Surf Tips - Snag Rig For Peanut Bunker

by Angus Macaulay

Each fall massive schools of peanut bunker leave the rivers and bays, swarming the New Jersey beaches on their migration southward. Striped bass and other gamefish converge on this gathering of bite sized morsels. There are many ways this link of the food chain can be used to the angler’s advantage.

Fishing with a small spoon that imitates the small baitfish is one option. Peanut bunker come in a range of sizes, from barely 2 inches to over four inches. Your artificial offering may not be a close enough match to the bait schools in front of you. There are times when the fish will settle for nothing but the real thing.

Live peanut bunker can be purchased at many bait shops and marinas. This adds another expense to your surf outing. More importantly, transporting the baits and keeping them alive can be difficult and cumbersome.

Netting the peanuts with a cast net is another way to procure live bait. If you own a cast net and know how to use it, this is a quick way to get a lot of live bait. One drawback is keeping the extra baits alive. Constant water replacement is required to keep them cool and well aerated. You are also tied to one location - the spot you keep your bait pail.

The most flexible way to catch and fish with peanut bunker is the snag rig. Carry this rig with you at all times. It doesn’t take up much space. Best of all, it catches the bait and presents the bait all in one cast.

Tie a size 1 bronze finish treble hook to the end of your main line or monofilament leader. Attach a rubber core sinker two feet above the treble hook. You will want to use the lightest sinker that you can comfortably cast with your tackle. Usually, the weight is between ¼ and 1 ounce. That’s all you need. It’s ready to fish.

Cast into a school of bunker and give the rig a couple snaps of the rod tip. After a snap or two, you will feel the weight of the snagged baitfish, sometimes more than one. Retrieving the bait is not necessary. Let it drop to the bottom. You can be certain predators are close by. The wounded peanut bunker tethered to the bottom sticks out like a sore thumb.

When a fish strikes, set the hook right away to avoid deep hooking with the treble. Concern for the fish is also why we use a bronze finish hook. If you happen to break off a fish, the bronzed hook will rust out and do less harm to the fish than a corrosion resistant tinned hook.

If a fish doesn’t pick up within a couple of minutes, start a slow “stop & go” retrieve. Move it just a couple of feet at a time. Sometimes this added action gets their attention. When your bait reaches the beach, pull off the old bait or baits and start the process over again.

This simple rig can save the day when fish are finicky. I’m a dedicated lure man, but I always have the snag rig components in my surf bag.

Surf Tips - Teasers

by Angus Macaulay

A teaser is a fly or sometimes a soft plastic sand eel imitation rigged on its own leader ahead of a conventional lure. Teasers are most often seen ahead of swimming plugs like Bombers or Redfins. They are also effective rigged with metal baits, bucktails, or even poppers. My favorite combination is a 4/0 white teaser ahead of a silver & blue FishTek Tremor.

Figure 1Thirty to forty inches of 30-50 lb. test mono connects your main lure to a swivel. Ten to fourteen inches of the same strength mono attaches the teaser to the swivel.

Adding a teaser to your presentation may be the easiest way to increase your surf catch.

A teaser gives the fish its choice of two prey items. This is the most obvious advantage. The fish can select the teaser or the hard bait, theoretically doubling your chances for success.

The teaser and lure can also work in combination. This increases the effectiveness of one or both of the offerings. The sight of a larger plug following a smaller fly can evoke the competitive instinct in gamefish. This will cause a reaction strike at either the chased fly or chasing lure. A fish that may not have been interested in a fly or lure alone will often take a teaser.

The third advantage is strictly mechanical. There are times when a fly is the best lure choice. A teaser and plug combo allows the spinfisherman or baitcaster to cast a fly. The lure simply provides weight for casting.

Figure 2This bluefish double header fell for a FishTek Tremor and teaser combo.

Sometimes the plug outfishes the teaser. Sometimes the teaser outfishes the plug. Sometimes it is a 50-50 split. One thing is certain. A teaser will increase your catch.

SURF FISHING TIPS

• --A light easterly breeze brings fish to the surf
• --If the surf is too rough to fish, cast lures at the inlet, or take your surf fishing gear to the Ocean Pier.
• -- Fish bite good right before a storm, weather change, or front! (falling barometer)
• --To catch more fish always keep your bait moving slightly across the bottom so you can cover more territory and make your bait look more life-like.
• --If you use squid, always cut it into an attractive tapered strip and hook it only once so it dangles off the hook.
• --If you want to catch stripers, fish early in the morning, dusk, or after dark. Use bloodworms or artificial lures such as Atom's Plugs, Rattletraps, MirrOlures, or Windcheaters.
• --Some of your best surf fishing is early in the morning and right before dark.
• --A hurricane type sinker holds better per ounce than the traditional pyramid type. If it is extremely rough try a sputnik type surf sinker.
• --The lighter the line, the further you can cast, and the less sinker weight it takes to hold! (Most people surf fish 12 to 20 pound test line. Never go over 20# in the surf. If you throw lures, do not use over 16# test.) --Keep your bait in a bucket or cooler, or the sea gulls will steal it!
• --If you want to use a whole finger mullet, buy a "mullet hook" rig so you can thread the whole finger mullet on the hook.
• --Fish one rod out far with a whole finger mullet for blues or stripers, then fish a shorter rod in close with strips of mullet or pieces of bloodworm for kingfish, spot, and trout.
• --If you use bloodworms, keep your hook size down to a size #6 or #8. (Unless you are after keeper sized stripers.)
• --If the crabs continuously steal your bait, go to a single, surf- floater rig. This puts your bait further off the bottom away from the crabs.
• --If there is an outer bar where you are fishing, fish the inside slough at high tide. At low tide, walk out to the bar and cast off.
• --Cast the deep side of jetties for good results.
• --Look for a point of land jutting out on the beach, then fish either side of it.
• --It is possible to "over-cast" the fish, especially at high tide and towards dusk.
• --Always use a sand spike, so your reel does not fall in the sand when baiting up or taking a fish off the hook
• --Never wash your reel in the ocean! Wash it with fresh water when you get home.
• --If you get a big fish on, use your drag, and let the wave action help you bring the fish to the beach. Many fish are lost right in the wash as the excited angler cranks too hard when the wave is retreating.
• --Do not fish in a lightning storm with a graphite fishing rod! (It ain't worth it!)