NEW YORK

Montauk

Cod fishing was okay, not super like in the last two or three years, because of the warm winter, Capt. Joe Huckemeyer from the party boat Helen H said. But the angling was somewhat better in the past week, and trips aboard will try to sail for the fish this weekend. Joe hopes a couple of the trips or so will run before the boat’s fishing in Montauk is wrapped up for the season. The vessel will be returned to home port in Massachusetts for fishing from spring through fall. Call: 508-790-0660. Visit Web Site.

Point Lookout

The party boat Captain Al steamed a few times in the past week between windy weather or rough-weather forecasts that kept anglers from showing up, Capt. Tom Weiss said. A few cod, including a few 15- to 20-pounders, and a bunch of ling were swung aboard. Cod fishing was winding down for the season, and ling fishing was very good. A few mackerel were mixed in, despite the late season for the mackerel migration. On Sunday’s trip a very good catch of ling and a handful of cod were plowed. On Saturday forecasts kept anglers from arriving to sail, though the weather turned out alright. Trips fished in 80 to 130 feet, and waters were 43 degrees. The Captain Al is this site's closest Long Island cod boat to New Jersey. Trips run 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. See More Info. Call: 516-623-2248.

VIRGINIA

Virginia Beach

The weekly party boat trip to Norfolk Canyon was weathered out on Saturday with Rudee Inlet Charters, Capt. Skip Feller said. Forecasts look like weather might be rough this Saturday, but Sunday looks like a trip will get out. The crew will try to switch the anglers to Sunday, and that usually works out. The last trip, covered here previously, crushed blueline tilefish, a great catch. The outing also fished deeper a moment, racking up a few golden tilefish, groupers and wreckfish. The angling’s been good this season. The unique trips are slated to sail to Norfolk Canyon 4 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Saturday, for catches including blueline tiles, golden tiles, black belly rosefish, wreckfish and groupers. Ask about special trips for golden tiles that are set for April and May. Charters are also running. Call: 757-422-5700 or 757-425-3400. Visit Web Site.

No reports were posted on Virginia Beach Fishing Center’s Web site since three weekends ago, until a report was posted this past Sunday. “We’re sure our avid followers think we have fallen off the face of the earth,” the report said, “but we just haven’t had anything to report.” Weather often wasn’t fishable, and when it was, charters weren’t booked. Striped bass apparently departed for the season, according to dock talk. Nobody reported catching stripers from the ocean to the bay. Weather kept party boat trips from bottom fishing offshore the last two weekends. Catches like blueline tilefish were excellent on the boats. Rumors said blackfish began to bite at ocean wrecks. No anglers from the marina sailed for them, but people started buying rigs and bait for them. Virginia’s blackfish season is open until closing on April 16. The bag limit is three of the tog 16 inches or larger per person. Visit Web Site.

NORTH CAROLINA

Oregon Inlet

Two boats ran to the Gulf Stream on Friday from Oregon Inlet Fishing Center, Michelle Jennings said. On one, 11 yellowfin tuna were bagged, and on the other, 15 yellowfins, a 65-inch bluefin tuna and three mahi mahi were kept. Additional bluefins were released on the trip. On Saturday two boats from the docks fished closer to shore, only landing dogfish. Those were the two days when trips steamed from the marina, between the weather, in the past week.
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Hatteras

Fishing was great, when boats could get out, a report on Teach’s Lair Marina’s Web site said. Bluefin tuna catches slowed “but have not stopped,” the report said. The population of yellowfin tuna seemed on the rise. Blackfin tuna fishing was steady, giving up great catches and a good size class. Blowtoads, a few mullet and a few blues swam the surf. “Might be a sign of things to come,” the report said. “Also heard of a drum bite down to (the) south,” it said. Visit Web Site.

FLORIDA

Islamorada

Fishing began to gain steam at the Islamorada Hump, said Capt. Bruce Andersen from Captain Easy Charters. That’s a dome 11 miles offshore that rises 290 feet from bottom in 600 feet of waters that will attract more and more fish as the season goes on. Trips aboard this week tackled amberjacks and sometimes blackfin tuna there. Plus a 500- to 600-pound tiger shark grabbed one of the hooked amberjacks, eating the fish. The anglers let out a blackfin tuna that was hooked, and the tiger bit the fish and was landed and released after a 2-hour fight. The a.j.’s were caught on live bait like blue runners dropped down 300 feet. The blackfins were taken on live pilchards or cigar minnows or vertical jigs. Some anglers troll the tuna on small lures, but that usually results in small blackfins. So Bruce likes to swim live bait or vertical-jig for them. A couple of trips fished the reef a few miles from shore. Sailfish, king mackerel, mutton snappers and yellowtail snappers bit there. The weather was warm and good last week. Winds began Sunday and are supposed to last some days. Check out some videos: Slammer Dolphin and Wahoo Video; Wahoo, Sailfish and King Mackerel Video; Grouper, Sailfish and Dolphin Video. Call: 305-451-9578 or 305-360-2120. Visit Web Site.

Lots of yellowtail snappers were creamed on the party boat Miss Islamorada
in warm weather last week, Capt. Ben Loy said. A cold front blew in Sunday, dropping temps probably 15 degrees, increasing winds that were supposed to last through the next days. Still, the cold failed to affect yellowtail fishing much, and anglers filled half a barrel full on Monday’s trip, catches for all to take home. Plus they fought a load of 3- to 5-pound jack crevalles, all anyone could want, hundreds in an hour. The jacks don’t have much food value, but anglers like to fight them. They were a blast on light spinning rods. Trips fished at the reef a few miles from port. Visit Web Site.

Thomas Scranton joined one of the weekend getaways to the Florida Keys this weekend with Jersey Cape Guide Service, Capt. Joe Hughes said. Jersey Cape offers the Florida fishing every winter, running trips from Sea Isle City, New Jersey, the rest of the year. Scranton beat snook, redfish, speckled sea trout, barracudas and more. On Saturday he fished near the mainland at Flamingo in good weather. On Sunday he fished near Islamorada in rough weather. He tried tarpon fishing on Sunday, and the angling wasn’t happening in the weather. But tarpon fishing’s been good this winter aboard. Scranton fished with spinning rods, but Jersey Cape also fly fishes on the trips. Anglers can arrive on a Friday, fish all day Saturday and part of Sunday, and be back to work Monday morning. Or anglers can take a shorter trip. The trips, available until early April, can be a mini, fish-filled vacation. Visit Web Site. Call: 609-827-3442.

COSTA RICA

Los Suenos

Billfish and bottom fish, very good catches, were pounded on the Dream Girl, Capt. Pete Wagner said in an e-mail. On a trip Thursday the anglers released a half-dozen sailfish. Then they bottom fished, whaling 25 groupers to 25 pounds. Sizeable red snappers were socked when anglers bottom fished aboard a couple of trips, after billfishing. Pete will return to run the Hyper Striper from Highlands, New Jersey, his home port, during the first week of April. Trips will begin with striped bass fishing, and anglers should call or e-mail now to book spring striper trips. He runs the Dream Girl in Costa Rica every winter and the Hyper Striper in Jersey the rest of the year. Visit Web Site. E-Mail. Call: 732-212-1847, office; or 732-688-1933, boat.

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