<b>Staten Island</b>

<b>Outcast Charters</b> is supposed to head back out for striped bass tonight and Friday night and during the daytime Sunday and Monday, Capt. Joe said. Charters are fishing for them on Raritan Bay, and a trip Friday night limited out on stripers early, in the first 1 ½ hours, on bunker chunks, catching and releasing more afterward, but slower, on a slow pick. Bluefish to 8 pounds were also pumped in. The next charter ran two days later on Sunday, getting a shot at stripers, less than a limit, early in the morning, and the fishing became dead afterward. That was the first trip that didn’t limit out on stripers this season.

<b>Keyport</b>

Seven keeper striped bass were batted down on Raritan Bay on clams today with <b>Papa’s Angels Charters</b>, Capt. Joe said. The trip, with anglers Joe and Chris Spallina, Nate and Klaus, went right back to the spot where seven were banged out on a trip Saturday. Charters are fishing for stripers, and space is available on an open-boat trip for stripers 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday. Two spaces are available on a striper trip 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, the After Work Special that Papa’s Angels offers.  Open trips are sailing daily 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., with a minimum of four anglers, when no charter is booked.

With <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b> trips landed striped bass to 10 and 15 pounds, Capt. Fred said, on Raritan Bay on clams, lures that were cast and on the troll. But the boat this week will be moved to Point Pleasant Beach, its usual home for the rest of the year, to sail for bigger stripers that migrated along the ocean. That fishing, mostly on livelined bunker, will last until mid June. Charters now will fill the schedule, and open-boat trips will no longer run. Open trips had fished for stripers on the bay, and Andrea’s Toy often fishes for them from Keyport at first during the season, moving to Point later to take advantage of the migration of big bass on the ocean.

Several fluke 3 ½ to 4 pounds were weighed in since fluke season opened Saturday, a fax from <b>Crabby’s Bait & Tackle</b> said Tuesday. The fish could be picked on Raritan Bay at the Keyport Flats and at the sail boats. Robert Madget bagged five fluke to 4 ¼ pounds on the Navesink River on killies. “So fluke is off to a great start!” the fax said. Killies, squid, spearing and all the fluke baits are stocked. The bay’s striped bass fishing was yet to let up. Stripers larger than 20 pounds were weighed in for weeks. The stripers loved fresh bunker. Joe Sparandera landed a bunch of stripers to 22 pounds on bunker chunks at Old Orchard Light. Stretch 25 lures worked well for trolling stripers. Bobby and Tony from Marlboro trolled keepers to 22 pounds off Staten Island. Frank Fishler and Dennis Isenburg from Keyport trolled the bass to 25 pounds and lots of blues at Reach Channel on bunker spoons. Will Maldonado from Cliffwood angled stripers to 34 inches and his share of blues from Union Beach on fresh bunker and fresh clams on outgoing tide. Dustin Scott from Ocean copped a keeper bass from the Keyport Pier on a bunker chunk. “The bay seems to be loaded with whatever fish you’re targeting,” the fax said. “So go fishing!” The Aberdeen Family Fishing Contest is slated for Saturday.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

“Butt kickin’ striper fishing!” Capt. Ron from the party boat <b>Fishermen</b> wrote in the report Wednesday on the vessel’s Web site. “As I’ve said in the past,” he said, “bass love the snot, and today was no exception.” Seas rolled, but the anglers caught striped bass all day. Most of the fish were 28 to 31 inches, and Rich Pozivanski, Branchburg, won the pool with a 14-pounder. “Got to give a huge high five (to him),” Ron said. Rich fished from the pulpit all day, “even puked, but never quit!” Ron said. Rich looked like he went 10 rounds with Mike Tyson when the trip got back to the dock. “Great job, Rich,” Ron said. “Felt good to have a decent catch after the action of the past three days.”  The Fishermen is fishing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. <b>***Update, Friday, 5/13:***</b> From an edited e-mail from Ron about Thursday’s trip: “Went right to the bait first thing in the a.m., and after yesterday’s good fishing, and a couple hours of tide, thought for sure we'd be in. Once again, that scenario changed! Caught a few keepers and some shorts on the first drop. Made a couple drops on good readings, but the bite never turned on. Hung in there till the change, and that didn't work out either. Took a ride, looking for some jig fish, got lucky, and found them. Just about all stripers, with a handful of blues. Had one drift where the readings under the boat were 20 feet thick! Fish moved very fast, and were hard to stay on, but we did manage to put half a catch together, considering how the start of the day went. Back at it again (Friday) ….”

Boaters cracked striped bass, good catches, along Sandy Hook and in the back of Raritan Bay, said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Blues were also wrenched aboard in the back of the bay. Anglers along the bay shore caught stripers and sometimes blues. Ocean surf casters dragged them in, too. Ocean boaters claimed stripers on jigs or livelined bunker. Boaters who bottom fished on the ocean landed ling, plenty, that began to bite and sometimes cod. Fluke gave up good catches on some days. The fish scurried along the beach in the bay at Leonardo. Good catches of fluke were iced on the Navesink River. Jimmy saw boaters take fluke at Shrewsbury Wednesday. The entire supply of baits is stocked.

Fluke fishing was mostly the same each day, and anglers aboard each landed a few, mostly shorts, sometimes a keeper, said Capt. Tom from the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>. Wednesday afternoon’s trip’s fishing was slower than usual, and all trips sailed in the past days, with light crowds. The fishing in general was a little slow, and waters were cold, ranging 54 to 57 degrees on different days, maybe a reason. More sundials than usual bit, a sign of cold waters. But the fluke were spread out, including on Raritan Bay and down the ocean beaches, and the vessel fished at both places. Trips fished at spots including the Coast Guard Station, Bug Light, the Navy Pier and Flynn’s Knoll. So long as conditions created a good drift, the fish seemed to chomp. The flatfish were reeled aboard from down the ocean beaches Tuesday but refused to bite there Wednesday. Somewhat of a ground swell, apparently from offshore weather, might’ve been a reason. The season was early, and waters were cold, but some fluke were around. 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>

On Raritan Bay <b>Fisher Price Charters</b> bagged striped bass 15 to 25 pounds on livelined and chunked bunker, Capt. Derek said. Tips will keep fishing the bay as long as the good catches keep up. More and more bluefish were seen every day. Charters are running, and Derek was unsure about the dates for the next open-boat trips, and charters filled lots of the schedule. But anglers can call Derek about the open schedule.

The docks started to become busier, said Wayne from <b>Twin Lights Marina</b>. Many of the anglers scored well on striped bass. One of the charter boats from the marina ran two trips per day, limiting out on stripers every time, on clams. Private angler Gene Graham, the striper expert from the docks, trolled good catches of stripers on plugs. Fluke fishing seemed to be just beginning in cold waters. Some of the fish were seen, like Steve Manobianco’s 18-inch fluke he drifted off the tip of Sandy Hook alongside Sandy Hook Channel. Wayne heard about blues popping up off Staten Island on Raritan Bay today. Live bunker arrived at the marina, and bushels of fresh clams are stocked. So are killies and frozen baits, pretty much everything.

<b>Neptune</b>

<b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> last fished on the weekend, Capt. Ralph said. The trips fished for stripers on the ocean, covered in the last report. But striper fishing was phenomenal on the ocean from Shark River Inlet in the last days, he said. Coming up, two individual-reservation cod trips will sail this month: one to the mid-range wrecks, leaving at 4 a.m. this Sunday, and another to the offshore wrecks, leaving at 3 a.m. Sunday, May 29. Individual-rez striper trips are on the books for the next two Wednesdays, May 18 and 25, clamming, jigging or trolling, whatever it takes. Another one of the trips for sea bass is slated to fish the mid-range wrecks, “for the big ones,” Ralph said, on Sunday, June 5. Individual-reservation fluke and sea bass trips will begin to fish every Wednesday starting June 15, and kids under 12 will be free, limited to two of the youngsters per adult host.

<b>Belmar</b>

A trip found striped bass right away Monday off Shark River Inlet on the ocean, and the anglers caught the fish to 35 pounds, the biggest striper so far this season on the boat, on livelined bunker, said Capt. Tom from the <b>Nan Sea J</b>. So the fishing was good, and no bluefish were seen, but blues reportedly turned up in the waters Wednesday, maybe beginning Tuesday.

With <b>Fish Stix Sportfishing</b> a striped bass trip Monday first caught bunker for bait in the Shark River Inlet area, then pushed north on the ocean, Capt. Kris said. About 15 sizeable stripers to 33 pounds were crunched, and probably 30 were hooked, all on livelined bunker, and lots of bait swam around. After the anglers limited out, on the way home, they pencil-popped and released stripers to 30 pounds off Deal, and the fish were pretty much exploding on top. Fishing for big stripers with live bunker and popper lures is a specialty for Fish Stix. A short, 2-hour, last minute trip sailed for stripers at 6 p.m. Wednesday on the ocean, putting the brakes on about 15 stripers to 28 pounds on swimming lures and poppers, and about 25 blues, tons of them around. The blues weighed up to 10 pounds, but many were fairly small. The bass fed on rainfish, and bunker were gone. More charters are slated for Friday and Saturday, and the Saturday trip will compete in a tournament. Open-boat trips are also sailing, and info is included on the Fish Stix Web site.

Lots of striped bass, good fishing for them, got plowed on the party boat <b>Big Mohawk</b> on the ocean, Capt. Chris said. The fish weighed up to 40 pounds on the trip Wednesday, and the anglers livelined bunker for the catches most of the time on trips, lots of fun, Chris said. The weather was a little suspect that day, but the trip got out. A bunch of blues showed up during the outing. The Big Mohawk is fishing for striped bass 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Anglers scored solid striped bass fishing on the party boat <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b>, and bluefish, all big ones, invaded for the first time this season on Wednesday’s trip, Capt. Alan said. Many patrons that day landed 10, 12 or 15 blues. Eleven striped bass, not a lot, were reeled aboard that day. Many blues were again fought on today’s trip so far, when Alan gave this report at 12 noon on the phone, and three stripers had been bagged on the outing by that time. Big stripers were seen lately, and a 40-pounder and two over 30 pounds were hefted a ship Tuesday’s trip.  All the fish on the trips were taken on jigs and Krocodile spoons. The Miss Belmar Princess is sailing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Bluefish trips will sail 7:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, and will begin to run daily during those hours next week on Friday. Alan’s other vessel, the party boat <b>Tropical Adventure</b>, will begin to fish for fluke, starting with two trips apiece Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 a.m. to 12 noon and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. Those trips will begin to fish daily next week on Friday.  

Big bluefish attacked all day today on the party boat <b>Golden Eagle</b> on the ocean, the report on the vessel’s Web site said. “Another really good day of fishing!” it said. Mostly Ava 47 jigs “put the fish all over the rail,” it said, but Krocodiles “were running a close second.” A handful of sizeable striped bass managed to get lifted aboard, and stripers could be seen in the frenzy, but blues usually beat them to the hook. Striped bass fishing was awesome on the vessel Tuesday on the ocean, the fish “flying over the rail at a frantic pace,” the report said, on the first couple of drifts. The boat was almost limited out by 10 a.m., and a few blues were mixed in. The fishing became pickier in the afternoon, but a fish or two were landed on each drift. Apparently the boat did limit out, because the report said the bass in the afternoon were released. Jigs, Krocodiles and livelined bunker caught the trip’s fish.  The Golden Eagles is fishing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Fridays through Sundays, “until we start our night blues schedule,” a report said last week.

Dynamite catches of striped bass got swiped from boats on the ocean and from the surf, said Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. Big ones to 40 pounds were hammered at both places. Boaters snagged bunker to liveline for bait, or jigged, or worked rubber shads. Surf casters snagged bunker or threw pencil-popper lures. But big blues moved in heavy on the boaters Wednesday and today, slowing striper fishing. Seas were kind of stiff today. Shark River’s fluke fishing was very good since fluke season opened Saturday. Anglers had to wade through shorts for keepers, but lots of keepers were around. The flukers fished killies, Gulps or whatever their favorites were. The shop’s rental boats are in the waters for the fluking, and all the baits and tackle are stocked.

<b>Brielle</b>

Anglers aboard limited out on striped bass to 40 pounds, releasing more afterward, more than 40 fish total, Tuesday on the ocean on livelined bunker on the <b>Big Kid</b>, Capt. Ken said. Unlimited action, he said, and another trip that afternoon headed back out and limited again. On Monday anglers from the Middlesex County prosecutor’s office trolled 13 stripers on the ocean on No. 4 Tony Maja bunker spoons. No bluefish showed up on the trips. Charters are fishing daily, including for stripers from 5 to 9 p.m. Trips are also bottom fishing for ling and cod, and will begin fluke fishing when fluking heats up, and sea bass fishing when season bass season opens in the coming weeks. Tournaments, including big-game tournaments, are available for charter, and now is the time to book them. Heads up: The Sunday of Mako Mania, June 26, is open. The Saturday is booked.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Striped bass fishing started slowly at first on the ocean off Spring Lake Monday with <b>High Hook Sport Fishing</b>, Capt. Brenda said. But the fishing took off after 2 hours, and all the anglers limited out on big bass. Forty- to 45-pounders got whammed, on bunker snagged and livelined for bait, and on trolled Tony Maja bunker spoons. The trip went back and forth fishing with the two, but bunker were key. The charter was pleased, Brenda said, and was booked for two more trips. More trips with High Hook will sail Friday and Saturday. Striper charters and open-boat spaces are now booking fast, so if anglers want a chance at the fishing, call as soon as possible. Fluke fishing was yet to heat up, so trips weren’t ready to fish for them, but fluke dates are being reserved. Sea bass trips will begin when sea bass season opens in the next weeks.

Carl LaManna, owner of <b>Canyon River Club Marina</b>, motored to the ocean Tuesday with son Mike LaManna and friends Lou DeRosa and Doug Rohmeyer aboard, and they dropped the lines in the waters by 5 a.m., Carl said. They limited out on striped bass to 35 pounds by 6:15 a.m. on livelined bunker. Stripers slammed the bunker as fast as the anglers could snag and liveline them. “It was text book perfect fishing,” Carl said, a great bite. Carl ran another trip today, steaming north, arriving at the fishing grounds at 5 a.m. But no bunker could be found, so two stripers 28 and 33 inches and five bluefish were jigged, and the trip quickly returned to the dock at 7:30 a.m. One of the charter boats from the docks knocked down good fishing for stripers on trips three or four times a week. A few slips for 22- to 60-foot boats are open at the marina, located conveniently on Manasquan River, with no bridges before the inlet. The marina features all the amenities, like a locker with electric for a freezer for each boat, and discounted diesel delivered to the slip. Carl’s new restaurant, 709 Point Beach, is set to open before Memorial Day in Point Pleasant Beach. The entire staff is hired, and the menu is finished. Like the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/709-Point-Beach/163256227044063" target="_blank">709 Point Beach Facebook page</a>, and check it out.

Big bluefish, lots, and some big striped bass mixed in were on the bite so far on today’s trip, Capt. Bob from the party boat <b>Gambler</b> said at 11 a.m. on the outing, when he gave this report on the phone. Good fishing, he said, and not far from port: between Bay Head and Spring Lake on the ocean. The biggest fish on the trip so far was Luke Morrison from Elveron, Pa.’s, 32-pound striper, smacked on a 6-ounce, hammered gold Ava 67 jig. The bass were sizeable, and none was a throwback yet. Bill Ruha, Whippany, had already bagged two 15-pound stripers on the trip on a 6-ounce Krocodile spoon. Krocs worked especially well, even though the big fish swiped an Ava. The blues were the most seen on the boat’s trips so far this season, though no trip ran Wednesday, because an overturned boat kept vessels from getting out. Previously a few blues and mostly stripers were hooked on trips that started targeting stripers Friday. The Gambler is fishing for striped bass 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily, and a wreck-fishing trip will head out 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday for ling and cod. Two trips daily will begin to fish for fluke May 28, the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Nighttime bluefish trips will start to sail Fridays and Saturdays that weekend, and nighttime wreck-fishing trips will begin to run Sundays and Mondays the same weekend for ling and cod.

<b>Toms River</b>

Surf casting tied into striped bass, pretty good catches, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. The waters were 50 or 51 degrees early in the week, and bluefish were sometimes picked up from the shore. Boaters on the ocean clubbed plenty of striped bass on bunker snagged for bait from the waters, and on trolled Tony Maja bunker spoons. A 26-pounder was weighed in that was trolled. The boaters early in the week ran into a few blues, trolling them on Stretch plugs or umbrella rigs, sometimes close to the beaches, sometimes farther offshore. That might’ve changed now, as word rolled in about more blues seen in the waters in the past day. Blues were the main catch on Barnegat Bay, and the fish went crazy on bunker and spearing that swam everywhere. One customer trolled 2- to 3-pound blues at the Route 37 Bridge on the bay.  Most stripers in the back waters came from toward Barnegat Inlet, like at Oyster Creek Channel. A few stripers were found on the bay off Oyster Creek, and some were clammed on the upper Toms River. Blues were fought on the river, and Dennis tangled with 2- to 3-pounders on a small Bomber lure. Chris Smith whacked an 11.66-pound blue on the river on a popper lure. Not a lot of anglers seemed to fish for fluke, and waters were cold for the flatties, but a few were lifted from Barnegat Bay and Manasquan River. Crabbing was getting better and better, and nobody was knocking the pants off crabs, but if crabbers put in the time, they nabbed some. Many customers bought frozen bunker for crab bait. Fresh clams, fresh bunker, killies, eels and sandworms are stocked. Bloodworms are no longer carried for the moment.  

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

Many striped bass swarmed the ocean and surf, said Scott from <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>. Surf fishers squashed pretty strong catches of the fish to 36 pounds at the Casino Pier in Seaside Heights. They tamed lots of them farther north toward Manasquan, too, and hefted in some big ones at Island Beach State Park on bunker chunks. Cocktail blues sometimes stormed the surf, and a bunch of blowfish swam the surf and Barnegat Bay, though few anglers tried for them. Scott imagined bits of clam could be fished for them. Cocktail blues were spread through most of the bay, and were caught right from the shop’s docks. No big blues showed up so far. Not much was heard on fluke since fluke season opened Saturday. One angler reported wrestling in a 20-some-inch fluke and shorts from along the sod banks of the bay. Fresh clams, fresh bunker, killies, eels and the complete line of baits is stocked. Catch Wacky Wednesdays, featuring clams for $2.75 per dozen. The Dock’s rental boats and jet skis will become available on Memorial Day weekend.

<b>Forked River</b>

Barnegat Bay boaters burned lots of blues to 4 pounds, mostly in the mornings, said Grizz from <b>Grizz’s Forked River Bait & Tackle</b>. The boaters could hardly go wrong in the mornings. “All you want,” he said about the blues. The fish swam from the BI marker to Berkley Island Park. Anglers at the park’s pier wrestled them. The blues punched nearly anything, including cast popper lures, metal or Fin-S Fish and trolled Ponytails. A few striped bass were weighed in, and a 31-1/2-pounder was the biggest of the season so far, and was trolled on the ocean off the Coast Guard Station on a bunker spoon. The year’s first news about bunker schooling the ocean was heard this morning, and a few stripers were landed among them on the menhaden that were snagged then livelined for bait. The bunker schools broke up by 7:30 a.m., and then the boaters trolled the bass. A few fluke were bagged so far this season, plucked from Barnegat Bay at Oyster Creek and Double Creek channels. One customer this morning reported boxing three keeper fluke. “So there are some around,” Grizz said. Crabbing was sometimes okay in this early season for the blueclaws. Two weakfish caught were heard about a while ago, and none was reported since. Fresh clams, killies, eels and all the baits are stocked.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Effort for some anglers shifted to summer flounder fishing, once flounder season opened Saturday, but waters were cold, and six flounder, not keepers, just six flounder, would be a big catch, said Scott from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>. The bay was in the upper 50s or around 58 degrees. The one flounder, a 22-incher, checked in to the shop Wednesday was a one-bite, one catch, situation for the angler. The fish was boated at the clam stakes on the Mystic Island side of the Fish Factory, and shallow waters like that are typically the place to look for the flatties in the early season, for the warm waters. An occasional striper was banked from shore at Graveling Point, and that fishing certainly slowed from earlier this spring, but anglers still had a chance to catch. The fish were up to 28 to 32 inches, none big, the usual springtime size. Nothing was heard about drum beached there that previously bit. Blues were around in the bay, and the numbers were lower than usual in spring, likely because of cold waters. Fishing for them should improve with warmer waters.  Anglers could look forward to the opening of sea bass season in a few weeks. There was confusion about when the season would begin. The online Regulations Summary Card said June 4, for example. But unconfirmed sources said the date was changed to May 28. A few blueclaw crabs skittered about, but crabbing wasn’t really worth mentioning yet. The minnow supply is in good shape at the shop. Fresh, shucked clams, bloodworms and live grass shrimp are on hand. Nothing was heard about white perch, fish that love the shrimp, from rivers like the Mullica that harbor them. That seemed because of lack of effort once anglers focused on flounder, but customers sometimes bought the shrimp.

<b>Absecon</b>

In the shop’s Grand Slam Tournament during the weekend, the winning fish were a 7-1/2-pound summer flounder, a 16-pound striped bass, a 14-pound drum and a 3-1/2-pound blue, said Curt from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. The flounder came from the bay, and fishing for the flatties there put up not lots, but a few quality ones. If anglers fished the tides, making sure not to drift too fast on the boat, they could catch. Striper fishing was sort of hit or miss in the bay, and the fish began to be reeled in again, after slower fishing for them a moment. Stripers were dropping down from the rivers after spawning, heading for the ocean. Boaters in the bay anchored and clammed or drifted and fished with eels for them. Reports about good catches sometimes were heard. Nothing was reported about stripers boated on the ocean. But bunker schooled the ocean, and surely some stripers followed the baitfish, could be caught if anglers searched early in the mornings. Surf fishing for stripers was on and off, not horrible, not hot. Back on the bay, drum were clammed in the shallows. A few blues 1 to 3 pounds roamed the bay. White perch were around on the rivers, and talk came in about great catches of them at Lower Bank on the Mullica River. “That was today,” Curt, a perch angler, emphasized. Live spots arrived at the shop for the first time this season. Fresh clams, fresh bunker when available, minnows and the full supply of baits is on hand.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

Fishing from the T-jetty and the surf racked up striped bass, quite a few, said Jeremy from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. A 34-incher and a 32-incher were weighed in at the shop today.  Fresh clams or fresh bunker will draw the bass to bite. Kingfish and blowfish were swung in from the T-jetty. Summer flounder were cranked up from off the Flagship on minnows, bloodworms, squid and so on. Blues were also beaten there.  All the baits mentioned and more, the entire supply, is stocked.

<b>Ocean City</b>

In the surf anglers toggled in striped bass and drum early in the week, but winds that kicked up seas made holding bottom difficult the past couple of days, said John from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. When the suds were fishable, clams were the first, second and third choices for bait, John joked. Bunker were the next choice. When the fishing became difficult from the weather, the anglers fished the bay side of Corson’s Inlet instead, picking up stripers still. Bluefish 20 to 22 inches showed up at Corson’s Wednesday.  Good numbers of summer flounder, not lots of keepers, blanketed the back bay. The keepers swam the shallows, 4 to 7 feet, max. Fresh, shucked clams are stocked, and clams in the shell are supposed to arrive Friday morning. Fresh bunker, minnows, eels and all the frozen baits are carried.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

<b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>, a brand new store, is open for business, Mike Cunningham, the owner said. The shop is located at the former site of Gibson’s Tackle that closed down after 30 years. Customers got into good fishing for striped bass and a few drum in the surf on clams. Jim Sadusky, West Chester, checked in from the surf a 45-1/2-inch striper, probably topping 40 pounds, “the fish of the weekend,” Mike said. Stripers bit in the back bay on clams, and some began to be top-water plugged. Summer flounder swam the bay, and Ken Clayton won the shop’s flounder tournament Saturday, opening day of flounder season, with a 5-pound 8-ouncer. Kaylee Davis, 7, bagged a 3-pound 6-ounce flounder during the event. The store is open 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays. A large selection of live and frozen baits is stocked. New tackle and supplies are constantly arriving.

<b><i>First offshore report of the year!</i></b> Yellowfin tuna were reported caught at Hudson Canyon, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b>, affiliated with <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. Mahi mahi were also boated there, and the warm waters that brought the fish were moving south, heading closer to Sea Isle. If Joe gets the weather to sail, he’ll go after the fish, and usually does, when a bite turns on early in the year. He’s explained in the past that a shot of yellowfins, usually smaller ones, but lots, often come through at the canyons in May and June, earlier than most boaters sail offshore. The fishing, on the troll, can be super, including because trips can practically have the fish to themselves. If anglers want to go, Joe runs the trips, and give him a call. Closer to shore, his back-bay trips got on the first striped bass of the year to smack top-water popper plugs, covered in the last report. Fishing with poppers draws violent, visual, exciting attacks on the water surface, and is a specialty for Jersey Cape, with both lures and flies. Trips also popper fish for blues that are swimming the bay. Joe’s trips fish with Skitter Pop lures and Crease flies, a modified version of the popper that Joe ties that throws more water. Trips include After Work Specials from the afternoons to evenings, and conditions, high tides, are ideal in the next days for the popper fishing. Trips are also clamming for stripers on the bay, depending on angler preference. Charters are also summer flounder fishing on the bay, now that flounder season opened Saturday. Trips now have a good chance at a back-bay slam: catching stripers, blues and flounder on the same outing. This is one of the best times for that. A friend on Wednesday picked up another fish on the bay: a 17-1/2- or 18-inch weakfish. Weakies were scarce in recent years, though they used to flood the bay, and the catch was good to see. Flounder fishing produced the fish on trips during the weekend, covered in the last report. The fishing was slower than expected, but that could’ve been because something tapered the bite a bit on those days. Or maybe cold waters this early in the season affected the fish. But Joe pre-fished for flounder before the opener, whaling the catches to 20-inchers, releasing them. In other news, some healthy-sized stripers were tugged from the surf. A 45-1/2-incher more than 40 pounds was checked in at the store.  Keep up on Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>. 

<b>Villas</b>

Black Assault Bomber plugs waffled striped bass from shore at the Cape May ferry jetty on Delaware Bay, like they did for some time now, said Irene from <b>Budd’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Customers kept buying loads of the lures, slamming the inventory, after only a few used to be sold in past years. Stripers and a few drum were baited from the surf from Cape May’s Poverty Beach on the ocean to the bay in the Villas. Irene wasn’t asked the baits to use, but clams and bunker likely drew striper bites, and bloodworms could’ve coaxed bass catches at some locations, like along the bay, and drum are usually belted on clams fished for stripers. Catches from the surf included Curtis O’Briant’s 13-pound striper, Matt Cuomo’s 27-pound drum, 12-year-old Destiny Williams’s 12-pound 8-ounce drum, and Jeffrey Stanton from the Villas’s 22-pound 4-ounce striper pulled from the town at Wilde Avenue on Delaware Bay. Drum were boated on the bay off Slaughter Beach in Delaware, including on the Ho-D-Doe, the shop’s boat from Budd’s Tackle Charter Services, sailing from Cape May, and see the report on the catch below. Not much was heard about summer flounder since flounder season opened Saturday. Fresh clams, fresh bunker, minnows, bloodworms and all the frozen baits are stocked. Shedder crabs are expected to be stocked soon, because the blueclaws will shed soon for the first time this season. The shop’s well-known steamer clams for eating are carried on weekends, until they’re carried daily later this season, but sometimes they’re carried on weekdays already, including right now. The store’s famous crabs for eating are for sale right now at the shop for the first time this year, and will be sold whenever enough are caught, until they’re at the shop daily starting around Memorial Day.

<b>Wildwood</b>

The crew will try to sail on the season’s first trips Saturday and Sunday on the party boat <b>Adventurer</b>, Capt. Gary said. The outings will probably fish for striped bass and drum on Delaware Bay, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. will be the hours. Call the boat this time of year to confirm trips. Drum on the bay will probably be the sole focus soon. The vessel starts summer flounder fishing at the inshore shoals when the ocean reaches 68 to 69 degrees.

<b>***Update, Friday, 5/13:***</b> <b>Canal Side Boat Rentals</b> is set to be opened this weekend for the first time this season, though weather forecasts look potentially rough, Mike said. But customers reserved boats, and he’ll be there. The bay was cool or in the mid 50s, so just a few summer flounder were mopped up from the waters. Minnows, mackerel and spearing clapped them. Friends on Thursday targeted striped bass on the bay, expecting to release throwbacks, the more common size, for fun, and that’s what they got: two short stripers on clams they played and let go. Nothing was heard about crabs, but eventually crabbing becomes big on the rental boats. The shop will now be open every day, if only because the crew is working to prepare for the season. But customers should call ahead to confirm at this time of year.  Canal Side rents canopy boats and kayaks for fishing, crabbing and sightseeing. Baits stocked include minnows and frozen squid strips, whole squid, spearing, mackerel fillets, mullet, clam strips and packaged clams. Live crabs for eating are sold for eating when enough blueclaws become available.

<b>Cape May</b>

On the <b>Ho-D-Doe</b>, the boat from <b>Budd’s Tackle Charters Services</b>, Sean Mullen’s party went 5 for 6 on drum Monday off Slaughter Beach on Delaware Bay, Mike from Budd’s Bait & Tackle, located in the Villas, said in an e-mail. The bite turned on in the afternoon, and more charters are scheduled for the rest of the week. Take plenty of bait, Mike said, because of sharks. <b>***Update, Thursday, 5/12:***</b> Joe Rando’s party kept four drum and released several others they caught on a trip Wednesday night.

Drum fishing will launch for the season on Delaware Bay this weekend on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. The boomers were boated during the week, and the fish weighed up to about 45 pounds, not big, but they were there. Striped bass could be angled from the bay, and a trip on the boat will sail for stripers Saturday morning. A friend ran a trip that grabbed five of the stripers.

Surf fishing dished up striped bass, pretty good angling for them, and a few drum, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. A 40-pound drum was dragged from the wash at Poverty Beach this morning. In the afternoon, anglers stopped by with three stripers, including a 46-inch 36-pounder, from Poverty. Clams and bunker dusted the stripers in the surf, and clams offered a chance at drum. Nick clammed a 30-inch striper in the surf the other night. Bloodworms could be fished for stripers along the jetties. Bomber plugs jabbed stripers in the surf toward the Cape May ferry jetty for weeks now. A good selection of Bombers is stocked, and a new brand of custom swimming plugs has arrived. On boats drum were hauled in from Delaware Bay off Slaughter Beach in Delaware. On the Jersey side, stripers were boated on the bay, and bunker seemed to clock them toward Bug Light, and clams seemed to sock them on the southern end of the bay, closer to the ocean. But if boaters want to connect, they might fish close to shore, for a shot at stripers and drum that surf casters also caught. A few keeper flounder were netted, mostly on minnows or Gulps, since flounder season opened Saturday. Minnows, mackerel fillets, the different types of squid, fresh clams, fresh bunker and bloodworms are stocked.

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