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New Jersey Inshore Saltwater Fishing Report 5-31-16


<b>Sewaren</b>

A trip limited out on sea bass to 4 pounds, including a good number of 3-pounders, on the ocean Sunday with <b>Outcast Charters</b>, Capt. Joe said. A decent number of ling were mixed in, and a trip on opening day of sea bass season also limited on sea bass. The fish were smaller or up to 2 ½ to 3 pounds on that outing, but the limit was made, and ling and a cod were mixed in. Outcast will focus on sea bass for the moment, and offers fishing from Sewaren, N.J., and Staten Island, N.Y. New York’s sea bass regulations might not have been finalized yet. But sometimes New York’s sea bass season is open or has a greater bag limit while New Jersey’s is closed or has a smaller limit during different times of year.

<b>Keyport</b>

This is a great time of year, Capt. Frank from the <b>Vitamin Sea</b> wrote in an email. Raritan Bay and surrounding waters harbored striped bass, bluefish and fluke that could all be angled. The most recent trips aboard fished for either a combo of stripers and blues or for fluke. The stripers weighed 18 to 25 pounds, and the blues were mostly large. But the anglers fished for line meant for stripers, so most of the toothy blues bit off the line. The most recent fluke trip pumped in a handful of keepers and mostly throwbacks. Trips will mostly focus on fluke now, but charters can be booked for stripers. Open-boat trips and charters are fishing, and space is available on open trips Wednesday and Saturday afternoons.

With the <b>Down Deep Fleet</b>, sea bass fishing was a beat down, Capt. Mario said. Sea bass to 4 ½ pounds were slugged, and many large ling and some winter flounder and cod were mixed in. Great fishing, and open-boat trips are sailing for them daily, and charters are available for the angling. That’s on the Down Deep, one of the company’s two 40-foot boats. On the other vessel, the Down Deep Bull, open fluke trips will begin to fish daily on Thursday. Fluke charters are available, and open-boat striped bass trips are fishing in afternoons. Charters for stripers are also available, and join the <a href=" http://downdeepsportfishing.com/short-notice-list/" target="_blank">Short Notice List</a> on Down Deep’s website to be kept informed about open trips. See available dates on the site’s calendar.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

Excellent bluefishing was smoked Sunday on the <b>Fishermen</b>, Capt. Ron wrote in a report on the party boat’s website. The angling was picky at first, at the end of the tide. Once the tide resumed, it was game on! Then the boat was moved after the blues moved off. But once the boat settled at the new location, the catches were back on, the rest of the trip. Saturday was also a good day of the angling. Most of the anglers on the trip were ones who fish once or twice a year, during this Memorial Day weekend. Ninety-five percent were rod-rentals, but bluefishing was wild while it lasted. Once boat traffic pummeled the water, the fish went down. The trip then searched, anchored on good readings, chunked and caught blues again. Several drops had to be made on the outing, because the blues kept moving. But the angling was good. The Fishermen is sailing for striped bass and blues 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily, 6:30 to 11 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 3:30 to 9 p.m. Sundays.

Both daily fluke trips fished Monday, and forecasts for rough weather were wrong, said Capt. Tom from the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>. A little sprinkling drizzle fell during the morning trip, but weather cleared for the afternoon trip. Fluking was slower in the morning, and even throwbacks bit less than before, but conditions weren’t good. The afternoon trip’s fluking was quite better, and more keepers were swung in than during the previous couple of days, and the anglers picked at throwbacks, all catching throwbacks at least. The trips fished Raritan Bay, where the best fluking was found recently aboard. A few fluke were scooped from the ocean just outside Sandy Hook in the shallows Sunday afternoon aboard, until conditions forced the trip back into the bay. Some keepers were bagged, and shorts were picked, a good afternoon of the angling, all in all. Otherwise, the fishing around that time was hit and miss. Some trips fished better than others, for no apparent reason. Saturday afternoon’s trip couldn’t get fluking going. The Atlantic Star is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m. daily.

<b>Highlands</b>

Sea bass, excellent catches, were plowed Saturday and Sunday from the ocean with <b>Lady M Charters</b>, Capt. Steve said. Easy limits, lots of big knuckleheads to 3 pounds and heavier. A good mix of ling were also pasted, and a few sizable, out-of-season blackfish were released, on the trips. Charters and open-boat trips are available daily. Fluke fishing is also available, and once sea bass season is closed, open bottom-fishing trips will head to the Mudhole for catches like ling, cod and winter flounder. A few haddock were even seen last year on the trips, and customers love the fishing, Steve said, because they never know what’ll be reeled up.

<b>Neptune</b>

Sea bass fishing’s been fantastic on the ocean with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said. Weather canceled some of the trips, but Jake Sigmund’s annual charter on Sunday cleaned up on sea bass, ling and a winter flounder. All other trips recently also pounded sea bass aboard, and space is available for an individual-reservation trip for sea bass June 8. Mid to late June is time for mako shark fishing, and a few choice dates are left for mako charters.

<b>Belmar</b>

Great weekend for business, and striped bass, sea bass and fluke kept anglers interested, Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b> wrote in an email. Stripers to 38 pounds were weighed-in, and many stripers heavier than 40 pounds were reported boated on the ocean. Most of the bass were trolled on bunker spoons and Mojos, and the next most were hooked on bunker snagged and then livelined for bait. Ray Soyka from Asbury Park Fishing Club checked-in a 37-pound striper he boated.  Sea bass fishing was “top quality” on the ocean or gave up many limits and some large fish. Fluking was great on Shark River, including for some sizable. A.J. Early from Neptune aced a 5-pound 14-ouncer, and Adam Ritter from Fort Lee waxed a 5-pound 9-ouncer.

Fishing to the north, bluefish catches were super Saturday and Sunday on the <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b>, an email from the party boat said. Jumbos to 16 pounds were jigged, and Ava 47s caught best. No trip sailed Monday, and today’s trip jigged for blues at the channels. Okay catches were barreled up on the first half of the trip, and the angling slowed afterward. A few sizable, keeper fluke were in the mix, including an 8-pounder. The Miss Belmar Princess is sailing for striped bass and blues 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Family fishing and cruising trips are sailing 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. every Friday through Sunday for fluke and sea bass and to catch sunset.

Anglers banged away at bluefish 6 to 12 pounds, decent fishing, Monday on the <b>Golden Eagle</b>, a report said on the party boat’s website. Bluefishing was good Saturday and Sunday aboard for about the same size. The angling might’ve been better if not for boat traffic during the Memorial Day weekend. Bluefishing was very good Friday on the boat, on Run Off crocodiles and hammered jigs. The Golden Eagle is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Afternoon fishing and sunset cruise trips began this weekend for the season, sailing 4:30 to 8:30.

Striped bass fishing on the ocean was great, for the most part, said Capt. Pete from <b>Parker Pete’s Fishing Charters</b>. A big body of the fish swam the water, and most of the bass were trolled. But the stripers were hooked on livelined bunker when bunker could be caught for bait. A 43-pound striper was largest aboard recently. Dates are available for the trips in June. Bluefishing was also excellent on the ocean, another option. A couple of trips sailed for sea bass in past days aboard. Lots were hooked, and many were small. Getting passed the small to land keepers was the challenge. Pete is also running party boat trips on another vessel that are fishing for stripers with livelined bunker with limited numbers of passengers. Reserve to ensure a spot, and see info on <a href=" http://www.parkerpetefishing.com/" target="_blank">Parker Pete’s website</a>.  For Parker Pete’s, don’t have enough anglers for a charter? Book an individual space on a charter that needs anglers. Visit the website to subscribe to the email blast to be kept informed about the spaces. Also see a trip calendar, where available dates are posted, on the site.
                                                                                                                 
<b>Brielle</b>

Catches of sea bass were okay Saturday and much better Sunday on the party boat <b>Jamaica II</b>, Capt. Ryan wrote in an email. A bunch of anglers limited out Sunday. Just a few were Wes Shourt from Manahawkin, Bob Plasket from Medford, Dave Nelson from Princeton, Quinn Figueroa from Brick, Larry Quattrano from Trenton and Ralph Molinari from North Haledon. Sunday’s fishing was a good, steady pick of mostly sizable sea bass in 80 feet of water. Beginning Tuesday, trips will fish for fluke and sea bass 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. and for sea bass 2 to 6:30 p.m. daily. The morning trips will drift rough bottom for fluke and sea bass, and the afternoon trips will anchor strictly for sea bass. That’s the schedule until sea bass season is closed beginning June 20. Also on Tuesday, the Mega Monthly Fluke Pool begins.

Ocean striped bass fishing was pretty good, mostly on trolled bunker spoons and Mojos, said Alex from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. A few were heard about that were hooked on livelined bunker snagged for bait on the trips, beginning later last week. The bass to 49 pounds or so were caught from the ocean, and ocean fluke fishing seemed to pick up a little, since fluke season opened. The angling was slower at first, and remained relatively slow, compared with back waters like rivers, but might’ve improved. Fluke were tugged from throughout Manasquan River. The river’s population of blues tapered. Stripers were angled from the river at night along bridges. Back on the ocean, sea bass fishing was phenomenal since sea bass season opened. Lots of throwbacks were picked through, but many limits were boated. In the surf, lots of bluefish roamed from Manasquan Inlet to Barnegat Inlet. June is traditionally a month for shark fishing, and nothing specific was heard about sharks yet this season. But lots of clear water that sharks prefer seemed to hold not far from shore. Sea bass anglers talked about it. Bluefin tuna would pop up at a reef one day, Barnegat Ridge another, and so on. The fish were around, “but you got to be there,” he said. Nothing was heard about tuna fishing or sharking farther offshore at the canyons. Few seemed to sail there yet this season. 

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Some action with fluke, some keepers and shorts, was copped on morning trips throughout this Memorial Day weekend on the <b>Norma-K III</b>, Capt. Matt wrote in a report on the party boat’s website. South wind made the angling a little tougher on afternoon trips, chilling the water. Green or white bucktails “seemed to pick out the keepers,” he said. More and more fluke seemed to arrive on the grounds, and the fluking should only improve, as the water warms. Nighttime bluefishing trips were launched Friday, and a few were picked that night aboard. Quite a few swam around the boat, but were difficult to catch. The angling was tough on Saturday night’s trip, but better on Sunday night’s. Blues 6 to 10 pounds were picked that night, and a 17-pounder won the pool. Not great, but a start, and Matt hopes the angling will only improve. The Norma-K III is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m. daily. Bluefish trips will sail 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily beginning Friday.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

The weekend’s crowds are gone, so anglers can fish favorite spots with little or no company, a report said on <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>’ website. In the surf, fishing slowed compared with the wild bluefishing earlier this season. But keeper striped bass and large blues were still slid from the surf, on both bait and lures. Cut bunker and clams were the baits, and poppers, swimmers and metal were the lures. Ocean boaters trolled stripers in the upper 30 pounds on bunker spoons. Some fluke showed up in inlets. In Barnegat Bay, mixed-sized blues roamed, and being in the right place at the right time to catch them was the way. From the dock, crabbing was a pick.  The Dock Outfitters, located on Barnegat Bay, blocks from the ocean surf, features a bait and tackle shop, a café, a dock for fishing and crabbing, boat rentals and jet-ski rentals.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Super, super bluefishing was crushed on the <b>Miss Barnegat Light</b> on Monday, another great day of jigging them from the ocean, a report said on the party boat’s website. The angling was the same Sunday. On Saturday’s trip, the anglers squashed the fish the whole outing. Quick drifts were made the first 3 hours, and two to six blues were fought at a time. Then the trip searched for schools of blues that spread out, chasing bunker, and the blues bit well the rest of the trip. High hooks nearly limited out on the 5- to 12-pounders that day. The boat began fishing for the year Friday, and bluefishing was good out of the gate. Good catches of 5- to 12-pounders were made for 2 hours, until the tide slowed, slowing the angling. The trip then headed farther from shore to look for blues, but that failed to pan out. Trips will fish for blues 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the next two Fridays through Sundays, June 3 to 5 and 10 to 12. Daily fluke trips will begin June 17.

The <b>Super Chic</b> was supposed to be moved to the slip at Barnegat Light today, Capt. Ted said. The boat was already in the water, after new fuel tanks were installed, and will begin fishing for the season now. He had hoped to begin on Memorial Day weekend, but this spring’s rough weather made finishing the maintenance by then impossible. Trips will fish this weekend aboard. That’ll be for sea bass, if he remembered. Lots of bluefish swam Barnegat Inlet and the ocean, and trips aboard hunt them down. Striped bass were trolled and were also caught on livelined bunker on the ocean, and charters also chase them aboard. Friends lit into them this weekend while competing in a tournament.

<b>Barnegat</b>

From an edited email from Capt. Dave DeGennaro from the <b>Hi Flier</b>: Holy smokes! What a stretch of fishing we just had. Starting on Thursday afternoon I ran out with Loren Adrian, Billy Fellows and Capt. Steve Spina who helped work deck. We made the left out of the inlet with our sights set on trolling a big striper with the bunker spoons. I started at a spot 5 miles north of the inlet in 55 feet of water, where I last caught a nice pair. After beating up that spot for 2 hours with no hits, we went on world tour: the Bathing Beach, the Pipe, Seaside Piers. We did have a short hit, a runoff and a hooked and lost fish at the Piers. So of course I stuck it out there for 2 more hours, but nothing more happened. We throttled up for home, but I left the spoons on the rods, because I knew I was going to give that first spot one more pass on the way in. We throttled back, put out the two Maja spoons, and in less than 60 seconds the starboard rod was screaming. Loren was on the rod, and 15 minutes later we boated his personal best, a 47-pounder. Talk about ninth inning with two outs. We fished another 15 minutes and headed in with our one fish. Here's a gratuitous <a href=" https://youtu.be/hBlF_EZArIU " target="_blank">YouTube clip</a> of the last few minutes of the landing. Not our best clip, because it has very little of the fight, and more of us just celebrating, finally putting a fish in the boat. On Friday afternoon I had Joe Parente from Springfield, N.J., out, along with his son Joey and their friends. We started out with some big blues on poppers on the east side of the bay. Then they got to see a good bite on clams in Oyster Creek Channel, with four bass making it to the net between 12 and 16 pounds. Saturday stunk. We made it out to the ocean, but I was one of the boats that didn't catch that day. Some guys caught on the snag and drop, and some trolled them on spoons and Mojos, but not us. We did salvage the trip with some gator blues in the bay on the way back in. On Sunday I had Nick Denucci from Denville, N.J., along with his two boys, Nicholas and Michael. These kids can fish! They boated five stripers on clams from 12 to 20 pounds in Oyster Creek. Then we bounced over to the big bluefish spot (I know I didn't say where), and we had them coming as fast as we could get them unhooked. (On Monday) I had Alan and Leslie Soukup from Wilmington on board. This was the hottest bite on clams yet. No boats on the water thanks to the awful weather forecast that turned out to be wrong. The rain didn't come until we were done fishing. We had six bass from 10 to 13 pounds. We finished up with the mad dog gator bluefish bite that has to be peaking right now. They’re voracious. I (had) nothing booked for (today), and (am going) to sail with or without passengers at 5:30 a.m. Going to head over to the striper spot and clam those fish again like an appointment. They’re going to be there, and are going to feed -- it's not even a question. After that, if the ocean looks good, we could go hunt those big stripers or jam on the big gator blues in the bay. The marine forecast looks great for either plan.” Charters and open-boat trips are fishing. <b>***Update, Monday, 5/31:***</b> “Caught ‘em again today,” Dave wrote in an email. The trip clammed four stripers 10 to 20 pounds at Oyster Creek Channel. “After that effort, we got into some 10- to 15-pound bluefish on the east side of the bay,” he said. “We’re sailing open-boat on Wednesday afternoon. Marine forecast looks good, so we’ll try to get out in the ocean and catch the biggest kind of stripers. Sailing open-boat every day we’re not chartered. Thursday and Friday also look like mild winds, so we’ll sail open-boat on those days as well.” The 6-hour trips will depart at 12 noon or 1 p.m. Three people max. All fish are shared.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

The opening of summer flounder season failed to fish as well as expected, but the flatfish bit here and there, a report said on <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s website on Thursday, the most recent report on the site at press time. Snot grass on Great Bay’s bottom fouled lines, a main problem. But anglers hoped that when water warmed a little, that would “stir the fish up,” it said. To fish in the weeds, use a bobber to suspend bait off bottom, like maybe a foot. The crew at the shop prefers fishing the bait on shad darts under a bobber. Striped bass fishing was good on Mullica River on eels. Sea bass fishing was reported to go well on the ocean, and photos were seen of banner catches. Bluefish catches were strong from different places like Mullica River and Little Egg Inlet and off the Fish Factory. Bluefin tuna reportedly swam 18 miles off Atlantic City.

<b>Brigantine</b>

The holiday weekend is finished, and “hopefully the fish are back from all their BBQ’s,” Capt. Andy from <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b> wrote in a report on the shop’s website. Striped bass beached from the surf were sometimes heard about, and a 16-pounder was checked-in this morning from the surf that was chunked on bunker from the store. Huge bluefish blitzed along Absecon Inlet’s jetty at 5 p.m. yesterday, and returned this morning. The surf was reportedly weedy in the northeast gazebo area. “Mid Island seems to be OK,” he wrote. Fresh clams in the shell are stocked, “and I’m waiting to hear about (fresh) bunker,” he said.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

Striped bass catches erupted Sunday night at one of the jetties along Absecon Inlet, said Noel from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. Eight or nine caught were known about, and anglers said the fish ranged 32 inches to 45 or 46. Customers fish the nearby, jetty-lined inlet on foot, and have been locking into the bass at night this season. The angling still produced, and photos posted on the store’s Facebook page showed. The photos included this 29.8-pound monster this weekend, this 38-incher Monday night and this 16-1/2-pounder last night.  Lots of kingfish bit in the surf near the inlet. Bluefishing in the surf was slowing for the season, and the fish were migrating away. But sometimes blues were run into, like this blue yesterday. Summer founder were picked up from the back bay. The store’s free striper tournament, awarding cash to anglers fishing on foot in Atlantic City, was wrapped up Sunday. Winners were the 29.8-pounder mentioned above, a 29.3-pounder and a 27.8-pounder. The anglers won $250, $150 and $100, respectively, for those three heaviest entered. All baits, a large supply, are stocked. Two dozen bloodworms are $20 this week only. Fresh bunker are three for $5, and fresh clams are $6 a dozen.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

An angler and the angler’s friend decked two keeper summer flounder 4 and 5 pounds Sunday on the back bay aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. The bay’s flounder fishing was mostly slow, and lots of boat traffic traveled the bay during this Memorial Day weekend, but that wasn’t the cause, Joe thought. So the anglers switched to catching and releasing big sand sharks on the bay. A 4-pound bluefish was landed during the sharking. On Saturday, another angler and the angler’s friends reeled up a keeper flounder and some throwbacks on the bay aboard.  Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s Blog</a>.

<b>Avalon</b>

Wind weathered out fishing Saturday with <b>Fins and Feathers Outfitters</b>, Capt. Jim said. Two inches of rain was supposed to fall Monday, and that nixed fishing, too. But he hopes to sail this week. Buddies boated drum on Delaware Bay at 60-Foot Slough and Tussy’s Slough. Summer flounder fishing was slow on the back bay during the weekend, and boat traffic seemed to shut that down. Friends fished for them Saturday, catching only one throwback, after they had been releasing the flatfish while fishing for striped bass on the bay previously. Fins fishes for drum and flounder this season. For the drum, the boat is trailered and launched wherever’s nearest the bite. Otherwise trips depart from the slip on the back bay at Avalon, including for ocean fishing that will sail this summer, for catches from flounder to pelagics like bonito, wahoos and even bluefin tuna, if the tuna swim near shore this year.

<b>Cape May</b>

The Whitman charter heaved in 10 drum to 70 pounds, keeping five, releasing the rest, on Delaware Bay on Saturday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. All other boats George knew about that day landed one, two or none, and drum fishing had been so-so up to then, and George guessed he got lucky, he said. “Hey, I’ll be lucky. I’ll take it,” he said. The anglers were experienced, brought their own, extra bushel of clams for bait, fished with their own rigs, two tandem J-hooks, impaling two clams on each rig, and waited for the line to come tight on a bite in a certain way, before setting the hook. Another charter was slated to fish for the drum aboard Monday, Memorial Day, when George gave this report Sunday night in a phone call. The charter wanted to fish no matter rain that was forecast. George was yet to report about that trip at press time, but texted a photo of the catch: 10 drum. The Parker charter sailed for sea bass Sunday on the ocean aboard. A gazillion throwbacks bit, but a bunch of keepers were bagged, drop-and-reel fishing. The ocean was 64 or 66 degrees on the fishing grounds and 61 or 62 along the beach.

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