<b>Brooklyn</b>

Six anglers nailed 14 keeper fluke to 9 pounds 12 ounces, released 35 shorts and bagged 25 keeper sea bass on an open-boat trip on the <b>Big M Express</b> at the reef yesterday, the fishing report on the boat’s web site said. A one-man charter on Tuesday bottom fished with no drift in the morning, so the boat power drifted, and two keeper fluke and some keeper sea bass were landed. The boat steamed to Ambrose Channel to find a drift, but it was fast at 2 knots, and shorts bit. The trip was tough, but “that’s the way the sinker bounces,” the report said, and that’s part of the reason the trip yesterday fished the reef instead. On Monday a charter sailed for striped bass and sea bass. Trolling with parachutes produced blues and short bass, and then umbrella rigs were trolled. Two keeper stripers and a dozen shorts were then landed in two hours. Afterward sea bass fishing was good while drifting and anchored, and keeper porgies were also caught, and out-of-season tog were released. Open-boat trips sail every day when no charter is booked, leaving from Tamaqua Marina in Gerritsen Beach, Brooklyn.
 
<b>Staten Island</b>

A fluke charter went well at the channels with <b>Frenzy Fishing Charters</b> on Monday, and the four anglers bagged seven keepers to 4 ½ pounds, released about the same number of throwbacks and fought cocktail blues, Capt. Tommy Verderosa said.  So fluking was holding up, and Ambrose Channel, Chapel Hill Channel and Sandy Hook Channel were among the places fished, and fast, new-moon currents made holding bottom difficult, but there was action all day. Blues could’ve been chased the whole time, and Tommy kept seeing birds working above the 2- and 3-pounders. Charters will keep dunking baits for the flatties, and New York’s season is open all year, unlike Jersey’s season that ends after September 10. Frenzy will sail for false albacore when the speedsters show up. Tommy also offers fly rodding charters, even if anglers want to learn how to start saltwater fly fishing. He can always find striped bass, blues and fluke that’ll slam flies at this time of year, and weakfish should be an option and arrive soon. Tommy is a fly tyer and custom rod builder.

Fishing for fluke was decent, and a decent number of keepers lined the deeper water, said Sal from <b>Michael’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Weakfish were boated at Reach Channel and were landed in the Staten Island surf. Crookes Point was sometimes giving up kingfish for surf casters. Plenty of snapper blues filled the back waters, and crabbing was excellent there, and small blues held in the bay. Tuna reports at the shop seemed inconsistent, and one angler would boat two or three tuna, and another would come back with none, and fishing for white and blue marlin seemed about the same: sporadic. Sharking seemed to give up small fish lately, but you never know what’s going to turn up with sharking. Anglers were reporting catches of small bluefin tuna and small mahi mahi at the HA and BA buoys.

<b>Bayonne</b>

Only a few customers fished during the beginning of the week, maybe because of the heat, but some targeted fluke at Ambrose Channel from buoys 2 and 3 to buoy 21, said Capt. Akira from <b>True World Tackle</b> and <b>True World Tackle Charters</b>. Others bottom fished for sea bass at Sandy Hook Reef. A charter with Akira on Sunday found lots of boat traffic, especially at Ambrose Channel, but caught a couple of keeper fluke to 6 pounds at the Shrewsbury Rocks and bagged sea bass there, and lots of short sea bass provided action.

<b>Keyport</b>

The Woodard family on the <b>Lucky Carm</b> nailed seven nice-sized, keeper fluke to 6 ½ pounds and released maybe 25 to 30 shorts that just missed the size limit Tuesday in the bay, Capt. Carmine said. They fished Chapel Hill Channel, closer to Sandy Hook and other places, and the boat ran around a lot, and the Lucky Carm runs the whole bay to find the fish if necessary, Carmine said. More shorts bit this day than on a charter Sunday, and lots of sea robins and a couple of dogfish also hit. But where there are sea robins there are fluke, and anglers just have to work through them and bring plenty of bait. Spearing, squid and live peanut bunker were the baits, and none worked better than another on this trip. No bluefish were hooked, and not a weakfish was in sight, and the anglers were Maurice, wife Jean and children Monique and Malcolm. Fluke season is coming to a close in a few weeks, so act quickly if you want to put the tasty fillets in the freezer, and the fish seemed to be getting bigger lately. When fluke season ends, weakfishing will take place if the weaks show up, but charters will also bottom fish for sea bass, porgies and blackfish. Those bottom huggers can already be caught, but charters lately have preferred to fluke fish. The Lucky Carm is available for either an open-boat trip or a charter this Saturday, and an open trip can run 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Some prime spots are available for charters during weekdays, and weekends are mostly full, but call if you’ve got a date in mind. Special, 4-hour, evening charters are always available 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., and call Carmine for info. Morning charters are also available, and charter times are flexible.

Spaces are available on open-boat trips with <b>Papa’s Angels Charters</b> this Saturday and Sunday, mainly targeting fluke, running 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. each day, Capt. Joe said. A trip Sunday scored seven keepers and about the same number of throwbacks in the bay. Open trips also take place 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. every day when no charter is booked, and so does an open trip 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Wednesday. Call to reserve the open trips and for prices.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Fluke fishing was good yesterday on the <b>Fishermen</b>, and anglers sometimes had to deal with lack of drift or too strong of a drift, but all in all, decent numbers of keepers were pulled aboard, Capt. Ron said. Three anglers limited out, and Drew Warden won the pool with a 7.4-pounder and boated five other nice keepers. A load of 16-1/2-inch throwbacks, fish that were only a half-inch short, had to be released. A charter Tuesday picked away at the flatties, and the catch ended up fine at the channels, and a charter Monday also went well. Sunday’s fishing was on the usual open-boat schedule, and the fluking was very tough with either winds against tide that prevented a drift or much to fast of a drift. Bluefishing trips are also taking place in the afternoons from Fridays to Sundays, and blues were hammered on all three of the trips last weekend, and that fishing was going very well. The Fishermen is fishing for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, usually in the ocean, but charters are booked this Friday and Saturday, so no open-boat trips will take place those mornings. Afternoon bluefishing trips are running 3:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Fridays through Sundays.

The Mid State Sprinkler Company jumped aboard the <b>CRT II</b> for fluke on Friday in the stormy, rough weather with the right attitude: A bad day of fishing is better than a good day of work, Capt. Mick said. They boxed a couple of keepers in the adverse conditions and enjoyed the day, he said. On Saturday Ed Smolar and family fished the artificial reef for a catch of fluke and sea bass. Peter Johnson’s group took a trip Sunday and nailed eight good-sized keepers at Ambrose Channel. So fluke were out there, and they seemed to be getting bigger, Capt. Mick said. A few dates are left for charters in August, and a bunch are left in September, and remember that fluke season closes after September 10. Mick will start thinking more about weakfishing in another week or so, and a few were found in the back of the bay, and they were also biting in the Navesink and Shrewsbury rivers. When weakfishing turns on, anglers should go right after them, because who knows how long they’ll bite?

On the <b>Atantic Star</b> in the bay fluke were pulled up on the trip Monday morning until the drift was lost and the fish stopped biting, and the afternoon trip was about the same, Capt. Tom said. On Tuesday morning no drift was possible in the bay, so the boat fished Ambrose Channel in perfect drifting conditions for a while, and flatties were reeled in. After the action ended, the boat returned to the bay, and good drifting for 45 minutes gave up a pretty nice bite, and Steve Sarappo nailed a 9-1/2-pound doormat during that drift. In the afternoon the boat started fishing the channels off Sandy Hook, but heavy shipping forced a move, and somewhat of a drift was found at Reach Channel, where action with shorts was pretty good, and some keepers were taken. Wednesday morning gave up a pretty good pick of mostly shorts, and the weather in the afternoon apparently kept many from showing up to fish. But the afternoon’s fishing was a nice pick, and quite a few shorts bit, but more keepers were boated than during the morning, so the ratio was better, and Capt. Tom thought more passengers came up with keepers than didn’t. Tom Bennett scored a 6-1/4-pounder on that trip. So some trips were better than others, and the fishing was a matter of finding keepers among all the shorts. The same location would often produce a better bite on one trip than on another, and it depended on conditions and when the fish wanted to feed. Many of the throwbacks were only three-quarters of an inch or so short, and the size limit is too large for this area. But keepers were pulled aboard among the shorts. The boat should stick with fluke fishing until the season ends in 25 days. Weakfishing might be the focus afterward, if weakfish show up. No weakfish were reeled in on the boat in the past few days, and although some anglers are wondering where the trout are, often the fish don’t show up till late August or September. They’re not late or anything. 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. 

Plenty of fluke were found over the weekend, but a couple of days were slow since then, said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Big fluke were holding at the Mud Buoy, the Sea Girt Reef and farther south. Bluefishing was excellent at the Mud and 17 Fathoms, and a few striped bass, not many, roamed the waters. Weakfishing improved somewhat in the back of the bay, and Jimmy landed plenty of weaks in the rivers last week. Sea bass bit in the ocean, and porgies hit along Reach Channel. Loads of snapper blues swam the back waters and were getting bigger.

<b>Highlands</b>

<b>Fisher Price Charters</b> targeted weakfish one day this week and limited out on the fish to 4 pounds in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers on worms and jigs, Capt. Derek said. He looked around for weaks in the bay during the beginning of the week and boated a couple on worms, and he marked a bunch of the fish, but they wouldn’t eat. Charters also fluke fished a couple of times at Ambrose Channel and scored very well on flatbacks to 6 pounds on snapper blues, smelts and squid. Fluke season is winding down, and if the action continues like it’s been, it’s certainly time to go fluking. Some dates remain for charters.

Friends fished Hudson Canyon from Monday to Tuesday and walloped yellowfin tuna from 40 to 80 pounds, a hot catch of good, quality yellowfins at night, said Capt. Brian from <b>Jersey Devil Charters</b>. A few bigeye tunas were mixed in with catches at the canyon that night. The yellowfin fishing was very good, but only on the nighttime chunk, and trolling for tuna during the day was slow at the canyon. But decent shots at blue marlin were available on the troll. Closer to shore, bluefin tuna could be caught from the Chicken Canyon to the Glory Hole, and mahi mahi could be hooked at the inshore lobster pots and structure. Jersey Devil is locked, loaded and available for such canyon and inshore big-game charters, and inshore, small-game charters also continue to sail. Blues, fluke, and sea bass were all biting, and Jersey Devil connected with striped bass on Sunday, a trip previously reported, and nearly all species were available to catch at this moment.

<b>Long Branch</b>

Not a lot was happening, but small fluke hovered along the bottom from the surf to the ocean to the bay, said John from <b>Jim’s Bait & Tackle</b>. The last weigh in from the surf was still checked in on July 14. Blues filled the ocean to the bay to the rivers. People were saying weakfish hit in the rivers and bay, and crabbing was very good in the rivers.

<b>Sea Bright</b>

<b>Jersey Shore Fishing Charters</b> was bottom fishing at the Shrewsbury Rocks when Capt. Jake gave this report this morning, and the charter had already caught about a dozen keeper sea bass, three keeper fluke, a keeper porgy and a big blue, he said. A bunch of short sea bass also bit, and so did a load of undersized porgies. A bottom charter also targeted the rocks yesterday afternoon and drilled about 20 big, keeper sea bass that were all 15 or 16 inches, a few big fluke, a couple of blues and some triggerfish. Another charter was supposed to do the same type of fishing this afternoon. On Tuesday Jake shark fished at the Glory Hole, and a 100-pound mako was fought to the boat in the 74-degree water. The shortfin attacked a mackerel bait with a pink and black skirt hung 90 feet under a float. 

<b>Belmar</b>

Bluefishing was good in the afternoon to night at the Shrewsbury Rocks on the <b>Nan Sea J</b> on Sunday, but the bite was slow at the Mud Buoy in the morning that day, Capt. Tom said. In other words, night fishing was good, but day fishing was slow. The blues on the night trip were probably 4 to 12 pounds, and some keeper stripers were also picked up among the blues on that trip. Even the party boats were into slow bluefishing during the day at the Mud on Sunday. But a daytime bluefish trip went well on the Nan Sea J on Saturday. The boat is also fluke fishing, and a fluke trip last Thursday was pretty decent, but the charter had to sail north to Sandy Hook Channel to find the fish. Tuna charters will begin the first week of September.

Shark River’s fluking was good, and rental boaters from the shop averaged four keepers, said Mike from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. The Belmar party boats were into good fluking in the ocean, coming back with 7- and 8-pounders. Plenty of bluefish put rods to the test on the party boats both day and night. Snapper blues were in and out of the river, and porgies bit along Shark River Inlet. Weakfish swam farther north in the Navesink River and Raritan Bay. Striped bass were occasionally reeled in from the local surf, and the fish were mostly shorts that slurped down clams in the mornings and evenings.

<b>Brielle</b>

Hudson Canyon boaters crushed tuna Tuesday night, and the fish only bit on the chunk, and trolling was dead, said Capt. Mike from the <b>Katie H</b>. An overnight canyon trip is slated on the boat this Saturday to Sunday, and canyon trips are also on the books Wednesday and Friday. The boat’s canyon schedule is now getting pretty full, so book soon if you want to go, and some openings remain in September. The Katie H was sailing on a fluke charter today, and the flattie fishing’s been good on the boat in the ocean, and the season closes in only a few weeks, a limited time remaining to hop aboard to put the tasty fillets in the freezer.

Bluefishing was very good for 6- to 14-pounders during the daytime trips Tuesday and Wednesday on the <b>Jamaica</b>, an e-mail from the boat said.  Tuesday night’s trip was also very good for limits of the fish, and the boat’s report was sent just prior to Wednesday night’s fishing, so no word was yet heard about that trip. Striped bass to 30 pounds were mixed in during the day trip Tuesday. The blues on the trips were mostly caught on bait in a chum slick, but jigging also worked, and most of the stripers hit bait. Bluefish trips are leaving the dock 7:30 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. every day. Hudson Canyon’s nighttime chunking for tuna was heating up recently, and reservations are being accepted for the boat’s canyon trips that will begin August 26, and the schedule is available at canyontuna.com. The <b>Atlantis</b> is available for charters for groups from 18 to 120 for day and night fishing for any species available inshore or offshore. <b>Bogan’s Boating School</b> is offering the boating safety course required in New Jersey, and the test-out option is also available, and so are private classes at your own location. Visit bogansboatingschool.com for info.

Capt. Larry from the <b>Reel-Ality</b> was fishing in Lemon Bay at Englewood, Fla., an hour north of Fort Meyers, he said. Mostly snook were reeled in, but so were redfish, mangrove snappers and jack crevalles. He hired a guide, and they netted 3-inch baitfish that looked like blueback herring, though the guide called them something else, in the clear water in the middle of the bay, and then they fished with the bait near the mouth of Godfried Creek, tossing maybe 10 of baits in the water at a time for chum. Larry also caught fish behind the house where he stayed, and he fished another spot from land where there was a small opening to access the water and fought snook and reds. Fish were everywhere, he said, and at night sea turtles came up on the beach in front of the house and laid eggs, and the department of fisheries would put up string with signs surrounding the spot. Back at home, Larry will resume targeting fluke, sea bass, weakfish and blues. A charter Sunday will either sail for sea bass or weaks, and if the anglers fish for weaks, Reel-Ality will probably head to the Metedeconk River for the fish, and Larry got into the trout there a week or two ago. Reel-Ality also fishes for bluefin tuna in the inshore ocean if decent numbers are around.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

Mid-shore fishing was completely dead for bluefin tuna and mahi mahi the past 1 ½ weeks, and the water was dirty, and there was no consistency with the action, said Capt. Fred from <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>. Overnight chunking was on fire for yellowfin tuna at Hudson Canyon, and trolling the canyon was hit or miss for yellowfins, longfin tuna and bigeye tuna. Andrea’s Toy is running canyon charters and open-boat trips for mixed bags of tuna, mahi and tilefish, but is also fishing inshore, and fluking was amazing this week at the inshore lumps, reefs and snags. On Tuesday the Rosenbloom charter started fishing on a drift around bunker pods at Sea Girt Reef and fought to the boat three brown sharks to 3 feet on light tackle. Then they started fluking and boated a dozen keepers to 20 inches and hardly any shorts in an hour. The wind shifted to the south, and the bite stopped completely. They hit more locations, and shorts and sea bass bit. On Sunday Joe Sensale and buddies were aboard for fluke fishing, shot to the rocky bottom, and boxed a 5-punder on the first drift. Then the fishing was like that all day: A keeper would be caught at the beginning of a new drift and that was it. They moved around to a couple of different places, and they ended up with 14 nice keepers to 5 pounds and 15 sea bass to 3 pounds.

Chris O’Brien’s gang took a deep-water fluke trip with <b>Angela Rose Charters</b> yesterday, Capt. Anthony said in an e-mail. At 6:30 a.m. they ran 2 miles offshore of Manasquan Inlet, where a small fleet loaded up on some flatties the previous day, and the anglers figured they’d give that area a shot before pushing off to deeper grounds. An average of one keeper and five to eight shorts came up on several drifts, and the bite slowed after a few keepers were boxed. So they ran north to the Sea Girt Reef and set up on the drift. Five good keepers to 24 inches were boxed on the first drift. But soon the anglers decided to head 18 miles offshore to 125-foot depths for bigger fish with winds and seas building. One of the anglers started snatching up sea bass, while the rest kept busy tying new rigs that they lost on the sticky bottom. Seas were building, and the drift was 1.5 knots with a sea anchor, so it was time to head back inshore after a couple of drifts. They made a handful of drifts at another wreck at Sea Girt Reef for a couple of more fish, and by now winds blew a stiff 25 knots from the south, and seas were stacked 6’s with 8’s mixed in. The King Catamaran had no problems in the conditions, but the seas were no longer favorable for fishing, and the boat ran back to Manasquan River. In the river the anglers put in three drifts to see what was biting, but a 1.7-knot drift sent them packing 45 minutes later than the scheduled return time. By the end of the trip they had nailed 13 keeper fluke to 5 pounds, nine meaty sea bass that were kept and scores of shorts that were released. On Tuesday John Darkangelo’s charter was aboard for a morning fluke trip, and they headed to the ocean off Bay Head, where fluke were taken on a charter the previous evening. This time the fishing was tough, but a keeper and 20 shorts came up after a search at numerous spots up and down the beach. On Monday evening Brad Bergen’s charter took a Happy Hour trip. Brad’s young nephew Alex was aboard, his first fishing trip and his first trip on a fishing boat. They fished off Bay Head in light winds and seas smooth as glass. After Alex received a heavy load of information, he put it to use almost immediately, landing a short fluke and then an 18-inch keeper. The flatties bit consistently, and three keepers were bagged, and 20 or so shorts were released.

Fluking was phenomenal the past couple of days off the wall at Manasquan Inlet in front of <b>Alex’s Bait & Tackle</b>, Marc said. Lots of keepers and big ones, 6- and 7-pounders, were lifted up. A mess of snapper blues hit spearing and Snapper Zappers at the inlet, and weakfishing was pretty good at the inlet the last two nights on sandworms, soft plastic lures and bucktails. No false albacore were seen in the ocean off the inlet recently, but some showed up a while ago. Surf fishers got bites from fluke, blues, weaks and occasional stripers. Party boaters were supposedly into good bluefishing at night.

<b>Bricktown</b>

Ray from <b>Pell’s Fish & Sport</b> fluke fished in the Manasquan River with a buddy yesterday, and Ray nailed a beautiful keeper within 5 minutes of arriving, and afterward only 40 or 50 shorts bit, he said. They had debated whether to fluke fish there or at the ocean reefs, but they decided to fish the river because of windy weather. But the rubble along the reefs was supposed to be putting out very good fluking. Not much was heard about weakfishing except from one customer who’s been saying he’s been bailing weaks in northern Barnegat Bay on Gulp pogies, but he was the only one reporting the action. Tailor blues could be found swimming the surf, and they’d smack small metal such as Ava jigs or Spro bucktails. Ray’s been telling customers they can pick up fluke in the suds on Spros with Gulp, but they can’t just stand there, and they need to keep walking and fan casting. Scott and Greg Alino fished one of the canyons on Sunday, scored well on mahi mahi on spinning rods, left the mahi biting to go tuna fishing, and trolled three yellowfins. Two other boaters were buying bait to fish the canyons this coming weekend.

<b>Toms River</b>

Weakfish, mostly small ones but finally some keepers to 3 pounds, were trolled in the Toms River at Island Heights on Rat-L-Traps and were also hooked there on cast Fin-S Fish in pink, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. Dock anglers were also fooling the weaks with sandworms at Island Heights and Beachwood. Baby black drum from 3 to 6 inches were also biting the worms. Weakfish also hit in Barnegat Bay off Berkeley Island Point and at the 40 buoy on pink Fin-S Fish, Rat-L-Traps and sandworms. Fluke still held in the bay at the BB and BI markers but were mostly small, and they ate Peruvian smelts, squid and killies. The fluking was better at Barnegat Inlet, and incoming tides that brought cooler, ocean water were a little better, because the bay was warm and 80 degrees. Crabbing was good and maybe the best all year, and try looking for the blueclaws at Good Luck Point or at the Route 37 Bridge. Snapper blues were everywhere and hit Snapper Zappers. In the ocean fluking was good in 30 to 40 feet off the bathing beach at Island Beach State Park. Friends nailed 12 keepers there Monday, and a customer bagged six at the same place Tuesday, and seas became a little snotty since them. Surf fishers could pull a few fluke and 2- to 3-pound blues from the pocket at the inlet jetty. Murphy’s stocks all the baits mentioned.

<b>Seaside</b>

Not much was going on, but a few boaters said bluefishing was out of control near the beaches, the fishing report on <b>Betty and Nick’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s web site said. The surf was 1 to 2 feet, 75 degrees and clean. <a href=" http://www.bettyandnicks.com/fish.shtml" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for the latest.
 
<b>Waretown</b>

“Here’s the report,” Capt. Dave DeGennaro from the <b>Hi Flier</b> said: “Go fishing <i>now</i>.” Weakfish from shorts to 20 inchers, but mostly 14- to 17-inchers, were hitting at three different places where he was fishing in Barnegat Bay. His charters were slinging hooked shrimp, lures and flies in a grass-shrimp chum slick, and the weakies were on the feed and “all lit up,” he said. Bonito were back on a tear at Barnegat Ridge after a break in the action, and Dave’s trips were trolling and chumming the speedsters. He was running an open-boat trip to the ridge today, and he’ll surely run more, so give him a call to get on the list. For those who want it all, the Hi Flier offers combo weakfish/bonito charters.

Weakfishers in Barnegat Bay were scoring well, mostly on grass shrimp and shedder crabs, said Eric from <b>L&H Woods & Water</b>. Shedders are stocked, and fresh grass shrimp are on hand when available, and call to confirm, and frozen shrimp are always carried. Barnegat Bay fluking was giving up a fair number of the flatties but lots of throwbacks. Bigger fluke pushed out to the ocean at places like the Axel Carlson Reef. Eric and a buddy fished there and connected with plenty, and Eric’s dad fished the Axel Carlson on Tuesday and also got into plenty, a fair number of shorts, but also good-sized keepers. Eric loaded up on bonito at Barnegat Ridge a couple of weeks ago on the troll, and nobody mentioned bonito recently, but he imagined the fish were there, and they should be hitting in a chum slick by now. In the unusual catches category, quite a few cobia were caught in the ocean this year, and at least four or five were heard about, and a 65-pounder was weighed in. The cobia sometimes hang out near the bunker pods off Barnegat Inlet, and sometimes they can look like a shark holding near the surface, so if you see something like that, check it out. Boaters trolled a bunch of Spanish mackerel off Brick Beach on small squid spoons. Offshore anglers chunked good catches of yellowfin tuna at Hudson and Toms canyons, and trolling for the fish slowed down, though a few were trolled. Tilefishing at the canyons was also producing.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Fluke hugged the bottom in Barnegat Bay but were starting to move out, and Barnegat Inlet and off the fuel dock now held more of the fish, said Josh from <b>Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle</b>. Lots of fluke carpeted the bottom in 40 feet in the ocean and at the Harvey Cedars Lump in around 50 feet. Weakfish turned on in the mornings and evenings at Meyer’s Hole and High Bar Harbor in the bay, and live grass shrimp are available for bait. In the surf kingfish sometimes bit, and customers said they were picking away at small stripers on clams and small bunker chunks in the suds. But an 18-1/2-pounder was beached in the wash over the weekend on bloodworm, and a pair of 20-pounders were bucktailed at the inlet during the weekend. Small, 1- to 2-pound blues ran the inlet and surf, and Robbie Valone picked up a couple of larger ones to 3 or 4 pounds the other night. Lots of brown sharks haunted the surf, and one customer landed a 3-1/2-footer. Bonito were trolled at Barnegat Ridge, and Josh heard about bluefin tuna sometimes fought there. Boaters were limiting out on yellowfin tuna at Toms Canyon and Lindenkohl Canyon, all on the chunk.

<b>Brighton Beach</b>

Spotty reports rolled in about kingfish and fluke that surf casters landed, and a decent run of blues invaded the surf at first light and last light, said Christian from <b>Oceanside Bait & Tackle</b>. Fluking in the bay was spotty but produced some of the fish. A few weakfish turned on at the Causeway Bridge and in the back part of Grassy Channel in the early mornings. In the ocean plenty of bonito roamed Barnegat Ridge, and no more reports were heard about king mackerel at the ridge, but sometimes mahi mahi were caught there along the weedlines and flotsam. Chunking for tuna was attracting lots of catches at Lindenkohl and Spencer canyons and the Resor wreck. Oceanside opened this spring and is located at 8201 Long Beach Boulevard on the southern end of Long Beach Island. The store’s owners are the same ones from Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle.

<b>Beach Haven</b>

The 6- to 10-foot shallows in the bay were the place to be for fluke with <b>Angler Sportfishing Charters</b>, Capt. Chuck said. The fluking was going very nicely, and for example probably 32 keepers were reeled in on yesterday’s trip. Tons of cocktails blues could also be fought, and not many weakfish were hitting. Occasionally weakfish were landed, especially when Chuck was able to castnet peanut bunker for bait in the early mornings, and the peanuts were also doing the trick on fluke. But the usual killies and squid worked for fluke when none of the baby menhaden could be found. Weakfish would normally be biting in the bay by now, so it was difficult to say whether they’d still show up this year. Plenty of sharks also bit in the bay. Chuck was catching the fluke within a 3-mile area, and even the party boats were fishing in the bay instead of the ocean. Chuck’s boat is being re-powered, and when it’s finished, he’ll resume fishing in the ocean as well as the bay. In the ocean charters will also target fluke, but Angler will also fish for blues, sharks and even bluefin tuna. Striped bass are the only fish that’s not really biting at the moment or at least not within the legal striper grounds. Lumps maybe 4 to 5 miles offshore, beyond the 3-mile limit from the coast for striper fishing, are holding stripers, but the linesiders mostly disappear closer to shore in this area during summer. It’s not like New York Harbor, where Chuck has sometimes fished in past years and where stripers can be hooked all year long. The sharks that are available to catch are species like threshers that are marauding bunker schools near the coast. Chuck’s charters tangled with a number of them some weeks ago. The bluefin tuna are possible to land maybe 35 miles from shore, and a friend picked up some recently.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

Flounder fishing was tough because of winds that roughed up the ocean, and a trip with <b>Legal Limit Charters</b> especially got beat up yesterday in 5-foot seas, Capt. T.J. said. The trips have been fishing near Little Egg Reef but not on the reef, and lots of shorts were doling out a steady pick, and 10 or 15 throwbacks could be drilled for every keeper. Six to 10 keepers were usually bagged on an outing, and small blues and some sea bass were mixed in. T.J. was seeing no croakers coming from the ocean yet. A bluefishing trip was leaving port today, and tuna trips will resume next week, and the rest of the boat’s schedule is filled with flounder charters in the coming days. T.J. heard no news about tuna fishing in the last few days.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Most of the focus was on flounder, and the best reports seemed to come from Little Egg Reef, and as usual, catches were best when conditions created the right drifts, and not a lot of favorable conditions took place, said Scott from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>. He heard about flatties pulled up from 45 feet to 65 feet, a broad range. Sea bass were sometimes taken from the reef, but few were big. No reports came in about flounder boated at Little Egg Inlet, even though a couple of catches of numerous flatties at the inlet were mentioned in last week’s report. Bluefish schooled the inlet and just outside the inlet, and fishing in the bay for a mix of kingfish, small sea bass, porgies and blowfish usually starts by the second week of August, and that fishery was beginning to show life. A few kingfish started biting, and the high hook was four keepers, but the fishing was yet to kick into high gear, and a bunch of the sea bass and 12-inch weakfish bit. No blowfish or porgies were heard about yet. No croakers seemed to show up along the ocean front, and the hardheads can arrive in the first week of September and weren’t late. Somebody mentioned weakfish biting in the ocean off the green and red towers on the southern end of Long Beach Island on jigs and squid on top and bottom rigs, and that bite usually turns on toward the second week of September. Weaks were sometimes landed at the mouth of the Mullica River on shedder crabs, bloodworms or peanut bunker, but it was inconsistent. Peanut bunker were now schooling the lagoons and back waters. Crabbing was producing lots of small blueclaws and few keepers.

<b>Absecon</b>

The back bay put out flounder, even if fewer than before, and Dick Fedder bagged four the other day, and another angler took home five, said Ray from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Absecon Inlet probably also held flounder, but in the rough weather most flounder were targeted in the bay this week. But triggerfish and tog could be found at the inlet. Weakfish bit at the usual places like Meadow Cut and Black Point, and some anglers hooked a mess, and others turned up none. They grabbed the weaks on Gulps, shedder crabs and live mullet. Live peanut bunker will also work, but customers were buying fewer peanuts lately. Mullet were swimming around the bay, and they should be starting to run down the ocean surf, some of the first signs of the fall migration of fish. Small blues filled the bay, and crabbing dropped off because of the shed, and shedders are now stocked. Striped bass anglers were still plugging the fish along the sod banks at night, and Ray heard about none caught on eels. In the surf kingfish would appear one day and disappear the next several, and big sharks could still be dragged from the suds. The ocean reefs were home to flounder, even if the bite wasn’t setting the world on fire, and sometimes sea bass were lifted from the reefs. The shop carries a large selection of bait, including live baits, and the current selection of live includes spots, mullet, peanut bunker, eels, minnows and shedder crabs.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

Striped bass could be picked up at the bridges at night, and surf anglers were seen landing sea bass, kingfish and very small flounder off the T-jetty, said Jack from <b>Offshore Enterprises Bait & Tackle</b>. Fishing at the AC Ridge was smoking for bonito, wahoo and bluefin tuna.

The <b>Carly A</b>, the store’s charter boat, fished Spencer Canyon Sunday through Wednesday, Jack added.  On Sunday the boat went 2 for 4 on white marlin and landed a yellowfin tuna on the troll. On Monday two yellowfins were trolled, and during the night from Tuesday to Wednesday 17 yellowfins were chunked.

<b>Margate</b>

A trip to watch the Atlantic City Air Show yesterday on the <b>Jessie O’</b> was fantastic, the best seats in the house, and the boat will do it again next year, Capt. Jay said. Fishing on the boat’s daily, open-boat trips in the ocean produced mixed bags of flounder, sea bass and small blues. When no charter is booked, the vessel runs open-boat trips each morning, and it sails on Magic Hour open trips 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays. On Jay’s back-bay boat the <b>Fish N’ Fun</b>, sailing on two 4-hour trips daily, patrons were pulling up flounder, lots of action, weeding through shorts for keepers. Lots of party cruises are sailing, and a DJ and catering are available.

<b>Longport</b>

Flounder were getting whacked on the <b>Stray Cat</b> this week 4 to 6 miles from shore, Capt. Mike said. A couple of 8-pounders and a bunch of 4-pounders were hammered, and the catch was mainly flatties, but sea bass were sometimes boated. The flounder probably arrived from up north or something, and they didn’t come from the inlets, Mike said. Flounder season ends in a few weeks, and this is the last chance to bag the fish this year. The boat’s fall bottom-fishing schedule is already filling up, and it’s a good idea to reserve any favored dates for sea bass and blackfish trips. Charters will run until about October 20, and then the boat’s usual open-boat, bottom-fishing schedule begins. The blackfishing will start November 15, when the bag limit increases to eight of the tog from the current limit of one. Stray Cat had a great tog season last year at the South Jersey reefs that get a lot less pressure than waters farther north.

<b>Ocean City</b>

Inshore bluefin tuna fishing dropped off and finally ended, but there’s nothing to complain about, because the catches were top-notch for 1 ½ months, said Jimmy from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. But yellowfin tuna fishing took up the slack at the canyons farther offshore. Boaters limited out on yellowfins to 70 or 90 pounds while chunking. Closer to shore, flounder fishing was pretty good at the Ocean City Reef, even though the flattie fishing is usually terrible there. Folks at the shop were hearing about multiple 10-pounders drilled at the reef in the past week, and jigging Berkley Gulp shrimp or mullets was hot. The back bay was maybe producing a few short flounder, but the water was very warm for flatties. Nothing was heard about croakers along the ocean front yet, and 1- to 2-pound blues schooled the ocean and inlets. Kingfishing was okay in the surf on bloodworms or Gulp bloods. Reports sometimes rolled in about weakfish biting at the Beesley’s Point Bridge and Rainbow Channel at night on Fin-S Fish or shedder crabs. Crabbing in the back waters was very good, about the only action that was actually good in the bay. Jimmy crabbed a half-hour last night and must’ve caught 15 to 20 including a couple of keepers, but crabbers who put in the time should be able to nab plenty to take home.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Striped bass were biting again in the back bay after a lull from stagnant water during a moment a couple of weeks or so ago, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>, and the numbers that were active this week were good. Conditions such as the weekend’s new-moon that usually brings particularly strong tides and somewhat cooler weather put the bass back in action. Dan Ring and son were aboard and landed one striper and hooked five on popper lures, and lots of the fish could be seen swimming around. Summer is a great time to popper fish, one of Joe’s specialties, because the warm water sparks the bass to be willing to jump on the surface lures, such as Creek Chubs, Smack-Its and Skitter Pops. The number of bluefish increased in the bay this past week, and that’s normal as the summer wears on. Mini blitzes were taking place, and lots of bait and spearing schooled the bay. Tons of mullet also swam the bay, and if that’s any indication of the strength of the fall mullet migration in the ocean and the striped bass and blues that should chase the mullet, the migration should be amazing. Joe started hearing unconfirmed rumors about a few weakfish that hit in the bay, but he saw none himself, though he’ll probably scout around for the fish. If the rumors were true, only a few of the weaks were there, but that’s a few more than before. Weakfishing was solid in the bay in past years, but the trout were scarce in recent years. Dusty Laricks and Steve and Mike Bogacious were aboard for an ocean flounder trip yesterday that was great. Ten keepers to 5 pounds or probably 25 inches and about 20 shorts were hooked in 50 feet at Townsend’s Inlet Reef, about 4 or 5 miles from shore, depending on the part of the reef that’s fished. The 1 in 3 ratio of keepers to shorts was good for August. Most of the keepers were over 20 inches, and numerous sea bass to 4 pounds were also reeled in, and the fishing was terrific, better than Joe expected. Squid and minnow combos were the baits, and a single-hooked rig with a green rubber squid on a 36-inch leader caught more of the fish than top and bottom rigs did, but the biggest doormat bit a top and bottom rig.  Bonito were holding at Sea Isle Ridge, and Joe heard about some Spanish mackerel speeding around the ridge and inshore of there. Spencer Canyon gave up big game recently, and Joe hopes to fish offshore for tuna this weekend, but forecast winds looked dubious. He’ll also compete in the Mid Atlantic Tuna Tournament from Cape May next week like he does every year.

<b>Cape May</b>

Croakers were “in” pretty well off the Cape May Lighthouse and the Concrete Ship, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. Flounder fishing was picking up at the reefs, including Cape May Reef, and was also producing at the Old Grounds and Reef Site 11. A couple of customers picked up flounder in Delaware Bay at Brandywine, so a few of the flatties were still there and along the 9 and 10 buoys in the bay. A few flatties could also be taken in the back bay. The back bay also gave up striped bass along the sod banks and under the Dollar Bridge, and snapper blues were swimming around the back bay. Not much was heard about offshore fishing, probably because of rough seas and weather, but Cape May’s Mid Atlantic Tuna Tournament is coming up next week.

Steve Hagen and family fished lower Delaware Bay on the <b>Sea Fox</b> yesterday and boated flounder, sea bass, blues and croakers in the 75-degree water on minnows and squid, Capt. Gary said. Gary saw a couple of bluefin tuna at the docks that were caught on the inshore grounds that day. He heard rumors that the tuna were still biting and also that wahoos were in the mix. He guessed that yellowfin tuna were sometimes among the fish farther south. Charters are available for flounder or bottom fishing, inshore trolling for blues and other speedsters and tuna fishing.

The weather made fishing a little tough over the weekend, but <b>Jaftica Sportfishing</b> sailed Delaware Bay and caught flounder, lots of throwbacks but some nice keepers, a mess of croakers, and bluefish, and it was pretty productive, Capt. Ray said. An inshore trolling trip is slated for tomorrow, and bluefishing on such trips had somewhat slowed down previously, so Ray would see how it goes now, and he hoped that maybe bonito, mahi mahi and such fish would also show up. A tuna charter will take the run Saturday. Overnight tuna trips to the canyons will start in September and are being booked. It’s also never too early to reserve dates for fall striped bass fishing. Stripers usually bite by mid October, but Jaftica starts targeting them during the third week of October, when the action will be more productive. The trips usually fish in the Cape May Rips at first, and then they’ll fish Delaware Bay through the beginning of November.

Tuna charters were supposed to leave the dock on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> today and Saturday, but offshore forecasts were looking too rough, Capt. George said. Bluefin tuna fishing was still good, mostly on the troll, and he spoke with a couple of boaters who landed none while chunking. Not much was heard about yellowfin tuna fishing farther offshore, but that was because offshore boaters were mostly chasing bluefins inshore. Chunking for yellowfins at the canyons at night usually turns on by the end of August. A flounder charter is supposed to fish Saturday, and north winds are supposed to blow, so the trip will probably target Delaware Bay, where at least croakers can be caught if flounder end up reluctant to bite. Bluefish supposedly started hitting again at South Shoal.

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