<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Five great days in a row! Capt. Ron from the party boat <b>Fishermen</b> said about striped bass catches in an e-mail after Wednesday’s trip. After Tuesday’s trip, in an e-mail, he said he’d never forget the past stretch of days. In another on Monday, a day that one of the anglers called a “three-peat,” Ron said he couldn’t sleep at night, waiting to get back out on the waters after each trip. This stretch of days from Saturday to Wednesday, the first five days of the vessel’s fishing this year, was the best start to catches Ron ever saw on the waters. The fishing from Saturday to Monday was covered in the last report, and fishing on Tuesday’s trip began slowly. But Ron told the anglers to wait until outgoing tide for catches to turn on. They did! All patrons limited out and then some. One said he couldn’t believe he tossed back 20-pound fish. Bill Gray won the pool with a 20-pounder. On Wednesday’s trip great catches were bailed at first, and then Ron told the customers again to wait for the change of tide. Then limits were made all around the boat, and the vessel was full of patrons. Lots of 15- to 20-pounders were creamed, and an angler with a 30-pounder, the biggest of the season so far, won the pool that day. Dan Kiss took the lead in the season-long pool with a 27-pounder on the trip. Clams, Crippled Herrings, Storm Shads, Krocodiles, Kastmasters and metal jigs with tails all worked. Doesn’t get any better than this, Ron said. The Fishermen is striped bass fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

Trips will be switched to fishing for striped bass instead of winter flounder, said Capt. Tom from the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>. Flounder fishing was tough lately, and the boat fished for them mostly on the Shrewsbury River. But stripers were active, so the switch is being made, until trips begin bottom fishing for ling. Flounder baits or clams and worms and flounder rigs will continue to be carried on board, in case anglers want to try for flounder at Romer Shoal or at the bar off Sandy Hook Point where the striper trips will likely fish. Tom did no fishing for the flatties toward that area yet this season, and anglers will see whether a bite happens. The striper fishing will be done with clams. The Atlantic Star is fishing for striped bass on two trips daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. <b>***Update***</b>: This morning’s trip stayed docked, but the afternoon’s trip sailed for stripers with a handful of anglers, fishing at the bar off Sandy Hook Point with clams like planned, Tom said. They caught the bass, keepers and shorts, and two who wanted to fish for flounder limited out on the flatties. One angler limited out on two stripers and, if Tom remembered, released shorts, and another landed a keeper and a short, and the fishing went about like that, not great, but a pick. Trips should keep clamming for bass in that area when the weather allows.

Striped bass got whacked all over, said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Surf anglers pegged them from the ocean, and Jimmy saw four anglers on the beach at Sandy Hook Point when sailing past on Wednesday, and all four were hooked up. Boaters bailed them from the ocean front to the bay at Keansburg. Jimmy knocked down an excellent catch, good-sized fish, while boating off Keansburg that day. Whether anglers along the bay shore connected was unknown. But they sure did along the ocean beaches. Joe Heinz, a pastor from Middletown, reportedly had never striped bass fished before, said a little prayer, and totaled seven stripers, including five keepers to 34 inches, from the shore at Sea Bright from 7 to 9 p.m. Mike Cantora, Hasbrouck Heights, clammed a 12-pound 34-inch striper and a 10-pound 28-incher from the surf at Sandy Hook. No bluefish were around yet. Winter flounder fishing was about finished in the back waters. Jimmy knew some were caught at the Cedars in the ocean, and he always used to find them there by April 10. By the time flounder season is opened now in late March, the fish have almost migrated to the ocean. He used to land them starting in mid February while ice flowed in the rivers. The angling was a pick in the cold, but the fish were there. There used to be a lot more of the flatties too, he said. Bottom fishing produced a few cod, ling and small blackfish, but waters were frigid for the angling. He made a drop on the trip Wednesday and failed even to pick up a bergal. Blackfish were pulled from the surf jetties farther south, like at Deal. Waters hugging the shore were relatively warm but offshore were cold.

<b>Highlands</b>

The season’s fishing started out with a bang for <b>Fisher Price Charters</b> on Tuesday and Wednesday. The first trips of the year ran on those days, Capt. Derek said, and Tuesday’s outing bagged a limit of 10 striped bass to 18 pounds, releasing another five keepers and 40 shorts hooked down the ocean beach on trolled plugs and on jigs. Jigging sometimes hooked five at a time. A great start! Gannets dove in the waters, and the stripers were spread out, but when anglers could get on them, the fish were jigged. On Wednesday the crew was able to grab bunker for bait, and the trip bunker-chunked another good catch of bass, including a couple in the 20-pound class. Derek heard that bigger stripers were found in the bay, so he fished there. The striper fishing on these days was some of the best in spring the crew ever saw. Open-boat trips are slated for this weekend, and call if interested. Also call to be kept informed of the future open schedule. Charters are also available, including this weekend. Fisher Price is also up for trips for winter flounder and bottom fish this season, though everybody was interested in striper fishing now. Not much was heard about flounder, and a friend found slow bottom fishing on a recent trip, apparently because of cold waters.

<b>Neptune</b>

Both boats are ready to run charters, said Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> in an e-mail. Plus the first individual-reservation trip of the season will sail for blackfish Saturday, and space is available. Fishing for the tog was improving every day, and should be good by the end of the month.  Striped bass fishing kicked off early, and boaters jigged and clammed them to 25 pounds for the past week. “If this holds up, it will be a great season,” he said. The inshore wrecks held good fishing for cod, pollock, ling and blackfish. An individual-reservation trip for big cod and pollock will sail in May. Trip prices will try to be kept the same as last year, unless fuel prices go wild, and then an adjustment will be necessary. Hope to see you this season, Ralph said.

<b>Belmar</b>

The party boat <b>Golden Eagle</b> bottom-fished during the weekend, Capt. Greg said, and catches were mostly slow. That was the second weekend the boat fished this season, and trips will begin striped bass fishing, a main event of the year on the vessel, on Friday. Trips are slated to run 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, but that depends on demand at this time of year. Call ahead to confirm.

Only a handful of blackfish chomped, and some were decked, but the party boat <b>Big Mohawk</b> turned to striped bass fishing to fill in the gaps, Capt. Chris said. But the striper fishing was great, and customers limited out, and the fish were healthy-sized, up to 25 pounds, caught mostly on jigs. Trips are still blackfishing, the usual target on the vessel at this time of year, but they’re also going after stripers while the bass are there, and while anglers waited for the blacks to get active. The ones that were lifted aboard ate crabs. Cod were sometimes in the mix on the blackfish grounds. The Big Mohawk is fishing 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Trips on the party boat <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b> started fishing daily on Saturday, beating up striped bass, Capt. Alan said in a phone call from the waters at 11 a.m. today. Lots were pounded on the boat Saturday through Wednesday, and this morning’s fishing was tougher so far, while acres of the fish schooled under diving gannets 4 ½ miles from shore. Fishing for them is closed beyond 3 miles, so he hoped the schools moved within range when the tide changed. On Saturday patrons began clamming the bass on anchor. On Sunday they started clamming them on the drift, and then a few hooked up on jigs. Then the fishing was all on jigs through Wednesday. Alan heard about two bluefish, the first he heard were caught this season, taken on a charter boat today. The Miss Belmar Princess had been undergoing painting and maintenance to get ready for the season, fishing only on weekends at the time. But the crew rushed to finish the work and begin sailing when they heard about all the stripers. The Miss Belmar Princess is sailing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

Beach anglers banked a few striped bass on clams, said Jessie from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. But a fly angler beat a 9-1/2-pounder Wednesday that he weighed in. That was the first weighed in this season, though other keepers were surely landed. Belmar party boats clobbered stripers the last few days from Sandy Hook to Manasquan Inlet. A mate, an experienced angler, from one of the boats totaled 17 Wednesday, keeping no more than his limit. The ocean cooled by today, so anglers waited to see how the boats fared this day. The head boats stopped concentrating on blackfish, switching to stripers, because blackfish seemed reluctant to chew in the cool waters. Reports were heard about plenty of blackfish, and even bluefish, rounded up from the Point Pleasant Canal one day last week. Waters there and in the adjacent Manasquan River are warmer. Shark River at the store is colder because it’s a shorter body of waters where the cold ocean tides flood in. Winter flounder fishing was slow on the Shark, only producing occasional fish. The flatties are quick to migrate to the ocean from the smaller body of waters compared with places like the Manasquan.

<b>Brielle</b>

They’re here! Striped bass were pounded today in the ocean off Manasquan Inlet on the <b>Big Kid</b> with the Peter Papa party! Capt. Ken said. They limited out on bass to 42 inches and kept right on fishing, releasing more keepers and shorts, on trolled shad rigs and Tony Maja’s bunker spoons. The fish were mostly keepers, chasing bunker schools, and sometimes triple-headers were hooked on a rig. This was it: Stripers arrived, and time to hop aboard to get after them. No bluefish swam around.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

On the party boat <b>Dauntless</b> ling, blackfish, cod and occasional striped bass were hooked, Capt. Butch said. The bottom fishing was slow, and waters were cold, but some were caught. The water surface was 40 or 41 degrees, warming to 46 or 47 on some days, but dropping back to 40 or 41 when the boat returned in the mornings. But the bottom must’ve warmed somewhat, because many small blackfish grabbed baits. The keeper blacks were just keeper-sized, averaging 2 to 4 pounds. Trips fished both shallow and deep, trying the angling in both areas, and the stripers showed up when the vessel ran to the shallows in areas where the linesiders swam.  No mackerel were seen on the trips, and the boat mixes in mackerel fishing when the Bostons migrate close enough to shore in spring. A couple of commercial boaters said they ran across mackerel, but no big bodies, far from shore, 80 or 100 miles. The Dauntless is bottom fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

Blackfish, very good catches, were bombed Tuesday and Wednesday on the party boat <b>Gambler</b>, Capt. Bob said. All the anglers limited out, and lots of shorts put out action. Wednesday’s trip sailed no farther than 25 miles from shore, because the crowd on deck wasn’t big. But there was no need to run farther to make a catch. A good number of 6- to 7-pounders were caught, and a couple of big ones were nailed. Tony Rygiel, Harrison, won the pool with a 14-pound 6-ounce whopper, limited out and copped a keeper cod. Keith Sampino, Old Bridge, honked a 10-pound black and limited out. Most of the tog bit clams instead of crabs. Still, the boat supplies green crabs, white crabs, and usually hermit crabs when available, in addition to clams. Clams offer the chance to hook a cod, too. The Gambler is fishing for blackfish 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays to Wednesdays. The boat is running for cod, pollock, ling and hake farther offshore at the 25- to 50-mile wrecks 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays. Cod fishing on those grounds was slower on the last trips for them, but Bob hoped that was a temporary condition and that the angling would bounce back on the next outings.

Anglers on the <b>Norma K III</b> on Saturday picked ling at every place fished, adding a few small cod and a couple of blackfish to the catch, but the fishing was fairly slow, Capt. Matt said. The angling somewhat improved on Sunday’s trip, and 20 or 25 ling were coolered, and a keeper cod and a keeper pollock were iced. The trips had been sailing only on weekends but now will start running every day from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., targeting ling, cod and blackfish. Magic Hour Trips are sailing 3 to 9 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays for ling and cod. Matt heard only a little about winter flounder trips sailing on the <b>Miss Norma K</b>, but the crew running the boat, every time he asked them,  told him the trips dusted a few, picked away at the fish. The trips angled for the flatties on the Manasquan River now, instead of Barnegat Bay, as the migration moved toward the ocean. The flounder trips sail twice daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

<b>Toms River</b>

On the Toms River to Island Heights white perch were bucketed from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on bloodworms or grass shrimp, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. Floating the baits on a bobber worked better than fishing on the bottom, because crabs were thick. A few striped bass were lifted from the river on clams or bloodworms, and Frank Riese bagged an 8-1/2-pound 29-incher on clam there. Crabs were abundant all over, and a boater today on Barnegat Bay called from the waters, saying he landed one winter flounder so far, but crabs were a nuisance. A few flounder were picked from the bay toward the shop and also farther north toward the Mantoloking Bridge. Stripers were also toggled in along the bridge at night. Stripers and blackfish were picked up from the nearby Point Pleasant Canal. Surf anglers began to nab occasional blackfish along the jetties. They also dragged in a few stripers – shorts and occasional keepers – 99 percent on clams. Closer to the shop, most boaters on the bay fished along the Route 37 Bridge, landing stripers on soft plastics like rubber shads. One angler Wednesday night caught two on 5-inch Fin-S Fish. A handful of bluefish, ones that wintered in Oyster Creek, the Forked River power plant outflow, swam the bay off the creek, because the creek waters started to warm to 58 degrees, pushing the blues out. Stripers were sometimes socked in the same area on the bay. A handful of herring began to be jigged at Manasquan and Barnegat inlets, more at Manasquan, on Sabiki rigs.

<b>Seaside Park</b>

A few anglers kept fishing the surf, and a few striped bass kept being weighed in, Grumpy from <b>Grumpy’s Tackle</b> said in the report on the shop’s Web site. “I think I see a pattern here … Kind of makes me wonder what would happen if we had a few more guys fishing,” he said. Bass checked in during the past few days weighed 8 to 11 pounds, and the surf was in the mid 50s. A trip that Ray Kerico from the shop joined on a friend’s boat off Asbury Park hooked countless stripers to 26 pounds that chased bunker and herring on Tuesday. <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishing_reports.cfm" target="_blank">Click here</a> for updates.

<b>Forked River</b>

Winter flounder fishing was on the upswing on Barnegat Bay, said Grizz from <b>Grizz’s Forked River Bait & Tackle</b>. Boaters had no problems catching the two-fish limit, locating the flatties between the BB and BI markers and toward Windows on the Bay in Bayville. One angler ran a trip on the ocean that plowed 15 striped bass, including six keepers, probably on the troll. Stripers were boated on the bay off Oyster Creek and at the Route 37 Bridge. The bigger ones mouthed clams or bloodworms, but anglers fishing with plugs also cranked them in. Grizz heard about a 13-pound weakfish, one of the big tiderunners that enter the bay to spawn in spring, that was hooked. That was the first report about a tiderunner posted on this site this year. No recent news rolled in about blackfish, but the tog were biting. Fresh clams, worms, green crabs and a full supply of baits is stocked.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Fishing began to pop as anglers cruised into the spring season, said the report on <b>Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site. Angling for keeper striped bass was on and off throughout the surf on Long Beach Island. Fresh clams were the bait of choice, because no bunker were around. Tog rolled into the surf along the jetties from offshore, and bits of fresh clam seemed to interest them more than crabs did, because few crabs skittered around in the early season. Boaters cleaned up on tog, with cod mixed in, at the ocean wrecks, and the trips were well worthwhile. Barnegat Bay anglers smoked plenty of striped bass, mostly shorts, but fun fishing and a chance at a keeper. Many anglers this time of year work popper lures for the fish up on the flats between Double and Oyster Creek channels, and 20 bass per trip is not uncommon. Bluefish were an item at Double, too. Winter flounder fishing began to slow down in Barnegat Bay, and the bigger flatties were found farther north, such as at the Mantoloking Bridge. Bright, sunny days were best for the fishing, and the mud huggers became reluctant to eat on rainy days. Tons of white perch, many of them small, piled up in the Toms River and in the back waters off Jennings Road in Mantoloking.  The shop is a weigh-in station for the annual <a href=" http://www.garbagefish.com/" target="_blank">Garbagefish.com Tournament</a>. Register for $20 at the shop or on the tournament’s Web site, becoming eligible for prizes for the heaviest garbage fish such as sea robins, dogfish and skates.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Fishing for striped bass had been peaking around areas such as Graveling Point but tapered off, said Scott from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>. The cause – such as the moon or the sunny weather – couldn’t be known, and neither could whether catches would bounce back. The fish continued to be weighed in, but the number reeled in dropped, such as all the shorts dialed up and released previously. Two were checked in Wednesday, one caught from a boat near Graveling, at the confluence of Great Bay and the Mullica River, and the other, an 11.4-pounder, tugged in from land at nearby Pebble Beach. Land-based anglers at Pebble and Graveling did pull in stripers, but no great numbers like before. The week around April 15 is traditionally slower for unknown reasons, like maybe anglers were busy filing taxes or getting the boat ready to launch for the season. Maybe participation contributed. Bluefish were yet to invade, but Scott wouldn’t be surprised if they showed any day. The annual prize of a $100 gift certificate was up for grabs to the angler who weighed in the first blue of the year from Graveling. The migration of mackerel, in past years a harbinger that blues would soon follow, never materialized. The schools in recent years seemed to pass farther offshore than recreational boats would sail. A few herring trickled up the waters at Mays Landing farther south, but none was known to appear locally at Batsto or farther north at Manahawkin. A couple of drum that the shop previously reported caught locally were the only ones known about so far this season. Nobody talked about white perch fishing up the rivers, and sales of live grass shrimp, the favorite perch bait, were mellow. The shrimp, minnows, fresh-shucked clams and green crabs are stocked.

<b>Absecon</b>

Back-bay striped bass fishing picked up, said Capt. Dave from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Great Bay was probably best, but the back waters all around produced. “It’s just been good fishing,” he said. Not many big ones were found, but the angling will only become better. John Mangan fished for tog at the Brigantine Bridge, limited out on the blackfish but also landed three keeper stripers. Tog hit well in the bays. For stripers, most customers bought clams for bait. But they seemed to bite “on all the regular stuff,” Dave said. Anglers who fished rubber baits connected well. Dave wasn’t asked about using herring for bait, but surely the bass hammered the baitfish too, and Dave’s been netting herring consistently to supply the shop with them. The season’s first two stripers weighing more than 20 and 30 pounds were weighed in, and the anglers who caught them won the shop’s two $100 gift certificates awarded annually for the first hung on the scale. Len Kandoff won for a 20.9-pounder he took Sunday from Great Egg Harbor Inlet. Chris Stewart won for a 35-1/2-pounder he muscled in Monday from the Great Egg Harbor River. Not much was heard about white perch fishing, because everybody striper fished. But striper anglers hooked big perch as a by-catch in the middle stretches of the rivers. Dave had to run and help a customer buy herring from the shop before he could be asked about the shop’s bait supply. But he said fresh clams ran low, because anglers bought them up in the good weather. But more will arrive Friday. The shop carries one of the largest supplies of different baits around.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Striped bass, a couple here, a couple there, were checked in from the surf every day, said Capt. Andy from <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>. The fishing was slow, but there was a chance to knuckle them in. Jeremiah Jarvis beached two to a 31-inch 10-pounder today. Joe Jaskiewicz today landed three: a 28-inch 7-1/2-pounder and two shorts. Fresh clams were the bait to soak and are stocked, and fresh bunker is out of stock but is carried when available. The bunker boat sailed today, so Andy would see if the bait became available. A couple of anglers, Carl Stock and Paul Conserti, fished on Delaware Bay with Riptide Rotters, the shop’s fresh clams that are somewhat old but sold for a better price, decking stripers to 24 pounds. Some anglers say the smellier clams catch more fish. One angler stopped by today to report catching and releasing a 10-pound drum from the surf. No bluefish moved into the local area so far. Lots of skates swam the surf, and the waters were a little weedy today but usually in good shape. West winds cooled the waters. If anglers wanted tog, they could find them along the Absecon Inlet jetty. If they had a boat, the togging was supposedly great along the Brigantine Bridge. Ted Fowles took the lead Monday in the Fish for Life Tournament with a 16-pound striper from the surf. Sign up for the event – running until May 15, featuring prizes for the 1st through 3rd heaviest stripers – at the shop for $20. Many anglers enter for the pass that’s included with the entry fee that allows them to drive the entire length of Brigantine’s beach when accompanied by a beach permit from the town.

<b>Ocean City</b>

Surf fishers sometimes clubbed striped bass, mostly on bait or clams or bloodworms, said Ed from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. Lures tied into more on the back bay, and good catches were collected Wednesday night on the north end of the island. Soft-plastic lures, Rat-L-Traps and MirrOlures did the job. A few small blues, real small, materialized in the back. Super catches of white perch came from the rivers and the bay near the Beesleys Point power plant. A handful of tog were claimed from the bay, and Ed heard about few seized along the surf jetties. The ocean wrecks and reefs served up the blackfish. News was scarce about anglers cashing in on herring, but with the reduced bag limit of 10 of the baitfish, anglers probably tried for them less frequently. Clams in the shell, fresh-shucked clams, bloodworms and lots of frozen baits are stocked.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Scattered striped bass were beached throughout the 50-degree surf on clams, said Wes from <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. No great shakes yet, and nothing really changed in the fishing in the past week, but a chance to catch. At least the weather wasn’t stormy like April can be, and winds sometimes honked, but the month was shaping up to be one for better weather. The weather and waters still needed to warm to amp up angling, but that’ll happen. Stripers could also be plugged on lures in the back bay and Corson’s and Townsend’s inlets. Wes wasn’t asked what type of lures, but soft plastics are often a choice in the waters. Back-bay anglers could also set up a clam chum slick and fish with clams for stripers in the back. Wes in a previous report said the need for chumming is often underestimated. No bluefish were heard about so far, except three that were reported caught in last week’s write-up. Tog fishing seemed consistent everywhere from the bridges to the surf jetties to the ocean. Out-of-season summer flounder hooked by mistake and released in the back bay were heard about, though Wes landed none. The season opens May 29, the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Fresh clams, bloodworms and frozen baits including herring, mackerel and bunker are stocked.

Bass Assassins in Electric Chicken, or pink and chartreuse, snatched up striped bass on the back bay for Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b>, affiliated with <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>, he said. The rubber lures were fished on 3/8-ounce jigheads, and a slow, steady retrieve worked best. Bluefish, the first signs of them, popped into the inlets sporadically, but the migration of blues should flood the bay any time. Joe’s charters will keep striped bass fishing, but they’ll fight lots of blues once the run begins. The scrappy fighters stay in the bay until the end of May or so, before most move offshore for the summer, though some continue to be found in the bay throughout the season. Once the blues depart, striper fishing will become more dominant again. The stripers never leave the bay while the blues are in, but the aggressive blues overshadow stripers. May is a phenomenal month for fishing in the bay for blues, stripers and summer flounder. The flounder season opens on May 29, the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend, but the flatties historically begin to be seen in the bay now. The early season is a great time for flounder fishing in the bay, before the shallow waters heat up. Book charters for the holiday weekend now to lock them in, and the holiday boat traffic fails to affect the bottom swimmers.

<b>Wildwood</b>

The days are being counted down: The party boat <b>Adventurer</b>’s season will be launched Saturday, April 24, Capt. Gary said. The first trips will probably sail for blackfish or striped bass, depending on the weather. For example, if winds prevent blackfishing on the ocean, the boat will be ducked into Delaware Bay for striped bass. If the bay’s drum fishing takes off around then, the vessel will target them. If interested in the daily open-boat trips, call a couple of days ahead to confirm the schedule. Charters are also available.

<b>Cape May</b>

Surf anglers began to talk about striped bass catches, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. A couple of kids landed five keepers at the Higbees Beach jetty. Another angler reeled in some from the wash Wednesday night on a black bomber. Good results on plugs was heard about during the week. But clams worked well from the beach, and so did bloodworms floated under a bobber along the jetties. Boaters banged out stripers close to the Cape May beaches, such as Poverty Beach. One drilled a 28-pound 42-incher off the convent on clam. Stripers could be plucked from the back bay on soft-plastic lures or clams. Pretty good striper catches were made from boats on Delaware Bay, and Nick’s been telling anglers to fish in 12 to 14 feet on warmer, outgoing tides. Hot spots included Bug Light, the Horseshoe and the number 1 buoy. Blackfish were scored from offshore boats and the jetties, and green crabs seemed a ticket. Fresh clams and bloodworms are stocked, and green crabs should arrive. Trout season opened last weekend, and trout baits including earthworms and red wigglers are carried.

Capt. George from the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> heard about boaters who bagged striped bass Monday on Delaware Bay, he said. But that’s all he heard. The fishing was slower on Sunday, but a charter on the Heavy Hitter still put the fish in the cooler that day, covered in the last report. Many of the fleet fished toward Miah Maull that day, though George got away from the crowd. Three charters with him through the previous weekend shellacked the bass, also covered previously. Whether the fishing now was in a brief lull or whether the bass moved toward the Delaware River to spawn couldn’t be known yet. The season seemed early for them to move up. A charter Saturday will fish for stripers, using clams like usual. If the bite is slow, they’ll go tog fishing. There is chance that drum will arrive in the bay by the weekend, and trips in previous years did land them then. The boomers were yet to appear on this weekend the past two years, but charters in the past several years before did haul them in. George’s trips nailed drum next week, the third week of April, during many years. Drum typically bite for a while early in the season, go on a lull a moment while they spawn, then tear up the waters again afterward. A charter is available Sunday because of a cancellation, if anyone wants to fish at the last minute.

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