<b>Port Elizabeth</b>

Drum fishing was hit or miss -- some boaters caught a few, and others grabbed none  -- but summer flounder fishing seemed somewhat to improve, said Sharon from <b>The Girls Place Bait & Tackle</b>. Anglers fished for drum at spots including the Pintop and Tussy’s Slough. The flounder fishing was difficult on the bay through the weekend, because southerly winds blew against outgoing tide most of the daytimes, hampering the drift. But more keepers than before seemed to be found, and the fishing will probably improve with the warmer weather. Flounder fishing appeared to improve on the back bays along the coast, too. Striped bass could still be located in Delaware Bay, and Sharon joined a trip that produced a keeper and a throwback in shallow waters close to shore. The angler on the trip who hooked them fished with small chunks of bunker on a simple rig with an egg sinker and no FishFinder or other extra hardware. So the stripers were there, and always stick around into June. Sea bass season opened Saturday for another option to target on the ocean. Shark fishing always begins on the ocean now, lasting through June. Nothing was heard about sharks, but the catches will begin. Minnows, fresh clams, fresh bunker, bloodworms, sandworms, and all the frozen baits, a large supply, are stocked. The Girls Place is located on Route 47 just after Route 55 ends, and it’s the long, one-story, yellow building on the right. There’s a large parking lot with plenty of room for trailered boats.

<b>Newport</b>

Crabbing became available this weekend for the season at <b>Beaver Dam Boat Rentals</b>, and catches were good, Linda said. On Saturday, one crabber totaled 57 of the blueclaws, and most customers picked up four dozen. On Sunday, some customers also came in with several dozen each. Healthy-sized crabs 4 ½ to 5 ½ inches were seen. Though crabbing farther north in the state sometimes sounded slower, maybe because crabs there were shedding, no shed was happening at Beaver Dam. All was well, Linda said. Some customers fished, plowing tons of white perch on bloodworms or nightcrawlers. No bloods are stocked, but nights are. Crabbers on Beaver Dam’s rentals boats are towed up Oranokin Creek, running past the shop. The staff checks on the crabbers each hour, and if customers want to return in the meantime, they simply cell phone the shop to be picked up. Beaver Dam is open 6 a.m. Fridays through Sundays through June, and afterward will be open daily. Crabbers will receive a dozen live crabs free on Fridays when the crabs are available, and otherwise the shop will substitute with something else. Kayak and canoe rentals are available for paddling up the scenic Oranokin.

<b>Fortescue</b>

Three drum 93 pounds, 50 pounds and 40 pounds were heaved aboard Sunday on the <b>Buccaneer</b>, Capt. Ralph said. Not even a bite was copped on a drum trip the night before. But another drum trip was headed out today. Drum trips currently fill the schedule, but charters will begin to concentrate on summer flounder after drum fishing ends this season.

<b>Port Norris</b>

Anglers scored well on summer flounder during the weekend, said Harrison from <b>Port Norris Marina</b>. They found the fish toward Miah Maul, and a few drum were boated at places like Tussy’s Slough. Not much was heard about striped bass fishing, and anglers on the bay seemed mostly to finish sailing for them this season. Baits stocked include minnows, fresh clams, fresh bunker and frozen bunker and squid.

<b>Villas</b>

Brian and John McArdle sailed for summer flounder on the bay at Miah Maul Saturday, said Mike from <b>Budd’s Bait & Tackle</b>, located in the Villas, and the Ho-D-Doe, from <b>Budd’s Tackle Charter Service</b>, fishing from Cape May, in an e-mail. They each belted two keepers, fish that measured 18 ½ to 26 inches. Squid and spearing “were the baits of choice,” Mike said. The two anglers returned to the Maul Sunday, coming up with two keepers, releasing about 25 shorts, Mike said in the blog on the shop’s Web site. Reports about big sea bass and some sizeable flounder caught rolled in from Cape May Reef on the ocean. A 4.9-pound weakfish was weighed in that jumped on a swimming lure in the surf at Cape May’s Alexander Avenue. They do exist! Mike said. Weakfish and croakers were sometimes angled from the surf, and kingfish were reported beached at North Wildwood.  Fishing for stripers from the shore seemed to slow down in the heat. 

<b>Cape May</b>

Nine drum, including two big ones probably 80 pounds apiece, were boxed on the bay on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> by 7:30 p.m. Sunday, when Capt. George gave this report on the phone on the outing. Two small ones had also been released, and this was the best drumming of the season onboard so far, and more time was left to fish on the trip. Maybe the bite was turning on, and the fishing was slow in the previous days. The Parkers, with George Parker Sr. and Jr., George’s son Morgan, Liz, George’s brother Brian, and Ralph, were the charter. On a trip Saturday with Harry Moore’s group from the pipe insulators’ union, one drum was bagged, and one broke off. Tom Ebbecke from Newfield’s Accrest Nursery and crew sailed for sea bass on the boat Saturday, opening day of sea bass season, on the ocean. A load of good sea bass and some cod 7 and 8 pounds were swung aboard, a healthy catch. The first two wrecks fished were unproductive, but the third wreck, in 80 feet, shallower than the first two, gave up the bite. Charters will sail for drum as long as the fish keep biting, and trips are running for sea bass.

Trips scored decent on drum, not hot and heavy, but a pick, a few each night, on the bay with <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>, Capt. T.J. said. The fish were a variety of sizes 20 to 70 pounds. On T.J.’s other boat, sailing from Tuckerton, a bottom-fishing trip on the ocean shoveled up a good catch of cod and sea bass Saturday, opening day of sea bass season. Lots of out-of-season blackfish had to be released but served up good action.

Anglers aboard went 5 for 6 on drum on the bay last Tuesday with <b>Relentless Sport Fishing</b>, Capt. Dave Bart said. One of the fish weighed 65 pounds, and the rest weighed about 40 pounds apiece. A charter Saturday clocked one drum about 40 pounds, and a trip Sunday iced two of the boomers. Relentless will keep fishing for drum and will soon begin to steam for sea bass and summer flounder. Dave heard about nobody who sea bass fished since the season for the fish opened Saturday. But he heard about boaters from Fortescue, where Dave lives, who began to score better on flounder Sunday on Delaware Bay, returning with some keepers.

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