Surf Fishing Success It's About Prep - To go from Surf Fishing to Surf CATCHING! Nothing is more of a bummer then getting ready for a great California surf fishing session and forgetting a key element. By preparing a few important items before you reach the beach you’ll be guaranteed to have a much better chance of catching fish. Here are some great tips:
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Start preparing the night before. Being well organized and properly prepared will ensure that your chances of catching fish will measurably improve. Start with your rod and reel. Check your reel for smooth operation (especially the drag, which is critical in maintaining control of the fish on light-line). Make sure your line is fresh and in good condition. By this I mean make sure there are no nicks or cuts in the line. You can simply check the the top 20 feet of line or so. To do this take two fingers and wet them, pinch the line loosely between them and slowly run them down the line, if you feel a "bump" or "nick" or it has been over one fishing season change the line! Next, check your rod and make sure the reel is tight on the seat and that your guides are in good working condition. Remember the sand and salt is reeks havoc on fishing equipment. Get your bait ready. If you’re using clams or mussel, shuck them (by this I mean pull them out of their shells, and put them in small zip lock bags before you go (use the freezer bags they are bit thicker and tend to hold up better. I like to put a couple chunks of ice in there to keep them a little firmer. You don’t want to be fiddling with a knife in the dark or when you could be catching fish. If you have live ghost shrimp put them in a small container of cool water. Place a frozen bottle in the water overnight and you will have lively, crisp shrimp in the morning. If you have collected sand or sidewinder crabs, flush them with cool salt water twice per day and keep them in a cool place until use. When it comes to grubs and artificial lures know in advance what you want to use. Don’t waste time fooling around with your bait at the beach. Line Prep - Leaders. Tie several lengths of leader with different sizes and types of hooks. In the California surf I like to use hook sizes 1, 2 and 4 (depending on bait size) and a Owner Mosquito, Gamakatsu spit shot/drop shot or octopus hook. Use leader material appropriate for the areas you will surf fish and the target surf fishing species. If you get these ready and prepped then if you break off you will be back on the bite within minutes. Surf Fishing Apparel - Get it Ready. You may like waders, and they can be nice to stay dry. But here’s how I usually prep for the beach: In winter, I always try to stay dry. It seems the best time to fish is often at high tide so
little wading is needed. I’ll wear a pair of wind breaker bottoms over my shorts, reef sandals. You're going to get wet. Deal with it. If you prefer you can purchase a pair of wading boots just watch the surf so it doesn’t come over the top of your boot? Layers! Wear enough layers and you’ll be warm at sunrise, nobody young or older likes to shiver while trying to fish and you can peel down as the beach warms up. In spring, summer and get IN TO IT! I mean wade out and engage surf fishing, but NEVER turn your back on the water, rouge waves can develop and they always seem to when I forget this rule. If you don't want to practice gymnastics while surf fishing, keep your eyes on the water. Shorts and trunks work great with bare feet or reef sandals (sandals that have velco strappings) they also save your feet if you are going to on the rocks/jetties. I personally love all the "Dry" gear that is coming out. So I keep a dry shirt on then a sweatshirt, this gear will usually dry out within a half hour even if you get soaked by the rogue wave. Phone Charged / Photo Device. I like to use a plastic zip bag to carry my camera in or a good dry bag. This helps keep the sand and salt off your equipment. Just like any other type of Surf Fishing Gear, always clean your gear the night before! Nobody want's that 30" California Corbina to have a foggy look from a dirty lens. Bring a backup just encase one dies out or malfunctions. I am warning you, if you don't you will be on an amazing bite with your Personal best fish and have no way to record it! Bummer!
Organize Your Surf Fishing Tackle Bag. Always be prepared but take minimal tackle. Light is Right! I use a sling tackle bag and usually go through it after every surf fishing session. I do this because I want to make sure my zip bags are all tight and my plastic baits don't dry out. Make sure my hooks are replaced that I lost or busted off. And anything that I forgot I will make sure I get in the next time! Here is a list of my assault weapons. Small assortment of clear beads - Black beads - Red beads - Orange beads. Package of drop shot hooks #4 and #2 Package of Bait holders hooks #4
2 packages of egg sinkers 1/4 oz - 3/4 oz 2 packages of Carolina Keepers (my favorite new item) Bottle of my "Secret Sauce" attractant (I put it in a small spray bottle) 4 Lures that I may try that day (depending on target species) But I always have a Kastmaster. 1 package of Crack - No not that. Berkley Sand Camo Worms 2" 1 Package of 2" Ghost Shrimp Berkley Camo Always travel as light as you can when light line fishing. You sometimes will be walking quite a bit when locating the bite. Check the Surf Fishing conditions. Look at weather, wind and swell reports on sites like socalsurfrats.com,Pacificcoastsportfishing .com www.fishthesurf.com, www.swellwatch.com , www.surfline.com, (and many others). From these sites you’ll learn how to prep for the beach based on the conditions. For instance, if it is going to be windy I would look for a spot near a jetty protected from wind (fish don't fight the current and waves if they don't have to either), or on a day with strong surf, I will start fishing in a jetty or bay. With all the surf cams available you can easily see what a beach looks like if you have never been there before. Also one of the best friends of a surf fisherman is Google Earth! This way you can see the size of the surf, the layout of the land and know when it gets crowded and the entire day’s wind conditions. Fish smart and you will be the one out fishing everyone. Check the swell conditions. The size of surf is always important to surf fishermen. You want the surf to be between one and five feet. If the surf is too small nothing will be happening and it will be a slow day of catching. Big Waves over five feet will create a current that makes catching fish much more difficult, you line is going to get thrown around, kelp or sea grass will be everywhere and just not fun. You will also want to determine the direction of the swell. If the swell is from the south you can assume it will be pushing warmer water up the coast (which is good) but may also make some areas unfishable. Take time to familiarize yourself with your favorite spots during different swell conditions. By checking websites like www.wetsand.com you can use graphic forecast models to predict swell size and direction, days before heading down to the beach.
Check the tides. Knowing the best tide for your spot will be the difference between catching fish and getting a donut! I use a tide app like Tide Trac, there are many online and several are pretty good. This makes it easier to know when the right tides are for the best fishing and will allow you to plan ahead with confidence. "Natural beaches that haven't been manipulated by man, non-dredged or formed sand burns can be productively fished throughout the day. But beaches that are maintained for recreational use are best mostly fish between two hours before to two hours after the high tide. This is when the greatest amount of structure is covered by water and provides inshore troughs that hold fish, a trough is a "run" or "depression" where the breaking surf crashes repeatedly and creates a "fish highway". Check the weather. Find out if a storm is coming or if the wind is going to be up. There’s no reason to go to the beach as waves of rain roll in–but there are times, just hours or days before a storm, when the change in barometric pressure caused by the approaching low triggers a signal for fish to mow and when they do this can be one of the best Surf Fishing forum sessions you will ever have. They will take just about everything you will throw at them. Visit saltwater fishing sites regularly - that include reports, postings and other educational information. This will help to make you a better fisherman. For catch, conditions and pictures of fish caught today try: www. Socalsurfrats.com - www.fishingnetwork.net www.pacificcoastsportfishing.com www.westcoastsurffishing.com,www.bloodydecks.com While sites like www.fishthesurf.com and www.dfg.ca.gov/marine/mpa will provide you with information about MLPA.