New Jersey Fishing Reports

A brief charter swam eels off the United Nations Building on Friday, wrangling in a 23-pound, 40-inch striped bass, a skinny one, said Capt. Akira from True World Tackle and True World Tackle Charters. Bluefish bit off some of the eels, and few large stripers were around the area anymore, and most anglers said bunker became scarce at places like Great Kills Harbor. Fluke began to get pulled from the waters on the west side of the Verrazano Bridge. One customer from the shop sailed for stripers in the ocean at the Shrewsbury Rocks on Saturday, but boats crammed the waters, and fishing was slow. Bulkhead anglers played small stripers and blues from Hudson River Park, mostly while soaking bunker or bloodworms.

Laurence Harbor

Conditions were tough, but a few keeper fluke and a bunch of shorts were rustled up nonetheless on a half-day, 4-hour trip on the bay Friday with Steve Van Dam with Evening Tide Charters, Capt. Kyle said. Action got better as the tide started to run with the winds instead of bucking against them. Evening Tide switched a lot of attention to fluke on the bay, after striper fishing on the bay through recent weeks. Stripers mostly departed for the ocean, but blues kept swarming the bay, if anglers wanted to pick a fight with them. Evening Tide is fishing seven days a week on charters and open-boat trips, and contact Kyle to get on the open list.

Keyport

Two groups from Shearing Plough pitted against each other to see who caught the most fish on Saturday and Sunday on the bay with April Ann Charters, Capt. “Shamrock” Eddie Coleman said. The first group on Saturday was Lee Ann Brooks’ charter that also included Lucy, Felicia and Daisy, and they put a beating on blues to 10 pounds. The blues all attacked bunker, and clams were fished for striped bass, but no stripers showed up. The second group on Sunday was the Anthony Toto charter that also included Darrel, Pedro and Elie. So it was gals against guys. The gals won, hammering more fish, but the guys also waxed blues to 10 pounds from Round Shoal to Romer Shoal while fishing bunker, no clams. They tried trolling deep divers the last hour to see if a striper hit, and more blues swiped the lures.

Atlantic Highlands

Fluke trips sailed every day on the Atlantic Star on the bay, and action with shorts was great at times, and most keepers were 18 ½ to 19 inches, Capt. Tom said. All in all, the fishing was like anglers know it to be with the larger size limit. Some of the shorts were small, and others were an inch or half-inch shy. Conditions were important. Like on Sunday afternoon’s trip there was no drift for a while, and catches were slow. But when the boat started to drift, patrons began to catch. Later the drift became too fast. A 7-pound fluke was nailed on that trip. Trips fished all over the bay, including off the Coast Guard Station, on both sides of the Navy Pier and more, and the flatties carpeted the bottom all over. The spread of fish was fortunate, because the boat could fish different places to duck out of different wind directions. The Atlantic Star is fluke fishing on two trips daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

On the Fishermen striped bass fishing turned tough on a charter during Saturday’s sun and flat-calm seas, Capt. Ron said in the report on the boat’s Web site. Seven quality keepers, a couple of fluke and an odd bluefish were landed. Open-boat trips resumed Sunday, another tough day to say the least, he said. But on Thursday’s and Friday’s open trips in rough weather, stripers were pounded. Ten of the boat’s biggest stripers of the season were hefted aboard Thursday, and every angler limited out. On Thursday many limits and bass to 31 pounds were hooked all day, and the high hook reeled up six keeper-sized linesiders, keeping no more than his limit. “Got to love the nasty weather!” Ron said. But one never knows, and a calm day might throw out the season’s best catches. The Fishermen is sailing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and on Magic Hour Trips 3:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Fridays through Sundays.

Highlands

The bay’s fluke fishing got better every day, and although shorts, many of them ¼-inch shy, were the rule, very respectable flatties 3 to 6 pounds were sometimes decked, said Capt. Bob from Sandy Hook Fishing Adventures. Striped bass fishing was going well on the boat, and trips are either hunting them on the bay or running down the ocean beaches to get after them. Worming for stripers at night also put the brakes on lots. The Mendez family’s charter bagged eight keeper fluke to 24 ½ inches and released almost 10 times as many shorts. The Jenkins charter wormed for stripers on an evening trip, taking home three keepers to 36 inches and releasing several other keepers and some shorts. Full-day, half-day and evening trips are fishing for stripers, fluke, blues and bottom fish, and open-boat trips are offered when no charter is booked. Call for details and available dates.

Ocean striped bass fishing pummeled 18- to 35-pounders, angling that busted wide open since last week, on livelined bunker with Jersey Devil Charters, Capt. Brian said. Trips racked them up anywhere from the Highlands Bridge south, but lately hooked most toward the Highlands Bridge, closer to port, a shorter run. Big, alligator blues 10 to 15 pounds tore up waters in the early mornings. Trips are striper fishing today and from Wednesday through Friday, but Jersey Devil is offering after-hours trips 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at a special rate, and see <a href=" http://www.jerseydevilcharters.com/" target="_blank">the boat’s Web site</a> for info.

Fishing for striped bass was up and down in the ocean, and sometimes bunker were tough to find for bait, but other times trips smoked the bass, said Capt. Derek from Fisher Price Charters. A 28-pounder was already iced when he gave this report from the waters at 9:45 a.m. today over the phone. A fish, probably a big blue, was also getting fought as he spoke. Saturday morning’s catch was very good on the boat, and Sunday’s was pretty good, and today’s was off to a pretty darn good start, he said. The bass on the boat through the weekend probably weighed up to 32 pounds, and Derek heard about several 40s and a couple of 50s that others knocked down. Lots of big blues were sometimes around. Bunker were thick up and down the coast on Saturday but disappeared on Sunday. Fisher Price previously had also been bottom-fishing at times, and a friend who bottom fished lately did a number on sea bass to 4 and 5 pounds. But now that striper fishing on livelined bunker started, trips will probably concentrate on that. But they’ll troll for the linesiders when necessary. This was the main event of spring, the run of big stripers north along the coast. A few dates remained for charters, but the schedule was pretty booked. Darren will squeeze in open-boat trips during any time slots that open up, but probably only on two or three days notice. But anglers can call or e-mail him to be kept informed.

A surf fly-rodding trip last week put an angler on his first catches of blues of the year and maybe the first or second blues of his life on the bay side at Sandy Hook, said Bill Hoffman from Skylands Angler. A few of the fish to 3 or 4 pounds were landed, not spectacular, but great for connecting like that with the first of the year or maybe some of the first of a lifetime. Sand eel flies got the bites, and at first bunker flies were tossed, with the thought that the blues were probably prone to smack a bunker. Then even bigger flies were cast without a touch. Other patterns were tied on, and finally sand eels were tried, and they were key. Goes to show you never know, and the fish might be focused on something specific, like a small baitfish that the sand eel pattern imitated. If beginners want to learn saltwater fly fishing in the surf, this is the time. Or if experienced anglers just want the best chances to catch, this is it. But it won’t last long. Skylands Angler guides surf fly-fishing trips during the spring and fall migrations in the Sandy Hook area and farther south at Island Beach State Park. Skylands also guides freshwater fly trips for trout and nearly all the major species in New Jersey. Bill did lots of trout fly-rodding in the past week, and look for the scoop in this coming Wednesday’s Freshwater Report.

Neptune

Striped bass, lots of them, were landed in the ocean from Asbury Park to the Highlands Bridge, said Capt. Ralph from Last Lady Fishing Charters. A showing of fluke also came up from the ocean, very encouraging, and a bunch of a sea bass and ling were belted. On the Last Lady on Saturday morning, stripers to 28 pounds and a good mess of sea bass and ling were laid out. On the Last Lady II that morning keeper fluke and big, humpbacked sea bass were pelted. Striped bass to 20 pounds and bluefish were put to a stop on the Last Lady II that afternoon. Individual-reservation trips are leaving port for stripers and sea bass every Wednesday, and a few spots are available this week. A few spaces are also available to fill a striper and sea bass charter this coming Monday. Individual-reservation fluke trips will begin to sail every Wednesday on June 24. Book now, because many of Last Lady’s regulars jump on the trips, some of them every time, and space does fill.

Belmar

On the Nan Sea J Capt. Tom found striped bass fishing kind of slow on the ocean during the weekend, but anglers aboard managed to land a few, none too big, he said. That’s because they clammed off Sandy Hook to get away from boat traffic, and stripers that get clammed in the area tend to be smaller than ones that migrate up the coast and get caught on bunker. No bluefish appeared, and the anglers switched to bottom fishing when striper action tapered off. Bottom-fishing on the boat’s been very good, boxing lots of sea bass, large ling and some cod. Weekdays are usually better than weekends for striper fishing, but weekends are popular for charters. No sharks were yet landed locally, but shark fishing, Tom’s favorite angling, will kick off on the Nan Sea J with an open-boat trip June 10. That’s one of the annual open trips that run every Wednesday through July, a rare opportunity to go up against the monsters on an open basis.

Some mileage was put on the Golden Eagle through the last several days to find fish, but patrons got on really good catches of big blues to the south, especially on night trips, Capt. Greg said in an e-mail. But the blues were also battled during the day, both on bait and on jigs. Still, patrons really beat up the slammers at night, all on bait, of course. “It was well worth the ride!” he said. On Sunday’s daytime trip the boat headed north, and bluefishing was on and off, but catches of small ones ended up well on jigs. Few stripers showed up in the past days, but blues served up good action. The Golden Eagle is fishing for stripers and blues 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and for blues 7:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. daily. See the boat’s Web site for up-to-date, “no bull” reports, Golden Eagle Dollars Coupons, news and other updates.

Brielle

Boaters clocked plenty of striped bass in the ocean Saturday and Sunday mornings and also during the week, said Dave from The Reel Seat. They either trolled the fish on bunker spoons or Mann’s Imitator plugs or snagged and dropped bunker for bait. Whether bunker were around depended on the day and where anglers boated. Few blues swam among the stripers. A load of small blues hit Manasquan Inlet Saturday night, but lately they’d come and go, inconsistent. Still, fishing around the inlet was generally not too bad. At the inlet, besides blues popping up on occasion, fluke were reeled up, and stripers could be hung on the right tides. Dave also saw two weakfish, including a 15-pounder, hammered at the inlet. Little was heard about fishing at Point Pleasant Canal, although anglers talked about lots of action there 1 ½ weeks ago or so. Whether ocean fluke fishing produced depended on where anglers fished. Flukers hooked some of the bottom huggers off the Red Church on Saturday, but the angling was so-so in the local area then. Dave heard one report about the flatties to 4-pounds bucketed at Sea Girt Reef along with hefty sea bass and an 8-pound cod. Sea bass covered the wrecks in 60 feet, and ling began to move off to deep waters but were still around. Dave on the radio heard his season’s first report about a thresher shark seen in the ocean among bunker schools. No locals really thought about tuna fishing yet, but South Jersey boaters probably began to get into the fish at the southern grounds on the first trips of the season. The Reel Seat has been open seven days a week since Memorial Day weekend from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Fridays, 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays. The <a href=" http://www.ssfff.net/fundraiser.html" target="_blank">Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund</a>, spearheading the movement to prevent the summer flounder or fluke season from closing and from harsh bag limits that are essentially a closure, very much needs the continued support of anglers. See the fund’s Web site for details and how the fund is attempting to solve the crisis.

Night trips busted up lots of blues 6 to 12 pounds on the Jamaica during the weekend, and Saturday was best, an e-mail from the boat said. On Saturday’s daytime trip plenty of bunker schooled along the beach front, but no striped bass fed on them. The vessel sailed farther offshore, and blues and baitfish were marked all over, but the fishing was poor. The trip that night looted a mess of 6- to 12-pounders at the same place. On Sunday’s daytime trip limits became common when the boat ran into a load of smaller blues only a little ways to the north. The trip looked for stripers, but reports about striper catches were few and far between. So the anglers aboard finished out the day catching blues, close to port, too. Pool winners during the weekend included Walter Koschak from Spring Lake Heights with a 10-pound blue. The Jamaica is fishing for stripers and blues 7:30 a.m. daily and for blues 7:30 p.m. daily. Check the boat’s Web site for the full schedule, including special trips, and to be added to the e-mail list for special trips. Reservations are being booked for canyon tuna trips that will launch in late August.

Sea bassing doesn’t get much better! said Capt. Jerry from Fish Monger Charters in an e-mail after two trips Friday and Saturday. They limited out on sea bass and also stuck striped bass. Another trip on Sunday ran mostly after stripers with live bunker but mixed in bottom fishing. Friday’s trip started heading out for bottom fish, but stopped on bunker a moment to look for stripers, livelined some of the baitfish among the pod, found no stripers, but caught some of the menhaden for the livewell. The anglers moved on to the bottom grounds, anchored up, and it was game on! Drop-and-reel fishing at its finest, Jerry said. Nice-sized keepers and double-headers came up all day, and a fair number of shorts had to be picked through, but plenty were large lumpheads. Only a few adjustments of the vessel had to be made all day. Once the crew knew sea bass were going to be caught, the anglers fed out a couple of bunkers off the stern, and zzzzzz! They went 2 for 4 on stripers to 25 pounds and also had a few bluefish bite-offs. The trip wound up with a load of sea bass, two stripers and a keeper cod. On Saturday the trip started for the bottom grounds, but first got on bunker to look for stripers, but boat traffic was terrible. So they decided to run straight to the bottom fish. It was drop and reel again, double headers throughout the day, and this time some real big sea bass, a handful around 3 ½ pounds. More dogfish showed up than on the previous day, but were only an occasional nuisance. A load of sea bass were coolered, and so were five ling. The boat only had to be re-positioned a few times. Sunday’s charter for striped bass first came across acres of bunker just outside the inlet. The anglers snagged a bunch, and started seeing a few pods getting exciting. A few runoffs grabbed the hooked baits, but a hook or so was pulled, and a bite or so was missed. Two more run-offs were scored, and one striper was landed. But that was it for striper action. The charter sailed north, stopping on pods of bunker, but with no takers. They ended up at the Shrewsbury Rocks, and bluefish tore up the waters on three drifts. So the gang decided to bottom fish on a few drops. Bottom fishing was drop and reel again, but most of the sea bass were shorts, and by less than half an inch. The new size limit, a half-inch larger this year, hurt the catch. But some keepers plus a few ling were bagged. The anglers totaled one keeper striper, 30 keeper sea bass, a few ling, some blues and an eel for the smoker. Get out bottom fishing while it lasts, because it doesn’t get much better. Trips are also livelining bunker for trophy striped bass, and Fish Monger pummeled some striper catches in the past week, previously reported. Both charters and open-boat trips sail, and see the vessel’s Web site for info, or give the crew a buzz. Fluke fishing is coming up soon, including on charters and BYOB—bring your own bucktail—open-boat marathons.

Point Pleasant

The Sea Devil ran for blues to Barnegat Ridge on Saturday, Cindy said in an e-mail. Anglers aboard got into a slow pick on 5- to 8-pounders, mostly on bait, but some on jigs. Dogfish got in the way, and the boat made several moves to avoid them. Aida Wimbush from Ewing won the pool with an 8-pound blue. Another trip was supposed to sail Sunday, but no results rolled in from Cindy yet. The boat is chartered today through Friday. But otherwise open-boat trips are fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

Striped bass to the mid 40 pounds were hooked along the beaches through the week on livelined bunker snagged from schools for bait, said Capt. Fred from Andrea’s Toy Charters. Trips also mixed in inshore bottom fishing, either when they limited out on bass or during lulls in striper fishing, returning to stripers when the action turned back on. The bottom fishing was great for big sea bass and large ling. Trips this week will start mixing it up with mid-shore fishing for sharks and wreck-angling for cod and pollock. A charter Friday limited out on striped bass to 30 pounds on live bunker and then bottom fished a little for a half-dozen keeper sea bass to 2 pounds and a half-dozen ling to 2 pounds, the boat’s Web site said. A life ring with an activated strobe light was found at one point, and the Coast Guard was called in, but fortunately nobody was reported missing. A charter on Thursday found bunker difficult to catch, swimming deep, but did manage to nab some, and they made them count, going 5 for 7 on stripers to a 47-incher that weighed more than 40 pounds, the site said. Awesome!

Although fluke fishing was tougher on Saturday on the ocean on the Gambler, and mostly shorts chewed, patrons fortunately socked sea bass, including sizeable keepers, Capt. Bob said. But Sunday’s trip turned out better on the fluke front, and sea bass were still caught, a good day of fishing over all. The catch started similar to the previous day, with short fluke and sizeable sea bass taken. Then the boat moved to deeper waters, and a quality mix of keeper fluke, large sea bass and short fluke were angled in. Dog sharks had to be dealt with in the deep, but they weren’t too bad. Bill Werking from Toms River nearly limited out with five keeper fluke to 5 ½ pounds and added a dozen keeper sea bass to his cooler. Donnie Johnson from Roswell Park knocked down a 6-pound fluke to take the lead in the monthly pool and also bagged a 2-pound fluke and 11 keeper sea bass. The Gambler is fishing for fluke on two trips daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.; for striped bass 7:30 pm. to 12:30 a.m. every Tuesday through Thursday; and for bluefish 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. every Friday and Saturday.

Jigging for striped bass in the ocean should open up any time, an e-mail from the Cock Robin said. Bluefishing in the waters was a slow to steady pick, but all anglers caught who put time at the rail. Many patrons on Saturday night’s trip limited out on blues, and many went into catch and release mode, with calm seas and blues eager to yank their arms off. The Cock Robin is fishing for stripers and blues 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and for blues 7:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

Seaside

Participation is usually light on Mondays, but given the number of striped bass weighed in today, striped bass fishing must’ve been pretty good, said the report on Grumpy’s Tackle’s Web site. Surf anglers, boaters and even kayakers kept checking in stripers from the wash and ocean in the past days. From the surf a total of eight bass 8 to 32 pounds hit the scale today and Sunday, all caught on Grumpy clams, except one that inhaled bunker, and another that was plugged. Kayakers showed off five bass 19 to 34 pounds, all taken on bunker, through both days. Boaters brought in about 15 bass, almost all 20- to 30-pound classers, but one that was 40.7 pounds, during the two days. All were drilled on bunker, except one that smacked a plug. Not much was heard about blues or any other fish like fluke. <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishingreports/" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.

Barnegat Light

Fishing ranged from inconsistent to slow from Barnegat Bay to the ocean through the past week, said Capt. Steve from Reel Fantasea Charters in an e-mail. Rough weather offshore kept tides high and might’ve been the culprit. Dean Stankowitz’s party jumped aboard early in the week, first trolling the ocean, going 1 for 2 on stripers, putting a 25-pounder on ice. Then the trip moved around to look for schools of bunker in the ocean that turned out meager, spread out, difficult to snag for bait, and apparently had no stripers chasing them. Bill Saurer’s trip was next at bat for the best fishing of the week, all on the bay. They scored solid action with blues and stripers to 16 pounds while dunking clams and bunker. Jerry Kornmeyer’s gang was on deck afterward in the week for the slowest angling. Nothing was hooked on the troll in the ocean, and bunker were glued to the bottom off the beaches, making snagging them impossible. They returned to Barnegat Inlet, found the tide slack and no fish biting at first. But they waited out the tide and then jigged 10 fluke, including two quality keepers 19 and 20 inches. Next they located finicky fishing for small blues and stripers on soft plastics until the day’s end.

Barnegat

Two striped bass trips got weathered out that were supposed to fish the ocean, said Capt. John from Perfect Drift Sportfishing. But the fish, big ones, were there, and two more trips are supposed to go after them this week. Anglers either snagged bunker and livelined it for bait or trolled for the fish. Weekdays are best, because of boat traffic, if anglers could schedule weekdays. A couple of fluke trips are also slated to fish Barnegat Bay in the coming days, and John heard nothing about the fluking during the weekend, but the early season or now is always best for the bay’s flattie fishing. Most of the summer flounder will move to the ocean as waters warm, and Perfect Drift will target them there then. The flatfish will remain a by-catch in the bay through summer, but will no longer be practical to target specifically in the back waters. In the bay fluke trips can also mix in bluefishing on the troll or on cast soft-plastic lures and surface-popper plugs. Tidernunner weakfish can sometimes grab the trolled or cast lures, too.

Jim Keller and friends jumped aboard the Hi Flier on Sunday, broke Barnegat Inlet by 5:30 a.m. and ran north along the ocean to Lavallette, Capt. Dave DeGennaro said in an e-mail. Lots of bunker flipped around on the surface, and a big fleet was already on the waters. Bunker were snagged for hooked-baits, dropped in the drink, and the first run-off was soon scored, got hooked for a moment but got off almost right away. Ten seconds later another rod in the stern went off, and a 25-pound striper was decked. The fleet’s been heavy on weekends, and now was the time to fish weekdays to enjoy lighter crowds if possible. The same bunker schools and stripers would be there today, and so would Dave. Charters or open-boat trips are available Wednesday and other days, and the weather looked perfect Wednesday. Trips leave the dock at 5 a.m., so anglers should meet the boat at 4:30 a.m. Call Dave for details. Update, Today: Today’s trip, with Joe Parente and Lou Vasilow aboard, made a left out of Barnegat Inlet around dawn, and ran the 15 miles north to Lavallette, Dave said in an e-mail. Bunker started to be snagged for bait right away, and the anglers teamed up for four stripers 20 to 34 pounds. Lighter boat traffic might’ve made a difference in the action. The bite is very early, slowing down by 9 a.m., although one of the fish, a 25-pounder, was hung after 10 a.m. Dave will be back on the scene Tuesday, and space remains for a charter or open trip Wednesday, and then the schedule is booked through Monday.

Tuckerton

Lots of keeper sea bass to 6 ½ pounds and some big ling were shoveled up Sunday with Legal Limit Charters, Capt. T.J. said. Trips will keep bottom fishing, and ocean flounder fishing will begin in some weeks, when waters warm. His other boat is fishing for drum from Cape May, and see the report under that port. Shared charters are fishing for drum or bottom fish every Tuesday and Thursday when no full charter is booked.

Mystic Island

Someone on the radio talked about shellacking a striped bass more than 40 pounds and over 40 inches today, probably caught around Wreck Inlet, said the report on Scott’s Bait & Tackle’s Web site. A huge school of bunker, the first seen locally this season, swam closer to the shop off Little Egg Inlet on Saturday. No bass were hooked among them, but several stripers in the 20- to 30-pound class were checked in that were boated north of Barnegat Inlet. Flounder anglers reeled up lots of the fish, mostly shorts, just about everywhere in the local bays. Most got picked off in 3 feet, and drifting from deep to shallow or vice versa seemed the secret. Keepers came from no particular spot, but persistence was the only key. However, on Saturday a better ratio of keepers seemed to be found at the clam stakes on the Mystic Island side of the Fish Factory. That seemed to change afterward, though.

Brigantine

Schools of 20- to 40-plus-pound striped bass swam the ocean around the Brigantine area, foraging on pods of bunker, said Capt. Tom from Fishin’ Fever Sportfishing. He’s been drum fishing from Cape May like always in spring, but Brigantine is home port, where he returns after drum fishing. But the striper fishing off the island was so good that he’s gotten use of another boat to go after the linesiders, if anglers want to get in on the lunkers. Charters will either snag bunker and liveline it for bait or will troll for the bass. See the boat’s report under Cape May for the scoop on the vessel’s drumming.

Atlantic City

Surf casters began to beach kingfish, and a bunch turned on from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, said Noel from One Stop Bait & Tackle. Bloodworms were the bait, and plenty of striped bass were belted in the suds on clams or bloods. Stripers checked in included a 19-pound 36-incher, an 18-1/2-pound 38-incher, a 15-pound 34-incher, a 12-1/2-pound 32-incher, an 11-1/2-pound 32-incher and an 11-pound 32-incher. Herring schooled out front, and bunker were around, but fewer than before. Drum were dragged from the wash, chomping clams meant for stripers, and big drum really came in this year, for some reason. A 59-pound 50-incher was weighed in. Flounder, lots of them, were plucked from the T-jetty but mostly from along the inlet channel. Minnows, spearing, mackerel and squid on rigs or bucktails got strikes. Noel heard about no weakfish landed, but a load of out-of-season blackfish crunched green crabs along the jetties. Small blues, as many as anglers wanted, were fought on the back bay. Fresh clams, fresh bunker, eels, green crabs, minnows, bloodworms, all the other baits mentioned and more are stocked.

Longport

Open-boat trips on the Stray Cat dialed in pretty good sea bass catches and a few fluke in 80 feet to the south of Avalon Shoals, Capt. Mike said. Lots of sea bass swam up and down the waters, and anglers averaged 8 to 12 keepers apiece, and the high hook dusted up 12. But they had to work to connect. A 5-1/2-inch dropper loop was key, attracting more of the bigger sea bass and a few big fluke. A loop 3 inches was too short, and 12 inches was too long. No bluefish turned up, but other boaters talked about running across blues. Charters are set to begin trolling for tuna and mahi mahi, and shark charters are now on the menu. Looking ahead, Stray Cat will once again run a few squid trips, like it did last year, around the first couple of weeks of July. Squidding is seldom if ever offered off Jersey, but here’s the chance. It’s common at other places and perfectly feasible off the Garden State.

Somers Point

The back-bay’s flounder fishing heated up with each day, said a fax from Rob and Joan from Dolfin Dock. Bob Attack worked a green shad dart at Ships Channel to waffle an 8.42-pound doormat, while his co-captain Brian Cummings used minnows to pick up a pair of 2-1/2- and 3-1/2-pounders. Billy Troeller fished a green Berkley Gulp at Ships Channel to grab a 5.39-pounder, and Mark Stetsen dunked a minnow off the Pier 4 Hotel to come up with a 5-pounder. Chas Keller fished a minnow off Kennedy Park, making off with a 4-pound flounder. Barb Kerrigan fished Delaware Bay, clamming a 32-pound striped bass. John Williams traveled north to Long Beach Island to lambast two 40-pound stripers 1 ½ miles off the coast on a green jig.

Sea Isle City

Here’s a first: Two bluefin tuna 25 and 40 pounds got walloped at Baltimore Canyon at the 100-fathom line on a trip Saturday with John Martin, said Capt. Joe Hughes from Jersey Cape Guide Service and Gibson’s Tackle. That is the first confirmed report about a tuna catch, or any offshore catch, on this site this season. Check out a video of the fish. Joe said he was looking to go after tuna early this season, and he did. John Martin was willing to take a shot at the fish with practically no reports around, and the trip scored. One fish was kept, and the other was released, and one was trolled on a rainbow spreader bar, and the other smacked a Black Bart lure. The tuna hit in 61.7 degree waters, chilly. More bluefins could’ve probably been found, but no satellite shot was available to see water temperatures because of cloud cover for several days. So the trip sort of flew blind, but Joe fished spots that produced in the past and took an educated guess. He’d been saying he would head offshore early, because he’s pinned down some of the best tuna fishing early in the season in recent years. He also encourages anglers to fish early, because the action could be gangbusters like in recent years. The trip also came across 25 or 30 basking sharks, big, maybe 1,500- to 2,000-pounders, almost as long as the 26-foot boat, that look like huge great white sharks, lazing around in circles. Check out a video. Closer to port, flounder got picked away in the back bay, and many were shorts, but keepers were mixed in. Joe’s anglers caught them on cut bait on bucktails or minnows on plain hooks. Fishing for striped bass on the shallow bay flats hooked the fish on popper lures or plugs, starting earlier this season than some years, and the fishing was good. Perfect, high tides in the evenings take place this week for the angling, one of Joe’s specialties. Bluefish to 3 pounds could also be fought on the bay, and Joe heard that local surf fishers beached plenty of stripers on clams. A 21-pounder was weighed in at Gibson’s. Jersey Cape is offering after-work special trips on the back bay from 4 p.m. to dark, a great time to fish, when nobody else is on the waters, and action can be best. Convenient, too. Delaware Bay’s drum fishing is on tap with Joe on a 26-foot Regulator. His back-bay charters fish on his flats boat. Offshore trips will now begin to fish for tuna. Again, anglers should think about going in the early season, because Joe’s lambasted some of the best catches at the canyons in June and July. Joe will also offer mixed-bag offshore fishing this summer, trolling for tuna in the mornings, then casting lures, bait or flies to mahi mahi in the afternoons. Offshore trips fish on either the Regulator or a 42-foot Liberty, depending on the number of anglers and type of fishing, like angling with conventional tackle or fly gear.

Wildwood

Back-bay flounder fishing was as good as it gets, said Cathy from Sterling Harbor Bait & Tackle in an e-mail. Anglers drilled double-digit catches, many shorts, but about 1 in 5 a keeper. George Kehnast limited out on the fluke, including a 5-1/2-pounder, his largest, and a 5-pounder, on the bay. Frank Marinelli checked in an 8-1/2-pounder, and Jake Anderson, 11, weighed in a 4-1/2-pounder. Mike Mulholland said he bagged a 6-1/2-pound 26-incher. Charlie Labar splashed his new Hobie Pro Angler Kayak, custom-rigged at the shop, reeling in five flounder during the weekend. Sterling Harbor is a kayak-fishing headquarters, featuring sales, accessories, rentals and expert advice. Stop by to test ride the new Pro Angler or any Hobie or Ocean kayak. Striped bass, mostly shorts but plenty of action, were scored in the bay along the bridges and lights at night. Surf fishing for stripers somewhat slowed, but good-sized ones were still beached at North Wildwood and Cape May. Delaware Bay boaters banged away at excellent drumfish catches on the weekdays but found slow fishing for them by the weekend. But the angling should rebound each day as the weekend’s full moon approaches, and try for the fish at the Pin Top or Tussy’s Slough.

Customers rounded up flounder, fairly good fishing, on the back bay, said Mike from Canal Side Boat Rentals. One on Saturday mongered four keepers, and minnows are always scarce for bait at this time of year, so spearing and mackerel worked best. Lots of 1- to 2-pound blues, good eating size, swam around. People usually prefer them over larger ones. A few striped bass, not a lot, could be clammed, and Mike knew a couple of anglers who targeted weakfish, and they did catch, not many, but some. Small, ¼-ounce or 3/8-ounce jigs with a rubber tail like a Fin-S Fish drew attention. No crabs could be caught yet to speak of. Some rentals went crabbing anyway on Saturday, after Mike told them the season was early. They had fun anyway, found lots of females with eggs but no males or crabs of size. A bunch of spider crabs showed up, though. Blueclaw crabs, the ones that get eaten, can begin to skitter around early during some years, including last year, but they were really yet to get active in the bay this year. All baits for fishing the bay are stocked, except minnows, again, scarce at this time of year, and bloodworms. But the baits include frozen, whole and filleted mackerel, several types of frozen squid including big trolling squid and various colors of Pro Cut squid that’s pre-cut, fresh-frozen clams, salted clams, Pro Cut clam and frozen shedder crabs, mullet and bunker, including for crabbing. Canal Side rents canopy boats and kayaks for fishing, crabbing and sightseeing.

Cape May

Drum fishing on Delaware Bay somewhat slowed down by the weekend, but tons were marked, and they should get active again, said Capt. Tom from the Fishin’ Fever. The fishing’s been like that this season, with times when the boomers decided to feed, and other times when they were slower to respond, but lots remained in the bay, and the full moon might trigger them to perk up later this week. Tom is 110-percent sure they should get active again, and anglers just need to fish, because if they wait for reports, they can be too late. A trip Saturday pulled the hook on one drum. Sea bass littered the ocean wrecks, and the boat is up for sailing for them. Big blues schooled a little ways from shore, and trolling or chunking trips are available for them. Trips are also on tap for flounder fishing both on Delaware Bay and on the back bay, and good catches could be made. Tom’s ocean flounder fishing will probably start in three weeks, when waters warm. Sharks started to arrive, and a buddy saw a big, 8-foot mako free jump from the waters, and Fishin’ Fever will also hunt them down. Tom is also available for striped bass trips on another boat from Brigantine, where 20- to 40-pounders and larger ones are swimming along the beach front. When bunker are found, the trips will snag and drop them back down for bait. Otherwise the trips will troll for the linesiders.

Catches of drum seemed to slow down a little on Delaware Bay, but Jaftica Sportfishing was able to work the waters and land some, Capt. Ray said. The boomers seemed to turn on for a short time like 1 ½ hours on the tide. The bite was like a couple of weeks ago, when piles of the fish were marked, but they only fed at certain times. Drum fishing seemed to keep changing this season. Last week just about anyone who drum fished had a chance at racking up a slew of the beasts. But previously anglers had to work, and now they also had to work and know what they were doing. But there was no predicting the better stretches and the slower ones, and they changed too quickly for anglers to wait and go when good reports came out. The fish in the past days continued to be a mix of sizes with some big ones like previously. Striped bass were pillaged throughout the bay, but Ray knows a couple of boaters who struggled to hook them Saturday. But when the linesiders are plentiful, the boat is available to go after them, if anglers want. Ray and crew saw a 5- or 6-foot shark, maybe a dusky, in the southern bay, so the monsters seemed to be around. Lots of blues schooled farther north at Barnegat Ridge, so they should be at the lumps off Cape May. Flounder fishing wasn’t bad on the bay, gave up lots of shorts but some keepers, and a flounder trip is slated to fish with Jaftica at the end of the week.

Drumming was tougher Saturday on the Heavy Hitter, but the fishing was pretty good Sunday on the boat and was also decent on Friday, Capt. George said. The fishing seemed to go through days of slower fishing and days when they bit a lot. That’s unlike last year, when trips often caught the heck out of them and went home. On Friday’s trip Steve and the pipe insulators belted drum to 60 pounds. On Saturday Rich and family boated one 50-pound drum. Sunday morning’s trip was the best among the days, when Paul Champy’s group hauled in six big drum to an 80-pounder. George hadn’t been running morning trips, and most boats usually ran from afternoon into dark. But the anglers wanted to fish in the morning, and they hooked up. On Sunday night Jim Dougherty’s charter beat drum to 60 pounds. The Heavy Hitter will probably drum fish another couple of weeks, and jump aboard to get them while possible. George’s friend pumped in bluefish 20 miles offshore. George also heard about a few mako sharks that started to be fought along the 20-fathom line and about some thresher sharks around. A few small bluefin tuna supposedly swam Baltimore Canyon.

A drum was being gaffed with Legal Limit Charters on Delaware Bay at 7 p.m. Sunday when Capt. T.J. gave this report during a phone call on the waters, he said. He hung up to take care of the fish then called back. The fishing lately was “hit and pick,” he said. Anglers got maybe an hour when catches turned on, and a half-dozen got boated. He sailed for the boomers every day, and that’s about how it went for everyone, he said. T.J.’s other boat is bottom fishing from Tuckerton and ran a trip that shoveled up lots of keeper sea bass to 6 ½ pounds and some big ling on Sunday. Shared charters are fishing for drum or bottom fish every Tuesday and Thursday when no full charter is booked.

Delaware Bay’s drum fishing kept boaters cranking them in until the weekend, when things got somewhat slower, said Matt from Jim’s Bait & Tackle in an e-mail. The most catches came from around the 16 buoy on incoming tides in 30 feet. But the fish also pulled lines at Tussy’s Slough and around Deadman’s Shoal toward Bug Light. Striped bass picked fights with boaters in the shallows of the bay off Reeds Beach and at the cove near East Light on bunker. They mostly stopped biting by the weekend, probably because of boat traffic. Weakfish began to suck in baits in the surf, mostly on floated bloodworms, at Cape May Point and along the Cape May Inlet jetties. The trout to 12 pounds were weighed in, and “this is just the start of it,” he said. But striped bass fishing was best in the surf. They were banked all along the beach front at Cape May and at Cape May Point. Catching them took a little patience, not a blitz, but the linesiders usually showed up at some time, usually around the top of the tides. A 43-3/4-pounder that Kevin “The Big Cheese” Olson, who works at the shop, muscled in was the biggest lunker seen at the store. But other big bass hauled from the beach included C.A. Pecorelli’s 33-1/4-pounder and Joe Poole’s 24-1/2-pounder.