<b>Sandy Hook</b>

Friends fished Hudson Canyon from Monday to Tuesday and walloped yellowfin tuna from 40 to 80 pounds at night, said Capt. Brian from <b>Jersey Devil Charters</b> from the Highlands. A few bigeye tunas were mixed in with catches at the canyon that night. The yellowfin fishing was very good, but only on the chunk, and trolling for tuna during the day was slow. But decent shots at blue marlin were available for trollers. 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 and loaded for canyon and inshore blue-water charters.

Capt. Jake from <b>Jersey Shore Fishing Charters</b> from Sea Bright shark fished at the Glory Hole on Tuesday, and a 100-pound mako was fought to the boat in the 74-degree water, he said. The shortfin attacked a mackerel bait with a pink and black skirt hung 90 feet under a float. 

<b>Kayla Rose Charters</b> from Staten Island went four for four on bluefin tuna including a 40-pound keeper on the troll at the Glory Hole and Chicken Canyon Sunday, Capt. Darrin said. Skipjacks and false albacore were also landed, and it was good fishing. Open-boat trips are now fishing for tuna either mid-shore, like this trip, or offshore every day when no charter is booked. Darrin keeps a list of anglers who want to go, and give him a call to be added.

Capt. Kyle from <b>Evening Tide Charters</b> from Laurence Harbor took a run to Hudson Canyon Sunday on a private boat that he sails, and lots of blue water was found while the vessel trolled for tuna, but not much was going on, he said. But one boater reported catching a blue marlin, and another said he caught three yellowfin tuna. The Chicken Canyon held lots of life and looked good, and Kyle and crew stopped there a moment and trolled, but nothing bit, but something might’ve hit if they had fished there longer.

Anglers were reporting catches of small bluefin tuna and small mahi mahi at the HA and BA buoys, said Sal from <b>Michael’s Bait & Tackle</b> on Staten Island.

<b>Manasquan Inlet</b>

Hudson Canyon boaters crushed tuna on Tuesday night, and the fish only bit on the chunk, and trolling was dead, said Capt. Mike from the <b>Katie H</b> from Brielle. An overnight canyon trip is slated on the boat this Saturday to Sunday, and canyon trips are also on the books Wednesday and next Friday. A charter on the boat fished the Hudson last week on Thursday in rough but fishable seas. But a couple of the anglers became seasick and called the trip short. At that time the water at the Hudson had been 77 degrees, green and not good-looking for fishing, although better looking water was starting to be found before the trip was cut short. On the way home they stopped a moment at the Glory Hole, where seas were a little flatter, and trolled a bunch of skipjacks in water with lots of life, whales and porpoises. The boat’s canyon schedule is filling up, so book soon if you want to go, and some openings remain in September.

Hudson Canyon’s nighttime chunking for tuna was heating up , and reservations are being accepted for the <b>Jamaica</b> from Brielle’s canyon trips that will begin August 26, and the schedule is available at canyontuna.com, an e-mail from the boat said.

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> from Point Pleasant. 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 mahi and tilefish.

Windy, stormy weather made for screwy fishing last week, but when boaters could sail to the canyons then, they found good catches, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b> from Brielle. Both trolling and chunking produced at that time, and the chunking was mostly best at the southern canyons or the Toms and Carteret. Bigger yellowfin tuna from 60 to 100 pounds were chunked. The canyons also produced bigeye tuna, longfin tuna, mahi mahi and some marlins. Bluefin tuna over 100 pounds, good-sized ones for this area, were sometimes battled on the troll at the Chicken Canyon last week. Smaller, schoolie bluefins were trolled closer to shore in the Mudhole, and a few mahi were mixed in. Dave took a trip on the party boat Voyager last week and boated four tilefish to 43 pounds, and a 46-pounder that another angler caught was the biggest on the trip. The high hook totaled eight tiles to 39 pounds. Dave took one of the trips previously, and wreckfish were landed, but no wreckfish were taken on this trip.

<b>Barnegat Inlet</b>

Bonito were back on a tear at Barnegat Ridge after a break in the action, said Capt. Dave DeGennaro from the <b>Hi Flier</b> from Waretown. His charters were trolling and chumming the speedsters, and sometimes he was running open-boat to the ridge, so give him a call to get on the list. For those who want it all, the Hi Flier offers combo Barnegat Bay weakfish/Barnegat Ridge bonito charters.

Good catches of yellowfin tuna were chunked at Hudson and Toms canyons, and trolling for the fish slowed down, though a few were trolled, said Eric from <b>L&H Woods & Water</b> in Waretown. Tilefishing was also producing.

Bonito were trolled at Barnegat Ridge, and Josh from <b>Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle</b> heard about bluefin tuna sometimes fought there, he said. Boaters were limiting out on yellowfins at Toms Canyon and Lindenkohl Canyon, all on the chunk.

Chunking for tuna was attracting lots of catches at Lindenkohl and Spencer canyons and the Resor wreck, said Christian from <b>Oceanside Bait & Tackle</b> in Brighton Beach.

<b>Absecon Inlet</b>

Fishing at the AC Ridge was smoking for bonito, wahoo and bluefin tuna, said Jack from Offshore Enterprises Bait and Tackle in Atlantic City. The <b>Carly A</b>, the store’s charter boat, fished Spencer Canyon Sunday through Wednesday.  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>Great Egg Harbor Inlet</b>

Bluefin tuna fishing finally dropped off and ended along the inshore grounds, but there was nothing to complain about, because the catches were top-notch for 1 ½ months, said Jimmy from <b>Fin-Atics</b> in Ocean City. But yellowfin tuna fishing took up the slack at the canyons, because limits of the yellowfins to 70 or 90 pounds were chunked.

<b>Townsend’s Inlet</b>

A mess of bonito and a few false albacore were holding at Sea Isle Ridge, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b> in Sea Isle City. Sometimes mahi mahi could be caught from the ridge on out, and a number of Spanish mackerel were also speeding around the ridge and inshore of there. Spencer Canyon gave up tuna recently. Forecasts were looking dubious for offshore fishing this weekend, but Joe competed in the White Marlin Open last week, and seas were very rough every day except Tuesday. Fishing was tough for many boats in the event, and of course billfishing is difficult in 6- to 8-foot seas, making it tough to see the bites. Tuna fishing was also less than good, because water temps at the canyons were mostly even, or no eddies with temp breaks rolled through. Joe did hear about decent tuna fishing at Spencer Canyon at that time as well as this week, but that was beyond the boundaries of the tournament. 

<b>Hereford Inlet</b>

Trollers at South Shoal and 4-Fathom Bank boated blues, bonito, false albacore and small mahi mahi on small feathers and spoons, said Cathy from <b>Sterling Harbor Bait & Tackle</b> in Wildwood. Bluefin tuna fishing was good last week at Massey’s Canyon and 19-Fathom Lump, and smaller bluefins were picked up that week at the East Lump and along the 20-fathom line.

<b>Cape May Inlet</b>

Not much was heard about offshore fishing this week, probably because of rough seas and weather, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b> in Cape May, but the Mid Atlantic Tuna Tournament is coming up next week.

Tuna charters were supposed to leave the dock on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> from Cape May yesterday and Saturday, Capt. George said. But offshore forecasts were likely too rough. 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.

Capt. Gary from the <b>Sea Fox</b> from Cape May saw a couple of bluefin tuna at the docks on Wednesday that were caught on the inshore grounds that day, he said. 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.

Chunking for bluefin tuna was good on the <b>Canyon Clipper</b> from Cape May as of last week at 19-Fathom Lump, and the fish seemed to be down deep at 80 feet, Capt. Stan said. They were also finicky, biting only at certain times, like early in the morning and maybe once in the afternoon. All fish seemed to be mostly biting down below recently, and few were hitting on the surface. For example, trolling the inshore ocean for bluefish was less productive than usual.

The <b>Down Deep</b> from Cape May ran a few tuna trips last week, and the anglers onboard trolled bluefins, though other boaters also chunked the fish, Capt. Bob said. The Rob Eppolige party limited out on bluefins, released a couple and trolled wahoos. D.J. Laborite’s gang also limited out on bluefins and nailed wahoos and a dolphin. Ben Cohen’s group also limited on bluefins and put the brakes on some wahoos. An inshore trolling trip with Ted Kariess’s charter produced bluefish and a half-dozen bonito. So bonito could be caught near Cape May, but not in the big numbers like last year, for some reason.

Bluefin tuna fishing continued to be very good last week, when Rick Olson and crew on the Jenny O fished the Ham Bone and limited out on bluefins, released others and had enough and went home at 10 a.m., said Matt from <b>Jim’s Bait & Tackle</b> from Cape May. Massey’s Canyon that week held a load of bluefins, and fishing at both spots was best on the chunk at first light. Trolling last week also produced throughout the day, and the trick seemed to be to get the baits down in the water column. The weather kept lots of boaters from running to the canyons. But the fishing was hot along the 700-fathom line at Spencer and Wilmington canyons. The crew on the Wish You Were Here went 1 for 3 on blue marlin and had a white in the spread. Anglers on the It’s All Greek boated three yellowfin tuna and a wahoo at the 50-fathom line inside Baltimore Canyon.

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