<b>Staten Island</b>

<b>Outcast Charters</b> sailed for sea bass today, limiting out on the fish, good-sized to 3 pounds, Capt. Joe said. Eight sea bass per angler can currently be kept in New York, unlike three in New Jersey. Outcast charters from both Staten Island, N.Y., and Sewaren, N.J. Ling were also swung in, and throwback cod were released. Keeper-sized blackfish, out of season in New York, were let go. One blackfish per angler can currently be bagged in New Jersey.

<b>Keyport</b>

From the <b>Vitamin Sea</b>, Capt. Frank in a previous report said fluke fishing would produce big fish before August’s full moon, and the angling did, he wrote in an email. Multiple 8- and 9-pounders were nailed on trips Friday and Saturday aboard, and the best fluking is yet to come. Fluke in the next weeks will begin to stage for the fall migration. Skill matters in fluking. On each trip, anglers in the know limit out or nearly limit. The presentation and rigging of the bucktails fished needs to be modified during different stages of the tidal current. Anglers on the boat learn the skills, mastering them with practice, scoring better on each trip. Charters are fishing, and open-boat trips are sailing for fluke on weekdays and weekends. Telephone Frank for the schedule, or email him to be added to the open-boat email list. No trips will fish this week, and they’ll resume next week. Mechanical work is being done on the boat this week to prepare for fall fishing for striped bass and blackfish, also on both charters and open trips. Like the boat’s Facebook page for open-trip dates and real-time reports. “Get your dose of Vitamin Sea!” 

Mostly throwback fluke but a couple of keepers were tugged from Reach Channel on Raritan Bay on Saturday on an open-boat trip with <b>Papa’s Angels Charters</b>, Capt. Joe said. A fluke trip Sunday aboard with a father and two sons produced similar results: mostly shorts but a couple of keepers at the Reach. Both trips fished with spearing and squid, and the water was 77.9 degrees, the last time Joe looked on the trips. Weather was beautiful on both outings, a little cool in a breeze at first, and somewhat hot later in the day. Joe agreed that this was some summer for weather. Charters are fishing, and open-boat trips are available twice daily, in the morning and afternoon, when no charter is booked. Telephone to jump aboard.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

A few more keeper fluke showed up on morning trips the last couple of days than before on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, apparently because the vessel drifted well, Capt. Tom said. Fluking aboard depended on conditions like that, and the drift was very tough on Friday afternoon aboard. The boat wouldn’t drift, no matter where it was sailed. All trips fished on Raritan Bay, at different places on the bay. Fluking was somewhat better on Sunday afternoon’s trip than on previous afternoons. At first, the trip picked away at some shorts. Then the boat wouldn’t drift a while. Afterward, anglers picked away at keepers and shorts, and shorts were most abundant, of course. So, fluking was a little improved in past days, mostly in mornings, when conditions were better. No huge fluke were sacked, but some good-sized were. Whether one bait fished better than another was difficult to say, but Gulps combined with either spearing or killies worked as well as anything. Spearing are provided aboard, and some anglers wanted to buy squid to bring. But Tom recommended they bring Gulps instead. Anglers who fished Spros might’ve caught better on Sunday morning’s trip. But maybe that was because those anglers worked harder. Forecasts are calling for weather on Tuesday, but Tom thinks the trip will fish, on the protected bay.  The Atlantic Star is fishing for fluke on two trips daily from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m.

<b>Neptune</b>

Three openings became available on the weekly, individual-reservation trip for fluke on Tuesday with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said. Previously, the trips were booked through next week, and the fishing, on the ocean, is good. Anglers should reserve quickly if they want to sail on the trips, before fluke season is closed on September 28. Kids under 12 sail free, limited to two per adult host, and the Tuesday trips will fish for another species after fluke season. Only a few spaces are left until Labor Day for both individual-reservation trips and charters. Room becomes more available after Labor Day, and fishing only becomes better then. An individual-reservation trip for cod was successful on Thursday, and another is scheduled for September 11. Sign up now, if you want cod in summer. Fish for cod in shorts. An individual-reservation, inshore wreck-fishing trip is set for August 24.

<b>Belmar</b>

Probably eight or nine bluefin tuna, a limit bagged, the rest released, and one mahi mahi were eased from the inshore ocean Friday on the <b>Katie H</b>, Capt. Mike said. So the angling was really good, and two more of the trips are slated for this Thursday and Friday. No trip fished aboard Saturday, but boats from the docks piled up great catches of fluke and sea bass that day. A couple of fluke and sea bass trips are scheduled aboard this weekend, and if anglers want the fish, go now, Mike would say. Tuna trips to the offshore canyons will be launched for the season in another week on the boat. The Katie H fishes both inshore and offshore, but is an offshore specialist. The 46-foot boat features speed and all the amenities.

Fishing for fluke was excellent Saturday, after it was a slow pick for a few days previously, on the ocean with <b>Parker Pete’s Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Pete said. Conditions were good Saturday, and fluking was slower Sunday aboard, and conditions failed to drift the boat. The fishing depends on conditions, and fluke are there. The angling should be good this month and into September, if no tropical storm affects the catches. On Saturday’s trip, both bucktails and bait caught. But anglers who know how to bucktail will usually catch. Parker Pete’s this season hosted On the Water Seminars to teach bucktailing for fluke. Three of the trips sailed, and because response was good, two more of the trips were added for this Wednesday and August 27, also a Wednesday. An email about the seminars said: “Are you tired of reading reports of people catching big (fluke)? Do you usually ‘drag’ bait and hope for the big one? Are you being out-fished when you go out fluking? Are you ready to get hooked on bucktailing in a non-threatening way?” The trips are inexpensive, and email Pete for more info. Also, don’t have enough anglers for a charter? Jump on <a href=" http://www.parkerpetefishing.com/" target="_blank">Parker Pete’s website</a> to subscribe to the emailed newsletter to be kept informed about last-minute, individual spaces available to fill in charters. Look for the place to sign up on the right side of the page.

Was a great week for big fluke, Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b> wrote in an email. John Forrester from Mercerville weighed-in a 12-pound 4-ouncer. Then 16-year-old Alex Brabo from Ocean Township checked-in a 12-pounder on Saturday. Both fish were boated on the ocean off Long Branch, and some really large fluke seemed to hold off Monmouth County. A couple of Belmar’s party boats reported great angling for them there. Angling for blues, mackerel, bonito and mahi mahi was hot on the ocean. John Foster from Jackson stopped by with a 15-pound mahi.

Big bluefish arrived! an email from the party boat <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b> said. Eight- to 15-pounders were slammed non-stop aboard, all weekend long, on the ocean east of Shark River Inlet. “This is what we have been waiting for all summer,” the email said. Previously, blues fought were small. But big ones showed up starting on Friday night’s trip, and the angling was great. The Miss Belmar Princess is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Starting Tuesday, trips will also fish 7:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. daily. Previously, the nighttime trips only fished on Fridays and Saturdays.

Big blues – repeat, big blues – were pummeled Saturday on the party boat <b>Golden Eagle</b>, a report on the vessel’s website said. The trip banged away at the 10- to 12-pounders from mid-day on. “I believe this might be the beginning of a run of big fish,” the report said. The same-sized blues were hammered on Sunday aboard. On Friday’s trip, small blues, bonito and mackerel were waxed, super fishing, and catches were like that on the trips aboard previously. On afternoon trips, fluke and sea bass, plenty of shorts, sometimes keepers, were reeled up. The Golden Eagle is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.  Fishing trips/sunset cruises have been running 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. daily, and reservations have been required on those outings. Some of those trips have been sold out, so check with the boat. Also, it’s time to book tuna trips. Twenty-four-hour trips are scheduled for September 28 and October 5 and 19, and space remains, but is filling up. See the <a href=" http://goldeneaglefishing.com/tuna-reservation.html" target="_blank">Golden Eagle’s tuna trip page</a> online.

<b>Brielle</b>

Very good fluking on the morning’s trip, and decent pickings on the afternoon’s, on Saturday on the party boat <b>Jamaica II</b>, Capt. Ryan wrote in an email. The morning trip’s catch was one of the season’s best. On the trip, most anglers, among a sizeable crowd, left with a bag of fluke fillets. A bunch limited out, and many of the fluke weighed 3 to 5 pounds. Most bait hooked the fish, but chartreuse, 4-inch Gulp swimming mullets caught especially well, and the lighter the bucktail or Spro, the better. Customers with limits during the weekend included Ben Marzolla, Dave Tootchen, Gene Murphy, Mike Hetrick, Justin Murphy, Tom Coligan and Henry Wyscott, “just to name a few,” Ryan said. The Jamaica II is fishing for fluke and sea bass 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays and 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. every Monday.

Manasquan River’s fluke fishing was especially good a couple of afternoon’s this past week, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. The fish bit near Clark’s Landing and also at Manasquan Inlet. At the inlet one evening, practically all anglers hooked the fish on almost every cast. Snapper blues schooled the river lately, and nobody was heard about who fished for striped bass on the river. But previous reports from the shop talked about stripers from the river. The ocean’s fluke fishing was pretty good, and lots of good reports were heard about the angling on Saturday. Toward Deal and Elberon fished best, and even party boats from Manasquan Inlet headed there. Fishing for big bluefish 8 to 12 pounds turned on at night on the ocean. Nothing was heard about daytime bluefishing. Plenty of bonito were trolled at Manasquan Ridge on small spoons, feathers and jet heads, and mahi mahi were mixed in. Ling fishing was okay on the ocean, and other fish including sea bass and winter flounder were hooked among them. Fluke anglers also picked up ling on the ocean. Bluefin tuna were landed closer to shore than before. Lots of bluefins to 30 pounds were now fought within 25 miles from the coast, and mahi mahi, good-sized, and skipjacks hit among them. All the fish were trolled, and the bluefins had sometimes been jigged, in addition to being trolled, 50 miles out, previously. The angling was good until late last week in that range. Anglers probably just needed to find them again. Canyon tuna fishing was slow for most trips in recent days, and most fished at Lindenkohl Canyon. But Hudson Canyon turned out a bigeye tuna bite on Saturday at the 100 Square. Not many boats seemed to fish the canyons during weekdays last week. The crew from the Canyon Runner will give the shop’s next free seminar, on canyon trolling, at 7 p.m. Thursday. 

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Day trips fished the canyons back-to-back Saturday and Sunday with <b>Mushin Sportfishing</b>, Capt. Alan wrote in an email. Incredible fishing was found for longfin and yellowfin tuna Saturday morning at southern canyons, but on bait, instead of on the troll. But the bait needed to be fished on very light, fluorocarbon leaders. Several white marlin were caught and released “away from the fleet,” he said. The email included a photo of a white aboard, the angler’s first-ever. On Friday, a trip with Mushin whaled a banner catch of bonito, with some blues mixed in, at inshore lumps on the troll. The anglers landed all they wanted by 9 a.m., then switched to bottom-fishing at reefs, adding sea bass to the catch.

Fluke fishing remained the same as before aboard, turning up throwbacks and a few keepers on the ocean, and bluefishing was excellent on nighttime trips on the ocean, on the party boat <b>Norma-K III</b>, Capt. Matt wrote in a report on the vessel’s website on Saturday. “Quick report here,” he said, and he expected to post a weekend wrap-up report today on the site. The blues weighed 8 to 12 pounds, and looked like they’d stay a while, after blues were small that were caught aboard previously.  The Norma-K III is fluke fishing on two trips daily from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m., and is bluefishing 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

In the surf, fishing was “in that summer holding pattern,” John from <b>The Dock Outfitters</b> wrote in a report on the shop’s website. But cooler evenings and northerly wind will stir up the water, and the fishing will begin to change, slowly. Small striped bass will push in and out from the surf, when seas are up, and that will be the first sign. Then anglers will know the summer doldrums are changing. Currently, surf fishing for sharks at night was one of the only ways to catch from the beach. But small to medium-sized blues and throwback fluke were banked now and then. On Barnegat Bay, crabbing held its own from the dock and rental boats, and was the main objective, he said. But snapper blues seemed to swarm everywhere in the bay, and reports were heard about larger blues sometimes zonked from the bay. Crabbing was expected to slow around the full moon this past weekend, because crabs often shed on full moons. They refuse to eat when shedding, but not all crabs shed at once. The Dock Outfitters, located on Barnegat Bay, blocks from the ocean surf, features a bait and tackle shop, boat and jet ski rentals, a café and a dock for fishing and crabbing.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Bonito and bluefish, good catches, continued to be trolled from the ocean on the <b>Super Chic</b>, Capt. Ted said. More bonito than blues bit, and fluke fishing was good on the ocean on a trip Saturday. The fluke included 8- to 12-pounders(!), and fluking was slow aboard Sunday, and conditions were no good or wouldn’t really drift the boat. But fluking seemed to become better and better, and quite a few sizeable fluke were around.  More fluke trips are supposed to fish today through Saturday aboard, though Tuesday’s trip will probably be weathered out. A bluefish trip is set for Sunday.

Slow drifting hampered fishing for fluke and sea bass Sunday on the party boat <b>Miss Barnegat Light</b>, the vessel’s Facebook page said. Most drifts gave up a handful of keepers and shorts. Some good-sized fluke were pitched aboard Saturday, and the angling was okay at first, slowing afterward, when the drift was lost. Friday’s trip flung in a few sizeable fluke, “but the action was not as good as (during the previous) few days,” the page said. On Thursday’s trip, mostly throwbacks bit, but if anglers worked at it, they bagged sea bass, fluke and small blues. The Miss Barnegat Light is fishing for fluke and sea bass 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. daily.

<b>Brigantine</b>

This is shark week on television, and sharks were back in the surf in Brigantine, a report on <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>’s website said. Anglers kept posting photos of sharks they beached on the store’s Facebook page, and some big brown sharks, about 5 feet long, swam the water. Browns are required to be released, and check out the new shark rigs that are being made for the store. Just impale a piece of “meat” on a hook on a wire leader, and hold on, the report said. If anglers can pluck a kingfish from the surf, a kingfish head makes a perfect bait.

<b>Longport</b>

On trips for bonito and blues aboard, the bonito were trolled on small soft-plastic squids closer to shore, and on cedar plugs farther out, said Capt. Mike from the <b>Stray Cat</b>. The bonito were larger that held farther from shore, and the angling was great for bonito and blues. A charter aboard Sunday wanted to fish for whatever bit. So first they fished for summer flounder, crushing them to 6 ½ or 7 pounds in 80 to 95 feet. When other boats piled in, the trip pushed farther from shore, trolling bonito and blues. No mahi mahi and triggerfish hit that usually did during the trolling. But other fish like jack crevalles, bar jacks and buoy jacks did. The lobster pot buoys are holding lots of life like the mahi, triggers and jacks. Also on the trip, cobia were seen, and the mate landed a good-sized one on a cast white bucktail with a lime-green paddletail. A tremendous school of tuna, probably the size of 2 ½ acres, was seen 4 miles off Atlantic City Ridge, or 22 miles from shore. A few dates for tuna charters are available. The next open-boat trips are set for August 20, 21 and 22, and will fish for whatever’s decided, depending on the size of the crowd.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Five summer flounder to 5 pounds and two mahi mahi were bagged, and a bunch of throwback flounder were released, on the ocean Sunday with Frank Liz’s family aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. The mahi just showed up, and minnows hooked them. Joe’s dad joined him on a trip Saturday that bagged two flounder to 4 pounds and released throwbacks on the ocean. The back bay was fished Thursday with Mike Flaherty and two sons, and they released 30 throwback flounder and some sea bass, no keepers. Charters are also inshore-sharking, and that’s still good. The trips fight and release sharks like browns, duskies, spinners and blacktips, some of those required to be let go, on bait or flies, usually within 10 miles from shore. The trips are a chance to fight big fish without the long trek offshore.  Jersey Cape is also fishing for tuna and other big game, both offshore and inshore. Good fishing for yellowfin tuna turned on at the offshore canyons, actually on the chunk during daytime, instead of trolling during daytime that’s usually effective this time of year. No specific reports were heard about the inshore fishing, but Joe knew that bluefin tuna still roamed inshore. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s blog</a>.

<b>Avalon</b>

Bonito were trolled on a trip Sunday with <b>Fins and Feathers Outfitters</b>, Capt. Jim said. No mahi mahi showed up, though the trip targeted them. Lots of bonito schooled around, breaking the water. The trip trolled at the Cigar, 30 miles from shore, then at the East Lump, closer to the coast. The bonito smacked cedar plugs, and wouldn’t touch feathers that were also trolled. The bonito only attacked when the boat trolled at 9 m.p.h., though the trip trolled from 6 ½ to 9 m.p.h. The water was gorgeous, and Jim didn’t have a temperature gauge, but the water was warm. Then the trip wreck-fished, just catching throwback cod, 18 inches and shorter, under the 21-inch legal size, and one sea bass. A trip Friday cranked up kingfish, croakers and a couple of weakfish from the ocean. Summer flounder, including one keeper, also bit. Afterward, the anglers fished the back bay, releasing three to four dozen throwback flounder. Fins is also fishing Delaware Bay for flounder, and larger ones, including keepers, were hooked there recently aboard, covered in a previous report. Fins and Feathers offers a variety of outdoor adventures, including duck and goose hunting, during the waterfowl seasons. Anglers can even enjoy a combo of striped bass fishing and duck hunting on Delaware Bay in autumn over a series of days.  Trips also fish for salmon and steelhead on upstate New York’s Salmon River from Jim’s lodge, and fly fish for trout on Pennsylvania’s streams like the Yellow Breeches.

<b>Cape May</b>

Offshore fishing was lit up, said Capt. Frank from <b>Melanie Anne Sport Fishing Charters</b>. A trip aboard Sunday sailed to Spencer Canyon. Tuna were drilled at Lindenkohl Canyon the day before, and Frank figured they were headed south. Two white marlin and some mahi mahi were trolled at the Spencer with Melanie Anne. Then a report was heard about fish at Wilmington Canyon, the next canyon south, so the trip was sailed there. The far side of the Wilmington was loaded with yellowfin tuna, good-sized, 60 to 80 pounds, and the fish were decked aboard. On the way home, the trip tried trolling for wahoos inshore, but the water was too warm. The boat is also summer flounder fishing, and the angling was pretty good at the Old Grounds. That’s on the ocean off Delaware, and a friend’s trip totaled 14 keeper flounder there on Saturday. Fishing was looking up, Frank said.

Back to Top