<b>Sewaren</b>

With <b>Outcast Charters</b>, trips sailed for blackfish, limiting out, Friday and Saturday, Capt. Joe said. So the fishing was good, and the tautog weighed up to 7 pounds on Friday and 12 pounds on Saturday. Weather was calm, and the days were warm, but the ocean held a roll. Trips fished for blackfish in 60 to 80 feet lately. Outcast also fishes from Staten Island.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Blackfishing was good for boaters on the ocean, said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Nothing was heard about other bottom fishing, like for sea bass, ling and cod. From the surf, small striped bass were wormed and clammed. Anglers did plug them, but bait will start to work better in colder waters this time of year. All baits including green crabs and clams are stocked.

After a better catch of blackfish Thursday on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, weather was too nice on Friday’s trip, Capt. Tom said. Thursday’s good fishing was covered in the last report, and the ocean held somewhat of a ground swell on Friday. On the trip that day, a few blackfish would be swung in, then the boat would be pushed away from the spot. That was frustrating, and on Saturday’s trip, conditions weren’t as bad. Action with throwbacks was alright, and some keepers were cranked in, but not like on Thursday. Thursday’s catch was best in past days. On Sunday, a few anglers showed up to sail, but forecasts called for winds gusting into the 30 knots. Tom opted not to sail, because the winds along with the ground swell would’ve been too rough. Today’s trip sailed, Tom said in a phone call at 10 a.m. aboard. He was surprised, and previously thought forecasts for rain might’ve prevented anglers from showing up today. But a few arrived, and they were picking shorts and a few keepers, were catching. A little rain fell, but conditions weren’t bad.  The Atlantic Star is blackfishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, including on Christmas Eve Day. No trip will sail on Christmas, but the trips will run daily the next day through January 5. That will be the final day of fishing aboard for the season. <b>***Update, Saturday, 12/28:***</b> On Friday’s trip, blackfishing was decent, not great, with just a few anglers aboard, Tom said. The trip fished a few spots, ending up with some good-sized keepers, including a 10-1/2-pound pool-winner. A fair number of throwbacks or quite a few bit. Weather was a little cold, and some wind blew, but seas weren’t rough at all, and there was no ground swell. “It was pretty nice,” he said. Tom reminded that trips are blackfishing daily, including on New Year’s Day, through January 5, the boat’s final day of fishing this season.

<b>Highlands</b>

Blackfishing remained good on a trip Friday on the <b>Vitamin Sea</b>, Capt. Frank wrote in an e-mail. The fish weighed up to 10 pounds on the outing, and spring striped bass trips should be booked now. Many of the dates were already booked. Charters and open-boat trips are fishing, and telephone to jump aboard. “Get your dose of Vitamin Sea!” <b>***Update, Friday, 12/27:***</b> Blackfishing was excellent aboard Thursday, Frank wrote in an e-mail. Thirty keepers to 6 pounds were pasted by 9:30 a.m. <b>***Update, Saturday, 12/28:***</b> The Hoydich group aboard Friday, on their first-ever trip for blackfish, caught just less than a limit, Frank wrote in an e-mail. “Nice catch …” he said. “Not bad for newcomers,” and they also sacked three cod. Waters seemed to be cooling.

After being weathered out for 1 ½ weeks, <b>Fisher Price Charters</b> fished Friday and Saturday, Capt. Derek said. Blackfishing was good on the trips, and the fish weighed up to 10 pounds both days. With weather forecast afterward, Derek decided to call it a season. He thanks all who fished aboard this year, and wishes everybody Happy Holidays. Reservations are being taken for spring trips, and Fisher Price will begin fishing again in late March or the first week of April, starting with striped bass trips.

<b>Neptune</b>

Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> was away at a wrestling tournament, and is back now, he wrote in e-mails. Spaces are available for an individual-reservation blackfish trip Tuesday. More of the trips are slated daily from Thursday through New Year’s Day. The boat will be in the waters through winter, and is also available for wreck-fishing for cod, ling and pollock. <b>***Update, Saturday, 12/28:***</b> Most anglers cracked good blackfishing on Friday aboard, Ralph wrote in an e-mail. Some landed double their limits, keeping no more than their quotas. “Back of the boat did best,” Ralph said, and white leggers were best bait. Joe Flynn won the pool and also bagged a cod. The boat is chartered today, and individual-reservation trips will blackfish on Sunday, New Year’s Eve Day, New Year’s Day, next weekend on Saturday and Sunday and every weekend when no charter is booked. Charters are available daily, and coffee is brewing, the cabin is heated and a microwave is aboard.

<b>Belmar</b>

For trips on the party boat <b>Big Mohawk</b>, blackfishing was good, and was so far this season, Capt. Chris said. “No issues,” he said. Trips are blackfishing 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, except the trips won’t run on Christmas and New Year’s days. Green crabs are provided, and white leggers are available for sale aboard.

Mackerel started to migrate off the local coast, and trips will begin fishing for them daily on Friday on the party boat <b>Golden Eagle</b>, a report on the vessel’s Web site said. “It seems that there is a decent body of (them),” it said, and more should keep arriving. The trips will sail 7 a.m. to 3:30 or 4 p.m.

<b>***Update, Tuesday, 12/24:***</b> “The mackerel are here!” an e-mail from the party boat <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b> said. Daily trips will fish for them starting Friday at 7 a.m., departing early, “so that we can get you to the fishing grounds first!” it said. <b>***Update, Friday, 12/27:***</b> Daily trips for mackerel were supposed to start today aboard, and boats that bottom-fished Thursday mixed-in mackerel fishing, and found them, an e-mail from the boat said. The anglers hooked doubles and triples, and mackerel and lots of herring were read in large areas.

<b>***Update, Thursday, 12/26:***</b> Good reports still rolled in about small striped bass beached from the surf in Monmouth and Ocean counties, Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b> wrote in an e-mail on Christmas. Blackfishing was very good on the ocean on boats from Belmar Marina. Jake Niedenstein from Wall’s 15-pound 8-ounce blackfish, boated off Long Branch, was the biggest weighed at the shop this week. Bob wished everybody a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. During this past year, tackle shops were affected by Hurricane Sandy. The storm caused many marinas to be closed, and many anglers to lose homes and boats. For many species, fishing was “off.” Blackfishing and sea bass fishing were good. Fluking was fair, and bluefish “were slow to show up,” Bob said. Striped bass fishing was poor. But the shop’s crew looks forward to the new year “with cautious optimism,” he said.

When trips could sail, blackfish, good catches, were beaten with <b>Parker Pete’s Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Pete said. Weather sometimes cancelled trips, and anglers were busy with the holidays. Blackfishing was decent aboard Saturday, and the boat almost limited out. Blackfish hooked lately were different sizes, and trips will keep after them, as long as the weather allows. The blackfish bag limit will be decreased to four on January 1, from the current limit of six. If trips can sail for a mix of blackfish, ling and cod, they will. Don’t have enough anglers for a charter? Contact Parker Pete’s anyway for individual spaces available on charters. Or <a href=" http://www.parkerpetefishing.com/" target="_blank">subscribe to Parker Pete’s e-mailed newsletter</a> to be kept informed about the spaces. Look for the place to sign up on the right side of the page on the boat’s Web site.

<b>Brielle</b>

Rough seas kept fishing docked, Capt. Ken from the <b>Big Kid</b> said. But the boat fishes all winter, including for blackfish, ling and cod.

Surf fishing for striped bass was pretty darn good, actually, said Eric from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. The fish were mostly throwbacks, but a few were keepers, and the catches were heard about from Bradley Beach to Belmar and from about Bay Head to Brick Beach. The bass were hooked on small, 6-inch, soft-plastic lures, like those from Savage, and small hard lures, like Bomber 15A’s or Gag’s Grabbers. A few boaters sailed for stripers, picking mostly small stripers tight to shore, in 20 feet, on trolled umbrella rigs. Blackfishing was very good, including for sizeable ones, in 50 to 80 feet. The fish were spread north and south, and boaters just had to find the right piece to fish. Offshore sea bass fishing was excellent, and many anglers limited out. A ton of porgies also bit on the trips, and sea bass season will be closed on January 1. Anglers should probably act quickly to reserve a spot on a party boat. Not much was heard about bluefin tuna that had been fought inshore to offshore previously. Weather was rough to reach the fish, and maybe anglers who fished for them kept quiet. Catch the sale on S&S Spro-style and Squidster bucktails at 25 percent off.  The Reel Seat will be closed on Christmas and the day after or on Wednesday and Thursday, and will be open Friday through Sunday. Then the shop will be closed until reopening at a new location on February 15. Big news: The shop will be relocated to a bigger building then at 307 Union Avenue in Brielle. That’s Route 71, and the new location will be 4,100 square feet, compared with 1,500 currently.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Fishing for ling was okay on the party boat <b>Dauntless</b>, and today’s trip blackfished, Capt. Butch said. The blackfishing was okay, not great, and most customers scored two to six keepers apiece. Six is the bag limit, and the blackfish were healthy-sized, from 2 pounds to 10 or 12. Previously, ling catches were okay, so long as anglers could keep away from dog sharks. A few cod were mixed in on trips, and cod bit only 2 miles from shore on today’s trip. One angler on today’s trip bagged five blackfish and a sizeable cod. The Dauntless is bottom-fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily. Christmas is the only day the boat’s not scheduled to sail each year.

On the party boat <b>Norma-K III</b>, blackfishing was good Friday, Capt. Matt wrote in a report on the vessel’s Web site. The angling wasn’t a bail, but a handful of anglers limited out and released more, and most customers bagged three to five. One or two bagged one or two, and one or two “could not get a bite,” Matt said. An 8-pound blackfish was the pool-winner. On Saturday, blackfishing wasn’t as good aboard, and began tough. But anglers began to pick away at a spot later in the day. Some ended up with two to five sizeable keepers, and some landed no keepers. One customer limited out, and an 8-pound blackfish was the pool-winner, but a 13-pounder was the trip’s biggest. Sunday’s blackfish trip was weathered out. Saturday night’s ling trip sailed, and the fishing was slow. But a few ling and keeper cod were bucketed, and a 15-pound cod was the pool-winner. Dog sharks and eels were somewhat of a nuisance.  The Norma-K III is blackfishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. On Tuesday, a trip will blackfish 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., for Christmas Eve. Magic Hour Ling Trips are running 3 to 9 p.m. every Saturday.

<b>Toms River</b>

A few throwback striped bass were beached from the surf during the weekend, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. They were hooked on Ava 17 jigs with teasers, and a few anglers headed out with bait like salted clams to fish for them. But no results were reported. That was all that anybody mentioned about fishing along the coast. Customers picked up shiners to fish for chain pickerel on Toms River near Garden State Parkway. Anglers were seen trout fishing farther upstream, at the Trout Conservation Area. They surely angled a few. Big breeder trout were stocked at Lake Shenandoah during the winter stocking recently.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

Surf casters banked throwback striped bass, said Mario from <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>. A bunch of the fish were still out there, and small metal or plugs with teasers latched into them. The Dock Outfitters features bait and tackle, a dock to fish and crab from and boat rentals for fishing and crabbing. Crabbing and boat rentals are available during the warmer months.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

This is the final day that <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b> will be open, until reopening March 1, Scott said. But the shop’s online store, <a href="http://www.pennparts.com" target="_blank">PennParts.com</a>, will remain open. Zero news came in about fishing, and a couple of customers who stopped in for rod repairs were about the only business this weekend.  During some years, fishing remains busier until later in the season. But weather turned cold and rough just before Thanksgiving, and anglers stopped fishing. The shop even carried grass shrimp for bait for white perch in past days, but no customers asked for them. Green crabs that were stocked for blackfish bait were given away to a charter captain. The perch fishing, on brackish rivers including the Mullica, is something that anglers do all winter. Perch bite all year, but anglers chase them in winter, because the rivers are relatively protected from weather. If ice forms on rivers this winter, Collins Cove on the Mullica is one of the most popular places to ice-fish for the perch. That’s located just upstream from Garden State Parkway, and can be seen from the bridge. The cove was formed when the land was dug out for fill to construct the parkway. Perch gather there to escape the colder currents in the main Mullica in winter. When the shop is reopened March 1, that will be opening day of striped bass season in bays and rivers. Striper season closes on January 1 in bays and rivers, but stays open on the ocean out to 3 miles from the coast all year. Striper fishing is closed beyond 3 miles year-round. Graveling Point, a shore-angling spot at the confluence of Great Bay and Mullica River, is always one of the state’s first places to give up stripers each year. Scott’s annually awards a $100 gift certificate to the shop to the angler who weighs in the season’s first striper from Graveling. Stripers seem attracted to the confluence of those waters in the early season. They might also be attracted to other places, but the location is also just a place that anglers can access.   

<b>Absecon</b>

A few anglers started to fish for white perch on brackish rivers, said Capt. Dave from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Reports about the fish rolled in from Mullica River, and grass shrimp started to be stocked for bait for the slabs. More anglers might start to chase fish after Christmas. Baits stocked also include live eels and spots and all the frozen selection. The spots probably won’t survive to spring, but maybe the eels will last for spring striped bass fishing. Dave will usually be at the shop this winter, but telephone ahead to confirm.

<b>Brigantine</b>

<b>***Update, Tuesday, 12/24:***</b> The Riptide Striper Derby, <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>’s annual fall striped bass surf-fishing contest for Brigantine, was wrapped up on Monday, Capt. Andy wrote on the shop’s Facebook page. Mike Ferrara won with a 49-pound 13-ounce striper, and Linda Davoli won second and third places with stripers 26 pounds 14 ounces and 24 pounds 10 ounces. The island’s surf fishing for stripers was the slowest in 10 years or longer this fall, but a few sizeable stripers were beached. Nobody won the shop’s bounty for the fall’s first striper 43 inches or larger weighed in from Brigantine’s surf. So the money, $1,200, will be used to start the contest for spring, beginning March 1. Entry is $5, and the winner takes all the cash. The money last fall, $600, was never won that season, and was rolled over like that. It reached $2,005 in spring, and was won on May 27 with a 46-inch 32-pound 6-ounce striper. The shop will be closed now for a winter break, but if customers need anything, they can leave a voicemail, and Andy usually checks the messages every couple of days. He’ll be in and out of the shop. Though the fall fishing was slow, “it was a good year overall,” he said. He thanks customer, “(and) from the Riptide family to yours,” he said, “have a Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year.”  

<b>Ocean City</b>

A few small striped bass played on the back bay were actually reported, said Justin from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. A couple of anglers talked about hooking them on soft-plastic lures, and they didn’t want to reveal much, including about location. But Justin assumed the fish bit along the 9th Street Bridge, the only place that anglers really fished. That was all the news, and the store will be open through Christmas Eve. It’ll be closed on Christmas and reopened Thursday through next Monday, the day before New Year’s Eve. On New Year’s Eve Day, the shop will be closed. Afterward, it’ll be open Fridays through Sundays through February, reopening daily on March 1.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Anglers docked a few blackfish on the local party boat, said Mike from <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. A few people tried for striped bass in the surf and on the ocean, but no catches were talked about. Clamming was good on the back bay. Not many oysters were dug up, and the banks were too grassy.

He heard no first-hand news, but Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b>, affiliated with <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>, heard second-hand that boaters from Sea Isle City still picked away at striped bass on the ocean, he said. He was traveling to the Florida Keys when he gave this report in a phone call, and will begin annual traveling charters to there now. The trips fish from Christmas to Easter, mostly on weekends. See <a href="http://www.captainjoehughes.com/page3.html" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s traveling charters Web page</a>. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

<b>Cape May</b>

The party boat <b>Porgy IV</b> sailed for blackfish Thursday through Sunday, Capt. Paul said. The fish were pitched aboard each day, and some anglers limited out, and some landed as few as one keeper, and some landed no keepers. A small crowd joined Sunday’s trip, and at least three anglers limited out, and forecasts called for strong winds that ended up weaker, and rain began later in the day. A decent-sized crowd jumped on Saturday’s trip, and blackfish were hung. Customers who limited in past days included Rudy Barbolini from Wildwood Crest and Don Mark and Alan Ho, both from Philadelphia. Clarence Davies from Philly bagged three keepers, winning the pool with a 9-1/2-pounder. No trips will run today through Christmas. But blackfishing aboard will resume daily at 8 a.m. Thursday through New Year’s Day. Afterward, Paul will see how the fishing and weather are. But the tautog trips might continue, probably fishing on weekends.

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