How to Fish for Sturgeon From a Pier

Prepare yourself for a fight when you hook a sturgeon while pier fishing. Adult sturgeons typically run about 100 pounds and between 7 to 12 feet in length, making them North America's largest freshwater fish by a large margin. Commercially, certain species of sturgeons are harvested for their roe, which is turned into caviar. Catching sturgeons from a pier requires the right tackle, bait and the ability to bring the fish from the bottom of the sea to the pier.

Things You'll Need

  • Fishing pole
  • Mono filament line
  • Leader lines
  • Weights
  • Fishing hooks
  • Live shrimp or fish
  • Net
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Instructions

    • 1

      Choose the right tackle and bait. Use a short pole with loaded with heavy mono filament line, such as 80-pound test. Rig the line with a single sliding bait leader that is between 3 and 8 feet long with a long single wire hook, such as a Kahle hook, attached. Use live bait, such as shrimp or small bait fish such as mullet or herring. Use a decent amount of weight attached to the leader line because you want to fish on the bottom of the water.

    • 2

      Hook the shrimp or bait fish just behind the head through the back so it stays alive and has the ability to move while still on the hook. Drop the bait all the way to the bottom as close to the pier as possible as sturgeon like to feed around structures.

    • 3

      Set the hook once you feel the initial bite, but allow the sturgeon to run for a while before slowly reeling it in. Keep the rod end as far away from pier as possible and try to move away from the pylons as sturgeon will try and break the line against them.

    • 4

      Bring the sturgeon to the surface and have a fellow fisherman work the net for you to bring him onto the pier. Grab the sturgeon by the gills to bring it up to the pier easier.