Post by Gbru on Jan 16, 2019 16:34:06 GMT -5
Surf fishing can be quite productive if you find a “hole.” Holes can be seen best at low tide. Walk out on the beach and look at the water and the wave action. White water means shallow water while dark rolling water means deeper water below. Even a small hole at low tide can mean a fantastic fishing spot when the tide comes in. Watch surfers and swimmers as they walk out into the water. Walk into the water yourself and feel the bottom. Sometimes there is a “drop-off” very close to the beach with a shallower sandbar further out. This area between the drop-off and the outer bar is what you call a “slough.” This can be a very productive place to fish, especially if there is a “cut” through the outer bar.
If you go to the drop-off and let your toes sink in the loose sand there; you will feel shells, pebbles and the little mole crabs (sand fleas) scurrying away. If you look closely you will see tiny little clams no bigger than a babies’ pinkie nail digging into the sand. You may see some speckled crabs, worms, and even bait fish. This is why finding a drop-off and fishing it at high tide can be very productive. When the waves crash on the beach, this life is disturbed and predator fish can come to this drop-off and feed on this sea life.
Sometimes the angler tries to cast as far as he can, bypassing this good fishing at the drop-off and bypassing the slough. They often wind up fishing atop an outer bar that is shallower than the water at his or her feet. This is why it is important to learn to read the beach!
Sometimes, you can find good holes by looking from a balconies or window from your hotels or high-rise condominiums. This is a great idea if you are staying on the beach. Again, scan the water for dark rolling spots that mean deeper water. White water means shallow water. Get a tide table and scan the beach on a calm day at low tide. (Looking at the water on a windy stormy day can be very confusing.)
If you have this scenario of a drop-off close to shore, then a slough, with an outer bar further out, do this. At low tide, wade through the slough, go to the outer bar and cast beyond it. At high tide, cast out to the outer bar, then slowly reel in so the rig drops off the outer bar into the slough. You can leave it there for a short period, but if nothing happens, bring it very slowly in towards the beach, working towards the drop-off close to shore. Working close to the beach is especially productive in the hours close to dusk. Fish tend to come in closer to feed during those hours.
Look for changes in the beach itself. If you find areas on the beach where the waves have come in and taken a chunk of sand away, this means there is a hole nearby in the water. Look for deep rivulets in the wet sand where the water has come up and pulled sand back in. Lower spots in the wet sand on the beach are usually where sand fleas or mole crabs are more abundant. This attracts fish. (Changes in the beach mean changes in the water nearby.) Look for areas on the wet sand where the waves have come up the highest on the beach and left their impression. This means there is a hole nearby. Rips or small tidal currents in the water are good places to surf fish. Look for water swirling as the waves recede. These currents disturb the sand, which in turn churns up the crabs and worms that the fish feed on. If you see sand churned up from the bottom out in the water a little ways, cast in that direction.
On some beaches you will find a natural “point” of land where you can walk out further towards the ocean. You will see these places more on natural beaches such as Assateague Island and the Delaware Seashore State Park where beach replenishment does not occur.
Rock jetties always have holes near them. Usually one side of the jetty has sand against it, and the other side has a hole. Read the water and look for that dark rolling water. Fish also feed and hide near the rocks.
A person can be at one station pulling in fish after fish, while another angler can be ½ block over and not have a bite. If you are not having luck, keep moving, even if it is just a little bit more to the right after each cast.
Sometimes when I go surf fishing, I drive to the end of a street and just look at the ocean. If I don’t like what I see, I drive down another street. If you are not having luck, change your location. Do your best to read the beach at low tide, and then go back there at high tide.
Another thing you can look for on an incoming tide is cleaner water coming across the outer bar and moving into the slough close to shore. Clean water coming in means there's a cut in the bar somewhere. Wear your polarized sunglasses and note the color of the water. Look for more clear, blue/green water. Fish there.
If you go to the drop-off and let your toes sink in the loose sand there; you will feel shells, pebbles and the little mole crabs (sand fleas) scurrying away. If you look closely you will see tiny little clams no bigger than a babies’ pinkie nail digging into the sand. You may see some speckled crabs, worms, and even bait fish. This is why finding a drop-off and fishing it at high tide can be very productive. When the waves crash on the beach, this life is disturbed and predator fish can come to this drop-off and feed on this sea life.
Sometimes the angler tries to cast as far as he can, bypassing this good fishing at the drop-off and bypassing the slough. They often wind up fishing atop an outer bar that is shallower than the water at his or her feet. This is why it is important to learn to read the beach!
Sometimes, you can find good holes by looking from a balconies or window from your hotels or high-rise condominiums. This is a great idea if you are staying on the beach. Again, scan the water for dark rolling spots that mean deeper water. White water means shallow water. Get a tide table and scan the beach on a calm day at low tide. (Looking at the water on a windy stormy day can be very confusing.)
If you have this scenario of a drop-off close to shore, then a slough, with an outer bar further out, do this. At low tide, wade through the slough, go to the outer bar and cast beyond it. At high tide, cast out to the outer bar, then slowly reel in so the rig drops off the outer bar into the slough. You can leave it there for a short period, but if nothing happens, bring it very slowly in towards the beach, working towards the drop-off close to shore. Working close to the beach is especially productive in the hours close to dusk. Fish tend to come in closer to feed during those hours.
Look for changes in the beach itself. If you find areas on the beach where the waves have come in and taken a chunk of sand away, this means there is a hole nearby in the water. Look for deep rivulets in the wet sand where the water has come up and pulled sand back in. Lower spots in the wet sand on the beach are usually where sand fleas or mole crabs are more abundant. This attracts fish. (Changes in the beach mean changes in the water nearby.) Look for areas on the wet sand where the waves have come up the highest on the beach and left their impression. This means there is a hole nearby. Rips or small tidal currents in the water are good places to surf fish. Look for water swirling as the waves recede. These currents disturb the sand, which in turn churns up the crabs and worms that the fish feed on. If you see sand churned up from the bottom out in the water a little ways, cast in that direction.
On some beaches you will find a natural “point” of land where you can walk out further towards the ocean. You will see these places more on natural beaches such as Assateague Island and the Delaware Seashore State Park where beach replenishment does not occur.
Rock jetties always have holes near them. Usually one side of the jetty has sand against it, and the other side has a hole. Read the water and look for that dark rolling water. Fish also feed and hide near the rocks.
A person can be at one station pulling in fish after fish, while another angler can be ½ block over and not have a bite. If you are not having luck, keep moving, even if it is just a little bit more to the right after each cast.
Sometimes when I go surf fishing, I drive to the end of a street and just look at the ocean. If I don’t like what I see, I drive down another street. If you are not having luck, change your location. Do your best to read the beach at low tide, and then go back there at high tide.
Another thing you can look for on an incoming tide is cleaner water coming across the outer bar and moving into the slough close to shore. Clean water coming in means there's a cut in the bar somewhere. Wear your polarized sunglasses and note the color of the water. Look for more clear, blue/green water. Fish there.