Need some advice on the pier, tackel, fish types

I am coming over from Texas this weekend. I will there from the June 13 trough the 19th and I am super excited to wet a line or two and take my kids out to see what we can catch. I am pretty regular freshwater fisher but never fished from a pier in the ocean(only deep sea a few times).

I am starting to pack up my gear and now I definitely need to buy some odds and ends for saltwater. Anything I need to make sure I bring

Does anybody have a report on what is biting and on what recently at the pier?

You might check the forecast...
http://weather.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/fmtb.../gm/gmz650.txt

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FRIDAY
SOUTH WINDS 10 TO 15 KNOTS BECOMING SOUTHEAST 13 TO18 KNOTS. SEAS 5 TO 7 FEET. CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.
FRIDAY NIGHTSOUTHEAST WINDS 15 TO 20 KNOTS. SEAS 5 TO 7 FEET.CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.
SATURDAYSOUTHEAST WINDS 13 TO 18 KNOTS. SEAS 5 TO 7 FEET. CHANCEOF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.
SATURDAY NIGHTSOUTHEAST WINDS 15 TO 20 KNOTS. SEAS 5 TO 7 FEET.SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.
SUNDAYSOUTHEAST WINDS 10 TO 15 KNOTS. SEAS 4 TO 6 FEET. CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS.

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When it gets this rough, Plan Bs are in order...

So conditions, with high winds and high seas, aren't what you'd call "ideal" for great fishing opportunities. The water will likely be stirred up a bit, so you'll probably want to fish a carolina rig with an egg sinker OR TWO with live shrimp. Due to the changing scene, you're going to want to check the "Reports" section here, certainly for what's biting, if anything and you'll also want to stop by J & M Tackle on your way to the pier for the latest reports and rigging assistance. Typically, when the waves are crashin' and the wind is howlin', you can usually get a bite or two from ladyfish and bluefish. The kids may want to catch baitfish with a sabiki rig and use that baitfish to hook up with a shark if not much else is going on. It's always fun to have your string stretched and your line pulled by a big fish! You can't bring sharks up on the pier, but you can sometimes get them up to the top of the water for picture-taking!
So bring your needle-nosed pliers to get the hooks out of toothy-fish (like bluefish) and to cut your wire leader. Get your out-of-state license, since you're coming from TX. You can get your hooks, wire leader, bait (live or fresh-dead shrimp, not frozen shrimp or frozen squid) bait-bucket with aerator and anything else you need from J & M Tackle. It's not all that far from the pier and they have professionals there to help you with your selections. See their ad at the top of the page here to get their address.

Also -- be optimistic! Bring a cooler with ice and a fillet knife! If sailcats are in, they fillet nicely and taste great. Large remoras taste great, too. You just need to catch a bunch of 'em or get other people to give 'em to you to make a meal or two for a whole family.

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Originally Posted by Pier#r

You might check the forecast...
http://weather.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/fmtb.../gm/gmz650.txt


When it gets this rough, Plan Bs are in order...

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UGH!!! So when the weather is blowing like this, what are the odds the ferry will be running from Dauphin Island to Fort Morgan. We've taken the ferry the past 2 years and the kids love it and I love not having to deal with Mobile traffic through the tunnel or the traffic going south on 59. 5-7 feet with decent winds seems like it would make loading and unloading a ferry tough, not to mention the passage across the south end of the bay where current is already decent.

Can't speak to Ferry operations; we don't live there, aaarrrggghh. The coarse surf, though, we have experienced a few times on our vacations. My standing position on coarse surf is: I do not go out if there is lighting; otherwise, when the surf is rough, I tend to cast near the middle of the trough and let the currents wash my rig up to shore. 10# mono, with 10# floro leader, line to line, no swivel. 1/2 0z. to 1 Oz. jig or Carolina rig, live or fresh shrimp, small baitfish, and hang on. No guarantee, though, but I have caught some large fish in turbulent surf. The predators seem to take advantage of the conditions to prey on the available bait. When the waves roll in tall, you can see Spanish, baitfish, pompano, and of course, in the spring, lotsa of rays playing chase. When I am there for only 7 to 10 days, I am going to be fishing, or my sweet and lovely wife will take me, groan and shudder, shopping.

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Originally Posted by bodebum

Can't speak to Ferry operations; we don't live there, aaarrrggghh. The coarse surf, though, we have experienced a few times on our vacations. My standing position on coarse surf is: I do not go out if there is lighting; otherwise, when the surf is rough, I tend to cast near the middle of the trough and let the currents wash my rig up to shore. 10# mono, with 10# floro leader, line to line, no swivel. 1/2 0z. to 1 Oz. jig or Carolina rig, live or fresh shrimp, small baitfish, and hang on. No guarantee, though, but I have caught some large fish in turbulent surf. The predators seem to take advantage of the conditions to prey on the available bait. When the waves roll in tall, you can see Spanish, baitfish, pompano, and of course, in the spring, lotsa of rays playing chase. When I am there for only 7 to 10 days, I am going to be fishing, or my sweet and lovely wife will take me, groan and shudder, shopping.

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When I am there for only 7 to 10 days, I am going to be fishing, or my sweet and lovely wife will take me!!

There, FIFY.
:D

Thanks to everyone for all the great info. I will be here through next week so hopefully all the bad fishing weather will push through at some

emy_sirius. I can't seem to find the "reports " section you mentioned on the site. Can you please advise.


I am planning on bringing my catfish rod with me as my main pole and it has 15 lb test mono on it. I was hoping to bring a few others but I am not sure if they are "pier worthy". The are bass rods with 8 lb mono line. I know I am going to need leaders but wondering if 8 lb line will bring a fish up and over the handrail of the pier

I use 8#/med action rods on my Spanish rods, as long as you have at least 200 yards on it, you are ok. If a fish is too big to bring over the rail, ask for help, someone will net for you.
They are also great for catching whiting & pompano in the surf.