Inshore Saltwater Fishing for Beginners (The Complete Guide)
A beginner to inshore saltwater fishing will need a 3500 series reel filled with 10 or 15 pound braided line and a 20 pound leader. Couple that set up with a 7 foot medium/heavy action rod and a 3 to 5 inch paddle tail shad type of lure with a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce jig head.
If you have that tackle and can master that lure style then you can catch tarpon, snook, redfish, speckled trout, flounder, black drum and just about any other species of inshore fish.
When you first start fishing the inshore saltwater areas there can be a daunting learning curve. There are so many different fish to try and target. Each one of those fish has different characteristics and behavior patterns to learn.
You will need different tackle for different fish. This can change depending upon the underwater environment and structures....
You have to alter your techniques based on weather and tides.....
Whoa this sounds hard!!! It's really not. Fish are not rocket scientists and can be fooled easily to bite whatever you are trying to catch them with. You will just have to learn a few basic tips and techniques and then you can catch a ton on fish inshore.
This article is geared towards inshore saltwater fishermen that are true beginners.
I am an INSHORE FISHING GUIDE on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the inshore grass flats and mangroves for over 40 years. In this article I will try and teach you what I know about inshore fishing.
Watch the video below and catch more snook with paddle tails.
A beginner to inshore saltwater fishing will need a 3500 series reel filled with 10 or 15 pound braided line and a 20 pound leader. Couple that set up with a 7 foot medium/heavy action rod and a 3 to 5 inch paddle tail shad type of lure with a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce jig head.
If you have that tackle and can master that lure style then you can catch tarpon, snook, redfish, speckled trout, flounder, black drum and just about any other species of inshore fish.
When you first start fishing the inshore saltwater areas there can be a daunting learning curve. There are so many different fish to try and target. Each one of those fish has different characteristics and behavior patterns to learn.
You will need different tackle for different fish. This can change depending upon the underwater environment and structures....
You have to alter your techniques based on weather and tides.....
Whoa this sounds hard!!! It's really not. Fish are not rocket scientists and can be fooled easily to bite whatever you are trying to catch them with. You will just have to learn a few basic tips and techniques and then you can catch a ton on fish inshore.
This article is geared towards inshore saltwater fishermen that are true beginners.
I am an INSHORE FISHING GUIDE on the Treasure Coast of Florida and have been fishing the inshore grass flats and mangroves for over 40 years. In this article I will try and teach you what I know about inshore fishing.
Watch the video below and catch more snook with paddle tails.
Inshore saltwater fishing for beginners--Fishing Gear
You are going to need to protect yourself from the elements especially if you are fishing in the south. You will definitely need certain gear to protect yourself from the sun.
You will need a good pair of polarized sun glasses. Inshore fishermen do a lot of sight fishing. You can't sight fish if you can't see into the water. Polarized lenses get rid of the glare on the surface of the water.
Expensive pairs of sunglasses will run you $250 and cheap ones will cost less than $25. You decide which kind that you want to buy but you definitely need polarized glasses. The best lens colors for inshore fishing are amber, rose and copper.
You will also want to wear protective UV performance shirts. These types of shirts have a built in sun screen added to the material. They are also quick drying to help evaporate you perspiration which keeps you cooler.
You will also want to wear a hat of some kind. Not just to protect your head and face from the sun but to further block the light from getting behind your polarized lenses making it harder to see.
Inshore saltwater fishing for beginners--Tackle
Getting the right tackle depends on what kind of fish your are targeting and where you are fishing. You will have a different rod and reel for catching pompano off of the beach than you would if you are catching tarpon on the flats.
It's probably a good idea to have a few different set ups for your different fishing adventures. If you are going to fish off of the beach a surf casting set up is a good idea. If you are bridge fishing for large snook or grouper a heavy set up is a good idea. If you are fishing the grass flats for spotted sea trout then a lighter rod and reel set up is the way to go.
If I were just staring to fish inshore, then I would buy 2500 series reel filled with 10 pound braid or mono filament line. I would pair this with a medium action rod that was 7 to 8 feet long. This would be a great set up for fishing for smaller fish and for fishing open spaces like grass flats.
I would also but a 4000 to 5000 series reel filled with 30 pound braided line for bigger snook and tarpon and such. This reel would be paired with a 7 to 8 foot medium heavy rod. This will be a great set up for bigger fish or for fishing around structure like docks and bridges.
There are a lot of different ideas about what is the perfect rods, reels, line, baits and lures for inshore fishing. These will change based on what you are fishing for and where.
WANT TO CATCH A SNOOK? BOOK YOUR FISHING CHARTER TODAY!
The best lures are easy to choose too. You will want to get yourself a Zara Super Spook and a MirroLure Top Dog for all of your top water fishing. You will want to fish these top water lures during the first hour of the day and last hour of the day. The best colors and white and something natural like a white or silver belly with a green or black back.
The best lure for shallow water is either a white DOA CAL with a red 1/8 ounce jig head or a white Berkeley GULP shrimp or swimming mullet with a red jig head. This is a great lure selection for fishing grass flats and around docks for snook, redfish, spotted sea trout, flounder and just about anything else that swims.
The video below is about catching inshore tarpon.
Inshore saltwater fishing for beginners--Kayak Fishing
In my extremely biased opinion, a kayak is a great purchase for someone interested in inshore saltwater fishing. There are lots of benefits to having a kayak. They give you the ability to fish waters that you can't get to if you were just wade fishing.
They are relatively inexpensive. You can spend a few thousand dollars on a totally rigged up kayak if you want to. BUT an entry level new fishing kayak is only $600 and a good used one can be found for $250 on the internet. That is not a lot of money when you consider the access to the many fishing grounds that you won't have access to without one.
A kayak gives you access to all of the fishing spots of the wade fishermen. It gives you access to all of the spots of a flats boat fishermen and then some. It gives you access to all of the fishing spots of a surf fishermen. (As long as the ocean is not too rough). I'm telling you right now if you are interested in fishing the inshore saltwater areas around Florida or anywhere in the South for that matter, a kayak is the way to go.
OK. Let's talk about some of the cons of having a kayak. One of the main ones is storage space. They are 10 to 13 feet long usually which means that you will need a garage or storage shed to keep them out of the elements.
I wrote another article on this website that covers kayak fishing in a lot more detail. You can read that article by clicking right here.
They are relatively hard to lift up and put on top of a car. If you don't have a truck you will have to buy racks for the roof of your car.
I am actually having trouble thinking of any more cons to kayak fishing. You will get wetter in a kayak than other boats. I guess that's a con. Watch the video below and decide for yourself.
WANT TO CATCH A TROPHY SNOOK, TARPON OR REDFISH? Give us a call and BOOK YOUR FISHING CHARTER TODAY!
The video below will give you a review of one of the kayaks that I use for my fishing charters.
Inshore saltwater fishing for beginners--Wade Fishing
Wade fishing is another inexpensive type of inshore fishing that just about anyone can do. You do not need much as far a gear goes to be a successful wade fisherman. You can make it expensive if you want to but all you really need is an old pair of tennis shoes, a fishing pole, polarized sun glasses, a hat, a shirt and some pants and you are good to go.
If you want to stay dry you can get yourself a pair of neoprene bib waders for $200-300. You can also get a tackle box that straps to your chest, a landing net, a utility belt..... I wade fish with a fanny pack hanging around my neck.
I wrote another article on this website that covers wade fishing in great detail. You can read that article by clicking right here.
That's my tackle box and it has a bag of white DOA CAL shad paddle tails and a bag of root beer shad paddle tails and some red 1/8 ounce jig heads. That's about it unless its the crack of dawn and then I will have a couple of walk-the-dog types of top water lures too.
I will bring one 4000 series reel and a 7 feet medium heavy rod loaded with 20 lb. braided line if I am fishing docks or targeting larger fish.
If I am targeting speckled trout I will have a 2500 series rod with 8 lb. mono filament line and a 7 feet medium action rod.
Watch this video and catch more flounder around docks with lures.
Inshore Saltwater Fishing for Beginners-- Surf Fishing
Surf fishing is another great way to catch inshore fish. All that you need is a beach, some bait and some tackle and you are good to go. It always amazes me the quality of the fish that you can catch right off of the beach. In Florida, there are huge tarpon and sharks that you can catch during their migrations.
You can catch big snook just a few feet from the sand that you are standing on. My point is that there are tons of fish to catch right in the surf. This easy access makes it a no brainer for beginners who want to learn how to fish.
You can catch bluefish, flounders, redfish, spotted sea trout, jack crevalle, Spanish mackerel, ladyfish, sheepshead, snapper, grouper...…...and many more fish that are just a cast away from you.
I wrote another article that covers surf fishing for beginners in great detail. You can read that article by clicking right here.
Pompano and whiting are delicious and easy to catch when they are migrating through. Just get yourself a pompano rig from your local bait shop and some frozen shrimp and head to the beach. At the higher parts of the tide you won't even have to cast out more than 20 feet to catch a ton of fish.
Watch this video and catch more trout out of a kayak.
Conclusion:
Inshore fishing is an easy way to get started into fishing. You can start surf fishing, wade fishing, kayak fishing, fishing off of a pier, fishing off of a bridge...… My point is that inshore fishing has a very low barrier to entry. If you want to go offshore fishing, then you will need an expensive boat or an expensive fishing guide to get you started.
Sure the fish are different inshore but there are still some huge fish to catch within casting distance from the land. I got my start fishing when I was about 5 years old. My brothers would take me wade fishing around mangrove islands with cane poles. We would catch sheepshead and mangrove snappers with fiddler crabs. Now that is some low barrier to entry fishing right there.
Inshore fishing is a blast and it is a great way to get started if you want to learn the basics of fishing. I hope that this article helps you catch more fish or at the very least have more fun trying. Thanks for reading it.
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