...heading down to ft. lauderdale for the weekend...last time i was there i took a walk on the beach early in the am...and saw lots of ballyhoo being chased around by something...and every once in a while a pretty big splash...this is open beach...

was thinking of bringing a pole and some plugs...? any suggestions for plugs or gear for just some light fishing in the am? i never see people down there surf fishing with pencils, spooks and poppers but why the hell not...?

doc, I will be down in the Vero Beach area next week and Im bringing some gear. You could have seen jacks which are like bluefish on steroids. Be sure to get a liscense as Florida is strict.

I have read that some die hards target tarpon from the surf. When in doubt, I go into a local B+T. Buy some bait/plugs and ask the "quite" one behind the counter where they are biting.

let us know how you do. Im going to port st lucie in July. Im bringing a few set ups. I fished the gulf a lot in the past from shore, pier and boat and always did well. Such a mixed bag down there, you never know what you are gonna get. GOOD LUCK!

Jeremy -

I did not see this until now ... Ft. Lauderdale beaches will hold snook at certain times of the year, if you can fish an inlet, there will be a jetty there ... you can swimmers and dannys at night, jigs are real good, there are also baracuda hanging along the edges of currents, drop offs, etc. Usually best when bait is around, but a spook and pencil should produce some reaction ... and there are also jack crevalle too, but as with everything, structure ... on the beaches snook will run behind the waves looking for food but are extremely wary on the beaches so make sure you are early, early, and work your plugs just behind the surf parallel to the beach ...

Port St. Lucie - has a wide variety of other options - head out to the beach, there's a beach called bathtub beach because of some coral formations that create a deep hole behind, great structure ... work a DOA Bait Buster through there, as well as spooks ... on the the Indian River, there's wading options on the flats for a wide range of species including seatrout, snook, reds, tarpon, ladyfish, jacks ... a lot of options, jigs, DOA Bait Busters, spooks all work great ...

Thanks Andy...down here now and have had some fantastic top water action with jacks and even a barracuda...have seen snook but have not landed one...yet...
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If you can get the jacks big enough, they are awesome ... but the barracude are also great on top ... when I have caught cuda on plugs, we moved them very, very fast across the top on the flats, work a spook or pencil extra fast across the top ... if you don't have them, get a Bagley's Finger Mullet or Jumpin' Minnow and work them fast across the top ... if you still don't have those, take a swimming plug such as a Mambo Minnow or Red Fin, break off the lip and work it across the top like a needlefish escaping from a bait ... the cudas will love it.