Intro and a compilation of my first 3 outings in the surf

[man0fsteel]

Hello to all,

I'm a new member to the FNN forums and let me just say, my productivity at work has come to a standstill since I've found this board :Secret:

I feel I've learned quite a bit about throwing a line in the surf from many of the posts here and and I'm looking forward to one day contributing a few nice pictures of successful outings as well as meeting some of the members as well. So without further ado, here are my first 3 unofficial reports (unofficial since I didn't take any pics)

First outing...
On Aug 7, my friend and I went to Bolsa Chica SB near the river mouth and met a few other friends to do some surf fishing. Turned out to be a great day for fishing. It was my first time in a long time throwing a line in the surf and I really didn't have the right gear...a 7' stiff bass stick mated to my old Calcutta 200 with 10# test topshot and spectra backing and a 9 wt fly rod (for sight casting to beans). The previous night, my friends bought some blood worms and ghost shrimp for bait so that's what I decided to use. I used a carolina rig and managed to catch 2 BSP using the worms. My friend hooked up with a nice corbina and a bsp or two. Our other friend had the hot hand as he caught a bunch of bsp, rays, along with a beautiful spotfin croaker. I was hooked!

Second outing...
Last Friday, we decided to try Rat beach down in Torrance after work around 6:30 pm. There was a lot of salad in the water which made tossing our newly purchased LC's less than enjoyable...In fact, my buddy slipped while casting from the jetty and ended up flat on his back (I didn't see it...otherwise I'd probably still be laughing, since it was only his pride that took damage) and the pawl cap broke on my calcutta while untangling a birds nest. While the water was warm and it was a great way to start the weekend, the skunk still stinks. Surf 2, fishermen 0.

On Saturday, I picked up a lighter 2 piece 7'-6" Shimano rod from Sports Chalet and matched it to an OLD Daiwa 2500 spinning reel. Not exactly what I was looking for, but better than what I was using. I put it to the test on Sunday.

Third outing...
We went to South Hermosa beach around 1:00 pm and only had a couple hours to fish. The water seemed cooler than on Friday. I tried using sand crabs while my buddy was flinging the LC and some rubber worms. Neither of us had any luck. My son even found some nice mussels and a small rock crab which I tried to no avail. Normally, I see corbina cruising the incoming waves all along the beaches in Manhattan and Hermosa, but I didn't see any this time. We chalked it up to the previous nights full moon (and other excuses) tucked our tails between our legs and went home to regroup.

The main question I'd like to ask Wingnut and others...how far do you need to be able to cast the LC to effectively fish it? I'm guessing I was only able to toss it 20-25 yards. Obviously, the further you can get it out there, the more water you cover. If anyone would be so kind as to tell me what kind of rod/reel set up they like, I'd be forever indebted:Envious:

That's all for now.

Greg

[n1ckxlam]

mm how stiff is your stiff bass stick? that might make a difference in casting

[5150fishn]

I will let those with more surf experience answer your questions. A skunk is not ideal but at least you were able to get out on the water and score a few fish on your trips. Just be happy that you were able to get out and hit the water. Thanks for the report and welcome to FNN!

[smokehound]

It's important to reel lures slowly in the surf. Too much, and the lure will dig in the sand, too little, and you're not getting into the strike zone (however, halis WILL bite lures on the surface in shallower water) .

[man0fsteel]

Thanks 5150 and smokehound. I've read the LCs need to be reeled in slow. I haven't had enough time tossing them yet so I have some experimenting to do.

Might head out tonight for a little evening session if time allows.

[jerr-dog]

Hey welcome to the boards & cool reports. Right now I'm using a Shimano AX-2602 6foot 2 piece with a small Shimano 200 Q spinning reel. Real cheap set-up but it works. Let me know if you go out this evening I was thinking of doing the same. Take it easy & see ya around.

[bones]

Good Job sticking it out and not giving up. Keep in mind that the full moon cycle always brings big tide swings with it. The surf target zones you were fishing were going from being very flooded at night to very drained in the morning. Halibut and most structure oriented species need "Stability" to hang around. A 6 or 7ft tide swing is never good for the surf fisherman especially when fishing trenchy,sandy beaches.Of course the baitfish need stability too. When the tides become more stable you will probably do much better and have more hours to hunt the fish.
As far as the LC techniques ........

Slow roll that LC so you can barely feel the head wobble and remember....The longer it's in the strike zone the better. Bait only moves fast when it's being chased. When the water is drawing out....practically stop your bait but when the surge is comming at you....only fish the hardbait fast enough to keep your line tight and keep the bait at its max depth. When you bump the sand ....switch to a slower retrieve and high stick it. The sand will dull your hooks and any excessive wobble in the bait will cause excessive roll and the hooks will start to scribe the sides of the bait and dull the finish. The length of cast is not of a major concern. It's true that a longer cast will cover more water "Out there" but think about it. If it's eight feet deep and your bait is running 3ft deep a flattie will have to be very aggressive to come up off the bottom 5 ft to go after your bait.I like to fish the deeper areas with either a Kroc or a dropshot to get the bait down in their face.You can make two shorter casts in the same amount of time to the shallower zone where more surf species wait in ambush mode. Try hitting the closer area first and if you are moving to your right....make sure to cast to "your right" and fish where you will almost be walking. I can't tell ya how many flatties I've spooked in two feet of water.
A sidenote to your comment about the southbay beans.....
For the last 4 years I havn't seen the sliders like I used too when they were always bumping into your shins....Damn global warming I'll tell Ya....LOL

Welcome to the FNN and thanks for the report.

Mike aka SWAT team member "BONES"

[Jaysuuun]

The main question I'd like to ask Wingnut and others...how far do you need to be able to cast the LC to effectively fish it?


Not very far. Tesserz is a good example. She isn't the best caster :LOL: , but she always seems to outfish me :Sad:.

[Karyn]

Welcome ManofSteel- and nice report. You had some really great questions- thanks for asking them. Thanks to everyone else for answering them- There is SOOOO much to learn! :)

[man0fsteel]

The bass stick is very stiff. It's a one piece lamiglass rod I wrapped for calico bass fishing. The new rod I bought definitely casts the LC better. Was chucking it closer to 30 yards tonight. See my post here:

http://fishingnetwork.net/forum4/showthread.php?59846-8-17-11-Report...The-Good-the-Bad-and-the-Cute-!

I agree Karyn. There's a lot to learn! I'm a pretty good river fly fisherman, and decent offshore fisherman, but the surf stuff is pretty new territory no doubt!

[flyngby]

Greg "MOS"

Welcome aboard and looks like a few of my friends have already posted some great Intel!

Look forward to more of your reports in the future!

Steve http://planetsmilies.net/person-smiley-1122.gif

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z286/flyngby/CityShrimp.jpg

[SP Dan]

Way to hold your trench line man0fsteel and welcome to the FNN family! What an excellent report! You've asked some very common questions that we've all asked in the past. There is soooo much to learn as Karyn had mentioned to you! I feel as tho I'm still the student "Grass Hopper" out there! So....here's my two cents for what it's worth: I'd say "be willing to adapt to the immediate conditions" and "learn to read the water." Some locations produce better counts in the high tides or better in the low tide, it depends on the beach. If you were to relocate at the same time of day to another beach down the coast, you could find that the bite and conditions to be completely different or improved. "Be willing to relocate or to keep moving." If you can, try to record in a ledger, the condition of the surf, the tide, the temperature of the water, whether or not there was bait fish in the area, learn to locate the trenches, etc. The SWAT team has had great success at engaging the enemy on their terms over the years and are a great source of information for all of us to tap into. I've meet a few of the SWAT members in the trenches and they had openly share their knowledge with me and others that I know who have been lucky enough to encounter them. The answers that you received today were not only helpful to you but also helped in answering a few of my own. I look forward to meeting you in the trenches.
I prefer a 8'-0" to a 9'-6" 2 piece rod that has a medium weight with fast action, 8-17 lb line (you can go lighter) , allowable lure weight= 3/8 oz to 3/4 or 1 oz. the LC 110 is 5/8 oz where the LC 130 is 3/4 oz. I use a Shimano Stradic 2500 reel (I like the drag on it) with 20- lb braided line. I hope this was helpful. Remember.....you need to use what ever feels best to you, okay!
SP Dan <"))><

[Karyn]

SP Dan- you are absolutely right! What works in one area, doesn't always work in the other and moving around is the key. I like your last comment, "You need to use what ever feels best to you." That is a difficult one. Unless you are fishing with friends who use something different and you try it, how do you know anything different? I hope that makes sense.

Pretty funny story- NOT REALLY- but I have to laugh to keep sane- I have a favorite rod that has great booiinnnG to it and the rod breaks down to two pieces, fitting nicely in the back of my Jeep. So, I was down at the beach and sadly, I had to go to the bathroom SOOOOO bad- and it was dusk. When I opened the steel door to the restroom, I was stunned at the sand rat that was in the restroom- the door closed behind me, with the tip of my pole in the door :( I was beyond upset! So, in short, I am saving up for a new shore rod. Do I know what type I would like best? Nope. I just know my budget and favorite colors. I go to a fishing store I trust (and they fixed my pole- not as boingy as before) so I will have to "trust" them to sell me something that they will think I will like- in my budget.

Thank you for making that point. Now, I will be reading up on shore rods and casting reels, keeping an open mind.:Fishing Catch:

[man0fsteel]

WSo, in short, I am saving up for a new shore rod. Do I know what type I would like best? Nope. I just know my budget and favorite colors. I go to a fishing store I trust (and they fixed my pole- not as boingy as before) so I will have to "trust" them to sell me something that they will think I will like- in my budget.

Thank you for making that point. Now, I will be reading up on shore rods and casting reels, keeping an open mind.:Fishing Catch:

Sorry to hear about your favorite rod. I'm sure there are many a hairy chested man on this forum that woulda been spooked by a rat in the outhouse so don't feel too bad. Keep on laughing!

I'm going to have my girlfriend read your post. She would love your descriptions...esp the the line, "that has great boooinnnG!" Hopefully one day, you will be able to justify having a custom built rod, wrapped in your favorite colors, with tons of Boing-ee-ness in reserve! Or you could just go whole hog and learn to wrap your own (I did many, many moons ago when there seemed to be an excess amount of time...where did it all go?)

Cheers,

Greg

[stressD]

Good Job sticking it out and not giving up. Keep in mind that the full moon cycle always brings big tide swings with it. The surf target zones you were fishing were going from being very flooded at night to very drained in the morning. Halibut and most structure oriented species need "Stability" to hang around. A 6 or 7ft tide swing is never good for the surf fisherman especially when fishing trenchy,sandy beaches.Of course the baitfish need stability too. When the tides become more stable you will probably do much better and have more hours to hunt the fish.
As far as the LC techniques ........

Slow roll that LC so you can barely feel the head wobble and remember....The longer it's in the strike zone the better. Bait only moves fast when it's being chased. When the water is drawing out....practically stop your bait but when the surge is comming at you....only fish the hardbait fast enough to keep your line tight and keep the bait at its max depth. When you bump the sand ....switch to a slower retrieve and high stick it. The sand will dull your hooks and any excessive wobble in the bait will cause excessive roll and the hooks will start to scribe the sides of the bait and dull the finish. The length of cast is not of a major concern. It's true that a longer cast will cover more water "Out there" but think about it. If it's eight feet deep and your bait is running 3ft deep a flattie will have to be very aggressive to come up off the bottom 5 ft to go after your bait.I like to fish the deeper areas with either a Kroc or a dropshot to get the bait down in their face.You can make two shorter casts in the same amount of time to the shallower zone where more surf species wait in ambush mode. Try hitting the closer area first and if you are moving to your right....make sure to cast to "your right" and fish where you will almost be walking. I can't tell ya how many flatties I've spooked in two feet of water.
A sidenote to your comment about the southbay beans.....
For the last 4 years I havn't seen the sliders like I used too when they were always bumping into your shins....Damn global warming I'll tell Ya....LOL

Welcome to the FNN and thanks for the report.

Mike aka SWAT team member "BONES"

great tip! I was wondering how to work a lc in the surf as well and this post answered all my questions, thank you very much.

[man0fsteel]

Greg "MOS"

Welcome aboard and looks like a few of my friends have already posted some great Intel!

Look forward to more of your reports in the future!

Steve http://planetsmilies.net/person-smiley-1122.gif

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z286/flyngby/CityShrimp.jpg

Thanks Steve. Yup, I'm reading and learning. Is that swim bait in your sig something you actually fish with in the surf? I'm looking to stock up on a few swim baits so please let me know what you like.


... I look forward to meeting you in the trenches.
I prefer a 8'-0" to a 9'-6" 2 piece rod that has a medium weight with fast action, 8-17 lb line (you can go lighter) , allowable lure weight= 3/8 oz to 3/4 or 1 oz. the LC 110 is 5/8 oz where the LC 130 is 3/4 oz. I use a Shimano Stradic 2500 reel (I like the drag on it) with 20- lb braided line. I hope this was helpful. Remember.....you need to use what ever feels best to you, okay!
SP Dan <"))><

Thanks for the encouragement Dan. I ended up getting a 7'-0" Shimano Stimula (6-14 lbs test ~ 1/4 - 3/4 oz lure med fast) 2 pc rod. Relatively inexpensive entry rod. I've matched it to a vintage Daiwa 2500c reel (this thing was purchased by my dad back in the 70's. Anyone know anything about em? :Shocked:) I'll probably get a longer rod to match with my Calcutta 200 at some point. I didn't know there was a larger LC either. Gonna have to keep my eye out for them.

Hope to see you in surf as well!

[SP Dan]

Hey Karyn,
So sorry to hear about your loss of such a dear dependable friend :Crying:. Good friends are extremely difficult to replace, if that is even possible. I believe that at times, one must be willing to move forward and start anew. SP Dan <"))><

[keepemlo]

Welcome welcome ,,the best thing about fnn is there are fisherman at various stages of fishing I believe that 99 percent of members practice catch and release ,this is monumental in the continuation of the sport.I have switched over from fresh water and like they say it is habit forming I've just about got all my gear( still need camera)but I really enjoy splashing around in the surf ,I haven't been that successful ,this is the place to hone your skills anyway I'm trying zuma tomorrow for a scout good luck