At right: Instructor Mac Currin offers some advice and encouragement to a fishing school student who is hooked up to a big fish. Joe Malat photo.

A decade and a half ago, the idea of the Outer Banks Surf Fishing Schools was born. I met Mac Currin, who lives in Raleigh, when we both worked with the North Carolina Department of Administration and were attending a staff development conference for the North Carolina Aquariums.

Fishing was a common interest that we both shared, and I heard Mac’s name as Director of the NC State University Sport Fishing School. I had been a professional surf fishing guide for years and taught surf fishing seminars in the off-season. We both had decades of surf fishing experience.

The conversation spawned an idea. “Why don’t we put together a program that teaches folks how to get started in surf fishing?” Mac suggested. We each kicked around the idea for a few weeks and met again for lunch to work out the details. Over a plate of fried chicken and barbecue at Shaw’s Restaurant in Williamston, we finalized the concept for the program.

Mac and I wanted the program to be about more than just catching fish. We combined an appreciation of fish and an enjoyment of fishing that we both share, drawing from Mac’s education and experience as a marine biologist and researcher and my knowledge of the marine environment as a guide and exhibits curator at the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island.

The result was a program that not only teaches people the basics of surf fishing, but it also introduces them to the habitats and habits of fish, fisheries conservation and management and responsible catch and release techniques.

Fifteen years later the Outer Banks Surf Fishing School is going strong, but it hasn’t been without a few learning experiences. During the first school, we thought it might work to have as many as forty participants in the program. After all, bigger just had to be better. Wrong. The classroom sessions were great. The large group provided for a lot of questions and answers and group interaction, but was a management challenge on the beach. Eventually we whittled the maximum number to twenty five and most of the time we average around twenty folks for each school.

Each school is based in Nags Head, this year at the Comfort Inn in South Nags Head and takes place over a long weekend, beginning with an overview to the program and Mac’s orientation to the Outer Banks and what makes it such a “fishy” place. The evening is capped with a get acquainted social that provides participants with an opportunity to meet each other, get to know the instructors and maybe tell a few fishing stories of their own.

The program is designed for beginners or anglers who may have some experience with other types of fishing but want to learn the basics of surf fishing. It’s a combination of hands-on, slides, video and beach experiences that provide the opportunity for participants to handle the rods, reels, tackle, lures, and gear we will be using.

On Friday morning the classroom sessions kick off with coffee and a short program on fish identification so folks can recognize the fish they catch and also learn a little bit about their feeding habits.

From there we move into the selection of rods and reels and cover the different types of outfits that can be used in the surf, from light ‘trout” rods to “heavers” designed to cast 8-plus ounces of weight and bait. Both spinning and revolving spool conventional tackle is discussed.

During the discussion about lines, leaders and knots we try to demystify the monofilament or braid dilemma, explain the proper care and storage of lines and end the session with a hands-on how to session of knot tying that is always good for a few laughs.

After a catered lunch we cover the selection and preparation of all the baits that are commonly used in the surf.

What’s the best way to prepare a mullet, how do the flounder experts prepare their squid strips to replicate small bait that a flatfish can’t resist? The slides on bait prep that we show in the classroom

are followed up the next morning on the beach with a real time demonstration. It’s all about learning by doing.

What’s a fireball, fishfinder or Hatteras Bait Bug? How do you work a MirrOLure, Hopkins or lead head jig to draw the most strikes? What’s the secret to attaching snelled hooks to a bottom rig so they don’t twist and tangle? What’s the difference between a storm sinker and a pancake weight and what in the world is a “sputnik” sinker? More importantly, what are all those things used for? All of these and many other questions are answered during the rig, lure and terminal tackle sessions.

One of the most popular sessions is “reading the beach.” Through a series of slides and diagrams that feature examples countless numbers of beach conditions, students learn to recognize a slough, a break in the sandbar, and understand what tide or wind conditions will frequently generate rip currents which may help to hold feeding fish. The slide program is also followed up on the beach.

Finally, the gear and accessories that will make a day in the surf more productive, enjoyable and safer are covered in great detail.

Saturday and Sunday provide the opportunity for students to put their knowledge to the test. We usually fish the beach on Hatteras Island on Saturday and spend some time around Oregon Inlet on Sunday. Participants may bring their own four-wheel-drive vehicles. Inexperienced beach drivers will have a great opportunity to hone their sand driving skills and learn some tips and techniques that will eliminate those white knuckle beach driving events!

“While on the beach, we work on casting techniques, read the beach, and learn how to throw a cast net. Hopefully everyone will catch a few fish. Late in the day I do a fish cleaning program that will enable students to make the most of their catch,” Mac Currin said.

What about the fishing? “Well, the only two things we can’t control are the weather and the fishing. Regarding both, we’ve had some good days and some not so good days. But, that’s what fishing is really all about,” Currin added. “After all, this is a reality-based experience!”

During all of the beach sessions, Mac and I circulate among the group and provide the opportunity for them to pick our brains and ask an unlimited number of one-on-questions. This is a chance for participants to learn or discover anything about surf fishing that was not covered during the classroom sessions.

Sunday is a short day, and we close with a brief wrap up session in the classroom before lunch. The focus of the program is fishing, but we have a good time and the days are peppered with laughs and some outrageously funny fish stories…and most of them are true! For more a current schedule, rates and information visit the Outer Banks Surf Fishing School.

Since 1992, a couple thousand anglers have experienced the Outer Banks Surf Fishing Schools, and to me there is nothing more satisfying than receiving an e-mail or phone call from a previous student, with the news about their most recent catch of fish from the beach. Or maybe it’s a story about the trophy fish they released. That’s when I realize that Mac and I really did enable them to understand the big picture!