Post by Steve Sutton on May 2, 2010 14:31:43 GMT -5
Some fish are just unappreciated. Redfish not too many years ago were considered by some a trash fish and at best a distant second to the sea trout. Redfish today are the second most popular fish in the country, bested only by the large mouth bass. The old spot tail bass has come a long way!
The lowly whiting follows a similarly dubious path. The whiting small size, abundance and relative ease to catch have meant lots of "serious fishermen" won’t target this fish. Those who like eating fish know this fish eats as good as any. Whiting will eat a wide variety of baits and at times the bite can be as fast the angler can reload and cast again! Another reason the whiting is not highly regarded is that fishermen catch them on the bottom. A true sports fish is not on the bottom. Well what about all of the flounder, redfish and sea trout that are caught on the bottom. Putting a bait on the bottom is just offers up a higher percentage of fish catching.
A keeper whiting is10 inches or longer. Granted you are not dealing with a massive fish. These are relatively small fun fish, but can be a hoot to catch!
This prolific fish will take a variety of baits. Likely the favorite bait of all coastal fishing is shrimp. That said whiting aren’t choosy and will take a wide variety of baits from squid, to cut bait, to dead shrimp. Sometimes strange concoctions of bits of several pieces of bait will produce the biggest fish. Live bait is the norm for most fishing not so with whiting. Frozen bait will work just fine! Leaving a few shrimp out in the sun makes a fragrant tough bait that any self-respecting whiting can’t resist.
Whiting rods and reels can be as varied as the fishermen. Some prefer long limber pole for long cast. Others like shorter more powerful rods. The trick with whiting is the bite. It’s being able to detect a bite and setting the hook at the appropriate time. What is the appropriate time, hard to say in general usually there is a bump or several small bites followed by more aggressive small bites. That’s it! HOOK! Hook sets are free. Waiting too long is obvious - no bait. In fishing one maxim that holds true if what you are doing is not working change. Change your hook set, change your bait, maybe even changing your location is in order. Whiting are very obliging. They want to eat your bait. Here’s a secret that is seldom shared (I think this came from Miss Judy’s secret notebook). If you are having trouble hooking the fish put your rod into a rod holder and wait till the fish bends your rod. The bend of the rod will often set the hook! You have just discovered some of the biggest myths and secretes of whiting fishing. The big myth is that a lowly whiting doesn’t warrant serious attention. It is a fun fish that can supply lots of action for experience or inexperience fishermen. One of the big secretes if you having difficulty getting hook ups just put your rod into the rod holder.
Where to Fish
My preference when fishing for whiting is to fish close to the sound but you can catch well inland as well. Water depth anywhere 5 to 35 feet. You might start out at one depth then adjust according to the bite. This means picking up your anchor and looking for a new spot. Try to fish currents that moving and gentle. Currents that are too swift will make it difficult for whiting to feed. Remember this is a small fish that is likely swept along with the currents. . Dirty water days are typically string ray days. String rays seem to forage in muddy conditions. Catching lots of rays might mean its time to move.
Rigs and Terminal Tackle
Most any bottom rig will work fine! Some rigs have two or more arms. This is simply your preference. My thought is keep it simple. Multiple hooks can mean multiple problem if sharks are in the neighborhood. I prefer what I call a "super whiting rig". Sounds pretty silly but I use an 80-pound leader with a high quality snap swivel on one end with a pan sinker (usually 1 ½ ounce on most days) in the middle with a high quality spro barrel swivel on the other. The reason for this high-test concoction is you might hang into a big old bull red, cobia or an aggression shark. This rig can handle a lot of punishment. Regardless of whether I buy a store bought rig or not I like to test the rig to see how much pressure it can take. Cheap connections poorly crimped can result missed fish. It’s better to find out how your rig works before getting out on the boat. Most rig will work just fine! On days with lots of current egg sinker rigs will roll on the bottom. A conventional pyramid sinker rig or pan sinker rig seems to work the best. My hook of preference is Eagle Claw’s 085 1/0. Granted this a little large for the job but the idea is to avoid hooking the small whiting and yet have enough power to land a large fish.
Hope this of interest and help! Keep what you plan to eat fresh and release the rest! Hope to see you on the water!
The lowly whiting follows a similarly dubious path. The whiting small size, abundance and relative ease to catch have meant lots of "serious fishermen" won’t target this fish. Those who like eating fish know this fish eats as good as any. Whiting will eat a wide variety of baits and at times the bite can be as fast the angler can reload and cast again! Another reason the whiting is not highly regarded is that fishermen catch them on the bottom. A true sports fish is not on the bottom. Well what about all of the flounder, redfish and sea trout that are caught on the bottom. Putting a bait on the bottom is just offers up a higher percentage of fish catching.
A keeper whiting is10 inches or longer. Granted you are not dealing with a massive fish. These are relatively small fun fish, but can be a hoot to catch!
This prolific fish will take a variety of baits. Likely the favorite bait of all coastal fishing is shrimp. That said whiting aren’t choosy and will take a wide variety of baits from squid, to cut bait, to dead shrimp. Sometimes strange concoctions of bits of several pieces of bait will produce the biggest fish. Live bait is the norm for most fishing not so with whiting. Frozen bait will work just fine! Leaving a few shrimp out in the sun makes a fragrant tough bait that any self-respecting whiting can’t resist.
Whiting rods and reels can be as varied as the fishermen. Some prefer long limber pole for long cast. Others like shorter more powerful rods. The trick with whiting is the bite. It’s being able to detect a bite and setting the hook at the appropriate time. What is the appropriate time, hard to say in general usually there is a bump or several small bites followed by more aggressive small bites. That’s it! HOOK! Hook sets are free. Waiting too long is obvious - no bait. In fishing one maxim that holds true if what you are doing is not working change. Change your hook set, change your bait, maybe even changing your location is in order. Whiting are very obliging. They want to eat your bait. Here’s a secret that is seldom shared (I think this came from Miss Judy’s secret notebook). If you are having trouble hooking the fish put your rod into a rod holder and wait till the fish bends your rod. The bend of the rod will often set the hook! You have just discovered some of the biggest myths and secretes of whiting fishing. The big myth is that a lowly whiting doesn’t warrant serious attention. It is a fun fish that can supply lots of action for experience or inexperience fishermen. One of the big secretes if you having difficulty getting hook ups just put your rod into the rod holder.
Where to Fish
My preference when fishing for whiting is to fish close to the sound but you can catch well inland as well. Water depth anywhere 5 to 35 feet. You might start out at one depth then adjust according to the bite. This means picking up your anchor and looking for a new spot. Try to fish currents that moving and gentle. Currents that are too swift will make it difficult for whiting to feed. Remember this is a small fish that is likely swept along with the currents. . Dirty water days are typically string ray days. String rays seem to forage in muddy conditions. Catching lots of rays might mean its time to move.
Rigs and Terminal Tackle
Most any bottom rig will work fine! Some rigs have two or more arms. This is simply your preference. My thought is keep it simple. Multiple hooks can mean multiple problem if sharks are in the neighborhood. I prefer what I call a "super whiting rig". Sounds pretty silly but I use an 80-pound leader with a high quality snap swivel on one end with a pan sinker (usually 1 ½ ounce on most days) in the middle with a high quality spro barrel swivel on the other. The reason for this high-test concoction is you might hang into a big old bull red, cobia or an aggression shark. This rig can handle a lot of punishment. Regardless of whether I buy a store bought rig or not I like to test the rig to see how much pressure it can take. Cheap connections poorly crimped can result missed fish. It’s better to find out how your rig works before getting out on the boat. Most rig will work just fine! On days with lots of current egg sinker rigs will roll on the bottom. A conventional pyramid sinker rig or pan sinker rig seems to work the best. My hook of preference is Eagle Claw’s 085 1/0. Granted this a little large for the job but the idea is to avoid hooking the small whiting and yet have enough power to land a large fish.
Hope this of interest and help! Keep what you plan to eat fresh and release the rest! Hope to see you on the water!
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