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New Jersey Freshwater Fishing Report 6-1-11


<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

<b>North Jersey</b>

An all-night trip for walleyes, the season’s first for <b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> from Montvale, clobbered four of the fish averaging 3 to 5 pounds at Greenwood Lake from Friday to Saturday, Capt. Dave Vollenweider said. Two of the fish swiped a Koppers Live Target Blueback Herring lure with propellers, and another punched an F-18 Rapala, and the third, taken when the sun rose, jumped on a Deep Rapala Tail Dancer trolled 30 feet down in 40-foot depths on a planer board. So the catch was good, and walleyes exploded on baitfish, herring, in the shallows close to shore in the dark. Quite a few walleyes also blew up and missed the top-water lures. Live to Fish hunts walleyes in the middle of the night, when the fish move to the shallows to feed on herring that school the skinny waters to eat plankton. Then the walleyes can be lambasted on top-water lures, lots of fun. Nighttime is also when multi-use lakes like Greenwood become quiet from jet skiers and pleasure boaters. The waters become like a whole new lake, and the dark is the time to fish. The trips are unique, fishing in complete darkness, except the boat’s anchor light and running lights required by law. The anglers wear head lamps, and a lantern is brought along, but those lights are only turned on after a fish is hooked, so the anglers can see what they’re doing. Anglers who want to take advantage of top-water plugging for walleyes in the shallows should be prepared to fish in the earliest hours of day. Sometimes boaters will be seen coming off the waters at 10 p.m. But Dave often doesn’t arrive until 10 p.m., and the fish often don’t turn on until hours like midnight or 2 a.m. Baitfish are the key, and Dave will search for them. The herring will begin to be heard splashing around, then walleyes will be heard pounding them, big slashes in the waters. A few smallmouth bass and rock bass were also hooked on the lures, and smallmouths are often active in the walleye waters. The walleye fishing is under way and should improve through late June into July. The lake was 65 degrees, and the walleyes are usually most active when waters are 75 to 80 degrees. The walleyes were spawned out and skinny, probably recuperating. One looked a little beaten up. They should be hungry after the spawn. Dave will also fish for muskies coming up, and the action is usually best just before the peak of summer heat. A buddy landed a 48-inch musky, about 28 pounds, at Echo Lake. So the fish were on the hunt. Muskies are called the fish of 10,000 casts, and catching one is never a guarantee on a trip. But anglers love them because muskies can be the biggest catch an angler ever lands. Dave will be featured in an article about muskies in June in The Fisherman magazine, and was featured in a piece about walleyes in last week’s issue. Live to Fish is mostly finished trout fishing for the season, as the waters warm, and stream levels begin to drop. Dave loves to fish for trout with lures, and higher waters is the time for that. As the waters drop, anglers will fish for trout more with bait and flies. Dave does fish with bait and flies, but finds lures deadly. A friend landed 12 trout on a trip, and the stream level had been good during the outing, because of rains. Live to Fish Guide Service guides trips for trout, muskies, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleyes, crappies, chain pickerel, panfish, yellow perch, white perch, carp and more. Lakes fished include Greenwood Lake, Lake Hopatcong, Monksville Reservoir, Echo Lake, Mountain Lake and Furnace Lake. Rivers fished include the Flatbrook, Pequest, Paulinskill and Ramapo.

Trout fishing was winding down for the season, and anglers were getting ready to hone in on largemouth bass, said Don from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Ledgewood. Largemouths are limited to catch and release through June 15 for spawning, and the fish should be coming off the spawn. The whole range of artificials should attract bites, including top-water lures, beefed-up top-waters at night like Jitterbugs and Hula Poppers, the old standard Senko worms, and Keitech soft plastics that work great. Customers fish for the largemouths everywhere from Lake Hopatcong to the local lakes like Butler Reservoir. Don helped host scouts on a trip to one of the Rockaway Township lakes, and a bunch of different panfish bit nightcrawlers. Panfish were plenty active.

Fish began to move a little deeper in the lake, and try fishing the drop-offs at the points like Chestnut Point and Elba Point, said Laurie from <b>Dow’s Boat Rentals</b>. Fish checked in included sizeable walleyes, including an 8-pound 11-ouncer that Kevin Dempsey trolled, and Frank Lopresti’s 7-pound 13-ouncer. Jack Dziduch whaled a 31-1/2-pound 49-inch musky at night. Mike Morgan, fishing in the early morning, hung a 9-pound 4-ounce hybrid striped bass on a live herring. Also look for chain pickerel off Nolan’s Point.

A trip to a private lake in Vernon put up 65 largemouth bass 1 to 2 pounds in 4 hours for Nick from <b>Meltzer’s Sporting Goods</b> in Garfield, he said. Largemouths must be released through June 15, but the fish seemed back on the bite after the spawn. Four-inch Keitech Swing Impacts and 4-inch Senkos scored the catches. A friend copped fair fishing, not great, for largemouths on Lake Hopatcong on white 4-inch Swing Impacts. Another buddy landed a mix of largemouths and smallmouths at Greenwood Lake off the docks on jigs. Smallmouth bass must also be released through the same date. Ramapo River fished well for trout, and trouting might’ve slowed somewhat on the Paulinskill River in the heat, but still produced. Not much was heard about trout fishing on the lakes and ponds, and the stocked trout there might’ve been fished out, and the waters were warm. The private lake in Vernon on Nick’s trip was 75 degrees, compared with 63 a week or two ago. Northern pike were punched on the Passaic River on large shiners, available at the shop.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

On a trip to the South Branch of the Raritan River, Burt from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook banked three brown trout 10 to 12 inches on nymphs Friday, he said. Two hit a Hare’s Ear, and one smacked a hellgrammite. Waters flowed a little more than 200 CFS and were somewhat off color. But bottom could be seen in knee-deep depths, and the stream was coming down after storms, and remained cool. Trout fishing was still somewhat happening, and many said lots of stocked trout remained because of previous rough weather that kept many from fishing. Amy from the shop stopped at Hacklebarney during the weekend, and swimmers filled many of the holes. It’s that time of year!

One customer scarfed up catfish from Lake Riviera on chicken livers, said Jeff from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. Chain pickerel and largemouth bass were plucked from Riviera on killies or shiners, and largemouths must be released through June 15. Sunnies were wormed at the lake. At the Winding River, picks and largemouths attacked shiners, and the chainsiders chased spinners or shiners at the Trilco stretch of the Toms River. That’s the stretch around the Parkway Bridge and is named for a building supply that closed down. Largemouths, pickerel and panfish were on the feed at the Ocean County Pond. A buddy was headed to Manasquan Reservoir, because he heard largemouths cooperated along the trees.

<b>South Jersey</b>

A few striped bass, but small, were tugged from the Delaware River, and some herring remained in the river, said Eric from <b>Harry’s Army and Navy</b> in Robbinsville. A bunch of catfish to 10 and 12 pounds were reeled from the river. The river’s smallmouth fishing will pick up when the weather warms, but a few of the fish, limited to catch and release from New Jersey through June 15, and a few walleyes were around in the waters. The three lakes at the Assunpink Wildlife Management Area churned out largemouth bass, now that the fish were coming off spawning. The bucketmouths also must be let go through June 15, but were played on Senkos or, in the mornings, buzz baits. Gropp’s Lake also produced good largemouthing. Good reports came in about crappie fishing on Prospertown Lake and the waters at the Colliers Mill Wildlife Management Area. Trout fishing was good to the north at waters like the South Branch of the Raritan River, the Musconetcong River, and Ken Lockwood Gorge.

Chain pickerel and largemouth bass were beaten at Lake Renee in Erial on minnows and shiners, said Ed from <b>Creek Keepers Bait & Tackle</b> in Blackwood. That was the main action heard about, but  picks and bass also chewed at Kresson Lake off Route 73, north of Berlin. Largemouths are restricted to catch and release through June 15. Sunfish were on tap at the spillways at Blackwood and Grenloch lakes o meal worms. Nothing was heard about trout. All the baits mentioned and more are stocked.

Small largemouth bass and lots of chain pickerel were pulled from Wilson Lake, said Jim from <b>Sportsman’s Outpost</b> in Williamstown. Largemouths must be released through June 15, but seemed to be finishing spawning. Larger largemouths were angled from Victory Lakes and Iona Lake. Customers bought lots of minnows, nightcrawlers and trout worms. They also picked up rubber frogs to work for the bass off the lily pads.

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