Choosing A Rod For Sea Fishing
Sea fishing rods come in a large variety of types and sizes and thats mainly because the sorts of fish you may be targeting are many and varied. In terms of making a choice, of course, the right one for you depends on what sort of fish you are after and where you will be fishing from. The more specialist the rig you buy the less flexible it will be use in a range of differing situations. There is no such a thing as a sea fishing rod that is ideal in all occasions; at times you will want to be able to sense the bite of a small fish in calm waters but at the same time you will also want a rig that enables you to hook and land a large fish in rough seas..
The first question is where will you be mostly fishing from i.e. the shore or a boat and so do you need a boat rod or shore road?
Types of shore rod
- Beachcaster Rod. These are typically 11ft to 13ft in length although recent times have seen the appearance of the continental style which are 18ft. Beachcaster rods are rated by their casting weight i.e. the optimum weight of line, bait and weights to cast with it
- Bass Rod. Originally designed to fish for bass at short distance and are really shorter versions of the beachcaster rod.
- Spinning Rod. A spinning rod is a light weight rod used to catch lures and is more typically used in coarse fishing.
- Fly Rod. A fly fishing rod can also be useful and for sea fishing you will need one of the larger sizes i.e. 8+.
Finally if you are fishing from the shore you might want to also think about a tripod to hold your rod(s)
Types of boat rod
- General purpose or downtide rod. As the name suggests these are good all-rounders and are usually used to fish on the drift i.e. as the boat just drifts through the water. These rods are typically 6ft to 8ft in length and can be used for bait or lure fishing.
- Uptide rods. These are longer than downtide rods (typically 9ft) and are used for fishing on the drift
- Short stick rod. These are short (5ft 6ft) and are worn with a harness to enable the angler to cope with big fish.
- Long match rods. These are the longest sea fishing rods at 15ft. They are used to allow fishing from awkward positions on the boat
- Multi-tip rods. The sea fishing rods have several separate tips enabling different weights to be fished from the same rod and a greater choice in terms of bait/lure presentation. Many long match rods are supplied with multi tips
- Spinning Rod. A spinning rod is a light weight rod used to catch lures and is more typically used in coarse fishing.
- Fly Rod. A fly fishing rod can also be useful and for sea fishing you will need one of the larger sizes i.e. 8+.
The first question is where will you be mostly fishing from i.e. the shore or a boat and so do you need a boat rod or shore road?
Types of shore rod
- Beachcaster Rod. These are typically 11ft to 13ft in length although recent times have seen the appearance of the continental style which are 18ft. Beachcaster rods are rated by their casting weight i.e. the optimum weight of line, bait and weights to cast with it
- Bass Rod. Originally designed to fish for bass at short distance and are really shorter versions of the beachcaster rod.
- Spinning Rod. A spinning rod is a light weight rod used to catch lures and is more typically used in coarse fishing.
- Fly Rod. A fly fishing rod can also be useful and for sea fishing you will need one of the larger sizes i.e. 8+.
Finally if you are fishing from the shore you might want to also think about a tripod to hold your rod(s)
Types of boat rod
- General purpose or downtide rod. As the name suggests these are good all-rounders and are usually used to fish on the drift i.e. as the boat just drifts through the water. These rods are typically 6ft to 8ft in length and can be used for bait or lure fishing.
- Uptide rods. These are longer than downtide rods (typically 9ft) and are used for fishing on the drift
- Short stick rod. These are short (5ft 6ft) and are worn with a harness to enable the angler to cope with big fish.
- Long match rods. These are the longest sea fishing rods at 15ft. They are used to allow fishing from awkward positions on the boat
- Multi-tip rods. The sea fishing rods have several separate tips enabling different weights to be fished from the same rod and a greater choice in terms of bait/lure presentation. Many long match rods are supplied with multi tips
- Spinning Rod. A spinning rod is a light weight rod used to catch lures and is more typically used in coarse fishing.
- Fly Rod. A fly fishing rod can also be useful and for sea fishing you will need one of the larger sizes i.e. 8+.
