Shad Fishing

After three unsuccessful attempts at shad fishing, today I hit pay dirt. On two of my previous attempts I watched as those around me reeled in fish consistently while I caught none, or next to none. Any good fisherman will tell you that proper equipment is key to success and I won’t disagree. The Norman Rockwell image of the boy with the cane pole selling fish to the hapless dandy is wishful thinking. Charm and virtue do not catch fish. Gore-Tex waders, laser sharpened hooks and high modulus graphite rods do. But I digress.

I started by replacing a diminishing quantity of vintage yellow mono w/ a full spool of brand new Stren. I also procured a large variety, in both weight and color, of shad darts. Shad darts are jigs with cylindrical heads painted in traditional two tone colors schemes of red/white, green/chartreuse and yellow/red. The upturned hook is partially obscured by a colored bear hair tail. The new and abundant line, together with the weight of a two-dart rig gave me the casting distance I needed to reach the fish. , a problem that had seriously hobbled my previous attempts.

And what about the fish? Hickory shad bear little similarity to the bloody and bloated gizzard shad that wash up on the shores of Lake Erie in early spring. Hickory shad run from 16 to 24 inches in length. They are shaped and colored like a long crappie but with a larger forked tail. They have a big boxy mouth like you might find on a crappie or a tarpon for that matter and like a tarpon they are fond of jumping out of the water and shaking violently when hooked. All in all a sporting proposition!

I fished the Susquehanna River just down stream of the mouth of Deer Creek. At this point migrating hickory shad duck out of the fast and muddy Susquehanna and into the creek’s relatively slow clean flow. On the face of it the fishing method is simple; cast out into the dirty water and keep your lures moving as they swing downstream and into the slower cleaner water near shore. 90% of hook ups take place during this swing or very shortly thereafter.

I fished for about an hour and a half and began to recognize a pattern. While fishing within 100’ of me was steady, activity could be seen to increase as schools approached the banks at various locations. Also, as I became more comfortable with my rig I could feel the darts progress through "the swing" and feel them bumping not only on the bottom but also among the shad. While the early fish were caught with violent "takes" at this point I began to feel the fish’s tentative bites and was able to drop the darts to them and set the hook. The guy I was fishing next to informed me that to do so indicated that I was "in the zone" and I had to agree.

In 90 minutes I caught 16 shad and was able to bring 12 to hand. I was fortunate to hook and land a double. As you can imagine to land two 20" fish in a river current on 6-lb. test took a little patience.

I have mastered shad fishing. Moreover, I am on my way to an intuitive understanding of shad in this specific microhabitat. An understanding that will allow me to return to the zone on future visits.

A brief narrative on fishing from the Folly Beach Pier


Tackle: I used two rods, your 8’ Zebco heavy action spincast combo w/ 20 lb. test line and a 7’ Browning medium action rod w/ an ABU-Garcia baitcast reel with 8 lb. test line. Because of it’s lack of sensitivity, I found that the Zebco was best suited to “static” use; allowing the fish, sharks for the most part, to hook themselves. The lighter action Browning offered a more active approach. I held it and attempted to set the hook when fish (whiting, blues, pompano) hit.

Hook Size: I found your smallest hooks to be too large for the small fish most commonly being caught. Large hooks, heavy line and a heavy rod combined to produce a lot of lost bait. Larger hooks do have their place, as I will note later.

Bait: As with all fishing gear and regalia a large variety exists to please the real and imagined needs of every fisherman. The reality is this. Shrimp is the main food source present in the area and thus the best bait. Eschew squid, mullet, chopped up whitefish and pink shrimp. The frozen “green” shrimp sold at the pier are of acceptable quality, the head-on (or off) fresh green shrimp sold from “the shrimp guy’s” pickup truck are better.

Tear off the head, tear off the tail, and place the hook longitudinally, along the back, through the flesh, so that the hooks barb protrudes amidst the shrimp’s lifeless feet. If bait is at a premium due to cost or supply you may choose to bait the hook sideways, in and out of the shell twice, thus better securing the bait.

“Old man told me if you use that pink shrimp you ought not even cast your line out” -Cracker Boy, Folly Beach Pier, July 2003

Sinkers: While a 4 oz. sinker may be necessary to anchor a rig against the current and surf when fishing from the beach it is not when pier fishing. I found a 1 oz. weight to be adequate for my lighter Browning rig but continued to use the 4 oz. sinkers for the Zebco rig, however 3 or even 2 oz. would be worth experimenting with. The advantage of using 4 oz. from the pier is the ability to place the rod in a holder and tighten it until the rod bends slightly, this allows for a better visual indication of activity at the terminal end of the line. The downside of the additional weight is a decrease in sensitivity when the rod is actually in-hand. That didn’t sound right…

Pier Location: During the morning and early afternoon it is best to be at the end of the pier in the deeper clearer water. When fishing at the end of the pier the possibility exists for hooking a large game fish (mackeral, tarpon) so a larger hook, especially on the Zebco rig, would be in advisable. As evening approaches fishing may be better closer to shore, just past the surf, as fish move toward shore to feed. Periods of high tide and calm, clear water are considered best. Keep your eyes on the water as muddy clouds can move through making a move prudent. I also found it useful to keep an eye on other fishermen and/or to have a member of our party occasionally walk the pier to see if the fishing is better elsewhere. Do not hesitate to change spots frequently.

Summary: I settled on the following procedure. I used a 4 oz. sinker and your smallest hooks on the Zebco. I cast it out as far as I could, let the sinker find purchase in the sand, placed the rod in the rod holders provided and snugged up the line. This line was mostly intended to catch sharks, rays or, hopefully, large game fish. My Browning was rigged with some smaller hooks a kid from Georgia gave me and a 1 oz. weight. I would either a) cast the line out as above and hold the line tight while waiting for a hit or b) drop the line straight down next to the pier and slowly bounce it near the bottom, again waiting to set the hook if I felt activity. Between addressing activity on both lines, catching fish and checking and changing bait I was able to stave off boredom and feel as if my fishing trip had been productive.