Hey guys, I'm kind of new to this saltwater fishing but I love it. I've been doing a little bay fishing for specks and reds lately and I'm hooked. I was wondering about what time each year do the bull reds run in the surf down in Galveston. I thought it might be fun to try a little pier fishing off 61st street. Thanks for any info.

I have always heard october and november
are very good months off the beach and
piers.
Caution -- fishing in the gulf can spoil
you. You will never look at freshwater
fishing quite the same.
If you think specks and reds are fun,
get offshore and catch a few kings, ling,
jacks , sharks and snapper.
Good luck
MO

[This message has been edited by Mo (edited 07-21-2003).]

I'm a freshwater fisherman, so forgive me for this silly question, but I've wondered about this. What do you do if you catch a big bull red on the pier? Do you have to have a net with a 40 foot handle?

You use a "pier net" which is a round net 4' to 5' around with a long rope attached to it. Just lower the net and pull her up.

HEY MAN WELCOME TO THE SALT SOO IT WILL BE IN YOUR VEINS. THE BEST TIME FOR BULL REDS IS IN THE FALL..SEPT-DEC. OCT-NOV BEING THE BEST MONTHS YOULL NEED GOOD HEAVY TACKLE AND SOME GOOD FRESH DEAD CUTBAIT LARGE SHAD WORK VERY WELL I PREFER WHITING OR SANDTROUT TO SNAG THE OCCASIONAL SHARK TOO. ALSO A GOOD LONG HEAVY LEADER AND A LARGE CIRCLE HOOK TO ENSURE THE FISH STAYS ON THAE LINE.I HAVE BEEN AT IT FOR YEARS AND CANT WAIT FOR THIS ONE. GOOD LUCK

I think 61st street was pretty banged up by Claudette...correct me if I'm wrong. The 91st street pier is open except for the T-head...

They dont call it 'The Red October' for nothing,

Shawn

Yup I aggree that saltwater gets in your veins. My son and I were down there right before the storm. Catching small sharks and big catfish off the 91st pier. It's going to be hard for my 8yr old to go back to bluegill and crappie after catching 2 hammerheads

dobber8--
Dont want to step on any toes, but
a lot of people dont know the difference
between bonnetheads (a very common catch off the piers) and hammerheads (somewhat rare)
Bonnetheads dont get very large and
are commonly 2 to 3 ft. A hammerhead that
size is just a pup.
Shark ID can be confusing and sometimes
the experts dont even agree. While we were in Biloxi last month I listen to a group
of charter boat captains on the radio argue over the ID of a shark that had been caught. Most of the
group thought it was a finetooth shark( which
I had never heard of)
Good Luck

MO

What type of line do you guys recommend for the big reds? What test? What size circle hook etc? Can I use my 10 ft surf rod or can I stay with a good bass rod? How many yards of line on the spool etc? Thanks for the info.

Good Fishing

If you are fishing from a boat and can
move with a big fish , the bass gear with
15 to 20 lb test would be fine. If you
are fishing from the pier or surf, I would
go with the surf rod, 20 to 30 lb test line.
You will want a wire leader for 2 reasons,
#1 sharks
#2 the legs of the piers are barnacle
encrusted and a big red will use this to
cut you off.

I would want 2-300 yards of line on the
reel if I were shorebound.
MO

I go to the Chandeleur Islands and/or Venice, LA every year. We catch tons of Bull Reds from 30"- 45" on 10 # test line and 7' Allstar rods. We catch them wading and from the boat. Last Monday at the jetties, a 15 year old on my boat caught a 41" bull red on a 5'5" ugly stick and 15# line. It's all in how you fight them.

If your fishing from the beach into the surf, use a large (8' or longer) rod and 20 # or more reel. Use a spider sinker so it can dig into the sand, a heavy leader and a circle hook. When you fight them, pull them into the surf so the current works with you bringing them into the beach. Release them all as they are not good to eat!

Thanks everyone for the advice. I hope to be putting that to good use this fall. Can you give me a guide recommendation for the Venice, La area for the reds? i sure would appreciate it. I fished with Hackberry Charters out of Lake Calcasieu a few weeks ago and I never will again.

Bassmaster-
if you dont want to go that far, Call
Capt Jerry Norris At Sabine Pass. He knows
his stuff and has fished Sabine lake and
pass for years.
I will get you the name of the guy we
used at venice, he is not there all year,
part of the year he fishes the Delacroix area .
MO

Bassmaster,

What happened with Hackberry? We were gonna charter with them but couldnt get the schedule to work.

thnx,
rog