<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Colder weather that began to roll in “will get things going (with striped bass fishing, I hope),” Capt. Ron from the party boat <b>Fishermen</b> said in a report on the vessel’s Web site. He hopes to kick off daily striper trips by mid month, not wanting to start too early, “with nothing going on,” he said. Plenty of stripers schooled to the north, “just waiting for Mother Nature to give her call,” he said. Lots of bait is swimming local waters, and Ron hopes that’ll make for a great migration of stripers. The boat’s been on break from fishing since fluke trips ended when fluke season closed. Ron expects to give an update this week on the boat’s Web site.

Raritan Bay doled out porgies, good catches, through Friday on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, Capt. Tom said. Saturday morning’s trip returned to the same spot, and the fishing was slower, but Tom expected that soon. The angling had slowed there earlier last year. So the boat on the trip was moved to the channels, and porgy fishing wasn’t as good as in the bay, but some were caught. But the afternoon trip’s fishing was lots better, good, for porgies at the channels. On Sunday morning's trip, a good catch of porgies was punched, and no trip sailed that afternoon. Forecasts for rough weather apparently kept anglers from showing up. So far, the outlook for porgy fishing was great. A few sea bass and an occasional triggerfish were snatched aboard. Some drops produced lots of small sea bass. The Atlantic Star is bottom fishing on two trips daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m.

<b>Highlands</b>

Striped bass had bitten well early last week for <b>Fisher Price Charters</b>, Capt. Derek said. The fishing slowed the last couple of days, for some reason. Plenty of stripers and baitfish were marked, but the bass wouldn’t eat. Waters were definitely warm and just needed to cool. But bottom-fishing was good aboard. Porgies dominated, but sea bass and occasional blackfish were around. Charters are fishing, and the next open-boat trips will probably sail Friday and Saturday. Call for info.

Scores of porgies, 32 sea bass, a couple of snapper blues and a few silver eels were bucketed Saturday with <b>Raritan Bay Charters</b>. An equal number of throwback porgies as keepers, several throwback sea bass and eight out-of-season fluke were let go. Fluke are usually caught while the boat drifts, but bit while the boat was anchored, bottom fishing. The trip tried for striped bass an hour at first, and none was caught. But trips now are running for a combo of stripers and bottom fish. Striper fishing usually becomes best in late October and November, but they could show up earlier. Striper fishing was already off the hook at Montauk, farther north. “I don’t think we’re far off,” Dave said. Anglers who booked a trip Saturday cancelled because of rains. But they could’ve fished. Seas and winds weren’t an issue. A few spaces are available for open-boat trips Saturday and Sunday for a combo of striper and bottom fishing. Call for availability.

<b>Neptune</b>

Bottom fishing couldn’t have been better on the ocean Sunday with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said in an e-mail. Sea bass, lots of big ones, large triggerfish, and porgies were pummeled. This was the time to bottom fish, and the fish swam close to shore. Sea bass season will close next Monday, and reopen November 1 to December 31. Sea bass might not be found close to shore then. The trip had time to see if striped bass were around yet, and three throwbacks were caught and released. Space is available on more of the bottom-fishing trips Tuesday and Sunday. Four spaces remain for an offshore cod trip Monday, November 12. 

<b>Belmar</b>

Bluefish, an alright catch of 6-, 8- or 10-pounders, somewhat smaller than before, were tackled on a short trip on the ocean Saturday afternoon with <b>Fin-Ominal Sportfishing</b>, Capt. Jared said. But lots of false albacore were fought. Trips Thursday and Friday launched self-propelled aquatic vessels for researchers. The vessels sampled waters, took soundings of the bottom, searched for tagged fish and did lots of different recording. The trips worked 15 square miles of the Mudhole through the two days.

The season’s first nighttime bluefish and striped bass trip sailed with <b>Parker Pete’s Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Pete said. Blues were bailed, couldn’t be kept off hooks, and a 25-pound striper was bagged, all on chunked bunker. In other news, false albacore were still around, and sea bass fishing was decent, better on some days than others. Porgies could be caught, and, again, fishing for them was better on some days than others, and sometimes rough weather affected them. But lots of porgies schooled. Parker Pete’s sails for all species available, and charters and open-boat trips are running. For availability on open trips, see <a href="http://parkerpetefishing.com/belmar-fishing-trips/open-boat-trips" target="_blank">Parker Pete’s open-boat page</a> online, and sign up for the e-mailed newsletter on the site. Dates are announced in both places.

After fluke season closed two Saturdays ago, sea bass and porgies “filled the void,” said Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b> in an e-mail. Sea bass and porgy catches were very good, and anglers fishing for them were able to bag them, giving them a return on money spent to fish. That was unlike fluke fishing that frequently left anglers without a catch to bag, because of the large size limit. Bluefish hit “like there is no tomorrow,” Bob said. False albacore gave anglers a great time fighting them. Plenty of blackfish held in Point Pleasant Canal and Shark River Inlet. Striped bass were “a little slow to show,” Bob said, “but give them a little time, (and) they will be here.” But a customer trolled a 40-pound striper off Deal, “a good sign (that) some larger fish are here,” Bob said.

<b>Brielle</b>

On the party boat <b>Jamaica II</b>, Tom Leonard from Manchester iced 24 sea bass to 4 pounds, and Brad Davis from Brick bombed 21 sea bass to 5 pounds and 19 porgies,  Capt. Joe said in an e-mail. Good catches of sea bass, including limits, were scooped aboard most trips, and big porgies showed up. Trips will sail for sea bass 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, and a special cod/sea bass trip will run next Monday. Because of the great showing of large porgies, porgy trips were added for 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. the Tuesdays of October 23 and 30. Mudhole trips for big ling and cod are slated for every Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday from October 17 through 31.

For sea bass anglers, a fair number of big fish seemed around, and so did a fair number of throwbacks, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. But the fishing, on the ocean, was good. A lot of sea bass places probably got “pounded,” he said. Plenty of porgies began to be waxed. Not a lot seemed to gather locally, but quite a few seemed to start swimming farther north, around Shewsbury Rocks. Few boats fished for ling on the ocean, but when trips did, lots were looted. A few blackfish were pulled from the ocean, and triggerfish, the southern species, still lingered. Plenty of shad – and actually many weakfish – held in Manasquan River. Striped bass 22 or 23 inches swam abundant at the bridges in the river. Most were hung in evenings on soft-plastic lures like Fin-S Fish and D.O.A.’s. Surf fishing was picky, and was better north of Manasquan Inlet than south of it. More bait seemed to school north. But a few small blues and small striped bass were beached, and more surf anglers began to be seen. Plenty of blues schooled the ocean, and the fleet fished for them at Shark River Reef. Plenty of false albacore were fought on the ocean. Nothing was heard about bluefin tuna. Farther from shore, yellowfin tuna fishing was fairly good, and local anglers mostly chunked them at Hudson Canyon at night. A healthy number of longfin tuna were in the mix at night. Swordfish were pumped in during dark. A trip on the Jenny Lee reportedly trolled five bigeye tuna to 240 pounds during daytime and chunked five yellowfins and a longfin tuna at night. Heads up surf anglers: Certain Yozuri lures are on sale at 40 percent off, and so are Tsunami wooden plugs. The shop began stocking Choopy Needlefish Lures and CTS Surf Rods. Wahoo Baitfish Bucktails and Stingo jigs are on sale at 30 percent off to celebrate the store’s 30 years in business.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Striped bass trips will fish from the middle of this month through November on <b>Canyon Runner Sport Fishing</b>’s 60-foot Ritchie Howell, and half the charters are booked, but some remain, an e-mail from Canyon Runner said. Close out your season in comfort, the e-mail said. Winds 25 knots can be no fun in November, if you’re exposed in a boat, it said. But the Canyon Runner offers lots of opportunity to escape the elements. “Remember,” the e-mail said, “Capt. Phil (Dulanie) didn’t catch three bass over 60 pounds and a dozen over 50 pounds by accident. Come find out why Capt. Phil puts striper fishing on the top of his list.”

Five to 15 keeper sea bass per angler were boxed on the ocean Sunday on the party boat <b>Norma-K III</b>, a report on the vessel’s Web site said.  A 4-pound sea bass was the pool-winner, and the trip fished eight or nine spots, “(and) only three of them were decent,” the report said.  On Saturday’s trip, lots of sea bass were read, but many wouldn’t bite. Sea bass and a few triggerfish were picked. “(A)  good amount of current running in the wind (might’ve) made the bite slower,” the report said.  On a trip Friday night, bluefishing was excellent on the ocean. The Norma-K III is sailing for sea bass 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily through Saturday. Daily striped bass trips will launch when stripers show up. Bluefish trips are running 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays through November 3. On November 10, trips for ling and cod will begin to fish 3 to 9 p.m. Saturdays.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Seas “haven’t been too friendly the last couple of days,” a report said on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site. Temperatures fell, so striped bass catches should become more abundant soon, and fish like kingfish and blowfish should push out from the bay before long. Stripers already began to be picked this season. Sea bass, porgies, triggerfish, blackfish and croakers were hooked from the ocean around Little Egg Reef and different wrecks.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Linda Davoli checked in the season’s first striped bass from the surf at <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b> on Thursday, a report on the shop’s Web site said. She won the Riptide Striper Bounty for $105 for the first, and the store previously reported that she plugged two stripers. Then she entered the bounty. Another bounty will be awarded for the season’s first 43-inch striper brought in from the Brigantine surf.  <a href=" http://riptidebaitandtackle.com/articles.php?category_id=6" target="_blank">Click here</a> for the latest reports from the store.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Some of the traveling charters to Montauk, New York, fished Saturday and Sunday with <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>, Capt. Joe Hughes said. Mike Roth fished on the trips with flies, targeting the migration of striped bass, blues and false albacore. The angling was slower, though was great for anglers during the week, and was great on Jersey Cape’s trips the previous weekend, covered in a previous report. No reason could be known for the slow down, but the fishing was surely not finished. Fish were landed on the trips, just fewer than usual. Maybe if Joe hadn’t been used to plowing so many … he said. Trips will keep fishing from the legendary port this coming weekend and maybe afterward. Back at Sea Isle, high tides in evenings are ideal this week for fishing for stripers on the back bay aboard. The migration of large stripers and big bluefish should invade the local ocean at the end of October through November and maybe longer. Reserve trips now. Book dates for annual weekend trips to Florida in winter. The trips can fish for a large variety of catches including redfish, speckled sea trout and tarpon in the back country to king mackerel, blackfin tuna and sailfish out front. See info about Montauk and Florida on Jersey Cape’s <a href="http://www.captainjoehughes.com/page4.html" target="_blank">Traveling Fisherman Charters</a> Web page. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

<b>Wildwood</b>

Was difficult to get a break from weather on weekends, when <b>Canal Side Boat Rentals</b> was open, Mike said. Winds blew and rains fell, including rain on Sunday. But a couple of rental-boat trips got out Saturday, plucking a few crabs from the back bay. Lots of weakfish, many throwbacks, but some better-sized, schooled the bay. Plenty of spots filled the waters, and anglers could catch them to keep in pens or live wells for striped bass bait this fall. The striper migration will arrive after waters cool. Out-of-season summer flounder bit in the bay. Surf anglers banked good catches of kingfish and sometimes 1- to 2-pound blues. Look for birds working the waters to find the blues, and surf catches came most often toward Cape May. Canal Side will be open this coming weekend before being closed for a break through winter. The rental boats are available, and a large supply of baits is stocked. Minnows are only $5 a pint, the best price on the island, Mike said in a previous report. Baits carried also include Gulps, frozen, chopped shedder crabs in brine, all the different squids, including colored and scented squid strips, tube squid and trolling squid, and frozen sand eels, herring, whole mackerel, mackerel fillets and salted clams in quarts and pints. Crabs for eating are $22 per dozen for No. 1’s and $12 per dozen for No. 2’s. Check out <a href="http://www.canalsideboatrentals.com" target="_blank">Canal Side’s Web site</a>.

<b>Cape May</b>

Fishing for sea bass slugged very good catches from the ocean, said Capt. Mario from the <b>Down Deep</b>. Call about special, open-boat trips for sea bass this week: 609-827-1232. Reserve striped bass charters now for later this season. Book winter blackfishing trips now.

Two trips trolled lots of bluefish at the Cape May Rips on Saturday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. The trips, one with Rick Street, wife Cindy and son Ricky, and John and Sue and son Kevin, and the other with Bill and Lorrie Rossiter, found the blues in two different places at the rips. The blues were 1 to 3 pounds on one trip and somewhat bigger on the other. In other news, sea bass could be socked from the ocean. Fishing for them sounded better on some days than others, maybe because of weather or the moon. But the fish were bagged. Tuna fishing sounded all right. Trips were heard about that axed four or five tuna apiece. That seemed average, but two trips were heard about that whaled 10 and 11. Charters are sailing for all these fish, and call if interested. Striped bass trips are being booked for later this season.  

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