<b>PENNSYLVANIA</b>

Fishing was hot at South Jersey’s lakes and rivers, according to anglers Bill Brinkman from <b>Brinkman’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Philadelphia spoke with, he wrote in a report on the shop’s website. One of the anglers pasted a bunch of crappies and all the chain pickerel he wanted at lakes off Route 55. Another gave up on largemouth bass on Lenape Lake to fight all the pickerel biting there. An angler who fished Batsto Lake totaled eight pickerel and three largemouths in a trip. Farther south, Union Lake was on fire with largemouths attacking buzz baits, spinner baits and rubber frogs in the pads, another angler said. The angler saw someone drill a 26-inch hybrid striped bass at Union on a large Zara Spook in morning. Shore anglers at Union could play plenty of crappies, pickerel and yellow perch on small twister tails, tubes and spinners. Someone who fished waters in Dennisville crushed largemouths and pickerel. Some anglers might think Delaware River’s striped bass fishing was finished for the season. But Bill boated some in the 20 inches and smaller last week. He also rounded up plenty of catfish on the trips. Other anglers also hooked the stripers locally, and anglers farther upstream at Trenton last week whacked lots of 24- to 30-inch stripers on small popper lures, crank baits, chunked bunker and eels. Several people spoke about tangling with plenty of 15- to 23-inch stripers at the New Hope wing dam on the river that week. Stripers 20 to 32 inches were eeled upstream from the Route 202 Bridge on the river last week. Another angler’s trip landed 11 stripers 20 to 31 inches at Delaware Water Gap two weekends ago on the river. Those were the angler’s first stripers of the season at the Gap.

<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

<b>North Jersey</b>

Six walleyes 3 to 6 pounds were boated from a lake Saturday night with Rob Lane from Chester, N.J., aboard, Capt. Dave Vollenweider from <b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> wrote in an email. That was one of the trips that plug for walleyes in the dark, when the fish push to shallows to forage on spawning herring this time of year. Catching walleyes, big, tasty fish, a member of the perch family, on the cast lures is good sport.  The previous trip for them aboard, the previous weekend, covered in the last report here, was slow for walleye fishing. One was landed, and another blew up on a lure but was lost. But water was unseasonably cold then, 58 degrees, the moon was full – that seems to hamper the angling sometimes – and no herring were heard flipping around. On this last trip, the water was 71 degrees – warmer weather seemed to raise the temp – and there was “bait action,” Dave wrote. Was a decent night, he said.

Trout streams ran low, said Don from <b>Ramsey Outdoor</b> in Succasunna. Even last week, no matter rain previously, the streams ran probably at half the normal level. The low water was tough on trout fishing. Many anglers fished for Lake Hopatcong’s hybrid striped bass and walleyes that foraged on spawning herring in the shallows at night. Herring seemed to be “doing their thing,” he said. A customer who lives near Raccoon Island said the sounds of the fish was as noisy as it gets. The baitfish flip around at night, and the stripers and walleyes crash on them, making noise. From saltwater, mostly bluefish catches were talked about. Striped bass were reported sporadically caught on the ocean south of Sandy Hook. Anglers on private boats who fluke fished seemed to catch like last year: lots of throwbacks but occasional hefty keepers. Don spoke with nobody who reported fluking on a party boat, he noted.

Fishing was picking up, and had needed the warm weather, said James from <b>Behr Bait & Tackle</b> in Lebanon. Somewhat of a thermocline began to form in Round Valley Reservoir, and boaters trolled or fished live bait in deeper water there than before, to reach the thermocline. They worked 60 to 100 feet of water, fishing about 35 feet down to reach the thermocline, to catch rainbow trout and sometimes lake trout. The angling was good, and was also pretty decent for lake trout along bottom on live herring on Round Valley. Shore anglers at the impoundment occasionally banked trout on shiners, medium-sized, under slip-bobbers or marshmallows along bottom.  Those smaller shiners were preferred when fishing with the baitfish. The shore anglers also lit into smallmouth bass and largemouth bass when trying for the trout. Some of the anglers landed 10, 20 or 30 of the bass. Lots of the bass began to be reeled in. Spruce Run Reservoir began to turn out hybrid striped bass on live herring, at no set location, but in 10 feet of water, say from the tower to back toward the power lines. Merrill Creek Reservoir generated good reports about crappies and lake trout. The lakers were jigged or were hooked on live herring at the hump.

Passaic River flowed somewhat low, and catches of catfish and carp were heard about from the water, said Cheryl from <b>Fairfield Fishing Tackle</b> in Pine Brook. Spring trout stocking was wrapped up last week, and once stocking ends, customers mostly fish for trout no longer this season. In saltwater, large bluefish were pounded from many waters, and striped bass were boated on Hudson River.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

A customer tied into great fishing for hybrid striped bass and largemouth bass at Spruce Run Reservoir on Monday night on trolled freshwater umbrella rigs, said Burt from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook. The rigs worked terrific, and the same angler fished Pequest River on trips, hitting some good-sized trout on green-backed scuds. Sulfurs hatched along Ken Lockwood Gorge and South Branch of the Raritan River. Dry-fly fishing with sulfurs was on. Burt would imagine rain Sunday night raised trout streams a little. Rain fell locally Monday morning, but not after 8 o’clock. Rain might’ve fallen afterward farther north in New Jersey, in New York and at the Jersey Shore. Burt in saltwater ran into a blitz of large bluefish at Island Beach State Park at Barnegat Inlet’s pocket Thursday. Mike from the shop said many channel catfish were tugged from different waters on cut bait, and catfish began to be in pre-spawn, and the spawn lasts a long time. August is the middle of the spawn. Largemouth bass currently were going into the spawn at some lakes, and were off the spawn at some, he said.

Bluegill fishing was alright at Ocean County College Pond, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. That’s something kids can do, and a couple of largemouth bass began to be lifted from the pond on shiners and killies. Largemouths and crappies chewed at Lake Riviera, more on killies than shiners. Trout were angled from the Toms River’s Trout Conservation Area. Otherwise, not much trout fishing happened. Murphy’s, located on Route 37, also owns <b>Go Fish Bait & Tackle</b> on Fischer Boulevard in Toms River.

<b>South Jersey</b>

A few customers headed to fish for crappies at lakes and catfish on Delaware River on Memorial Day, said Dom from <b>Barracuda’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Riverside. Quite a few cats roam the Delaware, and catching them isn’t complicated. Any smelly bait can work, he said. Some anglers headed to target largemouth bass on lakes, but no results were heard. Fishing for trout from the spring stocking was pretty much finished for the season. The stocking ended weeks ago locally.

Robert Griffith Jr. from Mullica Hill clubbed six largemouth bass to 5 pounds at Union Lake on a Live Target crappie lure, said Mike from <b>Sportsman’s Outpost</b> in Williamstown. Another angler found good fishing for largemouths to 4 pounds at Iona Lake, saying a 3-inch, black Yamamoto rubber worm caught best. Joe Peckman from Glassboro hung a 4-1/2-pound largemouth from the DOD ponds on a Yamamoto. Sara Gilliam from Newfield socked a 2-pound 4-ounce smallmouth bass from Union Lake. Also at Union, Jeff Ellis from Elmer sacked a 4-pound smallmouth. Alan Gill from Medford yanked a 6-pound 18-inch chain pickerel from Harrison Lake on a green-neon nightcrawler. Charles Derbin from Quinton plucked six yellow perch from Alloway Lake on Rebel Bumble Bugs.

Largemouth bass fishing was pretty decent, said Steve from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. The Menantico Ponds produced some good catches of them. Union Lake’s largemouthing was pretty steady. Largemouth anglers often fished soft-plastics like lizards, Senko worms and Sweet Beavers. A rubber-frog bite began to turn on somewhat for largemouths. Crappie fishing was good. An angler could bring a batch of minnows and find steady crappie fishing at many lakes. Along saltwater, summer flounder fishing began to be handy on back bays. Many drum were boated on southern Delaware Bay. Striped bass sometimes bit there still. Fishing was decent, better, maybe because weather improved.

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