OTW Surfcaster Survey

TOP ANSWER (Tie): Darter & Bucktail
Runner Up: Minnow Plug

“Needlefish. Like everybody, I have nights when it seems that bass won’t touch certain plugs, but in my experience, if they’re hitting plugs, they won’t pass up a needlefish.”
– Frank Goncalves

“White! Just about every baitfish has white in it, or is very near white. I have caught fish on white plugs and jigs on every moon and in every condition known to man.”
– Bill Wetzel

TOP ANSWER: Eels
Runner Up: Bunker

“I think live bunker or spot might be the most attractive to big stripers, but when you consider the transportation problems of actually being able to fish those from the surf, eels win because they’re a convenient surfcasting bait.”

– John Skinner,
Author Striper Pursuit,
Season on the Edge,
Fishing the Bucktail

TOP ANSWER: 40 Pounds

“Forty-pound fish are in a class of their own. They even look different.”

– Chris Buchta

TOP ANSWER: Power Pro
Runner Up: Spiderwire Invisibraid

Spring: 68%
Fall: 21%

“I find the better bites last a few days in the spring, whereas the fall can be spotty.”
– Frank Goncalves

“Neither. As a Montauk fisherman, August is my month to hunt large. Following the first moon of August, the snappers will move into the Montauk surf chasing spearing. There are many resident cows out in the rips from the end of June through the first moon of September.  Some of them will come into the surf at night to feed on the newly arrived bait. They come there on very specific tides, and it is a very tough hunt, but the rewards can be great. So can the disappointment.”
– Bill Wetzel

“Most stripers feed from dusk to dawn, and that’s a shorter period in the spring.”
– John Skinner

“In the spring, fish are arriving and settling into their summer patterns. They are much more predictable and do not move through an area as quickly.”
– Steve Gallant

“I like the fall. The fish have had three or four months to eat and grow since they arrived in the spring. Most of my 40-pound-plus bass have come in October and November.”
– Steve McKenna

Depends on the Conditions/Location: 56%
Love it—Let’s Go Fishing: 25%
Time for a Night Off: 19%

“I will fish a full moon in certain locations, like deep water or an area that has artificial lights, but I stay away from shallow water areas.”
– Chris Buchta

“As much as I’d like to say ‘time for a night off,’ I always tell my fishing partner, ‘Somewhere, someone is catching.”
– Frank Goncalves

“To me, every moon means a different bite. A full moon in June may spark sand eel migrations, and a full in August may drive snappers to move out of the backwaters and into the open surf. I have found that on bright nights, many baits will hit shallow reefs and flats. Those are the kind of areas where you will find me on a bright night. Also, realize stripers are hitting your plug by sight, and on bright nights they are able to follow fast-moving targets. Never think that you need to go dead slow on a bright night. Try quicker retrieve speeds and you will be amazed at what happens. Give me a full moon, give me a new moon, give me a quarter moon. I’m fishing.”
– Bill Wetzel

TOP ANSWER: Lamiglas
RUNNER UP: St. Croix

Waders: 60%
Wetsuit: 40%

“I wear a wetsuit in summer and chest waders in spring and fall.  I get cold easily, and I’m a more efficient surfcaster when I’m comfortable.”
– Dennis Zambrotta

Top Answer (TIE): 7/0 Gamakatsu Live Bait Hook, 5/0 Gamakatsu 4X Octopus Hook
Runner Up: 6/0 Gamakatsu 4X Octopus Hook“I use a 7/0 Owner Gorilla Live Bait hook for eeling. It is really designed for tuna and may appear to be overkill, but when targeting giant fish, I only trust strong hooks. The added weight of the hook helps with fishing the eels as well.”
– Will Sirotnak

“I have experimented with many hooks for eeling, and landed on the Mustad 94150. It has a big barb so the eel stays on the hook, even when I am punching it out there in the surf.”
– Bill Wetzel

NE (8): 44%
SW (5): 28%
NW (2): 11%
SE (2): 11%
W (1): 6%

Always: 0%
Sometimes: 28%
Never: 63%

“I am a big fan of scent.  I almost always carry it, but whether I use it or not depends on the type of lure I am using.”
– Dave Ross

Fluorocarbon: 53%
Monofilament: 47%

“I primarily use fifty-pound-test Trilene Big Game, but I use fluorocarbon on jetties for extra abrasion resistance.”
– John Skinner

“I like fluorocarbon, not just because it’s less visible, but because it sinks and has better abrasion resistance than monofilament.”
– Alberto Knie

“If stripers could see well enough to spot the difference between monofilament and fluorocarbon, they would see the big VMC treble hooks on my darter.”
– Rob Taylor

TOP ANSWER: Cotton Cordell Red Fin
Runer Up: Super Strike Zig Zag

TOP ANSWER: Lucky Hat/Shirt
Runner Up: The First Cast Curse

“When there is a hot bite on a particular plug or jig, I won’t buy more because whenever I do, I never seem to catch another fish on that particular plug.”
– Ziggy Sokolowski

As soon as I get on a rock, I’ll make a short cast and burn my plug back to avoid the dreaded fish cast jinx.
– Frank Goncalves

I always take the same route to and from the location I am fishing. If I get skunked, I will take a different route back home.
– Steve McKenna

On my way fishing, if I hear Billy Joel on the radio, I can guarantee a skunk.
– Bill Wetzel

TOP ANSWER: Rigged Eel
Runners Up (Tie): Live Eel & Bomber Long A
Other Answers: Andrus Jetty Caster, Tsunami Sand Eel Teaser, Gibbs Needlefish, Bunker Head, Bottle Plug, Super Strike Zig Zag, RV Pencil Popper, Spofford Needlefish, Super Strike Super N Fish, Super Strike Little Neck Popper, Beachmaster Darter

Never stop learning.  Every night, every tide, try to learn something.
– Ryan Sherwood

Fish at night! It takes some getting used to, and you should definitely get the basics down during daylight hours first, but once you are comfortable, you will find that your success rate will go up dramatically.
– Steve Gallant

When the bite is hot, use all the plugs in your bag to build confidence by fishing them when you know there are fish around.
– Rob Taylor

You will never learn much of anything by chasing reports. Learn one area by fishing every tide and every wind, then move on from there.
– Bill Wetzel

A friend and I were fishing a dropping tide on Cuttyhunk and we decided to swim back and relocate when we stumbled upon a seal with giant bite taken out. It was still warm and below the high water mark with a trail of blood coming from the water. I’m still not sure if a shark or another seal got to it, but I stayed in tight the rest of that night.
– Frank Goncalves

Sharks, seals, coyotes.
– John Hanecak

A boat ran aground on the sandbar we were fishing on in the middle of the night.
– Steve Gallant

Seeing the eyes of a a giant grey seal light up five feet in front of me after I swam a couple hundred feet out to a boulder all alone.
– Will Sirotnak

Yes: 89%
No: 11%

Less than $25: 18%
$25 to $40: 29%
$40 to $60: 29%
$60+: 24%

I paid sixty-eight dollars for a white and pink Beachmaster darter, and on my first cast with it I caught a fifty-two-pound bass.
– Rob Taylor

I’ve spent thousands and thousands of dollars to design the lures that I wanted, Tactical Anglers Smart Lures.
– Alberto Knie

Otter Tails: 42%
Curly Tail Grubs/Soft Plastics: 32%
Stockpiled on Pork: 16%
Felt: 5%
Hackle: 5%

I’ve been using hackle feathers on my Bucktails for ten years now and the casting distance is great.
– Dante Soriente

When I need a trailer, I make it out of white felt.
– Dennis Zambrotta