Varn Park Fishing

Varn Park is a no-fuss county beach park where the parking, restrooms and walkover sit right behind the dunes, so a cooler and a sand spike reach the water in a couple of minutes.

• The county's own page calls it a popular surf fishing spot
• Bluefish, whiting and flounder are the catches the county names
• Wheelchair access onto the beach and ADA parking
• Open until 11 p.m., which leaves time for a session after dark
• No entry fee is listed on the county's park page

Look for the park on the ocean side of A1A (North Oceanshore Boulevard), a short drive north of Flagler Beach toward the Hammock.

• Parking: ample, according to the county, with ADA spaces
• Fees: none listed by the county
• Hours: dawn to 11 p.m. daily
• From car to sand: a short dune walkover; the county lists wheelchair access to the beach
• The Intracoastal Waterway runs just west of A1A here, but the park is set up for the ocean side

The county's list of catches, bluefish, whiting and flounder, sums this beach up well; the rest follows the seasons.

• Spring (Mar-May): pompano running north along the troughs, steady whiting, the first bluefish and a few black drum
• Summer (Jun-Aug): whiting at first light, flounder near the cuts, sharpnose sharks after sundown
• Fall (Sep-Nov): the busiest season, when mullet schools pull bluefish, jacks and redfish into the wash
• Winter (Dec-Feb): whiting and black drum on mild, calm days, with the odd redfish

Match the rig to the target and keep it simple.

• Whiting: a small-hook double-dropper rig with a piece of shrimp or a Fishbites strip, cast only as far as the first trough
• Pompano: sand fleas on the same dropper rig with a bright float bead, a little farther out
• Bluefish: a metal spoon, or a chunk of cut mullet on a short wire leader
• Flounder: a live finger mullet on a sliding sinker, crept through the cut
• Redfish and sharks after dark: a heavier rod, a fish-finder rig and a big piece of mullet
• Rods of 10 to 12 feet with 15 to 20 lb line cover all of it

The ocean off Varn Park rises and falls twice a day, with a range of several feet.

• An evening that coincides with a rising tide is the classic setup for redfish and sharks
• Low water is the time to walk the beach and see where the cuts break through the bar
• Whiting bite best in a light chop with a little color in the water
• A hard northeast blow makes it unfishable; give it a day to settle
• In midsummer the water warms and clears by midday, so fish the edges of the day

Open surf and summer weather are the risks here.

• Cuts in the bar pull water back out to sea; stay out of them when wading to cast
• Afternoon storms in summer: get off the beach at the first thunder
• Rays sit in the shallows, so slide your feet along the bottom
• There is nothing but sun on the sand, so pack shade and plenty of water
• Swimmers and surfers come first: cast well away from them
• The county lists wheelchair access to the beach and ADA parking, which makes it easier to reach than a plain dune crossing

The county lists what an angler needs for a few hours on the beach.

• Restrooms with outdoor showers for rinsing off sand and salt
• ADA parking spaces in a lot the county calls ample
• Picnic areas
• Wheelchair access onto the beach
• No bait or food is listed on site, so pick up bait before you leave town
• Birders, the county adds, may spot scrub jays on the overhead wires between the park and Matanzas Inlet

• The 11 p.m. closing leaves room for a sunset-to-dark session
• Keep a small rod rigged for whiting while a big rod soaks a mullet chunk
• In fall, birds diving just off the beach show where bluefish and jacks are feeding
• Sand fleas show as V-shaped ripples in the backwash; a flea rake gathers bait in minutes
• Flagler County plans to rebuild the dunes and add sand from Varn Park south toward Flagler Beach, so check the county's notices for closures once work starts
• On the summer nesting beach at night, keep lights to a minimum and point any light down

Flagler County Parks and Recreation runs Varn Park.

• Hours are dawn to 11 p.m.; county park rules ban alcohol without a county permit and overnight parking
• You need a Florida saltwater fishing license unless you are exempt
• Targeting sharks from the beach requires the free FWC shore-based shark fishing permit
• Cross the dunes only on the walkover, and give sea turtle nests and roped-off bird areas a wide berth
• Before keeping fish, check the FWC's current size, bag and season limits (myfwc.com)