it’s unusual to hear about blitz fishing for stripers in the N.J. surf at this time of the year, but Mike Monte got just that type of report this morning.
Mike had been shut out the last three mornings — and was happy to catch two small bass in the Monmouth County surf in an area where there were lots of birds picking on sand eels. Then he got word of an angler who was fishing Sandy Hook when it exploded with larger bass from 24 to 34 inches on peanut bunkers which produced 10 bass for him. The odds of that happening again tomorrow are long, but it’s worth checking out.
The forecast is for ideal west winds at 10-15 knots with gusts to 20 before increasing to 20-25 in the afternoon. There’s also a chance of rain.
Chuck Many is chasing big stripers at Cape Charles, Virginia — such as this 54-pounder before release.
It was a perfect December day on the ocean, but anglers on the Big Mohawk from Belmar had to pick through shorts for up to a few limits of blackfish,
Good fishing weather close to the beach continues tomorrow with a forecast of west winds at 10-15 knots plus gusts to 20. The wind shifts to north at just 5 to 10 knots in the afternoon,
Fishing for jumbo sea bass on far offshore wrecks continues to hold up, but time is running out on the season which ends with the new year.
The Golden Eagle from Belmar reported “super crazy” action on their last trip with a boat limit of sea bass before sun-up, along with lots of porgies some blues, a dozen weakfish, and a 40-pound angler. Only three trips with space remain, with the next on Dec, 26.
The Jamaica from Brielle has openings on Dec. 20, 21 and 22 — and will be adding more after Christmas. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations.
The forecast is for a mere north wind at 5 knots before going southwest in the afternoon.
Veteran marine journalist Patrick Mansell has written a book about Bud n’ Mary’s Marina in Islamorada that will be of interest to all who have fished in the Florida Keys or hope to do so. The 350-page soft cover is heavily illustrated and available from Amazon. I’ll have more about it in future blogs.
NOAA Fisheries is reopening the General category commercial fishery for large medium and giant bluefin on Monday for four days with a limit of one per boat day in order to allow harvest of the remaining quarterly quota. This also applies to the Charter/Headboat category boats with a commercial sale endorsement when fishing commercially.
Vinny D’Anton fished Spring Lake yesterday and found no signs of the large stripers that had been in the surf, but did catch two of the very small stripers normally found in the December surf on the same MirrOlure he’s been casting.
The Ocean Explorer from Belmar reported anglers had to work through short blackfish in order to catch some keepers.
The forecast is for east winds at 10 knots plus rain.
Capt. Ron Santee completed his season with the Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands on Wednesday as striper fishing was slower than it had been. A few bass were caught early as a couple of anglers and his son Ron in from California hooked two — but the bite dropped off the rest of the day.
The Golden Eagle from Belmar has room on Friday’s trip for big sea bass on far offshore wrecks — as well as those on Dec. 26, 28 and 30.
Mike Monte made up for three fishless mornings in the Monmouth County surf when yesterday’s effort produced three stripers.
The forecast is for southwest winds at 15-20 knots plus gusts to 25.
My first saltwater fish was a blowfish caught from a rowboat at Freeport, Long Island, and i caught many more growing up on the south shore as the northern puffer cycle was at a peak during the 1950s. At that time, I also read about N.J. bay fishermen being surprised by a much larger puffer that they called rabbitfish. It was decades later before I ever caught that puffer which is properly called smooth puffer – and that was a small one from a wreck off Key West. Last Friday I caught a bigger one while fishing with Bob Correll on his Sea Vee 32 out of Hutchinson Island, Florida in the mouth of St. Lucie Inlet. (see photo at end of page0
That 19 1/2-incher wasn’t as big a surprise as it might have been because Bruce Hrobak at Billy Bones Tackle in Stuart had told me that one was caught on his boat the week before. We were chumming with glass minnows from Billy Bones for Spanish mackerel when I dropped a jig and shrimp to bottom and hooked what I hoped was a legal snapper before seeing the puffer with a solid body and smooth skin. It didn’t blow up at all. Al McClane, in McClane’s Guide to Saltwater Fishes of North America noted that ” The smooth puffer is not able to expand its body as greatly as the northern or southern puffers, possibly because of its larger size. “
The range of this fish is impressive, as McClane said it is distributed on both sides of the Atlantic — and in the western Atlantic from Massachusetts to Argentina plus the Gulf of Mexico. Yet, it doesn’t appear to be schooling fish. A few summers ago, there were quite a few caught off the northern N.J. Shore. However, I haven’t heard of any since then. Ironically, the IGFA world record of 11 pounds, seven ounces was caught in N.J. at Cape May Inlet in 2001. .
Vinny D’Anton has been picking at keeper-size stripers in the Monmouth County surf, but it’s all been blind casting. Sand eels are in the surf, but there haven’t been any swirls or rolls from the large bass to indicate their presence.
A small craft advisory goes up at 7 p.m. and is in effect through Friday afternoon. Thursday’s wind will be southwest at 15-20 knots with gusts to 25.
The Jamaica from Brielle has openings on 10 p.m. trips to offshore wrecks on Dec. 19, 21, and 22. Call 732 528-5014for reservations.
Capt. Ron Santee is calling it a season tomorrow with his Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands, and it should be a great one based on the last two this week as stripers remain abundant in the back of Raritan Bay.
Ron says the bass are almost all keepers fresh in from the ocean and covered with sea lice. Shads and spoons do the job, but it’s hard to find a bonus bass among them.
Mike Monte called last night to let me know that he’d fished three mornings from Monmouth Beach to Sea Girt and watched birds picking up sand eels — but couldn’t find a bass among them.
The forecast is for southeast winds at 10-15 knots with gusts to 20.
The Jamaica from Brielle has room on upcoming far offshore wreck trips for giant sea bass at 10 p.m. on Dec. 16, 19, 21 and 22 plus others to be set up before the month is out. Friday’s trip was another good one with limits of sea bass plus porgies , bluefish and even weakfish
If the boats can get out to the far offshore wrecks, big catches of giant sea bass and porgies appear to be a sure thing.
The Golden Eagle from Belmar made one of their trips by reservation this week and had a boat limit of sea bass while switching to catch and release by 8 a.m. Anglers also had all the porgies they wanted plus a few blues, a pollock and weakfish — and a couple of barrelfish — a species usually only caught while tilefishing. The Jamaica from Brielle has also been loading up on those trips which should continue to produce all month.
The Monday forecast is for west winds at 15-20 knots with gusts to 25.
Tight Lines 