New Jersey Fishing Reports

Next year will be the next time Capt. Ralph from Last Lady Fishing Charters from Neptune will fish the canyons, he said. Yellowfin tuna fishing was the worst he’d seen in 40 years of fishing the canyons. If you want yellowfins, go to Cape Hatteras! he said. The lack of tuna had something to do with warm waters everywhere from way up north to the Carolinas, without going into specifics, he said. But bluefin tuna fishing was productive for fish to 70 inches at grounds 60 to 65 miles offshore and for ones to 50 pounds on the inshore grounds, and Last Lady is sailing for them.

A charter on the Nan Sea J from Belmar went 1 for 3 on bluefin tuna at the Mudhole this week, landing a 40-pounder, also wrestling in a bunch of false albacore, a 5-pound mahi mahi, a mess of bluefish and a number of spiny dogfish, all on bait, Capt. Tom said. Bluefish also bit off lines. The tuna all attacked between 7 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., and the other fish kept chomping afterward. Waters were a good-looking blue and 64.9 degrees. Another charter last week overnighted at the West Wall of Hudson Canyon Thursday to Friday in windy, nasty conditions. A yellowfin tuna was trolled, and a longfin tuna was chunked, and a small mako shark was caught and released. Waters were 64.9 degrees to 68 degrees, a little cool.

Tuna fishing improved a little on the party boat Golden Eagle from Belmar, Capt. Greg said. Some yellowfin tuna were fought aboard Sunday night, and some longfin tuna were boxed Monday night, and a couple of swordfish were taken on the trips. Check the boat’s web site for the trip schedule.

Manasquan Inlet

Canyon fishing was pretty much status quo through the weekend, and yellowfin tuna were scarce at least until then, and longfin tuna started showing up early last week, said Dave from The Reel Seat in Brielle. However, 125- to 150-pound bluefin tuna were sometimes hooked at Hudson Canyon, and spools got stripped. The fishing was on one day, off the next. Good catches of smaller, 50- or 60-pound bluefins came from south of the Monster Ledge, and chunking and trolling both seemed to work.

Toms Canyon was fished with Andrea’s Toy Charters from Point Pleasant on Tuesday to Wednesday for a catch of mahi mahi, big ones, swordfish and mako sharks, Capt. Fred said. Blue sharks swam around the boat at night, and four tuna attacked the trolling spread during the day but failed to connect. Tuna fishing was slow for everyone, and many well-known charter boats were in the area. Waters where Andrea’s Toy fished were 68 degrees with a small temperature break. Although tuna were tough to get, mahi mahi fishing was great, and so was swordfishing, almost always giving anglers shots at the billfish. Tilefishing was also tried with Andrea’s Toy on the trip but was unproductive. Mixed-bag charters are fishing the canyons on the boat, targeting all these fish. Mixed-bag fishing is a specialty for Andrea’s Toy, offering more fun, greater chances of hooking up and more variety for dinner.

Three medium-sized yellowfin tuna, two longfin tuna 50 pounds apiece and a 49-inch swordfish were pumped in with the Dennis Stawicki charter on the Day at Sea from Point Pleasant over the weekend, Capt. Frank said. Some of the tuna were chunked, and the others were trolled.

Most anglers limited out on yellowfin tuna on a trip Sunday to Monday on the party boat Gambler from Point Pleasant, a good catch, quite a few of the fish, Capt. Bob said. The yellowfins were mixed sizes from 25 to 85 pounds, and many were small, but some were large. The bite mostly went down from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. and ended when skies just started to become light. Probably half the fish were hooked on bait, and the rest smacked 10-ounce jigs. The anglers realized jigs were out-producing during the final 1 ½ hours, and started banging away on catches with the metal. So this was an especially good catch this season, and Bob hoped there’d be a repeat. Surrounding boats within a few miles seemed to get into slower fishing, so the trip was apparently right place, right time. In the morning the boat stopped at a few pieces of flotsam on the way home, and anglers cast to mahi mahi, landing a few big ones. On Saturday to Sunday the boat fished a shot of 66- to 70-degree waters along an eddie at Toms Canyon. A yellowfin tuna was boated quickly after the boat was anchored, and a 100-pound swordfish was nailed soon afterward. After a moment another 100-pound sword was waxed, and then a yellowfin tuna was boated every 45 minutes to an hour through the night, a slow pick, but action, and good to see the yellowfins. Many of the tuna were small, just making keeper size, but they ranged 20 to 60 pounds. The bite ended a little after daybreak, and the boat went on the troll for mahi mahi around the lobster pots at 7 a.m. Lots of mahi were seen swimming around the pots, and two to six were hooked at each, so the fish were somewhat finicky. Waters were full of life, bait and squid, and whales and porpoises were seen, and so was a 50-foot whale shark. The Gambler will keep tuna fishing, and see the boat’s web site for the schedule and availability.

The party boat Cindy Sea from Point Pleasant anchored in 600 feet at Hudson Canyon Wednesday night, and bait was abundant, and yellowfin tuna found the chum slick after some time, Cindy said in an e-mail. More than half the anglers landed the fish, a relatively good catch compared with the past several trips, although Friday to Saturday’s trip bailed big yellowfins (see below). On this trip Karl Ostergaard also nailed a large swordfish after an hour-and-a-half fight. Now here’s the scoop on Friday to Saturday. Big yellowfin tuna, all 60 pounds or larger, and many in the 100-pound class, finally showed up on the boat on that trip at Hudson Canyon. Everyone went home with yellowfin, and many of the fish were lost in the fight, because they were so big. The first bit just after midnight, and lots of action went down all night, and massive schools of sardines swam through, and all anglers fished with the bait. Seth Humenick hooked five of the big tuna, and his dad nailed one that topped 100 pounds. Jim Dugan, Shawn Dugan and Richard Lake each walloped an 80-pounder. But on Saturday to Sunday on the boat anglers had less luck with yellowfins at the Hudson, and there was little action, so the vessel moved, searching for bluefin tuna, and some were found. Bruce Myers boated a 125-pound bluefin, and Mel Therien landed a 100-pounder. The next day’s trip from Sunday to Monday got into somewhat better fishing, and patrons batted down a few yellowfin and longfin tuna, and they muscled in lots of bluefins. The next available openings on tuna trips are next Thursday. More openings are available afterward and into November, check the boat’s web site for the calendar and availability.

Special false albacore trips sailed Monday and Wednesday on the party boat Cock Robin from Point Pleasant, the report on the boat’s web site said. The vessel fished at the bluefin tuna grounds, so anglers could’ve gotten a shot at the tuna to boot. Albie fishing was sluggish Monday, but bluefins were around, and a patron hooked one on 12-pound line meant for albies, skillfully fought the fish 45 minutes, circling the boat three times, until the tuna popped off. On Wednesday albie fishing was also slow, and tuna were also scarce, because boat traffic was heavy. Trolling boats cut through chum slicks, and traveling boats sped through the chum. So the Cock Robin moved at 11 a.m., set up for bluefishing, and patrons caught a load. Albacore trips will keep sailing, and check the boat’s web site or call for the schedule. Bring a light rod for albies and a heavy rod with 50-pound leaders for tuna.

Barnegat Inlet

Reports had rolled in about 30- to 100-pound bluefin tuna hammered at the Mudhole, and the Hi Flier from Waretown started sailing for them Wednesday, Capt. Dave DeGennaro said in an e-mail. But fishing that day was slower, and only big bluefish stole baits toward the end of the trip, and Dave heard about six bluefins 20 to 40 pounds caught in the fleet of about 20 boats from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., when he fished. Three of the fish were chunked, and three were trolled, including a double header of 20-pounders that one vessel drilled at 8:30 a.m. on cedar plugs. The bite sounded better Saturday through Monday. “I’m not done trying,” Dave said. “Can’t wait to get back.” Both charters and open-boat trips are sailing for the tuna, and give him a shout for the open schedule.

Offshore fishing was actually improving, although some anglers started to stop making the trip for the season, said Capt. Mike from the Tuna-Tic from Waretown. But his last four trips knocked down a bunch of longfin tuna that began showing up at the canyons, and they smoked mahi mahi, large ones, that were already abundant. So stopping fishing in the blue waters was a mistake, because this was the best angling of the season, the time to go, and Mike plans to keep after the catches through the month. Openings are available because of the slow down in participation, although the schedule is always jam packed before. Trips also caught swordfish but small ones, though a couple of bigger ones broke off. Many boats failed to connect with healthy numbers of longfins, but Mike thinks that his trolling spread was the key. Anglers had to troll far back with birds. Another well-known charter boat talked with Mike on the waters and asked what Mike was trolling, and the boat switched to the same spread, and bang! Started catching. A charter this weekend intends to target swordfish, but the trip will likely tuna fish, too.

Little Egg Inlet

Mahi mahi were hung with Legal Limit Charters from Tuckerton at Toms Canyon around the bend on the northeast side on an overnight trip Saturday to Sunday, Capt. T.J. said. Tuna fishing sounded slow for everyone, and apparently the only tuna that were caught were trolled during the day and weren’t taken on the chunk at night. Some anglers beat swordfish at night. Lots of bait, lots of activity filled the waters.

Absecon Inlet

Better catches than before of longfin and yellowfin tuna were sometimes reported from the Toms and Hudson canyons, said Capt. Tom from the Fishin’ Fever from Brigantine. But not so good reports were also heard. Mahi mahi were plentiful and big, and the swordfish population was large this year, and better numbers of wahoos than usual swam in the south. Twenty mahi mahi to 28 pounds were belted, a small mako was released and a large swordfish broke off on the boat at Wilmington Canyon on a trip Friday to Saturday. A wahoo also bit, and most of the mahi were fought on live bait pitched to lobster pots. Waters were jammed with tinker mackerel and squid, so the lack of tuna was strange. The mackerel were so numerous that some got dip-netted. Waters were clear, good-looking, sort of blue and 68 to 69 degrees. Tom knew of five swords—two keepers and three shorts—a couple of white marlin and one blue marlin taken in the area. He heard about only one yellowfin tuna, a 30-pounder, caught at the canyon. Tom started to hear about mako sharks battled closer to the coast in 20 fathoms, and he’s one of the few captains who will fish for sharks during the fall migration, as the monsters swim south.

Great Egg Harbor Inlet

White marlin were sometimes caught, and tuna were scarce, mostly giving up a few bites at the northern canyons like the Toms, said Bill from Fin-Atics from Ocean City. Customers talked about landing mahi mahi last week, but the action seemed to drop off this week. Lots of swordfish hit at the canyons, and many were small, but the multitude boded well for the future.

Townsend’s Inlet

Although yellowfin tuna were scarce at the canyons, the crew from Over Under Adventures from Avalon was surprised how good the fishing for other species could be in the area, the report on Over Under’s web site said. Swordfishing usually produced shots at the fish at night, and mako sharks often gave up battles in the dark. Tons and tons of large mahi mahi swam the grounds, and marlin fishing was consistent, usually offering a couple of chances at hook ups on trips. Wahoos were also on the prowl. So trips were targeting swords and makos on the night chunk and mahi and marlin during the daytime troll, with a wahoo rig or two set out at all times during the day. Trips began leaving at 4 to 5 p.m., because daytime action was more productive than nighttime. Both Low Profile and That’s Right, vessels from Over Under’s fleet, fished on overnighters Friday to Saturday at Wilmington Canyon. At night two swords were fought aboard on the Low Profile, and on That’s Right a yellowfin was bagged and a mako released. On the troll both vessels nailed more than 30 mahi apiece, many of them 20-pounders. Both boats had wahoo bites that failed to connect, and one of the vessels had a shot at a decent-sized blue marlin. Both vessels also fished overnight Saturday to Sunday at the Wilmington. Two swordfish bit and got off, one on a shark rig, and another small sword was released. A mako was wrestled a while until the leader parted. Mahi were then trolled, but the fishing was slower in the weekend boat traffic. So the boats moved inshore, and one fought a blue marlin that got off. Then both vessels cleaned up on lots of mahi at a log in 35 fathoms. Openings are available for one or two anglers on a 46-hour, double-overnight canyon trip that will leave 9 a.m. Monday, because a group of four had two anglers cancel.

Cape May Inlet

Offshore fishing finally got back out on a trip Saturday to Sunday with Jaftica Sportfishing from Cape May after rough weather kept the vessel docked, Capt. Ray said. The overnighter fished between Wilmington and Baltimore canyons beyond 100 fathoms, chunking three yellowfin tuna at night. Big mahi mahi, including two 40-pound whoppers, and the rest of them 10-pounders, were trolled the next morning, and lots of the dolphin swam around. A couple of wahoos bit off lines, and two other large fish, maybe tuna, got off on the troll. Waters were 70 to 71 degrees, and better, warmer waters were farther offshore. Another overnighter was slated for today.

The John Anninos crew went 1 for 2 on yellowfin tuna, loaded up on 24 good-sized mahi mahi to a little over 20 pounds, tossed back a small swordfish and broke off a big blue shark on an overnight trip in 500 fathoms on the Heavy Hitter from Cape May on Saturday to Sunday, Capt. George said. The shark bit a tuna rig at night, and something grabbed a bait 200 feet down that was fished on an 80 reel in the dark but threw the hook by the time the anglers got to the rod. The sword of course was also decked at night, and the tuna hit on the troll first thing in the morning. A dozen of the mahi were fought while the anglers cast to a lobster pot buoy. A couple of other lobster buoys were fished but gave up no bites, and the other mahis were trolled. The trip also trolled Baltimore canyon, and three white marlin crashed the spread but never came tight. Some wahoos were around, and George knew about one boat that caught two or three. He also knew about a boat that landed three tuna, but everybody else he knew reeled in small swordfish. Waters were 71 ½ degrees. The Heavy Hitter will fish offshore a moment longer, if anyone wants a last minute trip.

Yellowfin tuna began to get clubbed at Washington and Norfolk canyons, said Matt from Jim’s Bait & Tackle from Cape May in a fax. Lindenkohl Canyon put out a few hefty longfin tuna and some wahoos and marlin. All the canyons seemed to hold abundant mahi mahi.