Saltwater fishing or freshwater fishing?

First go to the Mart. You know which one. Go to the sporting goods department and get a fishing license, either freshwater or saltwater, whichever you prefer. Then walk around the fish department for about an hour and gather what you’ll need. For freshwater fishing, you need lightweight lines, rods, reels, and sinkers. Saltwater fishing demands heavier versions of the same. Some commonly caught freshwater fish are sunfish, brim, crappie, catfish, and trout.

Some saltwater fish you can catch in East Coast bays and along the Atlantic coast are Black Drum, Bluefish, Cobia, Corvina, Flounder, Trout, Jack Cravelle, King Mackerel, Mullet, Pompano, Puppy Drum, Spanish Mackerel, Speckled Trout, Spot, and Striper. Wow, you can see there are a lot more things you can fish for in saltwater. I admit that I am biased. Although I have fished for bass for many years, I am not about to try to outwit the fish. I prefer to throw some bait (a mixture of ground fish) off the side of a chartered boat, drop a baited hook into the mixture, and wait a few minutes for it to pull. A pull so strong you’ll think he’s trying to pull you in. He will scare you at first, but you probably won’t be attracted to him. My petite wife who is 5’1″ and 125lbs. Once on a Gulf Stream trip she handled a catfish in the 20-25lb range and held her own. Not that I’m a barometer for you, but if a little woman has the heart to set the hook and reel one in, I know you can.

I caught some pretty good sized bass, but nothing to rival the 10lb. blue, gold at 25 lbs. amberjack has to offer in a battle. When I compare freshwater fishing to saltwater fishing, they don’t compare. Salt water is much more of a challenge for me. I’ve had some pretty good battles with some blues in Ocean City MD, red snapper in Morehead NC, amberjack from Atlantic Gulf Stream and a striper or two from Chesapeake Bay, oh yeah I can’t leave out spotted trout in the Gulf of Mexico, that was so much fun. Most of the mentioned saltwater species bite squid. Squid is like a universal bait. You can also pick up a box of squid at a Mart, especially if it’s near the ocean.

Another thing about saltwater fishing, bottom fishing in particular, is that you may find a certain jigging, bouncing the bait off the bottom or adding something with a bit of color will work better. I think there is really no rhythm or reason. I’ve heard people say this, and captains say that, but if a fish finds your bait, tackle, or the way you move the bait in the water attractive, they’re going to bite.

Have you heard the one about the girl while fishing with her father on a boat, she ran out of bait and started fishing with tomato slices from her sandwich? I have no doubt. I have fished from the front of the boat, both sides and the back, and I have fished all over the boat. I have fished off the coast of Ocean City, MD and caught Black Sea Bass one after another, then a fellow fisherman noticed my constant catch and lowered his line in the same spot and caught nothing, but the water was so rough that day, fish It was really the last thing on my mind, if you know what I mean.