The tide is a determining factor in surf fishing success. You may have good skills and plenty of experience, you may have the best tackle and equipment, and you may have the chance to fish in the hottest spots in the world, but if you do not cast the line during the best tide for surf fishing, then you are definitely leaving a lot of bites and catches on the table.
Yes, when it comes to surf fishing, tides matter a lot.
You will probably refer but sometimes I use the same rod, the same rig, and the same hook, and I cast the same bait at the same distance every time. Yet, my productivity and bites count fluctuates.
Even if everything is the same, the results are different from one day to another. One day, I have a lot of bites, the other day, I have a few.
When this happens, you may think it’s the ocean mystery, or you can just blame the luck, but if you investigate deep enough, you may find that it’s just the tide.
Yes, tides affect your productivity a lot, and spotting the best tide for surf fishing should be an essential task on your checklist if you want to maximize results.
So what’s the best tide for surf fishing ?
The 2 hours around a high tide are the best time for surf fishing. Why ? Because it’s the time when the water is both deep and moving, and these are the best feeding conditions for most fish species.
In this article we will discuss why high tides are the best for surf fishing, and also the other variables to consider in order to maximize the rewards from shore.
How many tides per day ?
The tides result from the gravitational and centrifugal forces applied by the Moon and the Sun on Earth, causing the rise or fall of the waters of the seas and oceans.
High tide occurs when the water is at a high level. Low tide is when the water is low.
Even though the Sun is bigger, the Moon has more impact on the tides because it is closer to Earth.
Simply put, when the Moon is just above one-quarter of the Earth, its gravitational force will raise the water on this particular quarter, while the centrifugal force will raise the water in the opposite quarter, from the other side of Earth.
This means that at every moment, water is high on half of the Earth (high tide) and low on the other half (low tide).
This also means that due to the rotation of Earth, every spot on Earth experiences 4 tides every day, 2 highs, and 2 lows.
In other words, the water level on any beach or shore experiences 2 peaks and 2 bottoms every day, making the water level chart looks like this :
So what is the best tide for surf fishing ?
High tide is best
Yes, high tide is hands down the best tide for surf fishing. Why ? Simply because when the water is high, it means that it’s also deeper, and when fishing the surf, reaching deep waters is very important.
Generally speaking, fish prefer to stay away from the shoreline because they do not feel safe in shallower waters, and when they do not feel safe, they go off the bite.
Yes, I agree. But it is possible to reach deeper waters just by trying a long casting distance ? No ?
Of course you can, but if you combine long casting distances with a high tide, your results will be better and you will be able to reach the deepest spots possible from shore.
In addition, sometimes the water level is so low that even if you use the best equipment and you have good casting skills, you still can not reach a deep spot.
The water should be moving
Yes, fishing at high tide is better, but you do not want to fish when the water level is at its peak. Why ? Because at the top, and before the water starts to fall again, it stays stable and stagnates for a while. The fish do not like that and rarely eat in such conditions.
Fish are conditioned to eat in currents and moving waters.
Why ? Because when water stagnates, small fish can swim very fast and can easily escape larger predators. But when the water is running, the small fish find it difficult to escape nearby threats and this is the best feed time for bigger fish.
Another reason why fish are conditioned to eat in moving waters is that the current agitates and exposes the nutritional elements and shellfish beds hidden behind the rocks and under the sand. As a result, the sizeable fish holding offshore know that whenever the surf zone starts to go up or down, there may be feeding opportunities out there, so they approach the shore and start to search for something to eat and they may find your bait 😉
Therefore, the best time for surf fishing is when the tide is high and also when the water is moving, and that occurs one hour or so before and after high tide.
During this window, the two conditions are satisfied : the tide is high and the water is moving.
For example, if high tide in your area is at 08:00 am, the best time for surf fishing is between 07:00 am and 9:00 am, and you should probably experience the weakest bite rate around 08:00 am, as it’s the time when the waters stagnate for a while before going down again.
How to spot the best tide in your area ?
Tides are accurately calculated and published for free in many media means and technologies :
- Newspapers and magazines
- TV
- Mobile applications
- Websites
- Marinas and ports announcements
Choose any tool from the list and you should be able to find the tides in your area during the day you plan to go fishing.
Personally, I use the Tides4Fishing app because it covers many fishing spots and provides a fairly comprehensive report on the fishing situation with many indicators, including water temperature, weather, tides, and the water level chart.
In the example above, you can see the water level of Wildwood Crest, New Jersey, on August 08, 2019.
The chart shows that the first high tide is at 01:10 and the second high tide at 13:52. Therefore, the best time for surf fishing in this region on that day would be between 0:10 am and 2:10 am, and also between 0:52 pm and 2:52 pm.
How moon phases affect tides ?
As mentioned earlier, tides occur when the Moon and the Sun apply gravitational and centrifugal forces on Earth.
This impact is at its highest level when the Sun, Moon, and Earth are aligned because this is the time when the forces are most concentrated and unified, producing the greatest tidal changes and the highest levels of water.
This situation is called the spring tide and occurs twice a month : one during the full moon and the other during the new moon.
So, as you’ve probably guessed, high tides of these two days are the most rewarding in terms of fishing, among all the other days of the month.
High spring tide is the best tide for surf fishing, not only because it produces the highest levels of water, but also because the water takes longer to rise or fall and as a result generates more water movement. Consequently, fish will spend more time eating and looking for food.
So during spring tide, we can expect more from the surf and consider that the optimal window for surf fishing is not just an hour before or after high tide, but two hours.
In the previous example, assuming it’s a spring tide, the optimal window for surf fishing would be between 11:10 pm and 3:10 am or between 11:52 am and 3:52 pm.
First or second tide ?
The ideal day for surf fishing would be the one where you have the chance to fish two high tides. This is the most guaranteed way to get the maximum results out of your fishing day.
However, the time interval between 2 high tides is about 12 hours, making it difficult for most fishermen to fish both of them on the same day.
Consequently, you may be forced to pick just one of them and try to be there casting the line when it occurs.
But what tide to choose ? The first or the second ?
In general, the two high tides are the same and are both rewarding, but if you are lucky to spot a high tide that happens during dawn or dusk hours, then you have found the best and most productive tide for surf fishing.
Predatory fish prefer to eat in low light conditions because the low visibility makes it easier for them to catch and surprise unwary prey.
Also, darkness provide offshore predatory fish with the necessary cover and security to approach the shoreline and enter your casting range.
Moreover, darkness makes your hook and line hard to see and that helps to have more bites.
So if you can find a day where high tide occurs 2 hours or so around sunrise or sunset, then you have a great opportunity and a prolific day ahead. If you can not find that day, I would always pick the high tide that occurs at night, if it is safe of course 😀
The large fish usually feed near the shoreline at night and move to deeper waters during the day. Therefore, you should try night surf fishing if you want some really big catches
Read this article for more reasons to try surf fishing at night.
Is incoming or outgoing tide better for fishing ?
After all that we said in this article, we can say that the best 12 hours window for surf fishing is the incoming tide. In other words, the time window that starts right after low tide and ends after high tide.
Let me explain…
With this scenario, you start your fishing trip when the water is at its lowest levels and when the surf is not rewarding. Then things start to get better as the water level rises and more fish come closer to shore.
In other words, you will increasingly have more bites and catches while knowing that the best time for fishing is still to come.
In the opposite scenario, you start your day with a good and deep surf zone, but things will get more and more scare as you approach low tide.
You may say that in the end, both scenarios will lead to the same outcome (same bites and same catches).
Yes, logically speaking, this can be true.
However, if during low tide, you take the feedback that the surf zone gives you regarding which bait/lure/spot bring more bites, and use that information during high tide, the results will be a lot more interesting than if you do it in the opposite way.
In other words, low tide is tolerant while high tide will severely punish you if you use the wrong tackle and fish the wrong spots.
So try to be there at low tide and start learning and tweaking your offering while the prolific hours have not come yet.
Conclusion
Simply put, high tide is the best tide for surf fishing because it allows you to fish the deep waters where fish are more comfortable to feed.
So before your next surf fishing trip, try to recognize the tides in your area, and plan your journey around high tide hours.
Also, keep an eye on the moon phases and the monthly tide table to determine when the spring tide occurs and at which days high tides happen during dawn and dusk hours.
Finding a day when all these conditions are met may seem like a lottery win, but the truth is that this happens several times a year. So keep on following the tides and be there to enjoy the best opportunities.
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