The key word here is NEED. There are only a few items that is absolutely needed in order to get out on the water to start catching fish. These must have items needed for surf fishing include: a rod; a reel spooled with line; a fishing rig which includes a leader hook(s) and sinker; a cutting tool (preferably a good knife and/or scissors); and some bait. This core set of surf fishing gear will get you started and give you a solid foundation to build upon when growing your setup to fit your specific needs.
None of these items need to be “top of the line” or overly expensive, especially if you looking to try out the hobby before diving in. An inexpensive rod and reel will catch fish just as easily as the high dollar ones. However, if you are looking to find some equipment that will last several seasons without much maintenance, repair, or replacement you may want to spend the extra coin for the higher quality gear. Another thing to consider when selecting the gear needed to start surf fishing is to get the equipment that is suited for the most common fish caught from the surf in your area. From there, after you get your feet wet with the hobby, you can get specific with your tackle and bait selections for a more specific target of fish. In this article we discuss a little about each core piece of equipment required, provide some recommendations in various price points, and give some recommendations when considering how to build upon your initial set of gear. Read on below.
Surf Fishing Rod
The number one thing in surf fishing is being able to cast your bait out to a specific spot in the water where you think you have good chances of catching a fish. Usually this area of water, some hole or trough, is relatively close to shore and other times it is a good ways off the shoreline. Number two is keeping the bait around that spot long enough for the fish to spot the bait and bite. The rod selection is crucial to your ability to execute these tasks successfully. The general purpose surf fishing rod is somewhere between 9ft and 15ft in length. The longer rods have the benefit of having longer casting potential but also come at the cost of lower accuracy. When it comes to selecting the best all around setup for surf fishing a rod in the 10ft to 12ft range is recommended since, contrary to popular belief, most fish caught from the surf are less than 50 yards from shore. I prefer a rod somewhere in the 10.5′ to 11′ range to get the rod tip up high to keep the majority of the line out of the surf and to have a good amount of casting potential if I ever do need to get my bait out there a ways. I also think the 11ft rod doesn't sacrifice too much on accuracy.
My first surf fishing rod was a 12′ medium heavy power moderate fast action rod that I built using an American Tackle Company blank and some Fuji components. I have built a few and bought a few other rods over time but my first rod is still my go to general purpose rod. Since most of us aren't running off building custom rods, here are a few selections for a good all purpose surf rod. All of these rods fit the same profile as my custom rod but represent different price points to fit any budget.
- Okuma Longitude Surf Graphite Rods (Large, Black/Blue/Silver)
- St. Croix Mojo Surf Rod, 10-feet 6-inches
Like I said before, the low end gear will catch just as many fish as the high end gear. If you are looking to try the hobby, testing the waters if you will, then I recommend staying on the low to mid range at first. This approach will get you into a rod with little upfront cost and allow you to learn what you do and don't like before purchasing the next rod. A good quality rod does typical feel and perform much better than the lower end ones, however this is more obvious in the lighter tackle where finesse, feel, and touch is more important. When surf fishing, you are more likely purchasing the higher end rod for better warranty and status.
Surf Fishing Reel
The Surf fishing reel you select needs to be large enough to hold about 200 (or more) yards of 20 lb braid fishing line. It also needs to be strong enough to handle casting out a rig with at least a 4oz weight and to fight a decent sized fish. Most importantly, unless you plan on replacing it after a season or two, you need a reel that can withstand the saltwater environment.
Conventional vs Spinning
There are two primary styles of reels to consider when building up your setup for surf fishing: the spinning reel and the conventional or casting reel. Probably a good 90% of the surf fishing anglers today use the spinning reel for it ease of use and reliability. This style is recommended especially if you are just getting started in the hobby or don't have a ton of experience on the water. Convention reels (otherwise known as bait casters) provide a little more accuracy with the cast and, if you know what you are doing, can provide a little more distance. This accuracy and distance benefit comes at the cost of birds nests and maintenance. A big birds nest can pretty much ruin a day on the water if it's bad enough. If you are untangling your line more than you are fishing you certainly will not be catching as much fish. Bottom line, you need a good spinning reel to get out on the water with the least amount of maintenance and learning curve.
Reel Recommendations
Based on the the guideline explained above we want to find a good SW resistant reel that: can hold over 200yds of braid main fishing line; easily handle casting a 4oz lead; can fight a decent sized fish; and compliments your rod selection. I am personally a Shimano fan and love the Stradic and Saragoosa line of reels. These reels aren't cheap but certainly are not at the top of the price range. Diawa and Penn are other popular choices for surf fishing reels at a slightly lower price point that are also great reels.
Shimano
Shimano has several series of spinning reels designed with the SW angler in mind. These are all high quality reels that cover a wide spectrum of sizes and price points. For example the Stella 18000 SW comes in at over $1K where the Baitrunner 6000D is about $180 and the Spheros 5000 is under $140.
Not listed in this list of SW spinning reals by Shimano, but is in fact a great SW reel, is the Stradic series reels. The Stradic spinning reels feature a light weight but rugged construction that supports heavy cranking power, superior cast ability, and smooth line retrieval. Most importantly the Stradic is designed to reduce water intrusion to critical areas of the reel thus giving Stradic the edge when it comes to corrosion resistance and in turn reel longevity. In the 5000 series reels and less Shimano Stradic is where I turn. For the surf fishing application I highly recommend the Shimano Stradic 5000XG spinning reel.
Daiwa
Another great line of surf fishing reels is the Daiwa BG series. These reels are built for saltwater and are very reasonably priced. When it comes to reel size of the Daiwa reels they tend to be quite a bit larger than other reels on the market. For instance the Shimano Stradic 5000XG can carry 160 yds of 40# Power Pro where the Daiwa 5000BG carries 480yds of the same line. With that, I tend to step down to the 3000 or 4000 series reels for my all around surf fishing rigs with the Daiwas. You can pick up a Daiwa 4000 BG at Tackle Direct for about $120.00.
Surf Fishing Rod/Reel Combo
Proper pairing of the surf rod and reel is very important when it comes to maximizing efficiency and increasing casting distance. When it comes to custom rod building the design and layout of the guides is engineered around the application, style of fishing, rod length, and reel size. Most builders construct the entire rod around a specific reel that their client has selected. I am not saying that you need a to go out and get custom rods built (even though I do recommend it if you want to spend the cash) but I am saying you need consider sizing things appropriately. A giant reel on a tiny rod isn't going to perform optimal and visa vera. To make this easy, any of the reels I have recommended above will easily go with any of the rods I have recommended. This means you have at least 9 combinations of reel rod combinations in this post alone.
Another common option that anglers go with is purchasing a rod reel combo. With these cases the manufacture removes the burden of picking the right combo and just sells it in a package. For first time anglers this can be a great choice especially since these packages are usually on the lower end of the cost spectrum.
Surf Fishing Rigs
The most common surf fishing rigs include the High Low Rig, Pompano Rig, and Fish Finder Rig. The basic construct of these rigs include some combination of: leader line made of 20+ lb monofilament or fluorocarbon; floats and or beads; circle or khale hooks; swivels to connect leader line to braid and leader to weight; as well as the weight. These rigs can be hand made or purchased already constructed. For the beginner anglers, or those who are not interested in making their own, I recommend having a good selection of rigs on hand at all times.
High Low Rig
The High Low rig is simply a rig that allows two baits to be fished at a time in order to increase your odds of a catch. The High Low configuration includes a swivel attached to mono or fluorocarbon leader with two drop loops about 6in apart. This is your most common rig used for surf fishing and can be dressed up however you like to fit the species you are after.
Pompano Rig
The Pompano Rig is a modified version of the High/Low rig which consists of monofilament or fluorocarbon leader line with two drop loops with hooks between the sinker and main line. The Pompano rig usually includes an orange bead just before the hook and a colorful float behind the bead. The bead is said to resemble a sand flea egg which is a common food source for many beach dwelling species of fish and the float can attract fish and keep the bait off the bottom. The Pompano Rig is my go to rig when targeting the majority of species on the beach. Obviously built for Pompano, this rig also brings in whiting, black drum, redfish, flounder, croaker, spot, and a variety of other fish.
Fish Finder Rig
The Fish Finder rig is great when using live or cut bait from the surf. This rig includes: a sliding snap swivel that attaches you weight to the main line, a swivel to attach main line to mono or fluorocarbon leader line, and a hook. This setup allows live bait to swim freely since it doesn't have the weight directly attached to the fish. In order to better keep the bait off the bottom, one variant of the fish finder includes a float between the swivel and the hook.
Surf Fishing Bait
There are many selections of bait to use when surf fishing. The best go to bait for me that is almost always successful and is super easy to use is Fishbites. I always have a couple bags of each the Sand Flea and EZ-Shrimp flavors of fishbones when heading to the beach. The Clam and Bloodword flavors are also good to have on hand as well but the Flea and shrimp are my top performers. To use Fishbites I cut a small piece off the strip and simply place it on the hook.
The best live bait to use for surf fishing include sand fleas, shrimp, mullet, pinfish, and croaker. Sand Fleas can be caught on the beach the day before or day of fishing using a sand rake. Mullet can either be purchased from your local bait shop or netted from the shore. Pinfish and croaker can also be needed or caught using sibiki rigs. Live shrimp can usually be purchased from you local bait shop. You can also use frozen shrimp but I tend to just get annoyed because it rarely stays on the hook long to be effective. If using live bait be sure to have a good live well with a battery operated aerator in oder to keep your fish alive as long as possible.
Cut bait is another option which is basically chunks or strips of any bait you have on hand. Things to use as cut bait include squid, pinfish, and croaker. For cut bait I prefer squid since it is easily found in the freezer of your local bait shop and it also stays on the hook pretty well.
Knife
A good knife is a must have for any outdoor hobby and surf fishing is certainly no acceptation. As discussed in our article The Best Knife for Surf Fishing, when selecting a good surf fishing knife you need to consider ease of use, durability, and especially corrosion resistance. When it comes to salt water knives there are few that compare to Spyderco. With their Salt Series line of knives Spyderco pretty much takes the cake with both fixed blade and folding knives. I always have my Spyderco Salt Series Fish Hunter knife when fishing from the surf but any of these knives will do the trick.
Another good cutting tool to have on hand is a good pair of scissors. I like to keep my scissors attached to my cutting board of the beach cart so I always have access to them. Primarily I use my scissors to cut up small strips of fishbones to use as bait as well as cleaning off the mesh from the hook when removing the bait. I highly recommend the SAMSFX Fishing Scissors. I have had these for a couple seasons now and are still serving their purpose.
Summary
Getting out on the water doesn't require a fortune or a truck load of equipment. I hope this article helped you understand the essentials needed to get out on the water sand start catching fish.
Tight Lines Y'all!
