<b>Staten Island</b>

Lots of sea bass, including lots of good-sized, were smashed today in 40 to 60 feet on the ocean with <b>Outcast Charters</b>, Capt. Joe said. Quite a few weighed 3 pounds, and a few blackfish were bagged, because the trip sailed from Sewaren. Outcast also sails from the New Jersey port, including so anglers can follow Jersey’s regs, like the one-blackfish-per-angler bag limit, while New York’s blackfish season is currently closed. But sometimes New York’s regs can be an advantage, like when sea bass season will remain open from Staten Island, once sea bass season is closed Friday in Jersey. Two fluke trips fished Wednesday and Sunday along rough bottom in the ocean with both bucktails and bait. Keepers were managed, but an awful lot of throwbacks bit. Some good-sized fluke 4 to 5 pounds came in Wednesday, but not enough keepers bit on either trip. A friend today scored better on fluke, a good catch, to 9 pounds in a different area.

<b>Keyport</b>

Eight keeper fluke, including a 6-pounder and two 5-pounders, were swung in Sunday from the ocean with Jeff Criswell’s family with <b>Papa’s Angels Charters</b>, Capt. Joe said. Throwbacks were released, and the boat drifted nearly perfectly. Was a wonderful day on the water, Joe said. “Just great.” Another trip was fluking today, and open-boat trips for fluke are available 6:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday when no charter is booked. Telephone to climb aboard.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Conditions, as usual, made the difference in fluke catches on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, Capt. Tom said. On Friday, both the morning and the afternoon trips caught okay, including some sizeable fluke, in decent conditions. Saturday morning’s trip had some fluke. Saturday afternoon’s trip met terrible conditions, so fluking was terrible. Sunday morning’s trip barreled up one of the better catches of keepers this season, though shorts gave up less action than usual. Donata Lombardi limited out on the outing. Some anglers bagged one or two, and, of course, some landed no keepers, on the trip. Sunday afternoon’s trip returned to the same area, and conditions were terrible. So the trip moved down the ocean beach, the first time the boat fished there in a while. Customers ended up with some keepers, though the number of shorts that bit was high, a bad ratio. Still, some keepers were boxed. Bait out-fished Spros or bucktails on the trips, for the most part, Tom would say. Or bait caught as well if not better. A combo of a Gulp and a spearing or a killie on a plain fluke rig caught. Whether spearing or killies caught best was difficult to say. Spearing are supplied aboard, and anglers bring their own killies. But Gulp did help with catches.  Anglers bring their own Gulps, or the artificial bait isn’t supplied. The Atlantic Star is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m. daily.

The channels were fished at first on today’s fluke trip on the party boat <b>Fishermen</b>, Capt. Ron wrote in a report on the vessel’s Web site. But he didn’t like what he saw – a couple of keepers and a slow pick of throwbacks tugged in – so the boat was moved several times. Fluke were found nearly every place, and some very good-sized keepers turned up. Dave Fritz, Whippany, won the pool with a 5-3/4-pounder, and a couple of others weighed 4 to 5 pounds. Ron had a chance to fish, reeling in a double-header on the first cast. The fluke on a bucktail on the bottom weighed 6 pounds, and the one on the top hook just missed keeper-size. “Put the rod away and called it a day!” he said. On nighttime trips, good catches of porgies were plundered, and a few more striped bass were angled than before.  The Fishermen is sailing for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Trips are sailing for a mix of fish, like porgies, blues, stripers and fluke, 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 3:30 to 9:30 p.m. Sundays.

<b>Highlands</b>

<b>Fisher Price Charters</b> sailed for thresher sharks and fluke, and was weathered out from bluefin tuna fishing, Capt. Derek said. The sharking was something new, and the fish were around, not far from shore. Trips have been fishing for fluke and bluefins already. First, the fluke trip. Anglers aboard Saturday competed in the Leonardo Fluke Masters Tournament, winning second place with a five-fish weight of 31.7 pounds. The angling was phenomenal, and the group of six limited out, but actually caught more, a total of 65 keepers, culling the largest, releasing the rest. Plenty of throwbacks were let go. The trip bucktailed rough bottom in deep waters with big strip baits and Gulps, like trips aboard had been doing. Charters are fluke fishing, and the next open-boat trip for fluke is set for Friday. Telephone to climb aboard or to be kept informed about future open trips. The shark trips sailed Friday and Sunday, and Friday’s trip went 4 for 4 on threshers 130 to 320 pounds. The trip Sunday went 3 for 7 on threshers, and the sharks landed weighed up to 90 or 100 pounds, and a couple of bigger ones were lost. The shark fishing is an option on charters. Bluefin tuna fishing aboard was weathered out because of questionable forecasts. But Derek knew about a couple of trips that fished for the tuna during the weekend, and the fish were caught. The fish sounded like they were boated closer to shore than before. Charters are fishing for the tuna, and open-boat trips might sail for them next week, depending on weather. Telephone to confirm or to be kept informed about future open bluefin trips. Fisher Price will sail for fluke and probably bluefins through September. Looking ahead, fall charters are being booked for striped bass and blackfish. Grab dates while they’re available.

<b>Neptune</b>

Fluke catches were probably the best of the season this past week for <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said. An inshore wreck-fishing trip Sunday scooped up not a lot of sea bass but lots of ling, and all anglers left with lots of fish. An individual-reservation cod trip is full August 12, but spaces remain for another on September 9. A cod charter last Monday had to search but ended up clobbering the fish well to 35 pounds. Alvin Falk, 87, Sommerville, was high hook and caught the biggest, using a simple cod rig like Ralph does. The rig was from Shark River Mail Order and out-fished all others. The weekly individual-reservation trip for fluke, sailing every Tuesday, is full this week. Kids under 12 sail free, limited to two per adult host, on those trips. Bluefin tuna are close enough to shore to catch. The fish were seen on every inshore-wreck and cod trip aboard recently. Only a few dates remain open for charters this month.

<b>Belmar</b>

Lots of sea bass were belted on a half-day charter Saturday on the ocean on the <b>Katie H</b>, Capt. Mike said. Four or five keeper fluke, and probably 20 throwback fluke, were in the mix. But action with sea bass, some of them sizeable to 2 pounds, was constant. The fishing was pretty good. A trip Sunday was supposed to sail for bluefin tuna, but Mike rescheduled the trip, because of reports about the angling, especially in boat traffic during the weekend. To catch, trips had to be on the grounds very early in the morning. The Katie H features all the amenities and speed.

With <b>Parker Pete’s Fishing Charters</b>, ocean fluke fishing was decent, when conditions were right, or the boat drifted okay, Capt. Pete said. On some days, anglers limited out, and on others, they landed twice their limit, keeping no more than their quota. On others, the fishing was just a pick. The summer flounder to 6, 7 and 8 pounds were taken, and trips fished in 45 to 65 or 70 feet. Water temps were around 72 to 74 degrees, maybe a little higher. Weather was beautiful on the waters. Pete hopes to fish for bluefin tuna this week, and the fish swam the mid-shore ocean. On some days, anglers crushed them, and on others, the tuna didn’t bite. But the fish were there. Trips sail for any species available. Don’t have enough anglers for a charter? Contact Pete anyway, or <a href=" http://www.parkerpetefishing.com/" target="_blank">subscribe to Parker Pete’s e-mailed newsletter</a>, to be kept informed about individual-spaces available on charters. Look for the place to sign up on the right side of the page on the boat’s Web site.

Fluke fishing was a little slower during the weekend, Bob from <b>Fishermen’s Den</b> wrote in an e-mail. In Shark River, more throwbacks bit than before, and the best fluking was on livelined snappers that swam plentiful in the river. Ocean boaters fared better on fluke, pulling in “a good mix of good fish,” Bob said, mostly on Gulps. Liam Cavanagh, 3 ½, Belmar, bagged a 4-pound fluke while fishing with dad, Chip. “The younger generation seems to be doing well this year,” Bob said. A 9-year-old hauled in a 12-pounder last week, covered in the last report. In the surf, schoolie striped bass were sometimes plugged or fly-rodded in early mornings. Bluefish 2 to 3 pounds sometimes moved into the surf. “Typical summer action,” Bob concluded.

Anglers had to work a little to catch, but bluefishing was good Sunday on the party boat <b>Golden Eagle</b>, a report on the vessel’s Web site said. The customers had to keep jigs moving, because the boat hardly drifted. Bluefishing on Saturday’s trip was also good, not quite up to the standard of previous days, probably because of boat traffic. But many patrons limited out. Bluefishing was excellent on previous days throughout the week aboard. The blues lately were smaller but abundant. On nighttime trips, bluefishing was decent on Saturday and very good on Friday, the most recent two night trips the report mentioned. The Golden Eagle is bluefishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. daily.

<b>Brielle</b>

Ocean fluke fishing was good, “opening up” everywhere now, pretty much, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. The fish were boated from Axel Carlson Reef to where they bit before at Shrewsbury Rocks. John Vafiadis, who works at the shop, dad Bob Vafiadis and Jerry Melia Sr. on Jerry’s Hard Eight won the weekend’s Jersey Coast Shark Anglers Fluke Tournament with Bob’s 10.2-pounder, caught on a Reel Seat Custom Coil Jig with a 6-inch Gulp. Customer Bob Lake and Mike Grafas won third place, Dave believed, with an 8.35-pounder. Manasquan River’s fluke fishing was good, and hickory shad and loads of small striped bass swam the river. Bluefish pushed in and out from the Manasquan. Surf anglers beached stripers at night. Lots of bluefish, though mostly small, were boated on the ocean. Ocean bottom-fishing rounded up sea bass, but fewer than before, and, at the Mudhole, good catches of ling. Bluefin tuna fishing was very good at Chicken Canyon and Atlantic Princess wreck, depending on the day, time of day and boat traffic. The fish were trolled, chunked on sardines and jigged. At canyons farther from shore, tuna fishing was best from the Wilmington to farther south.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

A good number of fluke 3 to 5 pounds, and pool-winners 5 to 7 pounds, were cracked Friday through Sunday on the party boat <b>Norma-K III</b>, and the fishing continued to be decent, Capt. Matt wrote in a report on the vessel’s Web site. The fishing was a little slower on Sunday than on the other days, but a population of fluke seems around. Bucktails with Gulps in Nuclear Chicken caught best. The trips are fishing sticky bottom, so bring extra tackle, because of snags. August is a great month for fluking locally, “so come down,” Matt said. On nighttime trips, 1- to 2-pound bluefish were pasted. The fishing was very good on Friday, including lots of limits, slower on Saturday, and very good on Sunday. The Norma-K III is fishing for fluke on two trips daily 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m. and for bluefish 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Anglers saw lots of action with fluke on the party boat <b>Miss Barnegat Light</b>, a report on the vessel’s Web site said. They weeded through lots of throwbacks to bag keepers, but that was worthwhile, and keepers included good-sized. Pool-winning fluke weighed more than 5 pounds. Many of the throwbacks were just undersized. The Miss Barnegat Light is sailing for fluke and sea bass 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily.

Anglers on the <b>Super Chic</b> fluke fished on two trips Saturday morning and earlier in the week on the ocean in mostly 60 to 65 feet, Capt. Ted said. A fair number of keepers and plenty of throwbacks were reeled in, and the fishing was good. Fluke 5 and 5 ½ pounds were pool-winners.  A trip Saturday afternoon jigged a bunch of 1- to 3-pound bluefish on the ocean. On Sunday, an open-boat tilefish trip offshore piled up a very good catch, mostly bluelines and some goldens. Probably three bluelines were cranked in for every golden, and the bluelines were healthy sized or 5 to 8 pounds. The goldens were small, but one was 15 pounds. A previous open tile trip also caught well, covered in a report earlier this season, and Ted might try to run another one of the trips during the second half of the month, probably on a Saturday to Sunday. Telephone if interested. The season’s first overnight tuna charter is slated for Labor Day weekend. Bluefin tuna swam the inshore ocean, and Ted hadn’t heard about yellowfin tuna farther offshore recently. Any bonito yet at places like Barnegat Ridge? Ted was asked. A friend tried for bonito at the ridge Saturday, only catching small bluefish, Ted said. The 56-foot boat can accommodate up to 25 anglers on inshore trips and 10 on overnight, offshore trips. The vessel sleeps 10 passengers.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

One trip landed thirteen summer flounder on Great Bay at the 135 and 136 markers, a report from an angler from the trip said on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site. The report didn’t say how many were keepers, but likely most were throwbacks. The report did mention that one was a 20-inch keeper. “My son caught the fattest 20-inch fluke I had seen,” it said. A couple of croakers were also hooked, and the trip fished after sunrise with minnows and shiners. A report from another angler talked about catching snapper blues on a lagoon at night with Gulps. Throwback striped bass 24 inches and smaller chased the snappers.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Brown sharks swarmed all over Brigantine’s surf, a report on <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>’s Web site said. The sharks must be released, but anglers nailed 40- to 60-pounders through the weekend. They fished a chunk of spot or mackerel, “(and) day or night makes no difference,” the report said. Anglers could bank spots from the surf on bloodworms or Fishbites artificial worms, then use the spots for shark bait. For boaters, summer flounder were migrating to the ocean from the back bay. They were decked at Absecon Inlet and at ocean wrecks.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Eighteen sharks to 80 pounds were caught and released Sunday on one of the inshore trips for them aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. The angling, with a family charter, was great, and the fish were browns and duskies, required to be released, and blacktips. The sharks were spin-rodded, but fly-fishing for them would’ve been phenomenal. Jersey Cape does both, usually fishing mackerel fillets on the spinning rods, and always tossing chum flies on the fly gear. The trips, usually within 10 miles from shore, are a chance to fight big fish without the usual long run offshore. A trip with another family Saturday landed one keeper summer flounder and a bunch of throwbacks on the back bay.  The fish gave up action the whole time. Joe fished for fun, not with a charter, for flounder on the bay Friday. On Thursday, another family aboard landed three keeper flounder and more than 40 throwbacks on the bay. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

<b>Cape May</b>

Tuna trips were good, limiting out, mostly on bluefins, at the inshore, southern lumps on the <b>Down Deep</b>, Capt. Mario said. But the number of yellowfins caught was increasing there. Open-boat, marathon sea bass trips shoveled up super catches, and sea bass season will be closed starting Friday. Summer flounder fishing was picking up, and plenty of sharks like browns were caught and released, on trips aboard.  Charters are sailing, and sign up for the <a href=" http://www.downdeepsportfishing.com/ddsf/76-2/" target="_blank">Short Notice List</a> on Down Deep’s Web site to be kept informed about dates for open-boat trips.

Fishing for tuna was slow Saturday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. The angling had been on fire at places like the Hot Dog through last Monday, mostly for bluefins, but yellowfins occasionally bit. Currently, a few tuna were still caught in the area, but not like before. Maybe the fishing will pick back up, and another trip wants to sail for them Saturday. This trip trolled the area, and waters were full of life, including porpoises and whales. No tuna showed up, but a couple of 15- to 20-pound mahi mahi were bagged. George knew anglers who caught a few of the tuna Wednesday, and about none who caught them Thursday. He heard about a few more boated Friday and Saturday. Abundant tiger sharks swam the grounds lately. A charter sailed for summer flounder Sunday at the Old Grounds on the Heavy Hitter with Chris from Allied Beverages in Mount Laurel.  A few keepers and three times as many throwbacks were pumped in. Weather was windy, though sunny. The boat drifted a little slowly, despite the wind, and that was a little tough for the fishing. But flounder were still caught. Many of the throwbacks were a half-inch or an inch short. Charters are sailing for all this fishing, and are also trolling for small bluefish that are schooling places like 5-Fathom Bank. Sea bass season will be closed starting Friday, but trips are also fishing for them. Telephone if interested in any of this fishing. 

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