<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Ling and a couple of cod were boated on a bottom-fishing trip that Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b> took last week, he said. No blackfish bit, but the moon was full. He shellacked blackfish on a trip the previous week, and expected to catch them again on a trip this week, now that the moon was waning. Waters were 39 degrees, and the tog sucked down clams, and fresh clams are stocked. A few striped bass were clammed in the surf. Bloodworms and all the frozen baits are also carried. Julian’s is open 6 a.m. through lunchtime every day, and hours will be increased in March.

<b>Highlands</b>

Charter captains are starting to stir around and think about the upcoming season. Capt. Derek from <b>Fisher Price Charters</b> checked in with an e-mail, saying he expects to start fishing for winter flounder, striped bass, blackfish and ling by the beginning of April. Reservations are already being booked, and call to reserve dates and for any info. Also ask about discounts offered for spring.

<b>Belmar</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 2/19:***</b> One of the Belmar party boats ran an extended trip for cod fishing to waters off Montauk, where cod were whaled lately, and apparently the trip loaded up, said Ben from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. He didn’t know details, including whether the boat will schedule another trip, but seemed like the vessel probably would. Telephone calls will be made to the boat to try to find out, and if the news comes in, it’ll be posted here, maybe at the beginning of next week. Rough weather forecast for the weekend would probably prevent any boat trips through then. On the local scene, nothing much was happening, and none of the boats seemed to be fishing, and no customers reported surf angling. The white perch migration to waters like Forge Pond and Lake Como along the coast is something anglers could look forward to. The fishing is lots of fun. Fisherman’s Den is open until 10 a.m. or 10:30 a.m. daily.

<b>Brielle</b>

Anglers traveled to Montauk to smoke incredible numbers of cod that were caught from there, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. He took a trip for cod from Rhode Island on Wednesday but apparently should’ve sailed from Montauk instead. His fishing was fair at best, but Montauk anglers pummeled incredible catches. If anglers make the trip to Montauk, they should be prepared to fish for the cod with both jigs and bait, because the fish seemed to favor one or the other at different times, probably on different parts of the tide. Closer to home, not much was heard about local fishing, not even about sea bassing at the offshore wrecks. But sea bass catches held up previously. The Reel Seat is open 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays until the hours are increased in March. The <a href=" http://www.ssfff.net/fundraiser.html" target="_blank"> The Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund’s second annual fund-raising dinner </a> will take place 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, March 6, at Crystal Point Yacht Club in Point Pleasant, and visit the web site to purchase tickets.

A mix of giant sea bass, jumbo porgies and a few ling, a good catch, got walloped on the <b>Jamaica</b> on Saturday, an e-mail from the boat said. The numbers of sea bass and porgies were equal. The scope marked lots of fish hovering around the wrecks fished, with no let up in the population so far this winter, and water temps were 46 to 47 ½ degrees. The crew expects catches to keep up. Pool winners included Hyang Kyu Park from the Bronx with a 6-1/2-pound sea bass and Victor Ferrante from the Bronx with a 6-pounder.  Overnight trips are sailing to the 50- to 80-mile wrecks every Wednesday and every Friday through Sunday, and visit the boat’s web site for the full schedule, additional trips and specials. Or visit the site to be added to the boat’s e-mail list to be kept up-to-date on that info. Special cod trips might be slated soon. <b>Bogan’s Boating School</b> is offering the boating safety course required in New Jersey. The next one-day classes are scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. this coming Sunday and March 8, 14 and 22 at Bogan’s Basin. Private classes are available for a minimum of eight students, with a discount for 10 or more, on weekdays, weekends, daytimes or evenings at your own location. Simply select two 3-hour blocks of time, and arrange an instructor. Private classes can also be held on one day when scheduling permits. <b>***Update, Thursday, 2/19:***</b> Anglers on board loaded up on the trip that sailed Sunday to Monday, an e-mail from the boat said. Giant sea bass, jumbo porgies, a few ling, some pollock and even a few weakfish got railed. The ratio of sea bass to porgies was 60/40. Pool winners were George Cassotis from East Brunswick with a 9-pound pollock and Jae Kwan Lee from Philly with a 7-pound sea bass. Water temps held steady at 46 to 47 ½ degrees, and the scope marked good numbers of fish all around the wrecks fished. Plenty of sea bass and porgies kept hovering around the structure.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 2/19:***</b> On the <b>Dauntless</b> mostly ling were cranked aboard, but cod and pollock were sometimes swung a’ship, Capt. Butch said.  Patrons probably coolered five to 15 fish apiece, okay fishing. Ling catches slowed a little, and the pollock, the first that Butch reported caught on the vessel this season, were good-sized, and so were the cod. Both generally ranged from just-keepers to 10- or 12-pounders, but a few of the cod weighed close to 20 pounds. Pollock usually arrive earlier, when mackerel and herring first appear, in the depths the boat fishes. But they showed later this year, for some reason. Two or three blackfish a day were hooked, not many, and occasionally one was a keeper. Trips started fishing deeper than before or in 120 to 220 feet. The deeper the water, the more dog sharks bit, but fish were also boated there. Waters were 39 to 40 degrees, cooler than in recent years, but the weather was warm in the past several years. Water temps now were more like normal in winter or an old-fashioned one.  The Dauntless is bottom fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and is one of the few boats in Jersey that targets the inshore waters all winter long.

<b>Seaside</b>

Some bait stealers were active in the surf on Sunday, but no customers who fished hooked one for an ID, but they had fun trying, said the report on <b>Grumpy’s Tackle</b>’s web site. None of the anglers fished hooks that were small enough. A few sharpies hit the beaches both days of the weekend and had a good time, even if nobody reported a catch. The previous two days were like a wind tunnel. Surf casters would probably also get out today on their day off for Presidents’ Day. <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishingreports/" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.   

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Grass shrimp and minnow sales were decent on Saturday, and most who bought the shrimp headed to Collins Cove on the Mullica River to dunk a line for white perch, but nobody came back and reported results since warm weather nixed ice fishing there, said the report on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s web site. The shop carries live grass shrimp, the favorite perch bait, throughout winter and is one of the few if not the only in the state that does. Bloodworms that can also be used for perch are usually on hand, too. Quite a few anglers stopped by to pick up rod and reel repairs that day, and a few bought new rods and reels. Sunday was a quiet day, not too cold but cold enough to keep people indoors, no thoughts of peeling back the boat tarp or anything. Fierce winds on Friday flung around trash cans and ripped some shingles off houses. Didn’t sound like fishing weather. Previously anglers showed more and more interest in freshwater fishing, catching pickerel that are especially active in cold waters, and an occasional largemouth bass. Anglers also wrangled up sea bass at the offshore wrecks and tog closer to shore once the weather warmed a little. “It’s amazing what a couple of degrees of warmer water can do to bring on the bite,” the report said. <b>***Update, Thursday, 2/19:***</b> Much conversation at the shop revolved around the options for fluke or summer flounder bag limits that New Jersey announced, Scott said. Here they are:

Size….Bag…..Season<br>
Limit...Limit<br>
18"…...8……..June 6–Sept. 7<br>
18"…...6……..June 1–Sept. 7<br>
18"…...4……..May 31–Sept. 7<br>
18"…...8……..May 23 – Sept. 1<br>
18"…...6……..May 23–Sept. 4<br>
18"…...4……..May 23–Sept. 4<br>
18"…...8……..May 15–July 20 and Aug. 3–Sept. 13<br>
18”…...6……..May 13–July 20 and Aug. 3–Sept. 16<br>
18”…...8……..May 20–July 19 and July 30–Sept. 11<br>
18”…...6……..May 18-July 19 and July 30-Sept. 13<br>
18 ½”...8……..May 9-Oct. 4<br>

The 2008 regs were an 18-inch size limit, 8-fish bag limit and a May 24 to September 7 season. New Jersey will decide the regs at a meeting of the Marine Fisheries Council on March 5 in Galloway. Choosing a preference was difficult, but Scott leaned toward either the 18-inch, 6-fish limit with a season from May 13 to July 20 and August 3 to September 15 or the 18-1/2-inch, 8-fish limit with a season from May 9 to October 4.  Any option that excluded Memorial Day Weekend or July 4 Weekend were not favored, because holiday weekends are very important times of business for tackle shops. The option with a season open until early October was interesting, because fishing for the flatties is often great in the ocean after summer. The fish in the ocean tend to be bigger, increasing the chances that a keeper can be caught, too. On the fishing front, some customers bought grass shrimp from the store for perch fishing, but none returned to give results. They were usually one-time, non-repeat customers, and when fishing is on, people usually become repeat customers. Little was even heard about freshwater fishing this week, and no customers said they fished offshore like for sea bass on party boats. Many of the boats wrapped up their seasons by now. Live grass shrimp, minnows and bloodworms are stocked. Scott noted that the <a href=" http://www.scottsbt.com/MI/general/sunshine/soccsunshine.htm
" target="_blank"> Sunshine Foundation</a> will hold a fishing seminar on Saturday with a bunch of speakers talking about different types of fishing and other topics, like government officials who’ll talk about fisheries. The price is only $15 in advance, and advance tickets are available at Scott’s, and $20 at the door. The shop was beginning to catch up on rod and reel repairs. Get them in to be ready for spring, before a waiting list develops. Business was cranking at the store’s web site <a href="http://www.pennparts.com" target="_blank"> PennParts.com</a>, because anglers in winter tinker with tackle. 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>Longport</b>

Sea bass were whacked on the offshore grounds in recent days, and the <b>Stray Cat</b> will go after them on open-boat trips Saturday and Sunday, Capt. Mike said. Call to reserve. Open trips for cod and pollock are also available closer to shore, where the fish are holding, and call for info. Mike expects to resume open trips for tog fishing, one of the boat’s specialties, in maybe two weeks, as soon as water temps bump up a little. That’s great news, really the beginning of the new fishing season. Look for open trips for winter flounder to kick off in the bay toward late March, when the flattie season usually opens. Fishing for the blackbacks used to be common on South Jersey’s bays until the population of the bottom huggers declined for whatever reasons. But in past years the population grew, and Stray Cat will go after them. <b>***Update, Thursday, 2/19:***</b> Water temps bumped up a little, so trips will sail for tog 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, and call to claim a spot. Wind forecasts looked decent. Clams and crabs will be aboard for bait, but anglers might want to bring shrimp.

<b>Ocean City</b>

Striped bass season opens on the bays and rivers on March 1, two weeks from today, and anglers will at least start trying for the fish then, said Bill from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. Fishing news was about as slow as it goes along the coast, no surprise, considering the date: mid February. No customers this weekend even said they fished, not even for sea bass offshore or white perch up the rivers. But the new fishing season was almost here. Customers showed lots of interest in the store’s Wilderness Systems Kayaks for fishing, and sales were going well. Newly stocked, the ‘yaks are available in all sizes and styles. They come either rigged or unrigged for fishing, and all accessories are available for custom rigging. Stop by to see them. 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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