Surf fishing for first time

[Paycheck]

Man I want to go surf fishing now.

[El General]

I'll give y'all one little tip on surf redfish. Lots of folks want to try to get their bait out as far off the beach as possible. That is the normal thing I see almost all surf fishermen do. They kayak it out, wade out as far as they can go to cast it out, etc.

Lots of times the redfish are right on the bank. In that first little calf deep gut you wade into right when you walk off the dry sand. When the surf lays down and we fish it out of the boat I fish for redfish after we catch our trout and what we do is throw a chunk of cut mullet or cut skipjack up on the dry sand and reel it just into the water in the first gut. That's where we catch a whole lot of our slot sized redfish in the surf. So don't get too worked up on trying to get your bait out half way to Cuba. The fish are in the guts that run down the beach. You can cast off dry sand and catch redfish. Now, some of that changes the rougher it gets. But don't overlook those close in guts.

Trouts too. First cast needs to be when your feet are dry.

[jaker_cc]

If we go, it'll be May 2nd thru the 5th.



I could use the new hobby!



I'll tell ya what. No joke... I take a lot of things I learn from TBH and apply them to my life. Good people here.



Much appreciated, Captain Glenn. I sincerely thank you for the advice. Dumb question - the bays and what not are fresh water...is that accurate? If they're saltwater and I end up taking my yak out, would the salt from a couple of trips and a few hours fishing ruin any gear that I have even if I take a hose to it when I get back to the house we're staying at?

The bays are not fresh water, mucho salty. If you dunk your gear and don’t rinse it off after you will be stuck with a paper weight. Best advice is to clean up your reels every day if possible after use

[BobbyJoe]

If I’m free that week I can come fish with ya. I’ll do all of the hard work and y’all can catch em... I typically run 3-4 rods out and usually do fairly well. It’d be like a guided surf fishing trip without the cost. I typically release all trout over 25” and all reds over 28”, unless of course someone wants to keep one to mount.

And you’d be surprised the amount and quality of fish you can catch without ever getting your feet wet

[ctom87]

If I’m free that week I can come fish with ya. I’ll do all of the hard work and y’all can catch em... I typically run 3-4 rods out and usually do fairly well. It’d be like a guided surf fishing trip without the cost. I typically release all trout over 25” and all reds over 28”, unless of course someone wants to keep one to mount.

And you’d be surprised the amount and quality of fish you can catch without ever getting your feet wet

What an offer! Thank you!

I will definitely keep you in mind of we decide to head down there. Thank you again.

[Capt Glenn]

Much appreciated, Captain Glenn. I sincerely thank you for the advice. Dumb question - the bays and what not are fresh water...is that accurate? If they're saltwater and I end up taking my yak out, would the salt from a couple of trips and a few hours fishing ruin any gear that I have even if I take a hose to it when I get back to the house we're staying at?

No, the bays are not fresh. They range anywhere from hypersaline to brackish depending on the bay system, time of year and how much and how recent the last rain was.

The best thing to do is first of all make sure you don't dunk your gear. If you dunk a reel enough to get water inside it it's going to need a complete tear down and cleaning and very soon. If you just splash water on them you can spray them off with freshwater and be ok. When I use to travel up and down the coast a bunch I use to take my rods and reels into the hotel room with me and I'd just rinse them off in the shower. Pretty easy and you don't need a water hose.

[Kdog]

Rookie here too, thanks for the info.

[txhunt7]

heats coming and I'm getting the bite. I like spring as we catch more assortment of fish.
Good advice on this forum - I always start the first gut before moving out, fish various areas to determine where they're at. I always take assortment of bait. I always take mullet and shrimp, bag of squid. Live perch if possible. cast net is your friend.

[Flex]

If I’m free that week I can come fish with ya. I’ll do all of the hard work and y’all can catch em... I typically run 3-4 rods out and usually do fairly well. It’d be like a guided surf fishing trip without the cost. I typically release all trout over 25” and all reds over 28”, unless of course someone wants to keep one to mount.



And you’d be surprised the amount and quality of fish you can catch without ever getting your feet wet

I'm itching for a trip soon if you want to link up! I'm mostly an inshore guy, but surf trips are less hassle with the boat.

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

[ctom87]

Man it is fun. Caught a catfish and a whiting... hardest part for me at least is knowing the difference between the current vs fish on. Both fish have been small so for an inexperienced guy I can't tell a difference.

[ctom87]

That and losing about 5 weights casting...

[captainsling]

If I’m free that week I can come fish with ya. I’ll do all of the hard work and y’all can catch em... I typically run 3-4 rods out and usually do fairly well. It’d be like a guided surf fishing trip without the cost. I typically release all trout over 25” and all reds over 28”, unless of course someone wants to keep one to mount.

And you’d be surprised the amount and quality of fish you can catch without ever getting your feet wet

Be sure and check the new trout limits since the freeze hit.

[Hockley]

Listen to Glenn, he is the one that gave me my first surf tips about 15 years ago!

Good luck. The single best day of fishing I’ve ever had was a rare calm day in May when the surf laid down. I was in the area so went on a whim. I caught fish until My hands hurt. Well over a hundred solid keeper trout up to 28”. I’ll never forget that day.

[PondPopper]

If I’m free that week I can come fish with ya. I’ll do all of the hard work and y’all can catch em... I typically run 3-4 rods out and usually do fairly well. It’d be like a guided surf fishing trip without the cost. I typically release all trout over 25” and all reds over 28”, unless of course someone wants to keep one to mount.

And you’d be surprised the amount and quality of fish you can catch without ever getting your feet wet

Dang that's a STAR winning gafftop!! He's a biggun..

[ctom87]

3 catfish today. Going to run to the store tomorrow and pick up so heavier test mono for a shock leader and have another day of fun tomorrow.