In New Jersey Inlets & Barnegat Bay, southern flounder fish best on outgoing tide. Flounder rarely move — outgoing current delivers bait to stationary fish at structure points. The shadow side of any structure facing into the outgoing flow is the productive ambush position.
Top presentation: Bucktail tipped with squid or Gulp!
Moves up into shallow water on creek edges and flat shorelines to ambush prey pushed in by rising current.
Where: Sandy creek edges, shoreline troughs, oyster-bar drop-offs facing the rising current.
Holds position in ambush; current slowdown reduces bait delivery but fish continue to feed opportunistically.
Where: Same structure positions as during incoming — flounder rarely move, current changes deliver bait to them.
Positions in current seams at creek mouths, bridge pilings, and inlet edges — current delivers bait directly to stationary fish in optimal ambush position.
Where: Creek-mouth current seams, bridge piling shadow side, inlet edges, channel-edge sand drops.
Most fish move to slightly deeper water as the bottom shallows up; ambush positions become less effective.
Where: Channel-edge sand bottoms 6–15 feet deep, dock pilings, deeper holes.
Inlet edges on outgoing tide are the prime flounder destination — current and structure combine for ambush.
Creek mouths and drain points are second only to inlets for flounder concentration.
Beach troughs hold flounder in the early fall run; outgoing tide focuses fish at cuts.
Bield: Fish reads NOAA tide tables for New Jersey Inlets & Barnegat Bay and alerts you when the outgoing tide window is about to start at your home location.
