<b>Staten Island</b>

Anglers with <b>Outcast Charters</b> split up a trip Saturday between fishing for striped bass in the morning and sea bass afterward, Capt. Joe said. The striper fishing was slow, but sacked two of the fish and some blues on Raritan Bay on chunked and live bunker. The sea bassing rapped scores of keepers, some of them good-sized or 2 to 2 ½ pounds, and some ling and out-of-season blackfish and winter flounder that were tossed back. The trip targeted the sea bass in 40 to 60 feet, staying within 3 miles from the coast, legal waters for striper fishing, because stripers were already in the box. Charters can fish on combos like this if they want, or they can focus on one species.

<b>Bayonne</b>

New York Harbor at areas like Robbins Reef put out striped bass at night on bunker, but none during the day, said Capt. Akira from <b>True World Tackle</b> and <b>True World Tackle Charters</b>.  The harbor this time last year served up fluke, not many, but 4- and 5-pounders. The fish were yet to bite this year, and maybe waters were cool. Striper fishing on the East River, where boaters eel for them, was a little slow. Akira took a sea bass trip Sunday that was slow, for some reason, at the Mud Buoy and the Shrewsbury Rocks. The fishing was better at the Mud for him last week. Few boats fished there on this trip, maybe because of forecasts that called for rougher weather than happened.

<b>Morgan</b>

A graduation party fished with <b>Black Pearl Fishing</b> on Sunday, an e-mail from the boat said. Fluke after fluke were caught from the bay, and though bagging a keeper was tough, the action with shorts was excellent. One of the group, an avid angler and outdoor sportsman, was a New York police officer paralyzed in an accident, and he was on his first fishing trip since the accident. He caught a mess of the fish, all shorts, but had a great day, the e-mail said. The officer started working on fighting terrorism with the FBI after 9/11 and is still with the FBI. Open-boat trips, sailing 7:30 a.m. to 12 noon and 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., often run when no charter is booked. A few weekend dates are left for charters this month and next, and more weekdays are available. Charters for 1 to 6 people, 1 to 15, and more are offered on the 53-foot vessel, licensed for up to 60 passengers. Trips are currently available for fluke, striped bass, blues and sea bass. Special trips for big fluke will sometimes sail this season.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Ocean temps were only 61 degrees, so a half-day fluke charter on Saturday fished the 65- or 66-degree bay on the <b>Katie H</b>, Capt. Mike said. Two keepers were bagged, and about 30 throwbacks were let go, a tough day in the cool waters and the bay’s boat traffic. Anglers in the fleet seemed to pick up lots of shorts, and the party boats moved around a lot. Many skates bit, and that’ll happen in cool waters. The mate hooked a 1-1/2-pound lobster in the bay on a Spro jig – unusual catch for the bay. Fluke fishing is typically good on the boat this time of year, so Mike hopes the catches will kick in soon, and the ocean will warm. Sea bassing’s been good on the boat, and he’s happy with that. Mike heard about a few bluefin tuna boated on the local ocean, and the Katie H will start sailing for the tuna when enough arrive in waters like off Manasquan from down south. Shark trips are available. Few anglers called about striped bass trips at this point in the season, after the bunker boats scooped up many of the menhaden, a favorite striper forage. In summer the Katie H will sail for tuna at the canyons, a main event on the boat.

A super catch of striped bass was bailed Sunday on the party boat <b>Fishermen</b>, Capt. Ron said in an e-mail. Almost all the anglers limited out. “June 13 and it doesn’t get any better than today,” he said. Stripers to 23 pounds were clubbed, and a huge area of drum – 300 or 400 or more – of different sizes was found, and the stripers swam behind them. A 60-pound drum and a 35-pounder were boated. One angler landed three keeper stripers and the 35-pound drum. The trip’s fishing began slowly, and Ron had to search around, until the drum were found, and the fishing took off. The Fishermen is striped bass fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and 3:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Fridays through Sundays. However, the Saturday morning trips are unavailable this month. Check out a <a href=" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1svWSf7-_Y
" target="_blank">video of today’s trip including drum caught</a>.

Lots of fluke were rounded up on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b> on the bay, pretty good fishing, Capt. Tom said, though the keeper ratio was lower than he’d like. On Sunday afternoon’s trip some anglers bagged two or three keepers, and some bagged none, but all patrons caught at least shorts on the trips. A 5-3/4-pounder was hauled aboard on that trip. Trips in the past days produced consistent fishing, except Saturday afternoon’s trip was somewhat tough. The boat fished from the Navy Pier to Sandy Hook Point and usual places between, like Bug Light and the 1 can, on the trips. The whole bay seemed covered with the fish. Some of the fluke were 10 to 14 inches, and some were 16 or 17, and some were keepers. Spearing and squid are supplied for bait and worked. Some anglers brought their own killies, but no bait seemed better than another, though the killies can sometimes work better when the drift is slow. Tom tells anglers that if they like to fish with killies, pick up a small amount, a half-pint is plenty on a half-day trip, at a shop on the way to the boat. Some anglers fished with Spro jigs or bucktails, but rigs also worked. On one of the trips a group of boy scouts fished with rigs and caught fine. The Atlantic Star is fishing for fluke 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 had gotten slow a moment, but trips today and Sunday beat up good catches on the bay, said Capt. Derek from <b>Fisher Price Charters</b>. On today’s trip 15 stripers to 33 pounds had already been landed by 9:15 a.m., when Derek gave this report over the phone on the trip. On Sunday’s trip 23 stripers to 32 pounds, including the boat’s limit of the fish, were landed. Both trips fished with chunked and live bunker, and Fisher Price is fishing for the linesiders from the ocean to the bay, but these trips found the fish in the bay. The angling just seemed to be getting better, and big bass were still around. Water temps dropped to 64 and 65 degrees on incoming tides and 68 to 70 on outgoing. A few bluefish were around, but not many. Fisher Price will keep fishing for stripers through the month and afterward will concentrate on fluke and bottom fish. Charters are fishing, and the next open-boat trip for stripers will probably run Friday morning. Call to confirm or to be kept informed about the open schedule. The fluke trips will bucktail for the big ones at the rough bottom, wrecks and channels, like usual. A bottom trip Saturday piled up a great catch of sea bass and ling, releasing out-of-season winter flounder and blackfish.

With <b>Jersey Devil Charters</b> a trip Friday first trolled a little, a half-hour, landing a 25-pound striped bass on the ocean, Capt. Brian said. Then the anglers fished for sea bass, pounding a tremendous catch of the lumpheads to 4 or 5 pounds and a keeper cod, releasing an out-of-season, keeper-sized blackfish. Probably two-thirds of the sea bass were keepers. Stripers lately bit around the Shrewsbury Rocks, and success depended on time of day. Sometimes they fed early in the mornings, other times at mid mornings. Friend Brian Orio nailed a 50.9-pound striper in the surf at Deal on an Atom 40 plug. Jersey Devil will keep sea bass fishing and soon will concentrate on sharks and bluefin tuna. Brian heard about a few sharks caught, including a mako here and there. A few bluefins began to be landed in local waters 30 miles from shore, so the fishing was becoming better. Last year’s bluefin fishing was tremendous for Jersey Devil, and charters will once again fish for the tuna, and so will four-person open-boat trips, and those spaces are being booked. Heads up shark anglers: Brian is on the staff for the new Contender/Windansea Shark Tournament, a mako and thresher only event, to be held at the Windansea Marina in the Highlands on Saturday and Sunday, July 10 and 11. The captain’s meeting will be held that Friday.

<b>Neptune</b>

Striped bass became more difficult to catch, but were around on the ocean, could be landed, said Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> in an e-mail. A trip Saturday afternoon clammed a few good-sized stripers. A photo that Ralph sent showed six of the fish bagged. Another on Sunday afternoon clammed a short, switched to trolling and bagged three good-sized stripers to 20 pounds. Sea bass and ling gave up quality bottom-fishing, and plenty of out-of-season tog were released on the trips. Charters with John Sharp’s group, Darryl Jeffrey’s gang and Kevin Penning’s crew all scored well on bottom fish. Fluke fishing improved during the weekend for boats, and the fluke season will be good, Ralph said. Individual-reservation fluke/sea bass trips will sail every Wednesday starting June 23. Space is left on the first trip, and spots should be reserved for summer. An individual-reservation mako shark trip will fish on Tuesday, June 29. The season’s first individual-reservation, overnight trip for tuna at the canyons will sail July 20 to 21.

<b>Belmar</b>

Bottom fishing on the <b>Nan Sea J</b> mugged sea bass, some ling and occasional keeper cod, good catches, Capt. Tom said. A few striped bass could be plucked from the ocean, and a couple of striper trips are slated for this week. The Nan Sea J did no fluke fishing yet this season, but the flattie angling sounded slow on the ocean so far. Annual open-boat trips for sharks every Wednesday began last week and will keep sailing through late July, but the boat is chartered this week on that day. Time is limited before shark season closes on Wednesday, July 30, so sign up for a spot now to lock in a space for the trips. 

<b>On a Mission Fishing Adventures</b> started fishing for a mix of striped bass, sea bass and fluke, Capt. Eric said. Stripers were picked here and there on bunker in the mornings and evenings on the ocean on trips, fishing that slowed once bunker boats cleaned up the menhaden in recent weeks. During mid day trips mixed in fishing for fluke and sea bass on the ocean. Fluke fishing was picking up close to shore, but deeper waters were too cold. Sea bassing was good if anglers found a spot not picked over. In the next week or so On a Mission will see if bluefin tuna fishing is gaining enough steam for trips in 20 fathoms. The boat does lots of the fishing once the action kicks in, jigging or trolling for the tuna.

<b>Brielle</b>

Boaters on the ocean mopped up a few striped bass every day, usually among bunker pods, but the bite was short, mostly turning off by 7 a.m., said Chuck from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. Catches were okay, not like the better fishing for them earlier this season. Chuck knew about bunker found to the south, and he heard about some to the north off Monmouth Beach a couple of days. Sometimes the stripers bit in the afternoons, but that often depended on wind direction. South winds usually turned off the fish. Not much was heard about stripers or any fish beached in the surf. Ocean fluke fishing was okay, produced lots of shorts, but every trip usually claimed a few keepers. The Manasquan River was loaded with small fluke. The cold bottom kept sea bass fishing from being the best in the ocean close to shore. Bluefish seemed absent from the ocean close to shore, but lots schooled offshore, feeding on sand eels. Boaters looking for bluefin tuna saw many blues. The tuna were scattered, but a few were there. Not many fished for them yet. Chuck knew about a 50-pound bluefin boated Saturday. No customers mentioned going shark fishing.

Bottom-fishing whacked outstanding sea bass catches, lots of limits of good-sized knuckleheads, an awesome spring for the fishing, said Capt. Jerry from <b>Fish Monger Charters</b> in an e-mail. A charter Saturday loaded up quite a few, not a limit, but seas got snappy, and the anglers were happy with the mess of sea bass in the box, and were glad to call it a day. A ling was bagged, and out-of-season blackfish and one out-of-season winter flounder were released. A trip Sunday with Johnny O from Belmar’s Fisherman’s Den and gang, a group of six, limited out on sea bass to 3 ½ pounds by 1 p.m., checking out a couple of other snags for Monger’s next trip. Then the trip returned to the dock with lots of filleting to do. Most of the fish were keepers and were quality sized. Six ling were taken, and blackfish and short cod were thrown back. Jerry looked forward to seeing the anglers again for trips for fluke and blackfish. Dates are filled for trips in June, and only a handful are left in July and August, “so give a buzz if you’re looking to get out,” Jerry said.

A bunch of sea bass to 4 pounds and some fluke to 6 pounds were pancaked Sunday with the Glen Roberts and Drew DellaSalla trip on the <b>Big Kid</b>, Capt. Ken said. On Saturday Rick Papera’s crew belted sea bass and cod to 7 pounds, letting go a mess of out-of-season blackfish to 4 pounds. Mike Gallo’s anglers on Friday morning took a 4-hour striped bass trip, coming up with three keepers at the Shrewsbury Rocks on livelined bunker. Charters will compete in shark tournaments the next couple of weekends. A few thresher sharks were supposedly fought close to shore while anglers striped bass fished on Sunday. Ken heard rumors that bluefin tuna were found at the Monster Ledge, but nothing confirmed. Tournaments that remain available for charters include: the Jersey Coast Shark Anglers High Rollers Tournament, a winner-take-all event, on July 10, the Mid Atlantic Tuna Tournament on July 15 to 17, the Tuna Stakes Invitational on August 21 to 29, and the Manasquan River Marlin and Tuna Club Tournament on August 28 to September 5, open to the public for the first time. Tournaments already booked include Mako Mania, the Brett T. Bailey Memorial Mako Tournament, the Beach Haven White Marlin Invitational and the Mid Atlantic $500,000.

On the party boat <b>Jamaica</b> good bluefishing was banged out Saturday night 18 miles to the south and offshore, an e-jail from the boat said. The 6- to 13-pounders were hooked on bait, like usual at night, and some of the anglers limited out. Fishing for blues during the day Sunday on the boat knocked off fairly good catches, mostly on bait, not jigs, though the angling slowed toward the end of the day, because of a change of wind direction. But the anglers had already stuck a decent catch. Ray Roscoe from Newark that day won the pool with a 13-pounder. The Jamaica is fishing daily 7: 30 a.m. and 7 30 p.m. See the boat’s Web site or call the vessel for further info, or call to reserve a trip.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

Ocean trips most of the past week shoveled up decent catches of fluke, good-sized sea bass and a few ling, good fishing overall, said Capt. Bob from the party boat <b>Gambler</b>. Saturday afternoon’s fluking was the only real slow angling for the flatties, because of too much south winds. But the catches bounced back Sunday. On Saturday morning’s trip husband and wife John and Linda Carrier reeled up eight keeper fluke and four keeper sea bass between them. On the same trip Jay Custer won the pool with a 5-pound 5-ounce fluke, bagging two more fluke and some sea bass, all on a 3-ounce Spro bucktail with a Gulp. On Sunday morning’s trip Steve from Howell won the pool with a fluke a bit larger than 5 pounds, one of two keeper fluke and some sea bass he boxed. Most pool fish were 4- to 5-pound fluke. The Gambler is fishing on two trips daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

The chances of striped bass popping up while trips steamed to and from the bluefish grounds became doubtful, but “we’ll leave the sign up for another week” for striper fishing, an e-mail from the party boat <b>Cock Robin</b> said. Bluefishing was excellent on the boat on Friday’s trip during the daytime on both bait and jigs. None of the fish was huge yet on trips, but 6- to 10-pounders, fun to catch, were fought. On Friday night’s trip bluefish eagerly swiped bait until the last hour, when winds and tide created difficult anchoring, so the boat was drifted, but the action shut off. On Saturday’s daytime trip bluefishing was a slow pick, and most of the anglers used bait. Too few anglers showed up for Saturday night’s trip to sail, so the customers were switched to another boat, and bluefishing was good. Night trips are currently sailing on Fridays and Saturdays. On Sunday’s trip blues were caught early,  until lack of winds and currents shut down the fishing, but most customers had already put up more than enough fillets. On today’s trip blues gave up a quick shot of catches immediately, then the fishing was finished. The e-mail gave quick advice about tackle. The blues were less than aggressive about baits, so heavy bait rigs with large wires, snaps and swivels, and so on, were unproductive. Hooks with simple wire leaders are available on the boat for $1 for two, and they work. Also, no bait is required on jigs, and bait actually keeps the blues from hitting the jigs. The Cock Robin is sailing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and 7:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. daily.

The season’s first mid-shore, mixed-bag trip, targeting bluefin tuna, sharks and bottom-fish like cod sailed Friday with <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>, the report on the boat’s Web site said. The anglers first tried for bluefins at last year’s hot spot. Great marks were read, and sand eels, whales and dolphins filled the waters, but only bluefish attacked the jigs and baited hooks. The trip moved farther offshore, and the life that the crew would want to see for tuna fishing was absent in the waters, so the anglers started sharking. More than 20 blue sharks to 10 feet were released, tons of action. The anglers even broke out the light spinning rod for fun, because several sharks kept swarming around the boat. One mako showed up, free-jumping a bunch of times in the slick, but never grabbed a bait.  Next the trip looked for tuna again, but only bluefish hit. The anglers fished a wreck to end the day, pumping in a dozen market-sized cod. On Friday a combo striped bass/bottom fish trip sailed close to shore. Bunker were caught for bait, and the trip fished the live bunker among bunker pods, trying for stripers without luck. The anglers moved to the reef for bottom-fishing, racking up 50 sea bass and six cod. The captain got a call saying stripers now worked the bunker the trip fished earlier. The boat was motored back to the bunker, and five stripers to 40 pounds were axed. Andrea’s Toy specializes in mixed-bag fishing for greater fun, more chances of hooking up and more variety for dinner. Coming up, annual mixed-bag trips, both charters and open-boat, will sail farther offshore to the canyons for tuna, sharks, swordfish, mahi mahi and tilefish, all in one outing. Get on the list early.

A striped bass trip was a slow on Saturday, but a trip on Thursday was a bass explosion! Capt. Allen said in the report on <b>Reel Class Charters</b>’ Web site. First, the great trip: Three anglers hopped aboard Thursday for an afternoon trip, and the crew wasn’t sure whether striper fishing or sea bassing was going to be best, so they prepared for both. The trip first made striper bait, catching bunker that schooled thick tight to the bottom in the ocean just north of the inlet, that Allen had located from intel from a captain friend. Then the trip motored off to search for stripers. To cut to the chase, striped bass catches became as epic as they get! Two to three fish at a time were first hooked to the north, ridiculous fishing. But the angling only became better. The trip followed the school south, and stripers started blowing up in every direction, “cinder blocks falling from the sky kind of thing,” Allen said. They exploded on the surface, showering bunker everywhere. “We were blowing through bunker, landing fish, missing fish, breaking one to two off …. It was wild!” he said. During the wildest moment, 20- to 40-pound stripers porpoised, surrounding the boat, crushing bunker, and four and five were hooked at a time, and an incredible downpour fell, with a rainbow offshore, and the anglers were drenched. The live baits ran out, and dead bunker baits were tossed into the waters, immediately hooking up. “It was simply ridiculous,” Allen said, “as epic as it gets!” One for the books, he said. Easily 20 to 30 stripers 20 to 35 pounds were landed, and seven were kept, and the rest were released. One of the anglers was an 8-year-old who landed about five big fish to 35 pounds, the biggest one of the trip.  On Saturday striper fishing was slow on a trip in a southerly blow, often a death knell for saltwater angling. The trip ran north, making bunker bait off Sea Girt, thanks to help from the same captain-friend’s crew. The trip fished for stripers in the deep off there, ran south because of a call about a bite, reached as far as Island Beach State Park, found bunker and a few stripers blowing through them, but scored no takers. The anglers ran north for more of the same, no bites. The group wasn’t really into bottom fishing, but they tried the angling for a half-hour, but that fishing was also slow. They returned to striped bass fishing, and Allen got a call about a little bite near the beach. A 30-pound striper was nailed on the first drift on a bunker. A couple of more run-offs and swipes happened but never connected. “(That) one fish was a lot of work,” Allen said. He hoped the fishing picked back up after the southerly blow. Looking ahead, in summer Reel Class fishes for fluke and sea bass, including on annual, open-boat, 10-hour Fluke Till You Puke Marathons. Contact Reel Class for available dates.

<b>Bricktown</b>

Fluke anglers made off with the fish on the Manasquan River, but the keeper ratio was on the decline, said Capt. Rich from the tackle shop <b>Jersey Hooker Outfitters</b>, located in Brick, and <b>Jersey Hooker Charters</b>, sailing from Point Pleasant. A customer weighed in a 4-pounder from the river on Friday. The flatties were boated on the ocean, but the bottom was cold for the fishing, and when prolonged south winds blew that cool waters near the coast, the feed turned off. Boaters racked up striped bass on the ocean on some days and not on others. A friend snatched up two stripers in a quick shot of the fish at 5:30 a.m. literally in the breakers on a boat, and the fishing ended as quickly as it began. Surf casters clammed stripers, 28- and 29-inch, resident fish, at Osborne Avenue in Bay Head. The ocean was cool for sea bass fishing but turned out good catches, the location depending on the day, even if the angling was a touch slow. Some boaters traveled to the Mudhole for bluefishing. Some scouted the Atlantic Princess wreck for bluefin tuna, but Rich knew nobody who came back with the fish.

<b>Seaside Park</b>

Barnegat Bay offered reliable fishing, good action, so bay-only trips started to be offered, in addition to ocean trips that were already running, said Capt. Rob “Birch” Birchmeier from <b>Fishguts Inshore Charters</b> in an e-mail. A father and two sons took a combo Barnegat Bay/ocean trip, a unique trip called a Captain’s Combo that fishes the bay for blues and/or fluke and the ocean for sea bass at wrecks. At first, the anglers made a quick stop on the bay at a spot that previously produced blues, angling up a handful. The anglers then opted to fluke fish on the bay, instead of searching for more blues. They hooked a bunch of fluke, including an 18-1/2-inch keeper, the rest ranging from 12 inches to that size. Then they headed to the ocean, the first time one of the sons was about to fish on the ocean and see a fish-filled wreck, and he seemed excited. The ocean/bay trips are a great way to introduce a new angler to the bounties of both waters at once. A few sea bass were coolered, and a bunch of shorts were tossed back, and out-of-season blackfish were let go. The time came to head in, and the anglers left the fish biting. On Saturday anglers on a charter took a trip to fish the ocean wrecks all day. But they couldn’t resist stopping on a school of 3-pound blues on the bay, scoring fast action with the scrappy fish on the way out. In the ocean, the trip moved to a few different wrecks, until finding a very good pull of quality sea bass, boxing a few dozen, until 20 m.p.h., southerly winds chased the anglers off the waters. South winds lately dropped waters to the mid to high 50s on the sea bass grounds, sometimes causing slower catches on trips. But east winds also pushed in more of the fish to inshore waters, and more sea bass were spread out through the different areas. So at least the fish were there now, looking promising for when fishing conditions were favorable. On Sunday another charter, from Texas, took a full-day trip on the bay, the first all-day trip on the bay for Fishguts this year. First they fished for blues, landing a few, raising a dozen, and the fishing was slow. Then they tried for fluke, putting together a good pick of 34 of the fish, all shorts, lots of action. Next they gave bluefish another go, and fishing was lights out, multiple blues crashing each surface lure on every cast. The anglers grabbed 15 for the grill and released plenty more, before the trip returned.  Catching good numbers of quality sea bass close to shore through summer is a specialty for Fishguts. The wreck-fishing trips, running seven days a week, fish the inshore ocean straight through the warm months on both charters and 10-hour open-boat trips. Combo ocean-wreck and bay trips, the Captain’s Combo, are available. So are trips that fish the bay for blues and/or fluke. Special trips that target trophy blackfish will begin when the tog season opens July 16.

<b>Barnegat</b>

Bluefish are on the feed in Barnegat Bay, and anglers on the <b>Hi Flier</b> are throwing popper lures to the ravenous 2- to 3-pounders every day, in the 3-foot shallows off Waretown and Barnegat, Capt. Dave DeGennaro said in an e-mail. No signs of life, no birds, no swirls, reveal the fish, but when a popper is thrown on the waters, the blues appear. The fish live on the sand flats to gorge on sand shrimp, similar to grass shrimp, “just crunchier,” Dave said. The fish that were kept were full of the bait, and the ones that were un-hooked shook their heads, throwing the shrimp all over. Fluke joined the same feast in the shallows last year, but so far, none grabbed a jig fished for them. “(But) it’s hard to commit, once I see the top-water action,” Dave said. He usually jumps in with his own popper instead. All the action is on 10-pound spinning tackle, “so they are burning some drag,” he said. Winds and seas didn’t seem to matter, and the blues hit regardless.  Check out <a href=" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RMzqtQskug" target="_blank">a video of the blues</a> caught Saturday in 20-knot, south winds. Late afternoon to sundown trips are now running for the blues. Bonito trips to Barnegat Ridge are also sailing.

<b>Surf City</b>

Surf anglers beached quite a few striped bass during the weekend, said Barbara from <b>Surf City Bait & Tackle</b>. Peter Russel banked a 24-pound 6-ouncer Saturday on bunker, and bunker and clams nabbed the stripers, but bunker seemed better. Good-sized blues hit the surf at Barnegat Light. Fluke fishing actually seemed better in the surf than in the bay. Squid with spearing were the common baits, and some used squid with minnows. In the bay 1 in 10 fluke was a keeper. Quality sized sea bass hovered around the ocean wrecks. Fresh bunker, fresh clams, minnows and all the frozen baits are stocked.

<b>Beach Haven</b>

A charter with a grandfather, father and son, a family from State College, Pennsylvania, fished for sea bass on Friday on the <b>June Bug</b>, bombing a great catch, all keepers, Capt. Lindsay said. They could’ve kept catching them, but when they tired of sea bass, they moved to the bay for light-tackle bluefishing. At first, the blues were seen, but refused to bite the usual lures: a small squid behind a white cedar bird, a custom rig a friend makes; and small Clark spoons. The mate tried different lures to connect, and a huge spoon with mother of pearl finally caught the fish. They wanted a big bait. The trip first thing had looked for striped bass chasing bunker pods along the ocean front. But the bunker population seemed hit or miss, because no bunker were found on this trip, yet plenty of bunker schooled the area the next day, though few stripers followed them. June Bug will fish offshore soon. The boat’s mate burned a 72-pound bluefin tuna 20 miles from shore. He was on a bluefish trip but ran across the tuna eating sand eels, socking one. Otherwise Lindsay heard about the occasional trip coming up with bluefins that foraged on sand eels 20 to 25 miles from shore, but nothing consistent.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

Lots of throwback flounder paved Great Bay, but anglers could weed through and catch keepers, said Capt. T.J. from <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>. Incoming tides produced better than outgoing. The ocean was colder than ideal for sea bass fishing, but trips gathered up the fish. They just had to move around a lot.  A couple of blue sharks were landed during the weekend with Legal Limit, and the season was a little early. The better sharking, with more makos, typically starts toward the end of the month. But the trip competed in Cape May’s South Jersey Marina’s shark tournament, targeting waters Legal Limit fishes from Tuckerton. Waters were 66 to 68 degrees, held lots of bait and were perfect for sharking. The abundant bait could’ve been a factor, difficult to attract a shark to a hooked bait, when plenty of other bait is around. Lots of bluefish swam 15 miles offshore, and lots of bluefin tuna roamed those waters. One of Legal Limit’s boats had been fishing for drum from Cape May on Delaware Bay but now returned to Tuckerton to fish for the summer. So both of T.J.’s boats are now sailing from Tuckerton. Open-boat trips are fishing every Tuesday and Thursday when enough anglers want to go, and call to jump aboard.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

On Great Bay summer flounder fishing offered the most activity, and catching more than 50 of the fish in a trip “was not an unreasonable number,” said the report on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site. But only a few were keepers. Some anglers reeled up that many including no keepers. Others came up with a few 18- to 23-inch legal-sized ones. Little else was reported about other fish in the bay on the site. But the site said weakfish were scarce, and only a few were found in the Mullica River. But only experienced anglers hooked them, and the average angler had practically no chance of locating a weakie. The ocean became cold close to shore, shutting down fishing for all species there. Sea bass anglers copped good catches in the deep in the ocean, like when the season first opened. Crabbing was good off Great Bay Boulevard during the weekend. Off Mystic Island’s Playhouse Road was another crab hangout.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Many surf anglers said they nabbed good numbers of kingfish on Sunday, though none of the fish was large, said the report on <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site. In Saturday’s Wendy Llewellyn Memorial Open surf-fishing tournament on the island, 30 kings were entered that met the event’s 10-inch minimum length. But at least 70 were probably landed in the event that were under 10 inches, and most caught were 9 to 9 ¾ inches. New Jersey has no size or bag limit for kings. Big striped bass were boated in the ocean just outside the breakers. Boaters on two different trips whaled a 43-1/2-pounder and a 38-pounder, both on bunker snagged for bait and livelined there. A 90-pound drum was heaved in from along the island’s south end jetty on 20-pound PowerPro, reportedly a potential world record for the line class. The fish inhaled a Riptide Rotter clam, one of the slightly old clams the shop sells for a better price, and some anglers say they work better than fresh.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

In the surf kingfish, blowfish, summer flounder and striped bass were toggled in, said Noel from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. Fairly good catches of healthy sized kings were beaten in the suds through the weekend, and blowfish were mixed in, both nibbling on bloodworms. Sizeable flounder were laid out from the wash, especially off the boardwalk, on minnows, spearing and squid. A few stripers were run down from the suds on fresh bunker, fresh clams and bloodworms. Three were weighed in one day, for example: a 28-pound 44-incher, a 25-pound 41-incher and a 21-pound 22-incher. A 4-pound 22-inch flounder was checked in from the surf that day. Flounder and some blues came from the back bay. Noel saw no weakfish this season, unusual. All the baits mentioned and more, the full supply, are stocked.

<b>Margate</b>

Bluefish, all anyone could want, crammed the waters on a shark trip 35 miles offshore on Saturday, but no sharks showed up, said Capt. Eric from <b>O-Beth Sportfishing Charters</b>. Waters were 65 degrees, a good temp for sharks, and were good looking, but more sharks seemed to swim a little to the south, and the season was a little early. Open-boat shark trips will sail this season, and a few spaces are open, a rare opportunity to beat the monsters without chartering the whole boat. Anglers on a few boats tackled bluefin tuna, 20- to 30-pound footballs, sometimes multiple fish in a trip, along the 20-fathom line. O-Beth trolled a 60-pound bluefin last week, covered in a previous report. Charters are also fishing for summer flounder on the bay and for a combo of sea bass and flounder on the ocean.

<b>Longport</b>

Sea bass fishing was gangbusters Friday and Saturday on the <b>Stray Cat</b>, becoming only fair Sunday and today on the boat, maybe because of the moon or winds or something, Capt. Mike said. A few summer flounder and ling were mixed in. Daily, open-boat trips for sea bass are now finished, because charters will take over the schedule like usual until September. In September the open trips will probably kick off with croaker fishing. Charters are currently sailing for sea bass and bluefin tuna. Many reports started coming in about good fishing for the tuna 20 or 25 miles from shore, a short trip for the fish “Get a group together,” Mike said. Water temps were right or 65 degrees, and now was the time for the tuna. Trips for them are economical. “I’m the Walmart of tuna fishing,” he said. A bunch of bluefish swam the tuna grounds. Boaters will bump up the trolling speed 1 ½ knots, reaching 6 knots, to catch more bluefins, fewer bluefish.

<b>Ocean City</b>

Cold waters seemed to push the larger summer flounder to the back of the bay for warmth, and fishing for the flatties was slow in the main bay on trips on the boat Saturday and Sunday, because only shorts bit there, said Capt. Craig from <b>Fish Tale Charters</b>. He knew anglers in smaller vessels able to sail the skinny waters in the back of the bay, pulling up a few keepers from the sloughs there. Waters there were closer to 70 degrees, but 64 degrees was the warmest Craig saw in the main bay where his larger vessel could fish. Still, this will change, and the flattie fishing will bounce back as waters warm. The main bay is closer to the inlet and the colder ocean. A friend who fished the main bay through last week bagged two or three keepers among lots of shorts tossed back. But the number of keepers dropped off later in the week on his trips, and the fish apparently made the move to the warmer shallows. The fish in the main bay were often 12 inches, and only a couple were 15 inches, during the weekend with Fish Tale. Craig heard about others who bagged one or two keepers in the main bay, and about some who bagged none. Most of the flatfish will remain in the bay until late July or mid August, when the warmth of the bay will finally push them to the ocean, and Fish Tale will follow and fish for them there. Fish Tale is sea bass fishing on the ocean, in addition to the bay flounder trips. A couple of sea bass trips and a couple of flounder trips are slated toward the end of the week. Some of the anglers from the marina drilled bluefin tuna on the ocean close to shore, and that fishing is under way, including with Fish Tales. This was early for the tuna, and the fish are closer to shore than usual. Fish Tale usually begins the tuna fishing in July, and then usually sails 40 miles offshore for them. But anglers at the marina caught them at 28-Mile Wreck, located 28 miles from shore, and even at the A.C. Ridge, only 20 miles from shore. One trip with an angler from the marina clobbered 10 of the tuna landed at 28-Mile Wreck, releasing all but a limit. If anglers want tuna close to shore, jump aboard while the fish are here.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Joe Cayrone and buddy Greg creamed 12 striped bass and probably 14 blues on fly rods on the back bay on a trip Friday, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. For 2 hours the fish were seen tailing like redfish, busted on bait, blitzed – some of the best couple of hours of fishing Joe’s seen. The anglers were able to sight cast to the fish, seeing an entire fish through the waters. The fish were clobbered on both sub-surface Clouser Minnows in chartreuses and white and on top-water popper flies, a modified Crease fly that Joe ties with a larger cup that throws more waters. On Saturday Vickie, Dan and Jake Heller were aboard for a brief trip on the bay, so 5-year-old Jake could catch his first-ever fish. Mission accomplished. Three flounder including a 21-incher were reeled in. Dick Linus jumped aboard that afternoon on the bay, pulling in several flounder including a keeper. Flounder fishing was good on the bay, and Joe’s trips for the flatties fish with a rig with a bucktail tipped with a Gulp and a bare trailer hook tipped with a minnow. Joe heard about bluefin tuna hooked at the Cigar on the inshore ocean and was eager to sail for them. The fish supposedly bit early, and supposedly some anglers landed a bunch, and others saw the fish and landed none, and others saw none. But until Joe checks out the fishing himself, none of that is confirmed. He also saw good-looking waters that likely held tuna offshore at the southern canyons. Jersey Cape fishes for tuna, and the early season can offer some of the best catches. Joe also heard about a few mako sharks caught. Keep up with Joe’s fishing and photos on <a href=" http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

<b>Wildwood</b>

The back bay gave up summer flounder, lots of shorts, but the bigger flatties mostly came from the deep areas of the waters, said Cathy from <b>Sterling Harbor Bait & Tackle</b> in an e-mail. Ryan Matejik, 16, checked in a 3-pound 20-inch flounder he hooked on a bucktail with a Gulp while wading along the sod banks of the bay. Justin Fesler kayaked two keeper flounder on his Hobie Mirage Pro Angler in the bay behind Wildwood Crest on jigs with Gulps. Bill Bittman kayaked the flatties in the deep waters of the bay on his Hobie Mirage Outback. Striped bass patrolled the back bay, Hoovering clams or jumping on top-water lures and popper plugs. When Fesler launched his kayak, he saw stripers busting the surface that were reluctant to hit the top-waters he threw. But he said smaller plugs or poppers would probably work. Bittman landed schoolie stripers on top-waters on high tides on the bay. In Delaware Bay drum fishing slowed, but a few were hoisted in from Tussy’s Slough and the Pin Top. Surf anglers dragged in a few stripers from North Wildwood and Wildwood Crest, and clams worked best. Good flounder catches were rounded up at the Old Grounds and Reef 11, and some started to appear at Cape May Reef. Plenty of mako sharks, thresher sharks and blue sharks were fought on the ocean. Bluefin tuna were reported trolled, jigged and chunked at the Cigar, 19-Fathom Lump and Massey’s Canyon. Mike Sorgentoni on the C-Jam trolled two bluefins at the Cigar. Crabby Jack gave crabbing five claws, the highest rating, saying the blueclaws were big and plentiful, and catches were the best in two years. Sterling Harbor’s 17th annual Duke of Fluke Tournament is set for July 10, and stop by the shop or call the store for details: 609-729-1425.

<b>Cape May</b>

The <b>Down Deep</b> is finished drum fishing for the season, and some of the fish remained in Delaware Bay, where trips target them, but the angling wasn’t hot and heavy, Capt. Bob said. Trolling for bluefin tuna reportedly picked up on the inshore ocean, and trolling trips for them and bluefish that swam the same grounds are ready to sail. The Down Deep will now also fish for summer flounder, sea bass and sharks, after trips had focused on drum. Little news was heard about flounder and sea bass, because most of the fleet had also fished for drum. But good catches of sharks seemed to be tackled in this weekend’s South Jersey Marina shark tournament.

Drum fishing was slow on Delaware Bay, produced only big rays, on Saturday with Wally McKay’s charter, said Capt. George from the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, so no more drum trips will sail this year on the vessel. He only heard about three drum caught among the fleet on Saturday evening. But he heard about good bluefin tuna fishing on the inshore ocean on Saturday, and trips for them are ready to roll on the boat. Shark anglers began to see bluefins all over the waters 30 miles from shore during the weekend, and boaters who began to troll for the tuna hooked 20- to 40-pounders immediately. Ask about a special on bluefin charters that the Heavy Hitter is offering. A shark charter on the boat is slated to compete in Jim’s Bait & Tackle’s shark tournament this weekend. George heard about lots of mako sharks entered in this weekend’s South Jersey Marina shark tournament, but most were no larger than 175 pounds, a good-sized shark, but not big enough to enter in the tournament. Charters now are also fishing for sea bass and summer flounder. George knew about private boaters who scored flounder, all-right catches, this weekend at the Old Grounds, located in the ocean off Delaware. Call if interested in a trip for any of these species.

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