Fishing in the foam

How to catch more fish from piers and beaches

John Selwanes has always been intrigued by what may or may not be swimming within casting distance of the surf. 

A native of Raleigh, N.C., Selwanes became entranced with coastal fishing at a young age and began spending much of his spare time on the coast.

Pier fishing is a passion for Selwanes as well as surf fishing from any beach in either North or South Carolina. In 2013, while he was still in high school, he created a website dedicated to coastal fishing from the shore aptly named Carolina Shore Fishing. The site hosts all of his video and YouTube experiences with coastal fishing.

The young outdoors social influencer said the month of September is one of his favorite months for both pier and beach fishing, giving him two different angles to attack the surf. With the mullet run in its beginning stages, Selwanes concentrates most of his efforts from Carolina and Wrightsville Beaches in North Carolina down to Myrtle Beach and Georgetown in South Carolina.

“Finger mullet are showing up within cast net range of the shore. So getting bait isn’t hard to do,” he said. “My go-to tackle is a 12-foot heavy to extra-heavy surf rod with a Heaver level wind reel spooled with 20-pound mono line. I use a length of 50-pound mono for shock leader and vary the length of it depending on what species I’m after and whether I’m on the pier or on the beach.”

Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish

Selwanes said to expect both of these species to be heavy in the surf line and beyond starting first of the month. He targets Spanish and blues using artificial lures and prefers to present them in a more vertical manner. So one of the many piers on the Carolina coast will be his destination of choice.

“Generally speaking, the South Carolina piers are taller than those in North Carolina,” he said. “When you see a lot of cannonball jellyfish washing around outside the surf line, conditions are right for Spanish and blues due to the water clarity.”

His go-to baits are either Gotcha plugs or a homemade mackerel tree that he can jig up and down to entice bites. Very similar to a Sabiki rig, he makes his own using 40- to 60-pound mono line and 1/0 long-shank Aberdeen hooks. He prefers either silver or gold hooks and dresses the hooks in airline tubing, ribbon, or drinking straws to match the color of the glass minnows and grass shad the fish are feeding on.

“The North Carolina piers are better for casting the Gotcha plugs because they’re lower to the water,” he said. “It’s blind casting, trying to entice a reaction bite in the clear water. You’ll see a preference in the pier anglers of which side of the pier to target – North or South – depending on the direction of migration of the fish.

Bottom fish

September is a great month to target all manner of bottom fish that live in or near the surf zone. These include whiting, flounder, pompano, spots and croaker. Selwanes targets these fish from the beach through the surf. His bait of choice for bottom feeders is sand fleas. He can gather these in the receding waves on the beach with a rake.

Reading the beach is an important part of knowing where bottom fish will congregate. 

“I look for deeper holes and troughs,” he said. “Most of the time, you’ll find a good trough just past the surf line. And that’s a great place to use sand fleas.”

A secondary location may be behind the second bar that typically forms off Carolina beaches behind where the waves start to build.

“These areas change constantly. So you won’t find anything on a map to tell you where the holes are. It’s best to scout these out on low tide and make notes and come back when the water is coming up. 

Selwanes’ favorite rig for bottom fish is a Pompano rig. It is a standard two-hook rig with enough weight to hold in the current. A brightly colored Styrofoam float keeps the bait up off the bottom.

Redfish and Sharks

Selwanes has a pretty good theory about the habits of feeding redfish in the surf zone. Spanish and blues start the chain by feeding on minnows, shrimp and pretty much everything that comes in range. Due to their slash feeding, pieces of half-eaten or wounded bait makes its way to the bottom in the wash where they are cleaned up by bottom fish. Any congregation of bottom fish will draw larger redfish to feed on them. It’s for this reason that cut mullet, croaker, whiting or spots make great redfish bait in the surf zone.

Holding these baits in place requires 6- to 10-ounce weights. He uses snelled 10/0 offset circle hooks on a short 80-pound leader. He’s not a fan of steel leader because he believes it inhibits the natural movement of the bait in the water. Reds will spook from that.

“You’re going to catch and lose a fair number of sharks when fishing for redfish in the surf,” he said. “It’s best to come prepared with a handful of pre-snelled hooks so you can tie back on quickly when a shark bites the leader off.”

If he decides to go for sharks, he will use the same beach setup with 20 to 50 feet of 100- to 200-pound shock leader connected to a length of 135-pound coated steel leader and the 10/0 circle hook.

“From the beach, you’re in easy range of a number of sharks that will go up to 5 feet in length,” he said. “Sandbars, blacktips, spinners, and a lot of Atlantic sharpnose sharks are the norm. Plus you can get into some good-sized stingrays,” he said.

Carolina shore fishing

Carolina Shore Fishing is primarily focused on fishing the waters of North and South Carolina and is run by John Selwanes. Selwanes has been fishing since he could hold onto a rod. Beginning with learning the world of freshwater fishing, he discovered what would quickly become a passion of his – saltwater fishing.

Selwanes journeys across the Carolinas in search of his next fishing adventure, with camera and video recorder in hand to record and share what he’s learned. Carolina Shore Fishing’s mission is to spread the joys of fishing the Carolinas in an entertaining and informative format. 

From fishing reports to destination information, the website is a resource for Carolina anglers looking to learn how to fish or how to take their fishing game to the next level. The site is packed with video tips of gear, baits, tackle and knowledgeable, insider information that will prove invaluable once you hit the beach.

Youtube.com/carolinashorefishing offers personalized video instruction on how to prepare, present, and execute strategies to help you catch more fish. 

Both before and after, get tips on what gear to take with you on your next outing as well as how to cook your catch, should you decide to keep a few fish for the table.

For more information, tips, destinations, and tackle, visit youtube.com/carolinashorefishing.