<b>Port Elizabeth</b>

Drumfish showed up at the Pin Top and Tussy’s Slough on the New Jersey side of the bay, one of the crew from <b>The Girls Place Bait & Tackle</b>, who preferred to remain anonymous, said. Flounder season opened, and no outstanding reports were heard about them, but keepers were boxed. Bluefish roamed the bay, and striped bass were pulled from the southern bay, like toward Cape May. Fresh bunker, fresh clams and all the frozen baits including squid, mackerel, mullet and herring are carried.

<b>Newport</b>

At <b>Beaver Dam Boat Rentals</b> crabbers averaged two dozen keepers through the holiday weekend, Paul said. That was the first weekend this season when the shop was open for crabbing. But experienced crabbers caught more, and newbies caught less. Probably 1 in 6 to 10 of the blueclaws caught was a keeper, and many were just under legal size, and should become keepers on the next shed, when crabs grow. Sheds happen around the full and new moons, though not all crabs shed at once. But the full moon was last week, and some did shed, and the shells currently washed up from the waters. Crabbers in the rental boats at Beaver Dam get towed up Oranokin Creek, running along the property, to saltwater ponds teeming with the hardshells. The area may hold the largest crab population in the state, because of the right environment, the prohibition of commercial crabbing and the staff keeping most motor boats off the waters. Everything needed for a day of crabbing, from baits to traps to suntan lotion, snacks and cold drinks, is supplied at the shop. Be sure to call ahead to reserve a rental boat, because they can become full. Beaver Dam also rents kayaks and canoes for sightseeing on the creek, and a couple of kayakers took advantage during the weekend. Wildlife along the creek includes eagles, ospreys, great blue herons, otters, mink, muskrats and much more. Beaver Dam sells fish and wildlife licenses and is a deer and turkey check-in station. The shop will be open Saturdays and Sundays until being opened every day starting June 28. <a href="http://www.crabulousnj.com/Home_Page.html" target="_blank">Beaver Dam’s Web site</a> for hours and info.

<b>Fortescue</b>

Drum fishing was good, and everybody caught them, and the high hook on the <b>Buccaneer</b> pounded 12, Capt. Ralph said. Other trips on the vessel pumped in seven, six, three or four and so on. The fish are big, and anglers don’t need to take home a bunch. All trips began fishing for them on the New Jersey side of the bay, after they previously caught the drum off Delaware’s Slaughter Beach. The boomers mainly gathered at Tussy’s Slough and the Pin Top. Nobody can say how long the fishing will last, but trips on the boat are fishing for them all week. Ralph began fishing for drum before any of the fleet did, and check out the boat’s ad for a great price for the trips. When drum depart, charters will begin flounder fishing.

Daily trips for flounder kicked off Saturday, the opening day of the flounder season, on the party boat <b>Bonanza</b>, and the anglers picked at the fish since then, nothing great, more throwbacks than keepers, Capt. Mike said. The angling was probably just getting started, and a few blues were mixed in. Monday’s trip fished at the Elbow when Mike gave this report in a phone call on the outing. Drum fishing gave up good catches on the boat, including a 92-pounder on last Wednesday’s weekly, open-boat trip. The drum trips now fished on the New Jersey side of the bay, after all had previously fished off Delaware’s Slaughter Beach. Both the Wednesday open trips and charters will keep after drum as long as the boomers bite. Call to reserve the open drum trips, fishing in the afternoons to night: 609-381-2978. No reservations are required for the daily, open trips for flounder, departing in the mornings. Charters for flounder are also available.

Fishing for flounder on daily trips launched on the party boat <b>Salt Talk</b> during the weekend, the opening weekend of the season for the fish, Capt. Howard said. The trips looked around to locate the flatties, and 12 keepers and a few blues were boxed on Saturday’s trip. Michael Mattson won the pool with a 3-3/4-pound flounder. Four keepers and a few blues were iced on Sunday’s trip. Somewhat more anglers, a good crowd, showed up at the port on Saturday than on Sunday. A good amount of shorts bit, and the trips started fishing at the stakes off False Egg Island Point, moving to the rips north of Miah Maull and the bay inshore of the Old House. An open-boat drum trip on Wednesday totaled four of the boomers to 65 or 70 pounds north of the Pin Top. John Cicslak hoisted in a 65- or 70-pounder, and Harry Smith muscled in a 60-pounder that was his first-ever drum. The boat will probably offer open-boat and charter fishing for drum another week, before all trips focus on flounder, and call for the open schedule. Flounder charters are also on tap.

Flounder fishing was okay, not great, but not bad, said Dave from <b>Al’s Bait & Tackle</b>. An angler might reel in seven or eight, including two or three keepers. Many of the keepers that were taken were large, and lots of 5- and 6-pounders were seen. No particular locations seemed best, and everyone went everywhere. But if Dave had to choose, he’d try toward the shipping channel, and the fish seemed yet to move to shallow areas. All the different baits seemed to work, and each person talked about a different bait catching. Drum fishing turned very good, and the boomers moved to Tussy’s Slough on the New Jersey side of the bay, instead of only being found off Delaware like before. Quite a few drum, including big ones, were caught. Bluefish, good-sized ones 2 and 3 pounds, really showed up, and boaters chummed them right off Fortescue. From the Fortescue beach, anglers picked up a mixed-bag of fish, pot luck, including blues, striped bass, a flounder here or there, and white perch. Bloodworms and mullet were a couple of baits to choose for the surf. The population of horseshoe crabs began to thin out, making fishing a little easier, especially from the surf, because fewer of the crabs messed with baits. Lots of the perch filled Fortescue Creek, and bloodworms or pieces of shedder crab will nab them, and shedders are stocked. Speaking of shedders, the favorite weakfish bait, nobody mentioned the trout. Baits stocked also include fresh clams, fresh bunker, minnows and a large variety of frozen baits.

<b>Bivalve</b>

Flounder that were checked in included  eight fish to 22 and 26 inches that Mullica Hill’s John and Cindy Britton and Ken and Maryann Burg bagged on a trip, said Pat from <b>Longreach Marina</b>. Flounder anglers and their catches also included: Scott Rohrer, Landsdowne, Pennsylvania, 24-incher; Teddy Wann, 11, Williamstown, 18-1/2-incher; and Bill Lane from Pennsylvania, 18-incher. Anglers started to boat drum on the New Jersey side of the bay, like at Tussy’s Slough. Albert and Dee King nailed five striped bass to 42 inches, and stripers were found close to shore like in recent weeks. Minnows, fresh bunker and frozen baits are stocked.

<b>Villas</b>

Tussy’s Slough and the Horseshoe gave up abundant drum like 45- to 60-pounders that were either checked in or reported caught, said Jim from <b>Budd’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Alyssa Patten, only 8 years old, weighed in a 44-pound 4-ounce drum she landed on the Dizzy Lizzy. On the Ho-D-Doe, sailing from Cape May, the charter boat from <b>Budd’s Tackle Charter Services</b>, run by the owners from the shop, most trips limited out on drum. Flounder were boated toward Miah Maull and in the back bays, and none was reported pulled from the ocean so far. Not a ton was heard about flounder, and nobody checked any in so far, and the angling was just getting started. Surf anglers beat large striped bass on clams at Poverty Beach, including Mike Keenan’s 35-pound 9-ounce 47-incher, Bill Ludlam’s 24-pound 42-incher and Amy Fujimoto’s 22-pound 38-incher. Sea bass seemed to be wrangled up one day and not another at Cape May Reef, maybe related to weather. Fresh clams are stocked, and fresh bunker is on hand when available. Whole squid, tube squid and squid strips are carried, and so are frozen baits including mackerel and mullet. All the drum, flounder and striper rigs are in supply, and so are shark rigs. No shark reports rolled in, but any day.

<b>Cape May</b>

Good drum catches were plowed through the past week on the <b>Down Deep</b>, Capt. Bob said. Trips fished on the New Jersey side of the bay, and the Gardner party, on 12-year-old Joey Gardner’s birthday, walloped 12 drum, including Joey’s 70-pounder. On the O’Rourke charter on Sunday evening – when Bob gave this report over the phone on the trip – Jerry O’Rourke had already hauled in his first-, second- and third-ever drum, and hours remained on the trip.

Anglers on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> piled up good catches of drum on the New Jersey side of the bay, Capt. George said. The Parker family’s trip at 8 p.m. Sunday, when George gave this report over the phone on the outing, had already put 10 in the tub, and two more were being fought as he spoke. A trip Saturday with Brian and Harry from the pipe insulators boated drum to 60 pounds. Anthony Metea and Tom DeGuinea’s trip from the Atlantic County road works clubbed big drum to 80 pounds. Only five of the fish could fit in the fish box, and normally more would go in. On Thursday Joe Wesalewski on a trip with his grandson that hoisted in one drum by 5:15 p.m., said he was satisfied and had a great time, and decided to head back in after the catch. Drum charters will continue, and trips for sea bass and flounder are on tap.

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