<b>Staten Island</b>

With <b>Angler Sportfishing Charters</b> three trips fished in the past week, after the weather previously, Capt. Chuck said. Trips could’ve returned to the waters before then, but Chuck had to deal with flooding at his home in New York. But the fishing was decent on the trips, he said. One of the trips, on Sunday, was one of Angler’s evening ones for striped bass, fishing 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Striper fishing began to pick up, and the trip, fishing on the ocean off the Highlands, on anchor with bunker chunks, had to fight through lots of blues, but tackled quite a few bass, landing at least 30, to 25 or 26 pounds. The boat didn’t limit out on stripers, but each angler bagged at least one keeper. The fishing for blues and stripers was good, and striper fishing should keep getting better, including soon. The fish around currently weren’t big, but larger ones should begin to be seen. Trips aboard had been jigging stripers on the drift before, and this was the season’s first trip on deck that chunked them on anchor. The other two trips fished for fluke during the daytime, landing lots, many of them throwbacks, but some of them keepers, probably to 6 pounds on both outings. The trips could go an hour without a hit, then get into the fluke, apparently because of water conditions after the storms. Waters seemed to be shaping up during the trips, though. Plenty of bait like peanut bunker and adult bunker schooled, and Chuck thought he even saw squid in deeper waters in the ocean, but wasn’t sure. 

The bay finally began to clean up, after the waters were filthy from the storms, said Pat from <b>E-Z Catch Saltwater Traps & Tackle Co.</b>. Good catches of fluke were made from the Arthur Kill to the bay, and porgies and snapper blues were becoming sizeable in waters like the Arthur Kill. Big blues to 10 and 12 pounds swam waters from locally to Staten Island’s south side, and will continue to school the next weeks. One angler creamed a 15-pound blue Saturday. Crabbing was phenomenal all around. For freshwater anglers, Sylvan Lake, a larger lake, cleaned up after the storms, but smaller lakes remained a bit dirty. At Sylvan largemouth bass were pancaked at dusk, dawn and at night, low-light hours. As the weather cools, the bass will be able to be caught during the daytime. The store is also a <b><i>premier manufacturer and supplier of saltwater traps</i></b> for wholesale and commercial, including custom building and servicing. See the online <a href="http://www.e-zcatch.com/catalog" target="_blank">catalog of traps</a>. E-Z Catch is also a train store.

<b>Keyport</b>

Took a moment for anyone to weigh in a fluke after the storms, but the fish were caught, coming from shallower waters toward Sandy Hook and along the edges of Reach Channel, said Sheryl from <b>Crabby’s Bait & Tackle</b>. A 5-1/2-pound fluke was checked in Wednesday that was boated in 25 feet near Sandy Hook on a Gulp and killie. Striped bass started to be racked up in the past week, and the season might’ve been early for that, but the storms seemed to trigger the action, and customers were happy about that. The bass were boated on fresh clams and bunker and on sandworms. Rough seas from the storms broke up clams, helping to get the bite going. Surf anglers also tugged in stripers from the bay at Pebble Beach, Cliffwood Beach and Union Beach. Water temps dipped to the 60s in some places, and that should mean top-water plugs will be able to be used on the bass. Reports came in about bigger blues 8 to 12 pounds nailed along beaches, like on bunker chunks. Anglers at the Keansburg Pier caught everything: fluke, stripers and blues. Crabs were plucked from the Keyport Pier and Keyport bulkhead. Catches this weekend should be awesome, with everything happening: two weeks left in fluke season, stripers beginning to bite, big blues around and crabs getting nipped.

<b>Papa’s Angels Charters</b> is fishing for fluke and bluefish, but Capt. Joe is also looking forward to fall striped bass fishing, he said. Waters will need to dip at least to 60 to 65 degrees for the fall run of migrating stripers to begin. Bookings are being accepted for fall striper fishing. Currently open-boat trips are sailing for fluke 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. or 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. daily when no charter is booked. Call to reserve.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Fishing for fluke was sporadic in the past days on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, Capt. Tom said. Catches looked like they were picking up on Monday morning’s trip, and a few more keepers than before were cracked, and shorts gave up action. Then fluking was tough on the afternoon’s trip. The angling was also tough through Tuesday’s trips, and one angler aboard that day bagged three fluke, but only a few other keepers got winged. Wednesday morning’s trip saw improvement, probably the best fluking among the days, but not great, of course. Two anglers bagged three fluke, and one bagged two, and some landed one keeper, and others none. A 6-1/2-pound fluke was socked on the outing. Then the fishing was tough on Wednesday afternoon’s trip, turning up only a few keepers. The trips fished shallow waters close to shore on both the bay and ocean, not in the channels. Conditions were a little frustrating during the days. Fluking now won’t be like before the storms, but some of the fish were baked when the boat got over a pocket of them. The fishing wasn’t good, but every trip managed a few fluke. Catches were better on some trips than others. 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.

Porgy fishing served up good catches between the channels, said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Sea bass were in, but sea bass season closed Monday. A limit of one blackfish per angler could be bagged any time an angler wanted. Healthy catches of striped bass were clammed, and smaller bluefish were around. Nothing was heard about weakfish, but few anglers bought worms to fish for them in the one-weakfish bag limit. Lots of crabs were nabbed.

<b>Highlands</b>

A trip with <b>Raritan Bay Charters</b> Tuesday started fishing for fluke at the channels, boxing a couple of keepers, releasing a few shorts, Capt. Dave said. But the angling was never hot, so the trip switched to bottom fishing in shallow waters over mussel beds. Porgies and banded rudderfish were plundered, and out-of-season sea bass were let go, and a couple of fluke were plucked. Waters on the trip were somewhat clearer than before but dirty. Open-boat trips are fishing when no charter is booked.

Anglers bottom fished Wednesday with <b>Fisher Price Charters</b>, Capt. Derek said. Porgy catches were hit and miss on the outing, and fewer were hooked than the fish finder read. The trip moved down the ocean beaches to the reef, and blackfishing was very good. The anglers easily limited out on one blackfish apiece, playing catch and release with 75 to 80, half of them keepers. Striped bass fishing broke open this week, and open-boat trips aboard will fish for the stripers Saturday and Sunday. Call to climb aboard or to be kept informed about future open dates, and the bass were trolled, wormed, peanut-bunkered and clammed. Derek didn’t hear much about fluke fishing, but a couple of the party boats seemed to begin to land fluke somewhat better than before. The summer flounder were around, and waters probably needed to clear for them to bite better, and maybe the last week of fluke season next week will produce the fish better. If so, Fisher Price will run for fluke once again. Derek heard nothing about bluefin tuna like he did before the storms. But fishing for yellowfin tuna and longfin tuna picked up farther offshore at the canyons, as fish-holding waters moved in. So anglers seemed to sail for them instead of bluefins.

Striped bass were clammed at Flynn’s Knoll, said Wayne from <b>Twin Lights Marina</b>. Gene Graham, the marina’s striper expert, and outdoor writer Al Ristori reportedly landed 85 in three days on trips together. Trips on the charter boat Hyper Striper, running from the marina, also clammed the bass. The marina began to stock fresh clams and live eels for striper fishing for the season. Fluke were picked, and waters began to clean up, after they were filthy after the storms. A kid fishing from the docks was hooking fluke. Snapper blues schooled. Mullet swam the river, and Wayne saw no peanut bunker, and the baitfish seemed scarce this year. Crabs could be trapped. Second-hand reports said yellowfin tuna were slammed offshore between Hudson and Lindenkohl canyons. Nothing was heard about bluefin tuna.

<b>Neptune</b>

Just a couple of keeper fluke and some shorts, not  that good of a catch, were hung on the weekly, individual-reservation trip for  fluke  Wednesday with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said. Not a lot of anglers were aboard, and though the fishing was slower, the trip “went the wrong way,” Ralph said. Trips on other boats scored lots of action on fluke, but few keepers. Ralph hopes fluking will be better this weekend, and both his boats will run fluke trips then. Plenty of openings remain for this coming week’s individual-reservation trip for fluke Wednesday, the last one of the season, before fluke season closes September 26. One space is open for an individual-reservation trip for cod offshore Monday, September 26. Fishing for tuna was good at the offshore canyons, and special rates are available for one- and two-day canyon trips. Just call Ralph if interested.

<b>Belmar</b>

A canyon tuna trip crushed 19 yellowfins and nine longfins Monday to Tuesday with <b>Fin-Ominal Sportfishing</b>, Capt. Jared said. The trip didn’t limit out on yellowfins, because seven people were aboard, but that was a nice trip, Jared said. The tuna were big, averaging 70 pounds. Some mahi mahi and triggerfish were also landed. All the tuna were nailed from dusk through night to morning on bait and jigs, and none was trolled. The trip, leaving 7 a.m. Monday, arrived at the fishing grounds, a hundred miles from port, at 1 p.m. The boat trolled for several hours, and a few small mahi were taken, but no tuna bit. A half-hour before dark, waters lit up with all kinds of life, including all different types of whales. Skipjacks were seen busting the surface, and the anglers jigged a couple. Then they jigged a couple of yellowfins that swam below the skippies, and tuna fishing was on. The boat was never even anchored through the night, because tuna kept getting whacked. Instead the boat was put on three drifts through the night, and the anglers kept catching tuna. All kinds of bait and life was seen, including squid, and the life was amazing on the trip, Jared said. The vessel was kept on the drift until 9 a.m., then was trolled until noon. Nothing bit on the troll, and the trip, with a great catch, Jared said, reached port Tuesday evening. A fluke charter is slated for Saturday, and a trip is scheduled next week to take Rutgers researchers out. Jared was unsure about the work the researchers will do, but the boat is booked for trips with Rutgers researchers several times of year, and Fin-Ominal is available for all kinds of trips. In the past, Rutgers researchers have sometimes deployed yellow, torpedo-like vehicles that collect data from the bottom.  Jared didn’t think the researchers would do that this time, but thought they might be set to work on buoys or antennas. The researchers would call Derek soon to describe the work. Interesting stuff.

A few fluke were managed on the party boat <b>Big Mohawk</b>, Capt. Chris said. He heard anglers saying fluke departed from grounds like where the boat fished on the ocean, and the anglers were right: The fluke that held on those grounds left once the storms hit. However, other fluke will move in, like every year. Anglers always hear about all the fluke that gather on the ocean fluking grounds in September and October. “Don’t you?” Chris asked. So the fishing will turn on again like every year. The timing can be different each year. Grounds that hold the fish that will move to the ocean where anglers fluke are currently holding the flatfish. Places like Manasquan and Shark rivers or Long Island Sound or wherever the summer flounder come from. Those fish will move to the ocean fluke grounds. Anglers can keep up on the fishing on the <a href="http://www.facebook.com/BigMohawkPartyBoat?sk=wall&filter=1" target="_blank">Big Mohawk’s Facebook page</a>. The Big Mohawk is fluke fishing 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Bluefishing was back on for anglers aboard the ocean on the <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b> in the last days, Capt. Alan said. After the bluefishing had been slower, the vessel’s daytime and nighttime trips pelted good catches of the 5- to 15-pounders, sailing on every one of the outings for the past four or five days, finding the fish offshore or 12 to 15 miles east of Belmar. Fluke fishing was slow on the party boat <b>Tropical Adventure</b>, Alan’s other vessel, on the ocean, since the bottom was churned up since the storms. A few fluke were picked, and Alan hopes the angling picks up by the weekend or next week. The Miss Belmar Princess is bluefishing twice daily 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and, through the weekend, 7:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. After the weekend, the evening trips will run every Thursday to Saturday. The Tropical Adventure is fluke fishing twice daily 7:30 a.m. to 12 noon and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. When fluke season closes September 26, the vessel will begin bottom fishing on one three-quarter-day trip daily.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Open-boat, mixed-bag trips to the canyons will stay the focus until mid October for <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>, Capt. Fred said. Afterward trips will run for striped bass and bottom fish. Canyon fishing was up and down, on some days was great, and on others was not. But an open trip aboard Monday shellacked yellowfin tuna, limiting out and releasing more, landing 30-plus of the tuna to 50 pounds, bagging a 100-pound swordfish to boot. The trip first trolled in waters to the south that were 77 degrees and cobalt blue. Lots of skipjacks, no tuna, bit. But as the boat was set up to chunk at night, the fish finder lit up like a Christmas tree, before the anchor came tight. A yellowfin hammered the first bait set out, a sardine, an instant bite, and fishing for the tuna was lock and load for the next hour, and the anglers limited out. “Took a break and cleared our heads,” a report on Andrea’s Toy’s Web site said, and some of the anglers grabbed a bite to eat. At midnight the fishing came on again, and the anglers began catching yellowfins, this time on jigs dropped down to marks, and a limit was boxed for the crew. A 100-pound swordfish was bagged on bait, then the anglers napped from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m. More yellowfins were jigged and released from 4 a.m. to 5 a.m. The trip ran back to port, “and cleaned up by lunchtime,” the report said.

A charter Sunday fished aboard with <b>Reel Class Charters</b> and three other boats from the marina, a report on Reel Class’s Web site said. The plan was to bottom fish and mix in fluke fishing, but the angling was slow. With Reel Class, a handful of ling and sea bass and a cod were bucketed, and shorts were let go, and no fluke bit, and waters were dirty, and currents ripped. “Very tough day for us,” the report said. Charters are fishing, and see <a href="http://www.reelclassfishing.com/rates/open-boat-info
" target="_blank">Reel Class’s open-boat page</a> online.

Fluke swam Manasquan Inlet, but seemed to be moving out to the ocean for the season, and bluefish popped in and out of the inlet, said Chuck from <b>Gates Bait & Tackle</b>. Little was heard about fluke catches on the ocean on the party boats, but business seemed slow on the boats after the recent storms, and maybe eight or ten anglers showed up per trip, often. Bluefish seemed scattered on the ocean on party boat trips. Sometimes trips seemed to run into blues to the north. Striped bass fishing will be the next big angling to launch, when waters cool. Waters were probably in the 70s. The shop’s grounds also feature the Gates Motel, popular with anglers, within walking distance of the charter and party boat fleet, the inlet and the surf. <b>***THIS TACKLE SHOP IS FOR SALE! CALL: 732-899-5760.***</b>

Trips started wrangling up porgies, said Capt. Butch from the party boat <b>Dauntless</b>. The angling wasn’t “setting the world on fire,” he said, but some anglers bucketed six to twenty apiece, and some big porgies were squashed. Quite a few blackfish bit, and none was big, but 2- and 3-pounders, sometimes a 4-pounder, were belted. A couple of anglers strictly blackfished, and the angling was good. An occasional good-sized fluke came up, and some impressive catches of sea bass were hooked and released, because sea bass season closed Monday. Porgies made up most of the catch, and the fish were found in 30 to 60 feet. Waters were cooling, were down to 68 to 70 degrees, and Butch liked to see that, because cooler waters are better for porgy fishing. The ocean remained dirty since the storms, and lots of flood waters were yet to reach the ocean. The Raritan and Passaic rivers crested only in the past days. The boat’s nighttime bluefish trips were ended for the season.  “It’s porgy time,” Butch said. Daytime trips will concentrate on the scup. The Dauntless is bottom fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

<b>Toms River</b>

Snapper blues and an oddball blowfish, kingfish or sheepshead bit both in Barnegat Bay toward the Route 37 Bridge and in the Toms River at Island Heights, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. A token weakfish 8 to 14 inches chomped in the Toms, and runoff from the storms still flowed in the river, but the waters will improve each day. Crabbing was good, and water temps remained high. An occasional weakfish the same size also chewed in the bay at Cedar Creek and the 40. Crabs and a few blues were also knuckled in there. But blowfishing was the big thing on the bay. Catches of fifty to a hundred blowfish were not uncommon between the BI and BB markers. Boaters anchored and chummed with clam for them, fishing usually with bits of clam, sometimes with bits of squid. Fluke fishing was best locally at Barnegat Inlet, on killies with squid or spearing with squid. Fluke fishing on the ocean seemed best 3 to 5 miles from shore. Fish with sand eels with squid or spearing with squid. In the surf a few blues 10 inches to 2 pounds were beached on mullet, and fresh mullet began to be stocked, and fresh bunker is on hand. A couple of keeper striped bass were claimed from the surf each day. One customer banked a keeper striped bass from the surf at Lavallette about every other day on clams.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

Angling for blowfish and kingfish was very good from the docks on Barnegat Bay at <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>, George said. Customers fished for them with clams, and also beat snapper blues from the docks. Crabbing slowed a lot in the area since the hurricane. Surf fishing finally began to shovel up striped bass, and several were weighed in, including 23-pounder and a 14-pounder from Seaside Park and an 11.6-pounder and an 8.24-pounder from Bay Head. Each of those was clammed. Snapper blues 1 pound kept being banked from the surf, and sometimes 4- to 5-pound blues tumbled into the surf. A customer today checked in ten of the 4- to 5-pounders. Mark Broishio pulled in a 3-pound fluke from the Seaside Heights Casino Pier.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

“Another great day bluefishing,” a report said about today’s fishing aboard on the <b>Miss Barnegat Light</b>’s Web site. Blues 8 to 12 pounds got waxed, and some of the anglers bagged 10. Bluefishing aboard was excellent Wednesday, pretty good Tuesday and super-duper Monday, the report said. The Miss Barnegat Light is bluefishing 8 a.m. daily and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays. However, the trips won’t sail this Friday and Tuesday and Friday, September 30.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

Croakers were cranked aboard from 40 feet on the ocean with <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>, Capt. T.J. said. “You can’t miss them,” he said. Nothing was heard about summer flounder since the storms. A good run of tuna took off during the weekend, and trips on some boats bailed 20 or 30, all at night on the chunk. The chunk bite turned on, though the offshore fishing became a matter of getting the weather window to sail, and weather was rolling in now.  Legal Limit’s next open-boat trips will probably run for striped bass, when striper fishing kicks in toward the end of October. Legal Limit will fish for stripers from both Tuckerton and Cape May on T.J.’s two boats.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Blowfishing on the bay was the main affair, giving up good catches at the clam stakes on the Mystic Island side of the Fish Factory, and not a lot else happened with fishing in the past days, said Scott from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Catches of blowfish were as good as 300 per trip, the fish landed as fast as the lines could be dropped in the waters, and the bait cleaned off the hook if the angler didn’t react quick enough. Seventy-some blowfish was an average catch in a trip, and maybe 20 percent of the blowfish were big enough to keep. Plenty of small ones swam, and other fish were in the mix: kingfish, occasionally, not often, big enough to keep; porgies and sea bass, none large enough to keep; and 10- to 12-inch snapper blues. Spots never really gave up a fishery on the bay this year. Some 10-inch weakfish were around in the bay, and so were 10- to 24-inch striped bass. Fishing for larger, migrating striped bass usually begins locally by the third week of October. Then anglers will clam for the bass at Little Egg Inlet or eel for them on the Mullica River. Crabbing currently was poor, for some reason. Little was heard from the ocean, maybe because sea bass season closed Monday, or maybe because ocean fluke fishing wasn’t happening since the storms. Fresh, shucked clams and clam chum are stocked, especially for the angling for blowfish and other fish in the mix. Eels will arrive for the weekend for striper fishing, and the cooler weather in the forecast will likely trigger anglers to swim the bait for the bass. Bloodworms are carried.

<b>Absecon</b>

Kingfish were dragged from the surf, and blackfish were sometimes tugged from along the surf jetties, said Mike from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Croakers and bluefish swam the ocean. So did short weakfish. A few summer flounder remained in the bay, and a few spots were around in the bay, but weren’t as plentiful as last year. Striped bass were livelined from along the Brigantine Bridge at night on spots and sometimes eels. Live spots, mullet, minnows, tons of shedder crabs, green crabs, clams and bloodworms are stocked. Act quickly to catch the shop’s <a href=" http://www.abseconbay.com/abseconbay/sales/Striper%20Sale/striper.htm" target="_blank"><b><i>***Striper Season Kick Off Sale***</i></b></a>! Running through Sunday, the sale features an absolute minimum of 25 percent off everything except bait. Some items are 50 percent off, including fluke rigs, soft-plastic baits and more! Click the link for more info.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Kingfish and blues, fish to 17 or 18 inches, swam all over the surf, said Capt. Andy from <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>. Not many striped bass ran the waters yet, but the striper migration was on at Montauk, a good sign. Bloodworms are stocked, and fresh finger mullet should arrive Friday. All the frozen baits are carried, and live clams should begin to be on hand next week. The annual Riptide Striper Derby will launch Monday, lasting to December 23. Anglers who enter the first, second and third biggest stripers from the Brigantine front beach will win $500, $300 and $150, respectively. Plus a $25 weekly prize, a $50 monthly prize and a $100 woman’s prize will be awarded. Entry in the tournament provides beach-buggy access to the island’s front beach for those who have a Brigantine beach-buggy permit. The Atlantic County Surf Fishing Derby will also kick off Monday.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

More blackfish were lambasted from the surf than Noel from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b> ever saw, he said. Anglers could choose the blackfish they wanted to keep, releasing the rest, and all were 3, 4 and 5 pounds. An angler could fish with a dozen green crabs, catching more than a dozen of the tog, phenomenal. Green crabs are in short supply for shops all around, but One Stop has them. Striped bass began to bite a little in the surf, and mullet caught them. Mullet and plenty of bait swam the waters. Porgies were pounded in numbers from the back bay. Summer flounder and blues were cornered from along the sea wall and near the Flagship. In addition to the green crabs, mullet and the full supply of baits are stocked.

<b>Margate</b>

Anglers aboard the back bay pulled in a few summer flounder, didn’t kill them, said Capt. John from the party boat <b>Keeper</b>. But some of the fish remained in the bay, and sometimes small blues were fought aboard. Crabs should be carried on the boat soon to mix in fishing for tog. The crabs weren’t available everywhere yet. Waters cleared a little since being dirtied from the storms. The Keeper is fishing for summer flounder twice daily 8 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. through this weekend. Afterward the trips will fish on weekends: both trips on Saturdays and one of the trips on Sunday. The fare is only $24 per adult for the 4-hour trips.

<b>Ocean City</b>

The surf held a few kingfish, croakers and spots, and mullet began migrating through the waters, said Bill from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. Most anglers fished for the kings, croakers and spots with bloodworms, and the surf clarity was okay, and seas will probably build now in rough weather that’s forecast. Small blues maybe 1 to 2 pounds were scattered from the ocean front to the back bay. The bay was dirty, so not much was heard about striped bass fishing there. But blackfishing was good in the bay along the bridges and structure. A few of the tog came from along the surf jetties, but most blackfish were taken in the bay. Summer flounder swam along the ocean reefs, and mostly short flounder roamed the bay. An occasional keeper was bagged on the bay, but most keepers hovered along the reefs. Most offshore news rolled in from Lindenkohl Canyon. Mostly yellowfin tuna were boated there, both at night on the chunk and during the day on the troll.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Waters were definitely becoming clearer, and back-bay striped bass fishing was definitely improving, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b>, affiliated with <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. Dave Hall and friend Mike climbed aboard Wednesday evening, drilling six striped bass 24 to 27 inches on popper lures, missing four or five others, in a short time. So that was a great catch, on the flats of the bay, waters so shallow that Jersey Cape’s flats boat was touching bottom, just enough waters for the fish to bite. Very shallow, good sport. On incoming tide. Popper fishing for stripers on the bay, both with lures and flies, is a specialty on the boat, and was great this season, and this catch, along with a good catch during the weekend, covered in the previous report, confirmed that the angling continued, and was some of the first to recover after the storms and dirty waters. Jersey Cape usually popper fishes for the bass on the bay until mid October. Afterward trips usually begin fishing the ocean for the fall migration of stripers and blues. Nothing much was available to say about summer flounder since the storms. But ocean reef fishing was sporadic, tossing up croakers, flounder and out-of-season sea bass. Joe wouldn’t call the fishing great, but one angler said he boated a bunch, though that was unconfirmed. In offshore waters, mahi mahi and wahoos gave up strong catches at Lindenkohl Canyon. White marlin fishing was good at Poorman’s Canyon, and tuna began to be chunked at night along the canyons. Jersey Cape is doing all this fishing.  Limited space remains for Jersey Cape’s annual trips to Montauk for the fall migration of striped bass, blues and false albacore. The trips fish the legendary run the last two weekends of September and first two of October.  See the <a href=" http://www.captainjoehughes.com/page4.html" target="_blank">traveling charters page</a> on Jersey Cape’s Web site. Keep up on Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

Tons of small bluefish, mostly snappers, sometimes larger ones, cocktails, schooled Townsend’s Inlet, said Mike from <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. Surf fishing plowed a variety of fish. Anglers there targeted kingfish, catching them, weakfish, spots, summer flounder and croakers or a whole variety, usually fishing with bloodworms, but sometimes with FishBites artificial worms. An occasional striped bass was dragged from the beach, like all summer long. But a few stripers, mostly shorts, once in a while keepers, were clocked on the back bay, on poppers along the sod banks in the mornings. The ocean, like at Townsend’s, Ocean City and Wildwood reefs, dished up a mixed bag of fish including flounder, out-of-season sea bass that were released and triggerfish. Some anglers returned with some of the fish in the cooler, and some didn’t. Not much was heard about offshore fishing. Crabbing was good.

<b>Wildwood</b>

Summer flounder were active in the back bay, surprising for the time of year, but they were, said Mike from <b>Canal Side Boat Rentals</b>. Not a lot were keepers, but the fishing was good, and that was nice, Mike said, and flounder fishing was probably better on the bay than on the ocean. Lots of snapper blues schooled the bay, and some weakfish were around in the waters. Nobody really bothered with striped bass yet this season on the bay, but some were around. Occasional stripers were hooked while anglers flounder fished. Crabbing remained about the same on the bay, and a trip might nab a dozen or two dozen keepers, and a couple of trips on the rental boats came in with three or four dozen, and crabbing should keep getting better, with fewer people crabbing, less pressure on the blueclaws. The shop will be open at least Fridays through Sundays this time of year, but maybe on other days during the week, depending on demand. Call to confirm. Canal Side rents canopy boats and kayaks for fishing, crabbing and sightseeing. Baits stocked include minnows, and the price was currently great: $5 per pint including tax, compared with $8 before tax at many stores. Frozen squid strips, whole squid, spearing, mackerel fillets, mullet, clam strips and packaged clams are on hand. Live crabs are available for eating, and No. 1’s are currently $23 per dozen, and No. 2’s are currently $12 per dozen.

<b>Cape May</b>

With all the dirty waters in the ocean because of rains, not many summer flounder bit, and a few good-sized ones were decked aboard, but that was about all, said Capt. Paul from the party boat <b>Porgy IV</b>. The vessel fished for flounder on the ocean, and on Saturday’s trip, Ken Minnett from Voorhees bagged two of the flatfish to 8 ¾ pounds. On Tuesday’s trip Tom Wilson from Erial reeled up three keepers to 7 ½ pounds. On Wednesday’s trip Bruce Vitale from Piscataway, visiting for the fireman’s convention, won the pool with a 6.88-pound flounder. Again, on trips recently, not many throwbacks chomped, and not many keepers were bagged, and a few sizeable flounder were boxed. Forecasts for the weekend currently sound “shaky,” Paul said, so anglers should call ahead to confirm whether trips will sail. The windy weather could trigger flounder to get active again. The Porgy IV is fishing for summer flounder at 8 a.m. daily.

Lots of blues, snappers and cocktails, swam the back bay and the surf, said Danny Boy from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. Striped bass were around in the back bay, and a few roamed the surf. Summer flounder were eased in here and there, including from Grassy Sound.

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