FS Digest

I’m going for a trip to North Carolina and will be staying along the beach. I’ve never fished from the shore of a beach. So I’m looking for tips on a budget rod and reel combo. Maybe around $100 or less if possible. Also just general tips on beach fishing and bait selection. Thanks for your help.

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by kayakpirate

FS Digest

Keep it simple. Pretty much any spinning combo in about the 7’ rod range and maybe a 2500-3000 spinning reel will be fine. 10-12 pound mono is all you need. Get a simple drop rig with a fairly small weight; 1 oz is good, maybe 2 oz. if its rough and small bronze hooks (size 2 or 4, really small). Get shrimp (fresh is best, frozen will work, but not grocery store shrimp- go to a bait and tackle store.). Get one shrimp, pull the legs and shell off, cut it into 4-5 pieces, put it on the hook. Throw it out in the waves. There will be an area between the low tide and high tide lines; that’s where the fish are. Have your drag loose, so they don’t feel resistance. Tighten the drag and reel when you get one.

At low tide, “read the beach” and look for low areas, breaks in the sandbars, areas where all the “stuff” washes back into the ocean. Fish wait and patrol around these, always facing the current. Cast to these low areas. And you’ll be fishing in 2-3’ of water at most. Incoming tide is best

When you’re done, rinse everything down and oil as needed.

This approach won’t catch a whale, but you’ll get fish and have a good time!

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by montanabob68

FS Digest

I just went down in early July and had never surf fished before. Bought a 10 foot Ugly Stick Big Water and a 6000 sized Kast King Sharky 3 baitrunner. Also took my regular old bass rod - 7 foot medium action spinning rod with 2500 size reel to fish on the sound side. Spent the first morning casting out out as far as that 3 ounce sinker would go and was using fresh shrimp for bait. Didn’t catch anything and used up all my shrimp. Stopped the next morning at Hatteras Jacks up above Salvo to get more shrimp and started talking with Ryan. I told him I didn’t care about catching anything big, I just wanted to catch some fish. He said to put away the big boy rod, use my bass rod and sold me something called a rattle rig. It’s like a bottom rig but no wire, just heavy mono with two light mono arms, each with a float and a small hook. He told me to quit trying to cast as far as I could and cast behind the fist set of breakers. “Fish at your feet” is what he laughingly called it. He said shrimp should be fine but if I use something called Fishbites they last forever and I wouldn’t have to rebait as often. Did what he said and within the first hour caught six mullet and two spot. Also, you can fish anytime but the best time is two hours before and two hours after high and low tide. If you are after big fish, maybe somebody else can chime in but I took Ryan's advice and I was pulling numbers all week. Nothing big but it was a blast. Had a I known, I could have saved the $150 I spent on the big surf rig and just used my existing rod and reel.

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by hammond_egger

FS Digest

Right on, man. I learned the hard way too. I have a 9’ rod and 7000 reel that I basically never use at the beach anymore. Keep it light and simple.

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by montanabob68

FS Digest

The guys at Hatteras Jacks are great, friendly, knowledgeable, and they don’t make you feel like a dope for not knowing and asking questions.

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by Mattydubs1018

FS Digest

penn has several combos in the $100-$120 range. pick a 2000 to 4000 series combo. pompano rig, pyramid 3-4oz sinker in calm surf, Sputnik sinker if the surf is rough. live shrimp will die quick and is more expensive go with frozen shrimp from bait store and or fish bites for bait. slow pulls on rod is the current, set the hook on big slams and spuratic tugs. wash off all your equipment afterwards with fresh water. these are the basics

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by cody0962

Tman Loc: Winston-Salem, NC

I have lived in NC my whole life. Lived several years at the coast and have done my share of surf fishing. If you will use the information shared above you should have a great time. This is 1 of the main things I like about this Forum , we all like to share our knowledge and ideas.

oldsalt Loc: Holland Pa

What time of year do big blues visit the Hatteras ciasr?

Cleemartin Loc: Hampton, Virginia

Late fall into early November.

Capt.Bill Loc: New Jersey

Was in Topsail NC back in May sand worms and sand fleas were the ticket known local taught me worth it

JimRed Loc: Coastal New Jersey, Belmar area

K-Mart, Wal Mart, etc. generally have ready-to-fish combos for well under $100. You can decide if you want to upgrade later.

Gymyd1234

I fish New Smyrna Beach every week and have for years. You explained shore fishing better than I've eer read.
Can't add a thing except maybe if you come across or can dig up some live sand fleas to use then you'll be in it for sure. The trough between waves with it flwing out is where they wait for the sand flease and mullet to come flowing out from the beach.
Good luck to the guy asking but you did a super job explaining exactly how he can catch fish first time out.

flyguy Loc: Lake Onalaska, Sunfish Capitol of the World!

Only one thing to add, don't use barrel sinkers, they will roll in the current.

HawkOBX Loc: eastern Pennsylvania

All info provided is good for OBX fishing. Depending on when you go will determine which fish would be available. The 7 foot medium light rod with a 2500/3000 size reel is the standard setup for the majority of fish that are typically available on the beach. Depending on when and where you go on the banks will determine the species to target and the techniques to use to catch them. The majority of fish I catch are on soft plastics. If you let me know when and where you are going on the Banks I can make further suggestions on areas to fish and what to use. I have fished the Outer Banks from Corolla to Frisco for 30 + years and am still learning it.

Dworm

Try a cast net for getting fresh bait medium spin rig w/30lb braid- only 8lb.diameter-better feel for strikes and enough muscle for a bigun