Note: It was the best of times, and the worst of times. The best for offshore fishing. The worst for weather, so far this year.

Few boaters braved seas in the weather most of the week. That will happen to some extent through fall, until bucking the weather becomes futile.

It was the peak of the big-game season, and that'll continue.

<b>Shark River Inlet</b>

None of the fleet sailed in the weather, said Capt. Mike from the <b>Katie H</b> in Belmar. A day-trolling trip for tuna was scheduled for today, and an overnight trip for tuna is slated for Saturday to Sunday. He was waiting to see whether today’s trip might be scrapped, because of wind, when he gave this report, and the overnight trip was already scrubbed by Wednesday, because of forecasts. The anglers simply rescheduled, and Mike doesn’t mind sailing in 3- to 5-foot seas, but didn’t want the anglers to take a beating. The overnight fishing grounds was a long way to sail, and the water surely got all “torn up” in the northeasterly this week. The chance was too great that maybe the angling wouldn’t produce. Let another boat head there and find the fish again, he said. Some good fishing for tuna happened before the blow. Most boats landed yellowfin tuna and bigeye tuna that Mike knew about. But some docked longfin tuna. Most trips boated tuna at night at the canyons, but a few trolled the fish during daytime there. That could change.

On the party boat <b>Golden Eagle</b> from Belmar’s three scheduled tuna trips, five spots remain for September 28, and nine are left for October 19. October 5 is sold out, and <a href=" http://goldeneaglefishing.com/tuna-reservation.html" target="_blank">click here</a> for info about the outings.

<b>Manasquan Inlet</b>

Fish like bonito, frigate mackerel and mahi mahi were sometimes mixed in on bluefishing trips, Eric from <b>The Reel Seat</b> from Brielle said on Sunday. Trips targeted bonito and false albacore, scoring well, toward the Mudhole, at places like Little Italy and the Monster Ledge. A smattering of bluefin tuna were found along the Mudhole, and the angling should pick up in fall. Fishing for yellowfin tuna inshore seemed to slow that produced previously. Or maybe boaters by-passed the fish to reach yellowfins, good catches, at Hudson, Toms and Lindenkohl canyons. The fish there were chunked in evenings and early mornings, but some were trolled during daytime. Bigeye tuna and longfin tuna were also caught. Medium-sized, weighted, single lures, like Green Machines or Tuna Clones, caught best on the troll. The fish favored green, purple and rainbow colors.

<b>***Update, Friday, 9/12:***</b> Five spaces remain for the year’s first tuna trip, a 48-hour one, on September 23 on the party boat <b>Gambler</b> from Point Pleasant Beach, Capt. Bob said. Then three trips per week will fish for tuna through October, and see the <a href="http://www.gamblerfishing.net/offshoretrips.html" target="_blank">Gambler’s tuna schedule</a> online.

<b>Barnegat Inlet</b>

On the <b>Super Chic</b> from Barnegat Light, lots of bonito 3 to 5 pounds and blues 1 to 3 pounds were trolled on Saturday, and false albacore were mixed in, Capt. Ted said. Great fishing, he said, and the year’s first overnight trip for tuna is slated to fish the canyons this weekend. But the angling might be weathered out, and Ted gave this report early in the week, before the weather. The tuna fishing sounded fairly steady recently, and the tuna were hooked both during daytime and nighttime. 

<b>Cape May Inlet</b>

A trip steamed to Lindenkohl Canyon early Saturday morning with <b>Melanie Anne Sport Fishing Charters</b> from Cape May, Capt. Frank said. Four longfin tuna and a yellowfin tuna were trolled at the Lindy. The fishing was slim pickings, and the tuna were small. Bigger tuna reportedly swam there previously, and maybe they pushed north to Hudson Canyon, Frank figured. That was out of range from Cape May, and the trip moved to Wilmington Canyon to the south. A small mako shark was trolled and released there. Seas were becoming rough, reaching 6 to 8 feet, and the trip started heading for port. The 30-fathom line was trolled on the way in, all the way to the Misty Blue wreck, in hopes for a catch like a wahoo. But nothing bit.

Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b> in Cape May fished offshore last week on Thursday on a charter, he said. A white marlin and a half-dozen gaffer mahi mahi were landed at Baltimore Canyon. Offshore boating seemed mostly weathered out this week.

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