<b>North Jersey</b>

A 44-inch musky, probably 22 pounds, was caught and released on a trolled lure at Greenwood Lake on Thursday with <b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> from Montvale, Capt. Dave Vollenweider said. On another trip with Live to Fish that night, 14 walleyes, an awesome catch, were bailed at a lake on cast lures. On Sunday, Dave fished with his wife on a lake, and she plugged a sizeable largemouth bass and a good-sized smallmouth bass on a Heddon Torpedo lure, and missed another fish on a plastic worm. On Monday a trip on the boat drilled a 38- to 40-inch tiger musky that was released, missed another musky and caught a 6-pound walleye and a yellow perch at Greenwood on trolled lures. The stretch of fishing was great aboard. Dave’s been trying a new technique to catch the muskies. Catching a musky, the fish of 10,000 casts, on any trip is a success. To catch a couple and miss one in consecutive trips seemed to mean the technique was working. The technique had a lot to do with becoming familiar with the contour of the lake bottom or the bottom structure. The walleye fishing, on trips that fish the middle of night, has been incredible, and is going to slow down soon. Waters are becoming warm, from the mid to upper 80s. Currently the walleyes are moving to shallows in the dead of night, foraging on spawning herring, like every year. Then the hefty fish can be clobbered on surface lures. As waters warm, and herring stop spawning, walleyes will no longer move shallow, remaining in deeper, cooler waters instead, probably soon. Then Dave will troll them. But the surface plugging for them is terrific sport. Trips with Dave have been nailing double digits, an incredible season. Lots of herring flipped around on the trip. Anglers with Dave are set to fish for walleyes again this weekend at night. Dave was supposed to compete in a largemouth bass tournament Wednesday.  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.

Smallmouth bass were honked on Delaware River near Dingman’s Ferry Bridge on reddish-brown tubes and Keitech swim baits on a trip that Ben from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna took, he said. On a trip to a lake, he top-water plugged largemouth bass on poppers and Spro frogs at night before a storm. He also played panfish at waters including Lake Hopatcong on Trout Magnets and rubber grubs.

Lots of largemouth bass, smallmouth bass and hybrid striped bass were cracked from the lake, said Laurie from <b>Dow’s Boat Rentals</b> in Lake Hopatcong in an e-mail. Tracey McBridge reeled in largemouth bass to a 2-pound 15-ouncer and smallmouth bass at night. Jeff Van Varick landed a 3-pound 1-ounce smallmouth off Nolan’s Point. Lou Marcucci socked a 3-pound 1-ounce  smallie. All the fish were hooked on livelined herring. Hybrid striped bass to 7 pounds could be found off any points or at any drop-offs. They were usually plowed on live herring. Robert Murawaski beat an 8-pound 4-ounce hybrid off Elba Point. Crappies smacked hair jigs in the lake. The Knee Deep Club will hold a hybrid striped bass tournament on Saturday and Sunday on the lake. The shop can be called for info: 973-663-3826.

Greenwood Lake was 85 degrees in hot weather during a largemouth tournament Sunday, said Nick from <b>Meltzer’s Sporting Goods</b> in Garfield. He competed in the event, coming in third with four fish, and all the anglers caught, mostly on Keitechs or Senkos. Most off the fish were hooked off deep shoreline or at docks. A few were taken off weeds, when weeds, scarce on the lake, could be located. The warmth made fishing tough. A buddy jigged a good catch of largemouths at Lake Hopatcong at weeds, and Nick will compete in a largemouth tournament there coming up. Friends were mugging northern pike, lots, on Passaic River on large spinner baits. Small striped bass were landed in the lower Passaic, below the falls, when the tide was up. One angler was catching smallmouth bass on the Passaic on Keitech Easy Shiners. Chain pickerel could be angled at Ramapo Reservoir on Mepps spinners or shiners if anglers hiked there.

At Spruce Run Reservoir, Brian Bussard last week juked nine hybrid striped bass, three of them large, three small, on livelined herring, said Jody from <b>Lebanon Bait & Sport</b>. On a trip to Spruce the previous week, he landed 15 to 20 hybrids, mostly 2- to 3-pounders or 18 inches. He fished Spruce with his daughter, and she reeled in seven hybrids to 5 pounds. “She let dad catch one,” Jody said. Dan Buck at Spruce angled up quite a few small hybrids. Steve Hereasymchuck fished Round Valley Reservoir, tugging in seven lake trout, five rainbow trout, three brown trout and a 4-pound golden trout. At Merrill Creek Reservoir, Richard Holler mugged a 5-pound 25-inch lake trout on a large shiner. Chris Spinks sacked a 5-1/2-pound largemouth bass at Oxford Furnace Lake. At Millstone River, Charlie Frank and son caught northern pike, a few largemouth bass and some chain pickerel on lures. A trip on the South Branch of the Raritan River at Neshanic Station toggled in a few sunnies and a smallmouth bass, losing a bigger smallmouth, probably 1 pound, then moved downstream when fishing slowed. Two dozen sunnies and four smallies were hung.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Fishing for northern pike actually improved in the heat, said Braden from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. The northerns were fought on Millstone and Passaic rivers and Spruce Run Reservoir. Spinner baits, especially double-leafed Colorado spinners, Five of Diamonds Daredevl Spoons and large shiners smacked them. At Spruce Run Reservoir, hybrid striped bass fishing somewhat slowed, but definitely produced, at 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. Live herring usually caught them, but sometimes top-water plugs did. Sometimes hybrids pushed herring against the shoreline like a bluefish blitz in saltwater. That was a time to work top-waters. One customer rounded up a bunch of small striped bass on Raritan River just downstream from New Brunswick on Mister Twisters.

Manasquan Reservoir’s hybrid striped bass fishing might’ve slowed, but the fish were caught, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. Mostly shiners slugged them, instead of chicken livers that worked best before. The shiners were fished under a float with a split shot to suspend them halfway down the water column. Crappies were nabbed at Lake Carasaljo near Route 9 Bridge, and under the bridge, on twister tails under bobbers. Chain pickerel punched killies and shiners at Lake Horicon, a cedar-water lake. One customer kept managing a few pickerel in a weed-choked neighborhood pond in Toms River. Shiners, killies and nightcrawlers are stocked. Shiners might stop being stocked soon for a few weeks in the heat.

<b>South Jersey</b>

On Delaware River, smallmouth bass, 6-inch striped bass and some catfish were angled, said Eric from <b>Harry’s Army and Navy</b> in Robbinsville. The smallmouths jumped on lures like poppers or Yozuri Pins Minnows in mornings and evenings. Though the stripers were small, they were good to see, Eric said, and kept hitting when anglers smallmouth fished. Largemouth bass were on an early morning and evening bite on top-water lures. Some anglers talked about good largemouthing at Assunpink Lake on chatter baits.

Nighttime fishing whacked walleyes on Delaware River toward Milford, said Tom P. at <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown. Smallmouth bass and rock bass bit in the river before 8 a.m. on shiners, minnows and Rapala lures. Raritan River shoveled up very good smallmouthing from Duke Island to Nevius Street in the town of Raritan. Smallmouth fishing was good at Lake Audrey near Millville on Mister Twisters on bullet-headed jigs. Largemouth bass pounded rat lures along vegetation at Lake Musconetong. The bass weren’t big, up to 4 pounds, but the fishing was good. Largemouths at Lake Lenape, on the end of the lake near Great Egg Harbor River, bombed spinner baits and buzz baits. Walleyes were whaled at night at Lake Hopatcong and Big Swartswood Lake on livelined herring. Hybrid striped bass fishing was solid at night at Hopatcong and Spruce Run Reservoir. The fish weighed up to 9 pounds. Channel catfish to 15 pounds, on Millstone River, scarfed up dead herring, dead shiners or chicken livers. Trout streams were low and warm, but Tom was pasting trout there on worms, fathead minnows and size-14 haystack flies. Most anglers fished the Trout Conservation Areas. But he fished the bait-fishing stretches, loading up. Conservation areas were mobbed at places like Ken Lockwood Gorge and Musconetcong River.

Plenty of small striped bass chomped in Delaware River at National Park, said Rick from <b>Big Timber Bait & Tackle</b> in Brooklawn. Top-water lures beaned them in mornings and at dusk. Or small metal lures like a Hopkins clocked them at the island off National Park on the downstream side. Lots of catfish and carp milled around the river. White perch gave up strong fishing from the river. Largemouth bass fishing was good at Newton Lake, Peter’s Creek and the DOD ponds. Largemouths bit early and late in the day in shallow Audubon Lake. Largemouths were sometimes heard about from Greenwich Lake. Largemouths were mostly winged on Senko worms or swim baits on small jigheads.

Largemouth bass were minnowed at Grenloch Lake, said Ed from <b>Creek Keepers Bait & Tackle</b> in Blackwood. Sunnies were plucked from the spillway across from Blackwood Lake and Puppyland Pond, mostly on meal worms. Nothing was heard about chain pickerel fishing that’s usually active at New Brooklyn Lake.

Fish for largemouth bass slowly and with finesse in the heat, said Vince from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. Smaller rubber worms are popular on them during summer. The lakes were 90 degrees, not easy on fishing. Lakes like Union and Audrey churned out catches like largemouth and smallmouth bass, but slowly in the heat. Chain pickerel are always active, no matter heat or cold. Bluegills and panfish stay hungry in the heat. In saltwater, the only good summer flounder catches heard about came from the ocean, like at the Old Grounds. Few flounder seemed to be caught from Delaware Bay. This was a slow year for flounder fishing on the bay, and the angling seemed about finished for the season there.

Back to Top