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New Jersey Inshore Saltwater Fishing Report 9-12-16


<b>Keyport</b>

Porgies, fantastic catches, were plowed on the <b>Vitamin Sea</b>, Capt. Frank wrote in an email. Fluke finishing wasn’t finished, he thinks, but fluke showed up in shallow water off Belford and Keyport, and boating for them wasn’t good. But porgy fishing was spectacular on the last four trips aboard. Nine inches is the legal minimum size, but anglers aboard kept none smaller than 10. The angling was best yesterday, and the anglers loaded the cooler with porgies to 14 inches. Blowfish, jack crevalles, sea bass, striped bass, blackfish and bluefish were mixed in on each trip. Now’s the time to fill the freezer with “these great-tasting battlers,” Frank said about the porgies. The fishing’s also perfect for anybody who likes non-stop action, and also for kids. Charters are fishing, and the next open-boat trips will fish Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday. Telephone to reserve. Book fall striped bass charters to ensure a bonus tag for each angler. Each charter booked will receive a tag per angler for each to bag an extra striper, while supplies last.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

We’re plugging away, Capt. Tom from the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b> said. All twice-daily fluke trips fished since Thursday aboard, and most of the fish were found in shallow water, like inside Sandy Hook, near the harbor and between the Hook and the Navy Pier. Not a lot of the fish were around, and some areas gave up shots. The crew is trying to give anglers an enjoyable day, a chance to catch a few fluke, maybe a keeper. One angler limited out on five Saturday, but that was an exception. Also on the trip, another bagged two, and some bagged one. Tire John on one trip bagged one but a 5-1/2-pounder. That was his final fish as a single man, because he was about to become married. On Sunday morning’s trip, wind came up, and the trip rolled its butt off. A handful of keepers were caught. The afternoon’s trip pushed farther back into Raritan Bay to escape the wind. Again, a handful of keepers were caught, and one angler bagged three of them. But a few fluke were around, and Tom expects to sail for them through the final day of fluke season, September 25. The Atlantic Star is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m. daily.

Fluke fishing was tough the past few days, a report said on the party boat <b>Fishermen</b>’s website. Trips worked into the ocean each day, fishing inshore, offshore and everywhere the fish were caught lately. A few keepers and shorts bit, but none at any place a trip could stay and put together a catch. The ocean held a nasty roll each day. Sunday’s trip retreated to the back bay, because of the rough ocean. Just a handful of keepers and some shorts came in. Weather looks great this week. The Fishermen is sailing for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, for striped bass 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays and for porgies 6:30 to 11 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays.

<b>Neptune</b>

<b>***Update, Tuesday, 9/13:***</b> Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> returned from fishing freshwater in Canada with family, he wrote in an email. A 20-pound 43-inch northern pike was his biggest catch, and Ralph’s boat was painted and cleaned for fall fishing while he was away. When the boat was splashed, Shark River’s channel was closed on weekdays for dredging without notice. It’ll only be open Saturdays and Sundays, and that forced weekday trips to be cancelled with Last Lady. He’s going to get a new slip to fish weekdays beginning October 1. Charters are fishing, and an individual-reservation trip for fluke is full Sunday, September 25, the final day of fluke season. Space is available on individual-reservation trips for sea bass Thursday, October 27, and for blackfish Wednesday, November 16. Sea bass season will be opened beginning October 22, and six will become the blackfish bag limit beginning November 16, from the current limit of one.

<b>Belmar</b>

Late-season fluke fishing gave up good catches on the ocean, Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b> wrote in an email. Some good-sized to 8 pounds were docked on Belmar’s boats. But Lori Jarosz clobbered a 9-pound 3-ouncer, the biggest seen at the shop in past days. Shark River’s fluking was fair, “but size is a problem,” Bob said. Live bait like snapper blues and peanut bunker was fished for the better-sized. Kingfish and porgies were a good bet in the river, and worms hooked them best. Big bluefish showed up in the ocean, and anglers hope they stick around. Striped bass began to show up for surf anglers, but not a hot bite yet.

The <b>Katie H</b> was supposed to overnight for tuna Saturday to Sunday, and that was weathered out, but the trip day-trolled for tuna Saturday at Hudson Canyon instead, Capt. Mike said. Tuna fishing was slow, and none was caught, but lots of mahi mahi were boated. They included a couple of good-sized in the 20 pounds, and some 8- to 10-pounders, and as many mahi swam as anglers could want. Practically every lobster-pot buoy was loaded with them. Tuna held at the Hudson before the storm, and tuna were caught at canyons farther south on the trip. Mike wasn’t saying that if the trip had overnighted, none would be caught. But the catches were better farther south. The water at the Hudson was 76 degrees at the 100 Square and 72 at the West Wall. Any life swam at the 100 Square. Trips will now concentrate on tuna aboard. Nothing was heard about fluke, and fluke will probably migrate offshore soon, Mike would think.

Big bluefish, lots of false albacore and a few bonito were fought aboard Sunday on the <b>Golden Eagle</b>, a report said on the party boat’s website. A decent number of blues to 18 pounds were cranked in, and some anglers tackled 15 albies apiece. More and more fish seemed to be arriving, so come fishing. On Saturday’s trip, blues 10 to 15 pounds were picked, and that was the first time big ones were seen on the boat in some time. Small were hooked aboard previously. A few albies were picked on the trip, and if anglers tried for the albies instead of the blues, they could catch three or five. The Golden Eagle is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Overnight <a href=" https://www.goldeneaglefishing.com/tunafish" target="_blank"><b>tuna trips</b></a> were slated to kick off yesterday that will fish certain days through October 24, reservations required.

On the <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b>, blues were jigged, decent fishing, until noon on Sunday’s trip, an email from the party boat said. Good action at times, it said, and the email mentioned no sizes of the fish. On today’s trip, “we tried fishing offshore,” it said. False albacore, sometimes three and four at once, a decent pick, and some jumbo blues to 19 pounds were smashed. The Miss Belmar Princess is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.  Family fishing and sunset cruises are sailing 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. daily. Kids 14 and under are sailing free on morning trips Mondays through Thursdays through September when accompanied by an adult paying full fare. The back-to-school special, a $40 value, is limited to one child per adult and cannot be combined with other discounts. No reservations are required.

<b>Brielle</b>

Smaller yellowfin tuna 20 to 30 pounds seemed to be chunked at Hudson and Toms canyons during daytime and nighttime, not fantastic, not tuna fishing as good as before the storm, but some catches, said Eric from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. The fish were also trolled, and plenty of white marlin swam Toms and Lindenkohl canyons. As many as 20 per trip were landed, and mahi mahi were smaller than before, but gave up pretty darn good catches at offshore waters like these. Closer to shore, false albacore fishing picked up. They were trolled at Manasquan Ridge yesterday, and anglers at the Mudhole could basically troll as many as they wanted. Small jets and sizes 0 and 1 Clark spoons caught best at either location. Albies were fought from the surf on Deadly Dicks and flies. Fluke fishing was fair, picking a few, on the ocean. Depths 85 to 90 feet seemed best, and one day a trip would bag a few, and on another day, a trip would bag none. Baitfish and a few fluke remained in Manasquan Inlet, and fluke are expected to remain there throughout fluke season that will close beginning September 26. Striped bass were hooked in Manasquan River at the Railroad and Route 35 bridges and in Point Pleasant Canal. Eels took keepers, and soft-plastic lures caught throwbacks. Nighttime on outgoing tides seemed the time. Weakfish to 17 and 18 inches were reported schooling at the Route 35 Bridge and in northern Barnegat Bay at Mantoloking Bridge. They swiped pink Fin-S Fish and small plugs, and some anglers landed six, 10 or 12 a trip, pretty good fishing.

The party boat <b>Jamaica II</b>’s daily fluke trips mostly fished deep in the ocean, in 70 to 100 feet of water, since the storm, and still caught some sizable, Capt. Ryan wrote in an email. Bring heavier sinkers and Spros to fish the deep, and customers and their catches included Leroy Williams with a limit to 6 pounds and Frank Pogue and Bruce Casagrande, both with limits to 5 pounds. Only a 6-pounder is leading the monthly pool, so catching a bigger is still “open.” A couple of 7-pounders were creamed this month, but the customers weren’t in the pool. The winner of the monthly pool not only gets the cash but also a whopping year of free fishing aboard. Huge porgies and some bluefish and mackerel also showed up in catches. Beautiful, out-of-season sea bass were released. The Jamaica II is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m. every Tuesday through Sunday and 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. every Monday. Extended Fluke Marathons will sail 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. next Monday and September 25, the final day of fluke season. A cod trip will fish 2 a.m. to 5 p.m. September 26, and telephone for reservations. Mudhole wreck-fishing trips will sail for ling, cod and winter flounder 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. October 1, 8, 9, 15 and 16.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

<b>***Update, Tuesday, 9/13:***</b> Catches of fluke were a little better Monday than on previous days on the <b>Norma-K III</b> on the ocean, a report said on the party boat’s website. “We had some keepers and shorts come up on both trips (Monday),” it said, and a 7-pound 4-ouncer won the afternoon trip’s pool. A 5-1/2-pounder won the morning trip’s, and the fluking is fishing rough bottom, so bring extra tackle, because of losing tackle from snagging. Plenty of sinkers are carried aboard.  Most fluke on Monday’s trips were hooked on bait, including whole squid, not bucktails. Bluefishing was good for 8- to 15-pounders on Friday and Saturday night’s trips. The crew had thought the storm might “blow in” big blues, and it did, and they expect the fishing to only improve. Small blues bit previously this season a long time. The Norma-K III is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m. daily and is bluefishing 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays.

<b>Forked River</b>

An overnight trip for tuna is supposed to sail offshore this afternoon and return Wednesday with <b>Tuna-Tic Sportfishing</b>, Capt. Mike said. Plenty of good-sized yellowfin tuna began to bite before the storm. When boats returned to the fishing one day last week between weather, seas were still somewhat rough, keeping the boats from being run to where anglers wanted. Lots of marlin, wahoos and mahi mahi were found, but few tuna were, and the tuna had pushed east. The trip departing today would see how the fishing was now.

<b>Absecon</b>

<b>***Update, Tuesday, 9/13:***</b> The annual <a href=" http://www.abseconbay.com/2016stripersale.html" target="_blank">Striped Bass Season Kick-Off Sale</a> is underway through Sunday at <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. The sale features 25 percent off nearly everything, and 50 percent off some items.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Some good catches of brown sharks were reported from the surf, a report said on <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>’s website. Browns are required to be released, and two anglers had a good time letting them go Sunday morning. Snapper blues schooled the surf, and mullet on a fireball rig will hook them. The blues were too small for a mullet rig. Boaters found decent-sized weakfish in back-waters. Not many summer flounder swam the back, and most migrated to the ocean. Time to gear up with heavier bucktails and rigs and fish ocean reefs and wrecks for them. Try fishing 5- to 7-inch Gulp swimming mullets for the fluke, and some big swim the ocean.

<b>Longport</b>

Summer flounder fishing was ridiculously good, said Capt. Mike from the <b>Stray Cat</b>. Trips cleaned them up from atop Ocean City Reef in 63 feet of water. The fish, 2- to 4-pounders, chewed their heads off on Sunday’s trip, the whole time. A couple of 6-pounders were crushed on trips. Many out-of-season sea bass schooled the area. Yesterday’s trip could hardly get away from 2- and 3-pounders in the morning. The ocean’s been 74 or 75 degrees, and almost nothing changed about the water since the storm. No mahi mahi swam around the boat like before. Croakers with spike weakfish schooled closer to shore, 2 or 3 miles from the coast. They were found 5 ½ miles off one day. Snapper blues schooled everywhere. Trips are concentrating on flounder, before flounder season is closed beginning September 26. Charters are sailing, and the next open-boat trip will fish Tuesday. Open trips might also sail next week on Monday and Tuesday, maybe also on Friday that week.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Small pods of false albacore schooled the ocean, and trips were making the most of shots at them aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. On Thursday two anglers aboard jigged bluefish to 3 pounds and three albies on the ocean. On Friday two other anglers jigged a bunch of the blues to 3 pounds and no albies on the ocean. On Saturday, the ocean was rougher, and an angler and daughter aboard trolled there a little, catching blues and a Spanish mackerel, then retreated to the bay, hooking and releasing sea bass. On Sunday on the ocean, a trip with two anglers had one real shot at albies, and jigged one. Again, the trip capitalized on the shot. The trip also jigged blues to 3 pounds. High tides at dusk are ideal this week for popper-plug or popper-fly fishing for striped bass on the back bay. Joe did none of the fishing, taking advantage of the ocean angling. But the popper fishing is a specialty aboard, drawing explosive, visual hits along the water surface. He did no summer flounder fishing in past days and heard nothing about flounder since before the storm. Annual traveling charters to Montauk will kick off this weekend that fish the migration of stripers, blues and albies. Be the first among your friends to fish the year’s southern migration. Enjoy the angling from the historic port.  See the <a href=" http://www.captainjoehughes.com/page3.html" target="_blank">traveling charters’ page</a> on Jersey Cape’s website. <b>Speaking of traveling</b>, annual charters will fish the Florida Keys this winter, and also see info about that on the page. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s Blog</a>.

<b>Avalon</b>

Summer flounder fishing at ocean reefs was canceled Saturday aboard because of wind, said Capt. Jim from <b>Fins and Feathers Outfitters</b>. He heard that small striped bass were angled from the back bay at night under lights. Guided goose hunting began for the season with Fins. Three trips in Pennsylvania, one on the water and two in a field, totaled about 25 Canadian geese last week with him. Fins offers a variety of outdoor adventures, including saltwater fishing and goose and duck hunting. Anglers can even enjoy a combo of striped bass fishing and duck hunting on Delaware Bay or the ocean over a series of days in fall. Fins also offers salmon and steelhead fishing on upstate New York’s Salmon River from Jim’s lodge. The salmon fishing’s about to begin, and anglers at the lodge can fish on their own or with a guide. The lodge’s staff can also show the anglers how to fish for the salmon, and then the anglers can fish on their own. Fins also offers fly-fishing for trout on Pennsylvania’s trout streams.  

<b>Wildwood</b>

Capt. Jim from <b>Fins & Grins Sport Fishing</b> was traveling last week, and fishing will resume now aboard, he said. Most of the week’s weather was unfishable anyway. Trips will continue fishing for summer flounder on the ocean, like before. They’ll also chase croakers, weakfish and blues on the ocean like before. Trolling for catches like false albacore and Spanish mackerel is booked to sail soon. Nothing really changed with fishing after the storm. Fins fishes every day, and reservations aren’t required but suggested. Telephone for availability. Fall striped bass trips are beginning to book, and if anglers want to fish for them on weekends, those dates fill quickly. So do trips for sea bass and blackfish in fall on weekends.

<b>Cape May</b>

Seas were rough, but the anglers wanted to fish, and a trip Saturday trolled one sizable mahi mahi and some false albacore on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. The anglers, the Parker charter, trolled the fish. The mahi hit while the trip dragged chrome for albies, not while trolling near lobster pot buoys or targeting mahi specifically. A couple of fish, probably albies, also bit off lines. Little was heard about other fishing in wind that blew most of the week, including nothing was heard about summer flounder. Some of the fleet is expected to tuna fish in the next days, and George looked forward to hearing results. Trips will tuna fish aboard if the fish show up within range.

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