# Hilton Head surf fishing



## Mr. Roostertail

I am headed out to Hilton Head, Sc during the first week in August. I have fished the surf there for several years and catch a bunch of small sharks and rays. Only on occasion I have pulled out a few blues, ocean cats, and whiting. I have been using squid and shrimp with a pyramid sinker on the bottom. I would love to catch different species besides the sharks and rays. Any suggestions on lures that can be used from the beach, or just other ways in general to catch different fish?


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## bkr43050

My suggestion to you would be to find one of the forums dedicated to the SC surf fishing. I don't have any links at this point but it seems that I came across at least one when researching our last trip to the Outer Banks, NC. If you find a forum there perhaps some guys can direct you to more productive areas. We always went in early June and went to that general area several years (Kiawah Island and Edisto Island). Your results sound very similar to ours with the small sharks being by far the most predominant species. But then again back then I did not do my homework to see if there were better spots. That is a very nice area down through there but it seems from a lot that I have heard that it is not as good of an area for fishing as the Outer Banks.

Good luck to you and let us know how you do. I love saltwater fishing and always like to hear results.

Oh by the way, welcome to the OGF!


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## eatwhatyoukeep

If you can afford it I would try to take a backcountry charter for tailing redfish. That is a great area for reds, once you do this you will be spoiled... The summer is a bad time to surf fish all the way up to the outer banks for bigger fish. Try every bait shop you can, start with asking them if they will tell you good places to fish. I found two places doing this, one in the outer banks and another at New Smyrna beach. Imagine a baitshop that will actually tell you where to catch fish!

If you are stuck on the beach try to find the deepest hole you can (or better yet an area where water with baitfish dumps into the beach on a falling tide) . Flounder, redfish and trout will work these areas on outgoing tide. Take some clams or muscles and crush one or two once in a while and throw them out as chum. Redfish will come to this chum but it doesn't draw sharks to the beach.

If you want to catch the bigger sharks fish at night, last two hours of an incoming tide...

Tight lines


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## mrjbigfoot

Been there & done that! My favorite is using 8 to 10" herring that you can normally buy frozen in the grocery stores down there for cheap. Next... when no one in particular is looking... I start cutting up the small sharks I catch, into 2" to 6" steak type portions (with the guts hanging out of the middle). You'll get some biggie sharks & I've also picked up on big Mackeral & even Tarpon (if their in the area) on bottom line cut baits. I use a slip rig with a 2 to 4 oz sinker depending on how far you want to throw and I actually prefer doing all of the above off of piers as well. Don't have to throw far off the end of the pier & you can use lighter weights. Gotta love the hunt for big fish... sharks included...LOL!!! I like using 65 lb fire line & 125 lb steel leaders and cast a big bait caster on a 10 to 12' rod off the beach or a 7 to 8' heavy Mackeral rod off the pier! You can normally find the 125 lb steel leader/Mackeral rigs in the bait stores down there. They've got a smaller bait hook that you can put through the lower jaw of a herring type bait & then 2 extra treble hooks that you can tag into the back & tail of the bait.

Have fun... Wish I was going with you... Haven't been able to convince the wife to go back to the beach since the last time I spent 6 days straight fishing there...LOL!!! I think she had some other idea of what a beach vacation was supposed to be...LOL! LOL! LOL!!!!!!


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## TritonBill

:B This is a redfish that I caught at Hilton Head last year. We fish in the intracoastal waterway on an outgoing tide. When the tide turns and starts to go out about 2 hrs later we are able to get to our spot where a couple creeks feed out and into the intracoastal waterway at Hilton Head. Check these videos out and it will give you an idea of what to do for the redfish. We just use cut mullet which can be netted in the local streams/water on the island.

Video of my buddy casting for mullet. This is the best local free bait we found for catching redfish in the intracoastal waterway.
http://www.gotomickeys.com/redfish/2004SCBait.wmv

Video of me catching this baby...
http://www.gotomickeys.com/redfish/redfish1.wmv


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## Mr. Roostertail

Thanks for the tips. I may end up investing in a casting net for bait fish. I have never done it before, because it just looked like too much work. I have seen it pay off though. I have heard that you can also use a large bobber and let the bait drift in the surf, as opposed to on the bottom. I have never tried this though.


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## eatwhatyoukeep

Definitely the cast net will help you, can't beat either live or fresh bait. I've never tried the ones at walmart which come with a device to help you throw them. Buy a 6' net (max 8') because a big net will wear you out trying to catch a few minnows per throw plus the smaller nets open up better without so much practice. You did get some good tips. If you could borrow a 14' flatbottom you would have it made, plus you could catch shrimp with your castnet!


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## KTkiff

I have a question in regards to the pier fishing. If you get a huge fish on the pier, how do you get it up? do you have to take a net?


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## goby

Most piers will have pier nets ( large hoop nets with long line attached). Usually people that are fishing near will help and lower the net to the water as you guide your catch to the net. Good Luck
Goby


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## Tempon3

TritonBill-

Where exactly were you fishing. I've been going to HHI for a long time. I'm curious to where you were. I've fished similar places on the Calibogue sound many times. Nice fish. 

Tempon3


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## fishmonster11

I would definitely suggest investing in a casting net. I go down there almost every summer and spend a lot of time wading the shores and catching mullet (which is fairly easy) Once I catch them I either cut them up or keep them live and cast them out there. You can catch a fair amount of Sea Trout doing this as well as some small sharks. Also, if you have a kayak I would bring that down as there are tons of fishable rivers with excellent red fish and tarpon...i never do very well with them though


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