Surf Fishing In October: Best Tactics, Baits and Rigs

Summer has come, summer has gone, and it’s fall once more. What’s biting this time of year? What works for fall surf fishing? We’ll talk this and much more today so stay tuned.

October is a transitional month for surf fishing on the west coast. Lucky for us, we have a number of different species to target by utilizing different tactics. Let’s break this down by each of the 3 methods of surf fishing listed below.

• Light Tackle (Carolina rig)
• Lures
• Sharking

Light Tackle Surf Fishing In October (Carolina Rig)

As the waters begin to cool off, sand crabs start to die and disappear, thus slowing the light tackle bite. If you follow along, you’ll know that sand crabs are the best bait for surf fishing when it comes to light tackle. So what should you fish for in the fall and what do we use for bait when we can’t use sand crabs for surf fishing?

The most productive species to target in the fall include surfperch, halibut and sharks… and I would suggest in that order.

Bait For Light Tackle Surf Fishing In October

If sand crabs are still around, use them! Spotfin croaker will go crazy for them in the fall some years. At the very least, you’ll catch a few surfperch. My go to bait when sand crabs disappear is mussel meat. Surf fishing with mussel meat will catch everything sand crabs catch (corbina, spotfin, yellowfin croaker, surfperch etc.) yet as an added bonus, you don’t catch many stingrays with mussels.

What Species Do You Catch in October?

As mentioned earlier, October is a transitional month for surf fishing. That said, you can still stumble across a really good corbina bite and sometimes more likely, a spotfin croaker bite. Yellowfin croaker and surfperch are always a likely catch in the transitional months as well.

On the flip side, those larger surfperch could be arriving early as their spawning season is just around the corner. And yes, surfperch can be caught year-round, but late fall through winter and early spring is when surfperch fishing is at its peak.

If it’s me, I’m going out in hope of spotfin croaker in October. As for rigs, I prefer a Carolina rig, but take a look here for the best rigs for surf fishing. Take a look at my set-up below for each.

Surf Fishing With Lures In October

As usual, I break lures down into two categories: jerkbaits vs swimbaits. Jerkbaits (in my opinion) will be better utilized in December through March for big spawning surfperch and halibut.

Jerkbaits

For jerkbaits, take a look at this list of the best jerkbaits for surf fishing and be ready for this coming winter-spring when surfperch peak season comes. The spawn is a great opportunity to catch those 14-17 inch surfperch and since all the fries (baby surfperch) are swimming around, halibut are on the prowl too.

As mentioned, I’ll be throwing more jerkbaits in the late winter/early spring Take a look at the set-up that I use for surf fishing with jerkbaits below.

Swimbaits

Now is the time to be throwing swimbaits. Halibut, calico, and even big white seabass cruise through the shoreline reefs this time of year and swimbaits are best-suited for this style. Take a look at this list of the best swimbaits for surf fishing.

The halibut and seabass bite often tapers off after the end of June and remains hit or miss down south while it heats up a bit up north. October is a month that the halibut and seabass bite tends to turn back on before again tapering until spring.

If it’s me, I’m throwing weedless swimbaits for halibut and seabass in October. For swimbaits. I prefer a Texas rig with a weighted hook and a half-ounce bullet weight. Take a look at my set-up below.

Surf Fishing for Sharks in October

Shark fishing from the beach typically starts off very well in April and peaks in June. July through August are also usually quite solid before a slight decline in September. Then, we often get a slight burst in October, but it will typically shut down pretty quickly after October through February.

If you’re looking to surf fish for sharks, October is a great month to get out there. Get out there soon though because once November rolls around, it will be slim pickings. Take a look below for my shark fishing set-up.