I'm headed over to Ocean Shores and I thought I might try my hand at the ole surf perch. I'll be using gear due to time restraints, other people, and cold ass water! I was gonna dig some clams up and use the necks, but I guess it's closed so I'm in need of another bait (feels funny saying that). You can PM me with suggestions if you want so nobody on here knows that you fish with gear or know anythig about it Thanks, Cov
Attach sandshrimp tails with an egg loop. Also mud worms are good and years ago I used to catch them by sliding half a night crawler up a worm hook. Good Luck and good eating!! :thumb:
Screw bait. In the surf they are visual hunters. slip on an egg sinker, swivel, 18 inches of leader a bait holder hook, and thread a "motor oil" colored rubber "grub" on. If the fish are in the vicinity, you'll catch 'em. Don't blind cast. holes, troughs and in the breakers. In that order.
Years ago my friends and I did great at the mouth of the lyre river using 1 to 1.5 inch white rubber crappie jigs
Thanks for the info. I heard that the sandshrimp fall off easily so I got some powerbait sandshrimp "the fish hold on 5 million times longer!" so hopefully they will stay on longer. I gotta tell ya it was weird staring at all that gear. I had to call a guy over to help me out, I was just staring at this wall of 10 different kinds of everything. It seems like every product had a picture of a bass on it too. Anyhow, thanks for the input
One more thing. Philster was right. Surf perch are visual hunters, cruise around in schools, are opportunistic feeders and pick up anything that resembles food, but are quick to spit out anything that is not. You have to be quick with artificials. But they take them readily. You might not get a second chance to set the hook. But if you are using bait, and they didn't steal your sandshrimp or bait on the first bite, they, or another competing hungry school mate, will be back on the bait in no time. They are quick to steal your sandshrimp. If you use two leaders and hooks, you can often get double hookups.
Yeah, but a normal length shank size 6 hook, with a brass bead, short orange thread "neck", motor oil cactus chenille, and a short tail of some kind of bright shit works better. Notice I keep saying "motor oil"? Hopefully he's listening... shad flies in silver and red work great too...
Digging or tubing sandshrimp can be alot of work and hard on the back. Since I will only use a sandshrimp for bait that I have personally caught, I am leaning more toward flies. I'm going to soak my old moldy summer (4mm torso, 3mm legs & arms) surfin wetsuit in bleach and hang it in the sun inside out (so I don't give my entire body "athlete's foot" or some other fungi-imperfecti scourge), and go after them this spring and summer. A wetsuit is safer than waders for wading in the surf. You can just let the waves break on you, no problem.
Type III sink tip and chartreuse / white clousers striped behind the breakers works, but Jim is right about the wet suit vs. the waders. If you're wading, bring along a change of clothes and your sense of humor.
Even a dozen or so 60-70 count white shrimp will work well. You can cut them into chunks so that it lasts longer, and it stays on the hook better. Try a two-hook Crappie rig. Fun when you get a double.
During High School I lived in Reedsport, OR. I was a surf perch fishing machine. I always freeze the tip of the clam necks (the part you snip off with a pair of scissors) and stock them up for surf perch. Stays on for multiple fish quite often and works great. Small pieces of prawns (I usually get 4 pcs from each 2" prawn) work really good too hooked with an egg loop. You can easily toss the peanut sized chunks of clam necks w/ a 6wt fly rod too (incoming flames I am sure). I still do this around the pilings in puget sound for perch because you get such a nice slow natural looking sinking action. Crab Butter mashed into a scent vent works awesome too in front of a pearly pink bead.
Surf perch at Hobuck Beach near Neah Bay, are there any? I assume there are but have no idea. I'll be camping there at the end of April so wanted to know if anyone has insight. It's a famous surfing break so conditions are right, I would assume.
