Rock and Surf Newbie - Advice needed

[drakuel]

HI all,
I am a newbie to fishing, and looking for some advice from the pros.
Twice now I have headed down to Brighton Beach, Bluff, Durban with my 11 Foot Assassin Spin Zero and Shimano reel, with braid and mono leader, sporting a pyramid sinker below a hook with shad lure about a foot above the sinker, probably not the best setup..
Brighton beach is very rocky, jagged rocks, both times my rig has snagged and been lost.
What am I doing wrong, what should I be using..
Be critical, I can take it..

I have a ton to learn and no doubt you all have plenty to teach..
Please help

 

[Sting Ray]

Firstly, what fish species are you targeting?

You are referring to a shad lure and a pyramid sinker on your trace, are you referring to a shad float and trace?

I would use a double hook scratching trace for rocky areas, and you can expect to lose alot of tackle when fishing rocky areas.

Cheers

Sting Ray

 

[Sting Ray]

Do a search here for a double hook trace, or search karranteen trace and just beef it up by using bigger hooks and a little thicker line.

 

[Kosi]

Ditto on what the guys above have said, and if you are fishing rocky areas, use bottle sinkers (some also use old spark plugs) instead of pyramids which will get stuck easier.

 

[Ben REINERS]

@ drakuel ,
I agree with comments given so far by both Sting Ray & Kosi, & yes there is quite a lot to learn & understand, but do not be discouraged by the loss of your traces or blanking on many days. Yes it can be an expensive trip losing 4-6 traces, but the fun to be had is far more pleasurable than losing a few sinkers.

Without lecturing you, you need to understand the sea, tides, best days/times etc & you will find a bucket full of info on Sealine by either searching in the SEARCH function using key words, or browsing each Thread one by one & looking for those key Headings.
Next in-line will be your target species as Sting Ray mentioned, & obviously you will target a few species & not 1 only.Traces & rigs are discussed extensively on Sealine under the relevant Thread heading with pictorials & sketches & you will most definitely find your trace outfit that suits your rocky area & specie.
Pay special attention to the trace line breaking strength, type of sinkers used, & bait types for the different species, & make-up of the trace.
The rest will be trial & error, & you will also learn a lot from fellow anglers on the beach if you inter act, ask questions & show eagerness to learn.
You can also buy ready made traces at most tackle shops these days & if in need of advice, your salesman are mostly anglers very knowledgeable on the basics & more.
Tackle-shops in/around your area include FISHING ADDICTS in Flower road, Clairewood, KINGFISHER in Hunter street, FISHERMANS-WHAREHOUSE in Sylvester Ntuli road & BASIL MANNING in Springfieldpark to name a few.
And then there is always SEALINE to help you out always with an angler ready to answer your question & or direct you.
Hope to see your efforts & successes soon. 

 

[Spool-Song]

It sounds like you have a lot to learn. I would try to make friends and go fishing with people who know what they are doing, or alternatively, a trip or two with a good fishing guide from the area will be an invaluable starting point.

 

[Dr halibut hoffman]

Pyramid for the sand, when you don't want your sinker rolling around, but don't quite want to throw a grapnel..in between the rocks a bottle sinker so that it does roll around but hopefully not get stuck..other sinkers all have other intended uses, or else if getting stuck is just how the spot goes, spark plugs, chainlinks, whatever is cheap or free goes, and hopefully non polluting..lead in big chunks like sea sinkers is not that polluting as one would think, little pieces very much polluting, but chunk of iron will rust away in no time. In very snaggy terrain also there are ways in which one prefers to rig where the sinker is less likely to snag or ways to lift and retrieve where your chances might be better.

Sometimes there is nothing you can do but minimize what you loose and try not make a big environmental impact
Some spots just steal your traces no matter what, then try keep a overhand knot on thinner sinker line, just above the sinker, then one gets most of the trace back to retie a sinker most the time when one has to break off, in those situations most times a shorter hook trace helps, then the hook is less prone to wash around and snag up, or one might use a stiffer type or brand of leader for the hook, or slightly thicker for the same reason etc..I like a little ten cm loop of twine on my sinker in really snaggy areas and find it helps lever a sinker over a ledge or crack instead of wedging it when one tries lift it up, but what works for one doesnt work for all.... it is an art..you have a lot of reading to do, or as spool song says..
If you throw a lure with a sinker on a trace between the rocks, you are almost guaranteeing getting stuck, it's hard enough and an art not getting your lure stuck without a sinker as everyone else fishes them..LOL only way I know of a sinker working below a lure is dropshot style for bass, but then you dont fish that where the lure would snag, one would then rig the bass plastic differently more "weedless" style, referring to the original dropshot, not the new age SA marketing term for a soft plastic in the sea LOL..

Good luck, half the fun is learning and improving and getting you know the game and one day being able to know when to go, to target what, with what and what rig and bait, and do it, and maybe then releasing the fish to make more and throw again and catch another LOL and that is satisfaction in itself..enjoy the bottomless pit, it never ends. Time spent fishing is not deducted from a mans allotted time on earth- ancient greek saying..

 

[Don Couzens]

Your rod is really well suited for lure casting some surface pugs around 1.5 to 2oz work great for shad and other game fish and as you retrieve them on top can be fished over rocky areas. If targeting shad etc on bait, always go for as light a sinker as possible. The nylon grab one's work well in the rocks always tie a knot in your sinker trace so If you hook up you only loose the sinker

 

[Sting Ray]

Hi Drakuel

Not sure if you still fishing or if we have scared you off with too much info.

I would like to add to the above posts. The guys have provided you with some excellent advice.

It would be good to suscribe to the Kingfisher's fishing report. It provides valuable info on what fish is biting and where on the KZN coastline. Once you know what species is biting, you can research what traces to use and what conditions the fish favour.

As Ben mentioned above, tackle shop staff are always willing to help with traces and what fish are coming out, you can also ask them good spots to try. When I am at the coast and stop at the Tackle shop for bait, I always chat to the staff and ask if they know what's biting and which spots.

Also when you are on the beach don't be afraid to stike up conversation with fellow anglers. Many of the locals are more than willing to help with traces, how to put on bait etc. If you meet an old timer on the beach, be sure to stop and chat to him. The old ballies usually share a wealth of knowledge. Another thing is to always watch others (steal with your eyes), there may be times where the guy next to you is catching and you are not, check what bait he is using abd how is he putting it on, what trace, trace lenght, where and how far he is casting to get fish.

I am by no means an expert, but these are things I picked up over years of fishing. I am not sure if this will help you or if you already know this stuff, but it may help others who read this post also.

Tight Lines!!!

Sting Ray

 

[huntley]

If and when you are using lures, spoons or plugs change all the treble hooks to singles, you will loose a lot less to the rocks and if you start using paddle tails especially in the Bluff area or other rocky areas, rig them weedless. Any of the tackle shops will be able to help you with that. Good luck and enjoy your time spinning. You may not catch a million fish but it is a great way to fish.

 

[Dr halibut hoffman]

Also if you want to catch shad, just fish a foamy area where the rocks meet the sand, or a foamy gulley in the rocks where theres a nice channel, chop up a few sardines and throw them out as chum into the foam of the gulley to attract baitfish, mullet, streepie etc and get the shad moving in, and then rig up, fish a half sardine drift bait on a piano wire (amercian fishing wire) or the thin plastic lined cable wire that you can tie knots in and melt to the coating to seal the knot, on a 4/0 to 5/0 to 7/0 kendal round depending on the type of shad around, 5/0 cant go wrong...get the hang of that and from that you can expand...thats what the 1930's book recommended for novice anglers, without the fancy wire we have, and nothing else has changed much..its how i cut my teeth fishing in the sea, aside from catching klipvissies, thats pretty much how i got into it...

Once you figured that out, get some small tin spoons if you can find them, scarce as hens teeth, lead painted or chromed are just not comparable, then before you chum at one of the spots you found the shad like to hand out at, at the tide they like to, throw a spoon out a few times before you bait fish, after a few throws you will quickly know if they are around and on the hunt, if they are you can catch your limit of pan size fish in no time, and keep the box of pillies frozen, if not, chop a few up, chum, and rig up so long...you'll call them in and catch em on a slowly reeled in driftbait half pillie, reel in so slow as you can, while keeping bait up in water column and not bouncing and getting stuck on the bottom. It gives you a good feel for the fight, a nice shad on a bass rod is a blast, and also a feel for lure fishing or retrieving and not getting snagged as much as you can, gives you a 3d feel for the bottom and how your retrieve interacts with that...go sit with some locals doing the same and get in the mix, once a mass of pillies is in the water, the shad WILL come and they wont be where you are if you are aside from the mass of bait going out, and also once the taste of pillies, that oil and blood in the water, you can pack your spoons away...the shad will just want pillie..

 

[Dr halibut hoffman]

Paddle tails for elf, is just polluting the sea and the foodchain...deadly for cob, but then again so is a tin spoon...a nice tin spoon and you can catch anything..

 

[Dr halibut hoffman]

I've even caught sole and small steenbras on spoon, many tuna species, rays have taken spoons even an electric one which was shocking...elf garrick, yellowtail, bonnies, mackerels, cob...if it eats fish, it will eat a tin spoon. But price of tin these days mean not many make them even never mind they cost an arm and a leg..but worth every penny..just learn how to rig and not get stuck first LOL...box of pillies much cheaper!