Finishing the NJ fluke season

It’s all over but the shouting. The N.J. fluke season only runs through Saturday, and most party boats specializing in that species took today off due to the weather forecast, but will then sail daily through Saturday for the last shots

An exception is the Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands. Capt. Ron Santee was discouraged by finding mostly the smallest fluke he’s ever seen over the weekend and switched to daily porgy fishing on Monday.

At Belmar, the Ocean Explorer saw a big improvement in fluking on Monday, with quite a few 4-to-7-pounders in the mix and some limits. Surprisingly, bait draggers did better than jiggers that day on a steady drift. (see photo below}

Bob Matthews, at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar Marina, weighed a 6 5/8-pound fluke caught on the Ocean Explorer by Eric Olsen — as well as a 9-pounder on Parker Pete by Bob March of Mullica Hill.

The forecast is for fishable north winds into Friday morning. The return of high pressure may turn on the bite again. Vinny D’Anton was blaming the falling pressure this morning for the lack of any action in Shark River. I had the only hit, and that was only just a tap at the end of a cast a few away from me. That was quite a difference from Sunday morning when I caught a 21-inch striper on my first cast with a 6-inch Z Man Zwimmereez — though that jinxed me for some time before I released another 21-incher.

Capt. Jim Freda, of Shore Catch Guide Service at Point Pleasant, took his mate and buddies out to the inshore pots on Sunday where they had fun catching dolphin.