Surf fishing tips 101

[DarkSkies]

Umm, didn't someone one time say its called fishing, not catching..... I'm thinking a few of us just enjoy being out there taking that punishment working a shore line, looking for a cut in a bar, a rip, a stray fish.:

Hey, ya got me on that one... who am I kidding....I've been out there hours and hours at a time with no fish....and kept at it anyway. Just trying to cut down on my compulsive behavior and get out there more....

As for enjoying the punisment, bro, that seems like a personal issue to me, maybe ya wanna do some research on S&M. Can't really help ya out with that, you're all on your own with that one.
(You know I quoted you out of context, but I couldn't help myself)

and of course storms this time of year will screw everything up but before a storm is a good time to get out there after stay home till the water clears.This is solely my opinion but I still say if you want a biggin get out there in Sept. to early Oct.

because as far as I'm concerned in NY thats the time before you get into schoolies and their is the occasional later big ones who got lost in the parade or are going to winter over.Every single fish over 20 lbs. I have caught was in the 2 months above.

Lots of wisdom in this thread. There are a bunch of mis-informed people going around telling everyone who will listen that the biggest fish are caught during noreasters. That's only accurate for specific times and conditions, such as Montauk. It's wiser to follow the words I have highlighted above in your post, Surf.


If people would just read some of the wisdom here and live it, maybe some would catch more fish.
Consistently catching bigger fish from shore, other than snag and drop, involves a good log, paying attention to seasonal trends, and spending time out there when and where the bigger fish tend to move through.

[seamonkey]

Dark, some of us are paying attention.
To all the old-timers and good fishermen here, thank you! I check this thread once a week to see if there are any new tips, and re-read it every winter. I learned a lot about reading the water and presentation from it. Thanks all.

[DarkSkies]

Thanks Seamonkey.
We try our best to help the new guys here, and as you said, no matter how long you have been fishin, you can always learn something new, if your mind is open to it....



Saving a wet cell phone after you dunk it..

Open the phone if it's a clamshell type. If not, leave as is
Take the battery off the back.
Put all in a quart ziplock bag filled with white rice.
Do not attempt to turn it on, just put in the bag covered with rice.
Seal bag. Leave it untouched for 2 days.
Worked for me, saved 2 phones this way. One of em had been in salt water overnight, found 10 hours later after I went back and searched for it.

[DarkSkies]

Teasers are great when there are different forage sizes around, like late fall or whenever else you have rainfish, bay anchovies, etc. You have to counter the desire to use a teaser with the reality of where the fish are feeding, though. Sometimes they are feeding, on schedule, just beyond the last breaker.

Finchaser and SharkHart had some good advice about when and when not to use teasers.
I summarized it and am posting it here....



" Got a few calls saying folks saw fish feeding, but on the end of the furthest casts....coupled with the big swell coming from that offshore storm, it made it almost impossible to consistently get in the strike zone.

Yet some continue to stay married to teasers, no matter what.
As Shark mentioned, sometimes you need that extra distance, it's critical to whether you get to where the fish are. Miss it and you get no action at all......

So learn from these valuable tips here, people...
Teasers are great for when the fish are in tight, but they can ba a handicap when you need maximum distance on your cast."

[seamonkey]

Thanks guys!

[DarkSkies]

Whether you are on a jetty or a bar, having waves crashing over your head and pushing you back can get you in trouble...

This advice comes from my good friend Joe....

When a wave is coming at you, turn your body sideways and you present less mass for the force to go through, thereby making it easier to resist the wave...thanks Joe.

[Monty]

Whether you are on a jetty or a bar, having waves crashing over your head and pushing you back can get you in trouble...
This advice comes from my good friend Joe....
When a wave is coming at you, turn your body sideways and you present less mass for the force to go through, thereby making it easier to resist the wave...thanks Joe.

It can also be very refreshing
Never loose sight of what is coming at you.

[bababooey]

Tell me honestly Monty, you really enjoy the waves coming at you like that? Why?

[Monty]

Tell me honestly Monty, you really enjoy the waves coming at you like that? Why?

I am always throwing artificials, a few of my most fun outings have been to Island Beach late fall, windy, rainy, white water.
Not many others fishing. Getting out to the bars, fishing some real nice structure there, cuts, points. working hard for fish, but being rewarded by catching them. No blitz.
Its fun for me, working for fish (bass and blues) in those conditions. Not a fish on every cast, one or two or three an hour. I'll take that over an all out blitz if I had a choice.
Its the fishing experience. Challenging, exciting, a little risky, exciting, exhilarating. Adrenalin rush.

[storminsteve]

Its the fishing experience. Challenging, exciting, a little risky, exciting, exhilarating. Adrenalin rush.

x2, Monty. They should make t-shirts with a pic of the surf, and those words above that, I would definitely buy one.

[jigfreak]

Tell me honestly Monty, you really enjoy the waves coming at you like that? Why?

If you have to ask that question, you wouldn't understand the answer anyway.

[jigfreak]

Night fishing, make sure you have extras of leaders, clips, etc, all set up and ready to change.

[rockhopper]

Good point jigfreak. And check your knots!

[porgy75]

I don't have much to add here but think it is important to be careful of the rip currents if you are wading out. A few kids got killed already this year when swimming.

[cowherder]

Ledhead mentioned this and I want to try it.
"Don't throw your gulp away that the bigger bluefish have been chomping on. I have been using the bits and pieces on the snapper poppers or sabiki rigs and catching snappers for fluke bait."

[buckethead]

I don't have much to add here but think it is important to be careful of the rip currents if you are wading out. A few kids got killed already this year when swimming.

So true, every year we lose someone else to rip currents.

[jigfreak]

Ledhead mentioned this and I want to try it.
"Don't throw your gulp away that the bigger bluefish have been chomping on. I have been using the bits and pieces on the snapper poppers or sabiki rigs and catching snappers for fluke bait."

There are also a lot of spot close in. Fishbites or bloodworms does the job.

[ledhead36]

Early spring the water is still cold. They are not hitting aggressively now. Hold your rod. If this makes you tired go home and take up golf. You will miss less fish this way.

[VSdreams]

^^Thanks for that ledhead. You should have seen it today it was like a picket line of guys along the beach but only a few of us were holding our rods. We were the only ones catching. Saw quite a few missed fish. It seems so simple but you are spot on it is important.

[DarkSkies]

Good point ledhead. It might seem simple but the little things like that result in more hookups and less missed fish, as you said.




**********
A friend has been down in Fla for a month and has been outfishing the locals, so maybe I can say something to you all about looking at things differently.

My friend has been doing OK in Fla. He says the fishing has been tough because they have had colder weather than usual.

**Not all days have been good, and some have been poor. He's pretty honest and tried to share some of what has been working.
He was doing ok with fish overall with a white grub tail and 1/2 oz jig. He said a lot of locals fish on the bottom, and when the fish are there they all would catch.

However, there are different times of day, centered around the high tide, when the behavior would be different. He isn't really a guy to throw too many artificials beyond the occasional bucktail or white grub He fishes bait a lot.
So when it seems the fishing has slowed down, he puts squid strips on a high low rig, takes the heavy sinker off that many are using, and substitutes with a very small sinker, just enough to cast it out.

With these squid strips (BTW a very cheap bait to use compared to alternatives of shrimp or worms), he has been nailing Spanish mackerel.
Cast and retrieve at a pretty moderate pace, keeping the rig in the top 1/2 of the water column.
He's working for someone down there and can't always get out. His time is limited.
He has been trying to time his trips around the high tide. Some days he's able to put together double digit catches of spanish mackerel....I think his best trip he got 19 of them, all from a pier.