If you want to have a successful saltwater fishing trip, then you won’t want to miss this article. Here you’ll find 7 saltwater fishing tips you’ll wish you knew earlier.
Are you thinking of giving saltwater fishing a try on your next family vacation?
Are you interested in learning more about how to catch your own fish so that you can prepare the freshest possible meals for your family?
Would you just like to spend more time outdoors — and think that trying ocean fishing is the best way to do it?
If so, then you need to read this post.
In it, we’re sharing some of our best saltwater fishing tips.
Whether you’re just getting started or are looking to up your fishing game, we know you’ll be able to put this advice to good use.
1. Give Guided Fishing a Try
Especially if you’re just getting familiar with saltwater fishing basics, then you may not want to try going at it alone.
In addition to lacking knowledge about the general migration patterns of fish, especially if you’re giving fishing in the ocean a shot, you don’t want to put your safety at risk.
Luckily, there are tons of guided fishing options available to you and your family. You’ll be able to learn the reeling techniques you need to succeed, understand which bait and hooks to use for specific fish, and even learn about the best conditions to fish in.
You’ll also be able to enjoy a more private experience — perfect for celebrating a special occasion.
Looking for the very best in guided fishing in Venice, Louisiana?
If so, check out the Intensity Offshore Outfitters website to learn more about what sets their experience apart from the competition.
Who knows?
You might even walk away with your biggest catch yet!
2. Pick the Right Time of Day
When it comes to the time of the day that you choose to go saltwater fishing, we recommend waiting until the early evening, when fish are most likely to come out and feed.
If you’d prefer to fish in the morning, get there early — crowds will certainly make fish skittish.
Also, you should be sure to take a look at the weather report before you head out for the day. Many people feel that it’s much easier to cast your line further out if there’s a little bit of offshore wind. Plus, these winds will also make it easier for you to see underneath the water’s surface.
Additionally, one of the biggest saltwater fishing basics is to get familiar with the tides in the area where you plan to fish. This is especially important if you’re interested in going surf fishing at the beach.
In general, you’ll likely have the most success when the tide is about two hours before and the two hours after high tide. Despite what you might think, you should avoid fishing during high tide.
Sites like this one will help you to determine the specific tide times in the area where you plan to fish.
3. Use Live Bait
It might not be the most pleasant part of learning how to saltwater fish, but trust us when we tell you that using live bait is usually the way to go if you want to have a successful day out.
Lures may look great, but they don’t help fish to come to you based off of scent and even the color.
If you’re fishing in saltwater, you should use things like tuna, clams, and ballyhoo. Make sure that you’ve done your research (or stopped at a bait and tackle shore) to understand what the fish you want to catch love to eat.
Remember that you may need to buy different bait according to the time of the year. We suggest that you buy a wide variety of bait in order to catch as many different species of fish as is possible.
Finally, always make sure you familiarize yourself with the legalities of using live bait.
4. Choose the Right Hook
Of course, one of the most important saltwater fishing tips is making sure that you’ve chosen the right hook for the job!
If you’re interested in catching the highest number of fish, and aren’t really concerned about the type of fish, then we suggest using a small hook.
In most cases, a small hook will allow you to catch fish that are anywhere from under one pound to up to twenty-five pounds. However, if you’re still just learning how to saltwater fish, we suggest leaving the larger ones in the water for now.
It’s smart to go with a trusted, brand-name hook — this is one place where you shouldn’t necessarily shop by price.
If you’re concerned about getting the fish off of the hook, then use a long shank hook, which makes the process easier. It also helps the fish to exhaust itself, so by the time you pull it out of the water, the fight will be over.
If you’re doing the “bait and wait” technique, then use a circular hook — especially when using live bait.
Put These Saltwater Fishing tips into Practice
We hope that this post has helped to take some of the guesswork out of saltwater fishing.
Use these saltwater fishing tips to catch more fish, learn more about migration patterns, and above all, to have more fun while going fishing in the ocean.
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Be sure to check out our website and blogs for more life hacks that will help you to get the most not only out of your next vacation, but out of every possible experience.