Capt. Chris Di Stefano was fishing Monday on Frank Criscola’s Crisdel from Brielle Yacht Club  as striped bass failed to cooperate at Shrewsbury Rocks and nearby rough bottoms. However, he saw the small boat fleet doing very well chasing birds to catch little tunny from the Rocks to the Highlands Bridge.

Though it’s still early in very high water temperatures, Chris was surprised that they didn’t even mark any bass. There were plenty of small blues, and they went through about 40 shads replacing those with bitten-off tails on the shad rigs.

As abundant as the little tunny are out there, I haven’t had any surf reports so far. I’ve been surfcasting at several places recently an still haven’t seen any birds working or tunny jumping — even out of range,

A pick of stripers continues almost everywhere in the surf. After not liking the lack of bait or any sign of fish at dawn in Shark River, I moved to the Belmar surf where I broke the ice when a 23-inch bass blasted a Chug Bug in the wash just before I lifted it out of the water. That illustrates the importance of working lures right to the sand or jetty as many bass hit at the last moment. Unfortunately, that was my only shot in the low water conditions.

Miss Belmar Princess reported a slow start to jigging blues to the east this morning, but it Improved during the day and some limits of 3-6-pounders were taken plus some bonito. The Golden Eagle from Belmar had blues up to 8 pounds yesterday along with lots of little tunny for those who fished for them.

Bob Matthews weighed blackfish being caught daily now in Shark River Inlet. Anthony Pettillo of Manasquan had a 5-pounder, and Jack Kruger of  Neptune a 4 9/16-pounder at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar Marina. Bob says the bait has moved out of the river and should spark better surf fishing.

Capt. Ron Santee tried a new area for porgies with his Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands today, and after the strong current slowed he saw jumbo scup coming up. A 3-pounder won the pool and there were others close to it.

Mimi VI from Point Pleasant will be sailing open at 7 a.m. tomorrow. The fare for bottom fishing is $75. Call 732 370-8019 for reservations.

 

Capt. Vinnie Vetere put his Team Rocco in position to win the annual Striper Cup competition covering the coast by catching a 62.05-pound trophy striper from his Katfish out of Great Kills. That trophy was presented on Saturday at the Striperfest Awards on Cape Cod.

Phillip O’Connor added a 58.7 boat entry and Ray Soyka a 52-pounder, while Anthony Pandolfi boated a 50.37-pounder and Jennifer Zuppe a 47.37 from shore as the latter two earned extra points to edge out the Not On Call Team that had four boat-caught fifties.

Capt. Vinnie Vetere with mount of his 62.05-pound striper and his Ho-Jo lure trolled from Katfish Charters.

Vetere  above with the bass when boated.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar had very good dolphin action on Monday’s canyon trip, but there were only a couple of missed tuna bites. They were scheduled to fish for blues today, but there was no report as of the time this was written. Miss Belmar Princess reported that Monday’s bluefish bite to the east produced limits of 3-to-6-pound choppers along with some bonito and little tunny.

The Queen Mary from Point Pleasant reported good Monday jigging for blues up to 9 pounds. They sail at 7:30 a.m. Wednesday and Friday — and there’s one spot left on the midnight Thursday tuna trip.

The Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands reports non-stop porgy action along with bluefish, blowfish and sea bass (which have to be released). The first couple of weakfish were caught Monday.

The Ocean Explorer from Belmar reported blackfish bit well on Monday when porgy fishing was spotty.

Vinny D’Anton couldn’t raise school stripers to his Chug Bug in Shark River this morning, but got three small bass on the Storm Searchbait while Frank Manzi  added another. Vinnie then caught a small bass in the Belmar surf.  I found very shallow waters at Manasquan this morning, and couldn’t raise a thing. Another angler said he’d released two fluke that hit an SP Minnow.

Joe Melillo reports from Castaways Tackle in Point Pleasant that the canal has been producing some stripers and blues on Swing Shads and blackfish. on green crabs.  Joe Spinelli of Jackson weighed in an 18 1/2-pound striper, but with no details. Bob Longo had an 11 1/4-pound bass on a Bomber at Bay Head.

 

 

 

 

Metro area fishermen haven’t had much to complain about weather-wise the last few days, and there’s more good weather ahead except for a brief blast of southwest wind Tuesday night. Small craft warnings are posted from then into Wednesday morning even though the winds drop back to 5-10 knots by then. Next weekend is looking very good so far.

The big seas far offshore are still a slight problem for surfcasters, but the surf is fishable. The problem now is low tides during the prime early morning and evening periods.  I had a hit within five minutes of starting at Spring Lake this morning, but that was it for a long time while covering a lot of beach and casting into every fishable pocket. Just before leaving I returned to a spot where I had all my action Sunday except for the 28-inch release. There had been nothing there earlier, but the tide was at the point I had while getting hits yesterday. I quickly had a fish crash the lure, but was surprised to beach a 23-inch striper that had hit the Castaways teaser  ahead of the popper just as the 28-incher had done. That teaser is out of the water most of the time while working a popper. Unfortunately, that was my only hit before having to leave.

Vinny D’Anton did a lot of traveling in order to catch a few bass. He got one in Shark River  before the current died, and added another in the Belmar surf. Moving south he spotted some bass in the large waves, but he and two other anglers couldn’t get them to hit anything. Vinnie caught a fluke on a Tsunami Sand Eel, and finally nailed a bass on a Bomber shad-like plug just before leaving.

Allen Riley of South Plainfield and Duke Matero from Piscataway were hoping to see little tunny when they fished the Monmouth Beach surf this morning, despite the very low tide , but only small blues were in the area to chase mullet. They were just as fussy as little tunny and wouldn’t hit metal on a shock leader. Lures had to be tied right to the mono line to draw hits. Allen caught a couple of the 2-pound blues and lost others in the wash.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar is on an offshore tuna trip, but will be back bluefishing tomorrow morning.

Capt. Stan Zagleski reported his Sunday catch-and-release blackfish trip on Elaine B. II from Bahrs in Highlands started slowly in dirty waters before ending up with good release action after the one keeper tog per angler was allowed was boated. A couple of blowfish and triggerfish were also caught. His next such trip will be at 7 a.m. Thursday.  Zagleski noted that he saw bluefish swirling north of the Highlands Bridge.

Though waters are still very warm and only resident stripers are in the cards now, the mullet run seems to be attracting at least a few bass larger than the usual 18-to-24-inchers. I hadn’t heard of any keepers in the Monmouth County surf, and was therefore shocked around dawn when the first hit I had at Spring Lake turned out to be a fat bass that just made the 28-inch legal size. Even more surprisingly, though I was casting a Chug Bug popper the bass was hooked on a Castaways Tackle teaser. I don’t usually use teasers with poppers since the teaser s out of the water most of the time. However, I had that rig on so I could change to a sub-surface lure when the teaser could prove effective/. Though there wasn’t much water on the beach early in the morning, I also released another bass of about 26 inches, lost another and had  three other hits. Furthermore, I saw another angler release a good-sized striper that he said was 34 inches. Jim Louro of Spring Lake also released a couple of schoolies.

Vinny D’Anton tried Shark River first, and was surprised by s 26-inch striper plus a smaller one and a small blue on his Chug Bug. The Seaside Park tackle shops continue to report lots of small blues in the surf, particularly on mullet baits.

Bluefish haven’t been common in the surf further north, but Bob Correll of Bay Head caught two small blues on a popper this morning at his local beach,

The Golden Eagle from Belmar reported slower bluefishing today after a very good jigging bite Saturday.  The blues ran up to a 7-pounder, and there were a few little tunny and porgies jigged as well. They’re on an offshore tuna trip Monday, but will sail again for blues at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday.

The Ocean Explorer from Belmar reported good porgy fishing along with a few triggerfish.

 

 

Whether you caught fish or not today, if you were fishing you had to enjoy the nicest day of the fall with light west winds, warm temperatures and lots of sunshine. Some anglers also had good fishing.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar had to anchor up yesterday in rough seas to catch 3-to-4-pound blues plus little tunny, some bonito and lots of porgies.  On the other hand, today was gorgeous as jigging produced lots of those species.  The same sort of weather is predicted for Sunday,

The Ocean Explorer from Belmar reports red hot fishing for porgies and the one blackfish allowed in just 40 to 50 feet.  The Queen Mary from Point Pleasant reported blues up to 8 pounds, along with bonito, little tunny, porgies and even a dolphin.

At Seaside Park, Grumpy’s Tackle reports a continuation of abundant small bluefish in the surf — primarily on mullet. Here’s  Jaydon Alemany with a typical cocktail blue.

Betty & Nick’s also noted that some slot-size stripers are being hooked.

Jim Louro of Spring Lake hit it right this morning and plugged 10 school stripers in his local surf.

Manasquan was pretty slow despite perfect plugging conditions. Vinny D’Anton released one on a Chug Bug and missed a few bass, After he left I scratched out two stripers on the same lure.’

Bob Correll of Bay Head found some mullet at his beach and managed a small striper on a popper.

Allen Riley of South Plainfield rarely surfcasts on a weekends, but he couldn’t pass up such great weather at Sandy Hook. The tide was low and there was little water, but mullet were abundant. He caught a 2-pound blue on metal with his first cast, but the choppers stopped chasing the abundant bait and no other lures were hit in the 71 degree waters.

The pre-dawn rain seems to have kept most anglers at home. However, there was very good bluefishing jigging offshore on Thursday — and that fishing should continue on both day and night trips.

The Atlantic Highlands fleet has been catching lots of porgies along with some triggerfish and blackfish (for which the limit is one at 15 inches in N.J.) while the sea bass have to be released at this time in Garden State waters,  The Ocean Explorer from Belmar will also join in that fishery, while Elaine B II from Bahrs in Highlands is concentrating on catch-and-release blackfishing until the season opens,

Though rain didn’t turn out to be a problem after dawn, the surf was rough today. From what I raised to my popper this morning at Manasquan I would also say it was fishless except that Vinny D’Anton managed to catch four stripers up to 24 inches on his Chug Bug. I also tried metal with no hits,

Jim Hutchinson Sr, reports for the BHCFA as follows:

“Fall officially arrived this week, and recent cooler temperatures have the captains of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association starting to think about the arrival of the area’s greatest inshore sport fish, the striped bass.

Just like “snowbirds” heading down to Florida when winter arrives, the striped bass on their way south for the winter stop by local waters looking for food. When they find abundant food, they have been known to remain for quite some time. Right now with a good supply of mullet and bunker, they will be sure to stop in to fill their bellies.

To commemorate the presence of striped bass in the fall, there are several local striped bass tournaments, most for boats only. To mention a few-the Sea Shell Club, the Maximilian Foundation, the Stafford Township PBA, and the Red Men Lodge in Tuckerton all have e vents set for this fall. Most of these are for charitable causes and come with cash prizes, calcuttas, and various parties replete with good food.

Fishermen do not have to own a boat or be an expert to be competitive in one or more of these tournaments. Some of the captains of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association are available to take anglers out to compete in these events. A good boat and expert captain can make a difference in coming home with fish or empty handed.

To see how fishing with one of these experts might be accomplished, go the association’s website at http://www.BHCFA.net and get in touch with one or more of the captains to see what can be worked out.”

 

The combination of a gusty northeast wind and a southeast swell made for a rough day offshore, but anglers aboard the Golden Eagle from Belmar still were able to jig limits of bluefish ranging from 1 1/2 to 8 pounds plus some little tunny.

The Big Jamaica from Brielle will also be seeking those fish over the weekend during Saturday’s 7:30 a.m. and p.m. trips. They reported a good bluefish bite last Saturday night, and will seek a combination of blues, little tunny and bonito during the day.  The blues (see below)  have ranged all the way up to 11 pounds.

The northeast wind was moderate this morning, so I decided to give the surf a try to see if it had cleared up yet. It was rough at Manasquan, but fishable — so I gave it some time with a 2-ounce Tactical Anglers Bomb Jr. popper which produced three small stripers up to 22 inches while another got off. Those fish were plucked from different spots along the beach, and there was no follow-up hit at any of them.

It felt like fall, but I was still in my summer “uniform” of AFTCO shorts which were perfect in the still very warm waters of over 70 degrees. There was no sign of bait, and no birds were working. Everything was on blind casts. We’re still a long time away from what we expect from fall striper fishing along the northern Shore where we’re also not seeing bluefish.

On the other hand, the Seaside Park tackle shops report plenty of small blues and a few bigger ones in that area — where mullet have been common. Some small bass have also been mixed in there.

Capt. Dave De Gennaro of Hi Flier at Barnegat is looking at the weather and only committing to fish for “stuff” during an open trip at 7 a.m. Sunday. It could be grass shrimping for weakfish in the bay; casting for blues in the inlet; checking the shoreline for little tunny; or trolling Barnegat Ridge for bonito — or a combination of those possibilities. Check with him at hiflierfishing@verizon,net

Actually, aside from some rain predicted for tomorrow, there seems to be good weather coming up for the weekend with light winds and even some westerly breeze.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar only had a small group aboard this morning, but took a shot at running out to the east where they had a blast of bluefish Saturday night. That worked out as anglers had hits on every drop with jigs from choppers ranging from 3 to 10 pounds. They also added a dolphin and jumbo porgies.

Capt. Ron Santee reports his first few porgy trips with the Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands were very good for the target species plus a mix of triggerfish, blowfish and winter flounder.  Triggers in the 4-to-5-pound class took the pools.

Grumpy’s Tackle in Seaside Park had a striper to report as Sal Timpani released a fat 28-incher in the surf there.

Small blues have been hitting mullet in the surf from there to IBSP, but that’s the only surf action I’ve heard of. Vinny D’Anton took a look at the surf further north and said it was still high and discolored. He fished in Shark River to no avail. I worked Point Pleasant Canal after daylight, but there was nothing doing there.

 

Chunking at night in the canyons is traditionally at its best  in October, which is what the party and charter boat fleets are hoping for after a slow start to that fishery so far.

The Canyon Runner fleet from Point Pleasant had a very good spring to early summer yellowfin fishery, but tuna fishing has dropped off since. Fortunately, they did get in one good night of tuna and swordfish action last week during one of the many free canyon trips for armed service members and veterans that they run during the year, 

Adam La Rosa notes that he has some openings for that October chunking on open boat trips coming up. The cost is $899 per person, which includes food, drinks, tips and everything else on the Viking 48. Call 732 272-4445 for reservations.

 

Surfcasting for stripers has been tough in N.J. so far, but it wasn’t even great last weekend during the annual Montauk Surf Fishing Classic. Fred Golofaro of the Fisherman magazine reported that while some of the almost 300 surfcasters who fished from noon Friday to noon Sunday did well with small bass, there were only a few bigger fish entered. A 39.96-pound striper taken on a darter at Shagwong ran away with the title as the runner-up bass weighed only 22.54 and 17.8 pounds. For the first time there was no entry in the catch-and-release division with the contest’s 36-inch minimum.  The bluefish situation was even tough as there were few entries with just a 5-pound minimum. A 7.24-pound chopper won.

The Seaside Park tackle shops reported good bluefishing in the surf on Monday, with mullet being the best bet for bait. John Bushell Jr. at Betty & Nick’s is very enthused about the mullet run so far, and calls it 10 times better than last year’s. Let’s hope all this easterly wind doesn’t push them south too quickly.

I doubt if any boats sailed into today’s rain and wind, but the Golden Eagle from Belmar is set to try for bluefish on Wednesday.

Though small craft warnings are continued into Wednesday night, the wind forecast is for only 10-to-15-knots south. It’s looking very good from Friday through Sunday, with light winds including some of that rare northwest breeze.

As noted in the headline of a previous  blog, the fluke season ended with a whimper as it appears most of the larger fish had already moved offshore to their spawning grounds on the edge of the continental shelf. Party boat skippers had such poor results toward the end that most seemed content to move on from their major source of income.

The Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands reported only a couple of keepers and not many shorts on the last day.  Capt. Rob Semkewyc is taking some time off before starting striper fishing later in the month.

Also at that port, the Sea Tiger II reported one keeper fluke Friday afternoon, two Saturday morning, and one that afternoon. That was quite a contrast to the 1/2 to full bucket catches of porgies (see photo below) now  being taken on half-day trips.  They report most of the scup are over the 9-inch minimum, and there are some blowfish plus lots of sea bass that have to be released. 

The Atlantic Star is also fishing for porgies half-days, and the Fisherman is sailing for them on their usual schedule. Prowler V has also switched to porgies, but won’t be fishing again until Thursday or Friday due to the continuing east winds that have resulted in small craft warnings through Tuesday. The Angler is in the ship yard prior to Coast Guard inspection.

The Mimi VI from Point Pleasant will be sailing open for bottom fishing Friday and Saturday at 7 a.m. — and has scheduled Hudson Canyon tuna trips on Oct. 8 and 18. Call 732 370-8019 for reservations.

The surf has been rough in the gusty east wind, but conditions were fine this morning at the Point Pleasant Canal. Many of the regulars were casting jigs, and I was among the fortunate few who caught a bluefish in the 5-pound class. I saw only two others caught while I was there.

At Seaside Park, Betty & Nick’s reported surfcasters were “crushing” blues in the 3-to-5-pound class plus a few to 8 pounds Sunday from the bathing beaches to the inlet.

John Avery, one of my blog followers, finished up the fluke season in his small boat in sheltered Oyster Creek Channel of Barnegat Bay where he was surprised to catch a lizardfish on a small Hogy epoxy jig. He thought that was an usual fish to see up here, but they’re actually common at this time some years. Indeed, I remember catching them while a kid with my cane pole from docks in Merrick, Long Island as I was seeking snappers. Joe Melillo, at Castaways Tackle in Point Pleasant told me that the last time he was able to catch large stripers on plugs during the day in Point Pleasant Canal was when the bass were attracted by lizardfish many years ago.