May Surf & Pier Fishing Report

May is the month for getting your string stretched! Bonnethead sharks move in to feast on the calico crabs. Half of a blue crab makes for excellent bait. They’ll run 10 to 25 pounds, with very sharp teeth. Gear up heavy with 100 lb mono leader attached to a 5/0 to 7/0 circle hook. You have heard the saying; “We are what we eat.” Since their main diet is crabs, they taste great as deep fried shark McNuggets!

This month will be the best for pompano in the surf! They were slow getting here because of the cold water in early April. Now, it is game on. My favorite gear and bait is a double dropper rig tipped with 2/0 L197 Eagle Claw hooks. Favorite bait combo is a fresh sand flea on the top hook and fresh clam on the bottom hook. If you find that they are after one or the other bait, then switch to just the better bait. They feed in clean water, so if you get to the beach and it looks dirty, do not bother. Here is a pro tip. The water is always cleaner on one side of any inlet. Do not fish in dirty surf, Your just asking for catfish and stingrays!

This year has been the best for whiting in the last forty years! I have never seen so many coolers full of these tasty fish. They have also been running bigger than ever. I have not caught a small whiting all spring. They have all been eleven to eighteen inches, and up to two pounds. Double dropper rigs with smaller #2 hooks tip with small pieces of shrimp are your best bet. My favorite way to cook them is pan seared with panko bread crumbs. However, my healthy choice is ceviche.

April was very exciting with big blue fish and medium sized sharks. This month should be the same. Blues to ten pounds, and sharks to fifteen pounds, have been gobbling up whiting strips in the surf. I like to use a fish finder rig tied just like in the first paragraph. The only difference, is use a strip of whiting appx 1”x 3”x ½”.  You just never know what will eat these tasty little baits.