I don't know if any of you readers have voodoo connections or any such means to talk to the Wind gods, but if you do, could you please tell them to shut off the south winds?
It would be greatly appreciated by the surf fishing community. Good. Now's that that's done.
Surf fishing has slowed down just a bit, and you guessed why.
Colder water temps have been pushed along shore by an incessant southerly blow, and water temps are ranging from 58 to 64 degrees, which is way colder than it should be for this time of year. But that doesn't mean all hope has been lost.
For one, the south winds are expected to end by the weekend, with east and north pushes to bring in warm water.
For two, the bucktail is always an option to get lockjawed fish to bite from the surf.
The bucktail is sweet as apple pie during the summer months. Possibly, it's the panacea for bad luck conditions as it always seems to cajole one or two fish out of a slump.
Bucktailing the suds can be very easy to do, and will attract the spectrum of fishes that lay in the surf, but mainly for now, fluke, bluefish and bass will be the main fare.
Start with a 3-foot section of 20-pound fluorocarbon leader with a 75-pound barrel swivel and a duolock snap on each respective end.
Usually, a 1-ounce white or white/chartreuse buck will fit the bill, and don't forget to tip the hook with a 4-inch Fin-S fish in white, albino shad, or rainbow trout colorings. You may also opt to slice a strip of squid onto the hook. It's good practice to tie a dropper loop 18 inches above the bucktail and affix a white 2/0 bucktail hair or 2-inch Fin-S teaser onto it. The whole rig is flat-out deadly.
Ed Bronstein of Fin-Atics, Ocean City, said his area in Ocean City has been a potpourri of species in the surfwaters.
"You can fish anywhere in the 30 streets to the Old Pier and pick out a mix of just about everything -- kingfish, small weakfish, bluefish, fluke and even some stripers in the 20- to 30-inch class. It's been pretty consistent during the morning and evening hours.
"Townsend's and Corson's Inlet beaches are also good now for the whole run of species," Bronstein said.
The bucktail is the answer to join in on this surfwater circus.
On higher tides, cast out the bucktails as far as you can launch and work them in bouncing along the bottom all the way to your feet.
Many times fluke will follow the buck literally right to your feet before they strike. On lower tides, cast out into the sloughs and cut channels, and work alongside the edges, then cast within the hole itself to pluck out bass, blues and fluke.
When conditions get tough, its useless to sit around and cry about it. Instead, rig up with a bucktail/teaser rig and show those Wind gods you mean business.
Nick Honachefsky covers surfcasting for the "Courier-Post.' He has fished New Jersey's waters for more than 25 years and has written fishing articles published nationally and locally. You can contact him at beachnut33@hotmail.com
It would be greatly appreciated by the surf fishing community. Good. Now's that that's done.
Surf fishing has slowed down just a bit, and you guessed why.
Colder water temps have been pushed along shore by an incessant southerly blow, and water temps are ranging from 58 to 64 degrees, which is way colder than it should be for this time of year. But that doesn't mean all hope has been lost.
For one, the south winds are expected to end by the weekend, with east and north pushes to bring in warm water.
For two, the bucktail is always an option to get lockjawed fish to bite from the surf.
The bucktail is sweet as apple pie during the summer months. Possibly, it's the panacea for bad luck conditions as it always seems to cajole one or two fish out of a slump.
Bucktailing the suds can be very easy to do, and will attract the spectrum of fishes that lay in the surf, but mainly for now, fluke, bluefish and bass will be the main fare.
Start with a 3-foot section of 20-pound fluorocarbon leader with a 75-pound barrel swivel and a duolock snap on each respective end.
Usually, a 1-ounce white or white/chartreuse buck will fit the bill, and don't forget to tip the hook with a 4-inch Fin-S fish in white, albino shad, or rainbow trout colorings. You may also opt to slice a strip of squid onto the hook. It's good practice to tie a dropper loop 18 inches above the bucktail and affix a white 2/0 bucktail hair or 2-inch Fin-S teaser onto it. The whole rig is flat-out deadly.
Ed Bronstein of Fin-Atics, Ocean City, said his area in Ocean City has been a potpourri of species in the surfwaters.
"You can fish anywhere in the 30 streets to the Old Pier and pick out a mix of just about everything -- kingfish, small weakfish, bluefish, fluke and even some stripers in the 20- to 30-inch class. It's been pretty consistent during the morning and evening hours.
"Townsend's and Corson's Inlet beaches are also good now for the whole run of species," Bronstein said.
The bucktail is the answer to join in on this surfwater circus.
On higher tides, cast out the bucktails as far as you can launch and work them in bouncing along the bottom all the way to your feet.
Many times fluke will follow the buck literally right to your feet before they strike. On lower tides, cast out into the sloughs and cut channels, and work alongside the edges, then cast within the hole itself to pluck out bass, blues and fluke.
When conditions get tough, its useless to sit around and cry about it. Instead, rig up with a bucktail/teaser rig and show those Wind gods you mean business.
Nick Honachefsky covers surfcasting for the "Courier-Post.' He has fished New Jersey's waters for more than 25 years and has written fishing articles published nationally and locally. You can contact him at beachnut33@hotmail.com