what is it about being in the surf?

[basshunter]

I fished this morning, no fish. I saw bait and birds about 1/2 mile out. If I was in a boat we probably could of hooked up with some fish, maybe not. Maybe they were just herring or sandeels with no bass under them.
But I really like walking the sand, or fishing the rocks and inlets at night.
Walking out on the sandbar at low tide and hoping for a few bass or bluefish, you can't do that from a boat. Still, you would probably catch more fish on a boat, so why do I like the surf so much?
Sunrises and sunsets, for one.
This time of year you have a lot of open space. Not many guys are fishing, except today there seemed to be more people.
Why do we do what we do?

[hookset]

Not many guys are fishing, except today there seemed to be more people.
Why do we do what we do?

I agree. If the beach becomes too crowded you can always go on a boat. Or a yak. The yak is good because you can reach places that aren't accessible by a lot of folks. Still, there is something about the pounding waves, or the silent sunrise that builds to a crescendo if there are fish around (not many lately) and the birds and bait go nutz!
There is the challenge of walking out on the bar, not getting wet in the trough, and keeping your position when the surf is big and knocking you around.
Catching fish is the ultimate goal, but there is so much more to it, it's hard to define in my head why I keep going out there. I just do.

[DarkSkies]

Solitude and peace and quiet.
I like the solitude most of all, which is why I fish at night a lot. There's something about being out there in the darkness, just you, nature, and the water, sand, rocks, whatever.

We're all entitled to fish where we want, no one owns the beach. I truly hate crowds, unless that's the only option. Give me a place where I can have a lot of elbow room to myself, and that's where I'll be.

[rockhopper]

When you are in the surf its just you against the fish. You have to use everything you got to trick him. And even when you're hooked up, you could always lose it in a wave or in the wash. It makes you know that you have to be on top of your game to land a big fish in the surf. Thats what does it for me.

[Monty]

I like the solitude, yet the camaraderie with the other surfcasters. The challenge of fooling a bass with an artificial. The sheer beauty and ferocity of the surf. The way the senses are on edge at 2:00 am when I am alone either ocean side or bay side. My mind is solely on finding and fooling fish, there is nothing else. It resets the mind, relieves stress. Its fun, challenging, exciting and I love the rush when fooling a bass or fighting a Blue Fish.

[Monty]

Give me a place where I can have a lot of elbow room to myself, and that's where I'll be.

Guess with those waders you had on in November elbow room wasn't a problem.....................

Just kidding....mine were not allowed in the house or for that matter the garage for a few week period.
I 'm with you on the crowd thing, I hate them and completely avoid them.

[cowherder]

The challenge of fooling a bass with an artificial. The sheer beauty and ferocity of the surf. The way the senses are on edge at 2:00 am when I am alone either ocean side or bay side.

Beautifully said Monty! I like the challenge whether I am catching or not. There are no guarantees out there.

[bluesdude71]

Getting away from it all, the wife, kids, pressures of everyday life - I leave all that behind when I go out to fish.

[surfwalker]

All great posts. I guess we all have different reasons. My reason has always been the same, a form of an addiction. A sense of personal satisfaction that is maybe never totally achieved. A perfection that is strived for, but just out of grasp on some walks. An enjoyment that never gets boring, but is always looked forward to. I fish solo 99% of the time, but I am never lonely. The anticipation of the strike is great, but if no strike is had, the time was not wasted to me.

It’s something I’ve always enjoyed. Even when I wandered away from actually surfcasting, from time to time, the thought was always on my mind.

The time away from surfcasting is depressing, the time surfcasting is always too short.

[plugginpete]

Like eating shrimp and lobster every day, maybe? We think we would like that because it's great stuff.
If it was just common, and similarly every time we went fishing we caught multiples of big fish, we would eventually get bored. I know I would. I kind of like the idea that I don't know what to expect from one trip to the next.

[Monty]

Like eating shrimp and lobster every day, maybe? We think we would like that because it's great stuff.
If it was just common, and similarly every time we went fishing we caught multiples of big fish, we would eventually get bored. I know I would. I kind of like the idea that I don't know what to expect from one trip to the next.

Great post, its the challange that is fun. I'll fish for eight hours, catch nothing and have had a great time, or fool one 22 inch bass and feel like I succeded, beating the skunk. After a few skunks, that next bass feels REAL good.

[rip316]

I have to say what I love the most about the surf is that I have a chance to spend time with my friends and sometimes family fishing. It's that little step back from life where nothing else matters. Catching a fish is just a bonus.

[clamchucker]

I like the convenience. The boat is a chore for me now that I am older. I don't mind tagging along on a friend's boat. However, the maintenance that is required, seems to be never-ending. I try to help where I can when we are out for the day. Some guys get on, fish, and then walk away, leaving the tasks to the Captain. I do try my best to help with the cleaning and stowing things away, and it can be a bit much for me.
So I like the surf. You can go fishing for an hour, or twice a day, with little effort. I fish weekdays a lot, so I don't run into as many crowds. If I do find a crowded beach I tend to go somewhere else. The sense of achievement at the end of the day for me comes from getting out there, getting my exercise, meeting a few old friends, and maybe catching a fish or two.

[ledhead36]

The beauty alone is worth it. We have some of the most beautiful beaches on the Northeast coast. Yes for a few years we had problems with garbage, needles, etc. But where else can you go in the tri-state area and have about 100 miles of beachfront in one state alone? That is why many people from Pa, NY, Ct, and even Canada come to our beaches to visit.

[hookset]

Great post, its the challange that is fun. I'll fish for eight hours, catch nothing and have had a great time, or fool one 22 inch bass and feel like I succeded, beating the skunk.

What he said. It is a feeling you get. It's not the fish, or the glory, or ego, although that is part of it. To me, the challenge - fooling the fish to hit, like monty said, and being out there on your own terms, that's the biggest part of it. The solitude and quiet is also a major attraction for me, so dawn and dusk are great times for my psyche. The pics below remind me of how good the solitude actually is.

[cowherder]

The solitude and quiet is also a major attraction for me, so dawn and dusk are great times for my psyche.

Cool pic, hookset.

[cardoc765]

For me it's the calm of the sound of waves rolling, sun rising or setting. Knowing that the hunt is a bit more intense and strategic from the surf as opposed to a boat. I love being in a boat as well, don't get me wrong. But a lot of times, I love to just watch the water and look to see if I see anything happen in the water. It takes me away from life for the moment I am there and makes everything ok for a bit.

[plugginpete]

What he said. It is a feeling you get. It's not the fish, or the glory, or ego, although that is part of it. To me, the challenge - fooling the fish to hit, like monty said, and being out there on your own terms, that's the biggest part of it. The solitude and quiet is also a major attraction for me, so dawn and dusk are great times for my psyche. The pics below remind me of how good the solitude actually is.

Being out there in the thick of it. this video kind of reminded me too, except the music is so gay. Turn the sound off if you look at it.

[DarkSkies]

Beautiful water in that video, Pete, got wood just looking at it. IMO Rhody has some of the nicest coastline in the East.

[JustEd]

From as far back as I can remember, I have been chasing Bass. In the beginning it was for cash. We would Fish Narrie from a boat, usually at night unless it was early spring. I always looked forward to the fall as we would put our attention to the outer Cape Beaches back when Fall runs actually happened. That was back when a surf caster could actually make a decent living standing on the sand.
I had my "Boat Phase" up until 8 or 9 years ago. Truth is, and I hope this does not come accross as Arrogant, Boats bore the pi$$ out of me. They are too easy to catch fish from. At one time I had 3. The first 2 to go, were the bigger, high maintenance, expensive to run Fishing machines. I kept the smaller one for a while and it sat through 2 seasons before I gotrid of it.
The memories of the surf from my younger days haunted me, consumed me, and beckoned me back.
There are many reasons surf casting holds our attention. For me?
Some of the points hold true as stated above. My stomping grounds are rockie and dangerous even on a good day. The best days to be on these points are the days when everyone else is running away from the shoreline. I love the crash of heavy weather pushed curling body crushers on the rocks that sends spray 30 feet over your head. Casting a personally made or made by a freinds custom plug into the rips and wash created by the violent surf. Understanding and expecting the hammering slam of a Large Bass can happen at any time keeps the addrenaline pumping like nothing else.Even getting skunked doesnt matter because you have never felt so alive as when you are so close to this edge.
Then there are the days when the surf isnt so big, and the water might be a little warm, or the wind not so right, and you need to figure things out, read the water hard, pick the right plug, or sling a few Eels. These fish are special because you had to use all your accumulated knowledge, extreme patience, and perservierance to get tight with one.
Boaters, for the most part, at least the "average" boater neither knows or needs to know most of the things a surf caster must. Water too warm close in? Head out go deeper, look for rocks on bottom in the fish finder and drop a chunk. Wind wrong, power up and head to where it doesnt matter.
I have been Skishing for a few years now, and this method has opened up tactics that allow me to use some of my boating knowledge to enhance my surf casting prowess. The biggest thing I love about Skishing is being one on one in the Bass's house. The tactical ability to fish water boats cant get into, and I couldnt reach from shore in the past.
Surfcasting is not a seasonal or weekend endeavor for me, its a life style that consumes my life daily.
The ones that get it are my salty brothers, those that dont, are just people that like to spend some time fishing.