Sandy Point Beach Club fishing

[Bill R]

Anyone ever have any luck off the jetty at Sandy Point? Will be arriving Dec. 31 for a week and wanted to give it a try, just for fun, nothing serious. Thanks. Bill

[Steve Pitts]

Hi Bill

The piers at Sandy point can be very good at high spring tides for tarpon, jacks, snapper and houndfish.

Best to use bait for the tarpon, which push up to 50 - 60lb (average 20 -30lb) set a couple of feet under a float. Just lob it out and let the bait drift around in the current and chuck in a few bits of loose feed. The tarpon should find your bait easy enough. Tarpon will take flies and lures, but are much easier to hook and stay attached to on bait, especially if you use a circle hook. A 60lb plus mono trace is essential if you want to land a decent tarpon.


One of several tarpon caught on a freelined deadbait

Jacks occasionally come in and bust the baitfish shoals, which can be so numerous that they turn the water balck around the piers, at dawn and dusk. A small silver lure like an ABU Toby is good, or a shallow diving plug or surface lure will score the bigger fish. If you see flocks of terns, boobies and pelicans diving in a frenzy then it's likely that jacks will be underneath them, feeding on the baitfish. You'll need to be quick to get amongst them though as they don't hang around for long.

Snapper and houndfish are day-time feeders and can be caught on float-fished bits of bait or small lures with small sharp hooks. I like the Owner stinger trebles in sizes 6 and 4.

During the hours of darkness you may be lucky to find snook around the piers and they can be caught on flies or small livebaits, but fish very close in for them.


Fishing the pier at sunset

Cheers
Steve

[Bill R]

Steve,
Thanks for your reply. Can't wait to give it a try. Will I be seeing you on the jetty during my time there?

Bill

[Steve Pitts]

Alas - I will be freezing my coconuts off here in England Bill, but I have my fingers crossed for a visit later on in the year.

Also hoping to catch the spring run of stripers on Cape Cod in June.

Tight lines
Steve