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<b>Staten Island</b>

A trip with <b>Outcast Charters</b> on Friday produced very good bluefishing for 5- to 8-pounders probably 11 miles offshore, Capt. Joe said. Most of the fish were hooked on bait, but some were jigged, and a 60- or 70-pound dusky shark was also nailed. On a trip Saturday younger kids were aboard, and some were feeling seasick, so they stayed closer to shore and bluefished instead of heading farther offshore where the great bluefishing took place the previous day. But the bluefishing was slow inshore, so they switched to sea bassing during the second half of the trip and put together a nice catch. Outcast is chartering for bottom fish, fluke and blues, and striper trips are still available, but anglers have to fish early in the mornings along the ocean beaches to the south to score stripers.

Capt. Tommy Verderosa from <b>Frenzy Fishing Charters</b> was traveling during the past several days, so he did no fluke fishing, he said. But he’s mostly fluke fishing now, although stripers can be caught throughout the season, if somebody wants to target them.  On fluke trips he’s mostly fishing Ambrose Channels but also other channels, and he’s got lots of spots he fishes. Some of the larger flatties will hold in the channels, and they seem to like the cooler water on the bottom there, and the fish come up cold to the touch.  Lots of fluke were biting, and anglers did have to weed through the smaller ones. Lots of winds blew against the tide yesterday, but boaters can power drift to help deal with the lack of drift that it causes. On Tommy’s striper trips he catches resident stripers all season long at Swinburne and Hoffman Islands, smaller fish that will hit soft plastic lures, lots of fun on light tackle. Charters can also sail for larger linesiders that are still swimming the Shrewsbury Rocks in the ocean, attacking livelined bunker in the early mornings. Lots of bluefish were around for anglers to fight.

<b>Laurence Harbor</b>

<b>Evening Tide Charters</b> was finding lots of fluke in the bay inside Sandy Hook this past week, and loads were shorts, but keepers were mixed in, Capt. Kyle said. Trips picked up flatties to 4 and 5 pounds, no humongous ones, but a decent size. Squid and spearing were the baits, and chartreuse squid worked well, and so did chartreuse Mister Twister tails. Blues from 6 to 12 pounds were also hooked, and bunker were schooling. Kyle’s been looking for weakfish at Chapel Hill Channel and Reach Channel but was finding none so far. But when they show up, Evening Tide will go after them. He started finding a few weaks last year by July 4, so the trout are due. But charters will also keep sailing for fluke until the season ends.

<b>Keyport</b>

A crew trip sailed with <b>Papa’s Angels Charters</b> a couple of hours Saturday and landed several fluke including a couple of keepers on squid and killies, Capt. Joe said. Open-boat trips are sailing 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. every day when no charter is booked, and so is an open trip 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Wednesday. The open trips are currently targeting fluke but will also sail for weakfish when weaks arrive. The trips take place with a minimum of three passengers, and call to reserve or for prices or info.

Bob Barkoff’s charter from Custom Plus custom car builders headed out for sea bass on the <b>Lucky Carm</b> and managed a nice catch of keepers, Capt. Carmine said. Then they headed in to fluke fish off the beaches of Sandy Hook, and 75 or 80 throwbacks must’ve been hooked to catch a dozen keepers to 4 pounds. Bob was high hook, and Bill Paulman nailed the biggest fish. On Saturday Dina and Rich Hereema’s party managed a catch of fluke to 6 pounds, and the group didn’t limit out, but they caught keepers from 17 inches to 6 pounds. Dina was high hook, and Nicky boated the 6-pounder, and Bob and Sam were also aboard. Dina and Rich are newlyweds, and Carmen sends congratulations, and Dina treated Rich to the trip for his birthday. On Sunday Tammy Brown treated boyfriend Daryl Clark to a trip, and Tammy’s daughter Jillian was high hook with a 3-pound fluke, and Frank and Peggy Johnson and Bill were also aboard. Lots of winds kicked up rough seas. Fluking’s been outstanding, and some nice flatties could be hooked if anglers knew how to target them. Carmine saw anglers come back to the dock with fluke to 10 pounds yesterday. Carmine’s friend Doug Larson sharked fished at the Glory Hole on Saturday and tackled a 5-foot 7-inch mako. Evening charters are available from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. or from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., and custom times in the evenings are also available. Open-boat trips are taking place 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. every day with a minimum of three anglers when no charter is booked, and call to reserve. Charters are also available at that time, and basically hours on charters and open trips are negotiable if necessary.  

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Fluke fishing was up and down, depending on whether the drift was right, and the catch wasn’t as good as Capt. Tom from the <b>Atlantic Star</b> said he would like, but some fluke were boated. The boat’s rips fished Reach Channel, off the Ammo Pier, Chapel Hill Channel and Flynn’s Knoll, and Marshall Christie hauled in a 7-pound flattie, his biggest of the year, on Saturday afternoon. On Saturday morning John Giordano walloped both a 5-pound 10-ouncer and a 5-pounder. But pool winners were usually 4 or 4 ½ pounds. Saturday morning’s trip produced some keepers, and the afternoon was a little better, and Sunday was a tough day, one of the slowest of the season. Every spot seemed to produce either no drift or a drift that was too fast. Trips did no fishing in the ocean, and on Sunday southern winds cooled the water, so most boaters fished the bay. Skill seems to play a part in catches to some extent. One angler on Friday bagged four keepers, while others around him landed one or two. But the angler who landed four seemed to work for the fish, maybe lifting the rod up and down a bit, instead of only letting the bait drag the bottom. Maybe some anglers lift the rod up and down, and when they feel a bite, let the bait back down to let the fish grab it before setting the hook, while other anglers might not even realize a fish is there. That angler with the four keepers also caught more shorts than others. The Atlantic Star is sailing for fluke on two trips daily from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

A charter on the <b>CRT II</b> put together a light pick of fluke including a couple of keepers late Friday afternoon into the evening, Capt. Mick said. On Saturday John Reindel’s group started fishing for stripers at the Shrewsbury Rocks, because reports were heard about stripers biting there the day before, but the bite wasn’t too hot this day. One striper was landed, so the anglers switched to bluefishing at the Mud Dump and boated a few, losing more than were landed. Next the group tried deep-water fluking at the fisherman’s buoy, and a few sea bass were pulled up. All in all the fishing was kind of disappointing, but some fish were taken. On Sunday morning a pick-up charter from the dock hopped aboard for a light pick of fluke, including a couple of keepers to 19 inches, and in the afternoon another pick-up trip sailed for a very light pick, including a couple of keepers to 19 inches, and also fought lots of sea robins and a few skates. Most of the fluke fishing on these trips took place from the dredge holes around the West Bank to the ocean off Monmouth Beach, so the boat did some traveling. Squid and spearing combos and fluke belly did the trick. Mick hoped fluking would pick back up, but other species were available, including big blues at the Mud Dump, although the action wasn’t real hot, and tailor blues in the bay.

On the <b>Fishermen</b> patrons picked away at fluke all day Thursday, not the action like the previous few days, but the customers still managed a catch of nice flatties along with some sea bass, Capt. Ron said in the fishing report on the boat’s web site. The high hook bagged five flatties, and most boated two or three, and some grabbed no keepers, and the pool fish was about 4 pounds. A charter fished tight to the ocean beach Friday with lousy conditions that called for power drifting, and the anglers picked away at short fluke and keepers.  On a charter Saturday morning the anglers who listened about how to catch flatties landed fish, and those who didn’t had no luck, and even power drifting was a futile attempt at producing a catch. At night the boat targeted bluefish for a very good catch, and five stripers to 25 pounds were also scored, and the fish were hooked in shallow water in the ocean on bunker chunks. The first 12 fish were missed until customers got acclimated on how to hook them.  On Sunday the boat resumed its open-boat fluke trips in the mornings, and patrons picked flatties, and the high hook caught four keepers, and a couple pulled up three. The Fishermen is fishing for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, usually in the ocean, and the vessel is chartered tomorrow morning. Afternoon bluefishing trips are running 3:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Fridays through Sundays.

<b>Highlands</b>

Eight keeper fluke to 22 inches were bagged Sunday with <b>Knot Easy Sportfishing Charters</b> in the bay, Capt. Matt said in an e-mail. The trip worked Sandy Hook Channel in the morning on incoming tide till 10 a.m. and scored some keepers, and the boat pushed farther inshore when the tide turned slack, and a few more keepers were boxed on outgoing. On Thursday a fluke trip fished the ocean, because strong north/northwest winds made fishing the bay tough. But conditions created a good drift as the trip worked the ocean off Sandy Hook’s nude beach to the swimming beach, and eight keepers to 23 inches were taken. The ocean was 69.6 degrees, and lots of shorts also bit on the trips, and many were just under the legal size. “Last year’s keepers!” Matt said. The shorts gave up a bunch of action, and the baits were either squid with spearing or squid with sand eels.

<b>Fisher Price Charters</b> competed in the Sandy Hook Bay Anglers Fluke Tournament over the weekend, and Saturday’s fishing was tough because of no drift, but the boat power drifted, and nine keepers to 6 pounds were nabbed, Capt. Derek said. On Sunday winds blew strongly from the southwest but created better drifting in the ocean, and 16 keepers to 9 pounds were pulled over the rails in 35 to 60 feet. Shallower water in the ocean was producing small fluke but greater numbers, and deeper water was holding larger flatties but fewer, and sea bass were mixed in along the deeper spots. Striper anglers still got into good catches recently, and if charters want to target stripers, the boat is available. Derek saw a few weakfish in the river, but he didn’t look around much for weakfish yet. Eventually Fisher Price will target weaks.

<b>Sea Bright</b>

Capt. Fletcher Chayes from <b>Two Rivers Charters</b> had just returned from Costa Rica and had a great time reeling in fish including sailfish, marlin, dorado, roosterfish, snappers and groupers, he said. But he got right back to fishing Jersey, and a trip Saturday looked for stripers in the ocean. At first lots of fish were read on the fish finder, but none bit, but at 10:30 a.m. the anglers started crushing linesiders to 48 pounds on live bunker. Fletcher said he guessed it was the icing on the cake of striper season, and it was “epic” fishing. Bunker were schooling, and a 50-pound dusky shark was also landed among the bunker. Originally the trip was mainly going to target fluke and ended up bailing stripers, but six fluke were also reeled in from the ocean. Fluke fishing will now be a focus on charters, and fluking seemed good in the ocean and bay. Fletcher tried for fluke with his son and his son’s friend on Friday, and they landed lots to 3 pounds in the bay. Two Rivers will also target weakfish, and Fletcher saw a few weaks feeding in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers under the lights at night. He was hearing little about weakfish so far but wondered if hardly anyone had tried for the trout. Sandworms were very expensive, so maybe anglers were avoiding buying sandworms and dunking them for weaks until reports about plenty of the fish rolled in. Oddly enough, he did hear reports about big, 10- and 13-pound weakies landed in the bay. But he’s waiting to hear about the 2- and 3-pounders that show up en masse this season.

<b>Neptune</b>

Anglers with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> were reeling in striped bass and fluke, Capt. Ralph said. Fluke to 4 and 5 pounds were bagged in the ocean over the weekend, and one fluke trip produced consistent fishing, and sea bassing was also excellent Saturday. Striper fishing was very good on a trip Saturday afternoon in the ocean, even though normally anglers had to fish very early in the morning for stripers. No shark charters sailed, but sharking is available. A few spots are available on the weekly, Wednesday, individual-reservation fluke trip this week, and spaces are also available in the coming weeks.

<b>Belmar</b>

A shark charter on the <b>Nan Sea J</b> bagged a 100-pound mako, fought a dusky shark to the boat and scored three healthy-sized mahi mahi upwards of 20 pounds apiece on Friday, and there were a few other bites, Capt. Tom said. Two of the mahi bit shark rigs, and one was hooked on a pitched bait when the fish swam into the chum slick. The water was 71 degrees and not so clear, and the water was clearer on a shark trip Wednesday, but there was a lot of life on the water on this trip. The vessel’s weekly, open-boat shark trips that run every Wednesday through June and July are full the next two weeks, so that’s it for the season, and no more of the open trips will sail this year. But shark charters will still be offered, and get in on the trips now if you want to go, because the water temps will soon be too warm for sharks. Charters are also fluke fishing in the ocean, and the catch is decent when conditions create a good drift, and sea bass are mixed in when rough bottom is fished. Charters are also still boating stripers in the ocean on chunked bunker, and bluefish are mixed in.

<b>Brielle</b>

Ocean fluke fishing was pretty good, and ocean striper fishing was hit or miss, and one day stripers would be caught in the afternoon, and another they’d be picked up in the morning, and the next day they’d be gone, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. Tuna fishing was mostly slow except bluefin tuna fishing down south. Elio Cettina from the Four C’s checked in a whopper fluke that was 32 inches and more than 12 pounds. John Muly and family on the Charmer fished Sea Girt Reef and landed a load of sea bass to a 3-3/4-pounder that wife Patty tackled. Arnie Colonna and son Nick on the Intensity trolled Lindenkohl Canyon and nailed a 185-pound bigeye tuna on a Reel Seat rainbow squid spreader bar and also boated seven tilefish from 10 to 20 pounds.  Rob Jenkins on the Moby’s Mistress battled a bunch of sharks including a 250-pound dusky that he and his father fought and released, and no other shark reports were heard. The Reel Seat is open until 8 p.m. on Fridays.

Fishing for fluke on a trip Friday with <b>The Troll Charters</b> was slow, and lots of skates and dogfish attacked baits, but a fluke trip Saturday was fabulous, Capt. Jack said. The anglers limited out that day on flatties to 6 or 7 pounds in the ocean off Bay Head in 45 to 50 feet, and bunches of shorts bit, and many were just under the legal size. Fluke charters will continue to fish, and The Troll will chase stripers whenever the linesiders show up. Stripers are scattered, and you never know where they’re going to show up, but they are showing up, and lots of bunker are schooling. Fishing seemed very active, and Jack thinks the outlook is very good for the rest of summer with all the bait and life in the water. After summer, it’ll only get better through fall. A friend was shark fishing at the Mudhole on Saturday and nailed a 175-pound bluefin tuna and some mahi mahi. That’s a good sign!

On the <b>Katie H</b> eight keeper fluke were bagged Saturday in 20 to 30 feet in the ocean, Capt. Mike said. The morning was a little slow because of no drift, and the water was 67 degrees. Fluking’s been really good in July, and it’s a great time to catch the flatties, and stripers can also be hooked in the early mornings. The best charters right now are ones that sail for stripers early in the mornings and then fluke fish the rest of the day, and sea bass can also be landed with the fluke along rough bottom. The stripers are turning off as soon as too many boats get on them, so it’s best to beat the other boats to the fish. A couple of boaters from the dock fished for tuna but had to run 125 miles away, and one grabbed six tuna, and the other found three, so tuna fishing wasn’t really happening yet, and that’s a long way to sail for six fish. But mako shark fishing was still good, and mako charters are available. A friend had a great day of mako fishing Friday, fighting three of the sharks. Mike hadn’t seen such a good mako season in a long time.

Sea bassing was tough this past week, and on good days average catches ranged five to ten lumpheads per angler, and on slower days fewer were hooked, an e-mail from the <b>Paramount</b> said. Some shallow waters now held the fish, and the Mudhole was now producing schools of ling. On Wednesday Willie Williams boated 26 ling, and Joe Barlow took 24, and Jim Henderson landed more than 20. Luis Ferreira won the pool that day with a 5-pound ling, and the fishing was good. Ling fishing was also very good on Tuesday, when Mack Dubois bailed 40 ling and Nate Esark scored 32, and most patrons took home eight to 20 ling, depending on skill. The Paramount is sailing on marathon trips for sea bass and occasional blackfish and ling 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. every Monday and Friday. The trips are meant to give anglers a little more fishing time and to allow the boat to cover more ground for every species within reach at the inshore reefs and rocks to the Mudhole wrecks, depending on whatever’s biting best. Because ling are now schooling the Mudhole, the boat is running Deep Water Mudhole Ling Specials 6:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. every Tuesday and Wednesday, targeting ling, cod, pollock and occasional blackfish.  Trips targeting sea bass and occasional ling and blackfish are sailing 6:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. every Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Visit wreckmasters.com for info.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

Manasquan River’s fluking was very good lately, and a good number of keepers were coming up, said Capt. Anthony from <b>Angela Rose Charters</b>. Charters are now fluking and bluefishing, and crabbing trips are also available. Happy Hour trips are also on tap, and dates are available for all these trips. On Sunday the boat hosted a cruise on the river, and points of interest included the commercial fishing fleet, Will’s Hole, Treasure Island, the Manasquan River Golf Course and Manasquan’s U.S. Coast Guard Station, one of the oldest active stations in the nation. On Saturday Angela Rose hosted a birthday party for one of Anthony’s girlfriends. Before leaving the dock, the girls hoisted the Playboy bunny flag, and the boat headed to the F-Cove, where the big, 34-foot King Cat was beached. For the next 8 hours the girls danced, partied, swam and “well, what happens on the Angela Rose stays on the Angela Rose,” Anthony joked. Photos will be posted on this site’s photo pages.

<b>Reel Class Charters</b> ran a special Manasquan River trip Sunday that fished with light tackle and even ultra-light tackle and found solid action everywhere, Capt. Allen said in an e-mail. Ten keeper fluke and 20 shorts were landed, and so were hickory shad, sea robins and one tailor blue. Three of the anglers each nailed a 3-pound fluke, and it was a good trip, Allen said. The anglers fished upriver of the Route 35 Bridge at three spots: off the hospital, off Clark’s Landing and between Clark’s Landing and Garden State Marine. Chartreuse twister tails on jigheads hooked all the fish, and Bill, Steph, Jeff and Andrew were the anglers. Another trip also fished inland Saturday, but fishing was dead.

Tim Occhipinti and buddies fished aboard the <b>Benchmark</b> and boated 11 striped bass to 33 pounds and two big fluke 8 pounds and 4 pounds Saturday, the fishing report on the boat’s web site said. Live bunker took the stripers, and stripers were still running, and join the boat for a mid-week trip. Andy Capinaela’s group took a river cruise Tuesday, and Sal Mancusso’s family fished last Monday for a slow pick of bluefish and a pick of short fluke, and many of the fluke were only a half-inch or less short.

<b>Bricktown</b>

Sailing for stripers in the ocean was a hot fishery in the early mornings, evenings and nights, and most of the linesiders were scored in waters with rocky bottom, and live bunker or bunker chunks were the baits of choice, said Tommy Kilgannon from <b>Pell’s Fish & Sport</b> in a fax. Michael Daly Sr. and Jr. weighed in a beautiful, 32-pound striper that swallowed bunker in the ocean off Bay Head. Mario and Klare DePalma boated bass to 22 pounds off Asbury Park, and Rob Lewis and Tim and Trish Bushey took stripers to 30 pounds off Spring Lake. Johy Griecly Sr. and Jr. and Mark and Ben Dier tied into stripers to 35 pounds 2 miles off Point Pleasant. Fluke fishing produced in the ocean to the north, and Frank Krupa boated a 5.6-pounder on the Misty Morn, and Brian Poppy reeled up a 5-pounder and seven others on the Cheri Lynn II with Capt. Rich Snowden.

<b>Seaside</b>

Some reports rolled in about small bluefish picked up from the surf, right on schedule with last year, said the fishing report on <b>Betty and Nick’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s web site. Small fluke and a smattering of keepers were taken from the suds, and stripers were being pulled from the suds, but most weren’t being weighed in or reported by now. But one angler checked in an 18-pounder striper that was clammed in the surf, and another today nailed a 35-inch striper and two small blues at Island Beach State Park and was probably fishing by himself. Recent southerly winds might chill the water a little and pull in bunker again. Loads of blackfish were hitting along the rocks at the southern end of Island Beach. The surf was 1 to 2 feet, 65 degrees and clean. A free reel cover worth $15 is being given away with any reel purchase while supplies last. <a href=" http://www.bettyandnicks.com/fish.shtml" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for the latest.

<b>Waretown</b>

Fluke fishing was good in the ocean off the bathing beach at Island Beach State Park on a couple of trips with <b>Perfect Drift Sport Fishing</b>, even though shorts had to be weeded through, Capt. John said. Flatties to 4 or 4 ½ pounds were boated on the trips, and the water was around 67 degrees. Everybody seemed to be concentrating on those fluke, so no news was heard about other fishing, like whether weakfish were showing up in Barnegat Bay. Perfect Drift will keep targeting the summer flounder.

<b>Barnegat</b>

Things were finally coming together, and charters went pretty well, said Capt. Melanie from <b>FisherQueen Custom Bay Charters</b> in an e-mail. Barnegat Bay was hovering in the high 50s on the top of the tides and in the upper 70s on low tides, and Ryan Fitzpatrick was aboard with his father Bob “Banana” and hit the bay along the sod banks for scrappy stripers. Next they headed to the mainland side of the bay and spent most of the time on the trip hitting bluefish and weakfish on Bass Kandy Delights. Later they tried fluking in the bay but had no takers. On Friday Karen Wall, outdoor writer from the Asbury Park Press, and daughter Emily, the “Fish Slayer,” were onboard. They sailed along the mainland side of the bay and tangled with blues. Then they targeted Double Creek Channel, landing a mess of bluefish and a gang of fluke. Only one of the fluke was a keeper, a 19-incher, but a good time was had by all, Mel said.

<b>Cedar Run</b>

The first tuna trip of the season took place with <b>Fish the Dropoff</b> on Saturday on the Cousins, Capt. Fran said in an e-mail. One small bluefin tuna was landed, and there was one knockdown, and the trip started fishing at the Cigar and worked its way to the 750 Square. Schools of tuna were seen but didn’t always bite, and the water was in the low 70s, and seas were calm, and the day was sunny and perfect. On Thursday the McCoy family was aboard for a return trip and boated seven keeper sea bass and a bluefish at the reef. Lots of short sea bass also bit, and flounder were nowhere to be found, probably because of cold water around 60 degrees. Fran thinks flounder fishing will rebound when the water warms. On Wednesday the Cousins ran back-to-back 4-hour trips. In the morning the Mike Weber party was aboard in thick fog, and the trip nailed seven keeper sea bass, 10 shorts and a bluefish. Tom Weber’s family was on deck on the second trip, and the fog continued, and they reeled in 10 keeper sea bass and two bluefish. What a day with the fog, but both parties put together great catches, Fran said.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

The first few tuna trips of the season took place with <b>Legal Limit Charters</b> last week and scored some nice, 100-pound yellowfins, Capt. T.J. said. Good-sized, 15-pound mahi mahi were mixed in, and the boat was fishing Wilmington Canyon, where a warm-water eddy had pushed in. But the eddy since moved south to Baltimore Canyon. Shark fishing slowed a lot, and some duskies were landed on the boat, but no makos were. But flounder fishing kicked in pretty well in 60 feet near one of the reefs, but not at the reef. Twenty-five keeper flatties were bailed on a charter yesterday, and the boat’s flounder charters were averaging 15 to 40 keepers.

<b>Brigantine</b>

<b>Fishin’ Fever Sportfishing</b> set up on the chunk toward Massey’s Canyon and went 2 for 8 on bluefin tuna on Saturday, Capt. Tom said. The fish landed weighed 65 pounds and 54 pounds, and one of the tuna was hooked on bait and the rest hit jigs except one that bit on the troll. The bluefins turned on between 6:30 a.m. and 8 a.m., and the water was 76 degrees. On Thursday a trip ran to Baltimore Canyon and went 6 for 10 on yellowfin tuna to 60 pounds on the troll. The water was 72 degrees, and there were no temperature breaks, so the boat fished along structure. Spaces are available for an open-boat tuna trip this Saturday that will either target yellowfin tuna or a combo of yellowfins and bluefins, leaving 1 a.m. and returning 7 p.m. Open-boat tuna trips are sailing every Saturday when no charter is booked, and call to reserve. Fishin’ Fever’s shark fishing is pretty much finished for the season, and tuna will be the focus. However, flounder charters are definitely sailing, and flounder fishing is halfway decent in the ocean and bay. Bluefishing charters are also available, and bluefishing is good. Tom thinks that inshore trolling for bonito, Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, mahi mahi and a chance at bluefin tuna will turn on soon. Twelve-hour trolling trips are offered that that leave 4 or 5 a.m.

<b>Margate</b>

On the <b>Fish N’ Fun</b> flounder fishing was good on two 4-hour trips daily, and some outings produced flatties more than 5 pounds, and Marlana Jaschick won a pool with a 6.14-pounder, Capt. Jay said in an e-mail. On his bigger boat, the <b>Jessie O’</b>, trips were setting sail in the ocean to the local reefs for flounder, sea bass, small blues and other reef huggers. A 3-pound 14-ounce flounder was the pool winner on one recent trip to the Ocean City Reef. Sea bass were biting but were less plentiful than this time last year, and the crew eagerly awaited the bite to pick up on any trip. Some prime dates are available for fishing charters or party cruises for large parties.

<b>Longport</b>

Porgies and triggerfish seemed to disappear, but James Brown’s group on the <b>Stray Cat</b> put together a good catch of sea bass to 2 pounds between 12 and 15 miles offshore Saturday, Capt. Mike said. Snapper blues and bonito could be found everywhere, no matter whether 3, 8 or 20 miles from shore, though there were no great numbers. Openings are available for open-boat tuna trolling trips that sail 12 hours starting at 4 a.m. and are limited to six passengers. A 24-hour, open-boat tuna trip is sold out, but another will probably be scheduled, and call for info about the open trips.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Joby Prior was aboard Wednesday night until early morning and fly rodded about a dozen bluefish in the back bay along the dock lights, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. Striper fishing proved tough that night, and Mike Roth was on deck the next night until early morning and fly rodded two stripers and probably four blues in the bay. The anglers on both trips threw Clouser flies, mostly on sinking lines. Fishing at night was starting to be important as summer wore on, especially for fly fishing. Mike Organsky took a trip at sunset on Friday and landed three stripers on poppers with a spinning rod in the bay. Twelve more stripers probably bit, and they weren’t attacking hard. The bay’s flounder fishing was starting to slow down a little, and Joe heard about no outstanding catches. He pointed the bow offshore Friday night and tuna fished all day Saturday, but the bite was slow, and one yellowfin was dropped when it spit the hook. Joe spent a lot of time fishing Baltimore Canyon on the trip, and some anglers found fish, but catches seemed sporadic.

<b>Avalon</b>

<b>Over Under Adventures</b>’ boat Low Profile is now back in Avalon, after making its way from the Bahamas, where the boat fished since winter, an e-mail from Over Under said. The Low Profile will now run tuna charters through November from Avalon, and the vessel recently came from a stop at Ocean City, Md., where it competed Friday in the Ocean City Tuna Tournament. The trip went 2 for 6 on yellowfin tuna in the deep near Washington Canyon. On Saturday in the tournament the boat picked up a 105-pound bluefin tuna and then sailed farther offshore to get away from boat traffic, and a yellowfin was taken at Baltimore Canyon. On Thursday the boat also sailed, and four bluefin tuna were landed. Several of Over Under’s boats remain in Ocean City and have been landing good numbers of bluefin tuna and yellowfin tuna, and they’ll keep fishing there through fall, and charters and open trips are available. Some of the bluefins have been 100 pounds and larger, and the bluefins and yellowfins were holding far enough away from each other to make landing both in one trip impractical. Check out Over Under’s schedule of <a href="http://overundercharters.com/?page=opendates" target="_blank"> open-boat trips</a>, and more dates will be added as groups call and ask about splitting costs with other anglers.

<b>Wildwood</b>

The 14th Annual Duke of Fluke Tournament took place Saturday at <b>Sterling Harbor Bait & Tackle</b>, and Cathy from the shop e-mailed the results:<br><br>

Single Heaviest Fluke Division:<br>
1st place: 5.8-pound fluke, angler George Slobodjian on Stanley Rose’s Good As Gold Team<br>
2nd place/3rd place tie: two 5.6-pound fluke, Frank Fish on the Frankie Fish and
Ben Young on Joe Gillan's Y Knot<br><br>

Five Heaviest Fluke Division:<br>
1st place: 24.4 pounds, First Light, Capt. Phillip Leo<br>
2nd place: 18.8 pounds, Adam Bomb, Capt. Adam Crouthamel<br>
3rd place tie: 18.4 pounds, Jody Joe with Capt. Joe Long and Scanda II with Capt. Greg Cowan<br><br>

Duchess Award:<br>
4.8-pound fluke, Karen April on the Pulp Fishin'<br><br>

Junior Angler:<br>
5.6-pound fluke, Ben Young on the Y Knot with Capt. Joe Gillan<br><br>

Heaviest Sea Bass:<br>
2.4 pounds, Craig Goss on The Dutchess<br><br>

Heaviest Bluefish:<br>
1.4 pounds, Jason Grassi on the Sea Bass

<b>Cape May</b>

<b>Jaftica Sportfishing</b> was doing a lot of tuna fishing and trolling 50- to 100-pound bluefins at the inshore lumps, Capt. Ray said. The troll bite was early in the morning, but other anglers were also chunking the fish at night. Chunking and jigging were also working in the mornings. Saturday’s action was tough because of boat traffic, and 100 boats probably fished the area that Jaftica targeted. Flounder charters are also available, and flounder fishing seemed hit or miss, and some days produced, and some were slow, and this past weekend seemed a little slow. Inshore trolling charters for bluefish are also available, and eventually bonito and such fish should be mixed in, but bonito were scarce so far this year compared with last year. Ray thought that maybe the reason was that the water this year was cooler, but he was going to check his log book to confirm.  Jaftica is raffling off a striped bass charter through summer to benefit the recovery of one of the boat’s mates who was injured in an accident. Raffle tickets are $5 apiece or $20 for five, and see the boat’s web site for info.

Tuna fishing was pretty decent on the <b>Canyon Clipper</b> at 19-Fathom Lump, where charters landed one or two bluefins per trip, and the fish ranged from small ones to 60 pounders and sometimes included larger ones around 150 pounders, Capt. Stan said. Mahi mahi from 5 to 10 pounds were mixed in, and other inshore spots such as the Cigar were also producing, and chunking was now effective. Boaters farther offshore were slamming yellowfin tuna at Massey’s Canyon and Baltimore Canyon. The Canyon Clipper was also sailing for flounder and doing fairly well at Cape May Reef, and the bite at the Old Grounds picked up a little. Lots of croakers of mixed sizes were also pulled aboard off Cape May Point, and more and more of the hardheads will appear as the season progresses. The boat did no bluefish trolling in the ocean recently, but the trips are available.

Capt. Gary from the <b>Sea Fox</b> competed in the Duke of Fluke Tournament on Saturday, fishing offshore of the Old Grounds, but the fishing was slow, he said. Only shorts bit, and all anglers seemed to struggle, and the ones who scored best were deep jigging at structure. But Gary, who placed in the tournament in previous years, wasn’t set up to deep-jig, and he fished with big strip baits on long leaders. He even snagged bunker and stripped them up for bait, but no big flatties hit, although fresh bunker is a great bait for the fish. The rumor mill was saying that big bluefin tuna were turning on at the inshore lumps, and most boaters now seemed to be chunking for bluefins instead of trolling. The Sea Fox is now offering chunking trips, and Gary strongly suggests a weekday charter. Charters are also targeting flounder and sea bass and are trolling inshore for blues. Gary was seeing king mackerel at the dock that were coming from inshore trolling trips, so those fish were apparently on tap along with the blues.

A half-day trolling charter loaded up on blues on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> on Sunday in the ocean, Capt. George said. The blues have been 1 to 3 pounds, and no bonito have been hitting on the trips, and a ton of bonito were biting this time last year. The water’s been chilly and was 68 degrees this weekend, and maybe that’s why. Bray Avila, Megan Fogarty, Mark O’Connel, Dan Burn, Chris Scillabba and Steve Shawl were the anglers. On Saturday a charter wanted to flounder fish, but George thought flounder fishing was probably slow, so first he took the group bluefish trolling and caught a mess, so they’d at least see some action. Afterward they flounder fished in the ocean and landed one keeper, three throwbacks, one good-sized sea bass and two or three throwback sea bass. The Duke of Fluke Tournament took place Saturday, and George heard that competitors also found slow fluking. Sol Honicker, Jim Honicker Sr. and Jr., Todd Wence, Frank Fratta and John Burke were the anglers on this trip. On Thursday George competed in the Ocean/Viking Showdown on his friend Norm Morris’s boat the Erika Sue, and they trolled yellowfin tuna at the Elephant Trunk and bluefin tuna at Massey’s Canyon. The first yellowfin bit soon after the first line was in the water, and an incredible amount of bait filled the water. Seas were very rough, probably 7 to 10 feet at the Trunk. Seas calmed down to 4 or 5 feet later at Massey’s and eventually laid down a lot more. Norm’s son Derek and also Dr. John Mansteel, Pete Cirrincione and his daughter Kate were also aboard. Tune fishing is “on,” George said, though not every day seemed to produce. A friend said he got into a good yellowfin bite at the Baltimore Canyon on Saturday until the action turned off by 11 a.m.

Tuna fishing was good both inshore and offshore, said Matt from <b>Jim’s Bait & Tackle</b> in a fax. Bluefins swam 19-Fathom Lump, Massey’s Canyon, the Hambone and the Tea Cup and could be fought on the troll or while chunking or jigging, and jigging was by far the best. Trolled lures were best when fished way behind the boat, and the fish were also hanging far back on the chunk. Farther offshore, Wilmington and Baltimore canyons were very productive for yellowfin tuna and nice mahi mahi along the 50-fathom line, and a few white marlin were starting to show in the area. Nick Gugliano jigged his first-ever bluefin, a 150-pound bruiser, at the Hambone. The crew on the Tuna Jack hauled in a 228-pound bigeye tuna at Norfolk Canyon two Sundays ago, older news, but a big fish. Fluke fishing was spotty, but the fish were showing up in Delaware Bay a little better than before, and the 9 and 10 buoys put out some keepers, and Brandywine Shoal also gave up some. Flounder anglers were also taking the run to Reef 11 and the Old Grounds to try for bigger flatties. Croakers filled the bay in pretty decent numbers at Bayshore Channel and around Brandywine Slough. Bonito and Spanish mackerel showed up at different times at the Northeast, Middle and East lumps and Sea Isle Ridge. First thing in the mornings was best, and spoons and small feathers did the trick. Surf fishing was a little slow, but croakers, herring and occasional flounder could be had at Higbee’s Beach and Sunset Beach.

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