Many new surf anglers don’t catch fish because they don’t understand how surf fishing is different. It’s actually very easy once you know how. This article will help new surf anglers get started the right way.
Surf fishing is so easy to get into for many new anglers. They just buy a surf rod, buy some bait, and start fishing. If they don’t catch fish, they assume there aren’t many fish in the surf. Well, I’m here to tell you the surf is full of fish if you know how to fish properly and you can surf fish every beach successfully.
Reason #1
The first mistake new surf anglers make is not understanding how the tides affect surf fishing. Surf fish depend on the tides for their food supply. As the tide moves in and out, the surf bait moves (or rather sweeps) toward the predatory fish. The currents produced by the tides provide the best opportunity to catch fish. At low tide, the surf fish are inactive.
Reason #2
The second mistake new surf anglers make is assuming that the water on the surf line is the same everywhere, when knowing how to see where the fish are in the surf can make all the difference in the world. One thing about surf fishing that all forms of fishing have in common is that fish like structure. It’s where they congregate to eat. The water near the surf line also has some form of structure that holds fish.
The ocean floor on the beach is constantly changing. The wind, weather, and currents constantly produce sandbars, deeper cavities, and points that form below the surface to produce structure. This is the structure where surf fish congregate to hunt for food. Knowing how to read the surf isn’t that hard, but it sets successful surf anglers apart from those who never catch a fish.
Reason #3
The third mistake new surfers make is not knowing where to get good information about surfing. By that, I don’t mean how to surf with fishing (but that’s important too). I’m referring to reports of surf fishing and where to get them.
Surf fishing reports tell you:
- Which surf fish are active in the surf?
- Which bait is the most effective for catching them?
- Which areas in the surf are taken
This is huge when it comes to catching more fish than you can imagine.
When there’s a run going on, you can’t imagine how many fish you can catch and how easy it is. The fish are actually in a feeding frenzy at that point. The problem is that it doesn’t last long. So, by taking advantage of the surf fishing reports, even a new surf angler can love it. If you miss it for a day or two, all it takes is to get rid of it.
Fish can always be caught in the surf. Even if you missed a run, the surf fishing reports will still provide a lot of useful information. Certain baits become more effective at different times, and the surf reports will report that and much more.
Understanding the tides, learning to read the surf and using fish reports will greatly improve your catch rate. If new surf anglers took advantage of these three aspects of surf fishing, they would discover a phenomenal sport with many hours of fun.