<b>Bayonne</b>

Four striped bass and more than a dozen blues were clocked on a charter on the East River on Saturday, despite heavy rains, said Capt. Akira from <b>True World Tackle</b> and <b>True World Tackle Charters</b>. He didn’t mention the bait, but eels are usually fished there for stripers. The fishing pitched out catches last week, and another charter was headed back to the river today. A charter Sunday will target fluke and sea bass. Sandy Hook Channel and Ambrose Channel drew in lots of fluke. Striped bass fishing amped up on the Hudson River last week for anglers along the piers and bulkheads like at Liberty State Park.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Ocean striped bass anglers hooked up on bunker livelined among bunker schools, and they bunker chunked the linesiders off Sea Bright, said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Bottom-fishing got all over sea bass and ling, good catches. Fluking in the bay and ocean was better on some days than others, and abundant shorts scurried around. Fluke loaded the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers, and Jimmy knew anglers who were limiting out. A bunch of blues and a few weakfish swarmed the rivers. Blues could also get banged away in the bay on everything from jigs to trolling to bait fishing in a chum slick. All the usual baits are fully stocked.

Fluke finally started to be boated in the ocean, after last week’s swell disappeared, said Capt. Ron from the <b>Fishermen</b> in an e-mail. A trip Wednesday nabbed the fish there a short time, until currents started to rip 2 ½ knots. Then the trip finished out in the bay, but not a lot of action turned up there. In the ocean in the morning patrons picked away on mostly shorts, but managed some keepers, and a 6-pounder won the pool.  The Fishermen is sailing for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Bluefish trips will now run at new times: 7:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 3:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Sundays.

Fluke, tons of the fish, were reeled up from the bay on the <b>Dorothy B</b>, and more keepers than before were creeled, Didi said. Maybe bigger ones were coming in. Most anglers caught with spearing and squid, and some brought their own killies, but that seemed unnecessary or not mandatory. The Dorothy B is a new boat at Atlantic Highlands this season, and the captain, the owner, ran a party boat from Sheepshead Bay many years, and fished many of the same waters during those years that the boat now is fishing. So far, customers seemed happy, Didi said, and she heard lots of compliments about the crew’s helpfulness and the comfort of the boat, and a base of regular customers already developed. From Sheephshead Bay, the captain’s trips developed a following for family fishing. The Dorothy B is fluke fishing 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. daily. When fluke season ends, the boat will begin sailing for striped bass on ¾-day trips.

Trips had to battle weather, like north winds on Monday, but both of the fluke outings that day put patrons on lots of action, lots of shorts, with some keepers, said Capt. Tom from the <b>Atlantic Star</b>. He was surprised the winds didn’t hurt the fishing more. Tuesday morning’s trip was one of the better ones this season, not the best, but one of the better. Conditions created a good drift, and the anglers picked away at lots of shorts and some keepers on the east side of the bay. Then the afternoon turned out no good, and the drift was lost, making the angling tough. On Wednesday morning customers started catching the fish in the bay in the morning, until the drift was lost. Then the vessel moved to the ocean front, and lots of shorts and some keepers showed up. Wednesday afternoon’s fishing was about the same, producing a similar catch in the bay in the morning, until the drift was lost, and the vessel moved to the ocean, and similar fishing with shorts and some keepers took place. The drift on the ocean became a little fast, and then it was lost. So trips found the fluke in both the bay and the ocean, and catches depended on drifting conditions. Maybe two of the flatties since Monday weighed close to 5 pounds, no sizes to get excited about.  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 put the brakes on a mess of catches to 20 pounds in the ocean Tuesday morning on live bunker with <b>Fisher Price Charters</b>, but the angling fell apart Tuesday evening and Wednesday, Capt. Derek said. The reason was unknown, whether the tide, the winds, the  moon or whatever. However, friends dusted the bass in the dark Tuesday night on live and chunked bunker. Derek expects to fish for the large, migrating linesiders until mid July like usual. But he’s also looking ahead, booking trips for fluke, especially bucktailing the deep waters for them, and sea bass that will take over the schedule.

<b>Belmar</b>

Catches of fluke began to bounce back, good fishing for them on the ocean, including some limits, on Wednesday on the <b>Big Mohawk</b>, Capt. Chris said. The rains and weather apparently affected the angling before. But now things were in good shape, he said. A 6-1/2-pounder was the pool winner that day. The Big Mohawk if fluke fishing 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Three blue sharks, one of them 200 pounds and the others 100 pounds apiece, and a 50-pound mako shark were beaten on the weekly, open-boat shark trip Wednesday on the <b>Nan Sea J</b>, Capt. Tom said. The mako was the first on the boat this season, and all the sharks were released. The 200-pounder was the first fish battled aboard the trip. Waters were 63 to 65 degrees, clean and pretty, and seas were calm, including no swell. No bluefish or other life showed up, but birds worked the surface. Open shark trips sail every Wednesday through July, a rare opportunity to fight the beasts without chartering the whole boat. But charters are also available for sharking, Tom’s favorite fishing. A bottom-fishing charter Tuesday angled up lots of sea bass, many of them shorts but some keepers, and a dozen ling. Three or four short sea bass came up for every keeper. A striped bass charter Monday slammed the fish, landing 14 out of 25 bites, and three that were landed topped 40 pounds apiece, on live bunker fished among schools of the menhaden in the ocean.

Boaters who fluke fished off the Red Church in the ocean weighed in several flatties today: a 5-pound 24-1/2-incher and a couple of 3-pounders, said Paul from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. Flukers on Shark River, including on the shop’s rental boats, got on lots of action, creeling probably one keeper for every 10 shorts tossed back. Crews on a couple of the rental boats talked about landing 30 to 40 fluke, including three or four quality keepers. Along the ocean both boaters and surf casters caught striped bass, maybe not as many as before, but plenty, and decent-sized fish 10 to 30 pounds. Bunker and pencil poppers got smacked. Party boat patrons blasted bluefish, good catches and big fish to 12 pounds, both day and night.

<b>Brielle</b>

Weather forecasts forced striped bass trips to be cancelled Sunday and Monday, but the forecasts turned out wrong, and trips could’ve sailed, said Capt. Jerry from <b>Fish Monger Charters</b>. So he took a fun trip with friends Monday evening, breaking the inlet at 6 p.m. No bunker schools were found at first, but then Jerry got a call about stripers, ran to the area, and saw broken up pods of bunker with stripers all over them a mile short of the fleet, with only a couple of other boats on them. The three anglers limited out quickly on 21- to 38-pounders, including multiple hook-ups at once, and Jerry and Capt. Wayne caught and released some too. The trip was only 2 ½ hours, including catching bunker for bait and the riding time, so Jerry was pleased. A trip Tuesday afternoon also drilled stripers, landing eight, releasing all but two, and missing other bites, of course. Two of the fish weighed 41 pounds and 36 ½ pounds, personal bests for the anglers. Early in the trip, the stripers were found a few miles from port, and the anglers whacked them on plugs, including a triple hook-up. After a lull when everyone said they scored nothing, the bass were found again during the “magic hour,” Jerry said. On Wednesday afternoon a charter walloped 10 linesiders out of 20 bites. “Another nice striper trip!” he said. The fish, up to 37 pounds, were mostly taken to the north, but a couple were picked up right outside Manasquan Inlet.

Bluefish were plundered on the <b>Jamaica</b> on day and night trips since last week, right on through the weekend and this week, an e-mail from the boat said. All anglers railed lots of the 7- to 14-pounders, and most of fish held in the ocean 12 to 14 miles off Manasquan Inlet. Readings of blues and bait were thick throughout a wide area. On Wednesday’s trip during the day, blues were run across only 4 miles off the inlet for an hour, and then the boat motored farther offshore to load up on more.  The outlook was good for the weekend.  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>

Anglers with <b>Angela Rose Charters</b> bunker chunked bluefish at the Shrewsbury Rocks on a trip, Capt. Wayne said in an e-mail. A 25-pound striper grabbed a chunk and was also landed, and more bass ran off with baits but failed to get hooked. On the way to the rocks, bunker were spotted just north of Manasquan Inlet, and the anglers snagged a load for bait. Bunker schools were seen while the boat steamed to the rocks, but only one held fish, small blues.

A couple of anglers from Ohio were supposed to shark fish with <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b> on Monday, but forecasts, although they turned out incorrect, forced sharking to be cancelled, the report on the boat’s Web site said. So the anglers decided to fish for the sure thing instead: striped bass. They quickly caught bunker for bait, and limited out on the linesiders on the first drift, playing catch and release with several more. The stripers inhaled the baitfish on the surface, like they did all week, the most exciting way to catch them. Two of the bass weighed 40 pounds, were plopped on the scale at Hoffman’s Marina. The catch included the first-ever stripers for the anglers and the biggest fish they ever caught. They headed in early and enjoyed grilled stripers from the barbecue right at the dock, before they took the long drive back to Ohio. On another front, heads up: Andrea’s Toy’s annual open-boat, mixed bag, offshore canyon trips are impending, and space is available on a first-come basis. Two outings are on the menu: a day-long trip and an overnight one. The trips go after fish including tuna, mahi mahi, sharks and tilefish, all in one outing. Mixed-bag fishing, a specialty for Andrea’s Toy, allows more fun, better chances of hooking up and more variety for dinner. See details and a video on <a href="http://www.andreastoycharters.com" target="_blank"> Andrea’s Toy’s home page</a>.

On the <b>Norma K</b> fluke fishing on the ocean improved by Tuesday, churning out a few more keepers, once the swell started to drop down, Capt. Matt said. Five-pounders were about the pool winners recently. Patrons on evening bluefish trips waxed 7- to 12-pound speedsters, good catches, mostly limits. Trips are fishing for fluke twice daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. and for blues 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

Patrons on the <b>Sea Devil</b> jigged excellent catches of big, 10- to 15-pound blues on Tuesday, Cindy said in an e-mail. Everybody bailed double-digits, and many were tired by the end. The trip fished 10 miles offshore of Manasquan Inlet, and “Big Game” Jack Schocklin won the pool with a 15-pounder. Dennis Wargo and Stephan Agio tackled 30 apiece, non-stop action, keeping no more than their limits. “What are you waiting for?” Cindy asked. “Fishing is great!” she said. Steady jigging for the slammers was hammered Monday, too, covered in the last report. 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.

Bluefishing was great: limits, catch-and-release fishing after limiting, “I can’t catch another fish; my arms will fall off,” throw-in-the-towel type of angling! an e-mail from the <b>Cock Robin</b> said. Long-time customer Dave Lewis landed more than 40 on a trip, keeping no more than his limit. 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. Wednesday Marathon Trips, leaving earlier at 6 a.m. at no extra charge, are running. On Thursday’s trips, customers can help donate fish to Joan Valentine House, providing meals to people. Captain Jim’s Camp Cock Robin for kids, limited to 12 anglers, is under way, after schools let out, featuring a dedicated mate for the youngsters.

Fluke fishing got a little better Tuesday and Wednesday on the <b>Gambler</b> on the ocean, after slower fishing for the flatties, Capt. Bob said. A good amount of keepers were bagged on the boat Wednesday, and sizeable sea bass and some ling were mixed in. The fishing was okay, he said. Trips mostly fished in 50 to 60 feet along the rough bottom like at rocks. Excellent bluefish catches were boated on evening trips that are running Fridays and Saturdays. 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. and for bluefish 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. every Friday and Saturday. Canyon tuna trips will launch in September, and space was being booked. Check the calendar on the boat’s Web site.

Sea bass and ling got shoveled up, 15 to 30 per angler, solid fishing once again on the <b>Dauntless</b>, Capt. Butch said. The season put out healthy catches this year, and trips sailed every day in the past week, despite the weather. On Saturday mostly sea bass were looted, and on Sunday ling were most abundant, and trips during the last couple of days targeted sea bass, because a wave of the fish moved in. But a 9-pound 1-ounce ling was shellacked Thursday! A few blues were decked lately, and on Saturday and Sunday pollock, including large ones to 15 pounds, were pelted. The boat fished in 60 to 90 feet, and water temps kept bouncing up and down from 52 to 57 degrees, and the sun hardly came out to warm waters.  Nighttime bluefishing trips whaled the fish, 6 to 10 per patron. The Dauntless is bottom fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily and is bluefishing 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

Fishing served out great catches from the ocean to Manasquan River to northern Barnegat Bay, and anglers had apparently just needed the weather to clear up to let them get out, said Chuck from <b>Gates Bait & Tackle</b>. A swell held catches back previously. The ocean was now loaded with striped bass that boaters hooked on bunker snagged from schools then livelined. Surf casters pounded the linesiders, including a few big ones in the 30- and 40-pound range, on bunker or clams, and beaches farther north, at least up to Belmar, seemed best, but the local suds weren’t too shabby. Manasquan Inlet was crammed with fluke, and on some days more keepers moved in than on others, like everywhere. But fluking in the inlet and Manasquan River seemed better than for boaters in the ocean, where the flatback fishing was on the slow side. Bottom-angling for sea bass and ling kept anglers pleased in the ocean, and one of the local party boat captains sounded happy. Manasquan River all the way to the Mantoloking Bridge on Barnegat Bay was stacked with striped bass, blues and weakfish. Fishing was good!

<b>Toms River</b>

Anglers mostly kept off waters in the week’s weather, but striped bass fishing turned spotty in the local ocean for boaters, said Jim from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. Bunker schooled the area, but few bass followed them, and anglers saw flashes among the baitfish, but they might’ve been small thresher sharks, 5- to 8-footers. Nothing was heard from surf anglers in the past couple of days. Fluke were pulled from Oyster Creek Channel on Barnegat Bay, but many were shorts. Stripers in the bay were picked on eels at night along the sod banks at Sedge Islands.

<b>Seaside</b>

Rains kept surf anglers mostly off the beaches, but a few striped bass were weighed in from the suds, and fluke started to pile in to the wash, said the report on <b>Grumpy’s Tackle</b>’s Web site. A 32-1/2-pound striper was checked in that inhaled bunker, and so was a 12.3-pounder that sucked in a Grumpy clam. Considering how scarce anglers were and the fact that large bass kept being weighed in, would seem stripers were out there in fair numbers. When stripers were beached lately, no bunker nor working birds were seen nearby. One angler brought in two 18- and 19-inch fluke, about 2 ½ pounds apiece, that he bucktailed in the surf. <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishingreports/" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.   

<b>Forked River</b>

Barnegat Bay’s fluke fishing really picked up, and a good stretch of the fish carpeted the area from the BB marker to the 40 buoy, said Grizz from <b>Grizz’s Forked River Bait & Tackle</b>. Grizz pulled the hook on a big doormat this morning while jigging the bay. Ocean boaters also creamed the flatties at Barnegat Ridge. Kingfish got gathered up from the bay when anglers chummed and fished with clam or squid. A few blowfish chomped, but mostly kings did. Nobody mentioned landing striped bass on the bay, and the linesiders mostly moved out of the waters. Striped bass fishing in the local ocean got a little quiet, but sometimes anglers hooked up while chasing bunker schools. Rich Nevin boated a bass Wednesday on the ocean, and saw other fish boiling, but they refused to bite. Sea bass, plenty of them, were socked at the ocean wrecks. Killies, spearing, sand eels, smelt, mullet and lots more baits are stocked. “We got it all,” Grizz said.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

The number of boaters in the past week decreased who chased striped bass in the ocean, looking to snag and drop bunker to them, said the report on <b>Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site. Maybe either the fish thinned out or some of the anglers switched to fluke fishing, but angling participation declined on the whole in the weather, too. Still, Michael Greene slam-basted a 58-pound 13-ounce striper Tuesday off Loveladies, and other anglers checked in a 52-pounder and a 39-pounder. Surf anglers put a beating on stripers Friday, such as one angler who banked two bass 10 and 20 pounds, and another who beached an 18-pounder. Another at the time limited out on 20-pound stripers at night a few days in a row. Night was a key to many surf catches lately. Fluke were also dragged from the suds, though many were shorts. A staff member released 10 shorts and landed no keepers from Barnegat Inlet’s south jetty on Sunday, and his son scored about the same the next day at the jetty, reeling in 10 or 12 shorts and no keepers. Many of both their fluke were only 1 inch or 1 ½ inches undersized. “Sure wish those limits would go a little lower for the sake of all,” the report said. Fluke anglers started to talk about success on both keepers and good-sized sea bass at both Barnegat Ridge and the Tires. In Barnegat Bay the larger fluke seemed to push to deeper waters at Barnegat Inlet, and anglers who livelined spots drilled better-sized ones. Spots always give a chance at big fluke, weakfish or stripers, and the shop is loaded with the baitfish. Kingfish moved in to the relatively warm waters of the bay, and triggerfish were around, too. A couple of anglers got into kings heavily early in the week. Chumming is a must for both kings and triggers, and double-anchoring helps. The report reminded anglers that one blackfish will be able to be kept starting July 16.

<b>Barnegat</b>

A fluke trip put eight in the box in the ocean Wednesday with <b>Perfect Drift Sport Fishing</b>, Capt. John said. That was a good catch of keepers to probably 4 ½ pounds, and a couple of 10-pound blues were belted. The drift was slow, terrible, tough for fluking, and the catch probably would’ve been better with a better drift. More winds could’ve helped, and seas were flat. The trip fished in 30 to 65 feet at a lot of different spots, and no one place attracted a heavy concentration of the flatties. Spearing, squid, sea robin strips and other strips were fished on rigs, and waters were 61 to 63 degrees. Anglers better go fluking now, because the season will be over in a snap, only lasting through September 4. The flattie fishing is a specialty on the boat in summer. Fluke angling on Barnegat Bay was good for a mess of action, but the keeper ratio was way down. Striped bass anglers on the ocean connected farther north, but on the local ocean they picked one here or there. Bluefish were stacked up at Barnegat Ridge, the last John heard.

<b>Beach Haven</b>

Some of the crew, when bringing the boat back to New Jersey from North Carolina, made a detour to Washington Canyon on Friday, nailing 40- to 50-pound yellowfin tuna, said Capt. Lindsay from the <b>June Bug</b>. That was better-sized than many yellowfins reported recently, fish that were just barely legal. Then the crew moved to the Hambone, shellacking a 176-pound bluefin tuna. Lindsay didn’t ask what the bluefin bit, but he assumed bait or a jig, because the crew said fish were marked on the bottom. So that was a good day of tuna fishing, and though Washington Canyon is out of range of Beach Haven, the Ham Bone and such places are within reach, and the boat is ready to roll on trips. Lindsay ran a few inshore trips recently, and sea bass were bagged, weeded out from plenty of shorts, and short fluke chomped the baits. But fluke fishing could pick up any moment, and anglers just needed to go and be there when it happened. A trip some time ago looked for striped bass in the local ocean, and bunker schooled all around, but no linesiders chased them. Registration for the <a href=" http://www.fishbeachhaven.com/juniormates.htm
" target="_blank"> Beach Haven Tuna and Marlin Club’s Junior Mate Program </a> takes place 7 p.m. today at the Museum of New Jersey Maritime History in Beach Haven. Youths can also register for the program afterward but must do so soon, so don’t delay.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Little was doing in the week’s rains, said Maureen from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b> on Wednesday. One group of anglers reported bagging a dozen flounder on the bay, but that was about the only news that dropped in. Nobody talked about catching striped bass. However, the report on the shop’s Web site said today, an almost sunny day, that one angler boated five keeper flounder to 21 inches on the bay in the morning. Flounder pounders worked the same old spots: the clam stakes and the 134 marker. One boater looking for stripers sailed the ocean all the way north to Surf City on Long Beach Island, saw no bunker pods, trolled all the way back, and hooked one skate, the site said. Fish were marked on the fish finder but were deep and not biting. Bunker pods were seen at Little Egg Reef on Wednesday, so maybe that was a place to look now. Minnows for flounder bait were tough to catch because of freshwater from rains, Maureen said, but are stocked when available. The live grass shrimp supply was in the same situation.
  
<b>Port Republic</b>

Few anglers fished in the weather, but a couple ran to the ocean today, said Mary Ann from <b>Chestnut Neck Boat Yard</b>. One of them, Capt. Andy Peszka, came back with sea bass and flounder. Mary Ann saw a couple of flounder docked that came from the bay this week. Some said blues appeared at the mouth of the Mullica River a few days back. White perch bit in the river, and Mary Ann put together a catch of crabs, eight of them in a brief time, at Loveland Thorofare. That’s all she wanted to nab, and the crabbing seemed fine. Shedder crabs, the favorite weakfish bait, will be stocked this evening. Nobody mentioned catching weaks since shedders ran out last. Minnows are carried, and so are bloodworms and frozen baits.

<b>Absecon</b>

The bridges were a place to round up plenty of striped bass at night or in the afternoons to evenings, said Ray from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Live spots were best baits, but eels would work. Sean Fox and Joe Ficetola boated striped bass both at the bridges and along the ocean beach front, and stripers were nailed in the ocean when anglers could find bunker schools that the linesiders chased. Surf anglers picked at kingfish, like one angler who targets them, plucking three one day and two another. So kings were beginning to show at least. In the bay flounder fishing was productive. Capt. Dave, the shop’s owner, ran a charter for Dave Morris that lined up nine healthy-sized flounder, two striped bass 18 to 20 pounds and some 4- to 5-pound blues. Dave’s nephew, Nathan Hagerman, and friend put a stop to six good-sized flounder about 20 or 21 inches. Then again, Joe Ficetola this morning reeled in 60 flounder and no keepers. Vicki Piperrato checked in two 6-pound flatties she walloped from the inlet to the bay. Paul Bellina smoked an 11-1/2-pound flounder that ate a spot at the Brigantine Bridge. Plenty of white perch played around the rivers, good fishing, and the Mullica River served them up. If anglers want the bigger perch, dunk small pieces of shedder crabs. The shedder crab supply was getting tight, and won’t pick up again until the next shed on the moon. The run of soft shell crabs for eating was about finished. The shop raises and sells shedders and soft shells. Now was prime time to crab, while weeks remained before the next shed, when shedding crabs would stop eating. Not all crabs shed at once, though. All the crab traps and supplies are stocked. Live spots, fresh clams, eels and just about every bait fished in the local area, a large supply, is carried.

<b>Margate</b>

Tons of flounder filled the bay, and all patrons tangled with lots, and many of the fish were throwbacks, said Capt. John from the <b>Keeper</b>, but he was pleased with the fishing.  Nine keepers were bagged on Wednesday morning’s trip, and the biggest weighed a little over 4 pounds, and a couple were 3 pounds. The afternoon trip stayed in port. John saw a few schools of blues, 1-½- to 2-pounders, swimming the bay, and one blue was landed on the boat during the week. Not a lot was heard about striped bass locally, and the weather probably kept anglers from trying for them. The Keeper is fishing for flounder on two trips daily 8 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

<b>Somers Point</b>

An offshore canyon catch was finally reported, said T.C. from <b>Brennan Marine</b> in an e-mail. Bennett Muldoon and crew on the Moonshot hit the jackpot on yellowfin tuna at  Lindenkohl Canyon, trolling 17 of the fish on spreader bars in warm waters they found around the 500-fathom line. They kept four--a 50-pounder, two 40-pounders and a 30-pounder--and released the rest. On Saturday the gang on the One More Drift battled to the boat a 298-pound thresher shark at one of the reefs. Greg Polcer and friends loaded up on big bluefish at the A.C. Ridges, almost non-stop action on various trolled lures. Susan Stewart on her boat Stupendous and crew early last week bagged a number of flounder, including a 21-incher and a 19-1/2-incher, and released shorts on the bay off Anchorage Point, while fishing with Gulp Swimming Mullets. Eric Aubrey tried for striped bass on the bay, landing a 14-1/2-pounder that smacked a Mirr-O-Lure on 8-pound test.

<b>Ocean City</b>

Some kingfish could be found in the surf, said John from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. He wasn’t asked what bait to toss, but bloodworms are typical. Striped bass fishing slowed in the surf, but customers beached a few, just not like 1 ½ weeks ago. Dunk clams during the daytime for a bite. But if anglers really wanted to land stripers, fish around the bridges at night. John likes to cast popper lures or swimming plugs such as Yozuri Crystal Minnows or soft-plastic lures like Calcutta’s or Tsunami’s. Lots of flounder paved the back bay, but the keeper ratio was off balance. Maybe 10 or 15 shorts were hooked for every keeper. Some customers talked about reeling up 40 shorts to come up with three or four keepers. Squid, mackerel and Gulps worked well. Reports started to be heard about flounder boated at the ocean reefs. A few pods of small blues randomly popped up in the bay. Crabbing was decent, not great, but decent in the back waters. In offshore waters a 165-pound mako shark was wrestled in from the Ham Bone. Then the anglers motored toward Poorman’s Canyon, jumping off a white marlin just before the canyon. Small yellowfin tuna hovered around such southern canyons, and bigger yellowfins like 60-pounders were sometimes claimed from Carteret, Lindenkohl and Spencer canyons. Minnows, a favorite flounder bait, were out of stock, and the constant rains made them difficult for suppliers to trap everywhere. Frozen herring, spearing, mackerel, finger mullet and squid are stocked. Bunker for fishing and bunker for crabbing are carried. Offshore baits including mackerel chum, bunker chum and ballyhoos are on hand. Flats of butterfish were unavailable at the moment. Other baits are also at the ready.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Surf casters beached striped bass, still made the catches, and one was weighed in today that was just keeper-sized and  hooked on clam, said Wes from <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. Kingfishing was spotty in the suds. Loads of flounder filled the back bay, and customers talked about reeling up 20 per trip, and a 9-pounder was checked in today. The flatties bit everything including minnows, spearing, mackerel and squid, and Gulps worked great. Stripers could be clammed on the bay, or throw soft-plastic lures or popper plugs to them at sunset. A few small blues roamed the bay, and just a handful of weakfish swam the waters. Crabbing gained steam, and customers bought lots of crabbing gear. In the ocean flounder responded at places like the reefs near Sea Isle and Cape May and the Old Grounds. Shark fishing sounded okay in the ocean, and small bluefin tuna were reported fought at the Ham Bone and the Lobster Claw. Besides the full array of inshore tackle and bait, the shop carries the complete supply for offshore fishing, everything from lures and rigs to chum and flats of butterfish.

Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b>, affiliated with <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>, was fishing the Merrimack River in Massachusetts on an annual trip for striped bass this week, he said. Northeast winds howled, and rains poured! But he was there, so he fished, both on his own and with charters he offers during the trip. On Monday the weather made the angling challenging, but three stripers to 33 inches were fly-rodded. The fish were biting short, and hooks were pulled on maybe four other bass. On Tuesday Chris Kneeland jumped aboard in even rougher weather, and three stripers were fly-rodded in horrendous northeast winds and rains. Several more bass bit, but again, the take was tentative, more than Joe had seen before. This morning, when Joe gave this report over the phone, the weather was calmer, so he would see if conditions remained better. The river is typically chock full of bass at this time of the year, the prime season. Back at home, striper fishing on the back bay around Sea Isle was happening but was sporadic, off and on. Sometimes a decent catch was clobbered, and on the next day at the same time and place with the same conditions, the fish refused to cooperate. But Joe’s anglers were catching them on popper lures and flies, Bass Assassins, Clouser flies and clams. Joe hoped to get back to offshore fishing for tuna when he returned to New Jersey this week, if the weather allowed. His friends were catching tuna, and he was confident the fish were there. Joe encourages anglers to sail for tuna in the early season, instead of waiting, because he’s mugged tuna in June and July in recent years, and the late season was slower. He hoped the late season would be good this year, and it often is, but the fish were here now. Jersey Cape is offering open-boat tuna trips, usually on Wednesdays, and call for details. The trips could sometimes sail on other days, depending on the weather and when anglers wanted to go. The trips, sailing on a 26-foot Regulator, will fish either inshore for bluefin tuna or offshore at the canyons for yellowfins. 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. 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. Joe is currently 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.

<b>Wildwood</b>

Reef fishing on the ocean dished up sea bass and flounder, lots more flounder than earlier, on the <b>Adventurer</b>, Capt. Gary said. Many of the fish were shorts, but some were keepers. The more experienced anglers did better on keepers, and patrons had lots of action. Small blues showed up, and junk fish like sharks bit.  The weather was calm enough for all trips to fish the ocean, but often when winds make the ocean rough, the boat can duck into Delaware Bay to flounder fish while escaping the winds, one of the advantages of the port. The Adventurer is fishing on open-boat trips 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., but call to confirm, making sure no charter is running instead. Charters are on tap for any species available.

<b>Cape May</b>

Capt. George from the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> was busy putting props on the boat Wednesday, he said, after maintenance was done on them, keeping the boat dry docked. But a charter Friday will fish for flounder on Delaware Bay, and George heard about catches picked up there. Yellowfin tuna were pinned down a fair ways to the south, but George didn’t know how good the fishing was. Few boats fished in the weather, so that was about all he heard.

Anglers kept saying they caught twice as many flounder this year as last, and the fishing seemed good, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. The bottom huggers swam just about everywhere they normally do by now. Catches were made on Delaware Bay at 20-Foot Slough, Bug Light and Miah Maul. Some of the larger ones to 8 pounds were copped at Reef 11 and the Old Grounds. The ocean off the Wildwood Ferris wheel produced, and okay floundering went down at Cape May and Wildwood reefs. The back bay also put out plenty along the Intracoastal Waterway or places like Sunset Beach, the Dollar Bridge or the Old Railroad Bridge, and snapper blues sometimes schooled the bay. A few resident striped bass were picked up in the surf or at the bridges. In the surf they inhaled clams or strips of mackerel or squid. At the bridges whole squid worked well. A handful of weakfish got nabbed at the jetties or pilings in the surf, such as at Cape May Point and Higbee’s Beach, on floated bloodworms, soft-plastic lures or shedder crab. Flounder were lifted from the surf at Sunset Beach. Offshore anglers fought sharks, especially blue sharks, at the Misty Blue wreck, the Triple Wrecks or the Jacob Jones. Nick tells customers to bring along Pony Tails and mix in trolling for blues at the Triple Wrecks or similar places. Minnows had been scarce this season, but the supply seemed to be turning around, and some should be carried this weekend. Shedder crabs, bloodworms, fresh clams and all the frozen baits are stocked.

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