New Jersey Fishing Reports

Blackfishing was okay when trips could run, and the weather was often difficult, said Capt. Anthony from Barbara Anne Fishing Charters. But the anglers on a trip Saturday easily limited out on the tog to 9 pounds, the report on the boat’s Web site said. Seas were somewhat sloppy in the morning with winds against the tide. But as the tide eased and seas flattened out, catches became steady. Don’t have enough anglers for a full charter? Call Anthony anyway, because he can usually schedule individual spaces. Barbara Anne pays bridge tolls with a receipt.

Atlantic Highlands

After banner fishing for striped bass and blues on Monday and Tuesday, the angling on Wednesday wasn’t as wild, but was still good, said Capt. Ron from the Fishermen in the report on the boat’s Web site. He knew the bass wouldn’t keep biting the entire day when he saw their bellies full. On Tuesday catches took a couple of drifts for the anglers to get in the groove, but then the fishing was non-stop for bass and blues. The fishing couldn’t be better, and small stripers to 28 inches bit at first, but bigger ones showed up on a couple of drifts afterward. On Monday’s trip, covered in the last report, stripers, the biggest in two weeks, were hung the whole day. No trip sailed on Thanksgiving, and Ron expected to fish again today, no matter whether rains fell. “After getting our butts kicked (in seas) Monday and Tuesday, rains would be a blessing,” he said. “Bring your slickers.” The Fishermen is sailing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

No trips sailed Monday and Tuesday because of the weather, and Wednesday’s trip fished, but blackfishing was slow, not good, said Capt. Tom from the Atlantic Star. A little ground swell remained, but the weather was still poor. The boat was off for Thanksgiving, and winds were forecast to blow today through the weekend, but from the west, and that should knock down seas where the boat fishes, Tom hoped, and the wind direction should allow trips to sail. The trip Wednesday fished at the Shrewsbury Rocks and toward Sandy Hook Reef. The Atlantic Star is blackfishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

Boating for striped bass pancaked excellent catches, definitely on jigs mostly, said Jimmy from Julian’s Bait & Tackle. Montauk Mike from the lure company boated a dozen bass this morning. Not much was heard about bay catches lately, and all catches seemed to come from around the bend at Sandy Hook Point to the ocean, stripers that were dropping down the coast on the migration. Surf casters plowed stripers during the weekend and this morning on jigs and clams. Richard Graham weighed in a 24-pound bass that came from the beach at Sandy Hook. Steve Delperte banked a 17.4-pound bass at Plum Island. Lots of keeper bass, lots of 34- and 38-inchers, were claimed all around. Some blues swam with the bass in the surf this morning, and blues were generally around for surf and boat anglers. Blackfishing banged out good catches on days when boaters could get off east winds, but the winds were frequent, and the ocean often rolled.

Highlands

A strong catch of blackfish to 7 pounds was pumped aboard Wednesday, said Capt. Derek from Fisher Price Charters. Great jigging for striped bass was also going down along the ocean beaches on the boat, and on some days tons of blues tore up the same waters, and on other days fewer did. A friend on Wednesday ran into more bass than blues in the waters, and the bass included limits and plenty of keepers. Charters and open-boat trips will run through Sunday, December 6, with Fisher Price, until Derek calls it a season. Call to be kept informed of the open schedule.

Tons of striped bass could be trolled and jigged down the ocean beaches, if trips could get out in the weather, said Capt. Brian from Jersey Devil Charters. Trips were slated to fish today through Sunday, but whether they could sail didn’t look promising at least today and Saturday. Trips are also blackfishing, and the angling was good. In addition to charters, open-boat trips are fishing, and call if interested in the open trips. The more who want to go, the easier to schedule.

Neptune

The season’s best fishing for striped bass and blackfish so far was scored Wednesday on the ocean with Last Lady Fishing Charters, Capt. Ralph said. The angling was excellent, and the stripers were jigged. Big, alligator blues showed up with the stripers, but the trip got on the bass early, before the fleet showed up, made off with a catch and then went blackfishing. Anglers who never blackfished before landed 20 of the tog apiece, and that’s good fishing. An 8-year-old and a 10-year-old hooked the slipperies on every drop. An individual-reservation blackfish trip was cancelled today because of the weather, and more of the trips will try to sail Saturday and Sunday. More are slated for every Saturday and Sunday in December and New Year’s Eve day.

Belmar

Trips jigged limits or close to limits, great catches, of striped bass on the ocean during the weekend on the Nan Sea J, Capt. Tom said. Blues were surely still present, too! he said. The little blackfishing that was done on the vessel was slow at the time, produced the fish to 7 pounds, but wasn’t on. Weather had been unsettled and too often blew from the northeast.

Plenty of blackfish snapped for anglers on the Big Mohawk, Capt. Chris said. Sometimes the weather had to be worked around, like on Wednesday when the fishing began tough on the stormy day. But the tog began biting again toward the end of the day. Lots of the fish were around, and up to 9- or 9-1/2-pounders were bagged lately. Trips found them close to shore in 30 to 60 feet, making the ride easier. The Big Mohawk is blackfishing 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Mainly striped bass were beaten from boats and the surf, and northeast winds and storms roughed up seas like every other day, but when conditions cleared, anglers caught, said Bob from Fisherman’s Den. The party boats walloped the bass, and healthy catches came from the surf but to the south from Point Pleasant down. Jigs that imitated all the sand eels in the waters nabbed the fish on both the boats and the beaches. Blues were also clobbered on the boats but not so much in the surf. But blackfish, lots of them, were also bombed on the head boats that sailed for them.

Brielle

Lots of short striped bass smacked jigs on a half-day trip on the ocean Thursday morning, said Capt. Mike from the Katie H. No keepers turned up, and bluefish were in the mix, and the anglers blackfished afterward, but the fishing was slow. No reason was apparent for the tough togging, and the weather was pleasant. A trip over the weekend mugged plenty of blackfish in the afternoon, and maybe the afternoon would’ve been better on this trip. But tog turn on and off with no apparent cause sometimes. So the trip was slow overall but was fun, he said.

The Jamaica was yet to dock from a trip Wednesday when an e-mailed report rolled in from the vessel, but the small group of anglers aboard tangled with good action on striped bass, mostly shorts but lots of the fish, and blues on the ocean. A half-day trip was scheduled for Thanksgiving, but no results came in by press time. Trips are slated for 7:30 a.m. daily.

The same crew as last year sailed for blackfish on Thanksgiving with Fish Monger Charters, Capt. Jerry said in an e-mail. They limited out by 12 noon and tossed back a bunch more keepers, and none of the fish was huge, but lots weighed 3 to 6 pounds. Even Jerry and Capt. Wayne got to fish and limited out. The trip began fishing locally, because it was going to be short, and bites were copped quickly in the 60-foot waters. The anglers picked away and had a few flurries of action, and then fished another spot for a few sizeable ones and some shorts. Winds switched, so the boat was moved, and the fish took a moment to feed, but then the best-sized tog were landed. A trip also blackfished Wednesday, and Jerry was unsure what to expect after the blow. A little swell remained, but otherwise the ocean was beautiful. The five anglers limited out on the blacks, including a 9-pounder and two 7-pounders, and they jigged a bunch of striped bass, including six keepers to 22 pounds, and a load of big blues. They couldn’t pass up the jigging when readings were marked on the way to the tog grounds. For blackfish, the trip first ran to where Fish Monger caught them before the blow. No fish showed up on the first stop, and the second, the 9-pounder and another keeper were boxed, but then no more showed up, and the boat was shifted around. Capt. Matt from the Norma K said he found life a little deeper – Thanks man! Jerry said—so the trip moved to rough bottom in deeper waters, and the anglers caught right way. They made another move, and the fish took a moment to turn on, but then they gave up good flurries, a good pick, and the anglers filled their limits. Not so bad for after a blow, Jerry said. Charters and open trips are sailing. Some groups already booked the same dates they had last year on charters for 2010, so book early for prime or preferred weekend dates. For anglers who fished with Fish Monger before, no deposit is due until April 1, so book early! Some of next year’s first fishing will begin with trophy striped bass angling on live bunker from mid May to mid July, and anglers aboard nailed loads of personal bests to 47 pounds last season. From July through August, trips will bucktail for big fluke at the rocks, going the extra miles to where the keepers live, and 2009 was a great season for them with Fish Monger. Bottom fishing will also be done throughout the season, and specials are available on bottom trips from April through June for those who book multiple outings. Bookings for next year’s blackfishing will start to be taken on January 1.

Point Pleasant

On the Dauntless anglers pelted a good catch of striped bass, blues and blackfish on Wednesday, Capt. Willie said. Chris Mackin, Piscataway, clubbed a 26-pound striper, and a 7-pound black was the biggest tog pulled in on the trips recently, and was caught on Sunday. Trips lately split up the day between stripers and blackfish, chasing the stripers in the mornings, going after the blacks for a couple of hours afterward, and plenty of both fish were decked. Waters were 53 to 55 degrees, relatively warm, and if northeast winds continue, the temps will hold, unless a cold snap comes through. Lots of bait including sand eels and fish were around, so lots of life filled the waters. Trips will keep sailing for stripers and tog until they begin to fish for cod and ling, when ling begin to pile up at the Mudhole. Ling fishing was slow at the Hole so far. The Dauntless is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

Toms River

Surf fishers smoked striped bass from Brick Beach to Seaside on Thanksgiving and beached them today, too, said Dennis from Murphy’s Hook House. Any kind of chrome like Ava’s that imitated sand eels worked. One customer brought in a bag of 3- to 9-inch sand eels he took from a fish’s stomach. But some sharpies cast live eels from the shore, walking the bait along, bagging stripers. Ron Rogers weighed in an 11-pound 9-ounce striper today that he caught from the suds at Lavallette while fishing with an Ava and a teaser. Rod Tozour checked in a pair of 10.12- and 8.4-pounders on Thanksgiving that he drilled at Lavallette while fishing with an Ava and a teaser. Youngster Kenny Bala claimed a 10-pound 4-ounce blue in the wash Wednesday, and fewer blues than before swam the suds in the past days. A few anglers targeted blackfish along the jetties, hooking the tog. Boaters squeezed in trips on the ocean Sunday during a lull in the weather, stopping on readings to jig stripers. Trolling produced more bluefish. Boaters were scarce the rest of the week, but surf fishing couldn’t be beaten anyway. On Barnegat Bay a few stripers were plugged at the Route 37 Bridge at night, mostly on Rapala X-Raps in size 10, but some used size 12. Stripers were eeled along the sod banks of the bay toward Barnegat Inlet at night, and the fishing was a little slower than this time last year, but still produced.

Seaside

The surf began to calm down by Tuesday and Wednesday after the worst of the weather with winds and rains on Monday, and plenty of striped bass were beached by Thursday, said the report on Grumpy’s Tackle’s Web site. Only a few blues were dragged in. Participation was light until then, but 8-ounces of weight held bottom by Tuesday, and less was expected to be needed afterward. Seven stripers from 9 to 23 pounds were weighed in Thursday, and only one apiece were checked in the previous two days. The fish throughout the days were hooked on a variety of Grumpy clams, teasers, Ava jigs, needlefish lures and swimming plugs. Clams probably fished best when seas were roughest. But teasers were the hot item on Thursday, and “without one, you were watching the other guy doing the catching or so it seemed,” the report said. <a href=" http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishing_reports.cfm" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.

Forked River

Ocean boaters trolled striped bass on bunker spoons and umbrella rigs with black and red tubes, said Jana from Grizz’s Forked River Bait & Tackle. Bay boaters clammed and eeled the bass, and blues swam from the bay to the ocean. Tog were taken along the rocks like at Barnegat Inlet and the surf jetties on green crabs. The shop’s hours were changed for the season, and the doors will now be open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Barnegat Light

Boat fishing for striped bass was on fire on the ocean on jigs and live bait, though the fish were mostly small, said Basil from Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle. Anglers might catch 40 including six keepers, and he heard of none larger than 20 pounds. Surf casters occasionally beached a striper or two, but that fishing was sporadic, not consistent. Dunk clams or bunker to try to hook up. Barnegat Bay boaters anchored and clammed stripers while chumming with clam or drifted live spots for the fish. Or they worked white bucktails with curly tails. Tog fishing was great along the Barnegat Inlet jetty. Live spots and eels are stocked, and so are fresh clams. The fresh bunker supply became sketchy, but Basil was trying to get more today, and plenty will be delivered Saturday.

Mystic Island

Little Egg Inlet shoveled out striped bass, whenever the weather allowed boaters to sail, said Scott from Scott’s Bait & Tackle. The boaters motored out on Wednesday morning, catching the fish on clams as usual, until the weather turned nasty in the afternoon. An unbelievable number of anglers came through the shop that morning to head out to fish. The shop is always closed on Tuesdays, but a 28-pound striper boated at the inlet Tuesday evening was the first weigh in on Wednesday morning. An 8-pounder was also checked in Wednesday morning that was banked at Pebble Beach on Tuesday evening, and that area and nearby Graveling Point apparently kept producing lately. Nothing seemed to be doing for boaters off Pebble and Graveling and at the mouth of the Mullica River, and the weather kept anglers from trolling or jigging for stripers on the ocean, so the inlet was the place to be. The weather was a washout Monday for any type of fishing. No customers said they attempted tog fishing anywhere or white perch fishing in the rivers, because of the weather. Fresh, shucked clams and green crabs are stocked, and fresh bunker ran out. Live grass shrimp are stocked for perch fishing, but if much rains fall, that could kill them. Eels ran out and might not be ordered again this season.

Port Republic

The Mullica River had held a solid run of striped bass fishing on live bunker for two weeks, but now the fish seemed to be moving out, said Violet from Chestnut Neck Boat Yard. But anglers currently boated the bass around Little Egg Inlet and Holgate on clams or eels. Anglers can always look for white perch in the river through winter. The tackle shop will close for the season on Tuesday and open back up in March, but the boat yard will remain open for service. But this will probably be the last report from the shop until then.

Absecon

Capt. Dave, owner of Absecon Bay Sportsman Center, and a bunch of other anglers whaled a ton of striped bass at Wreck Inlet and Absecon Inlet on live spots, Joe said. Joe knew a few boaters who anchored and clammed healthy catches of stripers at the mouth of Broad Creek toward Steelman’s. Big blues chased bunker through the bay, and 15-pounders were weighed in. Quality catches of tog were angled up from along the Brigantine Bridge when waters were clear. Curt from the shop did some white perch fishing up the rivers, and waters were warm, so the slabs kept moving around, and pinpointing their location became the deal.

Brigantine

West winds seemed to push striped bass away from land, and friends trolled 10 or 12 off the Brigantine Hotel and at the shoals and left them biting, said Capt. Andy from Riptide Bait & Tackle. Stretch 25 lures drew the hits, and the friends tried dredges, but only the Stretches worked. Surf casters waited for the westerlies to ease off for stripers to return in the next day or so, but they battled big blues to 13 or 14 pounds, real big. The shop was open 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Thanksgiving, but nothing about catches was heard, and reports were just beginning to roll in today. Bunker was the best bait for the bass, and 800 pounds was stocked. The Riptide Striper Derby, an annual event, is under way, lasting through December, and all proceeds are donated to charity. Cash prizes are awarded each month and at the end of the tournament for the biggest fish. The $20 entry in the tournament allows beach buggy access to the entire stretch of Brigantine during the event for those with a Brigantine permit, the only event doing so now. Participants must sign up 24 hours in advance to enter a catch.

Atlantic City

Lots of striped bass, including big ones, and large blues were cranked in from the surf, said Noel from One Stop Bait & Tackle. Tog were plundered from along the jetties, and surf casters definitely caught fish. Bunker schooled from the bay to the ocean, and herring swam the bay. The stripers swallowed fresh bunker, fresh clams, eels and bloodworms, and the blues punched fresh bunker. The tog crunched green crabs. All the baits and more are stocked, and bunker sell for $2 for one or $5 for three. The green crabs go for $4 a dozen or $10 for three dozen.

Longport

The blackfish bite was definitely on in the local area, and the tog were chewing--and chewing hard!--on daily, open-boat trips for them, said Capt. Mike from the Stray Cat. Anglers on board couldn’t get the slack out of their lines before the fish chomped. Catches could be claimed from the Ocean City Reef on out, and waters were 53 to 54 degrees, and that should keep the angling going a while. Time to pack the turkey sandwiches and come out, he said. No huge tog, none larger than 10 pounds, were clocked, and 8- to 9-pounders were pool winners. But some big monsters were dropped when they pulled the hook or swam into the wreck and were broken off. Forecasts looked like Saturday’s trip would stay tied to the dock, but Sunday looked fine, and the trip should get out. Open-boat trips are blackfishing 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

Ocean City

When boaters had the weather to sail, they jigged plenty of striped bass and blues on the ocean on metal like Deadly Dicks or Hopkins lures or on bucktails, said Bill from Fin-Atics. Boaters whacked a mess of stripers at Townsend and Great Egg inlets on bunker, clams or eels. Surf fishing for stripers was sporadic, but certain areas on the south end of the island seemed to produce, and the north end gave up smaller bass, but waters were often dirty there because of dredging in the back bay. Tog fishing was simply great at the AC, OC and GE reefs, and big, out-of-season sea bass hovered in the same waters. Tog remained along the jetties and the back-bay bridges, but they should move out to deeper waters any time. Surprisingly, lots of ling were reeled in from the back bay, feeding on nearly any baits including clam, bunker and squid. That fishing began three weeks ago, and the bay also served up stripers around the bridges at night and in the mornings on bunker. But anglers who fished for them around the Parkway Bridge tossed small bucktails and rubber baits such as Fin-S Fish, Calcutta weighted swim baits or Storms.

Sea Isle City

Almost 30 striped bass to 32 inches and six or seven blues were creamed on jigs on a trip on Thanksgiving with Dustin Laricks close to shore, within 3 miles from the coast, said Capt. Joe Hughes from Jersey Cape Guide Service, affiliated with Gibson’s Tackle. That was the first time this season that stripers out-numbered blues in the waters, and the numbers were inverted. White, 5-3/4-inch Fin-S Fish on jigheads seemed considerably to out-produce regular metal jigs, and the weather was beautiful, and seas weren’t flat but weren’t bad. The fishing was best early in the morning and dropped off later, and the trip was completed at 11 a.m. because of the holiday, but the action was finished anyway. No sand eels filled the fish’s bellies, but the fish usually fed on the bait, and on this trip they either disgorged them or something. They did feed on some kind of small bait. A couple of the bass were kept, and the rest were released. That was the only trip that fished in the past days because of rough weather, and winds blew from the west today but fiercely. Trips can usually fish close to shore in west winds that knock down seas close to the coast, but when westerlies honk too hard to sail, the winds are strong. The winds would also make the drift too fast, unless lots of fish were concentrated. Joe heard nothing about surf catches in the past couple of days, but now was the time for periodic blitzes on the beach. Anglers just have to be ready for them and keep an eye out for working birds.

Friends reeled in blues and striped bass at Sea Isle Lump when they snuck out Thursday between the weather, said Wes from Gibson’s Tackle. So the fish were there, when boaters could reach them, and years ago, Thanksgiving was close to the end of the fishing, but in recent years, the catches continued through December and sometimes to January, depending on the weather. The angling should last to Christmas. The friends picked up about 10 blues, probably on jigs, and they eeled one keeper striper, a 34-incher, and grabbed some short bass on Fin-S Fish. Stripers were sometimes piling into the waters at Townsend’s Inlet and the 8th Street jetty in Avalon, and they could blitz at any time. Clams, bunker and eels got them to strike. Winds, although strong, now switched to westerly, so anglers could fish the surf again for stripers, and use clams or bunker. Tog fishing was popular among customers, and Wes wasn’t asked where they caught them, but probably from the bridges to the ocean wrecks. In the back bay stripers still bit, and waters were around the mid 50s, as they were in the ocean, so the bass in the bay will keep cooperating. Boaters on the bay fish for them with bait like clams or bunker or live eels.

Cape May

One trip ran since Sunday on the Fishin’ Fever, if Capt. Tom remembered correctly, and that trip and the last few bunker chunked striped bass on Delaware Bay, and plenty of the fish were belted, he said. Limits were made, and up to 33-pounders were nailed, and big blues were in the mix. The Cape May Rips served up lots of stripers on live spots and bucktails, and angling for the linesiders along the ocean front was getting better and better, and more and more of the fish were migrating from the north. The Fishin’ Fever is also tog fishing, but the weather kept preventing boats from hunting them. When the weather breaks, Tom expects lots of the blackfish to chew at the inshore wrecks, because anglers had no opportunity to pressure them.