Inexperienced Anglers Need To Know Basics For Successful Outings

By FRANK SARGEANT The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 4, 2008

One of the most common e-mails I get these days is from readers who have been here a year or two, but have yet to master the basics of success in inshore saltwater fishing. It's a big, confusing world out there on the water, and many find it so challenging and frustrating they eventually give up and take up golf - which, of course, has no frustrations.

So, herewith, a very basic primer.

Where you fish is the first key. There are a lot of places where they ain't, as an old skipper told me many years ago. And if you fish where the fish are not, no matter how patient you are, you catch zip. Maybe even double-zip.

For those without boats, the Sunshine Skyway, Gandy Friendship Pier, Rod & Reel Pier at Anna Maria, the two piers at Fort DeSoto, the Green Bridge Pier in Bradenton and any direct Gulf-front pier will be highly productive areas.

Second in importance is the terminal rig. Forget the steel leaders, 7/0 hooks and egg sinkers - the classic tourist rig. For most inshore fishing, you need a rig geared to handle 10-pound-test line. Add two feet of 20- to 25-pound- test mono leader, tied on with a double uni-knot. On the end goes a size 1 or 1/0 hook. Add enough weight to cast, no more; a quarter-ounce is the max if you're fishing water up to six feet deep. Over grassy bottom, add a 2-inch foam cork so it just floats the bait off bottom. At the larger piers where water is deep and currents strong, you will need more weight, up to an ounce, to get the bait down.

And on the hook goes a live shrimp. Forget frozen shrimp; it catches catfish, rarely anything else. Fresh shrimp catches almost anything you'd want to catch in saltwater. The best hookup in the shallows is under the horn on the head. Or, in high current areas where you'll be casting a lot, you might need to run the hook up inside the tail, so the bait stays put longer.

With this setup, you are prepared to catch trout and sheepshead, two of the most likely edible targets for beginning anglers. You also will catch plenty of ladyfish, jacks and others that will pull your string and keep you from buying a putter. You also are likely to catch Spanish mackerel and bluefish at this time of year; they have teeth, and occasionally bite through the mono leader, but you're still better off than using wire because the wire greatly cuts down on the number of bites you get.

The way you present the bait is also basic.

Nearly always, you'll do best by casting the bait uptide and letting it be swept back around pilings, eddies, points and sand holes. At the end of the drift, reel it back in and cast it uptide again. Anchoring the bait on bottom in one place attracts catfish, rays and pinfish, but not often more desirable species.

Artificial lures require more skill for success, but there are some good beginner lures that take less expertise.

Plastic shrimp such as the DOA are hard to beat. Use the 3-inch version in natural tan or white "glow" color. Fish it exactly like a live shrimp; throw it upcurrent and let it drift down, without working the rod at all. Let it sweep past pilings, riprap shores, mangrove edges, oyster bars, or anything that might be attractive to gamefish. If it stops or if the line jumps, set the hook. You also can fish it under a float, though this makes casting more difficult.

The Berkley GULP! baits are also great for beginning anglers. This is a composite, edible bait that's shaped to fit on jigs and looks like shrimp, worms, crabs, etc. The advantage of this stuff is that it has a powerful (and nasty!) scent that drifts through the water and lures fish to your offering. Again, you can fish it just like a live bait, very slowly, or even dead on the bottom. Redfish love this bait.

You also can talk to other anglers, join fishing clubs, get on Internet forums (such as www.floridasportsman.comand www.capmel.com) and ask what's biting where, and you'll soon begin to find yourself getting luckier.

Last but not least, consider hiring a well-known guide, at least for a half-day. Seeing how a pro does it can be like getting a golf lesson from Tiger Woods.

ETC.: Larry Mastry joins captain Mel Berman of WFLA, 970 AM, for a kingfish/tarpon clinic Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Toyota of Tampa Bay, 1101 E. Fletcher Ave., Tampa. For more information, call (866) 438-8696. … IGFA record-holder Rick Redd presents a tarpon seminar at the Tampa Bay Fly Fishing Club on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Compton Park Rec Center in Tampa Palms. The public is welcome; www.tbffc.org.