Shark Fishing Gear?

dougo83

dougo83

Joined
Feb 28, 2008
Messages
4,834
Hey Y'all,

I am being entered with my roommates in a shark fishing tourney on South Padre in the fall and I don't have any gear, I think. Do we have any anglers on here who could point me in the right direction? I am planning on fishing either from the sand or kayak. Haven't decided yet.

Thanks
Dougo
 
:eek:
That's nothing to be proud of. First sharks aren't edible, second they're becoming extinct.
Not macho at all.
 
AttilaTheHun said:
:eek:
That's nothing to be proud of. First sharks aren't edible, second they're becoming extinct.
Not macho at all.
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Your post would have been useful if it answered this:

Hey Y'all,

I am being entered with my roommates in a shark fishing tourney on South Padre in the fall and I don't have any gear, I think. Do we have any anglers on here who could point me in the right direction? I am planning on fishing either from the sand or kayak. Haven't decided yet.

Thanks
Dougo
Click to expand...

Then I would have thanked you for your time. Instead, you get this:




First, sharks are edible. I have eaten shark many times.

Second, It's catch and release.

Third, sand sharks and the like are nowhere near extinct. In fact, where we are fishing, they are thriving. There are more than 33 species in the Gulf of Mexico and I cannot find one of them that is even protected, much less endangered.

Fourth, I didn't ask about your opinion of it or how "macho" you think I am.

Finally, if you don't have anything useful to add, don't respond.

Any questions?
 
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I fish for dogfish from my kayak. (I eat them.) I have caught them from shore but they generally are in deeper water where I live. I fish with bait and use a landing net like one would use for salmon to bring them on board. I use a saltwater spinning rod most of the time. Sometimes a baitcasting type saltwater rod and reel.

You may want to use wire leader as sharks can be hard on monofiliment.

Dogfish are pretty small as sharks go. For a larger shark that I wasn't going to kill I'd probably hitch the leader to my kayak and bring them into shore for a photo or whatever you're doing in the contest, and then release by clipping the leader. Gaffing or even netting might prove traumatic to a shark that was going to be released.

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My only experience fishing for shark was in San Francisco Bay. I don't remember all the particulars but they used a heavy wire line all the way. The sharks we caught were any where from 30-75 pounds. Sorry, I guess that isn't much help but i wish you good catching, not just fishing.
 
Ingredients
Chum, lots of it :p

Method
stand waist deep in water/chum mix with small harpoon Ahab! - don't forget to say ARRRRGGHHH in a piratey voice.

I've caught em off a beach OK here in Australia by accident just a regular beach rod and an Alvey sidecaster with a running sinker above a swivel, trace and large gang hook rig - they taste OK in a bit of batter and deep fried, can't eat them indeed hehe.
 
AusieGav said:
Ingredients
...- they taste OK in a bit of batter and deep fried, can't eat them indeed hehe.
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I bleed the fish right away, then filet and skin ASAP. Then an overnight soak in water with a splash of vinegar. After that it can be prepared as any white-meated fish. I'm still experimenting with the fins.

Dogfish is quite popular in Europe, where it is known by the English as rock salmon. The Germans smoke the belly meat and consume it in bars under the name schillerlocken. I think they've had to close down the fisheries in Europe due to overfishing.

Dogfish are plentiful in my area and not eaten by people locally, but there are commercial fisheries operating not too far away that sell into the export market.

Dogfish are long-lived predator species, and like many such, they can accumulate mercury in their flesh.
 
Howard Wallace said:
I bleed the fish right away, then filet and skin ASAP. Then an overnight soak in water with a splash of vinegar. After that it can be prepared as any white-meated fish. I'm still experimenting with the fins.

Dogfish is quite popular in Europe, where it is known by the English as rock salmon. The Germans smoke the belly meat and consume it in bars under the name schillerlocken. I think they've had to close down the fisheries in Europe due to overfishing.

Dogfish are plentiful in my area and not eaten by people locally, but there are commercial fisheries operating not too far away that sell into the export market.

Dogfish are long-lived predator species, and like many such, they can accumulate mercury in their flesh.
Click to expand...


Yes skinning them quickly is important.
It was a common ingredient in Australian fish and chip shops 'fish cocktails' (fish pieces in batter) when I was growing up and was often referred to as 'flake' by vendors (I think this was because people didn't like to know they were eating shark).
 
Tournament winner last year was a nine-footer. Of course, he won't share his secret. The rules are pretty much as follows:

1. All bait must be placed completely under man power. No motors or any other means of transport.
2. One rod per person.
3. The process of catch and release must be on video.
4. No nets, seines, drag lines, or other means may be used to bait, catch, or land the sharks.
5. Kayaks or sandbar fishing is allowed.
6. Only one person may touch a rod once the bait is placed.

I am wondering what kind of rod I should look into. I have a 7' pole, but I don't think I could land something that big with it. I am looking for a rec. for a good surf rod. Also, does anyone know of a solid tutorial for rigging up a shark leader? Basically, this is a fun tournament, but I still want to have a fighting chance.

My plan:

Kayak to third sand bar. It's a ways out...there's no way to swim it with gear. Chum out a few yards in front of where I want to stand and drop my line. Kayak back to the sand bar and anchor down. Hopefully catch a big enough shark to take home some cash. Top prize is $15k and I sure could use it right about now. My other option is to just enter in the Redfish or Tarpon tourney with the gear I already have.

Also, anyone who has ever fished the P.I.N.S. and would like to chime in would be much appreciated.
 
This is somewhere I can actually help here. First give me a price range here rod and reel. Lots of options here.
 
So you're going to fish standing on the sandbar? That sounds like a good idea.

Playing and landing a big fish from a kayak has some interesting challenges. I learned not to hold my pole out to the side where it gives a lot of torque against the easiest axis of rotation for the kayak.
 
Let's see...
You go in the water.
The kayak goes in the water.
The shark is in the water.
Our shark...
 
Guys, people catch sharks from kayaks all the time.
However, I probably wouldn't go after sharks (bait-wise) as my main target from the get-go.
I'd get some experience playing and landing large fish from the 'yak first.

dougo, your plan seems pretty sensible to me.
As for gear, wire leader is a must. You want a hook of appropriate size and good bait. Lots of folks will use chunks of (slightly rotted) chicken or even whole chickens.
I've also seen where fishermen will use a large balloon as an indicator.

IMO, you want a spinning reel with a good drag and some line capacity. Easier to cast for distance, and line capacity can be very good.
If you hook into something of size, it's going to strip line, and you don't want to get spooled.
If you're fishing from a sandbar, you probably want a longer rod with some backbone. The length of surf cast rods allows the fisherman to catapult a bait further out from shore.
Since you're launching in a kayak, you probably want to look for a two-piece that can be stowed. If you flip while launching and break your rod, you're out of the game before it starts.

.
 
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For the OP, here is a link that may help you out on rigging; this guy knew more about sharks (and respected them) than just about anybody. The pulley rig is designed to be used with a 12' surf rod and cast from the beach and still get the bait off the bottom. For a kayak rig, I use a 12/0 Gami circle hook on about 8 inches of 200 lb mono leader to a 200lb barrel swivel, then a 5 foot length of 200lb leader with a sliding snap swivel for the weight, then a 100lb barrel swivel, to 10 feet of 100lb leader,, then a 50lb swivel to the running line on the reel. You need the extra 100lb leader in case the shark gets tail wrapped. You'll also ned to use 10-16 oz of weight to keep the bait stationary if you kayak it out 200-300 yards. I use a Penn 113H with 150yards of 30' mono backed with 300 yds of 30lb braid on a stiff 7' boat rod. I only get to the coast 2-3 times a year and have yet to hook a big one on this set-up but i keep trying. Again, i know this works on NC beaches, not sure about Padre Island.

randy

http://home.earthlink.net/~biters/
 
My suggestion would be 'yaking the bait out from the surf. Short rod big reel heavy line and big bait.
 
Yup...I am going to necro my own thread. Our last tournament got cancelled. I am doing it again October 25-27th. I am still looking for better feedback on what to buy though. I am thinking I can probably get pretty well kitted for no more than $500 and that is kind of my limit.

If anyone wants to re-visit this, especially someone who has fished Padre Island, that would be awesome.
 
I was raised in Texas and have fished the coast plenty. I have not, for the record, fished for sharks on South Padre (better fish to catch down there, if ya know what I mean).
In Port A, or the Pass, and all along the coast to Goose Island, I use med-heavy baitcasting rods.

The best advice I can give for surf/jetty fishing for sharks is to make sure you have a decent leader, plenty of line, and that your rod can fling whatever you want for bait plenty far. As for the rod being able to handle landing the fish, you'll be on pretty much the same plane and can get away with a much lighter rod than if you were deep sea fishing or dragging them up from a bridge or derrick.

Be a little easy with the drag, letting them run but keeping tension on them tends to be more important than brute strength. This is even more important with larger catches. As a kid I landed a 6 1/2 foot hammerhead in Galveston with a med-light spinning rod, so a med-heavy baitcaster should be plenty of rod for your goals.

I wish you the best of luck with the tourney!
C
 
sharks are heavy fighters, if your using a spinning reel, i'd say go for something like a shimano saragosa, but personally i'd use something with more pull, maybe a penn 50, on a good 6-7 foot boat rod (80 lb class rod prefferably) get a good rod holder that can handle 20-25 lbs of drag without toppling over, paddle the bait out, paddle back in and fish from the land.. well, thats how i'd do it.. as heavy a drag as you feel comfortable using for extended periods of time, 15 lbs is a good number to start with, ive landed some big fish with 15 lbs of drag.
 
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