My "looking for shit to do" on beach vacations reminds me of a fun Garden City trivia fact which I stumbled upon one day, when I walked down to the Garden City pier. I walked down the road, and entered from the street, so I couldn't really see any of the beach or ocean on either side of the pier (there are building, fences, plus the pier has a huge building at the head), and I wasn't paying attention to it. I'm not even looking at going fishing, but just walking up to see what people are catching, their gear setup, bait being used, etc. You have to walk through this store / bait shop to get out onto the pier, and there's this huge sign beside the final door that has some rules for pier fishing. The first rule on the list - written about 5x larger than the rest of the rules is something along the lines of "DO NOT LAND SHARKS ON THE PIER, NOR ATTEMPT IT - CUT YOUR LINE WITH SHARK IN THE WATER". So, I'm thinking that this was some sort of conservation measure, was pretty damned cool, but also wondered how frequently this actually occurred so as to necessitate a rule. So, I'm the only one in the shop at that moment, and I turn to the clerk, an older woman, and said "Do people fishing on the pier catch that many sharks?" (while pointing to the sign). She says, "Oh, lots and lots. That's why we don't want people landing them on the pier." I replied, "Oh, to protect the sharks?". She sort of chuckled and said, "No, to keep from scaring the tourists!". After a few minutes of discussing the matter, she says that the rule was passed because pier fishermen were pulling up all manners and sizes of sharks - and as the pier was probably 100 or so feet up from the water, it was basically an unintentional (and unwanted) reminder to beach-goers that there are, in fact, actual sharks in the ocean...and worse, right near them. So, I leave the shop to walk out on the pier, and immediately notice two things - there are about 50 or so people actively fishing on the pier, some with two rods, and baited lines in the water (squid seemed to be the go-to)...and there are a few hundred people both on the beach and in the water, literally, in the shadow of the same pier. Now, I don't think that there were any lines before about 25 yards onto the pier (because you could just easily cast there, which sort of defeats much of the purpose of fishing from a pier), but across the entire span of the pier, on both sides, and at the pier head, thereafter. I came back into the shop, so as to leave, and asked the same clerk about why people set-up on the beach and swam in the waters right beneath a fishing pier, and she says it was because parents like the availability of shade (given by the pier and building) and kids liked to play between the pylons (telephone poles which extend out into the water and support the pier). It is beyond me how there aren't daily shark attacks there, especially considering how murky the Atlantic is, near the beach. TL/DR In Garden City, SC you've got a bunch of people fishing from a very large pier, who are actively chumming what are known to be waters so active with sharks as to necessitate a rule for fishermen not to catch them, and with about 200-300 hundred people at the beach and in the water immediately beneath and adjacent to the same pier, with most people I saw in the water as being younger kids, because parents / guardians prefer the easy availability of the shade which the pier provides.
Garden City Pier: Found this video, entitled, "Sharks waiting for fish scraps at Garden City Pier" [youtube]nrnTGOnSWHk[/youtube]
Yeah. I'd never swim near a pier. Also, I've had great success on many different species when pier fishing using beef tips. The bloodier the better.
I've seen several different types of sharks on a dive. Bull sharks (the ones in that video) scare me the most. They are responsible for most attacks on humans, they can survive indefinitely in fresh water and they have more testosterone in their bodies than any animal on the planet resulting in a constant state of agression/pissedoffness.
[youtube]oaEMP4MdGRM[/youtube] Bull sharks stranded in freshwater ponds due to receding floodwaters at an Austrailian golf course. Not only are they surviving in the freshwater ponds, they are reproducing in them..... Some claim the movie Jaws was inspired, or at least helped conceptually, by bull shark attacks in Matawan Creek area of New Jersey in 1916.....30 miles inland. Some claim it was a Great White, but most what I've read says a bull shark fits the profile better.
The big scary 3 (for divers). 1. Bulls- king of aggression of all sharks. They don't even need a reason to attack. Oh, and they are one of the most common sharks at US beaches. 2. Tigers (they'll eat anything) 3. Great Whites- although, most divers don't "worry" about these. They are ambush predators & love to attack from below at great speed. You never see it coming, so no need to "worry".
Tigers eat everything. I think they've found all sorts of crazy shit in them - deer antlers, license plates, rubber tires, etc.
Bull shark was caught in Mississippi River near Alton, IL in 1937. Link: http://www.in-fisherman.com/news/sharks-in-illinois/
Bottom line, Tenny..... 1. You need to take a weekday day off work this June.- I don't fish on the weekends. Too many drunks, boat traffic & jet skis on the water for me. Hard to hold the proper trolling direction, speed & depth when you're constantly fighting wakes. 2. You need to come up my way or even meet me at Cherokee Lake. 3. Get in my boat. 4. Use my gear.- I have all the rod/reels/tackle you need. 5. Sit in the front of the boat. 6. Relax & listen to what I tell you to do. 7. Fish. 8. Let me do all the driving/reading depth finder/choose where to fish/what speed to fish/what depth to fish/what color spinner to use on the lure. 9. Catch the fish I put you on. 10. Help me land the fish I catch. 11. Enjoy it. That's it. Well, one more thing, not ONE damn word about Trump or you'll be swimming back to the boat ramp. That's a standing offer. Up to you to accept & get in touch with me to work out a day.
If this fishing trip comes to be, we should have a pool on how long Tenny goes without mentioning Trump. If Tenny turns you down, I sure would accept.
Jay's weekend fishing rule applies to me, and with golf as well. If I go it's around dusk. It's not an enjoyable thing in a crowd
I stopped fishing on weekends when I realized it wasn't going to end well when I started tying on the biggest plug I had with 3 treble hooks on it and casting at the jet skis blowing by 20 ft from my boat when they had a 1/2 mile of open lake available.
