<b>Bayonne</b>

On the <b>Big M Express</b> blackfishing was picky yesterday at five drops that each put out a few fish, and anglers averaged two to seven of the fish apiece, and 45 total were boated, the report on the vessel’s web site said. A few of the blackfish were big, and open-boat blackfish trips are sailing every morning when no charter is booked. The Big M Express sails from Tamaqua Marina in Gerritsen Beach, Brooklyn.

<b>Staten Island</b>

An open-boat blackfish trip with <b>Barbara Anne Charters</b> yesterday boxed 45 keepers to 5 ½ pounds, and the anglers played catch and release afterward, Capt.  Anthony said. The fishing, done close to shore, was a slow grind, but a catch was put together. On Monday a charter totaled 38 keeper blacks to a 12-pound bruiser. Another tog trip today was cancelled because of a bad-weather forecast. Open-boat trips leave the dock every Tuesday, guaranteed to sail with a minimum of two anglers.

Blackfishing was tough on a trip yesterday, and the anglers had to hit a lot of drops, but in the end they limited out, said Capt. Joe from <b>Outcast Charters</b>. No piece held lots of the fish, so a handful would bite at one spot, and then the boat would move, and more would be found and so on, and the trip lasted later than usual. But a catch of the tog to 8 pounds was bagged, and most were 4 pounds, and the charter fished in 50- to 80-foot depths. The weather was a little breezy in the morning but calmed down later. Life was read on the bottom at one point, so jigs were dropped below, and big blues bit, but no striped bass did. Sometimes Outcast will jig for stripers along the beaches on the way back from blackfishing if there’s time and fish are around. Outcast will keep fishing this season until blackfish stop biting, probably till February.

Fishing for tog’s been great, said Capt. Darrin from <b>Kayla Rose Charters</b>, and anglers onboard were also boating striped bass at the Sandy Hook Rips on gold hammered diamond jigs and rubber shads. Both charters and open-boat trips are sailing for both species, and if interested in open-boat fishing, call Darrin and give him your date or dates, and he’ll contact others on his list and try to put a trip together. Kayla Rose will fish through the winter or year-round, and when stripers stop biting, trips will focus only on blacks until stripers return again in spring.

Tog fishing was pretty good, and fishing for schoolie striped bass was fairly consistent in the bay and along the Staten Island surf, said Joe from <b>Michael’s Bait & Tackle</b>.

<b>Bayonne</b>

Capt. Akira from <b>True World Tackle</b> and <b>True World Tackle Charters</b> ran trips Thursday through Sunday, he said. Thursday’s weather was very rough and hampered fishing, and Friday’s weather was also rough but better, and seas prevented the trip from sailing to Sandy Hook Reef, so the charter fished near Coney Island and Breezy Point,  jigging maybe 10 striped bass and a few blues. On Saturday anglers onboard jigged lots of mostly small stripers, no keepers but lots of action, off Breezy Point under many working birds. Then the boat moved to Sandy Hook Reef, and seven keeper blackfish and shorts were hooked. On Sunday five keeper blackfish were landed at the reef, and fishing was slower than on the previous day. A friend yesterday jigged stripers, small ones and no keepers, off Breezy Point, and he tried drifting eels but only hooked dogfish. Another friend eeled the East River and landed some keepers but not many. A customer jigged the Shrewsbury Rocks and reeled in mostly small stripers. Most customers recently were either chasing working birds to look for stripers or were bottom fishing for blackfish.

<b>Keyport</b>

The <b>Lucky Carm</b> was pulled out of the water yesterday, and Capt. Carmine wrapped up the boat’s season, he said. He might fish on friends’ boats, and if he does, he promised to check in with a report. People were already reserving dates for spring, and a striper trip and a flounder trip were already booked. If you reserve now, you can lock in this year’s rates, because fuel prices looked like they were going to be higher by spring. Carmine thanked charters who fished with him this year, and wished everyone Happy Holidays.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

The <b>Atlantic Star</b> got out for blackfish for the first time yesterday since Sunday because of rough weather, and the fishing was nice, Capt. Tom said. Some patrons limited out, and some took home four or five, and a couple of bigger ones were lifted aboard: Tom Dupras’ 7-pound 10-ouncer and Allan Krisco’s 6-pound 3-ouncer. The boat fished south of the Scotland Grounds and only made two drops, and a few ling, not a lot, were also taken. The ling bit green crabs that were aboard for the tog, and no soft baits like clams were being used, because the crew was avoiding dogfish that soft baits can draw. Only two dogs were hooked, so that was good. The Atlantic Star is bottom fishing for blackfish from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.

The channels were home to loads of striped bass that swam near the surface, so trolling was the way to go, and boaters would read bass on the bottom along the ocean beaches, said Jimmy from <b>Julian’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Jigging was good for the stripers near the bottom, and Jimmy was on a trip that produced good blackfishing in the ocean yesterday morning, and all kinds of life was busting around, including a half-mile of striped bass and some bluefin tuna. But the anglers wanted blackfish and stuck with the tog instead of mixing in striper fishing or anything. Surf fishing was producing a bunch of stripers and a few blues, and surf anglers hooked up this morning at Monmouth Beach. In the surf sharpies were tossing white shads, clams and bloodworms, and plugging was probably working at night.

Jig fishing for striped bass was very good on the <b>Fishermen</b>, and yesterday’s trip was great, maybe the best of the season so far, and stripers were everywhere, from the bay to along the ocean beaches to farther offshore, Capt. Ron said. Plenty of keepers to 15 pounds were nailed, and loads of blues were battled, and a million birds had to be working the water. The mornings started off more slowly with winds against the tide, and patrons were picking at the fish, but then the tide changed, and winds and the current moved together, and the action was on. The Fishermen is fishing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. The boat will also run striper trips 3:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays this weekend for the last time this season. In other news, Ron is on the board of the <a href="http://www.ssfff.net/" target="_blank"> Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund </a>, and he stressed the importance of anglers supporting the organization. Please click on the name, visit the web site, and find out more. The government is threatening to severely cut back the fluke bag limit, and the fishing industry believes the science behind those efforts is severely flawed, and the Summer Flounder Fund is supposed to attempt to fund better studies and make other efforts at correcting this situation. If something isn’t done, even fishing reports aren’t going to exist, and the situation is more critical than ever. The Summer Flounder Fund needs financial support, political support, suggestions about how to raise funds, and any help whatsoever that anglers can lend. Environmental groups with lots of financial backing are supporting drastic cutbacks on fluke fishing, and if anglers fail to organize, there won’t be any summer flounder fishing. That’s no exaggeration, and the government is suggesting a possible moratorium.

<b>Highlands</b>

<b>Fisher Price Charters</b> found decent blackfishing yesterday at Sandy Hook Reef and the Rattlesnake, Capt. Derek said. Slipperies to 7 pounds bit green crabs in the 54-degree water, and winds were strong at first but lay down later. Forecasts had been calling for 15- to 20-knot winds, but 30-knot winds blew at first, but Derek and the anglers bore down and got through it. Striped bass trips on Sunday eeled and jigged mostly small fish at Ambrose Channel in the morning and afternoon, and both blackfish and striper charters are sailing.

<b>Long Branch</b>

Fish were around, but they were way out in the ocean and not in the surf, and cold, windy and sometimes rainy weather wasn’t helping things, and anglers were becoming scarce, so <b>Jim’s Bait & Tackle</b> is closing for the season tomorrow, John said. He said Happy Holidays and see everybody next year.

<b>Belmar</b>

Surf fishers hooked plenty of striped bass, but lots of small stripers, said Mike from <b>Fisherman’s Den</b>. Clams, metal or needlefish worked, and boaters picked up bigger bass on eels. Blues were around but seemed to be departing. Blackfishing was consistent on the party boats, and some days were very good. Out-of-season winter flounder paved the bottom of Shark River.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

A striped bass trip in the ocean on the <b>Gambler</b> yesterday began with good action around a bunch of working birds, and lots of shorts, a few keepers and a number of blues were reeled in, Capt. Bob said. Then fishing slowed a while through slack tide until more fish started biting toward the end of the day, and mostly stripers, including a few keepers, and plenty of blues hit again. The blues lately were 6 to 15 pounds, and jigs were hooking both the bass and the blues. One angler who scored well threw a 5-ounce Krocodile jig, landing two keeper stripers 12 and 15 pounds, a handful of shorts and a handful of blues, and he was casting the jig, letting it hit bottom and retrieving it. Ninety percent of the fish on these trips are caught that way, and jigging the metal is a lot less effective. The Gambler is sailing for stripers 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. every day, and Bob said lots of life was out there, and fish were still up north and migrating south, and there was also action to the south. He would’ve liked to have seen a greater number of larger stripers this day, but it could be only a matter of time. Bob also saw lots of bluefin tuna, maybe 30- to 60-pounders, along the ocean front, and they swam anywhere from tight to the beaches to at least 3 or 4 miles offshore, because another boater who was fishing there reported seeing them. In January the Gambler will begin running 18-hour sea bass trips, leaving the dock at 1 a.m. twice a week through the month. Smaller sea bass were already holding offshore, but Bob will wait till bigger ones show up.

Tons of short bass bit in the ocean, and blackfish started to be caught better than before at the reefs and rock piles in the ocean, and apparently water temps were getting more “comfortable” for them, said Capt. Fred from <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>. Sand eels, peanuts and occasionally sardines filled the water. Hundreds of bluefin tuna were swimming along the ocean beaches, but they were almost impossible to catch. Fred knew a half-dozen anglers who tried to land them but failed, and he heard rumors about some being hooked, but nobody was freely talking about it. The tuna were moving fast and were keyed in on baits that were likely impossible to imitate. So targeting them wasn’t worthwhile, though Fred said that if he’s on the ocean and sees a bunch swirling around the boat, he might liveline a bluefish from a kite to try. Andrea’s Toy is now specializing in mixed-bag trips for stripers, blues and tog. Special 10-hour, marathon open-boat tog trips are also sailing every Sunday until January for a low price that includes everything, even the tip for the mate. These trips will usually also mix in either striped bass jigging or sea bass fishing. The sea bassing will take place if the tog fishing is being done at deeper depths like 100 feet, where sea bass are holding.

<b>Bricktown</b>

Lots of small striped bass were beached in the surf, mostly on any long and skinny lures that could imitate sand eels, said Ray from <b>Pell’s Fish & Sport</b>. Only a few bluefish were reeled from the surf, and Ray knew three different boaters who took trips that jigged 20-some stripers, mostly shorts, and none mentioned hooking bluefish. No news was heard about the Manasquan River, and tog fishing was supposedly good at Sea Girt Reef. Some who fished there Monday or Tuesday landed tog to 7, 8 and 9 pounds, and two thirds of the fish were keepers. The shop is carrying green crabs for tog bait and also fresh clams.

<b>Toms River</b>

Surf fishers dragged in mostly short striped bass, but the fishing was good, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b>. Dusk and after dark seemed best, and sand eel imitations like Ava jigs were popular, and some threw needlefish plugs. A couple of employees were hitting Brick Beach and pulling up 25- or 26-inch stripers, like cookie cutter fish. A couple of customers fished Ortley Beach this morning and also reeled in shorts. Very few blues swam the surf, but blues apparently schooled a little farther off and sometimes chased bunker schools. Besides the blues, striped bass were jigged on Ava’s by boaters, who worked the jigs no more than 6 feet from the bottom. Customers fished on a boat over the weekend and landed four stripers, including one 29-inch keeper, while trolling Stretch 30 plugs in 40 to 60 feet in the ocean. Anglers clamming or eeling along the sod banks at Barnegat Inlet actually scored a better ratio of keeper stripers.

<b>Seaside</b>

A 27.5-pound striper and a 10-pounder were weighed in from the surf today, said the report on <b>Grumpy’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s web site, and anglers were scarce, but apparently stripers could be had in the suds. The bigger bass that was weighed in took a Grumpy’s clams, and the smaller one hit a plug. A 16.8-pounder was also checked in that one of the after-work crowd plugged in the wash. On Monday a couple of diehards spent a few hours on the beach at Seaside Park and had a ball catching a bunch of shorts that chased peanut bunker. <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishingreports/" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.  

Surf fishing for striped bass seemed very good, all on lures, according to several customers this morning, the fishing report on <b>Betty and Nick’s Bait & Tackle</b>’s web site said. Two anglers fished Seaside Park and landed 20 shorts on small, yellow Mambo lures, and another angler who fished Island Beach State Park drilled at least 30 shorts. Small stripers also gave up loads of action north of the Seaside Casino Pier yesterday, and they only seemed to bite metal, preferably eel tins, but also Ava’s, and customers talked about a 40-incher that was pinned down.  Shorts also gave up action that was okay south of the pier that morning. The surf was 1 to 2 feet, 50 degrees and clean.  The shop is offering free shipping for any gifts purchased over the phone or through e-mail till December 25, and 100 Diamond Tackle eel tins, great lures for yourself or for gifts, were added to the shelves. <a href=" http://www.bettyandnicks.com/fish.shtml" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for the latest.

<b>Waretown</b>

<b>Perfect Drift Sport Fishing</b> headed out to the ocean this morning for a couple of hours before seas kicked up, and five keeper stripers were boated, Capt. John said. Shorts and big blues were also hooked, and the anglers jigged and trolled the fish off the Old Coast Guard Station in 30 to 40 feet. A half-dozen other boats, not a ton, were also fishing there, and Perfect Drift was back at the dock by 9:30 or 10 a.m. That was the last trip of the season for Perfect Drift, but John said stripers will still be there through the next month. He thanked anglers who fished with him this year and will be back in the water and chartering in April for stripers and blues. The action in the area usually starts toward the end of April, when bluefish follow tiderunner weakfish that enter Barnegat Bay. Local striper fishing lately seemed to start toward the end of May and beginning of June, when the fish are hooked along the beach front, but every year is different.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

A lot of small stripers got beached in the surf, and so did a mess of blues around 10 pounds, said Josh from <b>Barnegat Light Bait & Tackle</b>. Clams drew the stripers, and a 17-pound linesider was beached from the suds on a bunker tail yesterday.  Lots of bait was everywhere, and anglers weren’t able to identify it, but they saw dark clouds of the fish in the water. Ocean boaters supposedly found stripers and a few blues in 50 feet to the north and in 35 feet to the south. Live spots were scoring lots of stripers at Barnegat Inlet, and the shop is sill carrying the baitfish. Plenty of blackfish were hitting along the rocks at Barnegat Lighthouse.

<b>Brighton Beach</b>

Big blues stormed the surf, said Kevin at <b>Oceanside Bait & Tackle</b>, surprising to see the large number of the 10- to 15-pounders in the wash. Bunker chunks were catching them, and adult bunker were sometimes schooling the water. Kevin saw adult bunker that stripers were chasing in the surf near the shop early this week. Stripers were sometimes appearing in the suds, and clams and of course bunker were getting attention from them. Bunker was difficult to supply lately, maybe because rough weather was keeping the bunker boats from sailing. Stripers were also hitting live spots at Barnegat Inlet.

<b>Beach Haven</b>

Blackfishing was pretty good on the <b>Miss Beach Haven</b> on Saturday and Sunday, Capt. Frank said. Some 6- and 8-pounders were bagged, and a 10-pounder was hauled aboard. Blacks were almost all the catch, and no other species was caught to speak of, and the weather was beautiful. The Miss Beach Haven is sailing for blackfish 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday.

<b>Mystic Island</b>

Striped bass fishing was holding up, mostly on clams at Little Egg Inlet, though anglers were scarcer this week, so news about locations was more difficult to come by, and the weather was often uncooperative, said Scott from <b>Scott’s Bait & Tackle</b>. Eels and spots also took some of the fish, but clams were popular. Pods of stripers also roamed the ocean, and if anglers were lucky enough to find a pad, the fish could be caught until the boater’s arms wore out. But another angler would search the ocean and be lucky to hook a dogfish. The Brant Beach Lump and the Harvey Cedars Lump were places to look for stripers, and try jigging Ava or Hopkins lures. Not much was heard about bluefish, and surely some were at least fought once in a while, and maybe just nobody was looking for blues. Tog fishing was okay in the ocean, but again rough weather often made sailing difficult. Lots of small tog held within 5 miles of land, and the farther off, the bigger the fish, for some reason. Maybe that was because of the water temperature, or maybe it was because fewer anglers fished farther out, but the reason was unknown.

<b>Absecon</b>

Absecon Inlet anglers were bailing striped bass the past couple of days, said Ray from <b>Absecon Bay Sportsman Center</b>. Most were throwbacks, but keepers were bagged. Joe Fitchatola and his cousin took three nice keepers and hooked numerous throwbacks yesterday. Ray and Capt. Dave, the shop’s owner, hit the inlet yesterday and reeled up 11 stripers including one keeper on Gulps. But spots and eels seemed to fool bigger stripers than Gulps and such rubber baits. Boaters were also landing stripers in the ocean, and Ray heard nothing about bluefish in a while, but at least some should be able to be found out front. Brigantine surf anglers seemed to pick at stripers, and a customer this morning said he saw a 45-inch striper beached in the Ocean City wash. Pete from the shop was fishing the Ocean City suds and usually picking up a keeper per trip. Back-bay striper fishing with clams was producing fairly good catches. Live spots, live eels and fresh clams, pretty much all the bait anglers need, are stocked.

<b>Atlantic City</b>

Striped bass fishing was very good, and a couple of customers fished Absecon Inlet and hooked so many that they ran out of spots and came back to get more, said Jack from <b>Offshore Enterprises Bait & Tackle</b>. He knew a few anglers who limited out on decent-sized bass at the inlet. Spots seemed to work during the day, and eels seemed best at night. The shop’s rental boat, a 17-foot Angler with a 50 h.p. motor, is available for fishing the bay and inlet. The ocean was also holding stripers, and naturally lots were small, but decent-sized ones were also around. Blues were also hitting, and smaller ones seemed to hug the coast, and bigger, 10- and 12-pounders schooled farther from shore. Surf fishers were clamming stripers, and back-bay anglers were clamming or bunker-chunking the linesiders. Tog fishing was good in the ocean for those who were experienced, because togging is tricky. Bluefin tuna were also running close to shore, and anglers jigging for stripers and blues were seeing them, but the problem was that a bluefin will burn off the line on a such a rod in no time. The <b>Carly A</b>, the shop’s charter boat, is running striped bass charters and will probably be kept in the water another week. The shop is stocking live spots, live eels, green crabs, fresh and frozen bunker, fresh and frozen clam, frozen mullet, frozen mackerel and nearly every bait. Clam bellies are carried for chumming, and bunker and mackerel chum are also on hand. Flats of butterfish are still on the shelves, and they can be used for striper fishing or tuna fishing. Frozen ballyhoos are also in the freezer, in case anyone wants to try trolling for the bluefins. On a sad note three anglers reportedly drowned in the ocean when their boat sank in the past day, and Jack thought they were fishing someplace locally, such as Wreck Inlet. He also heard that a boat sank in Delaware Bay when the anchor line got caught in the prop and capsized the vessel, and one of two anglers died. The water is cold now, and if you end up in the water, you could pass out within minutes because of the water temperature. It’s more crucial than ever to be safe, know exactly where you’re located, and have the equipment to notify the Coast Guard of your location if you’re in distress in the water. 

<b>Margate</b>

Trolling with the <b>Jessie O’ Fleet</b> hooked lots of striped bass and blues at the Cuma Lumps in the ocean yesterday on Stretch 30 plugs, Capt. Jay said. Fishing was getting better, and the fleet is sailing the ocean and bay on open-boat trips 8 a.m. daily. Stripers and blues will continue to be targeted, but the crew was also looking forward to tog fishing. A special, 10-hour trip will sail Christmas Eve day for stripers and blues, and Christmas-week specials will also run. The boats will fish at least into February, and Jay hoped trips could leave port all winter.  

<b>Longport</b>

Blackfishing was tough on a trip yesterday on the <b>Stray Cat</b>, for some reason, and only a small handful of keepers were boated, Capt. Mike said. The trip fished at three different depths at 50, 70 and 80 feet. Seas were calm, and the water was 52 degrees, still warm. But the bite should turn back around, and the fish are there, and a group from the state’s Artificial Reef Program were aboard Monday, and most limited out on the tog to 10 pounds. Calico crabs were out-producing green crabs for bait in the past couple of days, and the boat supplies greens, but anglers must bring their own calicoes. Stray Cat will stop to chase stripers if seen on the way out or back on blackfishing trips, but no stripers appeared in the past days, and no birds were seen working the water since Sunday. The vessel is sailing on open-boat blackfishing trips nearly every day. But a striper trip will leave port Saturday, and space is available on an open trip Sunday that will either chase stripers, if stripers are around, or target tog.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Ocean fishing for striped bass and bluefish, schools swarming under working birds, was still going on, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. Dusty Laricks and Chuck Gehman took a trip on their own boat yesterday and jigged 30 blues to 12 pounds and only four stripers, but seas became rough in the afternoon. Diamond jigs worked best, because the fish were short-striking, and the hook on the tail made the difference. Previously Joe was casting white Fin-S Fish that worked best. Anglers could also clam for stripers in the back bay and at the inlets, and a few blues might’ve roamed the inlets, but all the big fish were in the ocean. Joe heard nothing specific about surf fishing in the past days, but he heard of no blitzes locally. But boating for the fish in the ocean was on!

<b>Ocean City</b>

A couple of kids drilled 17 stripers at Corson’s Inlet last night, said Dan from <b>Fin-Atics</b>. Three other anglers came in today who bagged six keeper stripers out of probably 20 landed in the surf. A 33-pound striper was weighed in yesterday that was pulled from the beach in the 45th Street area. So striper fishing was good from both the surf and from boats in the ocean, and in the surf clams and bunker were best, and boaters could drift eels. A few blues also showed up in the surf, but boaters in the ocean found more. One angler was jigging for fish in the ocean and snagged an 80-pound bluefin tuna. He never saw the tuna before hooking it, and he took 2 hours to land the speedster. Bluefins had been schooling the water near the beaches, feeding on blues and such, and they might’ve still been out there, but Dan heard of none in the past days. Small stripers were plugged along the sod banks or were clammed or eeled near the bridges, but the bass in the ocean were larger. Tog fishing was good on the head boats at the wrecks and places like AC Reef and GE Reef.

<b>Cape May</b>

Striper fishing was going well at the Cape May Rips for charters on the <b>Fishin’ Fever</b> in the past days, and 32 of the linesiders, including four keepers, were reeled in yesterday, Capt. Tom said. Live spots were the main bait that drew strikes, but anglers onboard sometimes also scored with eels or bucktails. Most striped bass seemed now in the rips, and the bass in Delaware Bay might’ve been leaving those waters. The fish at the rips, which are at the confluence of the bay and the ocean, seemed to include stripers from the bay yesterday, because some big ones, 40-inch-class fish, were hooked, and no sea lice were on them that would indicate they came from the ocean. A buddy did well on those big stripers. The water clarity at the rips was okay, though the rips were muddy last week. But a northwest blow will churn up the water for a few tides. Anglers on the Fishin’ Fever these days might also sometimes fish for stripers along the ocean front, chasing working birds to find them, depending on the weather. Tom thinks striper fishing is really going to kick in now, and catches were really beginning to pick up, and he thinks the bite should last a while. Fishin’ Fever will keep sailing on charters at least till December 19, and spaces are available for charters the next two weekends and the weekend of December 15 and 16.

A striped bass charter eeled and bucktailed 23 of the fish including six keepers on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b> at the Cape May Rips yesterday, Capt. George said. Many of the bass were 23 to 25 inches, and it was too bad the old slot bag limit was no longer in effect, so charters could take home more keepers. But the trip was pretty good in the 51-degree water, and the rips seemed to give up a decent bite. The water was fairly clean, a little dirty at first. George talked to someone who clammed four or five keepers among 15 or 20 stripers off the ocean beaches this week, and George heard from nobody who striper fished on Delaware Bay. The boat’s final charters of the season will sail this weekend, because the marina will close down.

Cape May Rips striped bass fishing seemed to go well, and eels and spots were hooking the fish, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. Striper fishing in Delaware Bay seemed hit or miss, and one angler might catch plenty, but others wouldn’t. Surf fishing was starting to pick up, and sometimes keeper stripers were beached. Clams got bites in the ocean suds, and sometimes bunker heads were used in the Delaware Bay surf along Cape May Point. A few big blues were around from the ocean to the surf to the bay. Boaters fished the back bay when seas were too rough elsewhere, and stripers can usually be clammed there, or rubber shads might do the trick, though plugging for the fish in the bay seemed off this year. Nothing was heard about tog recently, but tog should be able to be fooled on green crabs along the bridges.  Live eels are stocked, and so are green crabs. Live spots are no longer carried, and Nick hoped to stock fresh bunker if available.

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