Note: Southern winds, rough seas and cool, green water kept offshore reports scarce this week.

<b>Sandy Hook</b>

A bunch of yellowfin tuna and also bigeye tuna had been at Hudson Canyon, but the warm water had pushed off the canyon recently, said Capt. Fred from <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>. Andrea’s Toy will compete in a shark tournament tomorrow, and open-boat Hudson Canyon trips will resume next week. The open trips are now targeting tuna, tilefish and sharks all in one trip and run once a week.

Capt. Fletcher Chayes of <b>Two River Charters</b> heard an unconfirmed report that an angler hooked as many bluefin tuna as he wanted at the HA buoy, Fletcher said.

Rich Leihter and friends sailed with <b>Mary Lou Crew Sportfishing</b> on Sunday for a shark trip, an e-mail from Capt. Darren said. At first the water was a little cold and dirty, so a short move inshore put them in decent water, and soon Mary Lou Crew’s first blue shark of the season was on. The anglers went on to tangle with three blue sharks, and one was a 200-pound beast that was hooked right next to the boat. A mako came into the slick but refused to bite and was too busy chasing bluefin tuna. A few bluefish swam the slick, and spiny dog fish were also around. It was a beautiful day on the water, and things were looking good for Mary Lou Crew’s shark tournaments this week weekend.

A few customers ventured out to shark fish this week but caught none, said Vinnie from <b>Michael’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Great Kills, Staten Island.

On the <b>Benchmark</b> the Kohler group shark fished last Friday and landed four blue sharks, including a big 300 pounder, and there was plenty of bait and good water, Capt. Nick said.

<b>Shark River Inlet</b>

Four blue sharks and one mako were in the slick last Saturday but refused to bite, said an e-mail from Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b>. Warmer water just moved in, and mako fishing should be good next month. Tuna are now at the canyons, and the first open-boat canyon trip is July 25-26, and Ralph thinks tuna chunking will turn on early this year.

<b>Manasquan Inlet</b>

The <b>Cindy Sea</b> sailed past Hudson Canyon to 1,000 fathoms last Friday, and seven yellowfin tuna to 34 inches were trolled, and so were 20 or 30 skipjacks, Capt. Dave said. The water was 67.5 degrees, blue and almost a purple glow, real Gulf Stream water. The good water was difficult to find at first, but eventually it was found a little south of where it had been. On the way home the boat stopped to tilefish, and seven tiles were landed, and the tiles were left biting. Dave heard that small bluefin tuna were caught around the Mudhole this week. The Cindy Sea will complete in a shark tournament over the weekend, and the Outdoor Life Network will film TV footage on the vessel during the sharking.

The <b>Defiant</b> did no fishing since the weekend, but Hudson Canyon’s tuna bite’s been explosive, Capt. John said. He heard of a 181-pound bigeye tuna battled there, and he thought six to eight other bigeyes were landed, and supposedly a 450-pound bluefin tuna was missed. Plenty of yellowfin tuna bit at the canyon, and small bluefin tuna were also there. The Defiant is locked and loaded to fish the canyons, and call to sail on a tuna charter. The boat will complete in the Mako Mania Tournament on Sunday, and John heard little about shark fishing this week.

The <b>Canyon Runner</b> sailed on a rare crew trip from last Friday night to Saturday, the boat’s web site said. The crew set up for sharking at Hudson Canyon that Friday night and picked one blue shark. In the morning they got up on the troll to look for bigeye tuna, but small yellowfin tuna quickly covered up the spread instead, and 15 yellowfins to 30 inches were landed by 7 a.m., when the bite stopped, and seven of the fish were kept. A call from the Fat Boy said a bigeye was just boated on that vessel, so the Canyon Runner headed in that direction and got covered up with yellowfins again. Bigeyes were found just short of the Fat Boy, when a nice fish was read 100 feet down. The bruiser refused to bite on the first pass, but on the second pass it walloped a trolled ballyhoo just in front of a spreader bar. Another bigeye came up on a squid bar but missed the hook, and 35 minutes later the 181 pounder that was hooked was boated, the last fish of the day. Earlier that Friday a charter sailed on a one-day troll at the Hudson and fought 20 yellowfins to 33 inches, keeping eight of the fish, and most of the tuna were 26 to 28 inches. The fish were hooked the whole time around the same numbers, and no fish bit after 11 a.m.

A customer fished the Chicken Canyon and landed a 175-pound mako shark and trolled two yellowfin tuna, said Greg from <b>Brielle Bait & Tackle</b>. Lots of sharks, mostly blues and browns, swam from zero to 15 miles offshore.

Shark fishers had some success on mostly blue sharks last week, and the Glory Hole produced catches, said Dave from <b>Reel Seat Bait & Tackle</b>.

<b>Absecon Inlet</b>

Shark fishing in the ocean seemed slow this week, said Capt. Jon from <b>Offshore Enterprises Bait & Tackle</b> in Atlantic City. Jon’s boat the Carly A shark fished, and only one blue shark was landed in a day’s trip, but it was 180 pounds. All shark fishers whom John knows had slow fishing this week and also found loads of bluefish, and the south winds seemed to push the blue water out and the green water in. Jon’s never had luck offshore in green water. Mako sharks have been scarce so far this year in the inshore ocean, but big thresher sharks were hooked at the inshore wrecks. Jon heard three different reports about tuna getting bit off by big makos far offshore at the canyons. Canyon fishing for tuna was also quiet because of rough seas. One of the last reports Jon heard was from a boat a week ago that sailed beyond the continental shelf off Lindenkohl Canyon, where the anglers aboard caught small yellowfin tuna. Some bigeye tuna had been at Hudson Canyon, but the winds seemed to push off the warm water there. A customer sailed 30 miles offshore on Saturday and hooked small bluefin tuna, but again, winds probably have since turned the water green there. Offshore fishing for sharks and tuna should pick up when winds turn around.

<b>Great Egg Harbor Inlet</b>

Sharking at 28-Mile Wreck has given up mostly blue sharks, but makos were sometimes battled at various spots, including the 750 Square, said Jim from <b>Fin-Atics</b> in Ocean City. No reports were heard about tuna in the past few days.

Barry Jacobson and crew conquered a 385-pound thresher shark at 28-Mile Wreck last week, and Bruce Bruinning and Ed Paone landed a 120-pound mako shark at the Cigar last week, said a fax from Rob and Joan from <b>Dolfin Dock</b> in Somers Point.

Offshore fishing picked up last week, said a fax from T.C. from <b>Brennan Marine</b> in Somers Point. Mako sharks were fought at 28-Mile Wreck, and Ron Kovler on the Next Case caught seven yellowfin tuna at Baltimore Canyon. Bill Haas scored a bigeye tuna and yellowfin tuna at Spencer Canyon, and Bill Gentile and crew landed small bluefin tuna at the Elephant Trunk and along the 30-fathom line.

On a shark trip with <b>Stray Cat Charters</b> last week, two blue sharks, a 75-pound mako and a small mako were caught and released just north of the Cigar, Capt. Mike said. Swirls, bait and a jumping 60-pound tuna were seen 8 ½ miles offshore, so the boat stopped to troll with Green Machine lures, but no tuna were hooked, but it was awesome to see the tuna so close to shore.

<b>Townsend’s Inlet</b>

Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b> sailed to South Poorman’s Canyon on Saturday and boated two yellowfin tuna about 20 pounds apiece, he said. The fish hit a Green Machine spreader bar and a Zucchini spreader among a pack of tuna that showed up all at once. Some bait pods and porpoises were around, and when the tuna were cleaned, small squid and small butterfish were in their stomachs. The water was 69 degrees, and the weather was beautiful. Joe heard that other tuna were hooked mostly from Poorman’s Canyon to Washington Canyon, and nothing really bit closer to Jersey. Catching yellowfin tuna in mid June is early, and tuna fishing is off to a good start. In addition to tuna fishing, Joe will probably run shark trips soon, and he heard about a 350-pound mako battled at the Cigar last week.

<b>Hereford Inlet</b>

Shark fishing was good at the 19-Fathom Lump and at the Cigar last week for plenty of blue sharks and some keeper makos, said an e-mail from Cathy from <b>Sterling Harbor Bait & Tackle</b> in Wildwood.

<b>Cape May Inlet</b>

The crew of the <b>Canyon Clipper</b> competed in Jim’s Bait & Tackle’s Shark Tournament on Saturday and nailed three makos and released them at the 750 Square, Capt. Stan said.

The annual shark tournament was held at <b>Jim’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Cape May last weekend, and the Clean Sweep won 1st place with a 195-pound mako, Matt from the store said in a fax. The All Geared Up won 2nd place with a 182-pound mako, and the Intensity took 3rd with a 162-1/2-pound mako.  Plenty of small bluefin tuna, yellowfin tuna and bigeye tuna were at the canyons last week. No reports were heard about white marlin caught locally, but boaters at Washington Canyon started to hook whites with some regularity, “so it’s just around the corner,” Matt said.

A 289-pound mako was caught on the All Geared Up last week, and a 299-pound thresher was hauled in aboard another boat, said a fax from Capt. Fred from <b>Harbor View Marina</b> in Cape May. Bluefin tuna and yellowfin tuna were trolled at 40 fathoms near Baltimore Canyon.

The Johnson Party sailed on the <b>Down Deep</b> on a shark trip and released three blue sharks, Capt. Bob said. Charters are available for sharks and tuna.

A couple of the boats from <b>Story Teller Charters</b>, which books charters for a number of vessels, fished offshore last week, and they caught sharks at the Misty Blue and Jacob Jones wrecks, Capt. Mark said. The boat All Geared Up, which works with Story Teller, placed first for blue sharks in the South Jersey Shark Tournament two weekends ago, and, according the Jim’s Bait & Tackle’s Report above, placed 2nd with a 182-pound mako shark in that store’s shark tournament last weekend.

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