Fluke on the fly

Fluke or Summer flounder is passionately pursued by anglers on Long Island for both, the challenge and its excellent taste.

Fluke are aggressive predators, with sharp teeth that can grow to be over 15 lbs.

I often catch fluke by accident while fishing for other species, but if you want to target fluke specifically, the following tips should help you improve your odds.

The Hunt

Long Island north and south shores hold fluke from west to the east end. I prefer to fish in shallow waters for fluke, specially those where the visibility is good. Back bays, channels, mud bottoms are all prime locations for fluke.

In early season fish areas near inlets, these waters will see the first of the fluke returning from their winter grounds.

The Gear

Fly rods for fluke can range in weights from 5wt to 9wt, and while larger fluke can be strong fighters, you don't need a premium reel or lots of backing to stop them.

I do recommend that you use intermediate or sinking line, whichever allows you to retrieve your fly while keeping it just off the bottom, where fluke lay to ambush prey. If you are new to fly fishing, note that full sinking lines are rated by grains, the higher the number, the faster it will sink.

A standard 9 ft fluorocarbon leader, 12-20 lbs should is enough for most fluke you’ll find, but remember they have sharp teeth so be ready to adjust your setup depending on what's lurking near you.

Use a weighted fly, you want to mimic prey swimming and darting off the bottom, think of a happy grass shrimp darting or small bait fish swimming erratically.

That’s it, you should be all set to fly fish and play a nice fluke, and get ready for some amazing sights, when a fluke suddenly appears from the sand or mud button and rises in pursuit of you fly.

The following video shows show fly fishing for fluke should be when it all comes together.

I hope this helps you catch more fluke, if you have questions feel free to contact me.

Fluke can grow big!

In this picture Meylin holds a

beautiful 10lb fluke caught

on a sunny July day in Montauk, NY

Tight lines 🤙

If you want to tie your own fluke flies, the following video is a step by step how to tie the clouser minnow. The clouser minnow is a great fly to target fluke in shallow water.

If you're interested in quality fly rods, check out the folks at Rise Fishing Co.

www.risefishing.com

Rise fishing rods is a Long Island, New York based company run by some very fishy dudes that fish both fresh and saltwater all the time.
Tell them Sergio sent you 😎