New to Saltwater fishing, need advice

[CSshorelinefisher]

Hi all, and Happy New Year! I'm usually a freshwater angler, but I want to get into saltwater fishing too. I just got a Shakespeare 7' Big water rod with spinning reel with 17lb test mono line. I've never really went saltwater fishing and have no idea what kind of lures, tackle, and bait to use. I also have no idea where to go. I have no boat, so I'm restricted to shoreline, piers, jetties, ect. Please help me out with some good info. What are the most productive areas, what kind of fish are there, and what kind of tackle, lures, bait should I invest in? I don't want to just blindly pick a spot, and just start buying random tackle and lures. Thanks all for your help.

[Kingofthesea]

Welcome. Everything you need to know has been written on this Forum and can be found. If you start reading all active threads and the 'how to' section you will get tons of information. Then just pick a local pier and go hang around and see what's happening and what the 'regulars' are doing and using. Be friendly, respectful, ask questions and don't keep anything you don't plan to eat. Fastest way to learn the ropes that I can think of.

Then when you find success post reports and pictures. Best way to give back to the community. Good luck

[uplumb]

You are in the right place. I started just like you did. I was boatless and looking for some saltwater info. Several years ago I found this sight and started to signup so that I could write a post similar to the one you just wrote. I started thumbing through the archives and found so much information that I didn't actually join the forum until 3 years later.
As I'm sure you know, fishing is an experience thing. The archives are real good at pointing you in the right direction, but you have to get out there. Buying stuff that doesn't work and fishing spot that don't produce are all part of it.
That being said... download Google earth, get a bucket and a aerator, and ask question where you spend your fishing dollars. If you don't like the answers you get go somewhere else. The bucket and aerator are for live shrimp (a great all around bait). Google earth is useful for the recon of old places and finding new places, without a lot of arch time. Bigger isn't always better. I do most of my shoreline fishing with 10, 14, & 17 lb suffix. I've got plenty of stout gear that stays at home most of the time. Mono leaders work, but I would encourage you to try some flouro and make up your own mind. If your fishing around structure, mono is the way to go. Size the hook to the bait. Artificials are fun, but require more work and patience most of the time. Tides, moon phase, weather, etc. matter, but fish when you can or want to. Clean up after yourself. And last but not least, fisherman lie ENJOY

[CSshorelinefisher]

Thanks guys. I love freshwater fishing, almost always have luck with bass but it seems a shame to be living here in south Florida and not saltwater fish. I've just wasted so much money filling my huge freshwater tackle box with lures and other gadgets that I never really use, buying baits that get no attention. Just don't wanna make the same mistakes saltwater fishing. I have no problem going and buying the tackle and baits, just want them to be useful and get results. I'm not much of a fish eater so I always throw my catch back, it's all about the sport and therapy of fishing for me. I'm always respectful to other fisherman, and always eager to gain their knowledge, and pass on whatever I know in return. Hope to see some of you guys out on the piers soon.

[Dragon]

Welcome! Think just like a Bass fisherman...Bass eat natural looking baits, so do salt water species. Most of the shoreline fishing is for inshore & reef fish, snook, snapper, tarpon, Pompano, Trout, etc. A lot of the 'reef' fish come close to shore for bait/food. They also hang out under bridges, cuts & inlets, beaches, mangroves, bays and shallows. Learn the different species and what they eat, and 'match the hatch' so to speak. Have artificial lures that look like the bait and species you are targeting. Artificial lures such as plugs, spoons, jigs, etc. are all good, especially when they look like the food source for the fish you are targeting. Sometimes crazy colors work, just like Bass fishing, sometimes they don't. Also the same pretty much holds true for tides, moon phases, weather, etc. Live bait is best, but not always available and it's very expensive. Dead/cut bait works wonders on some species also. Some of the absolute best fishing is from the beaches, bridges and jettys. Also, the regulations and species charts can be found here: http://myfwc.com/fishing/saltwater/recreational/

[CSshorelinefisher]

Awesome, thanks you guys so much. I love how friendly and helpful this site is. I have a friend who just moved down here from Jersey and loves fishing and I told him to get on this site. Haven t had much luck over the past few weeks freshwater fishing. Been chasing after snakeheads and they are some crafty, nasty critters. A lot harder to catch then I've been told. They spook so easily. I got a medium action baitcaster rod and reel with 40lb test braided line just to go after snakeheads (I was told to use very heavy duty tackle for them due to their jumping, thrashing, and strength). Lol, I just get my line all tangled on my reel every time I try to use it. Hope the saltwater baitcaster/trolling reel isn't as hard to learn to use. I always have my tried and true spinning reels!

[CSshorelinefisher]

My girlfriend just got me the Florida sportsman guide book to all Florida game fish fresh, and saltwater. Think this will help me a lot transition into saltwater fishing. It has a lot of great information. I'm usually pretty successful at catching bass, peacocks, and catfish because I've done all my research on them and know what they strike at the hardest, and the best times to catch them. Have done the same research for snakeheads, and have seen quite a few of them but they have proved quite elusive. I've heard as far as saltwater lures go, spoons, buck-tail jigs, roster-tails, and most Yozura and Rapala lures work great. Also heard Mullet wrapped with squid has great success.

[cvstrat]

First off welcome. Second I would like to suggest not to go gear crazy early on. Odds are your spinning outfit (unless it's a total piece) can handle just about anything you'll be catching for the first 6 months. If you must buy something, make it a 4000 series spinning reel with a 7 foot medium action rod with a fast or xtra fast tip. Don't get a floppy noodle rod, get one with a stout back end and a whippy tip. Don't spool with braid if you can't get a reel that is made for braid (like a high end shimano) or you'll be cutting out the knots. Mono is just as good under most circumstances.

Like I said however you can land bass, snakeheads, peacocks, snook, runners, blues, macks, grovers, jacks, etc all on a fairly light setup. Gear is hardly ever the limiting factor. I've seen people catch some ridiculous fish at the piers on some horrible gear with horrible technique while guys with $500 combos get nothing.

For snakeheads throw a top water frog as far as you can parallel to the bank and be sure it's close to the bank as they like to sit up very shallow. If you have braid use a 20 lb leader for snakeheads. If you have 12lb mono or higher skip the leader.

For saltwater fishing use an xrap from the beach and a gotcha from the pier. Use either a 25 or 30 lb leader. If the water is crystal clear and flat, size down and use fluorocarbon, otherwise mono leaders are just as good.

My bass reel is a 3000 series pflueger president (budget reel of the century btw) and my fiance prefers to use it mainly because it's on a very light and short loomis rod 6' 6". The whole thing weighs nothing. I put 10lb mono on it which it holds very little of and she owns fish with that. She flips more snappers over the rail than I do down in the keys and has landed snook, jacks, runners, and blues on it too with no problem. I have caught countless bass and snakeheads on it.

Check the historic reports on here in the old threads for lots of great info. I'd recommend picking a particular saltwater species to target and pursuing it. It's a lot of fun and forces you to pay attention to weather, tides, and other patterns that bottom fishing for whatever's biting just won't do.

Good luck!

[CSshorelinefisher]

Yeah, I have a 7' Shakespeare Med/heavy action Bigwater rod with a Shakespeare Alpha spinning reel with 15lb mono set a side for saltwater. I also have two 6'6" med action Shakespeare Durango rods with a Shakespeare Excursion reel, and a Shakespeare Alpha reel, both spinning with 10lb mono on them I usually use for bass. I think they might be good for the piers too. Also I have a Shakespeare Excursion ultra light with 1000r Shimano spinning reel with 20lb braid on it, do you think this would be good to catch bait fish with, or is it too light? Works wonders on bass and peacocks!

[cvstrat]

Use your lightest cheapest setup for catching bait on the sabiki.

[CSshorelinefisher]

Hi guys, anyone heading out to the Pompano pier today? I know its a little cold, but I've been craving this weather!!! How does this cold snap affect the fishing? I went back to this time of year, last year and was reading the reports, and it seems like the macks like the cold. What's the best rig/set up/lures/bait for macks? Think I'll head there in a little bit.

[CSshorelinefisher]

Went out to the Pompano pier Friday afternoon, and Saturday morning. Those were my first two saltwater fishing trips. Didn't catch anything, but had a blast. Just about everyone was really cool, and very friendly. Got some great advise. Now I just gotta learn the correct way to make rigs. Think I'm pretty good as far as lures go. Have a Gotcha plug, some crappie jigs, two spoons (silver and gold), and a few other lures I had for freshwater that are actually saltwater. Also gotta learn how to properly bait a shrimp on my hook, lol. I don't know what kept stealing all my shrimp off my hook, but I could see the little buggers, but couldn't hook them. Blow fish maybe? Hope to see some of you guys at the pier this weekend, and if you could give me some help properly tying my rigs, baiting shrimp, and showing me how to put a bait fish on my hook (had several people offer me gogs that I turned down because I didn't want to look stupid). Thanks guys, don't want to be a nuisance. Just wanna learn the RIGHT way of doing things so I don't look like a idiot, and have success. Say "Hi" if you see me there and introduce yourself.