Surf Casting ?

[NHBull]

I know there may be better places to ask this question.....but....

 

This summer I will be staying on the beech in NH for a week and know nothing about surf casting.

 

 

Where do I start?  What gear do I need?  This will be a once a year thing.

 

Help!

[A-Jay]

That's a tough one.

What if an avid surf caster asked the same thing about bass fishing, where would you start ? At some point some one's going to tell you to use the gear you have.  But that's like using surf casting gear at the lake.  Perhaps visit one of the reputable tackle shops at the shore and see what they have to say.  You'll find that thowing plugs usually requires different gear than soaking bait.  Both have their time and place.  May boil down to how, where and what your target species is.  Either way, most bass tackle is insufficient.  

Perhaps you could rent a rig ?

A-Jay 

[NHBull]

@A-Jay  I was actually embarrassed to ask the question, as it isn't an easy one.

 

Good call on the rental, as it will point me in the right direction.

 

........its just that my ADD and OCD kicks in when I think fishing

[A-Jay]

4 minutes ago, NHBull said:

@A-Jay  I was actually embarrassed to ask the question, as it isn't an easy one.

 

Good call on the rental, as it will point me in the right direction.

 

........its just that my ADD and OCD kicks in when I think fishing

You know I can relate my friend.  I am seriously addicted to hunting sow stripers from the surf.  Chased them up and down the East coast for a long time.  Sold the gear when I retired.

Doubly sad day.

A-Jay 

[deaknh03]

depending where your going, theres places that rent the gear around hampton etc.

[haggard]

I've tried surf casting a couple times in the area, and while I didn't catch anything, the gear seemed to get the lures out there. Here's what I used:

 

7'0 MH/F spinning rod rated 10-20 lb line and 1/2 to 1-1/4 oz lures, with a Shimano C5000XG reel. 5000 makes it sound bigger than it really is.

 

8'0 M/? spinning rod rated at 10-20 lb line and 3/4 to 3 oz lures, with whatever spinning reel was on it when @jbmaine sold it to me [thanks Jim!]

 

The 8'0 lobbed lures out there much better than the 7'0. 

 

I'm thinking if there were fish out there, this gear would get it done. Compared to your typical fresh water bass gear, I'd say while you could use it, you'd be better off with a step up. Based on my very limited experience I'd say an 8'0 MH/F or H/F with a chunky spinning reel, and 1 oz+ lures (topwater poppers, swimmer/darters like the Savage Gear sand eels) would be a good place to start.

 

Within easy driving distance are some options:

 

Fort Foster in Kittery Point, Maine has a long pier you can fish off (pay a small fee to enter the park). Check ahead as I think the town is beginning repairs/upgrades on it which may restrict access. The park offers a great spot for a day trip for the family - lots to explore, places to picnic, etc.

 

Public boat launch dock in Kittery located at Traip Academy. My neighbor's son fished off it last summer and probably caught more schoolie stripers than I did all season 

 

Seapoint Beach in Kittery Point. There's some submerged rock structure within reach, depending on the tide. Public parking on the road leading to the beach, just a short hike down to get to the beach.

 

If you'd like, PM me your vacation dates and maybe we could arrange to get you on the river for a day during your trip, depending on tides. I have a 15 ft center console that could get us up and down the Piscataqua, anywhere in Great Bay, and out as far as the 2KR buoy (or farther depending on weather, but that's a stretch). Could make for some good schoolie striper fishing.

 

[NHBull]

48 minutes ago, deaknh03 said:

depending where your going, theres places that rent the gear around hampton etc.

I just started looking....we will be in North Hampton close to Rye

[deaknh03]

3 minutes ago, NHBull said:

I just started looking....we will be in North Hampton close to Rye

Nice, I was married up there on the beach. 

[NHBull]

@haggard, thanks and I will definitely reach out!

[jbmaine]

I grew up in Rye, currently live across the river in Eliot. If it comes handy, give me a shout, would love to meet up, say hi. Also keep an eye on the Kittery Trading Post fishing report before you come. It will tell you everything that's happening ( fishing wise) along the sea coast.

                                             Jim

[soflabasser]

A decent 10-12 foot surf rod will help you cast further to where the fish can be in the beach. Sometimes the fish are less than 100 feet from the shore and you can catch them close. Pay attention to where the sand bars are since you can catch some nice fish between sand bars.

[zachb34]

I'm somewhat new to surf casting as well, but do have some experience. Keep in mind, all of my fishing is done in south Florida. In the summers I use a 7' MF Star rod and a 2500 Stradic and 20# braid fishing smaller artificials for Snook. I imagine this setup has its place up north as well. When I'm not doing that, I fish a St.Croix Avid Inshore 8' rated to throw between 1/2-2 oz paired with a 6000 Shimano Saragosa. The Saragosa is a tank and weighs more than a Stradic, but its sealed and can take some sand and salt. I use 30# Powerpro and a fluoro leader from 30-50lb. This setup can really chuck a 2oz spoon far out there. Not as far as the guys fishing 10-12' rods, but most days its far enough in my area. As far as lures go, Gator spoons are my favorite so far, quality hardware and hooks come stock on these. You can't beat the bang for your buck with a Tsunami popper, add in some flair hawks / bucktail jigs from 1/2 - 2 oz. Daiwa SP minnows are popular, as well as yo-zuri and X-rap jerk baits. Bomber plugs are common everywhere on the east coast but I've never fished them. Buy a few of these and you're ready to fish the whole water column. I usually start with the spoon and use it as a search bait. I fish a spoon similar to the way I'd fish a lipless crankbait for bass just covering water and testing different depths. I also focus on fan casting to locate fish. Sometimes they're hanging out near the sand bar, and other times in the trough. Watch some videos and learn how to "read the surf". Lastly, the most important part IMO. Tides. Slack tides (the highest and lowest points with little to no current) are generally unproductive for me. Some spots are better during high tide and others during low tide. I either way I have the most success in the first and last two hours of a high/low tide until it goes slack and then changes again. I'd suggest doing a lot of your learning during a low tide as you can sometimes see structure on the beach you wouldn't on a high tide. I also use Google Maps to find some structure on whatever beach I'm going to fish, this seems like an overlooked tool a lot of times.

[Nelson Delaney]

If you’re going to be in Rye, take a ride up to York beach Maine just a bit before sunset.  Bring waders, a rod that can handle 5oz weights, 2-3oz bank or pyramid sinkers, 6-8/0 circle hooks & some frozen herring or mackerel for bait.  Be sure to wade out a fair distance as the beach is very shallow a good ways out.  

[redmeansdistortion]

I can offer a little advice as I do surf fish the Great Lakes, usually around March and April when the salmon and steelhead are in shallow water.  My reel of choice is an Ambassadeur 6500CS Pro Rocket matched up with a Lamiglas X11 9'6" 1oz-6oz casting rod.  Most of my rigs use a 1.5oz to 3oz pyramid sinker off of a 3-way swivel and about 3ft of leader and a size 2 octopus hook baited with a live/dead alewife, shiner, or smelt.  I also use shrimp from the frozen section at the grocery store as they work pretty good too.  Adjust your rig accordingly.  I use smaller hooks because the fish I'm after aren't as big as those in the ocean.

 

While distance is key, it's not all of the equation.  Get on Google Maps and study the area you want to fish.  You want to look for the sandbars and try and get your bait between them.  The current is slow in between sandbars, usually attracting a lot of forage fish and the intended quarry makes rounds through there feeding.  You may find yourself casting in excess of 100yd, but that's not very common where I fish, but more so in the ocean.  You will want a long rod at least 8'6" and a reel that will hold enough line to reach your intended distance as well as let the fish peel drag.

[.ghoti.]

Wish i could help you. But, i only tried surf casting once, and kept falling off the board. 

[Kidflex]

the type of surf casting you plan on doing will dictate the equipment needed. If your casting in the surf for smaller fish any medium rod will work using spoons, small plugs or small pieces of shrimp or cut bait. If your looking to get past the breakers you need a longer surf rod. I use 10 to 12’6 rods with 3-8oz +bait depending on conditions. A simple 3 way swivel rig is an easy start. I’ll typically use a lighter line to secure the weight to break off in case it gets hung up(location dependent). I prefer using a weight with copper wires to dig into the sand better and an 8/0-12/0 circle hook with a big piece of mullet. Any 6500 abu, penn mag 525, Daiwa sealine 20-50 size reel will be perfect.