October means shorter days, cooler temperatures, and the great mullet run down the Carolina Coastline. Last week I had the opportunity to travel to the surf fishing capital of the world. Everywhere you went there were four-wheel drive SUVs, trucks, jeeps, Volkswagens, dune buggies, vans, Subaru’s, you name it, if it was four-wheel drive it had a rod and cooler rack mounted either on the front or rear bumper or both. Racks were loaded to the hilt with bait, ice, rigs, rods, nets, sand spikes, and all the rest of the essential surf fishing gear and anglers were hitting the beaches from dusk till dawn. For those of you not familiar I am referring to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, an area that thrives off of surf fisherman and surfers every fall.
While most of the people have packed up their beach umbrellas and frisbees for the year, the North and South Carolina coastal anglers are knocking the dust off of his favorite surf rod and sand spike and heading for the beach. While I enjoy many different types of fishing in the fall months, I find surf fishing to be one of my favorites. I specifically enjoy targeting large Redfish as they feed on the Mullet in the surf. There is nothing like feeling a big red pick up your bait, waiting to make sure he has the bait in his mouth, and giving him a great big hook set with a 12ft. surf rod.
There are many different ways to fish the surf and while there are those who prefer to use very light tackle I prefer to use a reel that will hold at least 200 yards of 20lb. test and a 7 to 12 foot rod with a good backbone. Redfish in the surf commonly reach the 40 pound range and will spool you quick if you are using light tackle as there is no way to chase them down. Also a large Redfish has a better chance of survival when taken on heavier tackle because you can get them to shore quicker and get them back in the water without the fish totally wearing themselves out.
There are as many different rigs as there are surf rods. Some people prefer to use a standard drop rig.