New Jersey Fishing Reports

One blackfish 13 pounds and another 11 pounds were socked on the boat in the past days, said Capt. Anthony from Barbara Anne Fishing Charters. Fifty of the blackfish were bagged on Sunday’s trip, and 40 were on Wednesday’s. 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.

The ocean served up a southerly roll on a blackfish trip Monday, so winds must’ve blown the previous night, but the anglers limited out on the tog to 7 pounds with no problem, said Capt. Joe from Outcast Charters. Then they played catch and release with more for a while. Good-sized ling were also angled up when the trip moved to deeper waters looking for larger blackfish. A few larger blacks came up, but the ling chomped the crab baits too. The limit on the trip was a Jersey one, because the boat is picking up anglers in Jersey as well as from the dock on Staten Island. So anglers can sail from either location.

Atlantic Highlands

After the fishing went on a blight for two days Monday and Tuesday, the bite turned back on for striped bass Wednesday, said Capt. Ron from the Fishermen in the report on the boat’s Web site. The trip that day began at the channels for a good shot of keeper and short stripers around slack tide into outgoing at bird life. The action ended when the tide began moving, and the trip took a ride south on the ocean. Shots of bass and blues were come across, though reports from the previous two days talked about a definite decrease in the number of blues. The trip had to keep moving to stay on the fish, and no drifts could be repeated. The boat made it to the Shrewsbury Rocks, and there was lots of life, and fish were seen rolling, but not many could be caught. Too many rigs were lost, and the boat was headed back north. A few shots of short bass came up. Great day on the waters, Ron said, and the high hook landed two keepers and who knows how many shorts. On Tuesday’s trip a few small stripers and not many blues were hooked here and there. Monday’s trip would stop and catch a couple of bass and an odd blue and that’s all, and the blues that had been so abundant for two weeks either refused to bite or moved on. The Fishermen is sailing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

On Monday’s trip, said Capt. Tom from the Atlantic Star, blackfishing was a pick, definitely not as good as he’d like, in a big ground swell at Scotland and south of Scotland. Tuesday’s trip began blackfishing at the Shrewsbury Rocks, and catches weren’t that good, so the boat was moved to the reef for a pick, not great, but more fish – quite a few shorts with keepers mixed in – than at the rocks. Wednesday’s trip began the togging at the reef for a pick, and then moved to south of Scotland, and both areas put up mostly shorts. “I guess ratio is the word,” he said. So the blackfishing throughout the days was just okay, not as happening as on Sunday, covered in the last report, when Tom called the angling “pretty darn good,” even if the keeper ratio was lower than preferred. A few ling were also landed on Wednesday, and dog sharks were annoying on Monday but weren’t so bad the next two days. Tom expected today’s trip to be docked because of forecasts. The Atlantic Star is blackfishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

Trolling and jigging whacked plenty of striped bass on the ocean, said Jimmy from Julian’s Bait & Tackle. Very few bluefish remained in the waters. Lots of bait and sand eels were around. A couple of 150-pound-class bluefin tuna were boated close to shore, like a half-mile off, one on a trolled ballyhoo, the other on a Slug-o either trolled or cast. Stripers, big ones 20 or 30 pounds, were eeled at the channels during the hour around the end of outgoing tides, before dogfish took over. Surf casters heaved in plenty of stripers on eels to imitate sand eels or on clams. Blackfishing was good Wednesday and was very good on some days and okay on others, depending on conditions. Fishing for them was probably slow today, after the winds.

Highlands

Fishing during the weekend jigged and trolled lots of blues and striped bass on the ocean, consistent catches, with Jersey Devil Charters, Capt. Brian said. The bass weren’t big but weighed up to 20 pounds. But bigger bass were eeled toward the mouth of the bay, and that angling was also good. Blackfishing is also on tap on the vessel and was going well. Charters are sailing, and open-boat trips are available. Call if interested in the open trips, because the more who can go, the easier the trips can be scheduled. Many boats began to stop fishing for the season, and many of the marinas now required the vessels to be pulled from the waters. But Jersey Devil can keep fishing, because the boat is kept at Brian’s private dock.

Belmar

The Nan Sea J blackfished Monday and Wednesday, and catches were on the slow side, but some of the tog were definitely caught, Capt. Tom said. About 20 keepers were boxed on each trip, and way too many small ones chomped. “At least for us,” he said. The fish weighed up to a 5-pounder, but practically all were smaller. The trips fished in 35 to 50 feet, and waters were 54 degrees Monday and 51 degrees Wednesday. Lots of dog sharks grabbed baits Monday but none did Wednesday.

A fair number of limits of blackfish were knuckled in on Wednesday’s trip, and lots of the anglers clocked four or five keepers on the outing, “a nice day,” said Capt. Chris from the Big Mohawk. The fish weighed up to 8 ½ pounds, a good size, and no one place was better, but every place gave up some fish. Waters remained warm or 53 degrees, so the fish held close to shore, and green crabs are supplied for bait, and the fish hit green crabs and white leggers equally. The fishing was good lately, and the Big Mohawk is sailing for blackfish 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

The ocean’s striped bass fishing began to slow compared with before, but trips still caught them, running daily for the fish “when the weather’s not against us,” said Capt. Alan from the Miss Belmar Princess. Daily mackerel trips will kick off toward the end of the month, usually around the 20th, whenever the Bostons migrate down. The Miss Belmar Princess is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

When the party boats could sail, patrons bailed excellent blackfishing on them, including lots of limits and fish to 10 pounds, said Bob from Fisherman’s Den. The head boats that targeted striped bass found slower fishing than before, but that was probably about wind direction or too much strong easterlies, and if they could get sustained west winds, catches would probably pick right back up. Surf angling for stripers was hit or miss, and when anglers lucked into the right place at the right time, they tackled lots of the fish. When they didn’t, the fishing was dead. Any lures that imitated sand eels like Ava 17 or 27 jigs or Deadly Dicks worked well, and mornings until 8 were best, and nothing was doing at night. Customers who freshwater fished took advantage of the trout stocking at Spring Lake.

Brielle

Anglers with Fish Monger Charters steamed for blackfish on three trips Monday to Wednesday, Capt. Jerry said in an e-mail. Monday’s trip met a heave from the south on the ocean, and the fishing was tough, but 22 keepers to 7 pounds managed to be boxed for the five anglers. Tuesday’s trip limited out on the tog to 6 pounds for the six anglers on a beautiful ocean and good west winds. Bites turned on right away at the first stop, and one of the anglers limited out by 8:15 a.m. After the angling slowed, two more drops were fished that gave up a few keepers and a bunch of shorts. But the fishing kicked in again on the next drop, and the anglers picked away until they all limited. The fishing on Wednesday’s trip limited out for the five anglers on a gorgeous, calm ocean before the blow. The fishing began slow, and the anglers picked a few keepers and lots of shorts at the first few drops. But then a drop began to produce healthy flurries of catches, including a few 5- to 7-pounders, until the boat limited out, and more of the fish were released. Some big ones were lost. Open-boat trips and charters are sailing.

Point Pleasant

A 15-pound blackfish, a 13-pounder and an 11-1/2-pounder were creamed on Wednesday’s trip, and the tog fishing was okay, said Capt. Matt from the Norma K. A few anglers limited out, and most bagged two to five. A 12-pound black and an 11-pounder were claimed on last week’s trips, and 7- or 8-pounders were probably the average pool-winners lately. Magic-hour trips are slated to sail for ling on Fridays to Sundays, in addition to blackfish trips earlier on those days, but crummy weather kept the ling trips from fishing so far. The boat is sailing on ¾-day blackfish trips 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Special, all-day blackfish trips are running 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. every Monday. Magic-hour ling trips are fishing 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Fridays through Sundays.

Many patrons limited out on blackfish on Wednesday’s trip, and porgies were bucketed from the same waters, within 3 miles from shore, surprising to see them at this time of year, said Capt. Willie from the Dauntless. Waters were probably in the low 50s or 52 degrees, allowing the porgies to remain in the shallows. Trips previously had been targeting striped bass in the mornings, switching to blackfish later in the day. But the northwest gale over the weekend seemed to break up the large schools of stripers the boat had chased, and the linesiders after the gale seemed to bunch up close to the surf instead. Trips might continue to take a look for stripers in the mornings but won’t spend a long time searching for them like before. Trips will probably instead put all concentration on blackfish. Trips later in the season will begin to target ling, and a few ling could already be found, and the population in inshore waters was picking up, but ling angling in those waters wasn’t good yet. But the blackfishing on trips was “pretty darn good,” Willie said. The Dauntless is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

Toms River

Weighted eels got striped bass to pounce along the sod banks in Barnegat Bay, a pick of the fish, some decent-sized, on outgoing tides, said Dennis from Murphy’s Hook House. Stripers were sometimes able to be plugged at the inlets on Bomber plugs. Blackfish could be plucked from along the rocks at Barnegat and Manasquan inlets on green crabs. Surf anglers picked away at stripers and blues, and clams or bunker worked, but lures worked better. Wing out Ava jigs, teasers or needlefish, and Bomber plugs in black or school bus began to connect a little better than they did before. Mornings from 6:30 to 8 were better than the afternoon tides. Boaters had a good week on stripers and blues on the ocean on trolled Mann’s Stretch lures. The bluefish population might’ve began to drop off a little, but they were still around, and waters were warm enough or above 50 degrees, and lots of bait or sand eels stayed around to attract them.

Seaside

Few anglers fished the surf since Monday, but striped bass and blues were around to be caught, said the report on Grumpy’s Tackle’s Web site. Sometimes the fishing was hit or miss, with some anglers never seeing a fish, and others having their hands full with action Then location was everything, but location kept changing. Clams or metal worked well on the bass. Three stripers and two blues that were weighed in on Wednesday were the most fish checked in during the past several days. But don’t let the weigh-ins fool you, the site said, because few fish will be landed when few lines are in the waters. The gale that was forecast for today never happened. <a href=" http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishing_reports.cfm" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.

Barnegat Light

Those fishing for striped bass picked up 28- to 34-inchers all around, said Josh from Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle. From the surf the fish could be jabbed on clams or small pieces of bunker. Boaters on the ocean put together solid catches of the fish on live spots or bucktails near Barnegat Inlet. Barnegat Bay boaters took the bass along the flats and sedges toward the inlet on spots and bucktails. Not much was heard about bluefish lately, but sometimes 10-pound blues ran through the waters off Barnegat Light. Tog kept getting stabbed along the inlet rocks, and decent sized ones seemed around, like a 20-incher that one angler dragged in. Josh fished for them Sunday, releasing two that probably met the 14-inch size limit but were questionable, and he saw probably 50 others trying for the blackfish, seeming to pull in lots of small ones. Spots, eels, fresh clams, fresh bunker and green crabs are stocked.

Beach Haven

Blackfish, lots of them, were clobbered on Sunday on the Miss Beach Haven, Capt. Frank said. The tog turned up healthy catches pretty much all day. Saturday’s trip was weathered out because of winds. The Miss Beach Haven is sailing for blackfish 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday.

Mystic Island

Little Egg Inlet’s fishing for striped bass stayed as good as could be, said Scott from Scott’s Bait & Tackle. The weather didn’t always allow boaters to hit the inlet, and angler participation began to drop off -- after all, December was here -- but the fish were caught on clams. One customer complained that he only landed six stripers to 32 inches on a trip to the inlet! Maybe anglers were becoming spoiled by the action. :) A 36-1/2-pound striper was the biggest catch at the inlet in the past days. The area’s striper angling usually becomes best on the ocean for trollers and jiggers by Thanksgiving, but the inlet kept turning out the best angling instead. But trolling and jigging on the ocean is expected to become best in the next weeks. No frigid weather came yet, and only two or three frosts happened so far, and that seemed a factor. But chillier weather was forecast for the coming days, though today was forecast to reach the 60s for a change. Slack high and low tides gave up the best catches, because of ripping tides from the full moon. No real feedback was heard from shore anglers fishing for stripers at Graveling Point and Pebble Beach. But word had it that Graveling Point was lined with a bunch of anglers, and that must mean they were catching. Scott reported last week that boaters off the Graveling area and the mouth of the Mullica River stopped getting into striper catches for the most part, and the fish seemed to move out. But beach anglers at Graveling and that area continued to catch at least at that time and probably this week. Clams are also fished from the shore, and bunker is also a go-to bait there. Bunker continued to school the bay, and the menhaden would especially be the bait to dunk when the baitfish swam through. Very few anglers fished for tog, probably because of the weather, and when they did head out, none reported results. Nobody mentioned fishing for white perch, but live grass shrimp, the favorite bait for the slabs, is stocked. Bloodworms are also carried, and the supply of fresh, shucked clams and fresh bunker is in good shape at the moment.

Absecon

Striped bass swam more along the ocean and through Absecon Inlet now, and anglers scored well, and blues were mixed in, said Curt from Absecon Bay Sportsman Center. They trolled, jigged or livelined the fish on spots on the ocean, and they livelined spots or eels for them at the inlet. But one angler said he landed them at the inlet on everything or live bait, clams, bunker, eels and jigs while drifting. Dead bait or clams and bunker could be fished when the drift wasn’t too fast, failing to make the bait spin. Charters with Capt. Dave, the shop’s owner, limited out on stripers on the ocean the last few trips, mostly on spots, but a few of the fish were hooked on soft plastics, and Dave saw anglers hooked up on jigs and on the troll. Mornings were best, but the fish also bit throughout the day. Tog fishing was picking up at the bridges, sod banks and jetties, and Curt limited out on them the other day. More on that trip in a moment. He also did some white perch fishing up the rivers, and he found large ones difficult to locate, but lots of little ones were around. He searched traditional winter locations, but waters seemed too warm to make the big ones gather up, so they were difficult to pinpoint. He hooked decent-sized ones at Collins Cove, the winter haunt for the slabs on the Mullica River, the other day, but returned another day and located little ones. No cold nights were yet to chill the waters much, but that was good for keeping stripers and blues around. On a trip he took on Thanksgiving a two-person limit of tog was bagged, and some perch were reeled in, and so was a 19-1/2-pound striper. A striper was seen toward the surface coming after perch when the trip was at the mouth of the Mullica River in the evening, and Curt pulled the anchor, and his friend swam out a live spot, tackling the big striper. The fish seemed to be the one that was seen. Spots, eels, fresh clams, and fresh bunker are stocked.

Brigantine

Absecon Inlet had striped bass busting all over, and lots of boats were on them, said Capt. Andy from Riptide Bait & Tackle. None of the fish was huge, but they weighed up to 15 or 20 pounds, and anglers on every vessel seemed to limit out. They drifted eels over the rips or along the sod banks. From the surf blues and stripers were reeled in, and an average of three or four were weighed in every day. Fresh bunker and fresh clams scored equally, and loads of fresh bunker, stocked daily, were flying out the doors. Fishing was basically steady, Andy said. Dave Parker held on to first place in the Riptide Striper Derby with a 45-pound 13-ouncer he entered some weeks ago. The derby, an annual event, lasts 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.

Longport

Most anglers scored very well on Wednesday’s daily, open-boat trip for blackfish on the Stray Cat, Capt. Mike said. There was lots of action, and the anglers went through a bushel of crabs for bait. Few of the big tog were around yet this season, and a 5-1/2- or 6-pounder won the pool, but a couple of flurries gave up the larger ones to that size. Most of the slipperies on the trip weighed 2 to 5 pounds, and a tremendous number of 12- and 13-inch sea bass nibbled small pieces of the crabs, unusual to see sea bass that close to shore at this time of year. The trip fished at three spots from 6 to 12 miles from shore. Green crabs are supplied for bait, and so are a few hermit crabs that end up in the crab pots. Some customers brought their own white leggers, but the blackfish seemed to show no preference for the type of crab. Waters were 53 degrees with a 2 foot swell until 3:30 p.m., and currents were unusually light. considering the full moon. Tog still hung in the back bay like along the sod banks, so they were yet to move out. Striped bass schooled Wildwood Reef and 5-Fathom Bank. They also held in 50 to 60 feet off the Absecon Inlet bell buoy 2 or 2 ¼ miles. Stripers were stacked up at Great Egg Harbor Inlet on the south bar, toward the bridge and along the Ocean City fishing pier at the bridge. Anglers on 10 to 20 boats were always anchored and clamming for the fish there, mostly gaining bites on the slow tides. Open-boat trips are fishing for blackfish 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily. Friday and Saturday are chartered, but space is available on open trips Sunday to Tuesday. Wednesday is sold out.

Ocean City

Great Egg Harbor Inlet and Corson’s Inlet sometimes tossed up striped bass, and some anglers dropped down clams or bunker for them, and others swam live bait including eels, said Ed from Fin-Atics. Boaters also trolled and jigged stripers on the ocean at the Cuma Lumps and Sea Isle Lump. Blues were also around, but waters were cooling, so Ed wondered how long the blues would stick around. More than 1 ½ days with calm weather was all boaters needed, and winds were more often relentless. Not a lot of boaters were able to sail for tog because of the weather, but the blackfish population was off the charts when they could reach the fish at the reefs and wrecks. Tog also remained along the jetties and in the bay at the bridges and structure, were yet to migrate out. Surf casters also beached stripers, mostly fishing clams or bunker. Again, anglers just needed more frequent weather that cooperated. Little else was heard about fishing on the bay, except that ling kept being caught in the waters, oddly enough. Clams got them to bite.

Sea Isle City

No trips got out since the last report, but fishing was unlikely to have changed drastically in three days, said Capt. Joe Hughes from Jersey Cape Guide Service, affiliated with Gibson’s Tackle. His charters jigged loads of striped bass and fewer blues on the ocean on Sunday and last Thursday, covered in previous reports. The trip Sunday smoked more than two dozen striped bass and somewhat fewer big blues, for example. The angling was completely on, and those were some of the first trips of the season when stripers outnumbered blues in the area. Fewer blues, a handful, showed up on Thursday’s trip. Early mornings seemed best, but the fish bit throughout the day. Joe’s charters usually jig with white Fin-S Fish on jigheads. The trips will continue, probably at least until Christmas, but the fish were here now, so no reason to wait. Looking for an awesome gift for the holidays? Jersey Cape offers gift certificates for charters.

Surf casters clocked striped bass, not great fishing, but okay, probably a rating of 5.5 out of 10, said Wes from Gibson’s Tackle. A couple of big ones were weighed in last week, including a 30-pounder that came from Strathmere. Most of the fishing was concentrated at the inlets, and not many blues showed up in the suds, but they sometimes did. Winds pushed a blitz of bass and blues into Townsend’s Inlet on Wednesday for surf anglers. But fishing for striped bass and blues was a whopping 10 out of 10 when boaters on the ocean got the weather to jig and troll. They also swam live eels, if they preferred bait. Stripers could also be pumped in from the back bay, and one customer was just now heading out with a few eels to go for them. Clams or bunker could also be fished for them in a chum slick in the bay, and small, subsurface lures could probably be used. Green crabs are stocked for tog fishing, and the blackfish should still swim the bay and certainly held along the ocean. Gibson’s Tackle is open to Christmas.

Cape May

Striped bass trips switched to fishing on the ocean, trolling, jigging and live-baiting the bass and blues, probably a 50/50 mix, good catches, on the Fishin’ Fever, Capt. Tom said. Trips previously sailed for stripers on Delaware Bay, bunker chunking for the fish. The bay angling was still happening but was probably beginning to decline from cooling waters. The bay was 47 to 51 degrees on a recent trip, and the ocean was mostly a steady 51. The Cape May Rips continued to serve up stripers, despite frequently dirtied waters from winds. Catches were really hopping when the rips were clear. Live spots for bait nearly ran out by now, so trips will fish with eels and artificials. The Fishin’ Fever is also tog fishing, and lots of the blackfish were snapping, when the weather allowed the fishing to be done. The angling was even better because the weather kept boaters from pressuring them. The boat will probably keep fishing until mid or late January.

Delaware Bay held striped bass that could be bunker chunked, and up a ways from Cape May a little was probably a better place to find them, said Nick from Hands Too Bait & Tackle. The Cape May Rips also drew in stripers that would attack live bait or bucktails, and healthy catches of mostly stripers were trolled on the ocean. Blues would be caught if the troll speed was bumped up. Tog fishing should be fine, and anglers might want to look for them a little farther from the coast, now that waters were cooler. A few stripers were beached in the surf, but sharpies hoped more tumbled down from up north as the migration continued. Whether many anglers will chase them by the time they do was a question, because of the late season, but Nick will be out there, he said. Fresh bunker would be his choice to fish for stripers in the suds, but he began to land ling when he tossed clam for bait in the surf, and last year he and friends chunked the ling for bait in mid December, and a 50-pound striper got walloped on the bait. So maybe match the hatch. Fresh bunker, fresh clams, eels and green crabs are usually stocked.