# Surf fishing virgin here, need help



## young gun (Jun 8, 2011)

Hey guys I have Never been surf fishing in my life. Im in the Navy and have been down here for a lil over a year and all i do is crappie and gill fish. Im wanting to get into surf fishing a little so my wife and 1yr old can come to the beach while i fish, kinda wanna kill 2 birds with one stone kinda thing. Anyway i went to Academy yesterday and got a 11ft surf rod and the biggest Quantom Optix reel they had. I mainly wnna catch whiting and pompano but i am open to other suggestions. I have been reading some posts and yall keep talkin about first bar/second bar. I know that means sand bars but how do you determine where they are so you can cast to em? Im going to Vilano beach early friday mornin and gonna give it a try. Im prob gonna stop by the Shands bridge on the way and catch some mullet for cutbait and im gonna use my 7' catfish rod and see what else i can hook into. For the whiting and pompano i know i need sand fleas, shrimp, or clams right? If yall could fill me in on what im missing or how to make my trip better i would really appreciate it. Thanks fellas


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## oldduckcoat (Apr 25, 2011)

Greetings Young Gun,

Look for where the waves break to locate the bars. The waves break "on" the bars. The waves breaking on the first bar is closest to the shore, second bar further offshore ect.... in other words the offshore waves build and break (on the second bar) the white water after the outside break is often called the "wash", as the wave moves closer it will usualy build a second time and break on the first bar followed by another "wash" moving on to shore. 

At times the fish will be on the bars other times in the wash area. Remember the bars are shallow areas and the washes are deeper areas. 

Hope this helps,

ODC


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## skinnyhoops (Jun 10, 2011)

Sounds like you got a pretty good understanding of surf fishing. I'm a freshwater fisherman so this surf fishing is new to me too. What type of rig are you going to use for whiting? Hook size? I just got some owners light mutu circle hooks in size 2, looking forward to trying those out on a double hook rig. 

Anybody have suggestions on where to start to catch some whiting in New Smyrna Beach? I've heard that if you find the sand fleas, you'll find the fish


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## mwhuffman (Jun 16, 2004)

Do a search on "Earl Brinn rig" and also look for the great write-up on brining shrimp. I believe Railroader did it and the thread may be in the bible on this site. Those two items won't tell you everything you need to know, but they will definitely point you in the right direction. Too many new surf fishermen want to know everything all at once. If you go slowly and hone just a few skills at a time, you'll be on your way. You can and will catch fish with your 7' cat rod. Sometimes the fish are almost under your feet and many people overlook them, thinking they have to cast a long way. So don't rule anything out. The brined shrimp is a great way to always have bait. Sometimes you can't find other bait, and having the shrimp can save a trip. Besides, I've caught many species using it. Good luck!


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## gilly21 (Feb 15, 2006)

young gun said:


> Hey guys I have Never been surf fishing in my life. Im in the Navy and have been down here for a lil over a year and all i do is crappie and gill fish. Im wanting to get into surf fishing a little so my wife and 1yr old can come to the beach while i fish, kinda wanna kill 2 birds with one stone kinda thing. Anyway i went to Academy yesterday and got a 11ft surf rod and the biggest Quantom Optix reel they had. I mainly wnna catch whiting and pompano but i am open to other suggestions. I have been reading some posts and yall keep talkin about first bar/second bar. I know that means sand bars but how do you determine where they are so you can cast to em? Im going to Vilano beach early friday mornin and gonna give it a try. Im prob gonna stop by the Shands bridge on the way and catch some mullet for cutbait and im gonna use my 7' catfish rod and see what else i can hook into. For the whiting and pompano i know i need sand fleas, shrimp, or clams right? If yall could fill me in on what im missing or how to make my trip better i would really appreciate it. Thanks fellas


You can use your fresh water bass gear for Whiting and pompano. That 11'er you just got will be good for tossing back out the head of the whiting for something with more balls.


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