Grayton Beach Labor Day

[WolfeMan]

The fam is renting a house on or near Grayton Beach coming up here in a couple weeks and I want to do some fishing.

I grew up surf-fishing in the Atlantic with the 12 foot surf rods and all that jazz - pyramid weights with shrimp, etc.

North FL Surf Fishing seems like a different deal - could I get away with a 7 foot medium heavy spinning rig in the surf up here? We used to have to heave those Atlantic rigs out past big sandbars and it seems that that isnt the case up here.

I would buy a cheap-o surf rod combo if it was suggested but what do you all think?

I expect to be fishing a couple rods - one with a jig or spoon of some kind and one with live/dead bait on a bottom rig.

Thanks for any replies!

[red_yakker]

If I were you, I'd use the surf combo so that you can add enough weight to really chuck it out there. I've used an 8 ft surf combo (el cheapo) around St. George Island and it worked fine. If you don't mind wading out into the surf, the 7 foot spinning rig may be sufficient
Good Luck..

[WolfeMan]

Oh yeah, I dont anticipate trouble wading...

cool thing, there may also be a couple kayaks there, so I may just paddle out past the breakers and setup shop!

[WolfeMan]

So far, not so good. The only thing I've caught and landed was a short whiting and a ladyfish. Nothing on the bottom rigs/surf rods...these guys ate jigs casted from waste deep water. Very disappointing from that perspective - but the weather has been amazing. Full moon might not have helped me much. heck if I know.

Had fun trying, go home tomorrow. Might try some more today but we'll see.

[noleflyfisher]

You are probably standing where the fish live. Fish the first trough on the high water this afternoon. Focus on the breaks in the bar and any bottlenecks where the bar gets close to the beach.

[Jumptrout51]

You are probably standing where the fish live. Fish the first trough on the high water this afternoon. Focus on the breaks in the bar and any bottlenecks where the bar gets close to the beach.

What he said.

[WolfeMan]

The first trough had a significant number of swimmers in it. I did see a slot red cruising the shoreline on my wade in one time.

What I found interesting was the fact that no matter the time of day, the water level never seemed to change! It was strange. At 6 AM, it was up to the sand ledge drop-off where they have dredged sand up to the beach. At 10 AM, same place, 2 PM, same place, 6 PM, same place, sunset, same place.

I ended the weekend with like 5 ladyfish and one whiting. I had fun but did not get to eat anything. I fished some pompano jigs, jerk shad shaped plastic baits from Berkley, grub jigs of several colors, silver casting spoons with feathers on the hook, gold spoons with and without feathered hooks, frozen shrimp, sinking and suspending Mirr-o-lures and the only thing I landed fish on.......was a 3 inch GULP shrimp in New Penny color, LOL.

[WolfeMan]

OH! I forgot! I landed a needle-fish that hit a pink tailed white grub. HAHAHAHAHA!

[andystaxidermy]

OH! I forgot! I landed a needle-fish that hit a pink tailed white grub. HAHAHAHAHA!

man those things stink lol...least ya caught something lol