<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

“It was some miserable” on Saturday’s blackfishing trip on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, Capt. Tom said. Winds, according to the boat’s meter, blew 37 or 38 knots, or more than 40 m.p.h., and strong southerly currents forced anglers to fish with 8 and 10 ounces of weight. Still, the trip made one drop, and anglers picked away at blackfish. The fish biting despite the conditions was something, and a couple of anglers limited out, and some bagged four or five. Only one landed no keepers, Tom thought. On Sunday in better weather anchoring was frustrating for Tom, but the anglers caught blackfish. A couple of them limited out, and some bagged four or five, and a couple hooked no keepers. Anchoring conditions kept changing, and keeping the boat in position was tough, but the fishing was decent. A few ling were angled up, and a few more ling than before began biting lately. The boat supplies clams for ling fishing, in addition to crabs for blackfish. But on this trip more ling bit crabs. When ling bite crabs, that helps avoid dog sharks that back away from crabs but like clams. Today’s weather sounded like a beauty, and Tuesday’s weather sounded iffy but probably okay. Winds on Wednesday are forecasted to blow 25 to 30 from the south, but anglers will see whether the predictions become true. Blackfishing’s been productive on all trips lately, and Tom hopes the fishing holds up. The Atlantic Star is blackfishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.  

Winds blowing steady at 35 knots, and gusts to 40, met Saturday’s striped bass trip on the party boat <b>Fishermen</b>, Capt. Ron said in the reports on the vessel’s Web site. A handful of keepers, several shorts and a couple of blues were managed, and the life seen on the waters was unreal: stripers on top and gannets working bait.  After the morning, the day became impossible for fishing when the tide changed, even for experienced anglers. The trip rode home, and seas were punishing, though the same life remained to the east. Forecasts for Sunday called for 20-knot winds – “a welcomed blessing,” Ron said – but no report was posted for the day. On Friday’s trip good action on stripers under birds began the day, and some keepers, lots of shorts and blues in the mix were landed. Seas became somewhat nasty, so the boat was moved south along the ocean beaches, on a search for life. After no luck, the vessel was moved back north, and life was found again. But winds had built to more than 30 knots. “Sporty at best!” Ron said. But the anglers toughed it out, and some keepers, lots of shorts and blues mixed in were hooked. The conditions were difficult, and “the sound of the wind in this video says it all, Ron said: <a href=" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qJWaEJ2Q_M&feature=player_embedded" target="_blank">video of Friday’s trip</a>. The Fishermen is sailing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

<b>Highlands</b>

A boat limit of blackfish to 8 pounds was socked Sunday with <b>Fisher Price Charters</b>, Capt. Derek said. Trips mostly blackfished, but sometimes trips fished for striped bass in the mornings, jigging and trolling for the bass at the mouth of Raritan Bay and off the ocean beaches, angling for blackfish afterward. Some stripers, lots of shorts and a few keepers, were still around. Charters are running, and the next open-boat trips are slated for Saturday and Sunday, targeting blackfish. Weather looks rough during the middle of the week. Call to jump aboard the open trips or to be kept informed about future open outings, and Fisher Price will fish through December 12. Derek will wrap up the boat’s season afterward. But he’ll run a boat from Point Pleasant then, fishing on charters and open trips for blackfish.

A limit of striped bass for four anglers was drilled with Joel Chiappa’s trip Friday with <b>Jersey Devil Charters</b>, Capt. Brian said. Trolling and jigging between the channels cleaned up the catch. Then the anglers pushed farther offshore for blackfish. Seas and winds were rough, difficult conditions for the angling. But some of the tog were reeled in, before the trip had to motor home because winds howled. Brian knew about solid striper fishing, though with lots of small fish, on Sunday, and quality catches of tog picked through the day. Fishing’s been good on the boat. Combo striper/blackfish trips are sailing, and if groups can be gathered, open-boat trips are cod and wreck fishing offshore. Give a call if interested, and the more who express interest, the easier to schedule. Jersey Devil will keep fishing as long as the weather allows this season. The boat last year was kept running until too much ice formed where the vessel is docked.

<b>Neptune</b>

Lots of blackfish were piled up on trips with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, including on a trip Saturday, despite stiff seas, Capt. Ralph said. Andy Houton landed about 14 keepers, keeping no more than his limit. But Sunday’s blackfishing was slow on a trip in better seas and weather, until the bite turned on during the last hour. Last Lady is finished with striped bass fishing on individual-reservation trips for the season, but charters can target them. Some of the bass remain, but both blackfishing and striper angling can’t take place in the same trip, because anglers never know when blackfish will turn on. The tog bit on Saturday’s trip in rough seas, but were uncooperative on Sunday’s trip until the end, for example. Many individual-reservation blackfishing trips are slated, and more will be added during the week. The outings are filling up quickly, and Ralph will soon give an update on the trips with openings. This weekend is full. <b>***Update:***</b> Dates for individual-reservation trips for blackfish with openings include December 7, 15, 18, 22, 24 (Christmas Eve), 26, 30, 31 (New Year’s Eve), New Year’s Day and all weekends in January, Ralph said in an e-mail. December 5 and 12 are booked. If anglers have a few people who want to go on other dates, call or e-mail Ralph. Charters are available for blackfish, stripers or cod on any day not booked.

<b>Belmar</b>

Anglers aboard sailed for striped bass and blackfish on the <b>Nan Sea J</b> through the weekend, but angling was slow for both fish, Capt. Tom said. Seas were rough Saturday, and the day was beautiful Sunday, but Saturday’s fishing was better. Fishing for both species was good on the boat before the weekend. Bluefish seemed to thin out. Charters are sailing for stripers and blackfish, and open-boat trips are also sailing for blackfish, and call for the open schedule.

<b>On a Mission Fishing Adventures</b> fished for blues, striped bass and blackfish on the ocean during the past week, Capt. Eric said. Lots of blues were around, and stripers were mixed in, but fewer than should have been. Blackfishing was on fire, though, and nearly every trip limited out on the tog recently. A trip today with On a Mission was going to try to hook one of the bluefin tuna that are swimming close to shore this time of year. Eric will keep the boat in the waters this season as long as the weather holds and fish keep biting. Blackfish are especially biting.

<b>Brielle</b>

Boaters on the ocean chalked up a good day of striped bass fishing Saturday, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b> on Sunday morning. A 33-pounder was the biggest weighed at the shop from the boats that day, and others checked in included a 25-pounder, a 21-pounder and a bunch in the teens. The 33-pounder was trolled on a bunker spoon at the Shrewsbury Rocks. Trolled sand eel rigs caught others, and others were hooked to the south of Manasquan Inlet. Stripers were sometimes weighed in from the surf, and as of Sunday morning, stripers 18.6, 18.15 and 13 pounds held first through third places in the shop’s annual striper surf-fishing tournament for Thanksgiving weekend, held Friday through Sunday. The tournament each year is free, requires no pre-registration and features great prizes, like an 8-foot St. Croix Mojo rod with a Penn spinning reel and other cool goodies awarded this year. Anglers simply have to catch the bass in the surf and weigh the catch at the shop those days. Keep the contest in mind for next year. Surf fishing through the weekend was better from Mantoloking to farther south, maybe because of herring in the waters. A few stripers were checked in from the surf to the north from Shark River Inlet to Manasquan River Inlet, particularly from Manasquan and Sea Girt, but nowhere near as many were beached there as to the south. Bluefish were fought on boats on the ocean, but Dave heard about none from the surf. Blues hit the surf early last week, though. Blackfishing on the ocean would be lots better with better conditions like lighter winds and calmer seas. But some of the tog were boated, and an 8-pounder was the biggest weighed at the store. Bottom fishers also pumped in ling at times. Bluefin tuna swam close to shore, and Dave heard about at least one landed each day. He saw a photo of a 94-pounder nailed on a Tuna Hunter Popper. Nothing was heard about fishing on Manasquan River, but herring and shad surely swam there, because they were abundant at many places.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

On the party boat <b>Cock Robin</b>, after banner striped bass fishing Wednesday, decent fishing for them Thursday and good angling for the linesiders Friday, the weekend’s catches weren’t what was hoped for, an e-mail from the vessel said. Stripers were hooked early on the trip Saturday, and “winds blew us silly the rest of the day,” the e-mail said. On Sunday’s trip “we read bass that should have sent us home by 11 a.m. with bonus fish for all,” it said. But that didn’t happen. On a positive note, the e-mail said, ocean herring swam the striper grounds, and some early season mackerel showed up. “Time for Krocs!” the e-mail said. Krocodile spoons are for sale on the boat.  The Cock Robin is sailing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily except 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Wednesdays.

<b>Barnegat</b>

Wireline trolling squashed good catches of striped bass today and Sunday on the ocean on the <b>Hi Flier</b>, Capt. Dave DeGennaro said in an e-mail. Jigging for the fish was slow, so the trips trolled with productive results. The mostly 12- to 20-pounders hit in 35 to 45 feet off the Coast Guard Station at Island Beach State Park.  On Sunday the fish were hooked on a tube umbrella rig and Tony Maja’s Bunker Spoons. Today all the fish were dragged-in on the spoons. Green/chartreuse was the best color combo for the fishing on the trips. Dave noticed that the cleaned fish had big sardines or cigar minnows in their stomachs instead of sand eels like before. Not a lot of bird play was seen, but the fish finder marked wall-to-wall readings. Forecasts look like a blow out for Tuesday and Wednesday, but the vessel will be back out for stripers on open-boat trips 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Thursday to Saturday.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

Blackfishing was a tough pick on a trip, and currents ran strong, but the outing still limited out, said Capt. T.J. from <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>. The anglers ended up with a good catch, including some sizeable blackfish to 5 pounds, none huge. Legal Limit focused on the tog lately, did no striped bass fishing recently. But other boaters caught stripers in the area. T.J.’s other boat, sailing from Cape May, fished for stripers, and see the report under that port. Charters are fishing with Legal Limit, and no space is available this week on open-boat trips/shared charters, but the space might become available next week.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Fishing for striped bass was transitioning to jigging and trolling for the fish on the ocean like happens every year around Thanksgiving, said the reports on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site. But clamming for the stripers at the bars at Little Egg Inlet was still happening. On the ocean, locating the schools willing to bite is the tough part. But when anglers locate them, “catching 10-plus bass is an easy feat,” the reports said. Boaters on the ocean searched from Holgate to Brandt Beach. At the inlet, gannets worked the waters Sunday morning, but only an occasional striper was boated. No news was posted about later that day. On Saturday the three anglers on the high-hook boat landed 20 stripers at the inlet. Working gannets gave away the location of the fish and often did, from the inlet to the ocean.

<b>Longport</b>

Trips bailed striped bass and blackfish, loads of the fish, on the ocean until Sunday, said Capt. Mike from the <b>Stray Cat</b>. Maybe rough seas on Saturday caused a slow down on a trip Sunday. Another trip today on the ocean was slated to sail for stripers in the morning and blackfish afterward. Previously, striper fishing was awesome on a trip on Thanksgiving. A trip on Black Friday whacked stripers again. During a trip on Saturday, the weather blew a gale, but the anglers walloped stripers again, all limiting out, and caught blues and plenty of blackfish. But on Sunday’s trip striper fishing and blackfish angling was tough. The ironic thing was that out-of-season summer flounder bit like nuts and were released. After fishing for stripers and blackfish was a bust, the trip set up at an offshore lump, and good-sized summer flounder to 4 ½ pounds were drilled for 2 hours straight on bucktails and jigs, no bait. If the trip had fished during the season for the fluke, the anglers would’ve limited out. Why the flatties bit while stripers and blackfish did not was bizarre. The closed fluke season seems wrong, and many fluke seem around. Boats with paid permits that allow off-season fluke fishing, permits that the government sells for scientific research, seem like pay-to-fish permits, and many anglers don’t encourage others to use the permits, because of that. Mostly open-boat trips are fishing, but so are charters. Charters are especially available for deep-water wreck fishing for sea bass and cod. Take advantage of sea bass before the season for them is closed on January 1. Annual Cast and Blast Trips, charters and open-boat trips that gun for ducks and fish on the ocean during the same day, are sailing until January 20. Call if interested in the trips.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

No charters fished since Thanksgiving, when a trip clocked more than a dozen striped bass to 18 pounds and two 15-pound blues on the ocean, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. That fishing was covered in the last report. He heard no first-hand news about the angling since then, but he’s sure stripers are still out there. This is fishing for the fall migration, some of the best angling of the year. Looking ahead, Joe’s flats boat, one of several boats he runs, is in Florida, set to begin annual weekend charters from the Keys through winter. The trips, weekend getaways where anglers can arrive Friday evening, fish all day Saturday and part of Sunday, and return home that day, can catch a wide variety of fish. Species include redfish, speckled sea trout, snook, tarpon, king mackerel, blackfin tuna, ladyfish, sharks, Spanish mackerel and mangrove snappers. Joe reports about the fishing through the season. See <a href="http://www.gibsonstackle.com/page6.html" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s Traveling Charters Web page</a>.

<b>Cape May</b>

Fishing at the Cape May Rips put up super striped bass fishing on the boat all week, until the blow and rough seas Saturday, said Capt. Bob from the <b>Down Deep</b>. Then the angling declined, and a trip Sunday hooked 22 stripers including four keepers. But the anglers onboard limited out on the fish at the rips on nearly every trip in the past week, fishing with eels, spots and bucktails. Tons of stripers swam the rips, and many were small, but some were sizeable. A 30-pounder that Rich Fox eeled was one of the stripers on Sunday’s trip. All the different rips, including at Prissy Wicks Shoal, Overfalls Shoal and Middle Shoal, seemed to harbor the fish at some time or other in the past days. Delaware Bay’s striper fishing seemed to drop off a bit, Bob thought. The Down Deep will fish through December 12 before he calls it a season.

Probably 30 striped bass, including a half-dozen keepers, were picked up at the Cape May Rips on Sunday while the anglers livelined with <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>, Capt. T.J. said. Lots of stripers, lots of shorts, filled the rips. A trip on T.J.’s other boat, sailing from Tuckerton, copped a difficult pick of blackfish on the ocean Sunday, but the anglers still limited out on a healthy catch of the tog to 5 pounds, some sizeable ones, but none huge. No trips on the boat from Tuckerton fished for stripers recently, but others caught stripers there. Charters are fishing on both boats, and no space is available on open-boat trips/shared charters this week, but space could become available for next week.

Trips locked up on good catches of striped bass at the Cape May Rips on Thursday and Friday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. Joe McGee from McGee’s Tavern’s trip fished on Thursday, and George, Frank and crew from Atlantic County Road Works’ charter ran on Friday. Eels were the best bait on the trips, and a few smaller bass were hooked on spots, and bucktails claimed some of the fish. No trip fished on Saturday because of winds, and fishing was slow on a trip Sunday at the rips, producing 8- and 9-pound bluefish and out-of-season flounder tossed back. Nobody seemed to set the world on fire Sunday, and some caught, but nothing to get excited about. George couldn’t know if the blow Saturday caused Sunday’s slow down. Boaters who fished Delaware Bay for stripers seemed to bunker chunk some in the past days. One angler from the docks hooked none on the bay on Sunday. The Heavy Hitter will fish two more weekends before the boat’s season is wrapped up. Space is available on one of the weekends, and call if interested.

The season’s final trip on the books, slated to fish for striped bass at the Cape May Rips, was weathered out Saturday with <b>Fish Tale Charters</b>, Capt. Craig said, and he’s finished chartering for the year. He thanks everyone who fished on the boat this year. Next year he’ll splash the boat in early May, and will begin charters when summer flounder and sea bass seasons open. Both seasons opened in late May last year, and the coming year’s dates are usually announced early in the year.

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