Pensacola Fishing Forum / Inshore Fishing / Surf Fishing / Surf Fishing - General Q & A

Double Hook Rig

tnmule — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 21:01:46 GMT

Can someone post a good description or illistration of how to tie a double hook rig? What size swivel at the top? What size snap at the bottom? I already have P-Line FlouroClear 30# and Gamakatsu 1/0 and 2/0 Octopus circle hooks that I'm going the use. Which size hook? I have some store bought double and single hook rigs made from mono but if homemade flouro rigs will make a difference then I would like to tie some. I'll be in Gulf Shores the week of 9/15/2008 and I'm starting to gear up. Thanks

Identifiying Troughs or Guts Visually

cvn — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 19:41:11 GMT

Can someone please provide information on the best way to identify the trough or gut visually?

Will be fishing the Destin surf soon and I admit it, I am too scared to wade out to find these (if they are reachable while wading).

Is there an easy way to "read the waves" and know where the trough or gut is?

Does the Destin beach normally have one or two or more troughs?

Thanks,

Surf Fishn' Newbie

Bleeding circle hook or regular color circle hook?

Shiznik — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 08:11:18 GMT

Just wondering which you guys have the most luck with. I use both and it just seems like the red bleeding hooks have lost their popularity with the Pompano this year. I also use the Owner regular circle hooks and they have become the hook of choice to me.

seaweed and fishing on Pensacola beach

EG94 — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 06:59:13 GMT

How bad is the seaweed on pensacola beach and , How has the fishing been around the portofino ?

fishing the nokomis jetties

bsnation — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 19:42:40 GMT

thanks for all the helpful posts people left on my Need Surffishing Help Immediatly post escpecially to JoeZ. I recently started fishing the North Jetty in Nokomis. Using baitfish, i castnetted, on a 2/0 circle hook and 2 1/16 ounce weights about 3 ft up i have been having lots of luck. Had some snook about 6 mangrove snapper and some other small fish all in 2 trips out. So if you live close the the jetties i highly recommend it.

And thanks again to JoeZ if it hadnt have been for your helpfull posts I probably would have given up.

times of year

booyahfishing — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:06:07 GMT

Just wondering if there is a certain time to go sharkin in the gulf during the year? With winter approaching, do sharks leave the gulf and go into the bay or did they head south completely to warmer waters? Any info would be awesome.

SHORE FISHING THE SOUND

rosstaman — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 15:40:04 GMT

any ideas on catching anything other than small snappers and pinfish? i wade out 20 yards and cast, thats about all the distance i can get off the cast, then i hook a small pinfish or snapper and hope for something bigger..... any suggestions?

new to surf fishing(equipment)

surffisher3333 — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 21:24:19 GMT

I am new to surf fishing and would like to ask is there an all around size hook for surf fishing or different sizes needed for different types of fish. If so i would like to know the hook sizes that equals the type of fish i may catch from the beach. Thanks for the imformation and the replies.

whiting on lure?

dangermon — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:53:47 GMT

Anyone ever caught whiting on a lure such as a smaller grub fished on the bottom in the surf?

www.navarrepass.com

stainless_steel — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 17:00:31 GMT

There are many different opinions that we all have regarding the Navarre Pass. It seems like the proponents are constantly trying to sway the opponents views and the opponents are hard at work at the same. Amongst all of this, it seems that we have lost sight of the things that we agree on. I think it’s safe to say that neither side is interested in turning our fragile ecosystem into a “marine wasteland”. I can also tell you that the proponents of the Pass are not interested in moving Destin into Navarre either. I sit on the committee for the Navarre Pass and I’d like to share with you our Purpose & Mission: http://www.navarrepass.com/mission.html

If you read this link you should clearly understand that our position is to research the feasibility of this project first. Research to us does not include posts by ill informed commentators masquerading around like environmentalists ready to shoot their ‘jack of all trades’ arrows around on forums like this. Research to us means the qualified PhD’s in the appropriate disciplines are conducting non-biased studies and are accumulating all the data possible to show how a pass in Navarre will affect our ecosystem. We stand firmly on the foundation that if a pass is found to be a detriment that cannot be mitigated we are not for it.

We are not a committee full of developers looking to get rich; we are a mixed group of citizens who share a vision for Santa Rosa County. I don’t own a boat, property along the coast, nor do I have a job that will make me rich quick if a pass comes to town. I am a resident who has decided to make Santa Rosa County my home. I have an interest in seeing this county be afforded every opportunity to become all it can be. I share that exact passion with others on the committee.

There will undoubtedly be pros and cons with a pass, like all development. It would be irresponsible for us to parade around the idea that a pass would have no impact. Our mission is to identify the impact, mitigate if possible and cease if not. If you are certain that an environmental study will corroborate your position you should welcome it as we do. If you truly believe that which you take the time to preach on this blog then support the idea of a non-biased study and settle your case once and for all.

camping out on johnson beach

coomz — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 14:52:51 GMT

hi guys me and a few of my friends were planning a camping trip to johnson beach. We plan to do some surf fishing and kayak fishing. Do you guys know if Johnson beach is open to camping again?

surf fishing

olilly — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 18:00:55 GMT

has anything been hapening at the beach and are the jellies still hanging.

thanks

Surf fishing gear/tackle advice

midten — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 20:44:41 GMT

I am coming to Perdido first week of October. Fished from the surf last fall at Seagrove. I'm a Tennessee boy and need some advice. I had decent luck last fall with lady fish but I think my gear was too small to get to the bigger fish. I have a 7 ft. rod w/spinning reel strung with 12 lb mono. I used this with pompano rigs and also jigs/spoons. I was only able to get bait and lures out about 50 yds max. Caught no pomps...not sure what was wrong...guys down the beach from me were catching several. Tried to wade out further a few times but know I saw a shark right off the first sandbar on one trip out so I decided to stay on the beach.

I got a 12 ft. rod recently with a spinning reel that will hold about 240 yds of 25# - 30# line. I plan on stringing this with braided to minimize twist, etc. Thought I might try for a shark with this set up. What else might it be good for? With braided do you back it up with mono? If so, how do you attach the braided to the mono? What about leaders?

Just looking for some general advice on what the most productive set up might be for a novice surf fisher like me at this time of the year (early October). I'll probably get to fish a couple hours every early morning and then a few hours again at night once the kids are in bed.

I love this site. I have learned a lot and, if the good Lord is willing, my goal is to one day be able to spend a lot of time fishing from the surf and sea in the Florida Gulf. Thanks for any advice.

North Florida Surf Fishing

XiBowhunter — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 11:24:04 GMT

Hello,

I am new to this site, and I have a few questions about surf fishing. I live in KY, and visit northern FL about twice a year. I usually spend a week at a time in Panama City Beach, and I do a lot of surf fishing and off-shore fishing. I have great success fishing from the beach most of the time, but I would like to catch more and bigger fish, as anyone would I suppose.

My question is what is the best bait and rig to catch some good size sharks from the beach? I am very good at catching 2-10 lb sharks, but I am looking for bigger sharks. I have only hooked one big shark from the beach, about a 60lb fish, but that was the ONLY time I have ever hooked a fish that big. What else can I do to try and catch bigger fish?

I usually use cut squid to catch blues, ray, and other fish from the beach as well. What other baits could I try?

If any of you can give me any tips about fishing from the surf, or the PCB area, I would greatly appreciate it.

Kite fishing the surf

snivlem — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 22:43:19 GMT

Has anyone here used a kite fishing rig to surf fish? I have seen it done, but it seems that the wind usually would not take your bait out to sea but rather back inland. I have seen a video on YouTube of someone doing it in Navarre. Any information would be great, it seems like it would be awesome fun!

Dauphin Island Questions

northpaw — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 18:18:26 GMT

Not sure if this is the correct forum, but it seems appropriate. Anyway, we are planning a vacation next summer into your area, and Dauphin Island is the hot spot for the wives involved thus far. My question is, are any of you familiar with the area? I can be as versatile as needed from speckled trout to sharks from the beach or the kayak and all points in between. I'm just looking for any input I can find right now in reguards to the fishing. Any advice is appreciated.

Question about shark leader

-- Saints Domination -- — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 22:19:37 GMT

Nevermind guys, i just saw the same topic a few posts down, delete this lol sorry :(

Question about season?

XiBowhunter — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 11:36:32 GMT

Can you be successful surf fishing form say October through March? I have always wanted to take a trip to FL during the winter, but I would like to know if the fishing would be any good?

Sandfles

angryaccntnt — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:38:02 GMT

What are sandfleas? Where can you find them? How do you fish with them? What can you catch?

I've read a lot of things about sandfleas and I have seen them frozen in a few places around town. I have never heard of these. I would like some more info if sandleas are worth while.

Sharkin Chicken bone tonight !!!!!!!!!!!

EagerFishr — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 12:06:22 GMT

My younger brothers got in town the other day and have been wanting to catch a big shark. So i went and got 2 good set ups for it. My question is would it be better to wade out a little bit and cast or should i take my yak and take the baits out to drop and if so how far out? I wasnt sure on where to go but i read on here that alot of you guys talk about chicken bone. So hopefully it will be as good to me as it was to you others. But any help you can give would be apriciated.

pompano jigs

mistermogin — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 19:41:58 GMT

Anyboby walking up and down the beach throwing pompano jigs catching anything?

pensacola surf fishing

olilly — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 15:21:29 GMT

has anyone fished the surf west of the pier close to pickens blocked entrance? do jelly fish cause fishing to be bad , such as jellyfish and swimming. and last but not least, are there still sandfleas in he surf this time of year. thanks for any imfo:usaflag

Hey guys...

snivlem — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 21:41:34 GMT

I have been lurking around here for a while, and finally joined the forum. Nice place you got here.

I am coming down to Perdido in mid-September. I am staying at the Windemere condos and plan on spending a ton of time surf fishing, as I usually try to do. I am looking on advice on where the best spots will be for me to fish. I am hoping by mid-Sep that the beaches should be fairly empty and I will be able to fish at the condo if it is productive. I caught my first shark at Cape San Blas last year, and a nice 27" red off the beach in Navarre in march, and I hope to do some night sharkin this time around.
Will the area in front of the condo be productive?
We also plan on renting yaks while we're down there. Where near that area can I launch one into the bayside to fish without paddling too far?

I know many of you probably groan at newbies like me coming in here and asking questions like this, but any help would be greatly appreciated.:toast

Pinfish in the surf?

IanR — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 10:33:26 GMT

I just acquired a pretty nice pinfish trap and was wondering if anything in the surf ate pinfish. Or if it is even efficient to try and use them as bait off the beach

Who was sharkin tonight?

true-king — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 20:41:10 GMT

Saw some guys set up on the beach east of portofino this afternoon. I drove by, they had some internationals or tiagras set up and a yak out there. Looked like it was nice out there. Wondering if it was anybody on the forum.

Full Moon, Good or Bad?

gzollinger — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 20:32:41 GMT

I am wondering what the effects of a full moon are on surf fishing? Does a full moon help the night fishing but hurt the day fishing, or is there a lot more to it then that?

beach shark fishin

matagordamudskipper — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 16:34:09 GMT

My dad told me that me and a friend could go to florida for a senior trip. Ive been putting if off for awhile now and we plan on going this comming week we are proablly going to leave tuesday. I would like to go fish farther down in florida but I dont wanna cost him a shat load of money since we will be driving and bring all of our sharkin gear. I have some questions about sharkin in the panhandle of florida.

1) Can you stay on the beaches over night and fish? We want to yak and cast baits out all day and night for a few days. If so what beachs are you allowed to shark fish on and stay the night on?

2) Are any piers open 24 hours? Just in case we cant stay on the beach at night, and are you allowed to shark fish off of them?

Destin - Henderson Beach

Sailor50 — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 21:51:19 GMT

Had a choice between some work or go down to the beach today, so went down to the beach. Thougth I would try Henderson Beach park as I hadnt been there in awhile, got there around 3:00 pm. Water rough, wind blowing pretty hard. This guy was already there, but didnt look like he was having any luck.

There was some seaweed, but not enough to worry about. No jelly fish. Set up and fished for about 30 minutes, waves just kept washing the bait in and didnt get any bites. Picked up and walked down the beach and saw this area right next to the shore that didnt have any breakers and looked good so thought i would try it. Only cast about 20 feet out from the beach, but looked like a good hole.

Hadnt had the bait in for a minute and started getting bites. Then it got hit, pulled in a lady fish. Ended up catching about 8 of them. Not red snapper but fun to catch. Was using a pompano 2 hook rig, one had fresh dead shrimp, the other one a sand flea i caught there. They hit both of them, but seemed to prefer the shrimp. Going to use them for chum next time I get out on the boat.

And this picture was from yesterday down on the beach about dark. Didnt fish any but it was still nice.

Kayak Fishing Perdido Key

CajunSpeckChaser — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 22:44:08 GMT

Hey everyone, I was wondering if anyone could spare a Louisiana boy some info on where I could catch some table fair in my time in Florida? I've read the forum and gotten a little advice and it seems as if my best bet is trying for Pompano in the surf? I would like to chase some specks and reds! Also, is it generally a bad idea to fish with market bait or live bait from a yak in the surf? How about trollin for some kings in a yak? Any advice from locations to bait is greatly appreciated!

sharkys

booyahfishing — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:49:22 GMT

I was just wondering about sharks in the bay. The last month or so I have been fishing a ton on teh Gulf side and catching 5 footers down by Portofino. Out of curiousity, can you catch sharks on the bay side just as easily out by portofino or on the bay side down by chicken bone? I was just looking for a change in scenery. Any advice/help would be awesome.

Where are the sharks?

IanR — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 12:14:11 GMT

I heard the bigger bulls and blacktips are entering the bay. Is this true, and where abouts? The sound side of chicken bone or gulf breeze? How's the action in gulf? Haven't been shark fishin in awhile :reallycrying. Thanks for the help!

Fishing License for Beach Fishing in Gulf Shores?

dpewitt — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 07:03:35 GMT

Headed down to gulf shores in a few weeks and was wondering if you had to have an Alabama fishing license to fish from the beach in front of the beach house?

What's Biting in October?

JohniusMaximus — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:52:10 GMT

Normally when I get to come down to Pensacola it's in the summer. I was down there in May for a little fishing. Now it looks like I might be able to come back briefly in October. I've never fished down there in that time of year and am wondering what's biting in the surf in the Fall. Are the Pompano still around or are they a seasonal thing? Whiting, sharks, reds? Thanks for the info.

Help! Critique my Setup

gzollinger — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:24:04 GMT

I fished Pensacola in October last year and had a ball catching a ton of Lady fish and some flounder. When I thanked the forum for their help getting me ready for the trip and putting me on fish, someone responded "Glad you had fun catching bait" LOL it was hilareous. I have had a year with that bug under my skin and now I am heading back for more and I want to try for a small shark this time. I figure what the heck, I do know how to catch the bait now.:letsdrink

I don't live close enough to the beach to do a ton of this, so I can't spend a fortune. I got no Kayak, so it is going to be all from shore, or from where I can wade. So here is the plan, I will take any input you all can give me.

I plan on getting this rod:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20166-cat601986&id=0030677119183a&navCount=11&podId=0030677&parentId=cat601986&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=IJ&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat601986&hasJS=true

And Reel:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20166-cat600380&id=0042811121641a&navCount=14&podId=0042811&parentId=cat600380&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=IJ&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat600380&hasJS=true

I am hoping the rod will be flexible enough to sling 4+bait out a ways, but stiff enough to land a small shark (If I get lucky). My other slightly more expensive choice is the following rod and reel combo:

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_53015_151003005_151000000_151003000_151-3-5

I would load 300 yards of 40-50lb PowerPro tied onto This leader with a 4-8 OZ Spider weight.:

http://cgi.ebay.com/3-7-Finesse-Shark-Rigs-Pier-Surf-Casting-Leader-8-0_W0QQitemZ180267044403QQihZ008QQcategoryZ25564QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I am sure I will have the wife and kids at the beach during the day. Since we already established that I can figure out how to catch a lady fish and other "bait", I figure I will likely have some fresh bait for that evening. I checked the tide charts and it looks like high tide is going to be around midnight. I figure I head back to the beach with the last hour of light and start fishing. My <guess> is that at High tide in the dark, I should be able to throw bait between the shore and the first sand bar and still have a good shot at hooking into a shark. I will probably just fish close to whatever Condo we stay in (Probably Emerald Dolphin next to Peg Leg Pete's) unless there is a reason to drive somewhere else.

Since neither reel has a baitfeeder, I will just reel in the slack and set the drag real light. If I get something to take it, I count to ten, then tighten up the drag and set the hook. Well that is the plan. Like I said I will take any feed back I can get. If any of you all ever come up to Tennessee, and want to fish for some Smokey Mountain or tailwater trout, let me know and I can return the favor.:)

Please help a Missouri boy with shark fishing

drew0535 — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 00:57:07 GMT

I was Johnson's beach about a month ago and we were fishing and caught a ton of blue fish. We eventually started chopping them up and casting them out and I am pretty sure it was sharks that were taking them. Our poles would bend and lines would break with in a minute of throwing them out, I even saw a shark about 5 or 6 feet leap out of the water. We are heading back in September and would like to catch some sharks from the shore. So i was wondering if anyone could offer any advice to help. I am from Missouri and obviously we have nothing even close to this around here, something tells me fishing for sharks is a little different than fishing for 10lb catfish! I am going to buy a Senator 13/0 reel, 40lb test main line, 30 feet of 100lb leader, and 6 feet of steel leader. Does this sound ok or do you recommend something different. Obviously this isn't something I am going to be using a lot, maybe a couple times a year. What about hooks? What type of bait do you recommend? What about time of day or any tips or suggestions. Also what type and size of sharks are prominent in the area?

Orange Beach Sharkers???

GatorBait — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 09:59:10 GMT

Does anyone shark fish in the orange beach area? My penn reel 7500ss has been collecting dust over the last year and a half. I have gotten more into speck and red fishing over the last year and have neglected the darn thing. I feel bad every time i walk by and look at it. Im ready to sit back on the beach one night in hopes of a good hard fight. I will be more than willing to take some one out one night speck fishing in returns to let me piggy back with them for some shark excitement!!

http://www.pensacolafishingforum.com/fishingforum/Topic143204-15-1.aspx

http://www.pensacolafishingforum.com/fishingforum/Topic148241-15-1.aspx

Just let me know, Jason

Need surf fishing help immediately!

bsnation — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 22:05:17 GMT

I have just recently started surf fishing recently. I have fresh water fished for many years but anything salt is completely new to me. I am having trouble catching anything. I am fishing with an eighth ounce weigth tied above my leader, a foot and half of 30 lb leader and an eighth ounce jighead with a 3 inch new penny gulp scented shrimp, i have also tried 2 inch natural peeler crap gulf scented fish. I have the same problem with both of them, the fish grab them and immediately drop them, i don't know if the fish are too small to grab the hook or what is going on. The fish usually rip the tail right off the shrimp but they never seem to grab the hook, I also have trouble with the current carrying my bait down the beach. any help would be great. I am completely new to this so anything you know would help.

question about weights for shark fishin

DukeDevil91 — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 13:54:00 GMT

Yes I know. Another thread about these sharks.

My question is, do you use egg weights or pyramid sinkers for shark fishin at night.

How do you rig up?

For the Shark Fishermen

angryaccntnt — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 14:44:49 GMT

If you wanted to go to shark fishing (from the shore) tommarow night, which beach would you want to cast off of?

Pensacola Beach?

Navarre Beach?

Johnson's Beach?

I have had success at Pcola beach and am curious about the other two.:usaflag

New to Shark Fishing??

Greenjeans — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 21:18:18 GMT

Planning on trying some Shark Fishing from Fort McCrae area next weekend. I have a few 7/0 hooks and some 40 lb test line with 3 foot 45lb wire leaders. Wondering if I need to upgrade that to 50 or so braided and and a longer and stronger leader.

Additional Questions

Whats the best hook size?

Is is better to float the bait out 60 yds or so?

Whats the best bait and where would you recommend I get it?

Thanks,

Dave