Wow, what a winter, or the lack of a really cold winter. Usually, our pompano are gone far to the south by the first of December. This year, we caught them into mid-January. I don’t really expect to see many of them caught this month, but you never know. The water temperature controls our success this month. If our surf temp drops below 60 degrees, things will temporarily shut down. Until then, get to the beach and catch yourself some very tasty whiting.
To increase your catch, here is what to look for in what beach you decide to fish. Most people refer to them as “Red Coquina Sand” beaches. These beaches are usually steeper and are called high impact. Some of my favorite ones are American, Ponte Vedra, Guana, Vilano, Hammock, and Flagler. These beaches are loaded with the whiting’s favorite winter snack, donax clams, aka periwinkles or coquina. They are about one inch long. Whiting, pompano, redfish, and black drum, all swallow these petite clams whole. Then, a crusher in the back of their throat crushes it just before it goes into the stomach.
I match the hatch for better success. I buy fresh clams from the seafood market, or frozen ones from the bait store. Fresh shrimp work very well also. Whichever bait you use, remember to down size. Even a two-pound whiting has a small mouth, so your bait should not be more than 1 inch x 1 1/2 inches. If you’re using a two-hook rig, put a shrimp on top and a clam on the bottom hook. Also, you should downsize your circle hooks to #2.
Successful whiting fishermen will argue about which is the best rig to use. Whichever one you choose, double-dropper-loop, or fish-finder/sinker-slider, go with light line; 15 to 20-pound mono will get the job done. This time of year, there is about a zero chance of hooking up a big pompano or bull redfish, so go light, to increase your hook up rate.
To set up your own surf fishing adventure or long distance casting lesson please visit www.thesurfangler.com or call Noel at 904-945-0660.