best tide to fish for flathead

The author of this post is Bob Hoffmann. Will Flatheads Be Active and Bite in The Rain and Storms? Yes and No. Not temperature and not rain unless it’s a straight downpour at the exact right moment. With most fishing you only need the basics to make your day out a bit easier. Click here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser. This epic jetty in The Shire easily ranks among the best fishing spots in Sydney. We can either attempt to fish for flathead catfish at night when they are actively feeding but their location may be unknown, or we can find the areas of cover during the day and know exactly where they are. Born at Cribb Island and has been fishing 55years in the local waterways Ted enjoys his Flathead, Bream and Whiting fishing, he knows the spots, the baits and the times. Walking the river banks or the flats at low tide simply flicking the plastics around the waters edge, finding drop off points and snags is so much fun and actually producing large Flathead. I normally give a little slack when I feel the Flathead take up the bait and let it have about 5 10 second and I give a light strike but other hit them hard. Nice and easy to understand and pretty much summarizes the entire catfish feeding schedule into a nice easy to understand manner. Gidgee “Fry” is another local lure that is made for our area and our fishing needs. Flathead are notable for their unusual body shape, upon which their hunting strategy is based. However, some catfish anglers don’t like targeting cover or dealing with the possibility of snags and other headaches that can come with that form of catfishing. Once you understand the fundamentals it’s easy to decide when you will have the best luck flathead catfishing and when it works for your own personal time schedule. It is not perfect but them I convert a few doing this. That doesn’t necessarily mean I haven’t had better luck in some months compared to other times of the year. Wondering what the absolute best tides for redfish, snook, and trout are for the flats, creeks, and bays? Everyone has their own technique for catching the prized Flathead, I have found by using fresh bait like Pilly’s, prawns, whitebait and mullet fillet. As always, thanks for stopping by. If you haven’t done so already, be sure to sign up for my email newsletter. You will get the latest post and all the most recent reviews of top fishing gear on a weekly basis at no cost. Thanks again, I appreciate you. When targeting Flathead try to inspect the area you will be fishing at low tide and find the areas with evidence of Flathead activity. If you are trying to land a trophy flathead, it’s imperative you stick to these live baits and make them work and or learn to use them effectively. This isn’t only going to allow you find structure and detailed information but will allow you too see water depths and most of the information needed to effectively find where the catfish are “laying around”. A few basic pointers and we will be able to get you catching more flathead catfish in no time. Some of the most common have been: Z Man in 2.5 Grubz – Pumpkin Seed, Amber, Motor Oil, Bloodworm and Electric Pink. They will eat all hours of the day if you execute properly. Flatheads can really launch into heavy attack mode for well chosen baits and live baits in May and keep up the enthusiasm all the way until September. The length of leader should be around 60cm, ensure this is a quality line and leader as you do not want to see your trophy fish disappear before it gets to the net! I learned a great deal over the years while fly fishing every tide phase. –          A good esky with ice and fluids which can be replaced by fillets if you’re a fillet and fry person. When casting to the bank area I use a No. Your email address will not be published. These are bare minimums when it comes to being prepared to handle a nice size flathead  Reels and other gear such as hook size are also important, but I’ll save some of those recommendations for you to view in my recommended fishing gear area, so we don’t bore the anglers that already have the gear ready to go. We have two main ways of breaking down the hours in a day when it comes to fishing for flathead catfish. A lot of anglers including myself will tell you that it seems catfish strike extra hard and aggressive right when that sun begins showing it’s face. In the 4” Curl Tails – Motor Oil, Pink Glow, New Penny, Squidgy – 120mm Wriggler in both Bloodworm and Red Rum and in the Fish series – Garry Glitter, Silver Fox and Drop Bear. If you want to have a successful saltwater fishing trip, it's best to plan your time on the water according to the fishing tide times.There are stark differences between fishing high tide or low tide and while this section focuses primarily on fishing high tide, there are low tide opportunities (such as points and sloughs) to catch fish if you find … I wish you blokes would tell us “know nothings” how to use each and every one, of the plethora of plastics you sell, eg how do you run your plastic lure through grass beds growing in 30cm of water without getting snagged. In the same inlet, nobody will be catching and all of a sudden, they turn on for 30 minutes straight with nonstop action and as quickly as it started…it ends. I’d recommended starting with at least a 7-9-foot rod with medium action. The actual rod composite is your choice, but a nice e-glass rod gets the job done. Your going to need the flexibility and freedom the longer rods will allow for more effective hook setting and maneuvering ability when your fighting the catfish or working the river currents. Will Flatheads be Active and Bite in the Rain and Storms? Flathead can be targeted during most parts of the day, however, they are generally most active on the peak of each tide, especially low tide. This will last all the way up until the morning hours. Disclosure: At BonfireBob, we recommend products based on unbiased research, however, BonfireBob.com is reader-supported and as an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases if you shop through the links on this page. The smaller lakes and streams will warm up a lot faster than larger bodies of water. This is my favourite way of catching Flathead. It’s still possible to catch flathead on a rising tide or whiting on a falling tide. That’s not to say flathead can’t be caught on the rising tide. Tides are important to all saltwater anglers, but the surf fishermen study them intensely than most other groups of anglers. As the tide begins to rise and water flows over the saltwater flats, fish begin to patrol these areas in search of food. At night, the flatheads will be prowling for food. Decide What’s Best for You and Learn to Improve, Best Flathead Fishing Time by Season and Weather. The fish will be most active two hours after the top of the tide.  During the high tide the Flathead will be up on the bank catching a few warm rays and as the tide drops the Flathead will return to the channels & gutters and lay in ambush for the bait-fish which will be coming into the same channels and gutters. You will succeed! –          An up to date “Size & Bag Limit” guide (Free at local tackle stores). Proper Gear is always something you need to check off your to do list. Because of that, many fishermen believe that slack tides (true high and true low) are the worst times for fishing - as fish are less likely to be feeding - and opt for fishing towards the end of a rising (flood) tide or the … Flathead fishing can be done on either, spin, Alvey or even the humble hand-line. There is a great range of colors but the “Natural” “Drop Bear” colored ones stand out the most for efficient Flathead taking. Reading the water structure, using effective baits and gear and becoming a master flathead stalker can be quite the thrill and I hope this post helps at least one angler out there succeed at catching more flatheads this year. A majority keep at it and some go back to bait, it is not for everyone. Team these up with the TT Tournament jig heads in either 1/8oz, 1/6oz or 1/4oz with a 2/0, 3/0 or 4/0 hook (Depending on the size of your plastic. The preferred tide time would be high tide 7-9Am and fish the run out from the top of the tide down. Most seasoned flathead fishos will generally tell you the outgoing tide is one of the best times to fish for flathead. Hi Daniel, there are plenty around, have a look at the Fishing Map under the Info button for an idea. Only thing is with plastics alot of fish seem to get off due to the 1 hook. Flathead use this body structure to hide in sand (their body color changes to match their background), with only their eyes visible, and explode upwards and outwards to engulf small fish and prawns as they drift over. When the Flathead strikes, don’t be too quick just lift the rod until you feel the weight of the Flathead and then strike but not too severe as you may pull the bait from the mouth of the fish. If this is the case, it’s easy in theory. A great trick for catching more redfish in the flats is knowing how the different tides will make them move and act. 2 Ball Sinker but this may change according to the run of the tide. Great numbers of good size Flathead have been caught using an array of soft plastics. On the outgoing tide they can often be found three hours into the tide on the north side Jetty instead of the south side. Contact Me | About Bob Hoffmann | Affiliate Disclosure | Privacy Policy. They typically don ‘t wanders off to far into the night from their original nesting spot. Okay, so back to the idea that you may not want to use any of the new and improved electronics. We already know they are going to be in the high dense snag areas with heavy brush, so you can start just by actively seeking out areas with tree overhangs or that appear to be littered with high cover. Bait or Lures? We are a participant in the Amazon.com Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. 1 ball but again this can change with the run of the tide that you are facing at the time. Coastline waves and currents send massive quantities of fish in your direction. What’s not to love? I do alot of drifting, changing colours etc until i match the hatch and it works. What Tide is Best for Surf Fishing. They even make castable versions of this technology in case some you are bank fishing on lakes or rivers for catfish and need another avenue to get your hands on the valuable information and find the slimy monsters in their favorite hiding spots. Fish along bluff walls where flathead catfish love to feed as well as spawn in the many undercuts along these bluffs. Type of fishing: Jetty Expect to find: Flathead, Whiting, Bream Best Time to go: Early morning I often read in fishing books and magazines that the last two hours of the rising tide and the first hour of the falling tide is the best time to fish for whiting off the beach. Flathead have two short spikes on either side of their heads that contain venom. Hi Jett, there is no perfect way of doing things, so don’t feel that you are doing the wrong thing. This is because this tide brings a lot of food from upstream – for example, a beach or estuary – down towards where the flathead lays waiting in the sand or mud. The best time to get yourself a nice Flathead is during the day, two – three days lead up to the full moon and the following two- three days after. My personal answer may sound cliche, but the best tide for me to fish is the one I am dealing with at the time. Your email address will not be published. Just locating them, in general, is another critical component to ensuring that you have the best chances of landing flathead catfish with ease. Im thinking of trying to invent a way of attatching a treble in there somehow for a better hook up rate. If you haven’t done so already and you’re a beginner catfish angler, always feel free to start with my guide about catfish fishing. It covers everything you need to know in one easy post from A-Z. (Check Out The Top 5 Tide Chart Websites) Thanks for this. Other Needed Gear For Flathead Catfishing, link to The 7 Best Ice Fishing Lures for Crappie (Complete Guide & Reviews [year]), link to TOP 9 Best Ice Fishing Lures for Walleye + (A Quick Guide & My Favorite Baits), bank fishing on lakes or rivers for catfish. Preferred bait is tail half of a Pilly on two 3/0 or 4/0 hooks ganged teamed with 4-8lb braid or 12-15lb mono with a 16lb fluorocarbon leader or if using Whitebait I prefer 3 x No1 Mustads ganged with a “00” ball sinker running on to the hooks. Anytime will work but the time of the day isn’t necessarily the most critical factor to uncover when it comes to catching flathead catfish with some skill and efficiency. –          Sun block, broad brim hat, sunnies and long sleeve shirt and sturdy footwear. Flathead are dorsally compressed, meaning their body is wide but flattened and very low in height. Until Next Time. Especially with flathead catfishing. Another tip you can use for locating these areas, is to look for bends and outside bends along the river. Well, this video tutorial below will show you the #1 factor to keep in mind when planning your next fishing trip. Under those conditions, cast up-tide and reel back with the current to get action.” So the next time, after researching the best tides for fishing and wind conditions, just roll with it. They live in sand, mud, gravel and sea grass and can inhabit estuary waters up to the tidal limit. Atomics – Chasing Bream on light gear I have lost a few Deep Divers, Shad 50 in Matte Ayu to the old lizard so be aware of the occasional “Ambush”. In this type of flathead fishing, the rigs, baits and methods used, are similar to those described in estuary flathead fishing. I have just started getting into soft plastics and already having success. The key period to hunt the Flathead is primarily during Winter however they are a species which can be caught all year round. Are on the outgoing tide is changing, these times hours into the down! Into soft plastics and already having success that doesn’t necessarily mean I haven’t had better luck in some compared... 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The years while fly fishing every tide phase to post comments, please sure. On using live bait properly by seeing my other post about using bluegill shad. To go from low to high and 6 hours for the tide to low tide and find new!... You prefer fishing in the gutters when the best time to fish mud gravel. Tides are best suited for targeting flathead in shallow Winter waters SE Qld so this is the,! Water first s still possible to catch flathead on a falling tide almost anything in best tide to fish for flathead and... These facts and then learn to apply them to everything flathead catfish it ’ s still possible catch! Up until the morning hours and Crappie fishing is the best time to fish weapons... Way up until the morning hours schedule into a nice easy to understand.. Monsters are going to either make you look silly or make you go end of a session you fishing.

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