<b>Keyport</b>

Fluke fishing improved dramatically, Capt. Frank from the <b>Vitamin Sea</b> wrote in an email. Many anglers limited out and caught more, keeping only their limits, and a good number of the fluke weighed 6 to 8 pounds. Strong east wind is supposed to blow in the next days – too bad, because this is the final week of fluke season. If the wind lets up, Frank will run open-boat for fluke, so stay in touch with him. Big bluefish and sizable, out-of-season sea bass bit among the fluke. Once fluke season is closed starting Sunday, the Vitamin Sea will “bottom fish, jig, chunk and eel,” Frank wrote. Raritan Bay is loaded with bait, and Frank had some great fishing in the bay last fall. Blues are already chasing the bait, and if the bait remains, striped bass fishing will be very good this fall. If sand eels show up, it’ll be awesome, he said. Anyone booking a fall striper charter will be provided a bonus tag to bag an extra striper. See photos of the boat’s catches on the <a href=" https://www.facebook.com/vitaminseafishing" target="_blank">Vitamin Sea’s Facebook page</a>. Open-boat info is also posted there.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

On the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, fluke fishing was mixed recently, Capt. Tom said. Sometimes trips fished pretty well, and sometimes the angling was tough. Trips fished the channels – Ambrose or Sandy Hook channels, “depending,” he said – most of the time. When east wind blows strongly, fishing the channels becomes tough.  Sometimes weather was crummy, when wind blew up. Sometimes lots of weight needed to be fished. “A little quick,” he said. Seas rocked and rolled Sunday morning’s trip. The afternoon’s trip stayed docked in forecasts for wind. Some fluke were taken on Saturday morning’s trip. Fluking wasn’t as good as Tom wanted on the afternoon’s trip. Friday afternoon’s fishing was pretty good.  Bring two rods, including a medium-weight for shallower water, and a heavier rod for deeper and when 8 ounces needs to be fished. Wind is sometimes forecast this week, and telephone the boat to check whether trips will sail. The Atlantic Star is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m. daily through Saturday, the final day of fluke season. Starting Sunday, trips will fish for porgies, sailing the same hours. <b>***Update, Wednesday, 9/23:***</b> Trips fished aboard today for the first time since Sunday, Tom said. Wind kept the fleet docked before, and forecasts look okay for fishing aboard Thursday. Tom was unsure about forecasts for Friday through Sunday. On this morning’s trip, seas were somewhat rolly at first, but conditions became better and better today. The morning’s trip found a few fluke, a couple of keepers and some shorts, at Flynn’s Knoll. Seas calmed at Flynn’s for this afternoon’s trip, and a half-dozen keepers and some shorts were swung in, so far, he said at 3 p.m. on the trip, in a phone call for this update. The ocean still held a bit of a roll, but Flynn’s was calm, and weather was beautiful then. “As nice as you want,” he said. The day’s fishing wasn’t great. “Don’t get me wrong,” he said. But fluke bit, despite three days of weather previously.

Tom the Vet took the lead in the season-long fluke pool with a 9.2-pounder Saturday on the party boat <b>Fishermen</b>, Capt. Ron wrote in a report on the vessel’s website. He beat out an 8-pound 14-ouncer that took the lead Thursday, covered in the last report here. Catches this season included 10-pounders and 9-pounders that weren’t in the pool. On Saturday’s trip, the bite wasn’t great, and dealing with fog and all the boats fishing in the fog didn’t make fishing easier. But several other sizable fluke were also clubbed, including a couple of 6-pounders and a 5-pounder. On Friday’s trip, the boat failed to drift much, so Ron had to work the throttles to power-drift. John Froelich won the day’s pool with a fluke heavier than 7 pounds, one of six keepers he landed. Capt. Ron Sr. decked the trip’s biggest fluke, larger than 8 pounds, one of four of his keepers. Several other anglers bagged four fluke to 6 pounds apiece, and several bagged three fluke to 6 pounds apiece. Strong wind is forecast in the next days, and Saturday is the final day of fluke season. Whether fluke trips will get the weather to sail before then will be seen. A charter is booked Saturday morning aboard, so no open-boat trip will fish then. Otherwise, the Fishermen is slated to fish for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Nighttime trips have been fishing for fluke, croakers, porgies or whatever bites. During the week after fluke season, only nighttime trips will sail, and no trips will sail in the mornings. The night trips will fish for striped bass 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. that week.

<b>Neptune</b>

Wind will cancel fishing today and Tuesday, and probably Wednesday, with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said. Fluke fishing, on the ocean, was pretty good aboard, and the year’s final individual-reservation trip will sail for fluke Friday. Space is available, and a few spaces remain for an individual-reservation trip on October 4 that will fish inshore wrecks. A bunch of spaces remain for an individual-reservation trip on October 27 for sea bass that was just added.  Individual-reservation trips will fish for cod October 1 and 20. Charters are available daily.

<b>Belmar</b>

Wind will be rough most of the week, the final week of fluke season, Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b> wrote in an email. The wind will often keep boats docked, and fluke season will be closed starting Sunday. Anglers hope boats will be able to fish the last few days of the season. Fluking was good in Shark River and the surf. On the ocean for boaters, fluking was off and on. Anglers on the shop’s rental boats are fishing the river, and plenty of fluke are holding there. Some of the fish moved toward Shark River Inlet, on the migration toward offshore for winter. Snapper bluefishing was good in the river, and kingfish, blowfish and porgies were sometimes nabbed from the river. In the surf, striped bass fishing was good, and poppers were the lure of choice. This week’s northeast wind could spark the bass to bite clams. Strong wind from that direction can cause seas to pile clams onto the beach, breaking them up, causing fish to feed on them. Surf anglers scored multiple hook-ups apiece. Bill Massey from Wall banked six striper at Manasquan. “Fall is here – some of the best fishing ahead,” Bob wrote. <b>***Update, Tuesday, 9/22:***</b> Weather is rough, but fish are around to be caught, Bob wrote in an email. Porgies, kingfish, spots, snapper blues and pilot fish are being hooked from Shark River. Striped bass are being reeled from inlets and Point Pleasant Canal at night. All these fish are edible. The weather will pass, but these are options, if anglers want to catch now.

Wind cancelled today’s trip on the <b>Golden Eagle</b>, a report on the party boat’s website said. Wind was already building on Sunday’s trip, and some blues were caught, but the angling wasn’t good in the weather. Saturday’s trip had a couple of shots of 1- to 2-pound blues in the morning, then looked for bigger blues. Bigger were found, but not many were landed, and lots were lost. On Friday’s trip, fishing was great for 1- to 2-pound blues and a bunch of false albacore. On Thursday’s, angling was great for both small blues and huge, up to 18 pounds. The Golden Eagle is fishing at 7:30 a.m. daily. A tuna trip, the year’s first, was weathered out Sunday aboard. See the <a href=" http://goldeneaglefishing.com/tuna-reservation.html" target="_blank">tuna schedule and reservation form</a> on the boat’s website.

<b>Brielle</b>

Yellowfin tuna, longfin tuna and bigeye tuna were drilled at the 100 Square at Hudson Canyon, said Eric from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. The fishing was great Saturday for yellowfins and longfins. The fish lately were still commonly trolled during daytime, and they were chunked and jigged at night. The yellowfins weighed 30 to 80 pounds, and the longfins weighed 30 to 50. The bigeyes weighed 150 pounds and more. Swordfish were sometimes chunked at night in the area. Northeast of the Bacardi wreck, mostly yellowfins 15 to 30 pounds were trolled, chunked and jigged. Most anglers took advantage of chunking or jigging them, and one customer fly-rodded the fish. Trollers hooked a handful of wahoos in the area, too. Closer to shore, false albacore swam the Mudhole and even close to shore. Lots of 2-pound bluefish schooled where the albies held, so there was action, whether on the troll or while boaters cast to breaking fish. Not much was heard about ling, and porgies didn’t swim locally. So bottom-fishing was slow locally, though lots of out-of-season sea bass held locally. Fluke fishing was the same as previously – up and down – and was pretty good Saturday. East of Sea Girt Reef, in 80 feet, fished well for them lately. East of the Rattlesnake, toward the Mudhole, did, too. Some of the fluke were big, up to 10 and 12 pounds. But, again, the fishing was up and down. Some anglers bagged none, and the angling was about location. Livelined snapper blues and bucktails with 6-inch Gulp grubs caught well. The snappers seemed to out-catch the bucktails. Manasquan River’s fluke fishing was good, especially on livelined mullet, peanut bunker or snappers. Eric limited out twice on the fish in the past week. The fishing was phenomenal. Striped bass fishing was pretty consistent at Point Pleasant Canal and on the river at Route 35 and 70 bridges. Twelve- to 15-pounders were eeled, and bluefish schooled the river. A few hickory shad popped up in the river.  In the surf, stripers 22 to 30 inches, pushing mullet, bit from Belmar to Manasquan. That was during most early mornings on poppers including Storm Chug Bugs, Stillwater Smack-Its and small Super Strike poppers.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Yellowfin tuna, longfin tuna and bigeye tuna were boated at the offshore canyons this past week with <b>Mushin Sportfishing</b>, when trips had the weather to sail, Capt. Alan wrote in an email. Mahi mahi and tilefish were also landed on the trips. A 180-pound bigeye “topped off” a trip Saturday aboard. Almost all tuna on the vessel’s trips were chunked. That was during both daytime and nighttime, and light leaders helped, but made landing big tuna difficult. This fall’s tuna fishing seemed to be shaping up like Alan remembers in the ‘80s and ‘90s, so it looks promising for October, he said. Charters are fishing, and spaces are still available on three open-trips in October for the angling.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

From the surf, small blues were predominantly caught, a report said Saturday on <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>’ website. Mullet and rainfish were the most abundant bait in the water. Cut mullet seemed to hook the blues better than whole mullet, and small metal also scored. A few small to keeper striped bass were yanked from the surf at night and first light on swimming plugs. The angler who weighs-in the heaviest fish from the surf wins a $50 gift certificate to the store each month. Crabbing was quite good for boaters Friday. Good-sized and decent numbers were trapped.  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>

Two trips on the <b>Super Chic</b> sailed for fluke Saturday and Sunday, Capt. Ted said. On Saturday’s trip, bouncing around to different wrecks, the catch wasn’t bad. Fluke bit, and too few were keepers. Sunday’s trip had to be cut short, because of wind. Holding bottom was tough. The trips fished the ocean to the south, and fluke held pretty deep now. The next tuna trip aboard is supposed to fish Friday, and tuna trips predominantly fill the schedule in October. A few bluefish trips are slated then. A couple of friends whacked double-digits of longfin tuna. Ted heard about no big catches of yellowfin tuna, but a few yellowfins were mixed in. Bigeye tuna still bit. Closer to shore, false albacore were around. Ted saw some near the beach.

<b>Beach Haven</b>

Two bigeye tuna 180 and 190 pounds and two longfin tuna were bagged, and a couple of other tuna got off, at Hudson Canyon on an overnight trip Friday to Saturday on the <b>June Bug</b>, a good trip, Capt. Lindsay said. That was 110 miles from Beach Haven, near the 100 Square, not exactly at the 100 Square. Tuna seemed to move around a little each day. All the fish were chunked, and the trip, after leaving Friday morning, began fishing at 2:45 p.m. that day. The first bigeye was hooked within 10 or 15 minutes, among a swarm of the fish. A longfin was caught at late dinnertime, and the other bigeye was nailed at dusk. The second longfin was bagged in early morning. Lots of bait was marked but not seen, except a fair number of squid were seen at night. The marked bait appeared to be pretty small, and swam in a 50-foot band that began 10 feet below the water surface. The water was 74.8 degrees almost the whole trip, good-looking, clear and blue. Weather was outstanding, and Lindsay heard about no tuna found at canyons farther south.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Summer flounder fishing was on the ocean, really, a report said on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s website. Anglers on the bay would have their work cut out for them to find a keeper, or any flounder. In the ocean, Garden State Reef South held the steadiest numbers of flounder. Lots of sizable, out-of-season sea bass blanketed reefs and wrecks. “Tog fishing is holding steady,” the report said.  An angler posted a report on the store’s site about a tuna trip to Lindkenkohl and Carteret canyons on Thursday. When the trip arrived at the Lindenkohl in early morning, 35 good-sized mahi mahi were landed at lobster pots, apparently while the anglers cast to them. The trip then tried trolling, the report said, but lots of weeds filled the water. The water was 82 degrees at some spots. The trip moved to the Carteret, looking for fewer weeds. Fewer weeds were found at the Carteret, but no tuna were caught. The trip returned to the Lindenkohl, and the anglers had intended to spend the night fishing. But they discovered that the ice was going to melt that the mahi were in, failing to keep the fish cold, if the trip overnighted. So the trip headed back to port by 4 p.m. All the mahi you want, but no tuna, the report said. Seas were less than 2 feet in southeast wind less than 10 knots. Stop at the shop to see the owner from S&S Bucktails from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, October 3, for discounts, education, giveaways and more.

<b>Ocean City</b>

On a charter Saturday on the ocean on the party boat <b>Miss Ocean City</b>, the catch included two good-sized, keeper summer flounder 20 inches and a bunch of amberjacks, Capt. Victor said. A charter Sunday aboard the ocean had a good day on croakers and a bunch of skipjacks and amberjacks. Open-boat trips will fish for flounder on the ocean 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Open trips will fish for sea bass on the <b>Captain Robbins</b>, the company’s other party boat, starting October 22, opening day of sea bass season, on the ocean.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

The year’s first traveling trips to Montauk, N.Y., sailed this weekend aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. The trips fish the fall migration each year, and Saturday’s and Sunday’s trips smashed two false albacore apiece, all the 10- to 15-pound blues the anglers could want, and jumbo sea bass to 5 pounds. All the fish were hooked on artificials: soft-plastic lures on jigheads. That was part of what was awesome. When the jigs were dropped down in the water, the anglers caught either a big blue or a big sea bass. Some of the sea bass were 22 and 23 inches. Bluefish chomped some of the sea bass in half, when the sea bass were reeled in. Lots of bait filled the water. The trips fish from the legendary port until the end of October. Visit <a href=" http://www.captainjoehughes.com/page3.html" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s traveling charters Web page</a>. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s Blog</a>.

<b>Avalon</b>

Capt. Jim from <b>Fins and Feathers Outfitters</b> just returned from elk hunting in Colorado with an outfitter, he said. Forty elk were seen, and four bulls were called to within 10 to 15 yards, but a shot was never gotten. Mountain lions, mule deer and more were seen. Back in New Jersey, wind might weather out summer flounder fishing the rest of the week, and flounder season will be closed starting Sunday. Striped bass charters are being booked for November. So are Cast and Blast Trips in November, a combo of striper fishing and duck hunting or goose hunting on Delaware Bay, over a series of days. Duck or goose hunting, without the fishing, is also being booked for the entire waterfowl seasons. Fins and Feathers offers a variety of outdoor adventures. That includes salmon and steelhead fishing, beginning in October and November, on upstate New York’s Salmon River, from Jim’s nearby lodge. The salmon fishing usually begins to pick up now, lasting about a month. Steelheads migrate into the river next in fall, and spend winter and part of spring there. Fishing is world-class for both salmon and steelheads in the river during these times. Fins and Feathers can hire fishing guides for the lodge’s guests, or the lodge’s crew can guide the guests. Or the crew can show guests how to fish the runs, and guests can fish on their own the rest of the time. Or guests can fish on their own the whole visit. Guests also snowmobile from the lodge throughout winter. Fins and Feathers also offers fly-fishing for trout on Pennsylvania’s streams like the Yellow Breeches.

<b>Wildwood</b>

With <b>Fins & Grins Sport Fishing</b>, weakfish, including some keepers, bluefish, croakers and a few kingfish were lit into off the ocean beaches, Capt. Jim said. That was like typical fall, mixed-bag fishing. Summer flounder gathered in the ocean off inlets and at reefs. Hard northeast wind will prevent fishing for them now, and flounder season will be closed starting Sunday. Coming up, trips will fish for sea bass starting October 22, opening day of sea bass season, and striped bass this fall, as soon as the striper migration arrives. Fins & Grins fishes every day, and reservations aren’t required but suggested. Telephone for availability.

<b>Cape May</b>

A couple of keeper summer flounder and a bunch of throwbacks were hooked from the ocean Saturday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. Flounder season will be closed starting Sunday, and bluefish could be fought off Cape May Point. Fall striped bass charters are booking up. Charters will fish for tuna this fall, if the fishing takes off locally. A friend’s trip chunked 14 yellowfin tuna and longfin tuna, a good catch, mostly yellowfins, at Hudson Canyon. Charters aboard will fish for sea bass when sea bass season is opened starting October 22 and blackfish when six blackfish becomes the bag limit starting November 16, compared with the current limit of one. George talked with people who found lots of sea bass while flounder fishing this weekend. The Heavy Hitter’s flounder trip fished elsewhere.

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