<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Surf fishing for striped bass was probably “pretty well done,” said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. The surf at Asbury Park was 38 degrees, and few stripers would probably bite unless the water warmed. Good catches of blackfish were boated on most days on the ocean, and ling began to bite better than before in the ocean. A few cod were decked in those depths. Farther from the coast, sea bass and tilefish were reeled in offshore. Julian’s is open in mornings, and fresh clams are stocked. Worms probably will be stocked no longer until March 1, when striped bass season opens in bays and rivers.

<b>Highlands</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 2/7:***</b> Here’s a hurricane update: Capt. Dave from <b>Raritan Bay Charters</b>, whose boat was lost in Hurricane Sandy, is supposed to sea-trial a 29-foot Wellcraft fly-bridge, he said. If all goes well, he expects to purchase the boat, replacing his 28-foot Jersey Girl. The Wellcraft, with an 11-foot beam, features a large, 85-square-foot cockpit, a cabin with a dinette, head and v-birth, and twin 350 h.p. Mercurys. If he purchases the boat, he’ll start working on it right away, adding rocket launchers, outriggers, updated electronics, a tackle station, a livewell, an insulated fish box and more. Charters are expected to resume in spring, and bookings are being accepted. His previous boat, dry-docked for the hurricane, was blown into the marsh and totaled, similar to countless vessels. 

<b>Belmar</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 2/7:***</b> Blackfishing was very good Tuesday on the party boat <b>Big Mohawk</b>, a post on the vessel’s Facebook page said. No trip sailed Wednesday, because of scheduled maintenance to the boat. But blackfish trips were expected to sail aboard today and Sunday. Weather for Friday and Saturday “looks a bit suspect,” the post said.

<b>Brielle</b>

Plenty of sea bass were bombed on offshore trips, said John from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. Closer to shore, ling were landed, and blackfish were picked. Nothing was heard about striped bass. Little else happened this time of year. The Reel Seat is open Fridays through Sundays. Catch the 50-percent discount on Shimano inshore jigs.

Ling, a decent number, a few large blackfish, some big pollock and a few cod were swung aboard the party boat <b>Jamaica II</b> on Saturday, Capt. Ryan said in an e-mail. Pretty good trip, he said, despite strong currents most of the day that made anglers fish with 12 ounces of weight. Ron Safer, Piscataway, N.J., won the pool with a 30-pound pollock and bagged 20 ling. Anglers and their catches also included: Wes Shourt, Manahawkin, N.J., 14 ling, two blackfish and a 25-pound pollock; Erik Weber, Colts Neck, N.J., 23 ling, an 18-pound pollock and a cod; and Tim Keebler, Riegalsville, Pa., 14 ling and a 19-pound cod. Twelve-hour Mudhole wreck-fishing trips are sailing at 5 a.m. Wednesdays through Fridays and Sundays, and 14-hour offshore wreck trips are running at 3 a.m. Saturdays.

After strong winds kept the two previous trips docked, Saturday’s trip steamed offshore on the party boat <b>Big Jamaica</b>, an e-mail from the vessel said. All anglers limited out on giant sea bass, and many limited on jumbo porgies. Pool-winners were Greg Peacock, Warminster, Pa., with a 7-pound sea bass and Alexsandr Charavach, Trenton, N.J., with a 6-1/2-pound sea bass. The outlook is good for upcoming trips. The Big Jamaica is fishing offshore for giant sea bass, jumbo porgies, cod and pollock every Wednesday and every Friday through Sunday, departing at 11 o’clock the night before. One of the trips will also fish on Presidents’ Day, Monday, Feb. 18, departing at 11 o’clock the night before. Ventafish tools are available at <a href="http://www.boganmarine.com" target="_blank">BoganMarine.com</a> for anglers who limit out early and want to catch and release more. <b>***Update, Thursday, 2/7:***</b> Another boat limit of sea bass and porgies, an e-mail from the Big Jamaica said about Wednesday’s trip. A few bluefish were in the mix, and the population of sea bass offshore this season is probably the best the crew’s seen since the mid-1990s. Back then, the fish were landed aboard right into April. “Too bad NMFS considers our observations as ‘anecdotal,’” the e-mail said. If NMFS could see the fish scope showing sea bass and porgies 40 feet thick under the boat, the e-mail said, maybe they’d realize “how good the stocks really are,” it said. One angler even hooked two sea bass on one jig on the trip. Pool-winners were Emory Nesbit, Poughkeepsie, N.Y., with a 7-pound sea bass and Paul Lagoda, Belmar, N.J., with a 6-1/2-pound sea bass. Waters were 52 to 53 degrees, and only three weeks of sea bass season are left, “so now is the time to go!” the e-mail said. Weather looks good for Sunday’s trip, and space is available.  <b>***Update, Saturday, 2/9</b>: The trip Sunday looks like a go, an e-mail from the boat said. After Friday’s blizzard, winds now switched to northwesterly, and will knock down any swell. After midnight, winds are forecast to diminish, and Sunday “looks like a great day,” the e-mail said. Space remains for the trip.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Weather was beautiful Saturday morning, and the party boat <b>Norma-K III</b> was motored out to fish, Capt. Matt said in a report on the vessel’s Web site. Current ran strong on the first two drops, but slowed by the third. On the first two, water was also cold, and anglers picked at ling, throwback blackfish and a few small cod. On the third, warmer water was found, and anglers picked at keeper blackfish and a few ling in the slower current. Two of the trip’s anglers limited out on blackfish, and a good number bagged one or two, and some landed no keeper blackfish. A 6-pound blackfish was the pool-winner. On Saturday night’s trip, decent ling fishing was copped. Several shifts and moves had to be made, but high hooks totaled 20 or more ling apiece. Jigging with Gulps seems “the best way to fill up the buckets,” Matt said. Too few anglers showed up at the docks for Sunday’s trip to sail. The Norma-K III is fishing for blackfish and ling 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays and for ling and cod 3 to 9 p.m. Saturdays.

<b>Toms River</b>

A couple of customers bought salted clams to fish the surf, said Jeff from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. Parts of the shore were slowly being reopened after the hurricane. Island Beach State Park was partially reopened two weekends ago, about three months after the storm. Some of Jeff’s friends were still preparing to move back into their houses after the hurricane. Not a lot of fishing happened, and nobody mentioned fishing for striped bass and blackfish that were hooked at Point Pleasant Canal previously. Stripers there must be released until the season for them opens on March 1 from bays to rivers. Striper season is open year-round in the ocean within 3 miles of the coast. 

<b>Absecon</b>

Wasn’t much activity in the cold, said Capt. Dave from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Few anglers even talked about fishing online. “Guess we’re deep in the doldrums,” Dave said, “and cabin fever hasn’t set in yet.” At least spring will come early, according the groundhog, he noted. But Dave is trying to keep bait stocked, including fresh or live grass shrimp, a favorite for white perch in brackish rivers. The perch can be caught. The store is open, but call ahead to confirm. Fishing was good, including for sailfish, at <a href="http://www.abseconbay.com/fishguatemala.html" target="_blank">Dave’s Guatemala charter business</a>, and weather was hot. Give Dave a call to get away.

<b>Ocean City</b>

Only a few anglers stopped in during the cold the past several days, said Bill at <b>Fin-Atics</b>. Nothing was heard about fishing for sea bass offshore or blackfish closer to shore, but surely those fish still bit. The only striped bass known about recently were caught and released farther north at Oyster Creek, the warm-water discharge from the Forked River power plant. Striper season is closed from bays to rivers, so the bass must be released. The season will be opened there on March 1 and is open in the ocean within 3 miles of the coast year-round. Fin-Atics is open Fridays through Sundays and will be opened daily starting March 1.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Traveling trips to the Florida Keys fished this weekend aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. Charters to the Keys are available each winter, mostly on weekends. Dustin Laricks climbed aboard the outings this weekend, and on Saturday, redfish, barracudas, bonnethead sharks, and a lemon shark were fought. All were sight-fished along the flats on live and Gulp shrimp on jigheads. In the evening, two tarpon were caught and released on livelined ladyfish. On Sunday, at the Everglades, big snook 30 to 35 inches or 10 pounds were waxed. So were redfish, speckled sea trout, black drum, barracudas and blowfish. Large jacks and mangrove snappers were also caught during the weekend aboard. Anglers can arrive on a Friday, fish all day Saturday and part of Sunday, and be back to work on Monday. The trips can be a mini, fish-filled vacation. See info on Jersey Cape’s <a href="http://www.captainjoehughes.com/page4.html" target="_blank">Traveling Fisherman Charters</a> Web page. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

<b>Wildwood Crest</b>

On the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b> on Saturday, weather was good, and so was offshore sea bass fishing, a report on the vessel’s Web site said. All anglers limited on sea bass, and a few blueline tilefish and plenty of 2- to 3-pound bluefish were drilled. James Wang, Chantilly, Va., won the pool with a 7-1/4-pound sea bass. The Atlantic Star is sailing offshore for giant sea bass on 18-hour trips every Saturday and Sunday and for a combo of sea bass and tilefish on 19- or 20-hour trips every Wednesday. A combo sea bass and tilefish trip is also set for Presidents’ Day, Monday, Feb. 18.

<b>Cape May</b>

<b>***Update, Thursday, 2/7:***</b> One of party boat <b>Porgy IV</b>’s blackfishing trips sailed Saturday, Capt. Paul said. Weather was cold, and not a lot of anglers jumped aboard, but some good-sized blackfish were hammered, and some customers limited out. Craig Constantino, Voorhees, smashed an 18.88-pounder, one of three of his keepers. The huge tautog probably would’ve weighed more, but was bled before hung on the scale. Craig was going to release the large female, but anglers passed around the fish in the net to show, and the tog was dropped, and looked like it wouldn’t survive. Then it was bled and weighed. Hector Barcia, Queens, N.Y., and Mike Hernandez, Hollis, N.Y., limited out. Anglers this week were telephoning about blackfishing aboard this coming weekend. “I guess they want to catch that big one,” Paul said. So the Porgy IV will sail for blackfish at 8 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, weather permitting. Anglers can telephone to ask whether forecasts look like the trips will run.

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