# Newbie surf fishing Galveston



## droog (Jan 22, 2013)

I'm new on these boards but have been reading old threads for a while.

I will be headed to Galveston this weeked with my wife and kids (3 & 5). We're renting a house with beach access on the west side of the island. I want to get my kids into some fish in the surf to get them excited about fishing. Sounds like whiting is the best bet. We just have light spinning rods, and based on what I've read so far, it sounds like a carolina rig on bottom with cut/peeled fresh shrimp on a small (#2-6?)circle hook is the way to go. How heavy a weight would you recommend to keep the bait from moving too much in the surf? Also, are the whiting close enough in for my kids to cast, or should I plan on casting for them to get out to the 1st gut (past the wade gut)?

Thanks in advance for any advice, and wish us luck.


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## Bearwolf34 (Sep 8, 2005)

whitings what you will typically catch out there along with hard heads fishing off the bottom. Occasionally a red or black drum will come back and snag it this time of the yr. I just use a double drop rig with 3/0 circle hooks baited with a small chunk of shrimp, threaded on as best I can to keep the bait stealers at bay as best I can (which can be tough nowadays). You can just toss from the shoreline into the wade gut and catch whiting etc. Ive actually caught the majority of my fish in the wade gut out to the 1st gut up to and including a small 30" bull shark. 

Just watch the tide, and hit the beach when its coming in and you will catch something. I've actually done best on cloudy days with a high tide or about an hour or so prior to high tide. As far as weights, I typically use spider wts (2oz on my lightwt rigs and 4oz on my heavier rigs to keep things in place) if the currents flowing good.

Good luck and have fun.


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## HuntinforTail (Mar 29, 2011)

Bearwolf34 said:


> whitings what you will typically catch out there along with hard heads fishing off the bottom. Occasionally a red or black drum will come back and snag it this time of the yr. I just use a double drop rig with 3/0 circle hooks baited with a small chunk of shrimp, threaded on as best I can to keep the bait stealers at bay as best I can (which can be tough nowadays). You can just toss from the shoreline into the wade gut and catch whiting etc. Ive actually caught the majority of my fish in the wade gut out to the 1st gut up to and including a small 30" bull shark.
> 
> Just watch the tide, and hit the beach when its coming in and you will catch something. I've actually done best on cloudy days with a high tide or about an hour or so prior to high tide. As far as weights, I typically use spider wts (2oz on my lightwt rigs and 4oz on my heavier rigs to keep things in place) if the currents flowing good.
> 
> Good luck and have fun.


x2 good advice here.

You might want to try a sabiki rig. They sell them at academy on the island. Get the ones with the 40lb mainline 30lb branches and 4 hooks. Works great for whiting up to mid size reds and blacks. The sabikis might be too long for the kids to cast though. Use a 2 oz non spider weight on them.


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## surfguy (May 17, 2011)

The seaweed came in early this year and has been quite a hindrance in the open surf but it varies day to day. The rigs Bearwolf and HuntinforTail mentioned will be your best bet. The closer to shore you can fish, the less seaweed the kids will need to fight. Good luck!


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## droog (Jan 22, 2013)

Thanks for all of the suggestions. I'm looking forward to my kids catching some fish. They'll probably be happy even if they just catch seaweed.


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## Bearwolf34 (Sep 8, 2005)

10-4 on the seaweed, seems it just comes out of nowhere one day and gone the next. You may have to be a little flexible on where you fish, I've found some beaches are eat up with seaweed while others to the east are fishable or fine. Seems when the wind is out of the east is when the seaweeds up the most. You'll be surprised what you can catch in knee deep to mid thigh water. The kiddos while have a blast, mine are always begging to go back. Ha. Making some good memories that will last a lifetime is the best part of it.


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## droog (Jan 22, 2013)

If water is clean/green, do you ever have any luck with topwaters during the winter? Or are we better off sticking with shrimp or cut bait?
Looks like the forecast calls for cloudy with an ESE wind at 9 mph on Saturday. Hope we don't get buried in seaweed, but we'll have a blast no matter what.
Thanks for your suggestions, and please keep them coming if you think of any other tips.


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## surfguy (May 17, 2011)

droog said:


> If water is clean/green, do you ever have any luck with topwaters during the winter? Or are we better off sticking with shrimp or cut bait?
> Looks like the forecast calls for cloudy with an ESE wind at 9 mph on Saturday. Hope we don't get buried in seaweed, but we'll have a blast no matter what.
> Thanks for your suggestions, and please keep them coming if you think of any other tips.


If you're going to throw some lures, I would bump something along the bottom very slowly in the morning since the trout/reds are hunkering down in the deeper water and not real aggressive. Wait for a couple bumps before you set the hook. As the water warms up in the afternoon, move up the water column and to shallower water to topwaters and retrieve a little faster. Look for birds feeding and top water activity. Good luck. You may tie into a fat ole sow just hungry enough to take it.


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## bbgarcia (Mar 23, 2008)

You should have the right conditions as far as the wind goes. A little tip that may help you is to peel the shrimp. They need to be able to smell it. Fish bites may also be added to the hooks for a little more attraction. Have fun w/ the kids and good luck.


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