<b>Staten Island</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b> <b>Outcast Charters</b> last fished on Friday, Capt. Joe said, and the boat is running for blackfish. The angling was tough, but the charter of five did limit out. The trip had to bounce around a bit, and no single drop held great life. But some of the fish were decent-sized, including a couple of 9-1/2-pounders and some 7-pounders. Ling were also in the mix.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b> Striped bass action popped up along the beach once in a while, but nobody really fished, said Joe from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Fresh clams are stocked for bait, though. None of the local head boats sailed for blackfish or anything anymore. The newspaper said one of the Point Pleasant party boat captains said dog sharks were thick on the inshore grounds.  So anglers mostly waited for the cold weather to leave. But the shop is open until noon or 1 p.m. daily.

<b>Belmar</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b> Blackfish were belted on the <b>Big Mohawk</b>, Capt. Chris said. Catches were pounded Sunday, even if the bite was slower than earlier in the season. This was late January, after all. But action did drop off Monday and Tuesday, and waters cooled, probably from run-off. Some areas were as cold as 36 to 38 degrees. No trip sailed during Wednesday’s snow and rain. But some 9-pounders were railed this week, and trips will continue, and Chris will see how the fishing pans out. The angling could’ve been faster but could’ve been lots slower, he said. Eventually the crew will take a winter break. Crabs for bait were becoming scarce, and the tog were hooked on crabs, clams -- “a little of everything,” he said. The Big Mohawk is blackfishing 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

<b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b> Mackerel trips on the <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b> were weathered out the past three or four days, but anglers aboard jigged the Bostons until then, Capt. Alan said. Trips are expected to chase them again Friday through Sunday, and whether the boat will keep sailing afterward will depend on catches. The Miss Belmar Princess is mackerel fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Twenty-one keeper blackfish, including two that weighed more than 10 pounds apiece, were bagged among seven anglers aboard Friday, said Capt. Tom from the <b>Nan Sea J</b>. Jim Talcott whacked one of the big fish, a 13-pound 6-ouncer, his personal best and the largest on the boat so far this year. Another angler wrestled in the other big one, a 10-1/2-pounder. Fishing was slow in the morning, and maybe three tog and a couple of ling came up. But one stop in the afternoon produced most of the tog, and not many ling chewed in the afternoon. Waters were 37.9 degrees, and the Nan Sea J will keep fishing through the month before the crew takes a winter break. So jump aboard while you can!

Mackerel and blackfish, plenty of them, got pummeled on the Belmar party boats, said Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. Three or four of the boats continued to sail, and crabs for blackfish bait were scarce, the only problem in the fishery. Once the bait becomes too difficult to obtain, boats will chase ling more often. Ling and a few cod were already cranked in. Bob heard about nobody who surf fished. The store is open 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. daily.

<b>Brielle</b>

Mostly sea bass to 6 pounds were clocked Friday on the <b>Jamaica</b>, good fishing, an e-mail from the boat said. But jumbo porgies, pollock and cod were sometimes boated. The weather was calm, and waters were 49 to 50 degrees, ideal temperatures for the offshore fishing. Pool winners included Eben York from Newburgh, N.Y., with a 20-pound pollock and Fred Babb from Philly with a 14-pound cod, and both limited out on sea bass and coolered some jumbo porgies. Trips to the offshore wrecks are fishing every Wednesday, every Friday through Sunday and on Presidents’ Day, February 16. Some of the weekly trips are now leaving earlier than before, and check the boat’s web site for the schedule. <b>Bogan’s Boating School</b> is offering the boating safety course required in New Jersey. The next one-day classes will take place 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Sundays of February 8 and 22 at Bogan’s Basin. Private classes are also available weekdays, weekends, daytimes and evenings at your own location with a minimum of eight students and a discount for 10 or more. Select two 3-hour blocks of time, and call to arrange an instructor. Private classes can also be held on one day when scheduling permits. <b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b> Weather forecasts were excellent, so Friday’s trip, leaving at 11 p.m. today, is a go, and space is available. Room is also available through the weekend.  On Sunday’s trip fishing was slower than last Friday’s, but all anglers drilled a mix of 22 or more sea bass and porgies, not bad at all. Pool winners included Lisa Chen from Philly with a 25-pound pollock and Laercio Granzotto from Astoria, N.Y., with a 7-1/2-pound sea bass. Waters were 49 ½ degrees, holding steady, and plenty of fish were marked around the wrecks, and catches are expected to hold up.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b> Mostly ling, some blackfish and a few cod were wrangled up from the bottom on the <b>Dauntless</b>, decent catches, Capt. Butch said. On a good day 15 to 30 fish per angler was average, and on a slower day 10 to 20 were. Mackerel moved out of range since last week, but a stray mack or several were sometimes caught by an angler. Once the Bostons swim beyond 20 miles from port, they become too far for the crew to mix in fishing for them in the mornings, the best time for them, before returning inshore for bottom fishing. Butch almost wanted to say mackerel now probably migrated too far for the rest of the season, but one never knows if they might return a moment. Waters were 39 or 40 degrees in the 120- to 150-foot depths where the boat bottom fished, and the temperature sometimes rose a degree or two when waters and winds were calm. Dog sharks were a nuisance at certain places, and silver and conger eels were abundant beyond 150 feet. But the main thing was that ling fishing was holding up. The Dauntless is one of the few if not the only boats in the state that bottom fishes on inshore waters all year long. Trips are running 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

<b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b>  Offshore sea bass shoveled up excellent fishing, the best game in town,  a good season this year, said Ronnie from <b>Fisherman’s Supply</b>. If anybody surf fished, they looked for a remedy to cabin fever “and got wet,” he joked. Customers bought Sabiki rigs to cast for herring at Manasquan Inlet, but nobody mentioned hooking up. Be sure to catch the shop’s exhibits at upcoming outdoor shows and events, and the first will be Surf Day at Brookdale Community College on Saturday, February 21. The event features strictly surf tackle, and the shop’s exhibit will offer surf plugs, plenty of other tackle for the wash, new tackle for 2009 and special prices. The St. Croix Legend rods will be on hand, and so will the Lamiglas pencil popper rods. Both rods are also at the shop, and so is plenty of other new tackle for the year. Ron was charged up about the new colors for Redfin plugs, one of his favorite lures, for example. Stop by and look around.

<b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b>  The boat is finally scheduled to be dry docked, but a trip fished Tuesday, one last shot before calling it a season, said Capt. Fred from <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>. The anglers took advantage of a short weather window, motoring all the way to the wrecks 80 miles from the coast for sea bass fishing. Catches were a slow pick at the first wreck, but the second wreck dished out drop-and-reel fishing. A slew of sea bass to 5 pounds were slammed, and dinner-plate sized porgies, ling and pollock were also burned.  The anglers only hit the wreck a short time, but the angling was lock and load, a great end to the season. They also tried working Shimano Lucanus jigs to catch on artificials, and they jigged sea bass. They also caught the lumpheads up to 30 feet above the wreck, higher than traditional fishing. Fred plans to use the jigs even more next year. He thanked anglers who fished on the boat this year for a successful season, and Andrea’s Toy will be back fishing in March and early April. The first trips will probably bottom fish offshore for sea bass, cod and pollock, and tilefishing will also likely be done. The vessel is one of only several charters that does this sort of fishing on open-boat trips. Charters are also available.

Trips anchored at wrecks 70 miles offshore for sea bass fishing on Thursday and 40 to 50 miles offshore for cod, pollock and ling fishing on Friday and Sunday on the <b>Gambler</b>, Capt. Bob said. A great catch of sea bass, including big ones, was belted on Thursday, and a few porgies were mixed in. Not much else was hooked, and no cod and pollock showed up, and very few ling did. But sea bass were thick. Fishing on the other two trips for cod, pollock and ling was slower than before, and dog sharks were abundant, for some reason. The angling was sort of disappointing, after healthy catches on previous trips to the 40-mile grounds. But some cod and ling were taken, and a few pollock were hauled in. The trip Sunday pushed a little farther from shore at 50 miles from the coast, and in addition to those fish, sea bass even turned up. The boat’s final trips of the season will run Friday and Sunday for cod, pollock and ling and Saturday for sea bass. After the weekend the crew will take a break from trips until April. 

Fishing at the offshore wrecks put customers on catches of jumbo sea bass, porgies, ling, cod and pollock through the week on the <b>Voyager</b>, the report on the vessel’s web site said. On Tuesday many patrons limited out on sea bass, and on several of the other trips a healthy mix of sea bass and the other fish were claimed. Abundant porgies got creamed on a couple of the days. Trips are fishing the offshore wrecks every Thursday through Saturday nights, and cod trips are slated for Fridays. See the vessel’s web site for schedules and info.

<b>Seaside</b>

After the brief warm spell in the 40s toward the end of the week, winds and cold started to return by the weekend, and nobody mentioned fishing the surf, said the report on <b>Grumpy’s Tackle</b>’s web site. Folks at the shop had expected adventurous customers to give the beach a shot during the relative warmth. Participation was practically non-existent through the weekend, and the daytime temperatures dropped to the low 30s. Not such bad conditions, but apparently too gnarly. Prices for reel servicing will increase February 2, so bring reels to the shop before then!  <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishingreports/" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.   

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Ice became unsafe to fish for white perch at Collins Cove on the Mullica River by the end of the week, because of temperatures almost 50 degrees on Friday, said the report on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s web site. Customers on Saturday morning confirmed that not enough ice remained to stand on, and too much ice lingered for anglers to fish from a boat or the banks. But they bought the shop’s live grass shrimp, the favorite bait for perch, to fish another, undisclosed location. However, temperatures plummeted again by Saturday night, and the cold was expected to continue, and fishable ice should rebuild. Forecasts looked like temperatures would hover around freezing both day and night, a small fluctuation of 5 or 6 degrees. Forecasts for possible rain later in the week could be bad news. In addition to live grass shrimp, the store is carrying minnows and bloodworms that can also fool perch. Scott’s is open during slightly shorter hours in winter but remains open every day except Tuesdays. If anglers delayed reel and tackle repairs to be ready for spring, they shouldn’t anymore: Repairs already stacked up at the shop. Be sure to get them in while there’s time to complete them for the new fishing season. Business was also cranking at the store’s web site <a href="http://www.pennparts.com" target="_blank"> PennParts.com</a>, and apparently anglers were tinkering with tackle in winter. PennParts.com features mail order for every Penn part manufactured, and many that are no longer made. But the site is also a public service with a wealth of information, like schematics available free online. Check it out.  <b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29:***</b> Warm weather probably knocked out ice fishing at Collins Cove, Scott said. Customers fished the ice through Tuesday, but the patch of hard waters was already getting smaller and smaller, and one warm day could completely blow it out. Live grass shrimp remained stocked, and bloodworms were in supply. Minnows ran out, but more will be stocked soon.

<b>Absecon</b>

Some customers ice-fished for white perch at Collins Cove on the Mullica River last week, bucketing “pretty good” catches, said Dave from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. One of the staff from the shop loaded up three days in a row. Warmer temps Friday and Saturday probably made the ice unsafe, but the hard water will probably thicken enough again, with colder days forecast. The shop is open during no set hours during the next weeks, but Dave is usually there, and call ahead to confirm.

<b>Longport</b>

An open-boat trip got out Friday on the <b>Stray Cat</b>, fishing the 20- to 25-mile wrecks in 150 feet, and a few ling and tog were reeled aboard, Capt. Mike said. But the fishing was tough, and waters were cold, around 40 degrees, so the next trip, slated for Tuesday, will run 65 miles offshore for sea bass fishing. Trips currently need to go all the way out to reach warmer waters, and sea bass were reportedly stacked up on the grounds. Waters were 36 to 38 degrees until reaching 40 degrees in 100 feet. The weather on Friday’s trip was gorgeous, and seas were flat-calm, and waters were crystal clear. Anglers these days should be flexible and fish when windows of weather open up, and calm weather on weekends is by no means certain. Open trips will bottom fish every day possible on the boat, and Tuesday looked clear, and call to reserve. Looking ahead, Stray Cat will run open-boat for winter flounder when the flattie season opens, usually in late March. Fishing for the mudbacks used to be popular in South Jersey’s bays until the fish became scarce. But lately the population has grown, and Stray Cat will get on the fishing.  <b>***Update, Thursday, 1/29***</b> Winds and seas look calm for Friday, and the air temperature is supposed to be relatively warm, so an open-boat, offshore sea bass trip will head out, Capt. Mike said. Call for reservations, and anglers need to take advantage of the weather window. Jumbo sea bass, pollock and cod will be targeted at the wrecks 65 miles offshore on the 14-hour trip, leaving at 3:30 a.m. Other boats loaded up on the fish lately, including one on Tuesday that returned in the snowstorm. 

<b>Ocean City</b>

Anglers on offshore trips supposedly cleaned up on sea bass, but those were second-hand reports, and first-hand news about any fishing was scarce, said Bill from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. But the shop is open. Be sure to check out the store’s Wilderness Systems Kayaks for fishing, available in all sizes and styles. The ‘yaks are newly stocked both rigged and unrigged for fishing, and all the accessories are available for custom rigging. Waters around Ocean City are full of areas perfect for kayak-fishing that are inaccessible by boat. Kayaking can be a great way to reach honey holes that can be fished practically no other way, and is also suitable for anglers previously without a boat to get a feel for fishing from a vessel. Fin-Atics is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, resuming full-time hours March 1.

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