<b>Sewaren</b>

With <b>Outcast Charters</b> anglers limited out on sea bass to 4 pounds on the ocean Saturday and headed back early, Capt. Joe said. Another trip for sea bass was canceled Sunday because of rough forecasts. Outcast offers fishing from Sewaren, N.J., and Staten Island, N.Y.

<b>Keyport</b>

A new body of fluke seemed to arrive in Raritan Bay, and fluking improved dramatically, Capt. Frank from the <b>Vitamin Sea</b> wrote in an email. Striped bass fishing remained good – on chunked or live bunker and on trolled bunker spoons – and striper charters are available. But fluke are the focus aboard now. Bluefishing slowed, but blues were still around. A trip Saturday fished for stripers and then fluked on a few drifts. Anglers who knew how to fish with Gulps on jigs were “successful.” Frank dropped a line in, and lost a big fluke three quarters of the way up. He was frustrated. “I actually had to give myself my own dose of Vitamin Sea!” he said. Two spaces are available for an open-boat fluke trip Tuesday, and two are available on an open trip Saturday for the flatfish. Working Man Special open fluke trips 4 to 9 p.m. will run every day when at least four anglers want to fish. With fluke in the bay and longer days, this is a good time for the trips. Bring Gulps and bucktails on the trips. 

Fishing for sea bass was super on the ocean with the <b>Down Deep Fleet</b>, Capt. Mario said. Open-boat trips are fishing daily for sea bass, cod and ling, and charters are available for the angling. Down Deep operates two 40-foot boats. Fluke fishing was yet to start on the ocean, really, because of cold water. When sea bass season closes beginning June 20, trips will fluke aboard the ocean. A charter fished for striped bass the other day with Down Deep, managing two stripers but mostly blues. Striper fishing wasn’t so good anymore this season locally. Stripers schooled to the south in the ocean, and those fish were yet to arrive here. 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>

Fluke time, Capt. Ron from the <b>Fishermen</b> wrote in a report on the party boat’s website. Daily trips would switch to fluke beginning today aboard, after the trips bluefished previously. The past couple of trips managed to pick blues, but the large body of blues moved on that held in Raritan Bay previously. Was fun fishing for the blues while the angling lasted. Nighttime trips will target striped bass. Stripers are departing rivers after spawning, and some areas the boat fishes for stripers at night are beginning to show life. The striper trips are currently fishing with fresh bunker. The Fishermen is fishing for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily and for striped bass 6:30 to 11 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 3:30 to 9 p.m. Sundays.

An 11-pound fluke was heaved aboard Saturday morning’s trip on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, Capt. Tom said. Ben Santo from Aberdeen nailed the fish, and this 11-pound fluke, an 11-1/4-pounder and a 9-3/4-pounder were pasted on the boat this season so far. That trip produced the best fluking on the boat so far this year, and was good fishing. A couple of anglers limited out, some bagged two or three and some landed no keepers. The afternoon trip’s fluking wasn’t quite as good, and conditions were different, but more keepers were hooked than on the past few days. On Sunday morning’s trip, shorts and some keepers were tugged in. No trip fished that afternoon, and weather forecasts seemed to keep anglers from showing up at the docks. Friday morning’s trip’s fluking was tough, and the afternoon’s trip picked away at keepers and shorts, not fast fishing, but a good ratio of keepers. All the trips fished Raritan Bay, and 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 fishing’s gone well with <b>Lady M Charters</b>, and an open-boat trip for the fish Saturday first fished a drop 20 miles out, Capt. Steve said. A pick of keepers and lots of shorts bit, so the trip took a ride. Then rods bent over pretty much as soon as baits hit bottom with single- and double-headers. The eight anglers limited out in 45 minutes. Afterward, a few deeper wrecks were fished. Big ling were caught, and a few small, out-of-season blackfish were released. Reservations are being accepted for charters and open-boat trips for sea bass. Room is available for an extended, open fluke trip June 20, the day sea bass season closes. Once the season closes, open bottom-fishing trips will work the Mudhole for catches that can include ling, cod and winter flounder. Anglers love the trips, because they never know what they’ll reel up. A few haddock were even taken last year on the trips.  

<b>Neptune</b>

The boat was one of the few that fished Sunday in rough forecasts, and the trip piled up sea bass, a good catch, said Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>. Goes to show, talk to your captain before canceling, he said. On the previous day, Saturday, a group from Mercer County Anglers fished aboard, landing a 35-pound striped bass, mugging good sea bass fishing afterward. Fish for stripers during weekdays. A trip Friday limited out on big stripers to 35 pounds and returned early with Last Lady. An individual-reservation trip for stripers is set for Thursday, if enough anglers want to go. Ralph expects to make a decision by Tuesday. Two spaces are left for an individual-reservation trip Wednesday for sea bass. Fishing for sea bass was good on every trip on the boat, and sea bass season is less than a month, closing beginning June 20.   Individual-reservation trips for cod will fish offshore July 13 and 27 and August 3, 17 and 31. Charters are available, including for sharks. Shark trips will begin soon.

<b>Belmar</b>

Capt. Scott from <b>XTC Sportfishing</b> fished for sharks from Atlantic City with friends Sunday, he said. A 100-pound mako shark and a couple of blue sharks were landed from the 66- or 68-degree, clear water. The water was mostly green but a bit of blue, and was good-looking. A trip canceled aboard Friday, and a trip Saturday pumped in a bunch of sea bass and a striped bass. Two trips fished Monday, one in the morning catching stripers then sea bass, one in the afternoon catching sea bass then stripers. A trip Tuesday also decked stripers and sea bass with XTC. The stripers weighed 30 to 35 pounds on the trips and were trolled.

Striped bass fishing on the ocean was great on most trips with <b>Parker Pete’s Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Pete said. Big stripers moved in, and were livelined on bunker early in mornings and late in day, and could be trolled when the sun was higher. The angling was on and off like typical for stripers. Pete hopes the fishing lasts another two weeks, and individual spaces are available for charters who need additional anglers on Tuesday morning and Wednesday morning and afternoon. Don’t have enough anglers for a charter? Contact Parker Pete’s anyway about individual spaces like that. Sign up for the email blast on the boat’s website to kept informed about the spaces. Also see available dates on the site’s calendar. Pete’s also running party boat trips on another boat that are livelining the bass on bunker with limited passengers. Room is available on the trips, and see info about the outings on <a href=" http://www.parkerpetefishing.com/" target="_blank">Parker Pete’s website</a>. A charter he ran on the party boat Saturday evening hit stripers to 44 pounds. A couple of sea bass trips fished the ocean with Parker Pete’s. The anglers had to work to bag sea bass, but some limited out, decent fishing, not on fire.  

Very good weekend of fishing, Bob from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b> wrote in an email. Lots of striped bass were boated on the ocean. Reports from private boats and charter boats “were astronomical,” he said. Stripers to 47 pounds “were not the exception.” John Robertson from Philadelphia whacked a 46-pounder on a livelined bunker off Avon. Ryan Gundel sacked a 34-pounder on the party boat Miss Belmar Princess. Fluke fishing was also great. One angler smashed a 7-pound 27-inch fluke from Shark River from the marina’s floating dock on a killie. Fishing was hot now, Bob said.

On the <b>Golden Eagle</b>, striped bass to 40 pounds were slugged Thursday, a report on the party boat’s website said. They were hooked on Run Off crocodiles and on live bunker, and some bluefish were mixed in, but mostly stripers were caught. On Friday, stripers to 42 pounds were booted aboard, but 200 boats must’ve filled the water, so hooking many stripers was tough. Among the boats, “it was just impossible,” the report said. Then the trip looked for blues, jigging 6- to 10-pounders on the crocs and Run Off hammered jigs, but the angling was “a little slower than it should have been.”  Saturday’s trip banged away at blues, decent fishing, and Sunday’s scored well on blues. “The striper action was early in the morning, and then before we left, we ended up catching the blues pretty good,” the report said. The Golden Eagle is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Because big stripers seem around, trips will striper fish this Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, reservations required, limited to 20 people. Afternoon fishing and sunset cruise trips are sailing 4:30 to 8:30 Fridays through Saturdays.

Anglers had a great trip pounding jumbo blues today on the <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b>, an email from the party boat said. The fish were stacked top to bottom in the water, north of Shark River Inlet. The angling slowed later in the trip, when blues were picked on long drifts. On Friday’s trip, striped bass to 40 pounds were socked on jigs and on bunker snagged and then livelined for bait. Plenty of bunker schooled and could be snagged. The Miss Belmar Princess is sailing for striped bass and blues 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Family fishing and sunset cruises are sailing 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. every Friday through Sunday.

<b>Brielle</b>

Ocean striped bass fishing was good, finally broke open, this past week, said Eric from <b>The Reel Seat</b>.  The fish were boated close to shore, in 30 and 40 feet of water, off Lavallette, Asbury Park, Long Branch and Monmouth Beach. Bunker snagged and then livelined for bait and trolling bunker spoons caught. On one day, white spoons connected, and on another, green did. Anglers needed to fish a color and see what the fish wanted. Surf fishing was slow or tough. Bluefish were sometimes beached locally and at Island Beach State Park. Clamming for stripers picked the bass on occasion in the surf. But striper fishing could turn on in the surf any moment, because boaters landed the fish a quarter-mile off the beach. Ocean fluke fishing was fair, depending on water temperature. When south wind blew, cooling the water, that shut down fluking. When east or west blew, the angling was fair. In Manasquan River and Manasquan Inlet, fluking was relatively good. Anglers could scratch out keepers, definitely, and on the river, fluking was productive between Route 70 Bridge and Route 35 Bridge. White Gulps mostly caught in the river and inlet. A pile of blowfish hovered near the 70. In Point Pleasant Canal, throwback stripers 20 to 26 inches were played at night, and bluefish 3 or 4 pounds were fought during daytime. Sea bass fishing was fair on the ocean. Plenty bit, and not a ton of keepers did. Jigging with Ava 27s and 17s worked well, because sand eels schooled. Jigging was a way to land more keepers. Cod fishing picked up at Shark River Reef and wrecks in 100- and 150-foot depths. A 32-pounder was weighed-in. Reports sounded like yellowfin tuna were sometimes boated at Hudson Canyon, all on the troll. Some good catches of mako sharks came from there. Closer to shore, bluefin tuna 40 to 80 pounds were reported pushing sand eels at the Resor wreck. False albacore were fought in the area, though the season was early for that. A handful of makos were beaten in the area. But anglers really needed to fish the Hudson to catch makos.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

In the surf, fishing slowed compared with the hot fishing for blues and striped bass there in previous weeks, a report said on <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>’ website. Fluke bit in inlets “and just inside the bays,” it said. Crabbing was on the upswing from the dock last week, and more than two dozen keepers apiece were trapped by “those willing to try.” 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>Forked River</b>

Shark fishing began for the season with <b>Tuna-Tic Sportfishing</b> on trips Friday and Saturday, Capt. Mike said. A dozen blue sharks were landed on Friday’s trip, and probably 10 were cranked-in during Saturday’s. No mako sharks showed up, but water was ideal for sharking: 64 or 65 degrees where the boat fished, good-looking and holding lots of life. Probably 100 boats fished where Mike first wanted to shark. So the Tuna-Tic was sailed 12 miles away to fish on its own. Lots of makos seemed to hold farther offshore at Hudson Canyon. But conditions were perfect for makos closer to shore, where the trips fished. More trips are slated to fish for sharks this week on the boat, though weather looks rough. The trips might be weathered out, and include trips today and Wednesday, an overnighter Thursday to Friday and another trip Saturday. Even Saturday’s weather looks rough, according to long-range forecasts. Sharking will probably sail another couple of weeks aboard. Yellowfin tuna were caught at the Hudson, so tuna trips are also on tap.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Fishing for blues was tough Friday on the <b>Miss Barnegat Light</b>, a report said on the party boat’s website. But Saturday’s trip clocked a few striped bass heavier than 20 pounds on the ocean, and then jigged a few 8-pound blues at Barnegat Inlet. Sunday’s trip picked blues on the ocean near the inlet, until the fish scattered, next caught smaller blues on the ocean up the beach, and then picked away at blues to 14 pounds at the inlet pretty well. The Miss Barnegat Light will fish for blues Friday through Sunday. The boat will fish for fluke daily beginning June 17.

<b>Barnegat</b>

<b>***Update, Wednesday, 6/8:***</b> From an email from Capt. Dave DeGennaro from the <b>Hi Flier</b>: “Wind is forecast to blow hard west and northwest. That means calm seas and the best conditions for finding bunker and the big bass. If that doesn't work we'll put out the bunker spoons.” Open-boat trips will fish 1 to 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday.  Three people max. All fish are shared.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Multiple striped bass and summer flounder were weighed-in Saturday, a good day at <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>, a report on the shop’s website said. “It was a pick your fish day,” it said. All the stripers at the store weighed more than 40 pounds, and fishing for them was great on the ocean. The flounder fishing was hit or miss in the bay at different places including along the Intracoastal Waterway and off Cape Horn Marina. Outgoing tides fished best for the fluke. Big bluefish moved to Little Egg Inlet and the ocean that schooled the bay previously. Smaller blues now bit in the bay, “more so in the mouth of the Mullica River,” it said. Good jigging for big blues was reported from the ocean south of the inlet last week.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Drum 40 and 50 pounds fed heavily in the surf on Brigantine’s north end Friday, a report said on <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>’s website. Weeds sometimes made fishing difficult in the surf,  moving in and out, but fish were there. Good catches of the drum continued today. Customers banked a 36-pounder and a 16-pounder today, saying the weeds were tolerable, if anglers checked the bait every 10 minutes. Striped bass were also slid from the surf, including a 21-pounder today, one just under 30 pounds yesterday and a 19-pounder yesterday. Clams and bunker caught in the surf.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

“Lot of fish catching,” said Noel from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. Customers fishing on foot reeled in striped bass from Absecon Inlet at night and during daytime on fresh clams, fresh bunker, bloodworms and plugs. They also dragged summer flounder and a few weakfish from the inlet, and some kingfish from the inlet and the nearby surf. The stripers in past days included a 43-incher, a 38-inch 17-pounder, a 34-inch 10.6-pounder, a 28-1/2-incher and more. The flounder included a 33-incher, a big flounder, especially from land. A 6.6-pound flounder was also checked in from the inlet, caught off Madison Avenue. A 21-inch 2.48-pound weakfish was brought to the shop today from the inlet. The flounder and weaks bit at the same place at the inlet. The weaks were hooked while anglers fished for flounder or stripers, but were hooked at times. See photos of the stripers, flounder and weaks on the shop’s Facebook page. Two dozen bloodworms are $20 this week only. Fresh clams are $6 a dozen, and fresh bunker are three for $5.

<b>Longport</b>

The <b>Stray Cat</b> is getting two new engines installed, and Capt. Mike is waiting for that to be finished to resume fishing, he said. The actual engines are installed, but related work like air vents and electrical needs to be completed. The boat will be better than ever when completed. Catches the boat sails for include summer flounder and tuna in the coming weeks.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Doug Gillespie this weekend scored an inshore grand slam aboard, caching a summer flounder, a striped bass, a bluefish and a weakfish in one trip, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. A grand slam is a catch of all the main species that anglers target at a location. Mostly blues were landed on the trip, but a variety of fish were, pretty cool. They weren’t big, but the angling, on jigs, was good. The trip at first fished for flounder with flounder rigs, then switched to jigs. A trip with Steve, Elam and friends this weekend aboard sailed for sea bass on the ocean. Sea bass were hooked the entire time the anglers fished, non-stop, a decent number, with keepers mixed in. The trip sailed far from shore, fishing at a reef. Joe this weekend also fished with his wife for flounder on the back bay, catching some. The bay’s fishing seemed to be improving, and Joe hopes that continues. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s Blog</a>.

<b>Wildwood</b>

Sea bass fishing was best 20 miles from shore on the ocean, and drum were still landed from Delaware Bay, said Capt. Jim from <b>Fins & Grins Sport Fishing</b>. Seas were rough on a sea bass trip Thursday, but a couple of keepers were bagged at every place fished, and plenty of throwbacks bit. A couple of bluefish and a big, dinner-plate-sized porgy were copped. A couple of out-of-season blackfish bit and were released. The sea bassing, closer to shore, was pretty good, considering the rough seas. Inshore sea bassing like that picked keepers among lots of throwbacks. More keepers bit farther off. The boat was in the yard afterward because of a mechanical issue that popped up, and a trip Sunday had to be canceled because of that. The drum reportedly still bit in the bay, and seemed a little more scattered than before. Fins has been fishing for them and will still. Jim fished for summer flounder on the back bay with a friend Sunday morning, and they landed three, including one keeper. Water seemed cold for flounder fishing yet. Surf anglers hooked many good-sized weakfish, averaging 4 pounds, including a couple of 9-pounders, at North Wildwood. That was finesse fishing, using the lightest tackle possible, reeling in, and either snagging in rocks or catching a weak.  Fins fishes every day, and reservations aren’t required but suggested. Telephone for availability.

<b>Cape May</b>

T.J. Coccia and Team T.J. rounded up a good catch of sea bass 30 miles from shore Saturday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. Some boats bailed drum, lots, from Delaware Bay on Friday. Anthony Mergliano’s charter for the drum Sunday had bagged one so far, at 7 p.m., when George gave this report in a phone call aboard. Lots were marked during the trip. Heavy Hitter is supposed to compete in the South Jersey Shark Tournament from Cape May this weekend.

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