I've caught my share of jacks and reds and even a couple of king mackerel on plugs and jigs thrown from the Surfside jetty, but heaving and retrieving oversized lures is exhaustive. To improve your odds and save your shoulders, opt instead for a large, natural bait. If wind, current and crowds permit, offer a live mullet or piggy perch suspended several feet beneath a float. Otherwise, go with a fist-sized chunk of the freshest baitfish you can get, soaked on bottom and steadied by a surf weight. Immediately behind this front, watch for any period longer than 36 hours of light onshore breeze with the understanding that windows of prime fishing conditions in spring seldom last more than a day.
Spring is the season for two-fisted fishing along the coast.
Doug Pike covers the outdoors for the Chronicle.