Bank Fishing Saltwater Strategies

Not all anglers have boats.

That is something we have taken seriously here at Texas Fish and Game for many years and is the reason we write so much about bank fishing options. Fishing from the bank has its challenges and requires a specific level of focus on gear and bait selection. Many anglers complain of rarely catching legal-sized game fish from the bank and I believe a big reason for this is their choice of bait. Dead shrimp is by far the easiest bait to get and it will catch everything but that is just the problem.

It catches hardheads, small croaker, sand trout and lots of undesirables. My advice is to bring one rod rigged with dead shrimp (let kids use it if they are fishing) and use just the croaker, sand trout and piggy perch you might catch as live or cut bait. Also, learn to throw a cast net and catch mullet, mud minnows and baby croaker. All of these fished on a Carolina rig will catch reds, specks and flounder and the beauty of using a cast net is you do not have to pay for your bait. Of course it is a lot of work but it will save you money.

Something else to consider is using a popping cork. There are lots of snags along shorelines and when fishing on bottom you are bound to get snagged by something. By using corks you can fish just above the bottom and avoid most snags while at the same time have the advantage of being able to draw attention to your bait by utilizing the popping action of the cork. There are lots of good ones on the market.

Little details like these can go a long way when you are fishing saltwater walk up venues.