# Need Help Catching a Shark



## tbaker (Dec 20, 2004)

I come hat in hand with a confession to make. I am apparently inadequate as a father.....my 8 year old son wants to catch a shark so bad he can taste it.....and I can't make it happen.

I have caught lots of sharks when fishing for everything BUT them.....but when put on the spot I am apparently inadequate. My son is losing faith in his dad and I need an assist.

Been trying the surf and gulf passes such as Mitchells in Sargent and Colorado River jetties. But crabs and hardheads are all I can muster.

Any tips to help a guy save his family and redeem himself in front of his kids? (Type of bait, distance from shore, etc....Size and species is of NO concern) 

tb


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## Megalodon27 (Aug 5, 2015)

We have had success using stingray as bait or fresh live surf fish and Kayaking the bait out 200-300yrs. We got 3 blacktips last Friday. If you want a begging Guide guide go to TX-SharkFishing.com


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## Greatwhite (Mar 28, 2011)

How are you attempting to catch them right now? You're in the right areas, maybe try to beach front once the water isn't so clear and full of trout fisherman. 

It doesn't sound like you're kayaking baits since you mentioned the two spots you did. Which is perfectly fine, there's plenty of sharks within casting distance from shore. 

Most times you're simply over complicating it.
An all mono leader of 200-550# test, a few swivels, a 4-8oz surf weight and a 10-14/0 circle hook go a long ways.

Bait with fresh whiting that can be caught nearly anywhere on shrimp or fish bites. Fresh netted mullet work also and don't under estimate cutting hard heads up because they catch sharks too.


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## tbaker (Dec 20, 2004)

Thanks for the responses. We're going for the small nuisance sharks that would normally drive you to leave a spot. Definitely not employing a kayak at this time. 

Do have access to a boat as well, but typically stay inside jetties and passes. 

Been using a bottom rig with leader and fresh cut mullet AND hardheads. Just can't seem to find any takers.


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## jimj100 (Dec 1, 2012)

as megalodon says, U need cut stingray, or a small whole stingray. Southern ray or cownose ray. Very durable bait, not attractive to crabs or HH. Depending on location, walk to first bar and cast into the gut w/ a spider weight. a black tip will pick that up! 
Hey, they will also pick up a HH. 
The fresh mullet, live or cut, Whiting live or cut, are great shark baits... but everyone else in the ocean loves them too.


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## iamatt (Aug 28, 2012)

Also it is my experience time of day makes a huge difference. When I take my kids we usually go in the afternoon or a little before and get set up. Let them catch bait and fart around. Get baits deployed and one more refresh before dusk. This is when we almost always get pickups. Fresh bait 30 mins before sunset and you know you going to get the clicker rolling. We then camp and drop baits before the sun comes up. When you should be catching trout in the AM is also when we get alot of pickups too. Then we call it a day once it gets warm. I don't know but I don't enjoy cooking all day in the sun so that works well for us.


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## iamatt (Aug 28, 2012)

OR you could book an SK 'tarpon trip' too ....


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## IrishSharker (Jan 20, 2015)

If your catching hardheads you also may wanna upsize your bait, it doesn't have to be huge just want something big enough to where they won't mess with it half whiting and big mullet work great.


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## Mr. Saltwater (Oct 5, 2012)

Since you said size doesn't matter, you will have more success targeting 2-3 ft. sharks. Don't go too big on the hooks. 5/0 circle hooks on 80-100 lb. steel leader will do just fine. Whiting or mullet fillets will put out a lot of smell so they can find the bait...more than chunks. Live mullet or shad works great too. Use just enough spider weight to hold in the current, and if you have several rods place a bait in each gut. 

The surf is FULL of them right now, and a trick we used to use was a chum block on a falling tide. Big frozen block of ground up fish scraps, liver, cat food, or whatever in a mesh bag staked out on the far edge of the first bar and about 50 yards up current of the rods. Always seems to draw them in but will draw in crabs and hardheads too so use bigger baits. Not recommended on crowded beaches or if you plan to wade.


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## tbaker (Dec 20, 2004)

I think he would be happy with a 12" shark, much less anything big. That's the goal for now. Thanks to all for the responses.


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## fishingcacher (Mar 29, 2008)

Bring some dead shrimp, catch some whiting, cut whiting into chunks and use as bait.


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## Blueshoes (Jan 24, 2013)

if any shark is what youre going for, you might even try a popping cork with live shrimp or cut squid, watched a guy catch two 2 foot blacktips yesterday off live shrimp and everybody knows bonnetheads cant resist squid. Good luck


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## ROBOWADER (May 22, 2004)

TB, my son caught his first one on a live shrimp under a cajun thunder in the surf a couple weeks ago....LOL


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## Salty-Noob (Jun 9, 2015)

just fish in the surf with croaker for trout...........


they will eat it


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## tbaker (Dec 20, 2004)

So we snuck off yesterday to Mitchells Cut in Sargent. Too rough for the kids in the surf as they can't resist the urge to swim...ever. 

No live shrimp to be found in town so we used frozen shrimp in the aim to catch our bait first. No takers. NONE. No hardheads, drum, croakers, piggies....NOTHING. 

I netted some mullet and skipjack and tried them. Live, cut, mangled by crabs. Nada.

I feel I may be under a spell of some sort. 

Will hit it again as soon as we can. Thanks again for all the tips.


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## markmc2 (Aug 19, 2015)

last Friday i took my son Shark fishing. I bought a $5 box of frozen squid then tied up to a pole inside some Jetties. we cut the squid into 1" lengths, circle hook with snell knot, 100 lb flouro leader, crimp tube, then palomer knot to our 14-15 lb mono line. We caught/released about 25 Sharp Nose and Blacktips up to 33 inches long. We also caught 3-4 Bonnetheads that were up to 47 inches long. We caught two really big fish but they cut off on some barnacles. he really got into it and was baiting/hooking himself. we didn't lose any fish due to the leader material but i did have a leader break after we netted one. we had alot of fun and i stayed busy getting fish off and rigging lines. We did catch a Bonnet on the last chunk of squid. We also had one get bit in half by another shark.

next time pickup a bag of this stuff, I think it will help you call them in: Aquatic Nutrition Bloodstream Top Predator Chum


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## Megalodon27 (Aug 5, 2015)

MarckMC where did you fish to get so much action?


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## markmc2 (Aug 19, 2015)

Megalodon27 said:


> MarckMC where did you fish to get so much action?


in the water...23 ft deep near a 60 ft deep ship channel. i forgot to mention that we were using egg sinkers above the leader swivel to hit bottom. on this particular day we got there as the tide was going to fall but 1 oz weights were plenty to stay down there. not much current.

we returned to same spot the next day on rising tide and 5 oz weights weren't keeping us on bottom. lots of current and we only caught 6.


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## Sharpest (Mar 31, 2014)

Ive caught a few bonnetheads on crab this summer. Enough to declare it a pattern.


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## bingorocks (Oct 30, 2014)

Book an overnight trip with Eric "Oz" Ozolins. That ought to get you guys your fix. Save your money and do it. Well worth it.


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## Yellow.mouth (May 10, 2013)

A couple of add-ons to what has already been said...

1. You do not need to spend a lot of money to catch sharks. Keep fishing and you will find them. IMO, it will be more rewarding for you and your son that way. 

2. Regarding baits, in my experience, fresh cut whiting will generally get the most bites. For 2 to 4 foot sharks, half an 8 or 10" fish is great. However, you need to check it regularly as it will get stolen. Rays get stolen much less often, but not picked up as often IMO. So, if I am actively checking baits, whiting or ladyfish are my choice. If I want to relax and wait, rays it is. 

3. Do not overlook beachfront piers as an option, particularly at night. They are great for keeping dry, getting baits out a ways without paddling, and night fishing. 

4. This is one of my favorite times of the year...lots of sharks in the surf, plus redfish and specs to catch between shark runs! 

Keep at it!


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