Tides Vs. No Tides: How to Pre-Plan Around Tidal Flow
- By: Justin Ritchey
- on
Do you often fish in an area where there isn’t much of a tide change?
In this video, we break down how we approach fishing in areas based on the tide from a pre-planning standpoint.
In this new tea time, you’ll learn:
- What pre-planning goes into fishing in areas with different tidal changes (No Tide and Big Tide Swings)
- Where fish like to hold up on a high and low tide
- What lures to use for high and low tide fishing
- And much more!!!
Check it out below!
Tides Vs. No Tides: How to Pre-Plan Around Tidal Flow [VIDEO]
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We covered a ton of information so here’s a timestamped version:
- 1:04 – How do we approach areas depending on the tides?
- 1:53 – What goes through your mind when planning for a fishing trip?
- 2:04 – #1 Factor to look at before planning a trip
- 3:01 – There is such thing as “too much water movement”
- 4:13 – Lower Third and Top Third of a Tide
- 6:19 – Catching Redfish, Trout, and Flounder on high tide
- 7:20 – Lures to catch more fish on high tide
- 8:25 – Where are fish on high tide?
- 9:36 – Fish behavior on high tide
- 11:19 – Pre-planning tip
- 12:38 – Water level advantages on high tide
- 15:10 – Impact of wind in areas without tidal movement
- 16:12 – Areas with no tidal shift in East Florida
- 19:00 – Pre-trip planning in areas with no tidal shift
- 21:03 – Predicting fish behavior in areas without tide
- 25:15 – What to target and look for in an area on low tide
- 29:30 – Mudflats for Redfish
- 31:50 – Visual aspects of low tide fishing
- 34:08 – Underrated lure for low tide fishing
- 37:29 – Pro tip for anglers coming down to fish the winter months in Florida
Conclusion
Fishing in areas with massive tidal shifts or areas with zero tide movement at all poses both pros and cons to anglers.
While fish may be easier to locate, the conditions can still prove to be an obstacle to get a fish to strike your lure.
Be sure to pay attention to wind direction as well as tidal shifts to put yourself in the best spots to catch the most fish!!
Have any questions about high tide or low tide fishing patterns?
Let me know down in the comments!
And if you know an angler who fishes in areas with big tide swings or no tide, please TAG or SHARE this with them!
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Could you please do a video and explain the deafferents of a suspending and sinking twitchbait
Whoa! Historical data. How do you get that?
The best way to access it is to download Google Earth Pro on your Desktop. Then in the Tool Section in the top hand row there will be a “Historical” overlay feature that will allow you to skip back in time and get a view of the area on different dates.
In the Gulf there is one high tide and one low tide daily. On the Eastcoast there are two of each daily. The gulf also has much lower tides, averaging a foot or less per day.
Good point, Steve. West Coast Tides can be Diurnal (1 High & Low Tide every 12 hours) or Semi-Diurnal (only 1 & 1/2 Tidal Peaks every 12 hours). This changes frequently, depending on moon positioning and wind direction/intensity.
I can’t believe this wasn’t insiders only. What a great video. Took me over an hour to listen to after re-watching multiple parts along the way.
Glad you liked it Matt! We will be sure to do some more in the future.
Haha! I know, lots of golden nuggets in this one. Keep us posted with any thoughts you have on tides, Brother, as we’d like to build on this moving forward.
Great video and really enjoyed the discussion
Thanks Pablo!
Yeah buddy! Thanks for tuning in Pablo.
Good discussion. Glad to hear more from Richard about the marsh type areas. A lot of the discussions are ( understandably) geared toward Florida type grass flats, mangroves, etc. As a South Carolina guy it’s a pretty different scene on our coast with creeks, marshes, dirty water, and ripping currents. I’m looking forward to Salt Strong adding a fishing coach in the NC, SC, VA area or having Richard road trip north more often.
As always, enjoyed the discussion and keep up the good work.
Thanks Rutledge, I love the East coast and the big tide swings. Looking forward to having more content over here soon.
Those marshes are an entirely different world, Rutledge. I had the pleasure of fishing with Richard in his home turf this past weekend and I can attest, Tides are the #1 factor to look at for that type of fishery. Thanks for the feedback, looking forward to more chats with Richard myself!
I loved this video! I am building my retirement home in St. Marys, GA currently and had to re-familiarize myself to the big tide swings as I have been away from inshore fishing for many years. I was excited when Richard dissected the area around St. Marys! I am making my 3rd trip out this Sunday [I have an 18.5’ flats boat] and the tide will be low at 6:26am and almost 7’ of water will flow in over the next 6 hours. I hope to try some of the areas he outlined as well as several others areas I have found in the same general area. The tides here always are a consideration and the water can really move! I grew up in Ft. Lauderdale and have fished most of my life, but I humbly admit I have a lot to learn about the St. Marys / Cumberland Island area! The good news is that I will be retired after my home is built so time is on my side! Great video and great Salt Strong community!
Thanks Wes! Congrats, you are in a great area to live and fish! Hope to send more relevant information about areas like yours soon.
Tides are definitely one of the most important factors when it comes to finding fish. Fish Follow Flow! More to come, Wes.
Excellent discussion Justin and Richard. One of the constant SS mantras is how the patterns discussed in a spot dissection applies to every location from Texas to S. Carolina (or possibly everywhere). And the other one is the 90/10 rule which conceptually makes sense but very squishy when applied across the country without thinking about tide and other issues as you both are discussing. To me, this was an honest dialogue of critical differences (in this case, tides) that have a profound impact on a particular area. While Spot Dissections and Weekend Game Plan dial in maybe 70%-80% of what applies across most saltwater inshore geographical areas, there is another level of refinement to dial in the remainder as you guys reveal in this discussion.
Another similar issue is the Weekend Game Plan where probably 50% of the time reference is made to best fishing being close to an inlet or bay emptying into the Gulf or Atlantic ocean. There are many openings on the FL west coast but substantial distance is often involved for those fishing the central or northern parts of IRC. I think both of you could have another very informative discussion about fishing near inlets vs. many miles away as that too impacts flow (current). In listening to Justin, fishing northern IRL is somewhat similar to central IRL (Vero Beach). Both areas now have few grass flats but I think the northern part have more marsh grass whereas central has virtually none.
Hope to see more candid and informative discussions like you guys had.
Thank you Rob.
You are right, that what drove us to make this discussion glad you liked it! Also, great idea. I’m sure Justin and I can make one about distance VS current flow along with seasons etc. Looking forward to doing more of these!
Just the tip of the Iceberg, Rob. We could definitely have another discussion talking specifically about the actual Heights of each Tide Phase in certain areas, which would ultimately help an angler determine exactly what areas they should focus on fishing, and why.
Glad you found this helpful, man! More coming for sure.