# pier, surf, or jetty fishing during spring break



## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

Hi my name is jesse and i am 16yrs old. I live hours away from the beach. Does anyone know any hot spots or tips for fishing myrtle beach during spring break(april 6th). I have never caught anything of any size down there. I was hoping to hook into some nice reds, blues, or a school of spanish macks


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

jesse said:


> Hi my name is jesse and i am 16yrs old. I live hours away from the beach. Does anyone know any hot spots or tips for fishing myrtle beach during spring break(april 6th). I have never caught anything of any size down there. I was hoping to hook into some nice reds, blues, or a school of spanish macks


The Spanish are the luck of the draw. You need warm water, bait (anchovies and silversides in the spring), and clear water. Find all 3 and you'll find fish. Jig for them with tree rigs or cast Gotchas, Stingsilvers and other metal plugs. Live bait will also take them, usually bigger fish, 6" of a tiny wire leader on a #4 or #2 bronze 4X treble. Spot, mullet if you can find them, whatever bait will work. Live line it or put it on a float. 

Blues can be had on fresh chunks of cut bait. Fresh is always key. 

Fish a fishfinder rig with a chunk of fresh bait for drum and you have blues and drum covered. 

The jetties are popular and you may do well from a pier but I haven't seen many drum or large blues landed off of the piers. Of course there's not that many people fishing for the big ones, either. You can catch plenty of 12-16" blues on 2 hook bottom rigs with fresh bait if they're running. I had fresh croaker and frozen fillets of mullet out on 2 hook bottom rigs and I (nor anyone else) never had a hit on the frozen mullet but I wore the blues out. 

Finding good surf spots depends on your ability to read the surf and dodge all of the tourists on spring break. I'd fish from a jetty or a pier when it's crowded.


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## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

what do you think the best fish to fish for during spring break is off land


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

jesse said:


> what do you think the best fish to fish for during spring break is off land


Are you wanting eating fish, or just to catch fish? It'll depend on the weather but probably some whiting, maybe a small run of blues, maybe some black drum, ect.


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## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

i go down there all the time and i catch whiting, seatrout, croater, small sharks, and spots, but i have never hooked into something big before down there. I dont care if its eating fish or not, i just want to hook into something that'll pulls some drag, and its avialable in the spring break period.


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

I'd put out a FF/drum rig with a nice chunk of fresh bait then. Probably at the jetties where the big drum hang. If the mono is heavy enough (100-130 lb+ you can handle most big blues but I'd rather have wire. Change your bait every 15-25 minutes. 

If you have the gear to handle it you can add a 15' foot of 80+ lb mono leader and some stranded wire to a medium large circle hook and try for small sharks if you don't mind leaving Horry County (illegal to catch any shark in Horry county during tourist season). I doubt you have 12/0+ gear for huge sharks so stick with the small stuff and you'll have a blast with 3-5 footers. Don't try it with whiting sized gear though.


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## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

I have a big penn senator 9/0 and i always take it down there just incase but everywhere i go its illegal to shark fish, and plus i dont have a kayak to get it off the beach, i do have a SL80 offshore angler sealine spinning real though. A big shark sounds real nice, but we never know how or where to specifically target them. I have always wanted to go some where and just shark fish but you cant do that where i go. What about geogetown.


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## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

or do you have a certain place where you catch big sharks all the time and its legal during spring break


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

jesse said:


> or do you have a certain place where you catch big sharks all the time and its legal during spring break


Once you get into Georgetown County it's perfectly legal to shark year round. You can shark this time of the year in Horry County (Myrtle Beach) but not in tourist season (the dates are on here somewhere). 

There aren't any piers that allow it (anywhere, really). The world record tiger was caught off of Cherry Grove pier. 

Someone should be able to chime in where the county line is. Do a search for castable shark rigs and you should find some. There may be one in the fishing bible? 

For spots, I don't know I don't shark, but most anywhere out of the way of lots of people (6AM-10AM and the late evenings into dark) and where you have enough room to walk up and down the beach will probably land you a shark if you keep fresh bait out. Being able to yak it out would help but if that's not an option then maybe you can try to lob it. You don't have to be way out.


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

The big spinner could probably land you a medium sized one.


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## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

have you ever landed a big shark down in that area


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## SmoothLures (Feb 13, 2008)

I don't target sharks, but I've caught 3-4 footers from the piers and surf on fresh bait bottom fishing, usually at dusk. Much bigger than that and the long shank hooks I use don't help bite offs.


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## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

i just hope i run into something big down there, what ever it is. i know spring break is probably not the best time to go to catch big fish off the beach down there. I'll try the jetties, surf, and piers and i'll also try for those sharks too.


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## jesse (Jan 14, 2009)

thanks for the info, i'll send you pictures of what i catch this spring break


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