Thanks for joining me on this fishing adventure, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!
untill next time...
All photos captured with Canon 80D/18-135mm
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In case you missed the last post in this series you can see it here:
Adventures in Florida #10: Exploring Downtown Jacksonville
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