The Honest Guide to Successful Pier and Coastal Fishing

My Dad and I have fished together for nearly every year of my life and have been blessed with memories together that will last a lifetime. Whether we caught fish or not the fellowship and camaraderie allowed us to make the most out of every trip. True fishermen enjoy the pursuit of the fish as much, if not more, than the actual catch. Spending a beautiful summer day with good company while smelling the fresh air right off of the water will do wonders for the soul and for your health, both mental and physical.
    With this book my intent is to show people some very basic and some not so basic techniques to catch fish with the hope that increased catches will motivate folks to stay with the wonderful tradition of recreational fishing. Again, the pursuit of the fish can make up some of the most rewarding times you will have, but actually landing what you are aiming for can certainly put a smile on the surliest fisherman’s face! Let us not forget too that coming home empty handed too many times might also make our significant other a little more apprehensive about us buying the newest, most expensive fishing gear that we just had to have. So, let’s look at things this way…..this book could just give you that extra leverage to keep the wife or husband from giving you the ‘ol “you never catch anything!” speech that I am sure most of us have heard more than once!

An Example fo what you will get inside!

Chapter 10

Red Drum

Equipment: Medium to Heavy tackle depending on what size drum you target.

HOOK RECOMMENDATION: SMALL PUPY DRUM-EAGLE CLAW WIDE BEND #6, LARGER DRUM, OVER SLOT FISH-EAGLE CLAW CIRCLE SEA 4/0 OR 5/0.

Bait: cut or whole shrimp, oysters, crab, small up to 8” bait fish either cut or live.
Technique: First, when on a pier you need to know a general size of what Red Drum you are targeting because these guys can get huge and fight nasty. A normal keeper is by most standards 18-27 inches long and these are termed ‘puppy drum’ in some locales. They are called that because even though these guys may weigh up close to 10 pounds they are mere pups compared to the big boys that lurk nearby.
   Let’s start with the pups though. For these a nice Medium or flexible heavy rod is just right when on a pier. You will normally find these fellows pretty close in to the surf but sometimes they will be right under a pier near the pilings feeding in schools on the small minnows that take shelter there. For these you will need nothing more than cut or live shrimp when they are biting or a small piece of crab/oyster. When they are “in” they are in. Fish near the pilings and be ready to reel them in quick before they wrap around the supports. For the smaller fish you can just pull them up but the ones above 5 pounds will generally require you to use a landing net. A small mud minnow under a cork or even on the bottom will work wonders for the Red Drum as well and is a preferred food of these fish. Just remember to not use too big of a minnow or cut bait because if the puppy drum are nearby their gigantic mommies and daddies are probably close by and it gets expensive feeding those guys tackle if you aren’t fishing with the right equipment.
   Now with the large red Drum or ‘Bull’ drum you need a heavy weight rod or surf rod/reel combo. These guys can get really big and take you for a ride. I have personally had new 50# test line snapped by a red drum just beyond the last breaker. I hooked him on a trolling rod set up to catch offshore fish. I used this rod on the pier to fight the drum and the 50 # test still wasn’t enough for that rare monster that loves to swallow a 4” pinfish whole! I have brought in up to 25 pound Red Drum with no issue on a pier, right above the breakers, what fun! For these guys preferred bait is a small fish up to about 8” in length. They will eat most anything but small mullet are normal bait for them. If you are allowed to use small whiting in your area these will work great as well. Hook these baits in a meaty portion about an inch forward of the tail and put them on a bottom rig with at least a foot of leader below your weight then toss them next to pilings or just Oceanside of the last breaker. If there are any Red Drum in the area, and those are their preferred feeding areas, they will grab that fish in a heartbeat. If I am fishing two rods and they are biting I generally don’t even have time to throw out number two because they will hit so fast.
   Another trick for Red Drum is to throw your bait with a nice steel leader of say 18” under the pier. This is a favorite haunt of the big reds and more often than not you will get a monster soon after.
   Don’t be surprised when fishing for Red Drum during the late summer/fall if you hook a nice striper/rockfish instead. This species can hardly resist the same meal you present for the Reds.