# Pompano fishing



## Bullred slayer

Ik right now isn't the best time of year for pompano but what is the best bait to use for pompano ? I didn't fish for pompano I lot last summer but when I used sandfleas I seemed to be getting a lot of them . I just want some advice for this summer .


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## onemorecast

Heck I've caught some of my best pomps this time of year. I would recommend giving it a try. Use fresh peeled shrimp if no fleas can be found.


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## GROUPERKING

What he said.  :thumbsup:


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## Pilar

The few I've found lately have all been caught using fresh, peeled shrimp. I can never keep the frozen sand fleas on the hook, and I can't seem to find any on the beach.


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## Bullred slayer

Thanks I will defiantly try out this advice PFF


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## Medic

The fleas I find in Navarre are few and far between. I do a mix of fleas and shrimp if I can find a few fleas. I also have been cutting down orange fish bites to small small pieces to help keep the shrimp on the hook.


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## jcallaham

seems to me that if there are no fleas along the waters edge there won't be any fish there feeding on them in the 1st trough. Next question is are there fleas out on the 1st sand bar,right where waves are breaking in shallow water. we have know way of knowing.
In the last few months the pompano that I have caught were with a combination of a perch grub and fish bites or a small piece of shrimp. None were caught close to the beach. My short cast rods have been left on the shelf. Get the bait /lure out there as far as possible and hope that something passing by will grab it.
I would like to hear from anyone who has consistently caught pomps this fall and how you've done it.


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## Pilar

jcallaham said:


> seems to me that if there are no fleas along the waters edge there won't be any fish there feeding on them in the 1st trough. Next question is are there fleas out on the 1st sand bar,right where waves are breaking in shallow water. we have know way of knowing.
> In the last few months the pompano that I have caught were with a combination of a perch grub and fish bites or a small piece of shrimp. None were caught close to the beach. My short cast rods have been left on the shelf. Get the bait /lure out there as far as possible and hope that something passing by will grab it.
> I would like to hear from anyone who has consistently caught pomps this fall and how you've done it.


The ones I've found in the last month are not close, but they are large. I'm casting out as far as I can with fresh shrimp. Got another big pompano this afternoon.


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## Chris V

It's really not a matter of month as much as watching water temps. Whereas some Pompano continue to move south along the coast, many Pomps stay in the area and retreat to inshore waterways or deeper offshore. Water temps are key to experiencing good pompano action from the surf. Catching one here and there is one thing, but I'd rather know when the fish will be reliable in numbers.

I've caught them in water as cold as 60 degrees, but I look for water between 65-80 with 68-76 being the "boom" range.

As for bait, my favorite is ghost shrimp along with sand fleas and small pieces of shrimp.


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## jcallaham

I like that answer Chris. Fish where the fish are .

after moving here 10 years ago from SoCal I caught my 1st Pomp in January.
I cast a piece of shrimp as far as i could then went up and down the beach trowing lures. never saw the rod move. when I was ready to leave I was really surprised to find a good sized pomp on the end of my line. So I have known they are around all year,I just haven't figured out how to find them yet


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## 2RC's II

jcallaham said:


> I like that answer Chris. Fish where the fish are .
> 
> after moving here 10 years ago from SoCal I caught my 1st Pomp in January.
> I cast a piece of shrimp as far as i could then went up and down the beach trowing lures. never saw the rod move. when I was ready to leave I was really surprised to find a good sized pomp on the end of my line. So I have known they are around all year,I just haven't figured out how to find them yet


 Just follow me. When I stop go somewhere else. Skunked yesterday and one day last week. (Opal Beach)


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## Bullred slayer

Thanks


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## steelhead

I know of a dude w/a commercial pomp license that does pretty dang good this time of year.


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## piscator

Bait = ghost shrimp. #1 Kahle hook 12-18" above a pyramid weight.


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## Fishcontrolmybrain

Sand fleas are the best bait for Pompano in the surf! 

A blind man can even catch sand fleas from April to October in the sand with his bare hands.


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## FreeDiver

my favorite way is sight fishing. its something to try if you have a ladder. I use a set rig maybe 2 times a year but ill throw jigs and flies at fish year round! little pomp jigs tipped with small sand fleas are a killer. nothing like watching 50+ fish swim toward your ladder mid spring!this past year on the pier we had school over a 100 fish swimming in for three days straight!


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## Bullred slayer

Thanks for all the ideas and help and I will most defiantly try the ladder


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## Simonj31

FreeDiver said:


> my favorite way is sight fishing. its something to try if you have a ladder. I use a set rig maybe 2 times a year but ill throw jigs and flies at fish year round! little pomp jigs tipped with small sand fleas are a killer. nothing like watching 50+ fish swim toward your ladder mid spring!this past year on the pier we had school over a 100 fish swimming in for three days straight!


I've been curious about this method and want to try it this spring. So you mean just literally put a regular 7' A-frame ladder in what would be knee/waist height water and wait for fish to cast at?


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## weedline

winter fishing can be good if u pick your days and have long rods. most people dont know but december is the best month of the year outside of april fish are big and not many trash fish or swimmers around


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## Chris V

weedline said:


> winter fishing can be good if u pick your days and have long rods. most people dont know but december is the best month of the year outside of april fish are big and not many trash fish or swimmers around


December _can _be good as long as temps are favorable. We've had some decent winters over the last few years but this December was far from good off of OB.


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## Bullred slayer

Thanks again


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## amberjack

our best day catching pomps was on a fogy day in March. 23 in about 2.5 hours on pealed shrimp. We could barely see the water at our feet.


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## Pilar

amberjack said:


> our best day catching pomps was on a fogy day in March. 23 in about 2.5 hours on pealed shrimp. We could barely see the water at our feet.


I can't wait for a day like that! The most I've had through the fall was 3-4 a day. I'm ready for March!


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## boatsnapper

Sorry for that but I'm new to here and generally also to sports fishing. I can use sandfleas for fishing? Really? How many fleas do you hook?


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## boatsnapper

And furthermore: what about the red beach worms? Can I use them too?


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## DANTheJDMan

boatsnapper said:


> Sorry for that but I'm new to here and generally also to sports fishing. I can use sandfleas for fishing? Really? How many fleas do you hook?


There is a new guy in town.

Just one if they are big enough, like your little finger or bigger.

Hook them through the back and into the digger. The hook to the inside of the shell and through the digger to keep them from digging hiding. 

I was always hooking them the other way but it was explained to me that the fish tries to scoop the insides of the shell out. The roe is on the end with the digger and they go for that first and the hook point should be there.


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## FreeDiver

Simonj31 said:


> I've been curious about this method and want to try it this spring. So you mean just literally put a regular 7' A-frame ladder in what would be knee/waist height water and wait for fish to cast at?



You can get a bigger ladder if you'd like. But yeah that's the gist of it. You you know how to identify pomps while sight fishing you'll have a good time doing it. I would suggest a few days on the pier and learn to identify fish, but yeah, you don't have to be very high off the water to see them swimming. Just hit the edge of the bars, around 3-4ft deep. And in between bars where rips form. That's where your gonna find the most action. I put rod holders on my ladder, so I have more than one rod for different fish. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Fisherdad1

DANTheJDMan said:


> Hook them through the back and into the digger. The hook to the inside of the shell and through the digger to keep them from digging hiding.
> .


This hooking method is correct. Hook them from the bottom up and through the digger, but the REASON to do this is not really to keep them from digging in and burying up. It could happen, but it is hard for them to do that with a hook through them. The reason is that if you dont put the hook through the digger they will end up extending that digger and then spinning in the currrent. If you put the hook through the digger they will end up being a nice, compact, hydrodynamic egg shape and will not spin.
- Fisherdad1


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## rydabyk

Thanks Fisherdad1 that's good to know!


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