Getting Ready for Assateague Surf Fishing

[Sam]

[Finaddict]

Thank you, all of you, for the extremely helpful tips.

What about artificial lures? What do most folks use at AI? Are there particular types for particular fish?

Lito,

Welcome aboard. When the blues are running in the surf a Gator Spoon, Hopkins Lure or Stingsilvers work pretty good.

For Stripers Panther Martins swim baits, Bombers, Mirrolures and surface lures works well for me. I am sure others will chime in.

[fish-aholic]

- 6-8 feet rods (3 each);
- Spinner Reels (3 each); - Good for smaller fish, large fish can be caught but may be tough. 25# on a freshwater reel? What kind of capacity?
- 17 lb line on two of the reels; 7 lbs on one (mostly for freshwater); 25+ on one;

- Assortment of lead weights and swivels; - Have weights from 3-10oz and a rod that can handle the weight

- 1/0 up to 3/0 hooks; No octopus hooks; - In sept, with big red drum, I typically fish a hook no smaller than a 5/0, the 1/0-3/0 may work for some bait though And I'd get circle hooks instead of J hooks, at least for the larger hooks.

- Artificial lures for saltwater is limited (mostly have freshwater stuff); - Anything shiny that you can throw far enough. Swimbaits work great as long as you are prepared to change them often if the blues are in the water.

- Cat litter plastic bucket (5 gallon); - I'd opt for a cooler instead of a 5 gallon bucket since I don't see that on the list

- ATV red wagon (bought for my son to carry around, but very good for rough terrain to carry); - if the tires are small don't bother with it...the deep sand will swallow up the smaller tires and it'll be harder to pull than to carry the stuff.

- Portable folding chairs with a little umbrella to attach
- MD fishing license (saltwater);
- Waders (mostly used for freshwater);

- Net with handle about 3 feet long or so; - I've never taken a net to the beach...I wouldn't waste the extra space or weight.

I think that I need, but please validate, the following:

- Spikes to hold the rods; - Yup, gotta have these, you can buy them or just go to home depot and get PVC pipe to make them. Don't be like me and always forget a mallet to knock them into the sand....

- Steel leader or rig for Stripers; - Steel leader is not necessary for striper, if the big blues are in they are a wise choice, but I wouldn't use one unless I was specifically targetting large blues. 40-100# leader on your hook will usually suffice.

- Mullet for bait (don't have aerator); - Aerator?? Whats that throw all your bait in the cooler and don't sweat the extra cost for the aerator or batteries. And in sept, I'd use Bloodworms or Fish Bites for bait on small rods (to catch fresh bait) and until you get some good spot or whiting use bunker.

- Propane lantern for night fishing (that is legal right for surf fishing??) - Don't worry about a lantern on the beach, instead spend the money on a good LED Headlamp and use that. If you search Lights while fishing on this forum you'll see some very heated discussions on the negative impact of lights cast into the surf, whether it be headlights or a constant propane lantern.

I have read about setting up a fish finder rig, and noticed that you can buy those also. - Fish finders are easy, I make my own, that way I trust the knots/crimps, know exactly what my leader is etc....Just snell your larger hooks yourself and buy the slides....piece of cake...

What else?? - We could all go on for days on this catagory....basically...here's the minimum you need to get away with fishing in the surf. 1 Small rod with a double bottom or fireball rig for catching bait, Bloodworms or Fish Bites for that rod and only because you're going in sept, 1 surf rod capapble of throwing at least 8oz. Make sure your reels are spooled with good fresh line. Oh, and I prefer mono and not braid on the beach, but thats a completely different topic.


Thanks.
Lito

Ok, so thats my opinion

[litofishing]

[ffemtreed]

i use crimp to tie the end of the leader to the swivel but I do snell all my hooks. Practice the snell knot and learn it. Its a very useful knot. Honestly its pretty easy to tie with larger lines, I actually snell my shark hook leaders with weed whacker line when I am not using wire.

I tried and tried and tried and tried some more to learn to tie the snell knot by looking at pictures/video on the internets. Igormothra (Oliver) showed me how to do it a couple times on the beach one day and the next day I was a pro and could almost do it blindfolded.

I know this is getting off topic a bit, but another knot I use constantly is the palomer knot, it takes about 2 minutes to learn and can be used in almost every situation.

If you are learning knots here is a basic list that will pretty much get you anything you will ever need.

Palomer Knot
Snell Knot
Surgeons Loop Knot
Improved Cinch Knot
Albright Knot
Dropper Loop

If you can learn those 6 knots inside and out you can make any rig and tie pretty much any fishing line. 3 of those knots are extremly simple (although they might look complicated on paper). The Palomar, Surgeons Loop and Improved cinch can be mastered in about 10 minutes.The snell is easy once you see someone do it a couple times. The albright and dropper loops can be tricky and you might need to practice bit.

Some people will also include the Uni knot in the above list, however truthfully I never learned how to tie it, I am sure I could pick it up in a couple minutes, but I never really had a good use for it. I stick to the knots I Mastered and until I need another knot I probablly won't learn the Uni knot.

The other knot I use almost every surf fishing trip is a spider hitch to a no-name knot to connect my running line to my shock leader. You can also use the albright knot to accomplish the same task.

[Sam]

Great info, guys. I'll make this one a "Sticky" thread!

[litofishing]

The 100 lb, 1 mm thick mono line that I bought will only loop through the eye once. I can't get the line to loop in twice, which is what is called for, I think, to make a snell hook.

Also, on the clinch knot, it is a bear. The line is so thick to loop. Any suggestions besides crimping.

[ffemtreed]

The 100 lb, 1 mm thick mono line that I bought will only loop through the eye once. I can't get the line to loop in twice, which is what is called for, I think, to make a snell hook.

Also, on the clinch knot, it is a bear. The line is so thick to loop. Any suggestions besides crimping.

When you snell a hook you don't have to put the line through the eye at all.

I used to use a palmor knot to tie the other end to the swivel, however I found it easier to just crimp it on. You are correct, the cinch knot is a bear to use on thicker or stiff line, I won't tie anything over 50lb test with it.

[litofishing]

Yep, I think that I got it. I did not go thru the eye, and it turned out OK. However, because the line is so thick, it is really difficult to tighten. I may stick with crimping, but will see. I will try a few more. Thanks for the help.

[ffemtreed]

Yep, I think that I got it. I did not go thru the eye, and it turned out OK. However, because the line is so thick, it is really difficult to tighten. I may stick with crimping, but will see. I will try a few more. Thanks for the help.

I use needlenose pliers to really cinch down my snell knots.

[Steve]

I tie up to 80# and that's it.
The 250 and 400 wire I crimp.
Just make sure you use aluminum for mono and steel for wire.

[litofishing]

I have read of the need for a shock leader between the rod main line, and your barrel swivel holding the leader and hook. The picture attached above recommends 50 feet of 50lb line for the shock leader. How is it tied to the main line? Just a blood knot or surgeon's knot, or do you use another barrel swivel?

[ffemtreed]

I have read of the need for a shock leader between the rod main line, and your barrel swivel holding the leader and hook. The picture attached above recommends 50 feet of 50lb line for the shock leader. How is it tied to the main line? Just a blood knot or surgeon's knot, or do you use another barrel swivel?

Albright knot

Blood will work as well but I find it harder to tie correctly 100% of the time and the knot is usually bigger than the albright.

I personally tie a spider hitch in my running line and attach it to the 50lb shock leader with a no-name knot.

[fish-aholic]

I have read of the need for a shock leader between the rod main line, and your barrel swivel holding the leader and hook. The picture attached above recommends 50 feet of 50lb line for the shock leader. How is it tied to the main line? Just a blood knot or surgeon's knot, or do you use another barrel swivel?

50' really? I don't think I've ever wrapped that much shock on my reels. I usually just make sure I have 4-5 wraps on the spool and thats it....

[ffemtreed]

That picture listed above says 20ft of 50lb test.

Fishaholic is absolutely right, as long as you have a couple wraps of the shock leader around the spool of your reel you are fine.

The length of the shock leader really depends on a couple of variables. #1 length of your rod, #2 length of your drop when you cast.

I always add a couple extra feet when I tie my shock leader onto the main line, this way I don't have to change the shock leader every time I tie a new rig onto the line. You also have some room to cut back nicked up shock leader.

Another thing to beware of is the 50lb line. That can vary from person to person and needs to be modified depending on what weight you are throwing. Personally for me I use 50lb line for anything up to 8oz of weight. After I get above 8oz I will start snapping the shock leaders when I cast, so I have to step up to 60 or 80lb shock leader when throwing more than 8oz of weight.

The cardinal rule says 10lb of shock leader for every ounce of weight you cast. Example 4 oz weight requires 40lb shock leader, 8oz weight requires 80lb shock leader. I find this cardinal rule way overkill for the most part and really only follow it if I am casting in a really crowded area. You will learn by trial and error what size shock leader you need for different sized weights.

Just remember that when casting and the line breaks, that chunk of lead sinker is now a bullet and can cause serious injury and even death. So always be aware of whats going on around you when you cast.