<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Boating was “a little tough at the moment,” said Jimmy, tongue in cheek, from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Winds blew, and a ground swell kept rocking the ocean. Seas were rough on a trip he took on Wednesday, and were even rougher today. He bottom fished on the trip nonetheless, and sea bass, porgies and blackfish put up a good bite. Anglers are glad the blackfish bag limit will be pulled up to six on Tuesday from the current limit of one. Striped bass also swam the bottom on his trip, and a 20-pounder grabbed a hooked bergal. Blues popped up on the surface at times on his trip. Surf fishers were able to work a line in the suds at least on Wednesday in the seas, if not on other days, and they caught. A big area of mostly striped bass, a few blues, swam the surf at Sea Bright that day. Surf casters also banked stripers at Sandy Hook lately. The rivers still held stripers, and a customer bought a dozen eels this morning, saying he still picked stripers from the waters. Much of the bait probably departed the rivers this late in the season.

Fish busted the surface and birds worked the waters as Wednesday’s trip reached the fishing grounds on the party boat <b>Fishermen</b>, Capt. Ron said in the report on the vessel’s Web site. Patrons jigged mixed sizes of striped bass from 15-pounders to shorts. Ava 47 jigs with plain tails were the hot lures, but jigs with tails and Sting-O PBJ jigs also worked. A few bass were clammed when the anglers waited for the tide to change. Check out the awesome bird life in a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6-vwvNv86U&feature=player_embedded" target="_blank">video of the trip</a>. “If that doesn’t get the heart rate going, nothing will!” Ron said. This trip was a pleasure after the seas on Tuesday’s trip, he said. On Tuesday north winds blew at a steady 25 knots. “To say it wasn’t pretty … is an understatement!” he said. But when the vessel rounded Sandy Hook, birds worked for miles, and stripers rolled on top. Striper catches were great on the boat. The anglers jigged at the channels at first, taking some time to get used to jigging in the ocean roll. Seas got nasty on incoming tide, and the trip took a break and did some clamming until the change of tide, landing a couple of bigger bass, until sharks invaded. The boat returned to the channels after the change, and the action was back on! The Fishermen is sailing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. <b>***Update:***</b> Big blues, short striped bass and keeper stripers dished up action all day on today’s trip, Capt. Ron said in an e-mail. The trip fished in one area, battling nasty seas on the ocean once again. “But isn’t that what we want (for striper fishing)?” he asked. A couple of anglers limited out on stripers, and a 16-pound bass was the pool winner. The season’s first shot of 24- to 27-1/2-inch shorts was seen, and many of the anglers caught and released several. “Back at it in the a.m.,” Ron said.

A bottom-fishing trip on Wednesday was the first to sail since the weekend because of weather, said Capt. Tom from the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>. A few porgies and a few sea bass came up, and blackfish were bagged, and one place gave up ling. So the catch was a mixed bag, and fishing for porgies and sea bass wasn’t as good as Tom would’ve liked, but angling for them improved since slower fishing during the weekend in a ground swell. The swell was yet to subside on this trip, and seas were a little cranky. If the blackfish bag limit had already been raised, the anglers could’ve bagged a decent catch. The limit will be increased to six on Tuesday from the current limit of one, and trips will focus on the tog daily starting then. The vessel is already supplying green crabs for blackfishing, in addition to clams for the other fish. The Atlantic Star is bottom fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily for sea bass, porgies and blackfish and will begin concentrating on blackfish Tuesday.

<b>Highlands</b>

No trips sailed since the weekend because of weather, said Capt. Brian from <b>Jersey Devil Charters</b>. But a charter Saturday walloped more than 30 stripers, including 13 keepers, off Sandy Hook, and another Sunday in the same waters landed 10 or 11, including six keepers, in windy weather, challenging for fishing. Both trips trolled the fish on umbrella rigs with tubes and were covered in the last report. The angling was good lately, and combo striper/blackfish charters will be available when the blackfish bag limit is increased on Tuesday.

Fishing for striped bass was on hold since the weekend because of weather with <b>Fisher Price Charters</b>, Capt. Derek said. He hopes trips will resume Friday, if the weather calms, but will definitely sail Saturday. Two open-boat trips, one in the morning and another in the afternoon, will fish for stripers that day. Call to jump aboard or to be kept informed about future open trips. Trips recently sailed for stripers along the channels and at the mouth of the bay, fishing with eels or clams. While the weather kept the boat in port this week, Derek surf fished. He hooked striped bass on rubber shads and swimming plugs and a couple on jigs. He also beached a couple of blues Tuesday and no blues Wednesday. The ocean held a big swell. Blackfishing trips or combo striper/blackfish ones will become available when the bag limit is amped up Tuesday.

Boaters bagged striped bass when they could sail in weather, but seas remained stiff on the trips, said Wayne from <b>Twin Lights Marina</b>. Winds were forecasted to drop out this weekend, but a tall swell was predicted to stay, and unless west winds knock them down, the seas will continue, but northeast winds were predicted. One of the charter boats, a 38-footer, from the marina kept fishing for the bass, and catching, but the anglers got rocked and rolled. The charters fished with clams and eels. Previously live and fresh peanut bunker were popular baits, but the peanuts were no longer stocked this late in the season. Gene Graham, the marina’s striper sharpie who sails if at all possible, didn’t get out, and didn’t expect to be able to run soon. Romer Shoal, Flynn’s Knoll and Ambrose Channel were some of the places that doled out stripers. Blues, not a lot, were around, were yet to depart, and one angler weighed in a 10-pounder. Nothing was heard about bottom fishing because of seas. Eels and all the frozen baits, including clams, are stocked.

<b>Neptune</b>

An individual-reservation trip to the offshore wrecks for cod, pollock and hake was cancelled today because of weather with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said in an e-mail. He’ll try to reschedule for Wednesday or Thursday, and contact him to climb aboard. Ocean trips bailed 23 keeper striped bass on Friday and a half-dozen on Saturday, a slower trip, both covered in the last report. Individual-reservation trips for blackfish are set for Tuesday; Sunday, November 21; and Friday, November 26. Tuesday is when the blackfish bag limit will be cranked up. The trips will sail at least once a week afterward.

<b>Belmar</b>

Seas were a bit bumpy but fishable on a striped bass trip Wednesday on the <b>Nan Sea J</b>, but lots of the bass to probably 33 or 34 inches and some blues bit, Capt. Tom said. Some of the fish were landed at the Shrewsbury Rocks on the way to the channels near Sandy Hook. Then the rest were tackled at the channels. Seas were comfortable at the channels, and many boats fished there, good to see after rough weather kept vessels from sailing. Charters will keep striper fishing and will begin to sail for blackfish when the bag limit increases on Tuesday. Open-boat or make-up trips will also target blackfish this season, and anglers can call Tom for the dates.

Bottom fishing racked up plenty of catches from the ocean before all the winds on the party boat <b>Big Mohawk</b>, Capt. Chris said. The vessel sailed Monday, the last trip before winds kept the vessel tied to the cleats. A few sea bass and a bunch of blackfish were swung aboard. Trips will exclusively hunt blackfish, a specialty on the boat, beginning Tuesday, when the bag limit is hiked up. The first who arrive, filling the rail, will get to sail that day. Crabs will be supplied for bait, and the fare is $60, and for seniors is $55 on weekdays. The Big Mohawk sails 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

On the party boat <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b> trips for striped bass and blues on the ocean sailed a limited number of times because of weather recently, Capt. Alan said. On a couple of the outings the weather made fishing conditions bad, and the angling was poor. But a trip sailed Wednesday, and 36 stripers were bagged, a bunch of throwbacks were released, and lots of blues were fought. The trips are jigging for the fish and will sail into December.  The Miss Belmar Princess is fishing for stripers and blues 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Night trips that had been slated through last week wrapped up for the year.

Angling was winded out today, and surf casters couldn’t fish, and the party boats couldn’t run, said Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. But when fishing was possible, both the beach fishers and the boats piled up lots of striped bass. From the shore the bass were clammed, plugged or caught on teasers. From the boats, stripers probably made up more of the catches than blues. Healthy catches of sea bass were cracked on the bottom-fishing party boats, and the shop will be prepared with crabs and all the tackle for the increase in the blackfish bag limit Tuesday. Anglers at Shark River Inlet had fun fighting lots of sea herring.

<b>Brielle</b>

Forecasts called for 7-foot seas this weekend, but Capt. Ken from the <b>Big Kid</b> hopes to resume sailing then, if forecasts are wrong, after weather cancelled fishing on the boat this week, he said. Charters are fishing for striped bass and sea bass, and will begin blackfishing on Tuesday, when the bag limit is jumped up.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

At the Mudhole anglers with <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b> on Sunday began fishing a wreck in 150 feet, pumping in a steady pick of ling, a few sea bass and a cod, a report on the boat’s Web site said. Another drop in 200 feet was dead, but another in 85 feet, on the way home, turned up a few more sea bass. Seas were rough, but the anglers, some of them seasick, caught plenty when they fished hard. Fishing was weathered out otherwise on the boat, Capt. Fred said in a phone call. Sea bass fishing slowed down in the area, he said, and combo striped bass/blackfish trips will be the focus once the blackfish bag limit is pulled up Tuesday. Andrea’s Toy is finished fishing for tuna offshore for the year. The boat specializes in mixed-bag fishing for greater fun, more variety for dinner and better chances of hooking up.

All the boats seemed to be kept in the slips at <b>Canyon River Club Marina</b> during the weather, owner Carl LaManna said. The vessels are mostly striped bass fishing on the ocean, and will begin blackfishing when the bag limit jumps up on Tuesday. The marina, located along Manasquan River, is open all year, including winter. It features all the amenities, including a locker with electric to fit a freezer, rods and tackle. The docks are only a half-mile from Manasquan Inlet with no bridges.

Mostly sea bass and blackfish – okay catches, not great, because of  rough weather – were lifted aboard from the ocean on the party boat <b>Dauntless</b>, Capt. Butch said. Sometimes a few blues and an occasional striped bass were decked. Patrons averaged 10 to 15 of the different fish apiece. Porgies that were taken on the trips previously seemed to depart the area for the season. A few, not as many as before, were boxed. The crew hopes blackfish bite when the blackfish bag limit is increased Tuesday, so customers can begin bagging more. The Dauntless is bottom fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

The party boat <b>Gambler</b> fished on Wednesday after frequently being docked because of weather, Capt. Bob said. Forecasts also sounded terrible for that day, and the ocean held a ground swell on the trip, but the conditions weren’t so bad near the shore where the vessel fished. The boat ran north, coming across a shot of bluefish and striped bass off Long Branch first thing in the morning. Then the trip fished off Sea Bright the rest of the day, and every drift produced some keeper stripers, some shorts and some blues. The angling was okay, though the amount of fish marked on the fish finder looked like more should’ve been hooked. All the fish were jigged, and small jigs worked better this day, and Bob guessed the fish fed on smaller bait. The anglers found out that Ava 27 jigs caught more of the fish than larger jigs like Krocodiles did. The Gambler is fishing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. A trip on Thanksgiving will sail for stripers 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Weather kept trips in port, and a trip last sailed Sunday, said Capt. Matt from the party boat <b>Norma K Fleet</b>. Lots of sea bass were clobbered from the ocean on the trip, and five or six passengers limited out, and quite a few bagged 10 to 18. A few blackfish were also coolered. The trips will switch to blackfishing daily Tuesday, when the bag limit is raised. An all-day trip will chase the tog 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. that day, and afterward all-day trips will run for them during those hours every Monday. Three-quarter-day trips will sail for blackfish 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. the rest of the days through the week. For now, the three-quarter-day trips are bottom fishing. Magic Hour Trips are also running 3 p.m. to 9 p. m. Saturdays and Sundays, and weather allowed the trips to fish the past two Saturdays. Ling, great catches, and a few cod were looted on both trips.

<b>Toms River</b>

Surf anglers sometimes tugged in striped bass on clams, bunker or Ava jigs, said Jeff from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. The stretch between the Casino Pier in Seaside Heights and the Fun Town Pier in Seaside Park gave them up, and the shore at Ortley Beach served up a few. But Jeff surf fished Wednesday, tossing an Ava 27 jig as far left as possible, and seas pushed the jig all the way to the right before he could really fish the lure. The only bluefish he heard about were some that a boater trolled on the ocean on a trip. That was on a larger boat, and seas kept most vessels from fishing the ocean. Customers reported landing blackfish here and there, including along the inlet rocks. More of the tog will be able to be kept when the bag limit is lifted up Tuesday.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

Though seas were somewhat rough in the surf, angling from the beach bombed some healthy catches, said Scott from <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>. Seaside Heights produced, and Seaside Park shoveled up quality fishing in about the past week. Lots of striped bass were creamed in the surf Wednesday, including on Ava 17 and 27 jigs with green tails and Bomber plugs. Clams and bunker worked lately, too. A few blues to 13 pounds were axed during the action Wednesday, but mostly stripers were beached. Lots of stripers, including big ones to 30 pounds and larger, were livelined on eels at night along the sod banks in Barnegat Bay near Barnegat Inlet, and along the inlet jetty. Nobody talked about blackfish, but more will be heard once the tog bag limit is ratcheted up Tuesday.

<b>Forked River</b>

When boaters had the seas to sail, they trolled okay catches of striped bass on the ocean, and blues still hit the lines, said Dave from <b>Grizz’s Forked River Bait & Tackle</b>. The anglers trolled bunker spoons, Stretch plugs and umbrella rigs. Eeling along Barnegat Bay’s sod banks at night clocked good catches of stripers. Little was heard about blackfish, but that’ll probably change when the bag limit is raised Tuesday.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Angling the surf for striped bass became fairly consistent in the last couple of days, and the fish to 15 and 20 pounds were commonly dragged in, said Nick from <b>Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle</b>. The location of the bite was difficult to pinpoint from day to day, but Nick believed that many of the fish that had previously bit along Island Beach State Park now moved south to local beaches including at Barnegat Light and Loveladies. Anglers fishing from the Barnegat Inlet jetty also jumped on the fish, though the windy weather was challenging up on the rocks. A few who fished from the jetty today said they had to quit when they could no longer take the conditions. Many of the fish were hooked on Ava jigs and teasers from the surf. Occasional big blues to 10 and 12 pounds were wrestled from the suds. Nick couldn’t remember a year when so many big stripers were entered in the annual Long Beach Island Surf Fishing Classic. Anglers competing in the event entered a surprising number of 30- and 40-pounders, and Nick believed another in the 50-pound range, about 51 pounds, was entered this week. In Barnegat Bay near the inlet livelining spots for stripers was great in the shallow or skinny waters. Stripers around 34 inches were often live-spotted, and some anglers livelined herring for the fish. Only a few reports were heard about eeling for stripers along the bay’s sod banks at night, but that fishing seemed to connect. Anglers have to be hardcore to do the eeling at night this time of year, and the same customers each year buy eels for the fishing. The bay’s temps dropped to 51 degrees, becoming ideal for clamming for stripers on the bay near the inlet during the daytime. Tog fishing was excellent along the inlet jetty, and anglers hoped the fish stuck around for when the bag limit is stepped up Tuesday. The shop’s supply of spots is beginning to run low, but plenty of fresh bunker and fresh clams are carried, and green crabs are on hand.

<b>Barnegat</b>

<b>***Update, Friday, 11/12:***</b> From an e-mail from Capt. Dave DeGennaro from the <b>Hi Flier</b>: “Yesterday (Thursday) was tough. I had four guys on board for a bay striper trip and I could not find a fish for these guys. It sounded tough all over for those that were out and off for Veterans Day. A heavy northeast wind and murky water made for less than ideal conditions to drift the live spots that have been producing so well for the last few months. I went on the hook with some fresh clams for a few hours and that didn't produce any hits either. On the second to last drift we landed a 24" inch fish on a live spot and headed for the dock as it was time for my afternoon trip. I was much more optimistic, as the wind dropped out to about 10 knots and now we were on the outgoing water. We did a hitless drift by the Dike and then headed towards the inlet. As we were pulling up we saw the first rod doubled over on another boat that turned out to be a nice striper. We finally hooked a few fish and then Steve Reel Fantasea called us in on a spot where he just decked a nice fish and that put a nice bass in the box for us, as well.....Thanks Steve! The action definitely improved after the hard wind eased up a little, or maybe it was the outgoing water, or both. I will be running open boat for the next few days designed around that outgoing tide: This afternoon (Fri) Noon to 5 PM. By Sat and Sun, it is possible to catch a good part of that tide in the morning with a 6AM to 11AM trip. The NOAA forecast does not look good for outside ocean fishing with easterly winds and high seas, so we will be in the bay every day livelining bass. These next few days are going to be awesome, I think I might have the where-to-be-when part dialed in pretty good now. We’ll see!”

<b>Surf City</b>

Surf fishing was consistent for occasional catches of big striped bass, said Steve from <b>Surf City Bait & Tackle</b>. Fresh bunker was the bait to dunk and is stocked, and so are fresh clams. Quite a number of small striped bass were pulled and released from the surf when the fish followed sand eels into the waters early in the week. Sometimes blues were hit in the surf, but the bluefishing was slow.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

Despite the weather, striped bass trips fished at Little Egg Inlet every day since Monday with <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>, Capt. T.J. said. The trips limited out on the fish Monday and Tuesday, nearly limiting out Wednesday, so the angling went well. The fish, including sizeable ones to 45 inches, were clammed on anchor in a clam chum slick. Waters around the inlet usually offer some place to hide from winds in the 35-foot Downeast Duffy. That’s unlike striper fishing on T.J.’s other boat that fishes from Cape May this time of year, though that vessel is a 38-foot Henriques. The fishing from Cape May – on Delaware Bay and at the Cape May Rips – offers little shelter from winds, and none of those trips sailed in the weather this week. T.J. doesn’t expect the Cape May trips to fish until Saturday. From Tuckerton an  <a href=" http://www.legallimitcharters.com/c-11-open-boat.aspx" target="_blank">open-boat trip/shared charter</a> will fish for stripers Sunday.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Trips on several boats hooked more than 20 striped bass, 30- to 40-inchers, apiece at Little Egg Inlet on Tuesday, and the vessels returned on Wednesday, and the trips mopped up five or six stripers apiece, said Scott from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>. The angling’s been unbelievable, as good as it gets, he said. The weather was rough, and seas were churned up, but maybe that’s why the stripers arrived. Boaters should just be careful, and fish with a buddy. Most of the fish were keepers, and occasional shorts came up, and the fish were clammed on anchor. The season’s first report rolled in about stripers nailed from land at Graveling Point. A pod of bunker schooled through waters at the point Tuesday evening, just at dark, and all the anglers came off the beach with two stripers apiece that chased the baitfish. One customer said stripers piled up at the point on the same date last year. Clams also caught the fish at Graveling, and the shop is loaded with lots of fresh, shucked clams, and lots more will arrive, and the supply should be solid this weekend. Plenty of stripers were also pulled from the Mullica River. Livelined eels, or spots if anglers had spots, nabbed the fish on the river while boaters drifted. Local striped bass fishing should keep producing through Thanksgiving, unless wintry weather takes hold before then. The ocean was too rough to fish through the week. Nobody knew whether stripers also schooled the ocean or whether bluefish ran the waters there. Blues lately were mostly caught north of Barnegat Inlet. Nobody talked about angling for other species like tog or yellow perch. Customers generally fished for striped bass at the inlet or nothing. But the tog bag limit will increase Tuesday, and green crabs are stocked for the angling. One customer picked up the shop’s live grass shrimp, probably for the perch fishing, but nothing was heard about results.

<b>Absecon</b>

The back bay’s striped bass fishing began to turn on a little more than before, said Curt from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Capt. Dave, the shop’s owner, ran a charter that boated 10 stripers, all keepers, on Wednesday, and the anglers limited out. Another charter picked up three keepers. The anglers on his trips fished with livelined spots and mullet. Eels also grabbed stripers in the bay, and Curt heard about a “semblance” of a clam bite starting in the bay and in the surf. The fishing was a bit better than before in the last few days, after striper angling had been in somewhat of a lull a moment last week. Water temps were dropping fast, and dipped to the low 50s, even lower in some places. Fairly consistent striper catches were clammed, bunker-chunked or eeled at Little Egg Inlet in the white waters. Bunker were sometimes snagged and livelined at the white waters at the different inlets. Striper catches at Absecon Inlet weren’t quite as common as at Little Egg Inlet. Mullica River anglers did eel stripers, and Curt saw boaters trolling for them. If boaters troll the area, they should be careful to use common courtesy, not disturbing waters around other boaters, like boaters drifting live bait for stripers. When lots of boat traffic moves around the waters, striper fishing turns off, turning back on when traffic disappears, Curt heard. Curt, a white perch angler, drilled consistent fishing for the slabs on the Mullica last week, but couldn’t get out much this week. Ocean boaters picked stripers on the troll. Tog, lots of them, littered waters along the sod banks, docks, bridges, rocks and jetties, and the bag limit will be increased Tuesday. Curt heard that the blackfish swam thick around Margate. Ocean wrecks also held them. Live spots are  stocked, and a few live  mullet remain. Fresh bunker and fresh clams are carried, but anglers should call ahead to confirm.

<b>Brigantine</b>

More than 60 striped bass were weighed in during the weekend for the Elks Tournament, said Capt. Andy from <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>. A “strong bite,” he said, went down, and anglers on the Irish Mist won the boat division, and Anthony Ayers won the surf division. From the surf, anglers mopped up stripers on clams or bunker, and catches checked in from the shore this week included James Pruchnicki’s 47-3/4-incher that weighed almost 35 pounds. Pete Massa wrenched in a 29-pound 3-ouncer from the surf at mid island on bunker. George Donahue caught stripers every day in the surf, and a 19-pounder was his biggest. Mike Lesik weighed in a 17-pounder from the surf. A bunch of other stripers were also weighed in from the suds. At Absecon Inlet and the back bay, eels seemed to start attracting stripers more than other baits. But clams gained the catches at Wreck Inlet. Jeanne DeCeccio eeled an 18-pound 4-ouncer striper, her first-ever, on the back bay on Jimmy who works at the shop’s boat. Fresh, shucked clams are stocked, and fresh bunker ran out, but Andy would see if bunker would be re-stocked by Friday. Eels and spots are in store. The 5th annual Riptide Striped Bass Derby is under way, lasting until the end of the year, and Steve DiGiacomo was in the lead with a 46-1/2-pound 51-incher. Entrants win cash awards for the biggest stripers caught from the surf along Brigantine’s front beach. First place wins $750, and 2nd cops $400, and 3rd earns $150. The entrant with the biggest bass each month wins $25. The rest of the proceeds are donated to charity, and the event donated more than $13,000 to charity since the tournament began, Andy said. The entry fee for the tournament is $20, and entry must be accompanied by a Brigantine beach buggy permit. That way all entrants get to drive the beach to fish.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

From the surf, anglers picked up striped bass, not plenty, but some, and the fish almost to 30 pounds were weighed in, said Noel from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. Water temps were probably around 55 degrees, a good range for stripers. Fresh bunker, fresh clams, eels and bloodworms drew strikes. Tog, not as many as before, but, again, some, chomped on green crabs and clams along structure like the jetty rocks. Ling chewed on clams in the back bay and along the T-jetty. All the baits mentioned and more, the full supply, are stocked.

Striped bass fishing, mostly in the back bay, started to become better in the past two or three days, said Curt from <b>Offshore Enterprises Bait & Tackle</b>. In the bay many of the fish were eeled, and some were clammed, and the clamming was picking up. Surf fishing for stripers began to put up a few catches. Most of the stripers swam farther north toward Long Beach Island and beyond, and anglers waited for them to migrate south to local waters. Trolling for stripers on the ocean was about to begin locally, and the fishing already nabbed a few but was spotty. No blues were really boated on the ocean, but blues occasionally hit the surf. Lots of tog stacked up along the bridges and such structure. Few fished for them, because once anglers get the striper bug, they chase stripers. But tog fishing will gain more interest when the bag limit is boosted Tuesday. Nothing was heard about offshore fishing for tuna anymore.

<b>Longport</b>

Even though trips could’ve motored out in rough seas, the bottom was probably stirred up because of the conditions, slowing down fishing for sea bass and blackfish, so the <b>Stray Cat</b> was kept in the slip, Capt. Mike said. He expects the vessel to sail open-boat for sea bass and striped bass on Saturday and Sunday, and space remains. Stripers could show up any day in the ocean. Open-boat trips for blackfish, one of the favorites on the Cat, will launch Tuesday, when the bag limit is pushed up to six of the slipperies from the current limit of one. Four spaces are available on the trip opening day. Fishing for the tog during some years is some of the best around, and the South Jersey wrecks that are fished are less pressured than farther north. Mike has called Longport the Blackfish Capitol of the World. A couple of the annual Cast and Blast Trips, outings that hunt ducks and fish in the same day on the ocean, were cancelled this week because of weather. But more will sail, and telephone Mike if interested in the Cast and Blasts on either a charter or open trip. If anglers want to steam for jumbo sea bass 65 miles offshore this winter, like during Christmas week, give Mike a call. Charters are currently available seven days a week for whatever species are biting.

<b>Ocean City</b>

<b>***Update, Friday, 11/12:***</b> When boaters could clear the inlets, before the 9- to 11-foot seas currently on the ocean, sea bass, as many as anglers could want, carpeted the wrecks and pieces in 80 to 100 feet, and cod were mixed in, said Bill from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. Anglers hope seas will calm by Sunday. Also before the seas, many striped bass and blues were jigged in 40 feet from Lucy the Elephant in Margate to Corson’s Inlet. Some were trolled, but jigging grabbed more. Stripers were boated in the inlets, before the seas, on eels, spots, bunker and such baits. The fish blitzed the surf at times on the southern end of Ocean City, toward 57th Street and Corson’s Inlet, when the ocean was calmer, pouncing on bunker or clams. In the back bay plenty of stripers were hooked along the sod banks and sedges in the mornings, evenings and night on Bombers, Mir-0-Lures, Kastmasters, Ava jigs and such. Tog fishing was super from the back bay to the ocean wrecks.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Lots of big striped bass, all 25- to 35-pounders, were entered in a tournament from Mike’s Seafood and the Lobster Loft in Sea Isle City this weekend, said Wes from <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. Many of the fish, including the 38-pound winner, were beaten on Delaware Bay. But lots came from the Sea Isle surf, and some came from the back bay around the town. The bass on Delaware Bay are traditionally bunker chunked, and anglers in the Sea Isle surf could dunk fresh bunker or fresh clams for stripers. Fresh bunker was stocked at the shop, and is expected to run out today, but more is supposed to arrive Friday. Fresh clams are carried. Striper fishing was going great on the back bay for smaller fish, mostly catch and release angling, on poppers or soft plastics like Sassy Shads or swimming lures. Jersey Cape Guide Service, affiliated with the shop, waxed 24 of the stripers on the back bay in two trips. One trip bailed 20, and the other four. The ocean, currently 53 degrees, was too rough, was terrible, for boating this week. But big blues could be jigged on the ocean, and the slammers occasionally hit the surf. The blackfish bag limit will be raised to six on Tuesday from the current limit of one. Not many anglers fished for the tog during the one-fish limit, but that should change, and green crabs are stocked for bait. But the few who fished for the tog nailed good catches. The slipperies hovered along the bridges, the inlet docks and the ocean wrecks and reefs.

Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b>, affiliated with <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>, planned to fish today, after staying on land in the weather this week, he said. He’ll probably shoot for striped bass on the back bay, and recent charters reeled them in with him. But ocean seas weren’t as poor as forecasted, and ocean fishing might be feasible. He might be able to test the ocean to see if the migration of stripers and blues tumbled down the coast yet. Once that fishing begins, it’s some of the best all year for his charters. Trips will fish with jigs with soft-plastic lures, bucktails, metal or flies. On the bay a trip on board Friday went 18 for 30 on striped bass, 24- to 27-inchers that were released, on soft-plastic lures. A trip on the boat Saturday on the bay fly-rodded four stripers that were let go. A trip on deck Sunday had planned to fish for big stripers, aiming for quality over quantity, on Delaware Bay, got weathered out, fished the back bay for smaller stripers with the bait instead, but had no luck. All three charters were covered in the previous report. Keep up with Joe’s fishing, photos and videos on <a href=" http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

<b>Wildwood</b>

The season was wrapped up on the party boat <b>Adventurer</b>, Capt. Gary said. The weather kept forcing trips to be cancelled on weekends, when the boat mainly fishes this time of year, and that will do it for the year. He thanks everyone who fished aboard this year, and trips normally kick off again in late April with bottom fishing for sea bass and blackfish.

<b>Cape May</b>

A 25-pound 41-inch striped bass was being weighed in from the surf this afternoon at <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b> when Nick gave this report over the phone. That was the first keeper he saw from the surf lately, and angling from the beach was slow, but a few short stripers were banked. The keeper might’ve been a sign the fishing was picking up. A bluefish or two was also landed from the surf on occasion. Nick heard about a few stripers boated along the ocean front, and that made sense, he said, considering stripers were sometimes plucked from the Cape May Rips. Still, the weather was usually too rough for boaters to sail. Even the bunker boats, larger vessels, stayed in port today. A couple of private boaters snuck out to Delaware Bay, bunker chunking at 20-Foot Slough, the only place they could reach in the weather. They caught some stripers, saying chunking heavily was key. Tog hovered around the bridges and such structure, and the bag limit will be hiked up Tuesday. Fresh bunker was usually stocked at the shop, but none will arrive Friday, because the bunker boats were docked in the blow today. Fresh clams are always carried, and green crabs are on hand.

The <b>Heavy Hitter</b> was kept in port during the weather this week, and a trip will sail for striped bass Friday, Capt. George said. But some boaters striper fished Wednesday in weather they said was windy but settled later. Reports sounded like they decked stripers at the Cape May Rips. George didn’t know how good the angling was, but the fish at the rips were a good sign. He heard about one trip that caught stripers on Delaware Bay Wednesday, and the trip seemed to score later in the day. The Heavy Hitter is striper fishing, and the blackfish bag limit will be hauled up starting Tuesday, if anglers want to charter for blackfish.

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