<b>Staten Island</b>

Sea bass, plenty of the lumpheads, covered the wrecks, and the sizes somewhat dropped off, but the fishing was all right, said Capt. Anthony from <b>Barbara Anne Fishing Charters</b>. Porgies littered the wrecks, and listen up porgy anglers: New York’s season for the scup has opened, but Jersey’s is closed. Barbara Ann refunds bridge tolls with receipts. Striped bass trips hung the linesiders to the upper 30 pounds in the ocean on live bunker, and twilight was a little better. That works well for the vessel’s open-boat trips for stripers every Tuesday and Thursday evenings.

A slew of sea bass to 4 ¾ pounds, an excellent catch, was shoveled up Saturday with <b>Outcast Charters</b>, Capt. Joe said. A super trip, and a couple of hefty, 17-inch porgies were iced, and the anglers didn’t target the scup, but trips for them are available. Out-of-season blackfish were released. The weather was brutal lately, and Joe was surprised the trip got out, because forecasts called for worse conditions in the morning at first. But the anglers, first-timers on the boat, wanted to go, and they caught.

<b>Laurence Harbor</b>

A charter for fluke started fishing in the bay off Keyport on Friday, working the way down to Keansburg by the end of the trip, bagging three keepers 18, 20 and 21 inches, and two blues, releasing 15 short flatties, said Capt. Kyle from <b>Evening Tide Charters</b> in an e-mail. The fishing put out good action in the morning, until winds blew against the tide. The anglers, Bob Winacop, his wife and his grandson Mat, fished with spearing, squid, killies and Gulp shrimp, and a combo of the Gulps with killies worked best.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

The weather and forecasts kept Saturday afternoon’s fluke trip from sailing, but otherwise all the boat’s trips for the summer flounder got out on the bay, said Capt. Tom from the <b>Atlantic Star</b>. Shorts gave up lots of action, and nicer fluke were mixed in. None was an exceptional size in the past days, and 5- to 5-1/2-pounders were pool winners. Waters around the Navy Pier, a short ride from port, held the best fishing, and conditions like winds might’ve been the reason. The weather often created tough conditions. Fishing along Reach Channel and Chapel Hill Channel was slower than usual for this time of year, and maybe catches there were yet to take off. A few anglers worked bucktails with better success sometimes, and killies on rigs seemed a little better Sunday afternoon, but that was day-to-day. If anglers like to fish with killies, Tom tells them to bring the smallest amount they can buy. Spearing and squid are provided on the trips.  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.

<b>Highlands</b>

Striped bass fishing in the ocean was tougher on trips that left in the mornings, instead of fishing during the best action from afternoons to evenings, said Capt. Brian from <b>Jersey Devil Charters</b>. So catching the linesiders was difficult on a trip that departed Friday morning, but 20- to 30-pounders were wrestled in from the ocean off Deal on livelined bunker on the boat. A charter that left port Saturday morning picked stripers off Monmouth Beach on chunked bunker. The weather might’ve looked rough on land that day, but the ocean near the shore was flat. Rains fell a little on the trip, but otherwise conditions were fine. The weather was brutal lately, though. A charter was supposed to fish for stripers in the ocean this afternoon, but forecasts looked questionable. Striper fishing should last through the month. Shark and tuna charters will launch in July, and openings remain. Space is currently available for bluefishing, too.

Plenty of action was scored on fluke trips, though shorts far outnumbered keepers, said Capt. Bob from <b>Sandy Hooking Fishing Adventures</b> in an e-mail. The Rosenberg family racked up a good day of fluking, bagging seven of the fish to Gina Rosenberg’s 23-incher. Three generations of the Peters family shared a great day, Bob said, reeling in a mix of fluke and sea bass. Young Jake Peters boxed four sea bass and three fluke to beat out dad and grandpop. Two Magic Hour Trips in the evenings scored action with fluke, cocktail blues and a few sea bass. Full-day, half-day and Magic Hour trips are running for fluke and striped bass.

No trips got out, but striped fishing was supposed to resume on the boat today, and catches remained good on live and chunked bunker in the ocean, said Capt. Derek from <b>Fisher Price Charters</b>. Trips will probably chase them until mid July, but Derek is starting to look ahead to fluke and sea bass fishing, booking charters for that, especially for fluke bucktailing along the rough bottom in deeper waters. <b>Update, Today:</b> Today’s trip got weathered out, but Derek expects to sail Tuesday, he said. He took a look at the beaches and found bunker toward Asbury Park, so the baitfish remained south.

<b>Skylands Angler</b> fly-rodded the surf at Sandy Hook Point on Friday evening, but fishing was slow, Bill Hoffman said. Others beached and released short fluke on conventional tackle, and Bill saw one bluefish landed. Another trip fly fished the surf 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, and Bill tried to hit every spot he knew. He located bunker at Monmouth Beach, but no fish chased them, except dolphins. Surf casting might be hit or miss, either finding fish or none, for the rest of the migration, instead of more reliable catches that Bill found earlier. He expects the run to last one or two more weeks, before he goes back mostly to fly fishing for freshwater trout on the streams. If beginners want to learn saltwater fly fishing in the surf in Jersey, a little time is left. Or if experienced anglers just want some of 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.

<b>Neptune</b>

Fishing was good for striped bass, blues, sea bass and fluke, and the weather was the big problem through spring, said Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> in an e-mail. Now that summer arrived, “let’s hope the weather gets better,” he said. Three trips had to be cancelled during the weekend because of forecasts, and the forecasts turned out wrong for two that could’ve sailed. He had to cancel way too many trips because of weather forecasts this year, and sometimes the weather people were wrong. But Ralph would rather be on the safe side to try to ensure a decent day of weather on the waters. Spots are available for an individual-reservation striper trip 2 a.m. to 8 a.m. Tuesday, June 30, limited to six people. Individual-reservation trips are fishing for fluke 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. every Wednesday, limited to 15. Fluking was very good when the boat could sail last week. Now is the time to take a mako shark charter, and trolling for tuna was under way at the canyons. See the single-reservation schedule for tuna fishing on Last Lady’s Web site. Sign up now, and don’t be left out.

<b>Belmar</b>

Larry Cotton’s six-person group anchored at the Shrewsbury Rocks on Friday with <b>Last One Charters</b>, bunker-chunking four striped bass, including two in the 20-pound class, Capt. Rob said. Then they bottom-fished, piling up a bunch of ling and sea bass. They also pulled up an 8-pound pollock, somewhat of a surprise. In addition to trips for stripers and bottom fish, Last One is sailing for bluefish and fluke.

Two trips were cancelled Saturday, because of the weather plus a medical emergency for one of the charters, said Capt. Tom from the <b>Nan Sea J</b>. But good catches of striped bass were made on the boat’s recent trips in the ocean, and bluefish could be clobbered there. No charters bottom-fished in the past days, but Tom was sure bottom-fishing remained okay. The season was probably early for ocean fluke fishing, he thought. Forecasts looked like Wednesday’s weekly, open-boat shark trip will sail, and one or two spaces are available. The trips, a rare opportunity to hunt sharks on an open basis, fish every Wednesday through July. Charters are also sharking, Tom’s favorite fishing.

Bluefishing really turned on, both on daytime trips on jigs and bait and on nighttime trips on bait, said Capt. Greg from the <b>Golden Eagle</b>. Big slammers 7 to 11 pounds, with pool-winners sometimes topping 12 pounds, were the name of the game. Rains on Saturday and forecasts for worse weather failed to keep customers home, and they were rewarded with some of the best fishing for blues so far this season. “Just plain great fishing!” Greg said. 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. Catch the boat’s cruises July 3 to see Red Bank’s Ka-Boom Fireworks and July 4 to watch Macy’s fireworks on the Hudson River.

<b>Brielle</b>

Ocean boaters kept smoking striped bass, and the locations seemed to keep changing, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. On one day the fish would gather off Ocean Grove, and on another they’d hold off Sea Girt, and on another they’d be found off Bay Head. Live bunker and trolled bunker spoons caught, and so did poppers that the boaters cast. Surf casters did about the same, had to be at the right place at the right time. Stripers went nuts in the wash at Manasquan Inlet’s north jetty for 2 hours on Thursday evening, and a 46-pounder was the biggest weighed in at the shop. Bluefish that Dave heard about were boated at the Mudhole and Barnegat Ridge. A lot of fluke anglers said too many shorts were angled up locally in the ocean, but better fishing for keepers went down at the rocks off Elberon and Long Branch. Lots of sea bass were bucketed, and plenty of ling still got looted, and even quite a few cod stuck around. But if bottom-anglers fished deeper than 80 or 90 feet, dog sharks became a problem. Shark fishing whaled non-stop blue sharks, and Dave heard about no confirmed catches of makos. An angler would say a mako or two were seen in the slick but weren’t hooked. “So to me, that doesn’t count,” he said. One customer had a great white swim under the boat and hooked the big fish a moment, but it got off. Seven bluefin tuna were trolled between the Triple Wrecks and the Texas Tower on a boat from Southside Marina. Dave took a tilefish trip last Monday, pumping up three, and the fishing would’ve been very good, but conditions were unfavorable. 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.

On the <b>Katie H</b> a charter Saturday rescheduled, because of weather forecasts, Capt. Mike said. The trip probably could have fished, but he was glad to reschedule because that’s what they wanted. They were going to try fluke fishing, but would likely go after other fish if they popped up, like if bunker could be snagged to liveline for striped bass that might’ve chased the baitfish. Basically the boat would break the inlet, and the crew would see what’s happening. Shark fishing will kick off on the vessel with the Mako Mania tournament this weekend. The boat’s first tuna trip of the season is on the calendar for July 10. Don’t have enough anglers for a tuna charter? No problem. Call Mike, and he can probably schedule an individual spot or more on a make-up trip. 

A  bunch of guys wanted to striped bass fish Friday afternoon, so off they went at 2 p.m., said Capt. Jerry from <b>Fish Monger Charters</b> in an e-mail. Bunker were found being harassed right outside the inlet, so the anglers started livelining bunker there. They got run-offs right away, going 4 for 10 on stripers, until boat traffic arrived, breaking up the fish. They ran to deeper waters, where stripers were known to be, going 3 for 8. So they totaled seven 21- to 31-pound stripers laid out and 18 bites. The bass were a little finicky, playing a lot with the baits. One of the fish exploded on a popper plug three times but failed to get hooked. On Saturday a charter first hit the bottom-fishing grounds. Fishing was drop-and-reel for sea bass and a few ling, though most of the sea bass were shorts, loads just barely shorts. But the anglers worked hard to creel keepers. Then the crew got a call from another captain who was batting down stripers, and live bunker were in the bait well, so off they went. The charter went 2 for 4, and the two bagged were sizeable. A few blues were also landed. The anglers ended up bagging 40 sea bass and ling, two stripers, a blue and a silver eel. They also released a blackfish, a fat winter flounder and a porgy, all out-of-season, rounding out a quite the mixed bag.

Anglers on the <b>Jamaica</b> pounded bluefish, excellent catches, the entire weekend, and the 7- to 14-pounders were spread throughout a wide area off Manasquan Inlet, 8 miles from north to south and 11 to 16 miles offshore, an e-mail from the boat said. Everybody on day and night trips slammed good catches, and many limited out. Both jigs and bait worked during the day, and bait worked at night. Big readings of blues and bait were constantly marked, and the outlook for this week was good. 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 complete schedule, including special trips, and to be added to the e-mail list for special trips. Reservations are being booked for canyon tuna fishing that will begin in late August.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

A great day of bluefishing, not far from port to boot, was copped on the <b>Sea Devil</b> on Friday, Cindy said in an e-mail. The 8- to 12-pounders were all jigged. Lots of blues, lots of people “chumming,” and a great day had by all, she said. Apparently “chumming” meant some were seasick because of a rough ocean. The Sea Devil is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and 7:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. Saturdays. <b>Update, Today:</b> Constant, steady jigging for blues was pillaged on today’s trip 10 miles offshore of Manasquan Inlet, Cindy said in an e-mail. Michael Payne from Freehold won the pool with a 15-pounder and nearly limited out. Sunday’s trip also sounded fine, and all patrons caught the speedsters. The high hook went 16 for 30, breaking off some, losing several jigs.

The best striped bass fishing of the season probably happened this past week for <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>, Capt. Fred said. Charters usually either limited out or nearly limited on 25- to 40-pounders, usually on live bunker, but sometimes on chunks. The anglers bottom fished for sea bass in between striper fishing, and those catches were so-so, because of the ocean swell, though previously sea bassing was a sure bet. Among recent trips, a charter Friday started chunking for stripers, but no current flowed, and no fish bit. So the anglers switched to bottom fishing, and that was slow. Then the crew got a call from another boat, saying striper fishing turned around with the change of the tide. The boat returned to the same numbers as before, and striper fishing was unreal. As soon as a live bunker hit the waters, a bass blew up on it, surface bites for an hour straight. Eight stripers close to 40 pounds were landed, and many were missed. Bluefish turned up toward the end of the bite, and slammers to 12 pounds were clocked. Most of the group caught their biggest or first stripers. A charter on Thursday broke the inlet, looked for bunker pods getting sprayed by stripers, found the right one, and limited out on the first drift, going 6 for 6, missing none and tackling their biggest-ever stripers. They had the fishing to themselves at first, and once other boats showed up, it was game over. They switched to bottom fishing, but sea bassing was dead because of a swell, and not enough fluke were cooperative to make fluking worthwhile.  Andrea’s Toy will probably fish for stripers through this week before mostly fishing offshore, with inshore bottom-fishing in between. One of the offshore trips will be a combo bluefin tuna/shark charter at the southern lumps. That fishing pummeled catches last year. Heads up on the other blue-water fishing, too: annual, open-boat, mixed-bag canyon trips that are that about to begin, and space is available on a first-come basis. The crew specializes in mixed-bag fishing for more fun, better chances of hooking up and more variety for dinner. The trips, one-of a kind, are offered at a very reasonable rate, going after fish including tuna, sharks, swordfish, mahi mahi and tilefish, all in one outing. Two options are available, a shorter, 10-hour trip, and a longer, 18-hour trip. Check out details on Andrea’s Toy’s home page <a href="http://www.andreastoycharters.com" target="_blank"> Andrea’s Toy’s home page</a>. <a href=" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9m_ULaS7w-c
" target="_blank"><b><i>Check out a video of the open-boat canyon fishing</i></b></a>.

A combo fluke/sea bass charter sailed Sunday on the ocean, said Capt. Allen from <b>Reel Class Charters</b> in the report on the boat’s Web site. Fluke/sea bass combos are one of the boat’s specialties in summer, so they got under way. The trip ran north, fishing from Asbury Park to Long Branch, not even making an effort to mix in striped bass fishing that was going off this season, a great year for stripers so far. The anglers started fishing at rocks, hooking a slowish pick of mixed-sized sea bass and  short fluke in a strong current and coffee-colored waters. They moved inshore to try fluking in shallows over soft bottom. Nothing was caught, so they returned to the same rocks, and the fish kept biting. Winds started becoming brisk by noon, and some of the group started feeling under the weather, so the trip began making its way home. Two drops were tried for fluke at lumps, and a pick of the flatties was a little better. A 19-inch keeper and shorts came up. The fishing for the day was no tremendous bite, a pick of sea bass and slow fishing for fluke, but each angler went home with a healthy sack of fillets. Twenty-five sea bass were bagged, including two large ones about 4 pounds apiece, and 25 were tossed back. One keeper fluke was taken among 15 throwbacks. On Sunday another charter began fluke fishing on Manasquan River, reeling in short after short. But Allen got a call about striped bass somewhat hitting in the ocean, so the trip headed to the ocean. Bunker were caught for bait with no problem, and a striper almost immediately inhaled one of the snagged menhaden. The 35-pounder, the angler’s biggest-ever, was landed. Allen now decided to make it his goal to catch each angler one of the big stripers. Mission accomplished: Each nailed his personal-best. A 40-pound bruiser was the second landed, caught by another angler. Then the other two anglers whacked a 38-pounder and a 23-pounder respectively. The group worked small, broken-off pods of the fish, getting a little bite going, all to themselves, nowhere near the fleet. A good number of run-offs were scored, and some were dropped, and others were missed, and some were caught. The fishing tapered off by noon, and the anglers finished up the day by drifting for fluke in the river again, picking away at shorts, no keepers. “Undoubtedly the bass made the day,” Allen said, “another fantastic day in what has been a <i>great</i> (striper) season!”

<b>Seaside</b>

More anglers probably fished the surf in January than today, but considering the few who tried, the several fish that were weighed in might’ve been a sign that striped bass were around, said the report on <b>Grumpy’s Tackle</b>’s Web site. Four stripers 8 to 15 pounds were checked in, and all sucked down Grumpy’s clams. Participation was also light on Fathers’ Day, and weather forecasts probably didn’t help, and somewhat more angling took place Saturday, when five stripers, a fluke and a weakfish hit the scale. Even more anglers fished the suds Friday, and five bass that weighed 10, 26, 30, 34 and 47 pounds were weighed in. Some big ones! A fluke was also checked in from the wash that day. The surf had just cleaned up Friday from the storm Thursday, and 6 to 8 ounces of weight held bottom. <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishingreports/" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.   

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

“Will somebody turn off the water works?” Capt. Steve from <b>Reel Fantasea Charters</b> asked in an e-mail. Or should we build an ark? he joked. Winds, rains and lightening were too potent for fishing part of the week. But a trip with Wayne Salvi and crew snuck out Friday. First they scored solid fishing for 2- to 3-pound blues on Barnegat Bay with light spinning tackle. When they got their fill of the feisty fighters, they headed to Barnegat Inlet. But an easterly swell against outgoing tide made the inlet too rough for fishing. They ran back to the bay and found more birds working the waters. No fish hit at first, but then Wayne waffled a 4-1/2-pound fluke. He was now leading Reel Fantasea’s season-long tournament in two categories: One for the fluke, and another for a 43-pound striper. When outgoing tide abated, the gang motored back to the inlet, drilling two stripers to end the day: a 27-incher that was released and a 32-inch 15-pounder that was kept. The area’s fantastic fall fishing might seem too far away to think about, but the calendar is already filling at a record pace. Reserve dates now.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

Ten- to 12-pound bluefish were hammered on the troll in 100 feet 17 or 18 miles offshore with <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>, Capt. T.J. said. Otherwise trips were weathered out. A shark charter is slated for Thurdsay, and a flounder trip is scheduled to fish the ocean this week. A tuna charter is on the books for the weekend.  That is, if the weather holds out for all the fishing! Legal Limit is also bottom-angling for sea bass. Shared charters are sailing every Tuesday and Thursday when no full charter is booked.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

Bank anglers pelted flounder and blues at the Flagship and off the sea wall, said Noel from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. Minnows and squid nabbed the flounder, and mullet or fresh bunker grabbed the blues. Herring ran through on Saturday, and a few striped bass were creamed among them. No kingfish to brag about, catches only made off and on, were lifted from the surf. Out-of-season tog chomped, and one of the blackfish can be kept per person starting July 1. In general surf and bank anglers caught fish, but no gangbusters action. The non-stop onslaught of rough weather was getting unbelievable, didn’t help with angler participation. Fresh bunker, fresh clams, minnows, green crabs, all the frozen baits and more are stocked.

<b>Margate</b>

A bunch of sea bass and flounder were socked at the reefs Saturday with <b>O-Beth Sportfishing Charters</b>, Capt. Eric said. Many of the fish were small, and a few were keepers, and seas were flat until downpours starting coming through, when winds picked up, creating a fast drift that made fishing more difficult. Trips at the end of this week will include charters for fluke, bluefish and sharks. Bluefin and yellowfin tuna also swarmed around.

<b>Somers Point</b>

A couple of sizeable flounder were weighed in: Dave Lieber from Mount Laurel’s 5.42-pounder that inhaled a minnow-and-squid combo at Corson’s Inlet, and Nick Mirglia from Somers Point’s 4.55-pounder that sucked in a minnow at Ships Channel, said a fax from Rob and Joan from <b>Dolfin Dock</b>. Shark fishing was in gear, and Mike Carr from Swedesboro weighed in a 105-pound thresher he knocked down 10 miles off Ocean City. His friend, Ricky Frank, 14, from Margate put a stop to a 125-pound blue shark.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Offshore fishing for tuna was cancelled Friday and Saturday because of forecasts, though a trip probably could’ve fished Friday, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. So on Friday morning he ran a trip that tried for striped bass on the back bay with surface poppers at a place that had produced before. But no luck on poppers this time. Fish in the bay moved around a bit in the rough weather. On a trip on the bay Sunday, Joe somewhat changed tactics, and it paid off. Two stripers, shorts that were released, were smacked on Skit-R-Pop lures, and so was a 7-pound blue, big for the bay. A couple of smaller blues were fly-rodded on a Clouser. Then flounder fishing was done for a half-hour, and three, including one keeper, were jigged. Good flounder fishing for the short time. The bay’s striper angling was “sporadically good,” Joe said, and the fish didn’t swim everywhere, and on some days they chewed, and on others they didn’t. But popper fishing for them, a specialty on the boat through summer, started early this year and was happening. Clamming for stripers was a lot more reliable, including for some keepers, and Joe’s anglers did some of the that angling recently. Flounder fishing on the bay was pretty good, giving up lots of fish, probably 1 in 10 a keeper. Joe’s trips flounder fish with a double-rig with a bucktail tipped with a Gulp mullet on the bottom and a bare, gold hook tipped with a minnow trailing behind on top. The bucktail clobbers most keepers or the bigger flatties, and the minnow gains larger numbers of the fluke, but smaller ones. The double rig allows both quality and quantity. Joe heard through the grapevine that yellowfin tuna, smaller ones to 40 pounds, mostly shorts but enough keepers to weed through the shorts to bag fish, were fairly abundant from Lindenkohl Canyon to Norfolk Canyon, popping up at different places on different days. Bluefin tuna, not big but 40 to 60 pounds, swam in 30 to 50 fathoms.  Joe was about to take an annual trip to the Merrimack River in Massachusetts from Tuesday to Friday, offering fly charters. Space was limited but available the last time he was asked last week. The linesiders should flood the waters, the prime time, and the fish, 25- to 40-inchers, bite through the day, allowing trips to fish banker’s hours. Jersey Cape from Sea Isle 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. Jersey Cape will offer open-boat tuna trips on Wednesdays, and call for details. The trips, sailing on a 26-foot Regulator, will fish either inshore for bluefin tuna or offshore at the canyons for yellowfins. The outings will probably target bluefins at the moment, but Joe won’t limit the options, and he just wants to catch, he said. If that means pushing out to the canyons, he’ll do it. The trips are a learning experience. Joe will offer mixed-bag offshore charters this summer, trolling for tuna in the mornings, then casting lures, bait or flies to mahi mahi in the afternoons. Catch an article about casting to mahi at the lobster pots in the current issue of Saltwater Sportsman, because that’s exactly the type of fishing he does. 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.   

<b>Avalon</b>

Yellowfin tuna reportedly schooled the 100-fathom curve from Toms Canyon south, but no boats got out there in a few days, and all trips were weathered out with <b>Over Under Adventures</b>, an e-mail from Over Under said. The waters seemed to be moving south. Reports about sporadic bluefin tuna catches also came in, but so did news about trips that got skunked. Capt. John Oughton from Over Under found them at places like the Ham Bone and nearby lumps in the early mornings. An open-boat trip for bluefins will run Wednesday if the weather allows, and an open, overnight canyon trip is slated for the weekend. Boats from Over Under are also fishing from Ocean City, Maryland, this season, and fishing was promising for small yellowfin tuna off that area at the beginning of the week. The fish hung along the 100-fathom line from South Poormans Canyon to the 800 Square north of Washington Canyon. At times the number of bites made getting the spread in the waters difficult. Those boats are also fishing for bluefins at places like the Hambone.

<b>Wildwood</b>

Flounder bit hard in the back bay, and the number of throwbacks increased, but plenty of the flatties could be fought, said Cathy from <b>Sterling Harbor Bait & Tackle</b> in an e-mail. The hot word was that ocean flounder fishing turned on at Reef 11, the Old Grounds and Cape May Reef, especially Reef 11.  Good flounder fishing was also had on Delaware Bay. Sterling Harbor’s 16th annual Duke of Fluke Tournament will take place Saturday, July 11, and the captain’s meeting will take place that Friday. The contest will again feature a Kayak Division. Entry forms are available at the shop and will be posted on the store’s Web site. Sterling Harbor is a kayak fishing headquarters, featuring sales, rentals, accessories and expert advice. Bob Murray Jr., 15, from Wildwood Crest weighed in a 5-pound 24-inch flounder after fishing on the Little Job from Wildwood. A few striped bass and occasional bluefish were dragged from the surf at North Wildwood and Cape Bay. Alan Chong from Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, checked in a 9-1/2-pound 32-1/2-inch striper he clammed in the North Wildwood suds. Plenty of blue sharks, thresher sharks and 100- to 125-pound makos were battled when the weather allowed boats to sail. C.J. Neidig clubbed a 455-pound thresher on Capt. Bill Greenling’s Blue Runner from Wildwood.  Tuna started biting, and the shop is stocked with butterfish, sardines, ballyhoos and the other supplies for the fishing. In the somewhat-unusual-catch category, Dan Schafer from Del Haven weighed in a 5-pound 7-ounce sheepshead that sucked in a clam in the bay at North Wildwood. In news from out of state, Charlie Labar and Chris Parson, both from Cape May, competed in Long Island, New York’s, Great South Bay Kayak fishing Tournament. The fishing was tough, and only one legal-sized striper was caught and entered, but Charlie won third place with a 19-inch bluefish, and Chris took fourth with an 18-inch blue. “Way to go guys!” Cathy said. Back in Wildwood, Crabby Jack gave crabbing 3 ½ claws, saying catches should improve as the full moon now starts to approach.

Rains and weather often kept customers in port, but when they fished, they tangled with lots of flounder, more than ever, on the bay, said Mike from <b>Canal Side Boat Rentals</b>.  Many of the fish were only a ½-inch or a ¼-inch short, and they gobbled up traditional baits such as strips of mackerel or spearing. Minnows for bait were scarce at this time of year, but they might be stocked by the weekend. Little was heard about other fish, because everyone targeted flounder. Here’s great news: Crabbing got pretty darn good, going from nothing practically overnight. Baits stocked 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 clams, live shedder crabs and frozen mullet and bunker, including for crabbing. Crabs for eating will be sold soon. Canal Side rents canopy boats and kayaks for fishing, crabbing and sightseeing. Call ahead during weekdays to make sure Mike will be on hand, until the shop definitely opens at the usual 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, probably starting this weekend. On weekends the shop is already open full time.

<b>Cape May</b>

On the <b>Down Deep</b> anglers competed in the Ladies Invitational Bluefish Tournament this weekend, trolling blues to 13 pounds in the ocean, Capt. Bob said on Sunday evening. Another captain this morning who mated on the trip said the boat won fourth place with a 12-3/4-pounder, and that Bob was probably yet to know when Bob gave this report. Bob said the boat also ran flounder trips on Delaware Bay this past week, and that some respectable flatties could be drilled on the waters. Sharks including makos were hammered on other vessels, and so were bluefin tuna at the inshore lumps, and the Down Deep is up for fishing for them, too. Dates are available for charters.   

Capt. George from the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> mated on the Down Deep during the weekend’s Ladies Invitational Bluefish Tournament, he said. At first the trip trolled at the A.C. Ridge, and a couple of balls of bait were marked, but no blues showed up. Then a call came in from a friend who was shark fishing at the Cigar, saying blues were hitting there. So the Down Deep moved there, and fish were seen busting the surface, and all six rods went off in the trolling spread. Five of the blues, including a 12-3/4-pounder that won the anglers fourth place in the tournament, were landed. Those were the only fish decked, and birds that worked the waters kept popping up, and the boat would make a pass, and no fish would show up. George’s boat was getting prop work done but was expected to be back in action any moment. He heard about catches of mako sharks, including a 125-pounder that a friend belted, and blue sharks. No news rolled in about tuna during the weekend, but previously George’s friend put the brakes on two bluefins on the southern grounds. Flounder fishing churned out catches at the ocean reefs. Many anglers talked about lots of flounder that were a shade under the 18-inch legal size. A friend bagged six keepers, all of them topping 4 pounds, among 40 of the fluke reeled up on a reef trip.

Flounder were pounded pretty well in the ocean and on Delaware Bay, said Capt. Tom from the <b>Fishin’ Fever</b>. The bluefin tuna population began to get abundant at the 20- to 30-fathom lumps. Forty- and 50-pounders were around, but so were 130- to 170-pounders. Lots of yellowfin tuna, mostly small but also keepers, ran up and down the 100-fathom line. Mako and thresher sharks haunted inshore waters. Tom heard an unconfirmed rumor about an 876-pound mako lambasted off Maryland. Plenty of bluefish could be trolled offshore, and sea bass carpeted the wrecks, though many were small.

The crew from the Lora Mae won <b>Jim’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s 27th annual shark tournament with a 165-1/2-pound mako during the weekend, Matt said in an e-mail. Anglers from the Warden Pass won second with a 162-pound mako, and the gang on the Miss Edna Jane took third with a 160-pound mako. Thresher sharks were also weighed in, including a 285-pounder waxed on the Well Done and a 280-1/4-pounder  slam-dunked on the Miss Andrea. A couple of 10- and 11-foot tiger sharks were released, and so were quite a few other sharks. The weather scared off some entrants, but 42 boats fished. The shop thanks everyone who participated, making the event a success. Bluefin tuna began to move in at the Ham Bone and the Hot Dog, but catches were yet to be consistent. Yellowfin tuna, small but up to 50 pounds, good numbers when anglers found them, started getting trolled at the canyons. Flounder fishing held up well, and the flatties came in from Delaware Bay. The stretch along the Jersey side of the shipping channel from the 16 to 19 buoys was a place to start. But the flatties were also boated on the Delaware Side. Reefs 6 and 7 usually produced when tides slowed a bit. Reef 11 and the Old Grounds also attracted flounder. Paul McCarthy weighed in a 6.13-pound doormat he reeled up near the 19, and Terry Schaivo checked in a 6-1/4-pounder that came from Reef 7. Surf angling slowed considerably, and stripers clammed at night were the best catches. A few kingfish bit bloodworms at Hereford Inlet.

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