I was down at Fort Walton, FL for a week. Pretty cool area. Met up with one of my long time work associates. Have talked to him about checking out the area for a long time and convinced the family to take a vacation there. Work paid for a bit, since work related and all…. Was okay fishing (summer), like most beach towns, summer is for looking at the bikinis, fishing is okay in the mornings and evenings. I got a mangrove snapper, had a smaller cobia on, landed a few big ramoras that were schooled with the cobia, a ton of blue runners (hard tail jacks) and way too many hard head cats. Strong SW winds had things a bit churned there, which equaled a clear day in the Atlantic from Jupiter,FL to Bangor, ME…. There was a good bit of June grass most days, which turned surf fishing impossible, but drove 5 miles east to Destin and clear. Wind direction thing. Overall, I would have caught more fish locally pounding things hard for 7 days. But a 12” blue runner fights like an 18” smallmouth. 24” cobia was like hooking into a 30” wiper that was tied to a 30” walleye. Even those dreaded hardhead catfish are fun to fight. I can’t stand touching the things after getting stuck by one and losing feeling in my finger for 4 months…. I will try to write up another post on the bikinis and white sand….

Nice.....you fished emerald isle this year, right?   Looks like we r heading there for 4 days in a couple weeks.  Daughter wanted that rather than a party for her 16th birthday.  I'm fine with that.
 
Probably going to focus on sharks and take my gear but we will need to catch bait while we are there.   Did you have trouble catching small stuff there?  Ill have some smaller rods to catch bait...just not sure if we will have to go to the public boat launch on the sound side to catch bait or if the whiting and other small things will.be hitting in the surf.....

Where do you guys fish in the ocean? Do you wade? Fish the surf? Piers?

I’ve only fished the ocean a couple times and didn’t have much luck. But I had no idea what I was doing, no patterns, don’t even know what species to target. Totally foreign world.

Seems like you can hook into anything in big water like that.

eyesandgillz
Nice.....you fished emerald isle this year, right?   Looks like we r heading there for 4 days in a couple weeks.  Daughter wanted that rather than a party for her 16th birthday.  I'm fine with that.
 
Probably going to focus on sharks and take my gear but we will need to catch bait while we are there.   Did you have trouble catching small stuff there?  Ill have some smaller rods to catch bait...just not sure if we will have to go to the public boat launch on the sound side to catch bait or if the whiting and other small things will.be hitting in the surf.....

Not this year, but is one of my favorites. I prefer the “point” there (inlet). Cast spoons either in the ocean from the surf or into the inlet early morning or evening for Spanish mackerel and bluefish. Something like a Clarkspoon Jig Minnow works well, if they are around. Usually a ton of lizardfish mixed in that should be good shark bait. The pier there seems to fish well too. Make sure to check county and city ordinances on shark fishing. I don’t know with EI, but many areas is illegal to target from the surf. I know they were saying that in Fort Walton. There were a ton of them there.

If you have a cast net, you’ll have enough bait for your whole trip in probably 1/2 hour. There is a ton of mullet and pin fish in the bay. Find a grass patch and throw on top and most likely get some shrimp. We did that one year at the boat launch area. I got about 2 dozen shrimp in an hour or so. Only 2 really nice ones that were jumbo size. Most were like salad shrimp size when cooked. For bait they were okay size. Most Walmarts near the salt water sell cast nets for under $50. Not nearly as nice as the $200 nets the bait shops sell.

MyWar
Where do you guys fish in the ocean? Do you wade? Fish the surf? Piers?

I’ve only fished the ocean a couple times and didn’t have much luck. But I had no idea what I was doing, no patterns, don’t even know what species to target. Totally foreign world.

Seems like you can hook into anything in big water like that.

I always mix it up, unless something is fishing well and then stay there. For summer fishing On vacation, my preference is to walk right out to the surf from where I’m staying. Fish mornings and evenings. As noted, my favorite is tossing lead spoons. You need the right conditions for that. If rough or dirty water, it doesn’t usually work well. There are a few other artificial that work well too. Pompano “goofy jigs” and bucktails “skinner style” have worked well too. If that isn’t working, then I’ll switch up to dunking bait. Usually use sand fleas and fish bites to go after whiting and pompano. If those aren’t working, then I’ll try cut mullet or other fish. This often runs into catching stingrays, catfish and sharks, which pull well, but a pain in the rear to unhook and release.

If not right in front of where I am staying, I usually go to the closest inlet, if relatively close. Almost always fish in them. Spoons there as well. Swim baits and other lures seem to work there too. I’m sure they work in the beach too, but can’t cast as far as the spoons. Inlets typically have very deep water close to shore. If using live bait there, then Carolina rig. I did this two days this past week with live shrimp and live green back Shad.

If there is a bridge or other access on the bay side or ICW or other access that seems to have deeper water near, I will try there. We rented a boat to go to “Crab Island”, that I fished from a bit. Like fresh water, look for some sort of structure, depth changes or grass patches.

The piers always seem to have fish too. I try to avoid, just since not my favorite thing to roast in the sun without being able to cool off. You are high up, so many lures don’t work. So need to change up some things. I personally did the best on this and saved it for Friday. I probably should have done earlier. The water where I was, was really clear from the pier, much was site fishing. 1/4 of the guys just sat around with 8” swim baits waiting for tarpon to swim by. Probably 15 or so hookups, none landed when I was there, but big fish. Easily 5’ long fish they were casting at. I tried casting a live green back near one and of course one of the dudes with the swim baits casted right in front of me and hooked up! I would have probably been spooled, but oh well.

I have done a few charter boats before, but haven’t since having kids. Back when I would vacation with groups of friends it was much easier to get a group. My son isn’t all too into fishing and a habit of motion sickness. I’ve seen grown men nonstop vomiting for hours. Those boats don’t turn around either. Maybe when he is a bit older, I’ll get him out.

When fishing in the spring and fall in NJ, it is a bit different. That is reading reports and hoping to time the striped bass migration. Most ocean fishing is sort of following migration though.

I will be fishing for drum if anyone asks.   Large live baits or large fresh dead chunks.....all the same for shark or drum.....and I won't be using steel leaders....400# twisted mono bite leaders on 7-8' 400# casted leaders.   16/0 and 20/0 circles....., or, I can make a double drop leader with 12/0 circles and some beads on 100# mono and probably land a few.
 
Surf fishing.....for small stuff (whiting, pompano, etc.)....small fish finder rigs with bluegill to crappie sized hooks....cast out and bump it back in the surf on the bottom...fresh dead shrimp, fish bites arties, sand fleas if you find them.....chunked or stripped finger mullet all work...cast net is invaluable...if bait is running the surf.  Or, small circle hooks with dbl drop leaders, enough weight to suck it on the bottom, and cast out and throw it in a sand spike....my type of surf fishing...both hands free to sip a beer.  Rod doubled over or slack line.....fish on.
 
Surf for sharks, I have a 10' Tsunami spinning rod with an Okuma  eclipz  ez90 loaded with 65# powerpro.....casts a mile.   Also have a 12'0 Ocean master MH with a Penn 4/0 HLW with a couple hundred yards of 50# mono backed by about 500 yards of 50# powepro.   
When I lived in TX, I used my Erie gear (8' shimano trolling rods with tld 200's) with 30# braid and landed gobs of bull reds and sharks up to 5'.....was surprised I landed the sharks but I did.....enough line helps....
 
You can wade or pier fish sound side...never wade fished the carolinas much....can get yourself in trouble if it is mud vs. Sand bottom....so need to be careful.  Flounder, trout, slot reds....
 
High summer isn't the best fishing though...really warm water.

Yeah, I think they more frown on the large shark fishing like you noted with the steel leaders and huge hooks. I recall guys on the pier saying that targeting sharks was illegal. Might just be from the pier.

I don’t mind that sort of fishing at all. It is similar to striper fishing, although you can get them a few ways. I’m just fine setting out spikes and drinking beers. Not so much at 5AM though with the beers.

We had way too much junegrass to do that sort of fishing. The one clear of grass day we had, I saw two bull reds cruising the edge of the first sandbar. The bait shop guys said people were hooking up with them if the grass allowed, using live pin fish. Which were easily available. Just didn’t get another clear day to give it a go.

One thing about surf fishing is just getting the right conditions or it just doesn’t happen.

Last year at EI, it was 20-30mph winds the entire week. I got one Spanish and one large flounder (out of season) and a bunch of lizard fish. It was frustrating. The time before that, I was doing C&R on the Spanish since I was catching too many. EI is limited access in the bay, so if wind is wiping, you only have so many options. There is supposedly good trout and red fishing if you can get to them. Kayak and boat rentals seem to be the best way if the surf doesn’t cooperate. I think some near the boat launch, but rather limited there too. Like you mentioned with the sand/mud thing. I think that is more broken oyster shells if memory is correct. I recall my son trying to wade there barefoot and didn’t go well.

There is also some access to the back at the point too. We stayed in that area the past two times there. Last time I brought my bike and set it up with a milk crate to hold gear and rod holder. So I was able to get into the sound. I was getting a lot of strikes, but not hooking up well there. When I did hook up, it was a stupid lizardfish…. I did get a small flounder there too. The big flounder and Spanish were at the mouth of the inlet, just before the ocean. I seem to always catch fish in that area. Either with lures or taking some live mullet from the bay portion over there. We got into a school of bluefish the one time doing that and was fun.

C'mon Pork! What about the bikinis? We know about white sand.

Porktown
Yeah, I think they more frown on the large shark fishing like you noted with the steel leaders and huge hooks. I recall guys on the pier saying that targeting sharks was illegal. Might just be from the pier.

I don’t mind that sort of fishing at all. It is similar to striper fishing, although you can get them a few ways. I’m just fine setting out spikes and drinking beers. Not so much at 5AM though with the beers.

We had way too much junegrass to do that sort of fishing. The one clear of grass day we had, I saw two bull reds cruising the edge of the first sandbar. The bait shop guys said people were hooking up with them if the grass allowed, using live pin fish. Which were easily available. Just didn’t get another clear day to give it a go.

One thing about surf fishing is just getting the right conditions or it just doesn’t happen.

Last year at EI, it was 20-30mph winds the entire week. I got one Spanish and one large flounder (out of season) and a bunch of lizard fish. It was frustrating. The time before that, I was doing C&R on the Spanish since I was catching too many. EI is limited access in the bay, so if wind is wiping, you only have so many options. There is supposedly good trout and red fishing if you can get to them. Kayak and boat rentals seem to be the best way if the surf doesn’t cooperate. I think some near the boat launch, but rather limited there too. Like you mentioned with the sand/mud thing. I think that is more broken oyster shells if memory is correct. I recall my son trying to wade there barefoot and didn’t go well.

There is also some access to the back at the point too. We stayed in that area the past two times there. Last time I brought my bike and set it up with a milk crate to hold gear and rod holder. So I was able to get into the sound. I was getting a lot of strikes, but not hooking up well there. When I did hook up, it was a stupid lizardfish…. I did get a small flounder there too. The big flounder and Spanish were at the mouth of the inlet, just before the ocean. I seem to always catch fish in that area. Either with lures or taking some live mullet from the bay portion over there. We got into a school of bluefish the one time doing that and was fun.

 
My best rig for flounder in TX was a double drop rig off a 3 way swivel....first drop, short lead, was a 1/8 oz jig head with a gulp shrimp or red/white paddle tail or similar and the trailing, longer lead, had a kahle hook with a bead or two tied on ahead of it.  Mouth hook (insert the hook into their mouth and out the back of their head) a live finger mullet or mud minnow.  Key to hooking the flounder, at least for me, was being patient after they bite.  If you set the hook right away, you'd almost always bring back a half a live bait or tail-less artificial....I tried to always let them mouth...give them a little slack with just the rod tip so they don't feel too much pressure....and only set the hook when they start to swim off with it...
 
Had times when I sat there patiently for 30, 45, 60 seconds while they messed with the bait....set the hook without them swimming off with it and came back with partial baits.

EMitch
C'mon Pork! What about the bikinis? We know about white sand.

I'd be lying if I didn't say that I miss the bikinis already!  A lot of good looking ladies in that area, or at least vacationed there.  Or, it could be just about any lady wearing a bikini or any bathing suit, looks a lot better showing some skin?  Middle of summer and fishing is pretty much early morning and maybe some evenings, had a lot of left over time to just enjoy the views.  There does seem to be a transition in style from those half thong type bottoms the past few years to something a bit more covering.  Those were kind of hard to walk the line between glancing a bit to staring...  I sort of welcome the transition back to something a bit less revealing for that aspect.