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I'm primarily a very bad fresh water fisherman up here in GA. We had a cabin on a local lake and a small bow rider, and I enjoyed dock fishing or fishing from my kayak. And I only caught one fish in a two year period! HAHAHA But, I enjoyed being out by the water and the process of fishing, even though I wasn't catching.

We sold the cabin and boat, and we are moving down to Boca Raton in February! I'm excited as I have loved the beach since I was a little kid, and we plan on taking advantage of our proximity to the ocean to hit the beach often. I saw people surf fishing on a scouting trip to Boca in November, and my interest is peaked! If we're going to be going to the beach, why shouldn't I also be partaking in one of the activities I also love, even though I seem to suck at fishing!?!?

My wife has suggested that I maybe see if I can rent some surf fishing gear to try it out to see if it is something I want to dump a bunch of money into. The thing is, I don't really know what to look at getting my hands on. So I'm looking for suggestions and a little help with the knowledge so I can at least get my hands on a basic setup to hit the beach with.

THANK YOU!

 

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Most guys up and down the beach there fish for pompano and Sea Mullet.. Of course there is no telling what else you can catch in the surf down there. Id say buy a Penn Battalion 11 ft 2-6 ounce rod and a Penn Battle 4 or 5000. You will meet a bunch of folks fishing the beaches there. You will spot the ones who consistently catch fish .. Watch them and ask questions they will steer you right. You will see them in little groups spaced out along the beach fishing 2 to 3 rods apiece.

Thanks! That's something I forget to ask that I think you just answered for me. And that was, how many rods?

 

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I pulled up this page as I always find great resources here and am heading to OBX next weekend. I saw your question at the top and figured I would try to pay it forward a bit.

Wow! I appreciate the time you took to write that, and you've given me a place to start. I'll be Googling stuff for the rest of the day now!

I've got a medium Ugly Stick spinning combo that I tend to use the most on the lake. Would that be worth messing with in the surf to start with? If/when I decide to buy something substantial for the surf, I was thinking about looking at Facebook Marketplace to start out with before I bought anything new. Gotta keep the wife happy, after all we're buying a house in an area where real estate costs more than we're used to!

 

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I just found your earlier post. You said above that you sold your boat; was that the Kayak? If you still have the Kayak that will be very productive in the sound and inshore waters.. (Again, having not been to Boca) I suspect you may be able to find sandbars in the sound to paddle to, wade, and get into some really nice trout, flounder, etc. If you can find mangroves, there is another place you must take the kayak. That medium rod will be perfect. Snook, snapper, and you might even be able to get onto some of the tarpon in the waterways, but other than a small one you'll get broken off on its first jump.

I was going to give my kayak to a friend, but my wife convinced me to hold onto it in case we could put it in the water down in Florida. I'm glad I did!

It's nothing awesome. In fact, It was a rather inexpensive kayak from one of the big box sporting goods stores that we bought for fun. After awhile though, I modified it to fish from.

 

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OHMatt gave you the good scoop. You'll do fine and have a ball.

Nice yak. I hope you ain't gonna paddle with that big blue pack atop the deck, specially if'n there's a buncha weight inside, too top heavy. When I yak or canoe, the heavy stuff goes down on the floor board in order to remove top heaviness and reduce boat pitch 'n' roll, or the tendency to flip when the weather comes up.

The kayak actually handles great with it! It has a lightweight plastic milk crate inside and just a couple of small Plano style tackle organizers. It's not heavy at all. My biggest concerns with putting it up front were that it'd get in the way of casting (but it doesn't) and that it'd act like a sail (it doesn't). I agree, it's really unconventional, probably goofy looking and all, but it puts everything within easy reach from the cockpit. 😁