Surf fishing.....staying dialed in

[Back Beach]

There’s always a large degree of luck involved in fishing.Duh.

Bbbbbbbbut, guys that put in a lot more time get lucky more often than the armchair anglers do. In order to keep abreast of what’s going on in your haunts, how many nights a week do you feel you need to be on the hunt to keep on top of things? Every night would be best, but I say a minimum of three is needed to stay somewhat dialed in. What is the opinion my fellow S-B surf minions?

[ilovetwofish]

A minimum of 4 days I get out starting August 10 usually before and after work Monday through Friday. then all weekend.

[hyefisherman2]

7 a week

[hbenlulu]

I wish I could go fishing every night however, I have a management (my wife) to answer to

[Rockport24]

I'd say 3 nights a week minnimum, but you'd have to fish the same spot I'd say those three times to really be dialed in. If you are fishing multiple spots, I'd say 5 times a week. I think you need to fish a spot on all tides to stay dialed.

[jim sylvester]

family balance is a must

3 nights a week is good for me

1 night on, 1 night off

if the tide is right, i'll fish the 3rd shift...12:00 to sunrise...then the beach te next day with the family

[The Dad Fisherman]

3 nights will be the max for me....With meetings/family and such I end up pretty busy during the week

[MarshCappa]

I know this is a surfcasting question but on my skiff last week I put in 4 out of 7 days in the same area/spots and I felt like I was just starting to get it down but realized that you really need to be out almost everyday and every tide to get the whole picture. I've been hitting my surfcasting spot less frequently this year and I have been less productive because of not putting my time in there as needed. I keep on thinking about last year at this particular spot where I caught fish after fish for hours and this year I haven't caught one but I have to remind myself that I put in tons of time on the shore before I got into anything with consistency and that was the result of putting lots of time and learning where the fish hold. Bottom line is if you expect results more often than not you have to put your time in and I think that is at least 3-4 days a week anything other than that your an armchair angler and leaving it more to luck/chance than skill. With that said I have nothing against the armchair angler and would love to get a little lucky in the next few days!!!!!

[fishbones]

Looking back, I was very "lucky" early in the season when I was fishing a lot. Once I got into all of the family commitments of the summer and could not put in much time, my "luck" seemed to go away. It seems to me that the more time I put in, the luckier I get. That being said, I'm hoping to get out much more after Labor Day. That's when all of the family parties, weddings, visiting relatives, etc... are done. And, most of the tourists and weekend warriors are gone from my beach and boat spots by September.

[Squibby17]

I wish I could fish like you guys. I usually get 1 or 2 nights a week. Weekends are tough, I have 5 weddings between now and October.

[Krispy]

having a good network can be very helpful

[Slingah]

every other day is key.....
the least amount I fish is twice a week...and that is rare
sometimes twice a day.... even if it is slow...
more time on the water = more fish......just not lately..

[RIROCKHOUND]

Network is very helpful Krispy. Especially if it's guys you know and trust. even better if they fish similar tides and tactics...

I feel out of touch if less than 4x a week. this time of year I'm 2x and feel out of touch. (still have the tide memorized ) Once Laborday comes I'll be back to 4x and feel much more comfortable....

[justplugit]

Betta than fishin 7 nites a week is -
livin less than a mile from the watta, havin good friends, a cell, and a fast truck.

[2na]

3 nites on and friends that will report on the others.

[shadow]

3 nights seems to be an average most are fishing,I also average three nights a week, I sometimes do more just depends on the family thing.most of my nights out are during the week almost never fish weekends.some sort of net work is also good to know where the fish are if you can't find them in your hole.

[Grampy]

Dad, fish now, you can sleep all winter -

and I think yep, you're right you can't surf fish in January.

[emgred]

Right now, I can only get in two nights a week of fishing. In the fall, that will jump to four or five nights a week. In either case, I use three things to stay dialed in.
1 - Good network of people I trust.
2 - Boat reports. (when the boats find fish, they have also found the bait so that gives me two indications of what surf areas might produce.)
3 - THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT Using #1 & #2 I go to my many years of logs.

Has worked pretty well for a number of years.

[luds]

At least 3 nights plus network sounds about right to me. The network doesn't need to be that big. Just a few guys you trust is enough. I guess having a bunch of guys you would be better but that rarely works out.

[Terence]

10 days straight when the moon is right then zombie city for a few days . Rest Repeat.

[Mr. Sandman]

Stay connected to your areas and know the guys that fish them. Know who is doing what. You know where they fish so if someone you know or know of is conecting you don't even need to talk about spots...you know where he probably was.

I tend to bounce around a lot at times when the bite slows at my most favorite spots because I just want to see what is happening, even if you don't catch you will learn something. The worst thing you can do is sleep when you are suppose to be fishing...as one zombie-eyed SB.com guy once told me..."There is plenty of time to sleep when I am dead...or when I go back to work!"

[Adam_777]

Originally Posted by hbenlulu

I wish I could go fishing every night however, I have a management (my wife) to answer to

Yeah like this poor soul I have someone to answer to.So I get an average of 3 times a week,sometimes on the weekends I go in the AM and PM or during certain tides. = x10

[JLH]

I’m lucky if I can surf fish one night a week. I made it out twice in July but did well both times.

I don’t think getting out multiple times a week is necessary to be successful. It’s more about understanding how the conditions you’re facing at any given time are going to impact the fish.

[capecodder]

I don't know how you guys do it. Family, work, etc... With three kids under 6 and running my own business, I consider fishing once a week alot...

Obviously I am waaaayy out of touch!

[Flaptail]

Go as many nights as you can and when you find them keep your mouth shut.

[EarnedStripes44]

I wish I could get out multiple times a week. Wish I was closer to the water.