by The smaller striped bass typical of this time of year in the northern N.J. surf seem to be dominant now. At least that was the case this morning as anglers cast into a still rough Monmouth County surf in a frigid northwest wind. Mike Monte said he wasn’t getting hit on an Ava jig before switching to a Tsunami Sand Eel that matched the natural bait present.
Vinny D’Anton and his crew found the jigs to be effective in the areas they fished. Vinny only saw bunkers well outside the bar where two whales were putting on a show by blowing them up.
I didn’t receive any boat reports, though it is possible to fish close to shore under the hills of northern N.J. When I was chartering out of Manasquan Inlet, I fished during northwest gales by turning north out of the inlet and staying in the calm waters within a half mile of shore.
A gale warning is up through Sunday afternoon. Sunday starts with west winds at 25-30 knots before diminishing to 20-25 in the afternoon. Seas in open waters will be 4 to 6 feet.
Tight Lines 
Leave a comment