<b>North Jersey</b>

Capt. Dave Vollenweider from <b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> from Montvale fished on several trips solo or with friends this past week, he said. That was for muskies on lakes, but trips with clients will become busy now. One was scheduled to fish for walleyes on a lake last night, and three more are slated to sail for the walleyes on Friday, Sunday and Monday. Dave’s a school teacher, and is beginning to guide clients more frequently than previously this year, because school let out for summer. None of the musky trips this past week landed the fish of 10,000 casts, but some scored strikes and follows. Dave trolled for muskies last week on Tuesday on Lake Hopatcong, coming up with no bites from the fish. But a 3-pound rainbow trout was landed. At Oxford Furnace Lake, he cast lures, a Smuttley Sidewinder and Nimmer Swimmer Wolly Pog, for muskies on another trip last week. That scored two strikes and two follows from muskies, and none became hooked.  Dave was casting for muskies on Mountain Lake on Monday evening, when he gave this report in a phone call. None bit or followed yet, but Mountain Lake is a trophy musky fishery that the state uses for brood stock. Some 50-inchers surely swam there, and conditions looked good on the trip, he said. The water was 80 degrees. Dave trolled on all his musky trips previously this year, but wanted to get back to casting on these two most recent trips. The walleye trips fish at night, when the fish push to shallows to forage on spawning herring. Then walleyes can be whacked on cast lures, the goal of the trips, good sport. The fish can sometimes turn on in the small hours of dark, like 1 to 3 a.m. <b>***Update, Wednesday, 7/8:***</b> The walleye trip last night, with Peter Weinstein from Fairlawn, socked two walleyes 5 and 6 pounds, Dave wrote in an email. Plus, Dave hooked a 42-inch musky, in the 20 pounds, on a size-18 Rapala Original Floating Lure, meant for walleyes, on 8-pound test, on a light rod. The fish plunged underneath the boat and jumped, and was landed and released.

Hybrid striped bass were beaten at Lake Hopatcong at night, like 1 to 3 a.m., on livelined herring and top-water lures, said Brian from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. He fished the lake, reeling in catfish, the other day. Different lakes produced largemouth bass and chain pickerel. Trout fishing on streams was practically finished for the season, because the water was warm for the fish, reaching the 70 degrees sometimes. Trout anglers might still fish in early mornings or evenings or after rains that cool the water. Many trout anglers avoid fishing during the heat of summer, because the fish can easily die if fought in the high temperatures. The streams ran a little high but fishable. Delaware River was an alternative, for those who wanted to fish moving water. Some smallmouth bass bit there.

Lots of smallmouth bass were tackled on the lake, Laurie from <b>Dow’s Boat Rentals</b> in Lake Hopatcong wrote in an email. The fish bit off the points on jigs or livelined herring, and Nolan’s Point and Chestnut Point were “good areas to start,” she said. Hybrid striped bass to John Wilson’s 7-1/2-pounder were seen from the lake that were swiped on livelined herring. Fishing for hybrids and walleyes with top-water lures at night was slowing down, but should catch another week or two. Panfish could be plucked from shallows on worms under bobbers, and chain pickerel could be fought along weed lines on cast spinners or Rapala lures.

Passaic River dished up northern pike and smallmouth bass, said Joe from <b>Fairfield Fishing Tackle</b> in Pine Brook. The river ran muddy on Tuesday from rain, but the river flowed at a normal level. A couple of local private lakes served up big largemouth bass 5 and 6 pounds. In saltwater, fluke fishing was okay, not as good as anglers would like, but fluking is like that, these days.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Burt from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook fished for trout on Ken Lockwood Gorge on Monday morning, he said. He landed one decent-sized rainbow, maybe 12 inches, and saw a couple of other trout, but “too late,” he said. He was experimenting throughout the trip, and only fished fast water, with a deer-hair emerger he tied that looked like a caddis. The fly had deer-hair wings, kind of an olive body, and rabbit dubbing on the thorax. Most other anglers nymphed the stream during the trip, and a size- 20 or -22 pheasant-tail nymph, fished as a dropper, would’ve probably fished best. Black stoneflies, probably size 16, maybe 18, could be seen, when walking through bushes disturbed them. The two trout Burt saw, but never raised, actively fed on nymphs. They could be seen moving occasionally to check out potential forage. The water level was somewhat low but fairly good for fishing and clear, good-looking. The water temperature was 64 degrees at 10:30 a.m. Burt fished a 6X tippet and uses as heavy a tippet as possible, not seeing the point in risking losing the fish if unnecessary. If he sees trout check out his fly but refuse the pattern, he might switch to a lighter tippet. The trout he landed was apparently caught a few times. A few nicks could be seen around the mouth. Many customers did sort of random, fun fishing, Braden from the store said. That included lots of carp fishing at ponds and the main Raritan River. The fish to 25 pounds were heaved in. Many anglers worked small lakes or ponds for small largemouth bass and panfish, casting ant, terrestrial or small popper flies. Sunnies like crazy, Braden said. Great fishing for northern pike was known about from Passaic River on Monday. The pike anglers began to cast top-waters like buzz baits this season. Some big pike were nailed. Tons of rubber frogs sold, so frogging for largemouth bass must’ve been good at lakes at sunset. Nothing was heard about Lake Hopatcong. But hybrid striped bass were fought from Spruce Run Reservoir, pretty much on livelined herring, only.

One angler lost probably a 4-foot musky at the boat on Manasquan Reservoir, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. The angler said the fish was a northern pike, but the reservoir holds no pike. White perch were nabbed at the reservoir at the trees, and no hybrid striped bass were known about from the impoundment. The heat of summer is usually the time for hybrids to bite there. Another angler tugged in a couple of 14-inch catfish behind the Trilco building on the Toms River. That’s a closed building supply, and no sign identifies the building, but it’s located near Garden State Parkway. Catfish chomped for another angler at the lake at Pine Lake Park below the falls. An angler fishing Lake Riviera slugged largemouth bass on shiners free-lined, with no float or weight, along bottom on trips. Shiners, killies, nightcrawlers and garden worms are stocked. A few meal worms remain in stock, and no more will be carried when they sell out, until demand picks back up, later in the year. Murphy’s, located on Rouge 37, also owns <b>Go Fish Bait & Tackle</b> on Fischer Boulevard in Toms River.

<b>South Jersey</b>

Delaware River was becoming cleaner, said Karl from <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown. The water ran dirty because of rain before. A few smallmouth bass began to be rustled from the river near the Yardley boat launch on 3-inch, black grubs and small, chrome-and-black popper lures. Catfishing was good on the river at Florence, Bordentown and Trenton on chicken livers and nightcrawlers. Some of the fish were big, up to 25 inches. Small striped bass to 15 inches grabbed the chicken livers in the river at Trenton and Bordentown. Largemouth bass were angled from lakes. Rubber frogs fished in lily pads crushed many good-sized. Assunpink Lake gave up good largemouthing at night on black buzz baits and black Jitterbugs.

Largemouth bass were shoveled from the pond at the Camden County Technical School on Berlin-Cross Keys Road, on all kinds of bait or tackle, including  minnows, shiners and rubber frogs, said Ed from <b>Creek Keepers Bait & Tackle</b> in Blackwood. That was some noticeable news. Top-waters like the frogs tied into largemouths in the warm water at lakes by this time of year. One angler hit largemouths on minnows at Puppyland Lake. Nobody seemed to catch anything well at Grenloch Lake, for unknown reasons. The lake just doesn’t seem to fish well. A customer bought Power Bait, saying trout were taken from Oak Pond. But Ed found that difficult to believe, because Oak is usually one of the first places where trout die, because of warm water, after the fish are stocked in spring.

Salem Canal offered up good largemouth bass fishing, another good week of that, said Steve from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. A couple of good reports came from Allow Lake about largemouthing. Some good news about largemouths was heard from Rainbow Lake, finally, he said. Many anglers cast top-water lures for largemouths. Rubber-frog fishing went great for the bass. Lots of jigs and chatter baits were sold for the angling. Mostly early mornings and dusk were fished for largemouths. Panfishing was good at different lakes. In saltwater, lots of small summer flounder seemed to be boated. Nothing was heard from Delaware Bay. White perch bit well at all the usual tidal creeks.    

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