Diamond Jig Tips for Surf Stripers
Some falls, when the sand eels move in, the fishing is so simple, anyone who could hit the ocean with an A27 diamond jig with a green tube was set to catch. No sleep needs to be lost, as almost all of the publicized fishing takes place during the day. It is easy to catch some fish, but getting the most out of the fishery can be challenging and demands close attention to the details of what you threw where, when, and under what conditions, and how you retrieved it.
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Details Matter with Diamond Jigs
In November, there are days when high winds and/or seas require aerodynamic lures that could punch through the elements and hit some good water. Diamond jigs, usually A27s, are often hard to beat in these conditions. These lures typically weigh between 2 ¾ and 3 ounces, and most are adorned with a single-hooked tube. This is where it’s worth paying attention to details. The most common color tube I see on the beach is green, and this is an excellent color. I carried tubes in green, white, red, and reddish orange. If I could have only one color, I think I’d go with the reddish orange, but green is a close second. From my experience, the diameter of the tube is much more important than the color.
The smaller-diameter tubing that comes on many diamond jigs is 1/8-inch inner diameter. The larger diameter tubes are typically 3/16-inch. Otherwise identical jigs that differ only in the diameter of the tail tubing are entirely different lures. The lure with the smaller diameter tube cuts through wind and water easier and therefore casts further and swims lower in the water column than the same lure with a larger diameter tube. This distinction could make the difference between hooking up regularly and watching in frustration while others are holding onto bent rods. Which is better? It depends on the conditions, and I found it was often difficult to guess which was best without trying both or watching what other anglers were doing best on.
One morning I was on a beach east of Shinnecock where huge waves were chewing at the beach and had turned the water brown. It was so bad that there was about a 4-foot drop from where you could stand safely to where the waves were sweeping along the sand wall. The three anglers I saw who tried to fish low all ended up being knocked down. There were roughly 12 casters, all except one throwing diamond jigs. One of the diamond jig guys was catching easily 75 percent of the fish. The next 20 percent went to a guy using a 3-ounce Super Strike needlefish. Several anglers separated the two who were catching. At first I thought the guy who kept hooking up was on some sort of edge where the fish were hanging, but that was proven false quickly because he moved and kept catching, while others (OK, me), took his vacated spot and still couldn’t catch. Then what was happening became obvious. The angler who was catching with the jig had a larger diameter tube than anyone else was using. That meant he was fishing a larger profile and his jig was riding higher in the water column. Ditto the angler with the needlefish plug. Given the tough conditions, my initial reaction had been to use a small diameter tube and go for maximum distance and keep the jig deep. That wasn’t what the fish wanted. As soon as I realized what was happening, I switched to a jig with a larger diameter tube and made sure I initiated my retrieve as soon as the lure hit the water. That was it. I ended up having a good morning. Given that the water was very brown, it’s possible that the fish could spot the lure easier if it were larger and near the sunlit surface. Whatever the reason, that small change made all of the difference.
In calmer conditions, some anglers drop their diamond jig weights down from the A27 to the smaller A17 (1¾ -ounce) and 007 (1¼ -ounce). These lighter-weight jigs are a better match for the size of the sand eels present, and they have a little better action than the heavier jigs.
Equally as important as jig weight and tube diameter was retrieve speed and when you started the retrieve. Sometimes the fish are deep and the best approach was to let the tin sink to the bottom before starting a slow retrieve. Other times, such as in the story just mentioned, you were better off starting the retrieve right away and keeping the lure high. Because diamond jigs cast far, they often hit water that’s deep enough that you need to be concerned with the part of the water column that you’re fishing.
Sand Eel Strutcure
Some of my most interesting trips in past falls was when the beaches were eroded and closed to vehicle access. When I could use the truck, I’d head for whatever piece of structure was currently working for me. If it didn’t pan out, I’d drive to some other structure. That was fine and productive, but it didn’t force me to work one area carefully because there was always the possibility of good action elsewhere. Also, the beaches got somewhat crowded when they were open for driving, thus restricting how thoroughly any given point could be fished. When my fishing area was limited by how far I could walk, I had to fish the available structure much more methodically. Because almost no one else was walking as far as I was, I had the beach to myself and could fish the structure thoroughly without being constrained by other anglers. Many times I’d stay in the vicinity of a single point and work it from one side to the other. If the beach was closed to driving, the water was probably rough with waves coming from the southeast. The eastern edge of the points often took the brunt of rough surf; the point tips were relatively shallow and often covered with white water, and the western edges were usually a bit calmer and curved into a carved-out bowl of deeper water. A move of 20 feet could make a big difference in the catch. The only way to know was to keep moving and casting.
Teasers
I carried and tried teasers throughout the run. There were times when fishing a dropper ahead of my main lure appeared to increase my catch, but this seemed more the case later in the run when the fish were smaller. I used 4.5-inch Red Gills. I tie those on 6-inch lengths of 30-pound-test leader material with a perfection loop on one end. The perfection loop enables me to easily add a dropper to the barrel swivel on my leader, which consists of a 36-inch length of 50-pound-test fluorocarbon with a barrel swivel on one end and a Tactical Anglers clip on the other.
Originally Published in the October 2011 Issue of On The Water
Related Articles:
The Scoop On Sand Eels – On The Water
The Sand Eel Schedule – On The Water
Teasers for Fall Run Stripers – On The Water
Source: https://onthewater.com/diamond-jig-tips-for-surf-stripers
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