<b>North Jersey</b>

Bernie and Liz Doerning from Monmouth County limited out on trout on Paulinskill River on Sunday with <b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> from Montvale, Capt. Dave Vollenweider said. They fished Berkley PowerBait Floating Mice Tails, but also hooked some on nymphs. The Mice Tails are amazing bait, Dave said, and they look like a combo of a salmon egg and a worm, two favorite foods for trout. Dave had seen an angler bailing trout on the Mice Tails on a previous trip on the river. So Dave tried them on this trip, hooking the bait behind the head, so it looked u-shaped. The Doernings fished the Mice Tails first, catching trout. Dave had brought several colors, and all caught. He had also brought a fly rod and bead-headed hare’s ear and Prince nymphs, because sometimes trout can key-in on bugs by this time of season, when the water and weather become warmer. An occasional trout was seen rising to a bug, so Dave cast one of the hare’s ears to one, hooking the trout on the first cast, passing the rod to the husband to land the trout. Then the husband fished the fly rod, fly-rodding a couple of more of the trout. Dave had told him to watch the strike indicator fished on the line. If the indicator stops, hesitates, moves in another direction or makes any kind of unusual movement, set the hook, though most of the time the nymph will simply be hung up on bottom, Dave told him. That was the season’s final day of the six-trout limit per angler, per day. The limit became four starting Monday. The fish were all rainbow trout, and weren’t big, and the river ran low, because of lack of rain at the time, but was full of the fish. Rain began falling since. The Doernings might join Dave for trout fishing on Round Valley Reservoir later this year. Trout during that fishing are all bigger and hooked at night on bait along bottom in depths like 40 feet from a boat, a unique fishery. Dave’s also been trolling for muskies on Greenwood Lake on his own, taking his season’s fourth one of those trips, this one with his wife, this past week. But the fish of 10,000 casts was yet to bite, for unknown reasons. Conditions need to be right for muskies to begin biting on the troll during the season, but conditions already seemed alright. The water surface was 71 degrees on the trip, up from 63 the previous week. A tremendous amount of rain fell since. Conditions would be unsettled now. Dave wondered whether pesticide added to the lake to kill weeds was a reason no muskies bit. Muskies were caught at other lakes. He kept cleaning off clumps of weeds from the trolled lures. Dave will fish for walleyes soon, on trips that target them at night with cast plugs on lakes. Walleyes push into lake shallows, where they can be nailed on the lures, at night this time of year to forage on herring that are spawning. He was sure the walleyes currently bit at Monksville Reservoir and Lake Hopatcong, and was unaware whether they did at Greenwood. An article that Dave wrote on the night walleye fishing is supposed to be published in the July issue of On the Water magazine. Catch Dave giving a talk about fishing structure for the East Jersey Chapter of Trout Unlimited at 7:30 p.m. this coming Wednesday at the American Legion hall at 33 West Passaic Street in Rochelle Park.

Trout streams might run too high to fish today or tomorrow, but the week’s rain and cool water was good for trouting, said Kevin from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. The streams had been running low, in warm weather with no rain. Trout fishing should be good another two weeks, before summer’s warmth slows the angling. Lots of big rainbow trout swam Pequest River. South Branch of Raritan River was loaded with rainbows. That was the only trout species stocked this spring, because rainbows resisted the virus in trout at the hatchery this past year. March browns hatched, and sulfurs began to come off. If fishing fails to hook-up on dry flies, try a sulfur or yellow soft hackle, before dark. The rain raised Lake Hopatcong that was low a couple of feet. Hybrid striped bass fishing should be in full swing on lakes like that. Walleyes were caught from waters like that, before the storms kept anglers from fishing. Top-water lures whacked the fish at night. Largemouth bass were probably almost finished spawning. Fishing for them is catch and release through June 15 for spawning. Anything else? Kevin was asked. “Just get out there,” he said. “This is the time.”

Passaic River gave up some really nice northern pike, said Joe from <b>Fairfield Fishing Tackle</b> in Pine Brook. Crappies and catfish, both good-sized, were pasted from the river. Largemouth bass and smallmouth bass were hooked from the river here and there. Both must be released through June 15, by law, because of spawning. Reports usually roll in about Lake Hopatcong’s fishing, but didn’t, and nothing was heard about other angling. All talk was about the river.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Trout streams became blown out, because of rain, said Braden from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. Trout had still been hooked from South Branch of the Raritan River on salmon eggs and spinners, but in shallow ripples, not deep holes that would be expected to hold them now. Northern pike fishing was good on Passaic River, often on spinner baits. The more the anglers, who fished on foot, walked, the more they caught, he said. Hybrid striped bass fishing was going off at Lake Hopatcong after 10 p.m. The fish forage on spawning herring in shallow water then, and were lit-into on lures like Zara Spooks. A few walleyes were mixed in. Catfishing was okay at Spruce Run Reservoir on bait like herring chunks or chicken livers. Nothing was reported from Round Valley Reservoir recently. Largemouth bass, required to be released through June 15 for spawning, were either spawning or just finished. So, little was reported about them.

Two anglers stopped in who headed to Manasquan Reservoir to fish for largemouth bass they kept boating in the trees on live bait, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. A couple of kayakers were also into the bass, and all the anglers fished live bait like shiners, rounding up a largemouth now and then. Largemouths are required to be released through June 15, because of spawning. July and August are the prime months for hybrid striped bass fishing on the reservoir. Hybrids get active in warm water. Details weren’t often heard, but anglers hit all the different ponds, all catching fish like largemouths, crappies and panfish. Most customers fished saltwater. But all the freshwater baits are stocked, including shiners, killies and nightcrawlers. Murphy’s, located on Route 37, also owns <b>Go Fish Bait & Tackle</b> on Fischer Boulevard in Toms River.

<b>South Jersey</b>

Smallmouth bass, decent catches, were hit in Delaware River from Yardley to the Calhoun Street Bridge, said Karl from <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown. Lures like Zara Spook Puppies in chrome and black creamed them. So did green-pumpkin, 3-inch twister tails on small jigheads. A few walleyes, none big, smacked the twister tails or plastic baits, while anglers smallmouth fished. Lots of catfish were hung from the river at Trenton and Bordentown. Small striped bass to 20 inches milled around the river, nibbling chicken livers or nightcrawlers. Check regulations for fishing the river, because of laws that are sometimes different from the rest of the state. That includes regs for smallmouths and stripers.

Customers basically scored well on catfish in Delaware River, said Joanie from <b>Creek Keepers Bait & Tackle</b> in Blackwood. They picked up largemouth bass on occasion from local lakes, but none mentioned any one lake that especially tossed up the fish. Release largemouths, according to law, through June 15, because of spawning. Customers still talked about landing blues and striped bass along the shore. Small stripers were caught and released in Delaware River.

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