Surf Fishing for big red drum!
The days are getting shorter and the air is getting cooler. For Mid-Atlantic surf casters, this means it’s time to target big red drum in the surf!
A large amount of red drum migrate to Virginias Chesapeake Bay in the spring to spawn and will holdover throughout the summer and then migrate back out in the fall. In general, red fish have a very broad range and you can find them as far north as Massachusetts all the way down to Texas. However, some of the biggest red drum are caught in Virginia and North Carolina waters, likely due to the vicinity of the Chesapeake Bay. As they migrate out of the bay in the fall, targeting them in Virginia Beach is a popular destination, as is Virginias Eastern Shore, but the Outer Banks (OBX) of North Carolina is probably the most famous area to target these migrating fish. NC also happens to hold the all-tackle world record at 94 lbs 2 oz, caught while surf fishing.
Our average big red fish here in VA is between 45” – 50” with plenty of fish over 50”. To fight this class of fish in the surf, a 10-13’ heavy action surf rod is ideal. These rods will be capable of not only throwing heavy bottom rigs, but the length also helps to keep your line up and out of the waves and fighting and turning those big drum in the wash. We call these rods “heavers” because they serve as a special tactical advantage over other kinds of rods due to their ability to “heave” what we call “8&Bait” (8 oz of lead and bait). They’re also very effective at taming other large gamefish species in the surf zone such as big cobia, stripers, black drum and sharks.
One of the most commonly used rigs in this region is called a “Fish Finder” rig or cannonball rig. These are bottom rigs and there are many variations of it. I prefer a shortened, more compact, version that is a mix of both rigs so that it does not negatively affect casting distance. In general, the rig consists of a 6-10 oz sinker, a large snap swivel, a 100+ lb barrel swivel, 3-5” of 100-130 lb monofilament “bite” leader and an 8/0-10/0 circle hook. The theory behind this rig is that with a properly set drag (preferably with a clicker) the fish is able to eat the bait and run with it without having to drag around the 6-10 oz sinker. This also gives you time to run over to your rod to apply pressure that assists in “setting” the circle hook.
The parts of this rig depend on a few factors such as currents and winds, but a good general rule of thumb for selecting your sinker is to use the least amount that will hold your bait on the bottom. My everyday preference for this rig is an 8 oz “frog tongue” sinker clipped to a large snap swivel and tied to a 230 lb Size 2 barrel swivel that is crimped to a 4” 130 lb monofilament bite leader that is snell knotted to a 10/0 hook.
For bait, the head of a small/medium sized fish is preferable to crab. Why? While crab is a great bait for drum, it doesn’t always hold up to the rigors of casting 80-100+ yards and the rough waters we target. So for this I like to use spot and mullet heads, however, I will sometimes use bluefish, croaker and whiting heads also. I prefer to catch my own bait and this is where a shorter rod gets the call. This rod can be in the 7-9’ range and a medium to medium heavy action, which perfectly handles the job of catching bait from the surf and makes easy work of casting double-drop bottom rigs and detecting the light bites of spot, croaker, and whiting.
Another rod i’ll have on hand is something to throw artificial lures on. For me, I like a heavy action 10-11’ spinning outfit that i’ll use for casting jig head grubs and buck tails, and also sight-casting schools of Spanish mackerel and bluefish with spoons and jigs. Paired with the right reel and line combo, you can hit the rising sun with a 2 oz lure! In all seriousness, many times pods (schools) of menhaden/bunker will roam in to casting distance with Spanish mackerel and bluefish blitzing and busting them out of the water. To reach these fish, often times you need to be able to cast a 2-3 oz spoon or jig a great distance to be able to catch them. This rod allows you to do just that and if you don’t catch anything, its fun just bombing casts out past the breakers!
Side note, this rod pulls double duty for targeting puppy and yearling sized drum and trophy sized whiting as well. I like to use a paired down version of the fish finder rig utilizing a lighter weight, smaller hook and line.
Thank for reading and for more in-depth breakdowns of the rigs, rod/reel setups, etc, follow me on Instagram @Reker.Rob and @FishFighters.FishingClub and at www.FishFightersFishingClub.com
