Thu., March 28, 2024
Moon Phase:
Waning Gibbous
More Info
Inshore Charters
Offshore Charters
Party Boats
Saltwater
Tackle Shops &
Marinas
Saltwater
Boat Rentals
Freshwater
Guides
Freshwater
Tackle Shops
Brrr ...
It's Cold:
Upstate N.Y.
Ice Fishing
Upstate N.Y.
Winter Steelhead &
Trout Fishing
Long Island, N.Y.
Winter
Cod &
Wreck Fishing

New Jersey Freshwater Fishing Report 5-23-18

<b>NEW YORK</b>

<b>Salmon River and Trout Streams</b>

Jay Peck from <b>Jay Peck Guide Service</b> will probably fish for steelheads a few more days on Salmon River, he said. The run was winding down or the fish spawned and were returning to Lake Ontario to spend summer. Afterward, he’ll probably fish for Atlantic salmon a moment on the river, and will fish for trout on streams through summer. His fishing for Chinook and Coho salmon on the river begins in late August or September, whenever those fish begin to migrate to the river from the lake to spawn. Salmon River ran at 350 cubic feet per second, higher than the usual 185 this time of year. One-hundred-eighty five is the summer minimum. The higher water than usual, and colder than usual, kept steelheads in the river later than in some years. It also made the steelheading good this spring. Was a good season. The water currently was 58 to 62 degrees. The conditions currently were excellent for the time of year. Trout fishing is picking up, and mayflies and caddis are beginning to hatch. Jay trout fishes including on tributaries of the upper Salmon and on a stream southwest of Rochester in the Caledonia area. The Salmon River tributaries are brook trout fisheries, and the stream in the Caledonia area is off-the-grid. The fishing is fairly technical on that stream, and that can be fun and keep anglers on their game. Jay specializes in fly-fishing and catch-and-release, and books trips that fish with conventional tackle with his other guides.

<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

Delaware River ran high because of rain, said Andy from <b>Stokes Forest Sport Shop</b> in Sandyston. Few anglers fished for shad on the river because of that, but shore anglers still landed a few. Shad swam shallows close to land to escape the high water’s strong current, making shore angling conducive to a few catches. Big Flatbrook ran somewhat high but not terribly, giving up lots of trout. Most customers who trout fish work the Flatbrook. Most customers fished worms, sometimes PowerBait or salmon eggs, for the trout. But many fly-fished for the trout, lately swinging big streamers across current, hooking the trout when the flies swam toward slower water from fast. Fishing at lakes and ponds becomes popular beginning on Memorial Day weekend for customers. A fishing club from Swartswood Lake held an annual tournament on the lake last weekend. Rough weather kept entrants to a minimum, and only 30 or 40 anglers entered. Trout and walleyes are usually angled in the contest.

Capt. Dave Vollenweider from <b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> from Montvale gave no real fishing report this week. But he emailed <a href="http://fishingreportsnow.com/NJ_Fishing_Photos_View.cfm/PhotoID/22111/desc/Fishing-for-carp-br-on-Passaic.html" target="_blank">photos including this one</a> of carp fishing that he did on Passaic River.

A few fished on Monday, a beautiful day between rain on other days, said Don from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. Most customers who fished reported angling on Lake Hopatcong.  Two of the shop’s crew from the gun department fished Hopatcong, landing more than 60 fish –panfish including bluegills, perch and crappies and 12-inch herring – in 4 ½ hours. They had a great time, hooking fish on almost every cast. A customer fished Shongum Lake in Randolph, plucking largemouth bass from spawning beds and releasing them. Largemouths must be released through June 15 because of spawning. Don kept asking customers if largemouths were spawning at Lake Hopatcong, and they kept saying no. Water depth and temperature must’ve made the difference, he figured. Not much was heard about trout fishing, maybe because of the rain. Maybe trout streams ran high. A stream, not a trout stream, ran high where Don lives. Rockaway River down the road looked higher than average. He’d see how it looked after yesterday’s rain. Kids kept buying darts and tackle for shad fishing they were doing on Delaware River at Milford, saying the fishing was sporadic. Customers trolled Raritan Bay for striped bass in saltwater, saying they hooked more bluefish than stripers.

Catfishing at Spruce Run Reservoir was probably the hottest angling, said Keith from <b>Hi-Way Sports Shop</b> in Washington. Anybody who fished bait there seemed to tie into catfish. Hybrid striped bass and largemouth were also reeled from Spruce. Release the largemouths through June 15 by law for spawning. Largemouths currently are probably a mix of spawners, pre-spawners and post-spawners. If you’re a shore angler, this is a good time of year for largemouth fishing, because the bass are holding tight to shore on spawning beds. Kids who stopped at the shop wormed largemouths at Oxford Lake. Another customer hooked a 4-pounder there on a Zoom lizard. Keith saw a photo of a 48-inch musky tackled at Oxford, and heard about multiple 30-inch-class tangled with there. The 48-incher smacked a size-4 Blue Fox spinner with a silver blade and a blue body. Smallmouth bass fishing was great at Merrill Creek Reservoir, and smallmouths are also required to be let go through that date for spawning. Just cast and retrieve 4-inch Keitech swim baits to lock into them. Not much was reported about Delaware River’s shad fishing because of flooding. Trout streams ran high, and few fished for trout because of rain. But those who did, caught.

Rain was falling again yesterday, said Cheryl from <b>Fairfield Fishing Tackle</b> in Pine Brook. Water had dropped in Passaic River near the shop, and was back up again yesterday. Largemouth bass, required to be released through June 15 for spawning, bit when anglers tried for them. One customer hooked them on a spinner bait, and another did on a twister tail. Not a lot of anglers fished for the bass in stormy weather.  Trout were still angled, and no locations were specifically heard about, but meal worms kept being sold for the fishing, and obviously the anglers were catching. Larry from the shop party-boated a bunch of sea bass on the ocean on a trip.

Someone who kept buying shiners at the store was fishing the bait at Lake Riviera, said Dennis from <b>Hook House Bait & Tackle</b> in Toms River. He and another angler were mostly pulling in largemouth bass, a decent number, from the dock. Another customer hung two trout from Lake Shenandoah from the dock on salmon eggs under a bobber. Panfish are going crazy at lakes. Practically anybody who fished for them with garden worms under a bobber scored. Lots of perch, mostly white perch, were drilled on the Toms River on grass shrimp and worms. The shrimp caught best, and Trilco is a closed building supply. No sign identifies the building, but locals know the stretch by the name, located near Garden State Parkway. Hook House, located on Route 37, also owns <b>Go Fish Bait & Tackle</b> on Fischer Boulevard in Toms River.

Rain fell during much of the weekend, and not much was heard about fishing, said Jason from <b>STC Sports</b> in Gibbstown. A couple of customers yesterday said fishing was erratic the past three or four days. That seemed because of erratic weather lately, clear and warm on an occasional day, stormy on the rest. The fish seemed “confused.” Weather was pouring and 62 degrees when Jason gave this report yesterday afternoon. Whether largemouth bass were spawning at lakes was difficult to tell when few anglers got after them. Let largemouths go through June 15 for spawning, according to law. Delaware River’s striped bass fishing slowed. A few were still hooked. Fishing for snakeheads, the invasive species, is usually good as weather warms along tidal tributaries of the Delaware.

This past rainy week hampered fishing, and only a few reports came in, a report said on <b>Sportsman’s Outpost</b> in Williamstown’s Facebook page. But those who fished made some good catches, like a 5.2-pound largemouth bass from Clark’s Pond in Fairton on a KVD Sexy Shad. Release largemouths through June 15 by law for spawning. A 10-year-old clobbered a 6-pound largemouth at Salem Canal on a Swim Senko Worm. One angler smoked seven largemouths to 4 pounds at Alloway Lake on a Berkley Power Worm in black with blue flakes. Another angler totaled three largemouths to 4 pounds at Newton Lake on minnows. A 6-pound chain pickerel was subdued at Sunset Lake. The same angler waxed two largemouths to 3 pounds at the lake during the trip.

Lots of largemouth bass were pasted at lakes, though weather was a little rainy, said Steve from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. The law requires them to be released through June 15 because of spawning. Union Lake just kept producing them. Smallmouth bass, also required to be tossed back through that date, were picked here and there at Union. Good reports about largemouths rolled in from Elmer and Parvin lakes. Soft-plastic lures like Senko worms, lizards and creature baits were often used for largemouths. A few largemouths began to be reported clocked on top-water lures. Not much was heard about crappies. Fishing for bluegills and sunnies was reliable at lakes for lots of customers buying worms for the angling. In saltwater, black drum fishing was great on Delaware Bay. Many customers were gearing up for Friday’s opening of summer flounder season. That fishing’s expected to be good on back bays, maybe not so much on deeper, cooler Delaware Bay. Delaware Bay’s fishing for flounder peaked later in the year, when the water was  warmer, in recent years.

Back to Top