<b>Sewaren</b>

Fluke hit hard, said Jake from <b>Dockside Bait & Tackle</b>. The fishing was terrific, especially at Ambrose Channel, but also at other places including other channels, the Triangle in Raritan Bay and in Raritan River. This weekend will probably fish for them well, because the humidity and heat should make the fish go deep and bunch up, not be as scattered as before. Fluke were most of the news, but other fishing happened, like for porgies. A charter from the docks sailed for tuna to the offshore canyons but found none. Baits stocked include killies and all the frozen. Dockside, located on Smith Creek, a tributary of the Arthur Kill, north of Outerbridge Crossing, is accessible from the water at the fuel dock and from land.

<b>Keyport</b>

Action with fluke was super, and the keeper ratio was a different story, Capt. Frank from the <b>Vitamin Sea</b> wrote in an email. Something like 10 to 12 throwbacks were hooked for every keeper. Anglers averaged three keepers apiece, and a 6-1/2-pounder was biggest in past days. Charters are sailing, and open-boat trips will fish Friday through Sunday. “Get your dose of Vitamin Sea!”

Great catches of fluke were locked up with the <b>Down Deep Fleet</b> this week, Capt. Mario said. High hooks landed seven apiece, keeping no more than a limit of five. A 9.1-pounder was smoked, taking the lead in the pool that annually awards a custom rod to the customer with the year’s biggest fluke aboard. Open-boat trips are fluking daily, and reserve ahead. Charters are available for that fishing or fishing for ling, winter flounder and cod. Open trips are also fishing daily for the ling, flounder and cod – reserve ahead – and ling fishing was spotty in past days, one day good, another day not so good, and so on. The company runs two 40-foot boats with air-conditioning and big cockpits with plenty of room. 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 upcoming, open, marathon trips for fluke. See available dates for trips on the site’s calendar. Book fall striped bass trips now, because dates are filling.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

<b>***Update, Friday, 7/15:***</b> Trips for fluke caught at Reach Channel, said Jay from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Eight-, 9- and 10-pounders were sometimes iced on party boats there in the past week on spearing. Porgies were in at some places. A couple of striped bass were still found. The surf in early mornings at Monmouth Beach and Long Branch might’ve shoveled out most. In back waters, snapper blues began to be seen, and crabbing was great. All baits are stocked.

Fluking didn’t come easy on Monday’s trip, and the boat drifted slowly, and anglers had to work to catch, but some good-sized came in, a report said on the party boat <b>Fishermen</b>’s website. The boat was power-drifted, and one angler limited out and won the pool with a 7.11-pound fluke. Several bagged three or four fluke apiece. One angler took two fluke 6.9 pounds and 6.3. Tuesday’s trip began fishing where Monday’s trip last picked up good fluke, and an 8.8-pounder was the second keeper on Tuesday’s, winning the pool. Another angler bagged a 6-plus-pounder and several other keepers. The end of the trip gave up a good pick of keepers and shorts on a fast drift. Fluking was “back to normal.” On Wednesday’s trip, another 8.8-pounder won the pool. Never Quit Eddie drilled the 28-1/2-ncher, and the angler who boated the 8.8 the previous day landed a fluke heavier than 6 and a 4-1/2-pounder this day. Several 3- to 6-pounders were axed. Bait that had been swimming the channels began to move off, and this was time to begin looking at new areas for fluke. The Fishermen is sailing for fluke 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Trips had been fishing for striped bass every night, and will now fish for stripers every Monday and Tuesday nights and for a mixed bag of fluke, blues, porgies and whatever can be caught every Wednesday through Saturday nights.  Those trips are sailing 6:30 to 11 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 3:30 to 9 p.m. Sundays. Porgies began to show up, and gave up good action on quality-sized last night aboard. Though all of this is the open-boat schedule, charters are booked this Sunday morning, the mornings of this coming Tuesday and the following Friday and Saturday, July 22 and 23, and on this Tuesday night. No open trips will sail then.

Fluke fishing worked Flynn’s Knoll, Reach Channel and Sandy Hook Bay, depending on conditions, on the party boat <b>Atlantic Star</b>, Capt. Tom said. Yesterday aboard, for instance, the morning trip began fishing at Flynn’s, picking throwbacks and occasional keepers. The boat’s drift was lost, and the trip moved to the Reach. No wind blew, and hardly any current flowed, and the boat hardly moved. Toward the end of the trip, the boat was moved to Sandy Hook Bay, and a little breeze began to drift the vessel, and catches began again: mostly throwbacks but a few keepers. The afternoon’s trip had a drift, and picked away at throwbacks and just a few keepers. The day’s fluking wasn’t as good as the previous few days. Trips are always catching, and action, with mostly throwbacks, of course, is pretty good, if the boat drifts. Without a drift, catching slows. Many fluke were 17 or 17 ½ inches, just shorter than the 18-inch minimum size. A deck hand weighed a 17-1/2-incher, saying the fish felt heavy. The fish weighed 2 ½ pounds. That’s how thick the fish are. Sometimes a plain spearing or two, provided aboard, caught well. Whether killies that anglers brought caught better was difficult to say. Tom tells anglers that if they like to fish killies, bring the smallest amount that can be bought. People brought squid to fish on occasion, and no advantage could be seen for any bait. Sometimes anglers will use strips of fluke belly. Sometimes anglers fish bucktails, and that can be an advantage if the boat fails to drift, because the anglers work the bucktails. All trips sailed, and sometimes anglers asked whether trips would sail if forecasts called for possible storms. The trips sailed, and if a trip got a storm, it usually lasted 20 minutes. That could even feel like relief from heat. Deck hands did a super job of helping customers land fish, releasing throwbacks and so on. When 25 or 30 people are aboard, the number of fluke biting could be amazing.  The Atlantic Star is fluke fishing 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 6 p.m. daily.

Lots of throwback fluke with keepers mixed in blanketed the bay, said Chris from <b>Fisherman’s Den North</b>. There was lots of action, and bigger fluke 7 and 8 pounds were decked sometimes. So the fishing was good, and the store’s rental-boaters returned with a keeper on average, and some of the trips bagged four or five. Lots of dogfish bit for them. Cocktail blues sometimes schooled the bay. Lots of peanut bunker, tiny, schooled the harbor. Spearing schooled everywhere. Adult bunker sometimes schooled the bay, but fewer than earlier this year. One of the party boats from the marina began porgy fishing. That was at night yesterday, he thought, and all anglers on the trip mugged a bunch. Customers began to buy bait and tackle for bluefin tuna that bit inshore. People began to telephone about crabbing on the rental boats up the river. Good-sized crabs were seen at the dock all over at the store. The shop, new this year, is the sister store to Fisherman’s Den in Belmar, and is located at Atlantic Highlands Municipal Marina, near the party boats, charter boats and private boats. Baits stocked include killies, fresh peanut bunker and all the frozen like spearing, smelts and mackerel. Offshore baits like flats of butterfish and mackerel are in full supply.

<b>Highlands</b>

With <b>Lady M Charters</b>, bottom-fishing plowed a good assortment of ling, cod, winter flounder and sea bass from the Mudhole on Monday on a charter, a report said on the boat’s website. The cooler was filled, and jumbo bergals also bit. A small hammerhead shark followed the boat from wreck to wreck a time. Several open-boat trips are slated for this fishing in the near future.  An open fluke trip Sunday, covered in the last report here, fished rough bottom. But water was dirty from an easterly blow Friday, and somewhat of a roll remained. The angling was off, but picked away at keepers and throwbacks. One space was available this coming Saturday for an open fluke trip.

Heading out from <b>Twin Lights Marina</b>, Ed, Dan and Chris bagged six fluke at Reach Channel on killies, Marion wrote in an email. Paul Presti and Fred Sebolt on the Second Home boated a 23-inch fluke and a 22-incher, respectively, at Flynn’s Knoll on killies. Twin Lights, located on Shrewsbury River near Raritan Bay and the ocean, with no bridges before them, includes a marina with boat slips, dry storage, a fuel dock, and a combined bait and tackle shop and ship’s store. The fuel dock is available 24 hours a day with a credit card. Baits stocked include all for offshore.

<b>Neptune</b>

The weekly, individual-reservation trip for fluke socked a pretty good catch Tuesday on the ocean with <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. Ralph said. Fishing’s been great aboard, and no trips would fish the next couple of days. But seven or eight trips straight would fish beginning Sunday. The individual-reservation fluke trips are running every Tuesday, and kids under 12 sail free on the outings, limited to one per adult host. Recently added, an individual-reservation trip will fish inshore wrecks July 24 for cod, ling, winter flounder, sea bass and pollock. Limited space remains for individual-reservation trips for cod July 27 and August 3, 17 and 31.  Charters are available daily.

<b>Belmar</b>

Fluke fishing was good on the party boat <b>Big Mohawk</b> on the ocean, Capt. Chris said. Sunday was the only bad fluking during the week, because the angling was slow after the previous blow. Otherwise, the angling was productive. The fish weighed up to 8 and 9 pounds, and included a 10-pounder this week. Plenty of 7s and 8s were nailed, and catches included limits. Many fluke were hooked on Gulps on jigs aboard. But bait caught some, too, and the Big Mohawk is fluke fishing 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

The ocean’s fluke fishing became progressively better, said Capt. Pete from <b>Parker Pete’s Fishing Charters</b>. Sizes of fluke became larger, and the keeper ratio improved. The angling always depends on conditions, but everything seemed in place for the angling. Catches of sea bass mixed in were good, picking away at the anglers’ two-sea-bass-apiece limits. Fluke trips include annual On the Water Seminars that teach bucktailing for the big ones in a non-threatening environment. The next with space available is on July 26, and more will be added. Trips aboard include family cruises that fish in afternoons and enjoy sunset on the water.  Don’t have enough anglers for a charter? Contact Parker Pete’s anyway about individual spaces on charters. Sign up for the email blast on <a href=" http://www.parkerpetefishing.com/" target="_blank">Parker Pete’s website</a> to be kept informed about the spaces. Some of those spaces are available this coming Tuesday and Wednesday and next week on Friday, July 22.

Small bluefish bit right away on Wednesday’s trip on the <b>Miss Belmar Princess</b>, an email from the party boat said. Soon mackerel invaded the chum slick, and they were hooked most of the outing, until mid-day. Some sea bass were also bagged, and on Tuesday’s trip, very small blues were pitched aboard in the morning, and great mackerel fishing ended the outing. Monday’s trip anchored along good bottom, catching mackerel well and some ling, sea bass and cod. The Miss Belmar Princess is fishing 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.

Blues and mackerel, all you wanted, were smashed today on the <b>Golden Eagle</b>, a report said on the party boat’s website. Yesterday’s trip also banged away at them and a half-dozen pollock. The previous day’s trip, on Tuesday, whacked a super catch of mackerel and some 1-pound blues mixed in. Good-sized sea bass were hung, and Monday’s trip slammed mackerel 2 to 3 pounds, several pollock and several sizable sea bass. The Golden Eagle is fishing 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Afternoon fishing and sunset cruise trips are sailing 4:30 to 8:30 Fridays through Saturdays, reservations required.

<b>Point Pleasant Beach</b>

Because of a change in schedule, space is available for an open-boat trip or a charter Friday from Cape May for tuna fishing for bluefins and yellowfins inshore with <b>Mushin Sportfishing</b>, Capt. Alan wrote in an email. The fish were getting crushed on the chunk and on jigs less than 2 hours from the dock. The fishing will sail 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and call the boat to jump aboard. The vessel is docked at Cape May for the month.

On the party boat <b>Dauntless</b>, bottom-fishing on the ocean didn’t whale catches, but was okay, scooping up some good catches, and was better than fishing on some boats, Capt. Butch said. So he couldn’t complain, and customers averaged 10 to 20 fish apiece. The fish included sea bass, winter flounder, ling and cod. Some anglers limited out on two sea bass and two flounder apiece. Some might do that and catch 10, 12 or 15 ling and maybe a cod apiece. Trips fished for sea bass in 60- to 100-foot shallows and for ling in 100 feet to almost 200. The flounder and cod usually bit in the deeper water. The water was 63 to 66 degrees, and nighttime trips, sailing last Friday and Saturday, landed a variety of a few ling, sea bass, cod, small pollock and 1-pound blues, about a dozen of the blues per trip. The Dauntless is bottom-fishing 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily and 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. every Friday and Saturday.

Fluke fishing, on the ocean, was slower the last couple of days than before on the <b>Gambler</b>, an email from the party boat said. The fish and some sea bass, including beautiful sea bass 3 to 4 pounds, were still angled aboard. Pool-winning fluke averaged 4 to 5 pounds. Plenty of fluke remained in the water, and anglers just waited for them to bite again. That could happen today! On Thursday’s nighttime wreck-fishing trip, catches were fair: some sizable ling, keeper sea bass and some blues. A bunch of squid were seen, and Mike Malpass landed 20. On Saturday’s nighttime bluefishing trip, good catches of smaller bluefish, good-eating sized, were made. The crew is looking forward to a beautiful weekend.  Fluke trips are fishing 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m. daily. Trips from 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. are fishing wrecks every Thursday and are bluefishing every Friday and Saturday.

Fishing for fluke was tough Monday, a little better Tuesday and much better Wednesday on the ocean on the <b>Norma-K III</b>, a report said on the party boat’s website. On Wednesday, lots more throwbacks and keepers were pasted than before, and Matt hopes that keeps up. Pool-winning fluke weighed 6 pounds on both the morning and afternoon trips. Both bait and bucktails caught that day, and some anglers fished green rubber squids, catching well. Pink feathers worked the other day. On nighttime trips, bluefishing was decent Monday, tough Tuesday because of conditions, making feeling bites difficult, and a little better Wednesday. Wednesday’s trip picked away at 1- to 3-pound blues until a blue shark scared them away. The boat was moved, and a few more were reeled in. When bites were difficult to feel Tuesday, plenty of blues were marked. Sometimes mackerel and bonito bit on the night trips. The Norma-K III is fishing for fluke 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2 to 6:30 p.m. daily and for blues 7:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily.

<b>Toms River</b>

Ocean fluke fishing was fairly good, and sometimes conditions failed to drift boats well for the angling, but the fish were there,  said Virginia from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. Party boats that bottom-fished on the ocean scored well on catches including okay numbers of ling, some sea bass and more. The head boats that bluefished caught small ones during daytime and nighttime. In Barnegat Bay, fluke fishing was good toward Barnegat Inlet. Manasquan River produced fluke upstream, like toward Clark’s Landing and other areas there. Light jigheads were fished from three-quarters of an ounce to 1 ½ ounces. Blowfish were nabbed at the BI and BB markers in Barnegat Bay. Surf-fishing was slow, but fluke were beached on light bucktails 1 to 3 ounces with Gulps or squid. Surf anglers began to fish for kingfish in the surf with bits of clam and hooks like size-4. Sharking was good in the surf at night on bait like a whole bunker or a fluke rack. Blues 1 to 3 pounds popped into the surf at moments and could be hooked on small popper lures or metal. Eeling for striped bass in the surf slowed by this time of season. Lots of dogfish and skates littered the surf. Murphy’s, located on Route 37, also owns <b>Go Fish Bait & Tackle</b> on Fischer Boulevard in Toms River.

<b>Seaside Heights</b>

From the dock, blowfish, throwback fluke, snapper blues and lots of crabs, big, too, were nabbed, said Ray from <b>The Dock Outfitters</b>. The store’s rental-boaters bailed good crabbing off Good Luck Point on Barnegat Bay. Fluke fishing was pretty good at Manasquan River, Manasquan Inlet and Axel Carlson Reef. Little was heard from the surf. Cocktail blues occasionally tumbled the surf. Lots of brown sharks, required to be released, plied the surf. 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. Baits stocked include killies, fresh and frozen bunker and all the frozen like spearing and mullet.

<b>Forked River</b>

Barnegat Bay’s fluke fishing was okay, said Grizz from <b>Grizz’s Forked River Bait & Tackle</b>. “They’re doing it,” he said, and some days fished better than others, but the angling was good. Oyster and Double Creek channels and along the Intracoastal Waterway in the middle of the bay gave them up. Fluke bit in the ocean now, too. One angler reported a good catch from far south at Atlantic City Reef on the ocean. But locally, the ocean’s good fluking came from the Tires, off the Seaside Pipe and at Garden State Reef North. Some weakfish were around in the bay, and Grizz landed five the other day. Blowfish reportedly came from the bay off Bayside and farther south. Anglers from docks hooked them farther south. Grizz tried for blowfish locally but hooked none. Snapper bluefish began to be big enough to hook in back waters.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

<b>***Update, Friday, 7/15:***</b>Fluke fishing was pretty good, said Rob from <b>Van’s Boat Rentals</b>. Good-sized keepers, bigger than 20 inches, were seen, and a 30-incher was biggest this week. The fish were boated from Barnegat Inlet and Barnegat Bay near the inlet. Pretty much fluke made up all catches. Nobody even mentioned getting a line bitten off by a bluefish. One throwback striped bass was reported landed in the inlet on a 17-foot boat. Crabs were picked, but nobody mentioned a big catch of them. The season was early for crabbing locally. Cool, ocean water from the inlet makes crabbing take off later locally than at some places. Van’s rents boats from 9 h.p. to 50 h.p. for fishing, crabbing and pleasure. Kayaks are rented, and facilities include a tackle shop and a marina with slips, gas and full boat servicing. Killies and the whole selection of frozen baits is stocked.

Double digits of keeper fluke were cleaned up Monday on the <b>Miss Barnegat Light</b>, and fishing aboard steadily improved the previous few days through then, a report said on the party boat’s website. On Tuesday, angling was also good aboard, even if a somewhat faster drift of the boat would’ve helped. On Wednesday’s trip, some sea bass were thrown in coolers, and a few throwback fluke were released, not the fishing like the previous days. Trips are fishing for fluke and sea bass at 8 a.m. daily.

Fluke were yet to migrate from Barnegat Bay to the ocean, and the bay’s fluking was pretty good, said Jack from <b>Bobbie’s Boat Rentals</b>. Lots were pasted from places including High Bar Harbor, off the Gulf station and around Barnegat Inlet. Bluefishing was awesome in the inlet in early mornings and late in the day for mixed sizes, including lots of 3- to 5-pounders but some bigger. A couple of weakfish were seen from the bay, and few anglers target them, because of the one-weakfish bag limit. Live grass shrimp, a favorite weakfish bait, began to be stocked for the season. Order them ahead like two days. Killies and all the frozen baits are stocked. Nothing was heard about blowfish. Whether blackfish hovered along Barnegat Inlet’s jetties was unknown. But anglers will find out, because people will fish for them beginning Sunday, when one blackfish per angler will begin to be able to be kept per day. Blackfish season is currently closed. A few schoolie striped bass probably swam along Barnegat Inlet’s south jetty in the ocean that do throughout summer. Few fish for them, but if anglers want to target them right, they do including by livelining spots. Bobbie’s features a complete bait and tackle shop, a fuel dock and boat and kayak rentals. The boats are used for fishing, crabbing, clamming and pleasure. The store is known for bait supply, including live bait in season.

<b>Barnegat</b>

From an edited email from Capt. Dave DeGennaro from the <b>Hi Flier</b>: “Fishing … for Something?!” the subject line said. “So, it only seems right that if I'm going to post my open-boat and charter trip availability here, I should give the report, good or bad, right? It was bad. I shrimped the bay and the jetty with nothing but sand sharks to bend the rods. I ran out to Barnegat Ridge, and though the water was 74 degrees and bluish-green, there was no life. No birds, no readings and no hits. I pushed out a little farther toward the Resor Wreck, but halfway into that ride, the water was an ugly green color. So I spun it back into the better-looking water, but was rewarded with only small blues terrorizing my bonita and tuna lures. What does all of that mean for this weekend of fishing coming up? Absolutely nothing. It's going to heat up eventually. I'm thinking about mixing it up a little this weekend. We’re going to offer some inshore shark fishing. Head out 5 to 10 miles with a few cans of chum and a flat of mackerel. Put out a slick on the drift, and see what we can find. Not likely that we’ll catch the edible species like mako or thresher, but I hope we could catch and release some brown, blacktip or spinners. A lot of fun on light tackle. If the bay is more your thing, we could cast the 1- to 4-pound blues that are resident in the inlet these days under birds, mixed in with a few hours of fluking. I'm not giving up on the Barnegat Ridge either. A week is an eternity in fishing, no matter what you’re targeting. If you guys are game, so am I. In fact, we could start at the ridge and switch to sharking. The forecast is for very light winds and calm seas. Charter or open-boat Saturday through Monday. Call for rates and availabilty.”

<b>Absecon</b>

Summer flounder fishing was on the upswing, definitely, said Capt. Dave from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. A few big, 5 pounds and larger flounder still swam the back bay, and a good body of 18- to 20-inchers did. The fishing wasn’t easy, offered no guarantees, but any trip that seriously fished for them at the tops of tides in the right ways with the right baits like minnows and Gulps bagged a half-dozen in a day. Single anglers bagged two or three, and sometimes limited out. Sometimes a whole boat limited. Lots of flounder hugged bottom to be caught. Pretty good catches of flounder were heard about from all the ocean’s artificial reefs. Anglers began to fish them more often than before. Not a lot was heard about sea bass. One blackfish per angler will be able to be kept per day beginning Sunday, and some should be around. Green crabs will be stocked for the tautog. Back in the bay, weakfish were scattered, and quite a few were hooked by flounder anglers during the weekend. Few anglers targeted weaks in the one-weakfish bag limit. The mouths of Mullica and Great Egg Harbor rivers seemed to hold most weaks. But the trout also bit along holes along the Intracoastal Waterway, especially on shedder crabs. Plenty of white perch could be plucked from the rivers, another option. Kingfishing was extremely good in the surf at moments, and the surf’s kingfishing was the best in years. Even when the kingfishing was slowest, some were available. The angling was the same in inlets. Sometimes small weakfish bit bloodworms fished for kings. Inshore shark fishing was turned on from the surf to close to shore. The fishing, for brown sharks and sand tiger sharks that are required to be let go, was catch-and-release, but the fish were impressive, including because of mouthfuls of teeth. If sunbathers knew the sharks stalked the surf! Baits stocked include plenty of minnows and a pretty healthy supply of shedder crabs. Better call ahead for soft-shell crabs for eating this weekend. The shop raises them, and live spots are stocked from Maryland. They’re good-sized for flounder, and aren’t cheap, because Maryland suppliers began catching them late. Peanut bunker had schooled Absecon Creek at the shop, but few were seen lately, or they seemed to move away, mostly.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Hit or miss summer flounder fishing came from the bay, definitely, said Chris from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Many anglers hooked none, some caught the fish here or there, and a limit was heard about every day. From the 132 to the 134 was probably a better spot to fish for them, on moving tides with jigs with Gulps or minnows. The bay toward the Fish Factory was full of fish like baby sea bass, sea robins, skates, rays and all kinds of baitfish, and bait couldn’t really be fished through them to try for flounder. But the ocean fished best for flounder, at all the reefs including Garden State South, Little Egg and even Atlantic City. Wrecks in 40 to 50 feet, like between all those reefs, were also places to go. Fish the ocean with heavy jigs like 4 ounces and bigger Gulps. Not many bluefish were heard about from the bay, and if any pop up, they’ll weigh a pound or less. Weakfish were heard about a little. One angler landed a couple at the mouth of Mullica River. Few targeted weaks in the one-weakfish bag limit. Maybe boaters could find some off Graveling Point in evenings. Bluefin tuna and yellowfin tuna schooled places like the Triple Wrecks, Lemkes Canyon and the 750 Square. Bluefins were yet to migrate away to the north. Crabbing was great, and the same customers kept buying crabbing supplies, trapping a half-dozen or a dozen keepers a night. Baits stocked include minnows. Fresh bunker should be carried for the weekend, and telephone to confirm. No live grass shrimp are stocked, and the lagoon behind the store was hot, maybe in the mid-90 degrees. The shrimp die, like in a day, when kept in heat like this.

<b>Brigantine</b>

In the surf, kingfish swam all over, hitting everything, said Capt. Andy from <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>. That included bloodworms, and brown sharks and sand tiger sharks, both required to be released, stalked everywhere in the surf. Fish mackerel, kingfish heads or any “meat” for them. An occasional bluefish or striped bass showed up in the surf. In the back bay, summer flounder fishing improved in the past week, certainly. Maybe that was because the water warmed to 75 degrees. Mike Skelly bagged a 6-pound flounder, and other good-sized were known about. Photos of 8- and 9-pounders were sometimes seen. The Hooked on Fishing Tournament will be held Saturday, and registration is at 8 a.m. at the 16th Street pier. The first 100 kids get a free rod-and-reel combo. Riptide’s Summer Fishing Tournament is underway for kings, blues and flounder. Entry is $10 per species, and anglers can enter one, two or all three categories, and all the cash is awarded.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

Anglers on foot tugged in kingfish, croakers and summer flounder from the T-jetty to the sea wall, and a little at Harrah’s, said Jeremy from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. The T is at the ocean end of Absecon Inlet, and the sea wall is on the bay end. Harrah’s is a little farther back in the inlet or the bay. Bloodworms were fished for the kings, and minnows were soaked for the flounder. Croakers will bite a variety of baits including bloods and minnows. Sign up for the month-long flounder tournament from One Stop and Ducktown Tavern that will run from tomorrow, July 15, to August 15 for a $10 donation. All proceeds will be donated to the Valerie Fund, and first place will be a large flatscreen TV and a $150 Fluke Candy Tackle Box. Second will be a rod-and-reel combo. All entrants will receive a Fluke Candy Rig. All baits mentioned and more, the complete supply, are stocked. Bloodworms are on special for two dozen for $20.

<b>Egg Harbor Township</b>

Bluefin tuna and yellowfin tuna seemed to school places like Massey’s Canyon inshore, but also everywhere, like offshore at Lindenkohl and Wilmington canyons, said Collin from <b>24-7 Bait & Tackle</b>. Maybe local boats had no need to sail farther offshore, because they could catch closer in, so less seemed reported about farther off. The bay’s summer flounder fishing caught but was spotty, and that happens by this time in summer. The fishing becomes best in the cooler ocean. Ocean flounder fishing was better than in the bay but also sounded spotty.  The fishing would light up at Ocean City Reef one day, at Great Egg Reef instead the next and so on. Kingfishing seemed good in the surf. Crabbing was awesome, including on Patcong Creek, running past the shop. That’s one of the best crabbing places, and the store’s rental boats, docked on the creek, can be used for the crabbing, and for fishing from the creek to Great Egg Harbor River and the bay. Patcong is a tributary of the Great Egg, meeting the river at the river’s mouth on the bay.  Minnows are a whopping half-price throughout the fishing season: $3 for a half-pint, $6 for a pint and $12 for a quart.  All offshore baits are carried. Fresh bunker is on hand, and shedder crabs were out of stock at the moment but are carried when available. <b>The company also owns 24-7 Bait & Tackle in Marmora</b>.

<b>Margate</b>

Lots more summer flounder were cranked from the back bay than earlier in the year on the party boat <b>Keeper</b>, Capt. John said. The fish included okay numbers of keepers, not great, and more than previously. Lots of small sea bass began to appear, like they do in summer. Sea robins also bit, and minnows and mackerel provided aboard caught the flounder. So did Gulps that anglers brought, and anglers should bring them. Lots of bait including peanut bunker schooled the bay. They were growing large enough for bait, and John will begin to castnet them to keep aboard to liveline next week. The bay’s clarity was okay, and when the water was clear a couple of days during the week, the flounder fishing was especially good. The Keeper is fishing for summer flounder 8 a.m. to 12 noon and 1 to 5 p.m. daily. The trips are only $30 for adults, $25 for seniors and $20 for kids, because fishing is near port, and the pontoon boat is economical on fuel. Rental rods are free.

<b>Longport</b>

A few keeper summer flounder were plumbed from the ocean yesterday on the <b>Stray Cat</b>, but hard south wind slowed the angling in past days, Capt. Mike said. Trips worked to catch them, and the next open-boat trips for flounder will probably sail Monday and Wednesday. Small blues are getting trolled on the ocean. Evening shark trips are catching aboard. Bluefin tuna and yellowfin tuna bit at Massey’s Canyon, about a 50-mile, 2-1/2-hour run aboard. Two new engines recently installed make the boat sail a little faster. A buddy tried for tuna at the Cigar and the Misty Blue wreck yesterday but didn’t do much. <b>***Update, Friday, 7/15:***</b> An open-boat trip will fish for summer flounder 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, limited to eight people, Mike said. The fishing, in 80-foot depths on the ocean, has been good.

<b>Ocean City</b>

The back bay’s summer flounder fishing picked up, said Pat from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. The fishing had been slower, and currently 10 or 12 throwbacks bit for every one or two keepers. A few sizable flounder were weighed-in, including an 8-pounder from the bay and a 10-pounder from an ocean reef. The ocean fishing wasn’t on fire, but many ocean anglers consistently landed numbers and a couple of keepers. Surf-fishing for kingfish was steady or solid. Spike weakfish swam the surf. A few flounder were angled along surf jetties. Brown sharks, required to be released, and big rays roamed the surf. A few striped bass, not many, were banked from the surf. That was unusual in summer, but water that cooled brought them in, Pat guessed. The surf dropped to 65 degrees last week. A few striped bass were played in the bay at night along lights at docks and bridges. Back on the ocean, bluefin tuna and yellowfin tuna were chunked and jigged at Massey’s Canyon.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Not much was heard from the back bay, including about summer flounder fishing, probably because of the heat, said Mike from <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. A few flounder were tapped from the bay, no exciting news. A few striped bass were played from the bay at night, when weather cooled. Surf catches were steady. Good catches of kingfish were made from the surf. At night and in evenings, sharks were fought in the surf. In the ocean, some flounder were pumped in. Nobody was “bragging,” but some of the fish were boxed. Limits of two sea bass per angler were bagged around the same areas, for sure. Tuna fishing was outstanding in the Massey’s Canyon neighborhood for bluefins and yellowfins. Mahi mahi were also picked up, and the tuna were mostly chunked and jigged, and not much was reported about trolling. Someone trolled a wahoo from the waters, though.

Mike Roth and crew Wednesday went six for six at releasing dusky sharks 80 pounds to 140, all big, on one of the inshore shark trips aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b>, affiliated with <b>Sea Isle Bait & Tackle</b>. The catches were great and were on bait, and Mike also fly-rodded for the fish, but never had a shot. Kids were aboard, and the angling concentrated more on making sure sharks were landed for them. But the trips fly-rod when anglers want. Roth, his son and Roth’s granddaughter also took one of the trips Monday, releasing three brown sharks on bait. Roth hooked a shark on a fly-rod and fought the fish until the hook pulled. Duskies and browns are required to be released, and the trips, usually within 10 miles from shore, are a chance to fight a big catch without the long run offshore. Joe and family reeled a bunch of summer flounder from the back bay Tuesday. Flounder fishing’s been good on the bay, catching some keepers among throwbacks. The bay’s been unbelievably clear and beautiful. The water’s been in the mid-70 degrees. A few spots have been in the 80s, and not a lot of life held there. Ideal tides, high in evenings, weren’t happening for popper-plug and popper-fly fishing for striped bass on the bay this week. In the warmth, Joe needs the tides to be perfect, and the right tides come around every two weeks. The fishing is a specialty aboard. Fishing for tuna, mostly bluefins but some yellowfins, was good at 19-Fathom Lump and Massey’s Canyon. A trip aboard is supposed to fish for them Friday. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s Blog</a>.

<b>Wildwood</b>

Kingfish and weakfish were decked off Cape May Point and on the ocean off Wildwood, said Capt. Jim from <b>Fins & Grins Sport Fishing</b>. Tons of weakfish schooled, and a couple were keepers. Small porgies but no keepers showed up during the angling yesterday. Loads of 1-1/2- to 2-pound bluefish were trolled at 5-Fathom Bank and off Cape May Point, but more swam at 5-Fathom. This was all mixed-bag, summer fishing, good action. Summer flounder fishing picked through throwbacks for a few keepers on the ocean at reefs and other structure. Plenty of sharks haunted Delaware Bay. They could top 200 pounds, and trips target hammerheads and also run into other species. Some of the shark species must be released, and the angling is catch-and-release anyway, a chance to fight big fish close to shore. Fins fishes every day, and reservations aren’t required but suggested. Telephone for availability.

Lots of summer flounder were beaned from the back bay, said Mike from <b>Canal Side Boat Rentals</b>. Maybe 1 in 12 was a keeper, but the ratio was about the same everywhere, like on the ocean at Cape May Reef, where catches were also made that anglers talked about. In the bay, many of the fluke were 15 and 16 inches. The action was fun, and locally a good place to fish for flounder was in the bay at the end of the stakes at the 444 and 445 buoys off 18th Street. Crabbing was pretty decent on the bay, and one of the rental boats had just returned with 1 ½ dozen or 2 dozen keepers. Any catches from the bay could be hit and miss, or one day good, another day not good at all. Canal Side rents boats for fishing, crabbing and pleasure and kayaks. <b>***<i>Get a $5 discount</i>***</b> on a rental boat if you mention Fishing Reports Now. A large supply of bait and tackle is carried. Crabs for eating are sold, and the price changes according to market price. Prices currently were $32 per dozen for live No. 1s and $22 per dozen for live No. 2s. For pre-cooked, add $2 per dozen. For cooked to order, add $5 per dozen. Live and steamed clams will probably be available this weekend, and nobody had them earlier this week. Shrimp are available to eat, and customers enjoy all the food at picnic tables with tents on the water, or enjoy them at their own location.

Three types are available: live, previously cooked-and-refrigerated or cooked-to-order. Current prices include $27 per dozen for live No. 1s, $20 per dozen for live No. 2’s and $6 for each additional dozen cooked-to-order. Cooked shrimp and clams are also sold for eating, and customers enjoy all the seafood at picnic tables with tents on the water, or enjoy the food at their own location.

<b>Cape May</b>

Three bluefin tuna were landed and several pulled the hook during an inshore trip for them Tuesday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. Two of the bluefins landed were bagged, and one, a 55-incher, was released. The bluefins were sizable like that. The others bagged were 51 inches and just under 47. One of the bluefins landed was the first-ever tuna for one of the angler’s daughters, who reeled the fish right in, in 45 minutes. That fish was jigged, and the rest were chunked on sardines and butterfish. The anglers jigged during the chunking. Yellowfin tuna, good-sized or 50 pounds, not 25, have been swimming the same waters, and a bunch swam around the boat during the trip but mostly refused to bite. One was hooked but broke off when the angler thumbed the reel spool. The next trip for the tuna is supposed to fish Saturday. A half-day, 4-hour trip Friday will troll for bluefish biting at 5-Fathom Bank. A trip Sunday will fish for summer flounder on the ocean.

A decent catch of summer flounder was made Tuesday on the party boat <b>Porgy IV</b>, Capt. Paul said. The trip fished deeper water, and Wednesday’s trip returned to the area, and not many flounder bit, until some were swung in at the end of the outing. The fishing, on the ocean, has been picky, not that great. The flatfish are scattered, “or I’m not on them – one or the other,” he said. But they’ll bunch up again. No anglers limited out this past week. Henry Metzger from Pennsauken bagged four, one fewer than a limit. Craig Constantino from Voorhees and Dave Coggin from Pittsburg each bagged three apiece to a 6-pounder on two different trips. Bob Key from Lancaster won Monday’s pool with a 7.3-pounder. The Porgy IV is fishing for summer flounder at 8 a.m. daily.

Ocean boaters picked summer flounder pretty well at Cape May Reef, Reef 11 and the Old Grounds, said Joe from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. A few flounder were bagged from the back bay. Schoolie striped bass and a couple of weakfish bit in the back bay, like along bridges at night or during low light. No good reports about flounder were heard from Delaware Bay, really. Good reports about weakfish were heard from the bay toward Miah Maul. In the surf, kingfish and a few small weaks were banked. Croakers began to be seen from the surf. Small flounder were sometimes beached. Tuna were on the bite solidly at 19-Fathom Lump, almost all on the chunk.

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