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Hi goons, I want to go fishing. I loved to fish as a kid although I had extremely limited opportunities to do so. Had a cheap spinner combo and later a baitcaster and got a kick out of every largemouth I caught... all three of them  I went dove hunting a couple weeks ago, and as a result I now have a Texas combo license. Add to that a drive-on beach 90 minutes away, and a real need to get outside and away from a drat computer, so why not?More specifically, I want to fish Galveston Bay and/or the Texas Gulf coast for speckled trout, redfish, and whatever else bites. I have no boat, no guide, and while I'd love to fish with friends, and have friends who would probably love to go, they don't fish and it would be me taking them rather than vice versa. So I think step one would be to get comfortable on my own. Plus I would love to take my kid in a few years when he's old enough. I've been doing some reading on local tides/weather/fishing patterns but I think I need a sanity check. Question time! I assume the various piers around here are turbo crowded and they don't really interest me anyways, unless there is a good reason to start there. Would a 10ft pole and 6000 spinning reel with 12-14lb test be the right choice for surf and jetties? Is it worth getting a shorter/lighter rod+reel combo too (specifically for shore saltwater/bay fishing, I'll probably pick up a cheap combo for the various stocked ponds closer to home)? e: upon further research, it sounds like a 7' or 7'6" pole might be closer to what I need Etiquette - how close is too close to other anglers on the beach? Should I stick to circular barbless hooks? I want to try out both bait and lures so when should I use what? Gear: rod, reel, cooler, sunscreen+hat, chair, stringer(?), pliers, diagonal cutters, first aid kit, maybe a couple buckets. What not-obvious things am I forgetting? Discussion Quorum fucked around with this message at 22:43 on Oct 7, 2020 |
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Oct 7, 2020 18:50
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I view beer as an integral part of any self-respecting cooler 
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Oct 7, 2020 20:13
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Dik Hz posted:Your assumptions are correct, but the people on the pier are usually very helpful. That's a completely different sort of fishing from any other, though. Thanks. Did a bit more research and I think I will start off by going for some smaller fish before buying a big surf rod. Thinking of trying for sheepshead from the piers and jetties, and whiting, pompano, and trout in the surf (not wading if I can help it, since I will be solo). Availability for fishing tackle is rear end right now though, rods more so than reels. Are KastKing rods decent? My only Ugly Stik options are 7ft in M or MH for inshore, or the surf rod in 8ft M.
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Oct 10, 2020 00:42
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Discussion Quorum posted:Hi goons, I want to go fishing. Update: wife and kid went out of town for the weekend. I went fishing. Since I hate it when people ask questions and disappear, I'll address some of the questions I asked, what I did, and how they worked (or didn't) for me. What did you finally end up buying after recovering from Google-induced paralysis by analysis? Covid kind of forced my hand on this one because I had to go with what was a) in stock b) in budget and c) on Amazon if my local Academy failed me. I got the 7'6" KastKing in medium heavy since I decided to go to a pier first, and there seems to be general agreement that it would be a good inshore all-rounder later on. I paired it with a Penn Fierce III 4000 and 20lb braid. I got 20lb and 40lb fluoro for leader material but have only used the 20lb so far. The rod performed OK overall, I used it to cast a 3oz pyramid sinker which is way beyond the max lure weight of 3/4oz and it seemed to work fine. I assume that I probably shouldn't push it that hard often, though. I will try the jetties next, and hopefully will be able to try out lighter rigs and maybe some lures. Where did you go? I went to the 91st Street pier in Galveston, which is a dedicated fishing pier and the longest one in the area. How was it? eh, it was alright i guess  Seriously - I got there around 6:45AM and it was an absolutely beautiful morning. There were more cars than I expected, but it's something like 1100 feet of pier so there was tons of room. I hadn't been to Galveston in a while and I missed the turn to the bait shop I wanted to hit up for live shrimp, so I figured I would just buy bait at the pier. They've gotta sell bait, right? Nothing live, unfortunately. I bought some frozen squid and croaker to use as cut bait. Never done that before, but I had a pair of marine shears with me so I figured it was better than backtracking and wasting 30 minutes. Fortunately I had some crab Fishbites to use while my bait thawed. We got some overcast and spray around 9AM, so the crowds didn't start showing up until that cleared. Apparently the folks at the deep end of the pier caught some big redfish but that died off by mid-morning too. Overall, didn't get to bring any fish home (or take a brag photo), but a good day. Did you catch fish? technically, yes  I caught two hand-sized whiting, plus this little hardhead. All early in the day. I didn't really get good pictures because I was terrified of dropping my phone. Later in the morning, I felt a big thump on my line followed by a clear sensation that my bait was being picked up and carried -- that KastKing rod is way more sensitive than anything I had as a kid, I was seriously astounded -- but the hook didn't set and that was that. About 20 seconds later the back of a huge redfish breached the surface within 10 feet of my line, so that must have been it. Ah well. I didn't see anyone get a bite after 10AM, all small stuff like mine, and the regulars were all grousing about how slow it was. Hopefully things will be more lively next time. Discussion Quorum posted:Gear: rod, reel, cooler, sunscreen+hat, chair, stringer(?), pliers, diagonal cutters, first aid kit, maybe a couple buckets. What not-obvious things am I forgetting? I need to find a better cooler, though. My 25qt Igloo Marine is only 16" long on the inside, and legal size in Texas for most fish starts around 15". I tried a 48qt too but it's too big and takes up most of my cart, with no room for a bait bucket. Most 30-40qt coolers seem to be deeper rather than longer. Other things for next time: spider sinkers (my 3oz pyramid sinker wasn't always enough), a rod holder, and I should definitely bring live bait or collect some sand fleas. Dik Hz posted:Your assumptions are correct, but the people on the pier are usually very helpful. That's a completely different sort of fishing from any other, though. I was surprised by how much I liked the crowd on the pier. I thought it would be tourists and kids (because that's how the public fishing areas we went to when I was a kid were), but it was a really diverse group of people and a lot of them were clearly regulars who took the whole thing pretty seriously. Lots of people with dedicated pier carts, multiple rods, etc. Discussion Quorum fucked around with this message at 18:04 on Oct 18, 2020 |
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Oct 18, 2020 18:02
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AK-47 posted:Well thread, I well and truly let things get out of control in a hurry but its fine. *looks at 2020 fishing and shooting purchases* 
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Dec 23, 2020 06:50
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gamera009 posted:Trying to find a cheap saltwater rod and spin caster is somehow as intimidating as trying to find a fly fishing combo. Where are you fishing from and what are you fishing for? Tampa, right? I'm on the opposite end of the Gulf but I'm pretty sure we have more or less the same fish and same kinds of opportunities (piers, jetties, surf). Are you having trouble figuring out what you need, in general, or just finding it cheap? I found this video very helpful when getting started: https://youtu.be/0VlYi1rXeR4 The pandemic appears to still be loving with prices. I got my first surf rod, a 9ft Okuma Longitude, last year for about $50. Apparently they used to be as cheap as $20. Now the going rate appears to be $60-$75 
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Mar 25, 2021 02:13
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gamera009 posted:Really just looking at shore fishing off the causeway, or dirty work off rocks around the bridges/pier. I got my dad an 8ft Ugly Stik Bigwater and a Penn Battle 2 as a general do-anything saltwater shore setup so he could come fishing with me. You don't need to spend that much on the reel though, I only chose it because I found it on clearance at Bass Pro. A lot of people around here seem to recommend 7-8ft catfish setups as a cheaper option. Main thing is that if you're fishing in any surf or heavy current, you may find yourself needing to throw 2-4oz pyramid or spider sinkers to keep your bait in place. A bass rod may not be the best choice for that.
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Mar 26, 2021 23:09
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Yeah a pier net would be a good purchase too. Not just for hauling a big fish up, but also for releasing it.
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Mar 27, 2021 17:54
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Thinking of pairing a Daiwa BG4000 that I've got sitting around with an 8ft Ugly Stik Bigwater for a general purpose pier/jetty bait chucker. This is for Gulf of Mexico so target species would be red/black drum, snook, sheepshead, etc. Thinking of using 30lb braid for most of the spool, with a long topshot of 30-40lb mono (for stretch/abrasion resistance if anything runs under the pier), and a 40lb fluorocarbon high-low rig on top of that. The rod is rated for 20-40lb so I'm trying not to go any higher than that. Whenever I come up with something with that many steps, I'm usually overthinking it. Should I just tie my rig directly on the mono? Also, my parents' neighborhood has a community pond that is stocked with bluegill. I have an almost-3-year-old who loves doing stuff outside. Now that the weather is warming up, I'm seeing cheap cane poles popping up at the store. Problem is there's no dock or other structure to get out over deeper water, and I'm not sure how steep the dropoff at the bank is. Considering I never once caught a fish on a cane pole as a kid, is this a fools' errand until my kid is old enough to handle a youth rod that can cast a bit? (There are other places we can go, so I'm not writing off the cane pole entirely)
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Mar 13, 2022 21:01
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I'm going surf fishing on Saturday and trying to branch out into learning some useful new knots. It is, uh, KNOT without its challenges.. Ha, hee, heh, ho, hooooo boy  This is probably the 20th Bimini Twist I've tied in the past 2 days and the second one that (I hope) wasn't total poo poo. What happened to the first? I tied my leader on to the end of the loop, carefully positioned my clippers, and... cut my main line instead of the tag end   This is the one that's getting fished. Not super confident in my locking hitches but I tied a bunch of them. The other end of the loop has a Bristol knot that isn't super duper great either but my fingers hurt too much to keep going, and I still have to tie all of my rigs. Bonus pic: knot gore, some very bad Biminis and no-name knots in there 
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Apr 21, 2022 20:49
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I use a 9ft Okuma Longitude with a 4000 size Daiwa BG. It's fine, although it has never been tested with a big fish. If I was doing it over again with the same budget I'd probably get the 10ft Offshore Angler Breakwater in the $75-$100 range. I see the Tica TC2 recommended a lot too. If you're willing to spend $200 on a rod the Offshore Angler Ocean Master and Tsunami Airwave Elite probably merit a look. e: should note Offshore Angler is Bass Pro/Cabela's house brand but these rods seem to be well reviewed Note this is all for bait, if you're plugging for striper that's a totally different ball game. There is very little wild striper in the Gulf, although the FL/AL line is near where the only self-sustaining population lives. Discussion Quorum fucked around with this message at 02:45 on Apr 30, 2022 |
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Apr 30, 2022 02:42
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You could check out Bama Beach Bum on YouTube, I think he shows a lot of light tackle surf fishing (your bass rods would work for this, just keep the reel out of the water and give it a good cleaning immediately after). When I was looking at getting into surf fishing I found this seminar helpful. It's South Florida focused so all of the stuff about snook wasn't very relevant to me (TX) but I still found it full of good info. https://youtu.be/0VlYi1rXeR4
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May 1, 2022 22:49
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The nice thing about surf fishing is that the structure is sandbars that move and change over relatively short periods of time, and the fish are constantly on the move as well. There's no secret honey hole you can go back to, everyone starts the day on a relatively clean slate. Deal alert (I think?): Been thinking about picking up a light fly rod for urban bayou/pond fishing for panfish, invasive cichlids, and maybe small bass and carp. Finding the TFO Black Label combo on sale for $150 (normally $200) pushed me over the edge. https://aventuron.com/products/tfo-nxt-black-label-kits-rod-spooled-reel-case
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May 3, 2022 14:35
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hot cocoa on the couch posted:that's so loving cool. wish i lived near some octopi I wish I lived somewhere I could see anything more than 6 inches underwater lmao
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Aug 18, 2022 16:09
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Tell me about your favorite inanimate bluegill bait. I've seen people recommend bread, hot dogs, slim jims, and other such things. I do have some Fish Bites since I do some saltwater fishing, seems like that should work in freshwater too, right? Shrimps is shrimps. My 4 year-old - who I am taking fishing for the first time if the weather cooperates tomorrow - helps me out in the garden a lot and loves the worms and other bugs that I tell him are our "friends." He names them, helps them "get back to their families" when they've gotten out of the dirt, and so forth. I cannot impale his friends on a hook, and I really don't want to mess with crickets. Maybe wax worms, which look a lot more like the bad caterpillars that eat my tomato plants. But definitely not lil' red wiggler. There will be tears.
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Mar 10, 2024 16:39
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I forgot all about Gulp. The maggots don't seem to be available near me, but I got the earthworms. I'll take some Fishbites too, maybe catfish will go for those.
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Mar 11, 2024 01:07
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I'm not going to say it became a "catching instead of fishing" situation, but quality over quantity ain't so bad: I brought my new fly rod and made a complete fool of myself (in my defense it was pretty windy too). Time to schedule a lesson.
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Mar 11, 2024 20:38
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I was trying to roll cast, not going all River Runs Through It In all honesty I was doing OK until I started trying to go into/across the wind (~10-15mph) and I started trying to trade technique for power. We do have an Orvis, but there is another place that apparently employs The Guy you want to learn from around here. It's the kind of place that sells $50K shotguns to oilmen but everyone says the staff is pretty chill and rates are reasonable.
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Mar 11, 2024 21:40
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