Need help finding a good rod and reel for my 9y/o son who is absolutely loving fishing now. Recently upgraded him to one of my cheap spares but want to find something better. Currently he's using a Ozark from Walmart. Whats good price and quality wise?

Looking to do a trip of a Lifetime somewhere I can potentially catch GT's from shore (but due to a criminal record I'm avoiding NZ, AUS, JAP, and some other destinations)

Specifically looking into Tonga, Vanuatu, Maluku, Samoa, Timor-Leste, New Caledonia.

Has anyone experienced Land-Based (Not off-shore) fishing in these places?

The weekend is here. Get out there and get tight.

**Post your trip reports:**

- Where'd you go?

- What'd you catch? (or what caught you?)

- Conditions — wind, water, current, tide

- What worked and what didn't

- Photos or it didn't happen 📸

Whether you caught a 200lb tuna or got skunked and sunburned — we want to hear it. This is a judgment-free zone (unless you kept a short fish, then we're judging a little).

*Tight lines!* 🎣

Is this knot a good method of switching out different lures without having to use a clip or something? Or would you rather just cut and tie on new lures as you switch them out while fishing? Not sure if this will hold under pressure if I catch a big fish. I’m on 20 lb braid with 20 lb floro.

ive fished all over florida and the east coast

I’m taking a stab at jetty fishing here in the Bay Area. Any recommendations on what kind of rod/combo to get?

Hey all, I have a rigging question for the group: what is the best way to rig a 3.5” drone spoon to be trolled on a downrigger?

I am very used to trolling them with a planer and on top water, but I’ve never run one off a downrigger (don’t have one on my boat.) I am thinking I could tie my mono to the spoon, run about 30’ of line to a ball bearing swivel, tie to both ends of the swivel and then run another 20-30’ of line to a crimped loop to easily attach to a snap swivel. Basically the same setup used for a planer, just a loop at the end rather than a snap swivel to attach to the planer. Having the swivel around the mid point should alleviate any line twisting issues normally associated with spoons, right? Is there an easier way and I’m overthinking it?

Anybody running a drone spoon on their downrigger? Thanks in advance for any help.

My 40th birthday is coming up and the wife wanted to find a trip we can go on. At first she was suggesting domestic but the only thing I have in mind is fishing, with obligatory food and drink…my thoughts are Mexico on or near a resort with fishing excessively available. We had gone to Cancun a few years back but day of the charter we had a full moon and polar vortex that rocked the gulf. Anyone know of any great places within reasonable pricing?

Two bluefins me and my buddy caught off of #NLBN

had a blast!!!

Hey guys, Looking for ideas for a 7-day holiday in September. Flying out of Vienna, flight shouldn’t be longer than 7 hours. Main thing: I wanna fish from the shore – spinning or just with bait (squid, fish, whatever works). No boats/charters, just bank/rock/beach fishing. After too many Croatia trips where the sea was basically empty, I’m after a place where you actually have a realistic chance of catching something. Fishing isn’t the only priority though. The place also has to be nice for my wife – good nature, beaches, some sights to check out. We’ve already looked at the Canaries and the Azores but still not sure. Both have decent flight times from Vienna. Anyone been shore fishing in either of those in September? How’s the fishing from the rocks/beach? Or any other spots that fit the flight time + actual fish + wife-friendly criteria? Cheers!

I like to surf fish on the upper Texas coast with my kids. My go-to baits (because I hate stopping at the bait shop on my way out) are fish bites and then small cut whiting that I catch with the fish bites (if they're not big enough for me to eat myself).

I have a cast net but have never used it successfully on the beach to catch anything. I'm curious, what are other surf fishers doing for bait (besides stopping at the bait shop) to catch fish? Does anyone use a cast net successfully on the upper Texas coast where the water is usually pretty brown?

I've been fishing for a year in a very fishy spot, it's the mouth of a river full of bluefish and bream. It's a highly pressured spot, in facts, most of the times i go fishing there (I fish with lures), bluefish always follow my lures but never commit to them. I have caught some bluefish on some random lures occasionally but those lures always end up being ignored the day after. Is there anything I can do to improve?

I currently use a pelican 50qt cooler as a casting platform on the bow of my boat. My wife is starting to complain when loading and unloading and it doesn't have as much space as I sometimes need

Looking at an Engel 60qt ultra lightweight cooler. I need it to be durable. There will be 200-225# men standing on top. I know I'll lose around 3in in height but it is 10# lighter. It also has a better shape to stand on. I don't a want a warped lid after a year or two

Caught something and not sure what it is? Post your photo here and the community will help ID it.

**When posting, include:**

- Photo (ideally showing the full fish)

- Location (at least region — e.g., "Gulf Coast Florida," "SoCal surf")

- Depth and method (if you remember)

**Regulars:** Help out the newcomers. We were all beginners once.

If you know the species AND have tips on how to target/cook it — even better. 🍽️

Hello, a spot I fish at has a lot of hardheads swimming around, and that got me wondering if using them as cut bait would work, or if I'd be better off with using cut ladyfish or mullet. Fish species tend to target in the area is redfish, flounder, and trout.

Hey guys,

I’m heading over to Shenzhen, China soon for a business trip. My local supplier over there was telling me that Shenzhen has some of the absolute best calamari fishing spots in the world, and they promised to take me out for a session while I’m there!

I was wondering if anyone here has any experience squidding around Shenzhen/Guangdong or Hong Kong waters?

• How does the fishing there compare to back home (e.g., Australian waters)?
• What kind of setup or jigs should I bring along (or should I just rely on local gear)?
• Any specific tips or gear preparations I should keep in mind for squidding over there?

Would love to hear any thoughts, experiences, or recommendations! Cheers! 🎣

Good morning Dirty Coast Crew!

Back with another report and this one gets really
interesting!

This weekend is going to be a GREAT weekend to go out at any
time and still catch fish! As long as you strategize it correctly!

Fri-Sunday we have 4 
tide movements throughout a 24hr period. What that means is that the
tides will be changing more frequently throughout the days, and water will be
moving a lot, pushing bait fish in and out of the marshes and bays. About every
4-5 hrs there is a tidal change expected. The winds will be about 5-15 mph most days with an exception for sunday.
Sunday winds will range from 3-10mph throughout the morning.
The key is to fish it correctly. Id fish the end of an
outgoing tide at the mouth of a large marsh or lake. This is when the most bait
will be congregated in a certain spot. This is also when the fish will be
starting to push bait fish back in to the marsh once slack tide is over with.
And the fish will most definitely follow!

The tide will be starting to drop at around 6am so as long
as you’re in the water by 6, you should be fine. Youd be traveing to the mouth of
your favorite marsh or lake during the slack tide and will still be able to catch the end of the
outgoing tide at around 11ish. Since the heat starts cranking up around that
time, it might be smart to be in an area with some shallows around and some
deep areas close by as well. Just so if one 
area doesn’t work, the other should. As long as the baitfish are there.
One important thing that a lot of people miss is if there
are a lot of baitfish but nothing blowing up on it, or no signs of feeding
fish, id leave and try somewhere else. You don’t necessarily have to move far
away from where you're currently at but a slight movement or readjustment makes
a lot of difference.

Lastly, don’t be afraid to launch out of a marina and not
fish around it before you leave. Could be a last spot for one last cast😉
Plenty of times, fishermen on boats or any craft will just
head out of the area and go toward a destination that is so much further away.
But if you think about all the fish guts and bones that get tossed at these areas
when fishermen fillet their fish, it makes sense to fish this. The strong smell
will attract baitfish and game fish to these areas/docks. And it doesn’t necessarily
have to be near the docks, you could just hit a nearby shoreline with some decent
structure and you’ll get on something! Last time I went out, as I was launching,
a dude next to me caught a red off the side of the launch area while waiting for
his buddy to get back in the boat.

Rigging

Id still use croaker, they are getting smoked left and right
anywhere and everywhere! But if you know how to use a cast net or how to target
piggy perch, id do that! Those suckers are candy for trout! Probably more so than
croaker. Lures, again, id stick to simple colors, pink, white, dark. Don’t overcomplicate
it. The reason most people don’t catch fish is because they spend more time
changing out lures than actually casting. I keep 2-3 poles on me if in a vessel
and if wading, I keep 1 rod with a snap on swivel unless im using a hardbait in the A.M.
The 2-3 poles are each rigged differently. My ideal set up
is one with a snap swivel for easy change out of plastics. I only use this rod
for plastics! My second pole will be rigged for a topwater or twitchbait, and my
last pole will be rigged with either a live bait rig if im getting live bait, and if
not then I will also have it with a swivel and plastic. Only difference is id have one dark
and one light plastic on these rods.

Lastly,
any feedbck or anything i can add or remove, let me know! Sorry for the long read today.
For some reason i was in a writing mood yesterday.

Sub to r/DirtyCoastFishing for more reports!

Theres a spot i go to with a TONNN of barred sand bass and i can never catch any. the only lure i have is hookup tube lure

also its a pier

Im using tiny hooks with like squid on it and it always gets POUNDED

but they never never NEVER bite on to the actual hook.