Headed to Crystal Beach this weekend. Never done any surf saltwater fishing before. What do you recommend as far as location and tackle? If there is anything that is working particularly well right now, I will definitely do my best to pick that up. Total newbie here so any detail you can give me is definitely much appreciated! Thanks guys!!!!

Don't know about this weekend but my mom just sent me this from Crystal Beach. If it looks like that this weekend throw lures or croakers and hold on.

It was starting to slick off yesterday at Jamaica Beach. Water was turning sandy and the green water wasn't far offshore. A guy down the beach from us caught a 6' hammerhead.

Top waters, croakers and shrimp under a popping cork. I try being in the water at sunrise.

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I like your style jh0400! Makes figuring out what to buy very easy!

mansfield mauler

I used to catch them one after the other under the lights at rollover pass. That was 15 years ago though.

Mirror lure in chrome and pink and a gold spoon....

Croakers would be best for newb, though

This was Jamaica beach Sunday AM.



We fished croaker in G bay from 3am to 6:30am trout cats and rays and a lady fish.

I'm hoping I can make it down to Surfside this weekend to fish the surf. The swell forecast looks super flat - just hoping the wind direction cleans the surf up some - it's been pretty dirty the last couple of weeks with that wind direction we had.

Thanks for all the info! Picked up some supplies last night. Any other suggestions before we head out tomorrow?

Move... Keep walking until you get in fish. Unless you see lots of bait do not stop long in one spot

Does anybody else fish on the bottom with shrimp, squid or live bait, I've had more success with a double drop steel leader than with lures of any kind suggested?

Post pics of catch! Good luck!

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Does anybody else fish on the bottom with shrimp, squid or live bait, I've had more success with a double drop steel leader than with lures of any kind suggested?

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I'll use dead shimp from time to time to catch shark bait. I wouldn't expect much outside of whiting and hard heads using shrimp or squid. While trash fish one may consider catching a ton of them a success.

I use live croaker Carolina rigged to catch trout and live mullet for reds and small sharks.

I like green Gulp baits on 15+ pound line with a 2 oz weight on a slip/fishfinder rig. Wade out to 2 or 3rd sandbar and cast in between the bars or all the way out past. Just like inshore, fish on structure - so sandbars, cuts, rip currents, etc.

Caught quite a few whiting and sand trout using dead shrimp and squid, as well as sharks on the croakers we caught in previous years. This year hard heads were all anyone was catching around us when I went mid July. Going to try again the last weekend in august

Dad caught a half limit to 18" in the Crystal Beach surf this morning on avocado mirrodine. Had another 4-5 shorts and a bunch of short strikes.

If the water stays flat, this weekend should be a good one.

Going to PINS this weekend for the first time. I'm pretty excited, and the surf forecast looks awesome.

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If the water stays flat, this weekend should be a good one.

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now the forecast is saying Saturday afternoon might be a little bumpy and Sunday due increasing winds. Saturday morning looks pretty nice if the water clarity is good.

I'll be heading in or to the bay to wade by 10:00 am or so. Two weeks ago we were supposed to have flat surf until afternoon, and it went to **** around 8:30.

Well I will likely be out Friday and Saturday fishing. I'll be wearing a Camo A&M cap. Might be in a kayak somewhere too. If you see me around, feel free to tell me what I am doing wrong!

Now it's looking like Saturday morning is going to be rough.

Still looking pretty good here...

http://www.swellinfo.com/surf-forecast/surfside-texas

I'm worried that the wind is going to turn earlier than expected. That happened to me a couple of weeks ago. The big swells weren't supposed to hit until early afternoon, but they rolled in around 9 am.

Killed it this morning on trout and black tips! Thanks for all the suggestions! Can't wait to get back out tomorrow morning!

Any updates?

Bolivar surf was flat this morning. Made a poor decision to fish reefs in East Bay. 6 trout to 22" but we worked really hard for those. The N wind that had the bay a little sandy also had the surf green to the beach when we got back. Supposed to lay again in the morning but we will see.

Galveston surf looked great this morning, but I didn't see anyone catch anything other than whiting. Didn't even see a gafftop which was surprising.

got skunked in the surf in Surfside this morning - near the jetty. I think the water was too clear. threw artificials for about 2 hours and not bites. didn't see anyone catching anything. went home after that to take a nap.

Caught 3 at surfside yesterday morning. Bunch of throw backs.

Pissed I missed this thread last week. I went to surfside thurs morning from 530 to about 2ish. Trout bite was on from 6 to 830. Caught over 20 bit only kept 3 over 20 with a nice 24" fatty. I was using shrimp under a popping cork but most guys around me were killing bigger trout on croaker with carolina rig. I tried croaker the week before and didnt get a single bite so didn't waste my money this time. After the trout bite I used whiting and a small jack to catch several sharks on light tackle. That was fun! Trout bite started again around 12 and stopped rt before I left. I love fishing crystal beach but usually only have luck catching bull reds and shark and really wanted some trout for a big dinner this weekend.

Edit: water was flat but green water was out about 250 yards. Gradually moved in closer but you could see lots of action right on the edge of it out there.

So we fished live shrimp under a popping cork on Friday morning out on the 2nd sand bar and everyone limited out on trout! It was awesome! We also pulled in the occasional shark, catfish, and lady fish (slimy). We didn't have much luck on artificials though. Plus, watching the cork disappear and then setting the hook was a lot of fun.

Note to self - do NOT clip a stringer on your belt and let your catch swim around your feet. I felt a pretty good tug once when I had 2 trout clipped on and I took a look and pulled up 1 and a half trout on the stringer. Something took advantage of the buffet I was organizing around my ankles. Kinda unsettling... but a blast!