After receiving some sage advice from the "walakes.com saltwater forum all-stars" I decided to go after some summer starry flounder after work on the Nisqually Delta. I was probably on the water from about 6-8 pm, and anchored right in front of the Nisqually Reach Nature Center near the boat launch. A shorebound angler could probably cast to most of the area I was fishing when the tide is low. The tide was outgoing (and nowhere near slack)-- which I typically never fish, but a long week at the office calls for desperate measures. I used nightcrawlers and razor clam necks for bait. For my rod I used my trout setup-- 6 feet light action with 6 pound test. My set-up was a half-once bass casting sinker (sliding weight) on the mainline, swivel, 18-inch leader, small red hook.

A lightning/thunder/hail/giant rain storm overtook the area all but my first 20 minutes on the water, but it was a great day regardless (it pays to keep an emergency rain poncho in the boat safety kit!). I would cast out, let the bait set for 5-10 seconds. Reel two or three times. Let set again. Repeat. I caught two starry flounder-- one before the storm and one during a break in the storm. The flounders were caught in 6-10 feet of water, so maybe the thunder and torrential downpour made them bunker down? I know I could feel the thunder on the boat. I had a tough time keeping the pacific staghorn sculpin off the hook though during the storm though-- at least every other cast I hooked one.

The starry flounder fight really well on light gear-- they're strong fish, and make several powerful runs with those big paintbrush tails. FYI- The sliding weight on the mainline is important, because if they pickup your bait when it's at a standstill, they want to run off with it in their mouth-- and eat it as they go. I think they'll just scamper off if they feel any real resistance. I'm used to jigging, where you tear any fish's face off brave enough to bite; so I'm sure I jerked the bait away from at least three other flounder as I wised up. Give them some line, let them gnaw on the bait for what seems like eternity (10 seconds or so), then wham-o!

All fish released.

Picture one: Pre-storm flounder
Picture two: During-the-storm flounder.
Picture three: Where I was anchored.

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