<b>Staten Island</b>

The striped bass bite seemed to move completely to the ocean, said Capt. Anthony from <b>Barbara Ann Fishing Charters</b>. Still, anglers onboard sometimes picked up a few in the bay in the past week. The fishing took work, now that the season was progressing, but catches were made. A half-day charter landed loads of blues and four or five bass on the bay. An open-boat trip last Tuesday evening reeled up five striped bass in terrible conditions with strong winds. The trips fished for the linesiders with chunked or live bunker. Sea bassing will start to be added to the mix, maybe on combo sea bass/striper or /fluke charters. The fluking will target big doormats, looking for quality, because of the fluke size limit. But striper charters will continue as long as the fish are around, and open-boat Blue Collar Specials will keep sailing for stripers every Tuesday and Thursday evening. Call to reserve.

Combo sea bass/striper trips ran Saturday and Sunday, and strictly a striper charter fished the previous day, said Capt. Joe from <b>Outcast Charters</b>. On Saturday’s combo 10 keeper stripers, a handful of shorts, scores of sea bass and probably a dozen ling were reeled up. On Sunday’s trip, three keeper stripers, probably eight or nine shorts and even more sea bass than the previous day were angled aboard. On Friday’s charter roughly 20 stripers including 14 keepers were leadered, a good catch, and the anglers only kept their limit. All the stripers were trolled in the ocean, and the combo trips usually fish for the linesiders in the mornings before heading offshore for sea bass. The humpbacks weighed up to 1 ½ to 2 ½ pounds, and good numbers could be caught. 

<b>Bayonne</b>

A charter left the harbor early Sunday morning to try to beat the heat for a chance to catch striped bass, and started fishing at Diamond Reef, said Capt. Akira from <b>True World Tackle</b> and <b>True World Tackle Charters</b>. After little action except a few bites, the boat moved to Hell’s Gate by 7:30 a.m., and fish were marked, but none hit in the 63-degree East River, cool for this time of year. Akira got a call from another captain about birds working the waters elsewhere, and he moved there, and the charter started jigging 2-pound blues. The charter then dropped a jig to the bottom to try for a striper, and bam! A 15-pounder was boated. Customers at the store reported catching a few keeper fluke on the Brooklyn side of the Verrazano Bridge. Others fluke fished at Sandy Hook Channel and pulled up lots of shorts. A friend looked for the flatties at Sandy Hook Reef and also found shorts.

<b>Keyport</b>

Chris Judge’s charter reeled up 12 cocktail blues and caught and released 10 or 12 throwback fluke with <b>Papa’s Angels Charters</b> around the 14 can at Reach Channel on Saturday, Capt. Joe said. The blues attacked jigs, and the fluke chomped down on squid and killies or spearing. Half of the fluke were probably 17 or 17 ¼ inches or would’ve been keepers before the size limit was raised to 18 this year. Open-boat trips or charters are available Saturday and Sunday, Father’s Day weekend. Open trips are also running daily when no charter is booked. Call to reserve. Blues and fluke are options, and striper fishing is probably on hold in the bay until fall, and Papa’s Angels concentrates on bay fishing.

<b>Atlantic Highlands</b>

On the <b>Atlantic Star</b> fluke were boated every day on the bay, and when winds and tides or conditions created better drifts, more keepers and more flatties in general were hooked, Capt. Tom said. The year’s size limit was tough, and if the limit were 17 inches like last year, the number of keepers would’ve tripled. One angler might bag three, and the person next to him might land no keepers, and so on. But everybody aboard was reeling in fluke. On Friday an 8-3/4-pounder and a 7-pounder, the biggest caught on the boat so far this season, were nailed. Both those fish were taken on rental rods with the boat’s standard rig. A 6-3/4-pounder was hauled aboard Sunday. The fish were spread throughout the bay, and the vessel fished for them at places including around the Navy Pier, along Reach Channel, off the tip of Sandy Hook and at Flynn’s Knoll. Sometimes patrons scored better with Spro jigs when there was no drift. Spearing and squid are provided, and sometimes killies worked a little better, but not all times, but anglers might want to bring a few of their own killies. The Atlantic Star is fishing for fluke on two trips daily from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Striped bass fishing pretty much ended on the bay, and Capt. Mick from the <b>CRT II</b> wasn’t hearing solid reports about catches in the ocean, like at the Shrewsbury Rocks, and he wasn’t optimistic that the fishing would bounce back, he said. Lots of bunker schooled, but few fish followed them. Anglers seemed to be able to catch maybe one or two stripers at the rocks. The fish seemed to get chased away by storms some time ago and never return. All his trips now were supposed to be striper charters, because traditionally stripers kept biting at least a few more weeks, but they switched to fishing for fluke and blues in the bay instead. Almost every day seemed serve up a 4- or 4-1/2-pound, keeper fluke on the trips, but just not enough keepers. Plenty of blues could be fought on the bay on jigs. On Friday Kim DeKert’s group from Marriott Corporation boxed a few keeper fluke to 4 ½ pounds and battled some blues. On Saturday morning Don Bloch’s gang did about the same, and so did another charter in the afternoon. Lots of fluke that were hitting were only a half-inch or a quarter-inch smaller than the new size limit, and were big, fat, good-looking fish that couldn’t be kept.  Unless something drastic changes, charters will fish for fluke and blues. Mick specializes in fluke fishing, sailing for the flatties much of the season. A mess of ling hovered around Scotland, but when waters reach 60 or 62 degrees, ling start to move out, and that should be soon. He was no longer hearing much about sea bass fishing in the area.

A bunch of regs were onboard yesterday for striped bass fishing on the <b>Fishermen</b>, Capt. Ron said in an e-mail. David Blodowski reeled in the most keepers, four good-sized ones, keeping only his limit, and won the pool. Abe Beren, a first-time bass angler, limited out with two keepers, and anglers Rocco and Jerry also limited out. Several others also bagged keepers, but many ended up with none. No bass hit on the jig at first, so patrons went right to bait fishing. Took all day and a whole lot of patience “to catch what we did (but) even a blind squirrel gets a nut once in a while!” Ron said.  The Fishermen is sailing for striped bass 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Magic Hour Trips are running for stripers 3:30 to 9:30 p.m. Fridays through Sundays.

<b>Highlands</b>

Anglers with <b>Fisher Price Charters</b> boated pretty good catches of striped bass to 29 pounds in the ocean, Capt. Derek said. The fishing was up and down, and, for example, 12 were landed Friday, and five were taken Saturday and 13 were dusted Sunday. They fished with live or chunked bunker, and the waters were 57 degrees. Only one blue bit Sunday, but the anglers had to fight through blues to hook stripers Friday and Saturday, so that action seemed up and down, too. Pods of bunker sometimes appeared along the beaches, and a school a quarter-mile long showed up off Sea Bright yesterday, but no fish chased them. Seemed like all the fish were moving up the coast, and they popped up somewhat randomly. Derek heard that fluke fishing produced fairly good catches when conditions created the right drifts. A few dates remain for charters this month, and striper trips will sail at least through the first or second week of June, and fluke trips will run all summer. Eventually weakfish should move in and be available on charters.

A striped bass trip was tough Friday in east/southeast winds and a swell on the ocean, said Capt. Brian from <b>Jersey Devil Charters</b>. One striped bass and a few blues were hooked at the Shrewsbury Rocks on livelined bunker. Striper charters will continue through June, and Jersey Devil specializes in trophy bass. Shark fishing might begin on the boat this weekend if the weather allows, and eventually tuna charters will start. Fluke fishing is also currently on tap.

<b>Neptune</b>

Hot weather finally kicked in, said Capt. Ralph from <b>Last Lady Fishing Charters</b> in an e-mail. Rising water temps will follow, and ocean striped bass fishing will only improve as a result. Last Lady is trolling and fishing with livelined bait for stripers, but can only liveline when not too many boats crowd waters and when bunker schools are found. So the fishing is best during weekdays. Ralph expects to clam and bunker chunk for the linesiders soon. Last Lady caught stripers on recent trips and also belted blues, sea bass and ling. Good catches of sea bass to 3 pounds could still be made. The cold waters kept fluke from biting well, and individual-reservation fluke trips that were supposed to start running every Wednesday this week were postponed and will begin June 25. Nine spots are left that day, and the trips are limited to 15 passengers, and grab the space while you can, and all bait and tackle is included. If fluke fishing is slow, other species like sea bass, stripers or blues will be targeted for the same price. Warm waters for good shark fishing were just out of range and moving closer, and book shark trips now. The first canyon tuna trip of the year will run July 29 to 30, and five spots remain.

<b>Belmar</b>

A couple of striped bass trips fished on the <b>Nan Sea J</b> in the ocean to the north, and one was good and produced bass to 34 pounds, and the other was slow, and striper fishing seemed up and down, Capt. Tom said. The trips trolled, bunker chunked and snagged and livelined bunker. A couple of blues bit on one of the trips. Anglers on deck also tried fluking a short time, maybe two hours, and lifted aboard a couple of keepers and a bunch of shorts. Fluke fishing was improving, but waters still needed to warm. Nan Sea J’s annual, open-boat shark trips might kick off Wednesday, if the weather is decent, and then will run every Wednesday this month and next as usual. Blue sharks are a likely catch at the moment, but Tom wouldn’t be surprised to land a mako, and waters should be warm enough a little south. The trips are a tremendous opportunity to battle the monsters without having to book an entire charter. This is one of the few charters that offer open-boat sharking, and the trips fill up, so call ahead to reserve preferred dates. Shark charters are also available, and sharking is Tom’s favorite fishing.

Bluefishing was slow because of cold waters, so charters on the 77-foot <b>Bandit</b> concentrated on bottom fishing for ling, and catches were good, Capt. Scotty said. Most of the fishing took place in 85 to 140 feet at the edge of the Mudhole. Sea bassing was mostly played out for the season, and some were landed, but anglers had to weed through the smaller ones. No fluke trips fished on the boat yet, though the Bandit does lots of fluking. The bottom was cold for fluking, though the fishing sounded better during the weekend. Eventually lots of bluefish trips also sail. The Bandit also runs open-boat trips and charters for tuna starting in summer.

<b>Brielle</b>

Ocean fluke fishing seemed hot and cold, said Dave from <b>The Reel Seat</b>. Charlie Martino from Light Tackle Charters yesterday morning said he scored well on the flatties, catching fish to 9 pounds, including some 6- and 7-pounders. Dave on Friday targeted the summer flounder and reeled up 16 or so but no keepers. Waters were warmer than before but still chilly, and 59 degrees at Manasquan Ridge was the warmest Dave found. Plenty of his fluke would’ve met last year’s 17-inch size limit. Dave’s been eager to try Shimano’s new Lucanus jigs on fluke, and he did drop the jigs to the bottom on the trip, but no fluke were landed on any type of tackle where he did. He’s been nailing sea bass on the jigs. Sea bass fishing was holding up when anglers could find a spot that wasn’t already hit. Anglers on the Moby’s Mistress with owner Rob Jenkins put together a good catch of pollock to 25 pounds and cod on butterfly jigs. Ocean striped bass fishing was kind of a struggle. Boaters in the mornings got shots at the fish at isolated places, and the fishing was difficult during the middle of the day. But sometimes it exploded in the afternoons. Anglers got into catches yesterday morning among bunker schools. Big Al Wutkowski the other day found little action during mid day, but got into explosive fishing in the afternoon, walloping stripers to 34 pounds in a bunker school. Blues were around in the ocean, mostly farther north, like toward Belmar, where slammers like 8-, 10- or 12-pounders were nailed. Fishing for smaller blues was crazy in the Manasquan River, and Dave heard from nobody who fluke fished in the river. Somebody reported seeing an angler land two 28- and 30-pound stripers in the Point Pleasant Canal. Dave knew nobody who shark fished, although June is the traditional kick off of shark season. In past years some would try sharking by Memorial Day weekend, but $5 per gallon fuel prices prevented them this year. The store might start opening till 8 p.m. on Fridays this week or next.  The Reel Seat is currently open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Mondays through Fridays, 6:30 .m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays. Sign up for the Save the Summer Flounder Fishery Fund’s <a href=" http://ssfff.org/raffle.html" target="_blank"> raffle for a boat, motor and trailer </a> for only $20.  Get a chance at a 17-foot Mako with a motor and trailer donated by the American Sportfishing Association and electronics donated by Henry’s Tackle, and support the SSFFF.

<b>Fish Monger Charters</b>, debuting this season, will start fishing during the weekend’s shark tournaments, said Capt. Jerry Postorino, a well-known mate whom anglers will recognize from boats including the Bandit from Belmar. A buddy was shark fishing yesterday when Jerry gave this report, but no results were heard yet. Striped bass trips are lined up for the near future, and striper fishing was hit or miss in the ocean, but when the fish were found, they were all big, so the fishing was worth the patience. Catches were about finding the bunker school that stripers chased. Jerry was waiting for the ocean to warm for the best fluke fishing. But then he’ll run bucktailing trips for the summer flounder, both on charters and open-boat marathons. The open trips will probably run once a week during weekdays. Jerry mated on the Bandit this past week, and bluefishing was slow in the cold ocean, so the trips bottom fished for excellent catches of ling along the edge of the Mudhole.

<b>Point Pleasant</b>

Striped bass fishing was hit or miss along the beachfront, but when charters got into the fish, catches were good, said Capt. Fred from <b>Andrea’s Toy Charters</b>. The bass were 25 to 40 pounds, big ones, and snagging and dropping bunker hooked them. Bunker schooled everywhere, but finding the ones with stripers chasing them was the trick. Fred’s trips mixed in fishing for sea bass and ling when no stripers showed up or when anglers were waiting for the tide to change or better conditions. The bottom fishing was productive. A trip Sunday with the Peterson family concentrated on bottom fishing, bagging 33 ling to 5 pounds and 31 sea bass to 3 pounds. A charter Saturday worked hard to find stripers, livelining, trolling and jigging for marked fish. But after no bites, they switched to bottom fishing and boated sea bass and fluke. On Friday a charter fished in two sessions, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The morning trip started bottom fishing for a decent pick of sea bass and fluke. The anglers tried livelining for stripers at the end and caught blues to 12 pounds. In the afternoon they began livelining for stripers and got into a decent pick, landing a 35-pounder and two more large ones. Then they finished the day with bottom fishing for a catch of sea bass and fluke. Andrea’s Toy won’t really put effort into fluking until waters warm. Fred will be away for a moment in June, and then trips will start sailing for sharks and tuna during the first week of July.

A combo fluke/bottom-fishing trip sailed Saturday with <b>Reel Class Charters</b> in the ocean, putting lots of fish in the box, a pretty good day, Capt. Allen said. The group first fished at lumps in the ocean, and a 20-inch fluke was nailed, and shorts were released, and skates bit. They moved to Axel Carlson Reef and loaded up on 20 or 30 ling, including large ones, and a bunch of sea bass, probably a dozen keepers and lots of small ones. Next the anglers fluke fished again and bagged three keepers. The ocean was 58 degrees, much warmer than the previous weekend. Reel Class will do more and more fluke fishing as the weather warms, both on charters and open-boat Fluke Till You Puke Marathons, and specializes in fluke in summer, but mixes in other fishing at times. The marathons will launch June 27, and that trip is already full, but a couple spots might be open on the 29th, and check Reel Class’s web site for availability.

A few fluke were picked up everyplace the <b>Gambler</b> fished along the lumps and bumps 3 miles off Manasquan Inlet, Capt. Boat said. Some patrons scored well, and some didn’t, and anglers had to work to catch. Dean Castagula fished five trips on the boat through Saturday and bagged at least three keepers each time, and five keepers were the most he boated, and a 6.9-pounder was the biggest, if Bob remembered correctly. Dean fished with a Spro with a bucktail tied 8 inches above and cut bait on both hooks, flicking his rest to work the rig, and got bites fairly often. His friend did the same thing and fared pretty well. Bob telephoned during the trip Saturday and said Kevin Pavone had already put four keepers to 5 pounds in the box, but others had yet to take a keeper.  James Samaras on Friday took home five keepers to 5.7 pounds. So anglers couldn’t “just wait for fish to jump on the hook,” Bob said, and they really had to “work it,” he added. Some good-sized sea bass also showed up among catches. Bob was also hoping to get out on a nighttime bluefish trip Saturday, he said. The Gambler is fishing for fluke on two half-day trips daily and is sailing for blues at night. Call the vessel for the hours.

<b>Bricktown</b>

Boaters kept snagging and dropping bunker, or snagging the menhaden with a snagging hook and dropping them right back into the waters for bait, to catch big striped bass in the ocean, said Tommy from <b>Pell’s Fish & Sport</b> in a fax. Catches were fairly consistent at the Shrewsbury Rocks and off Asbury Park, and off Island Beach State Park also produced. R.J and Dan Dunn limited out on stripers to 30 pounds yesterday morning on bunker. Surf casters also connected with the linesiders at times and tied into alligator blues. Sergio Vital clammed a 9-pound bass from the Mantoloking suds, and Tom Thiene put the brakes on an 11-1/2-pound blue in the Island Beach wash while fishing bunker. Fluke fishers had the itch to catch the flatties, and cold waters had hampered efforts. But temps were rising, and catches were finally made. The shallow waters in the ocean off Asbury and Spring Lake put out, and so did the Manasquan River. Crabbing started turning on.

<b>Seaside</b>

Hot weather and hot fishing, said the report on <b>Grumpy’s Tackle</b>’s web site. A load of fish were weighed in yesterday alone: 19 striped bass, two weakfish and no blues. Eight of the bass were beached in the surf, and nine were taken on kayaks, presumably on the ocean, though the report didn’t say, and three were boated, also maybe on the ocean, but the site didn’t say. Bunker claimed most of the bass, but a few hit rubber shads, metal or plugs. One of the weaks, an 11.2-pounder, grabbed a shad at an unspecified location, and the other, a 9.6-pounder, was plugged on Barnegat Bay. The surf at the Seaside Casino Pier gave up fish yesterday, and the wash at Ortley Beach and Lavallette turned on at sundown the same day. “Nice to see fish being taken on artificial,” the report said. <a href="http://www.grumpystackle.com/fishingreports/" target="_blank"> Click here</a> for updates.

<b>Waretown</b>

The crew on the <b>Tuna-Tic</b> will now begin shark fishing through June 23, Capt. Mike said. They only offer sharking during the peak of the season, and most shark trips will be charters, but an open-boat shark trip will sail Wednesday, June 18, and call if interested. He heard about one mako caught already, and commercial fishermen told him they saw several blue sharks, and reports flew around about a few thresher sharks slicing through bunker schools along the beaches, but Mike saw no threshers yet. But southern winds that cooled waters affect fishing a moment, and the fishing was probably still affected, and winds from the past even seemed to slow down striped bass fishing along the coast now. Waters are cold, so shark anglers should hang baits shallower than depths like 90 feet that are common, because those depths will be far too chilled. Fifty feet will be more like the max. The boat ran two striped bass/bluefish trips Friday and two Saturday, and a 51-inch striper, probably 40 pounds, was the highlight of catches. Bass were found in the ocean off Long Beach Island at Ship Bottom, and big blues to 10 and 15 pounds were hammered at Barnegat Inlet and Barnegat Ridge. Striper fishing this week will be best around 50 feet in the ocean from about Seaside to Island Beach State Park, and that’s where anglers should go to hook up. Bluefishing and bottomfising trips will be available between shark charters. Three-day, open-boat tuna trips, the ultimate in fishing, will begin in July. Waters 78 degrees, fish-holding temps, were moving in toward the canyons, and should reach the 100-fathom line in less than two weeks. If they do, early season canyon catches could be some of the best in years.

<b>Forked River</b>

Big blues were bailed on a trip Friday with <b>Seafood Fishing Charters</b>, Capt. John said. The slammers, fish to 13 or 14 pounds, were caught in the ocean, and the anglers tried for striped bass among loads of bunker, and a few swirls were seen, but no stripers connected. The only thing John could figure was that the baitfish were too abundant. On Saturday morning a charter wanted strictly to search for stripers, and bunker were abundant again, but no bass showed up. The anglers livelined bunker and trolled. In the afternoon a charter wanted to fish for anything, so John chose blues, and they nailed the fish, catching bigger ones on bunker chunks and smaller ones on jigs. The ocean both north and south of Barnegat Inlet was fished throughout the trips. Three more charters are booked for Friday and Saturday, and anglers onboard next week will compete in Mako Mania. Besides charters, a bunch of open-boat dates are available and are listed on Seafood’s web site. One space remains on a two-day, open-boat trip that will compete in the Beach Haven Marlin and Tuna Club Tournament.  Boats in the tournament are allowed to fish two days from July 30 to August 2. Last year’s purse was $365,000, and 20 percent of any winnings go to the crew on the trip, but the rest goes to the anglers. Seafood’s boat makes it to the offshore grounds probably quicker than any other charter in the state. The 33-foot HydraSports features three 250 h.p. engines, cruises at 45 m.p.h., tops out at 60 m.p.h. and arrives at the canyons in 2 hours in fair seas. Anglers can spend more time fishing than traveling.

<b>Barnegat Light</b>

Members of the Village Harbor Fishing Club kicked off last week’s trips with <b>Reel Fantasea Charters</b>, Capt. Steve said in an e-mail. They started looking for light-tackle action on Barnegat Bay, landing a 20-inch fluke and missing a few short strikes from small blues, all on Bass Kandy Delights, while they waited to see what stiffer-than-forecast winds would do. They moved to Barnegat Inlet, and winds started cooperating better, and so did fish. Big, 8- to 12-pound blues attacked under a few working birds, and at times all the light-tackle rods were hooked up. After the action tapered off, it was time to look for striped bass. The anglers searched for bunker to catch for bait, found a large school off Surf City, filled the livewell and started fishing with the baits among the school. But striper fishing was off, although fish were marked. The group made their way back to the inlet, keeping an eye out for feeding fish, but saw none. Back at the inlet they ended the day with action from more large blues, feeding on the bottom this time.  George Kitzler and mom were aboard the next day and fought 20 big blues to 15 pounds on bait and BKD’s, and they were doubled up on the fish most of the trip, a solid bite. On Sunday the Garder Cadillac crew also located non-stop action with big blues to 15 pounds, all on live bunker. Stripers were marked around large schools of bunker, but none cooperated. But the blues cooperated at a fever pitch! The anglers were doubled and tripped up most of the time.

<b>Beach Haven</b>

On the <b>Miss Beach Haven</b> the usual cast of characters left port Saturday on a sea bass trip, Capt. Frank said in an e-mail. Light winds with some fog made for a comfortable, cool day on the waters, despite the beginning of the heat wave. The boat stopped in 70 feet, but lots of currents and no fish were found, so the vessel moved farther offshore. Strong currents still flowed, but quality sea bass to 4 pounds managed to be caught. Anglers averaged 7 to 15 keeper lumpheads apiece, and Andy Vasquez took the pool with a 4-pounder. On Sunday anglers onboard met plenty of heat and no fog. On the first drop a couple of sea bass bit, and patrons released a few out-of-season blackfish, including a 12-pound 11-ounce male “that put a smile on (the angler’s) face all day,” Frank said. Then patrons pretty much slowly picked at keeper sea bass at every spot fished, a 1-in-8 keeper ratio. Toward the end of the day the anglers tried a couple of drifts for fluke and did catch some, along with a few more sea bass. An angler with a 3-pound sea bass won the pool. The Miss Beach Haven does switch to fluke fishing when sea bassing slows down, and a combo fluke/sea bass trip might sail during the weekend. The heat might warm waters a few degrees and get fluke chewing. Open-boat trips are running 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday. The boat will leave the dock daily starting about June 25.

<b>Tuckerton</b>

The big boat was moved back to Tuckerton for the summer after fishing for striped bass and drum from Cape May since spring, said Capt. T.J. from <b>Legal Limit Charters</b>. His smaller boat had already been fishing from Tuckerton. He ran the final Cape May charter of the season on Sunday for just a pick of drum on Delaware Bay, but previous trips often bailed the fish. In Tuckerton charters were now catching all the blues to 10 and 12 pounds they wanted at the ocean lumps, and they’d already been landing plenty of sea bass a while. Ocean flounder trips will now begin, and sharking will start next week.

<b>Brigantine</b>

Surf casters weighed in four or five striped bass a day, consistent fishing, said Capt. Andy in the report on <b>Riptide Bait & Tackle</b>’s web site. A couple of keeper flounder were checked in from the wash this morning. Back-bay fishing was now going well for flounder and stripers, after the shop had reported slower bites in past weeks. Fred from the store fished the back this morning and drilled four keepers stripers and two legal flatties. A family on another boat picked up two keeper stripers. The weather was also heating up. “I am sitting in air conditioning and still sweating?” Andy asked.

The <b>Fishin’ Fever</b> was moved back to Brigantine for the summer after fishing for striped bass and drum from Cape May this spring, Capt. Tom said. The last trip from Cape May fished yesterday on Delaware Bay and produced a few drum to 70 pounds, a decent catch, and drum fishing was still happening at the time. Charters from Brigantine will now begin targeting bluefish, sharks and tuna. Big blues schooled areas like the AC Ridge, 28-Mile Wreck, the Cigar and the 750 Square. Tom heard reports about good catches of mako and thresher sharks, and he heard about bluefin tuna found from 20 fathoms to the canyons. He also knew about one boat that sailed far offshore to 1,500 fathoms over the weekend and caught yellowfin tuna and a blue marlin. Bottom fishing is also an option, and bottom fishing for sea bass was okay, and flounder charters will probably start fishing the ocean in July, when waters warm a little. Back-bay flounder fishing was fairly decent, and lots of the fish were throwbacks, but keepers were mixed in.
 
<b>Atlantic City</b>

If 25 striped bass were dragged from the surf this morning, that was nothing, said Noel from <b>One Stop Bait & Tackle</b>. Lots of the bass got beached from the suds lately, and bloodworms, fresh clams and fresh bunker drew the strikes. A 31-pound, 41-incher was weighed in yesterday, and many others were checked in recently. Kingfish nabbed bloods in the wash on low incoming tides. Decent numbers of flounder hit in the surf and back bay, though many were shorts because of the new size limit. Waters near the Flagship were productive, and dunk minnows with squid, the peanut butter and jelly of flounder fishing, for hook-ups. Snapper blues were starting to appear in the bay. All the baits mentioned plus mackerel, mullet, live eels and more are stocked. Live spots are carried when available.

<b>Margate</b>

Here’s the first shark report of the year: Anglers with <b>O-Beth Sportfishing</b> battled and released 21 blue sharks and a mako yesterday at 28-Mile Wreck, Capt. Eric said. Yeah! O-Beth loves sharking and wasted no time getting on the fish. The mako was a couple of inches short, and waters were 65 degrees and clean. Bluefish swam around the boat all day, plenty of food for the sharks, and good bluefishing if anyone’s looking for it. Shark fishing was just beginning, and the bait was there, and the season should be good, Eric said. O-Beth will now concentrate on sharks during the weeks that the season lasts. Afterward flounder fishing will begin on the vessel, and ocean flounder fishing will be best by then, so that’s where the trips will head.

<b>Longport</b>

Gazillions of squid, gobs of them lighting up waters from the surface to 50 feet down, were found on a special squid trip Saturday night on the <b>Stray Cat</b> as soon as the boat stopped, Capt. Mike said. “Your squid specialist,” he joked. “It was fantastic.” The only problem was that the invertebrates were difficult to jig in the cold waters, for some reason. The anglers found that light tackle was key, and on the next trip, the crew will bring different types of nets to help prevent squid from dropping off the jigs. The 110-foot waters were 62 degrees. The next squid trip was originally slated for June 21 but was rescheduled for this coming Saturday, June 14. Space is available, and call to reserve. Catch them up either for meals like calamari or fluke baits, like if you’re entered in the fluke tournaments. The Stray Cat also bottom fished though the past days, and mostly sea bass were hooked, but fishing for quality sea bass was often becoming a slow pick as small ones began to dominate,  not unusual this time of year. Sea bassing was “peaks and valleys,” Mike said. Big ling were bagged on one of the trips a few days ago. The boat also trolled slammer blues on ponytails, and 9-pounders schooled offshore of 28-Mile Wreck. Bluefin tuna fishing finally turned on and was great in 30 fathoms, and it’s time to go, Mike said. Six-person charters are available for tuna immediately, and call for dates. Stray Cat has now switched to mostly chartering during summer, after running daily, open-boat, bottom-fishing trips previously. Charters leave port for almost any species available. But open trips will continue to sail every Thursday and Sunday, including a special trip Father’s Day, this Sunday, when eight spots are available. The fish targeted on open trips is now captain’s choice.

<b>Sea Isle City</b>

Armond Santos fly rodded four striped bass to an 11-pound 30-incher, some blues and a herring on a trip on the back bay Saturday, said Capt. Joe Hughes from <b>Jersey Cape Guide Service</b> and <b>Gibson’s Tackle</b>. The big bass obviously came from the ocean, because of its beautiful, bright color--silvery with purples and greens--and the other bass were 26, 24 and 22 inches, and all were released. Clouser minnows were fished on a sinking line in a channel that came off a flat. The beginning of outgoing tide was best for the stripers, though the reason was unknown. Maybe the waters were a couple of degrees warmer at that time, and some of the blues were hooked on incoming. The bay ranged 61 degrees to 70 degrees, and one of the stripers bit in 70, and the warmest temps were located the farthest from the ocean. The ocean was 57 to 59 degrees, cold for this time of year. A summertime fishing pattern was starting on the bay, and Joe’s charters will target striped bass more and more there, as the linesiders begin to dominate, as blues depart the back waters for the ocean. For whatever reasons, stripers seem to become complacent while blues maraud the bay a few weeks every spring. Fishing for the stripers with top-water popper lures and flies will become a specialty through summer, when the bay is warm enough for the fish to smack something on the surface. It’s great action with visual strikes, as Joe poles the bay on his flats boat. The bay’s flounder fishing continued to give up lots of throwbacks, though many more of the fish would’ve been keepers until the larger size limit this year.

<b>Avalon</b>

The boats from <b>Over Under Adventures</b> were making their way toward Jersey after fishing from summer locales from winter through spring, and some were already sailing from Ocean City, Maryland, and Oregon Inlet, North Carolina. One of the vessels, Low Profile, the main boat that will fish offshore from Avalon for big game in summer, was still running trips from the Bahamas. Here’s how it was going in all the locations, according to an e-mail from Over Under. At Ocean City one of the vessels competed in Bahia Marina’s Mako Mania Tournament on Friday and Saturday. On the first day three blue sharks and a mako, an 80-pounder that wasn’t big enough to expect to win, were caught and released at lumpy bottom in 20 fathoms in 63-degree, good-quality waters. On the next day the boat fished the south end of the Tea Cup in cleaner, 61- to 64-degree waters, better conditions. A blue shark was released, and then a bigger mako than on the previous day, but too small to win, was released. Next eight blue sharks were fought and released, one after another, for four hours. Later in the day a 115-pound mako was landed, and the crew decided to keep the fish. It didn’t win, but there was plenty for dinner. In other news from Maryland, bluefin tuna started to show up, and one that was caught was 54 inches, a good sign for the impending tuna season. At Oregon Inlet, offshore trips on the Pretty Work, Over Under’s vessel that’s fishing the Tarheel State, produced good to great fishing all week, the kinds of trips anglers wait for all year. Blue marlin catches were fantastic, and anglers on the boat released a 500-pounder on Tuesday and a 400-pounder the previous Sunday. Catches of 6 to 12 yellowfin tuna per day were common. Fair numbers of bigeye tuna appeared, and a 185-pounder was decked on the vessel. Tuna fishing mostly took place between 50 and 100 fathoms, though some of the fish were found in less than 50. Excellent fishing for gaffer dolphin could be found farther south. Pretty Work also ran an inshore trip that got into plenty of Spanish mackerel and a couple of shots at cobia. Large numbers of cobia swam just off the beaches from the inlet to Hatteras. “Sounds like a great time to go fishing at Oregon Inlet,” the e-mail said. In the Bahamas, blue marlin and yellowfin tuna were the targeted species, and the fishing was reasonably consistent, not red hot.  But the fishing seemed on the upswing and was expected to be happening on the full moon later in the month. Dolphin fishing shut down.

<b>Wildwood</b>

Flounder fishing was best in the back bays, and more shorts than keepers bit, but keepers were mixed in, said Cathy from <b>Sterling Harbor Bait & Tackle</b> in an e-mail. Boaters also reported catches of the flatbacks from Delaware Bay between Miah Maul and 14-Foot Light.  Also in the back bays, small striped bass were clammed or hooked on lures along the sod banks, docks and bridges toward the tops of tides. On the kayak scene, Justin Fesler paddled the back bay at Wildwood on a Hobie Outback and plugged seven stripers to 26 inches on a Bomber lure. Billy Bittman kayaked the bay at night and beat mostly 2-pound blues and a few stripers around the dock lights. Sterling Harbor features fishing kayaks and accessories and all the advice and help you could want about kayak fishing. The store is Cape May County’s authorized Hobie Kayak and Ocean Kayak dealer and also offers rentals. If you want to know about kayak fishing, it’s the place to go. Or if you simply want to kayak fish, launch a rental from Sterling Harbor onto the bay, and you’re in. In the surf, Charlie Labar and Tom McMullen clammed a 28-inch striper and a 44-incher in North Wildwood, where Andrew Applebaum also reeled in 10 stripers to 38 inches. Shark fishing turned on just in time for the tournament season, and Alan Ritter released a small mako at the East Lump. Reports rolled in about other makos and also blue sharks caught, and about bluefish, a favorite shark forage, holding on the shark grounds. Drumfish anglers on Delaware Bay found excellent catches near Tussy’s Slough and the Pin Top. Antonio Berry, 8, weighed in a 62-pounder that was his first-ever. He fished with his grandpop on the Tara Ann from Wildwood, and they hauled aboard 10 of the boomers. Cindy Pilgrim from the Painters Choice checked in a 50-pounder, and Dave Brown on the Night Stalker lambasted three drum to 70 pounds near Tussy’s. Sterling Harbor will hold the boating safety course required in New Jersey at 9 a.m. Saturday. Call or e-mail the shop for info.

<b>Cape May</b>

The drum bite became a little later, around dark, on Delaware Bay, but double-digit catches still came up for <b>Jaftica Sport Fishing</b>, so the fishing continued, Capt. Ray said. Charters will keep drum fishing as long as the action lasts. The boat’s first shark trip of the year will point the bow offshore Thursday. Ray heard about a few sharks, including makos, found over the weekend. Flounder fishing will begin any day on the vessel, and lots of blues supposedly swam inshore spots in the ocean, meaning trolling trips are probably an option. Ray also heard about a few bluefin tuna caught, and the boat’s tuna charters will probably start with fishing for bluefins at the inshore lumps to the south.

Drum fishing held up pretty well on Delaware Bay Friday and Saturday on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. Friday’s charter kept 12 drum to 70 or 75 pounds and released one, and Saturday’s charter also bagged 12 drum to 78 pounds, a limit of the fish for the four anglers. A crew trip on Sunday boated five drum to about 70 pounds. The anglers on the trips were: on Friday, the Dave Billings group from the Rahway Elks; on Saturday, the Ryan Moore group with Stephanie, Rich and Amber; and on Sunday, Dan and Kevin Rader and Dan Smith. More drum could’ve been caught on some of the trips, like on Friday, but George cuts off the catch at 12, plenty for anyone. These are big fish. Drum charters are booked Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, and drum trips are available on the other days of the week, and then the Heavy Hitter will call it a year for the boomer fishing. Last call to catch the amazing fish. Then charters will be available for bluefish, bottom fish, flounder, sharks and whatever’s available. Tuna trips will eventually sail.

A drum trip with <b>First Cast Sport Fishing</b> on Friday produced a couple of the fish per man for Mike Cragin, Jerry Richardson and Danny Santoro and returned early, a good day, Capt. Rob said. Cragin and Richardson reeled in their first-ever drum, both about 70 pounds. On Saturday Joe Brusser’s group got into a great day of drumfishing, and Brusser and Justin Barbaro tied for the pool with two 85-pounders. Mike Brusser, Tred Plese, Greg Harihan and Kristin Robinson were also aboard. Drum fishing was a little slower on a trip Sunday, and five or six of the fish were boated, but maybe the fish turned on during another tide. Drum charters will continue, and go now if interested, because the fishing could suddenly stop at this point in the season, maybe by next week. Flounder charters are also running, and the first one sailed Tuesday and was covered in the last report. A few keepers and lots of shorts bit, probably one keeper for every 20 throwbacks, on Delaware Bay. A few mako sharks were caught, and shark charters are now available through the month. Tuna trips are being booked and will probably begin the third or fourth week of July, probably starting with bluefin tuna at the inshore lumps and moving out to the canyons when that fishing turns on. 

Four drum were bagged Saturday night with <b>Daisy May Sport Fishing</b>, and there were lots of swings and misses, Capt. Dave said. He was on the first 15 minutes of another drum charter at Tussy’s Slough last night when he gave this report, and there were a couple of swings and misses so far. The bay was 72 degrees, warming up. The boat’s final drum trip of the season is slated for Saturday, and afterward flounder will be targeted, and trolling for blues is probably an option. Daisy May will probably start fishing for the flatties in the deep at Reef Site 11 and the Old Grounds, especially because waters were finally warming. Tons of blues were supposedly swimming the inshore ocean. Tuna charters will eventually fish.

Shark fishing kicked off! The crew on the Warden’s Pass caught and released a 125-pound mako, a blue shark and a dusky at the Jacob Jones wreck, said Matt from <b>Jim’s Bait & Tackle</b> in a fax. Anglers from the Screamin’ Mimi weighed in a 138-pound mako that bit at the Hooper wreck, and the captain from the Cape Queen bagged a 160-pound mako. Big bluefish, shark forage, swam around most of the spots along the 20-fathom line. Delaware Bay kept putting out excellent catches of drum, some days at the Pin Top, other days at Tussy’s Slough, the best drumfishing in 30 years. On most days, some boats scored double-digit catches. Kyle Yandach, 16, Gibbstown, took down a 77-pound 8-ouncer, and John Britten, 10, Seaville, caught a 61-1/2-pounder that was his first. Alex Carlson, 16, scored a 61-pounder, and Graham Neville, 14, landed a 53-pounder. Carmen Spiewak, 12, boated a 50-pounder. Flounder fishing was best along the Intracoastal Waterway, and some anglers tried looking for the flatties at the Old Grounds and Reef Site 11 with no results. Surf fishing was pretty good, and sharpies dragged in good-sized striped bass at Poverty Beach. Justin Carrol, 15, pulled in a 29-pound striper from Poverty, and Connie Lambert fished Sunset Beach, tackling a 27-1/2-pounder. Kingfish hit bloodworms at the Higbee’s Beach jetty. Weakfish were still around in the suds but seemed to be smaller than before. They cooperated best at the Higbee’s jetty, but a few came from Cape May Point. Mark Eckel muscled in a 10.2-pound weakfish from a local jetty, and James Walsh fished the rocks at Hereford Inlet and came up with a 6.95-pound weak that he weighed in.

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