Rashawn Williams figured he’d have to set personal records for each species in the Fisherman Dream Boat Challange in order to win the Steiger Craft 21/Yamaha rig– and that’s what he did last year to end up with an eight point win over Vince Zorskas. Williams took the lead with a Nantucket party boat trip which produced a 13.06-pund doormat fluke..

The second place prize of a trip for two to Tropic Star Lodge in Panama is an almost sure shot at a black marlin plus many other tropical species.

More about this tomorrow.

A gale warning is up in NY/NJ Bight through Tuesday afternoon. West winds will be gusting to 40 knots.

The large party boats seeking sea bass on far offshore wrecks lost many trips to weather this fall, and there’s no making up for that as the season closes with the end of the month,

Southwest winds at 15-20 knots increase to 25-30 in the afternoon. Seas up to 9 feet plus rain areare added.

As if 25-khot northeast winds aren’t enough, anglers in NY/NJ Bight will also get snow with their small craft warnings .

The far offshore wrecks remain loaded with big sea bass, but getting to them remains a challenge. The Golden Eagle from Belmar has cancelled Dec. 26 and 28 trips due to the weather forecasts.

Sho-Nuf Charters from Cape Charles, Va. will continue their trophy striper trolling as long as those trophy size bass can be released.

A gale warning remains up in NY/NJ Bight. Rain and snow is likely at times.;, with seas up to 6 feet.

Merry Christmas & a Fishy New Year.

It’s been one after another lately for NY/NJ Bight, but now even large vessels are urged to remain port.

Merry Christmas and a fishy New Year!

Though it’s best to stay away from tackle which may not be suitable for the fishing your angler enjoys, you can’t go wrong with AFTCO fishing clothing. I wear AFTCO shorts almost every day as they not only are almost indestructible, but also fashionable. AFTCO also features a line of Guy Harvey shirts covering many types of saltwater fish in action. Many tackle shops carry AFTCO clothing which can also be purchased on their web site.

If your angler regularly fishes aboard a particular party boat, you can go to their web site and find discounted trip tickets which can be used at any time. The same thing can be accomplished with his favorite tackle shop.

For young anglers, a stocking full of such odds and ends as leadered hooks and sinkers may be more appreciated than school clothing. At least that was the case with me when I started fishing with a cane pole from docks around Merrick, Long Island!

The forecast for NY/NJ Bight is for southwest winds at 15-20 knots before diminishing to 15 in the afternoon. Rain and snow is likely.

Though Chuck Many wasn’t able to bring his Tyman to the Chesapeake for the winter trophy striper fishery, he got out with Capt. Clinton Lessard on his Sho-Nuf last week for experimental trips that produced 18 big stripers including 51 and 53 pounders by slow trolling live eels out of Cape Charles. This is all release fishing, but a best bet for those seeking the largest striper of a lifetime.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar had to cancel last night’s offshore wreck trip due to the winds.

The NY/NJ Bight forecast is for west winds at 15-20 knots.

Anglers seeking a personal best striper are very likely to reach their goal by fishing Chesapeake Bay’s winter waters. Females that left northern waters in the fall are now full of roe which adds to the weight of the released fish. Those interested should contact Sho-Nuf Charters at Cape Charles, Virginia.

The forecast for NY/NJ Bight is for west winds at 15-20 knots before increasing to 25 in the afternoon.

Though the forecast is marginable for smaller boats, the big party boats may be able to fishoffshore wrecks in northwest winds.

The Saturday forecast is for NW at 15-20 knots plus gusts to 30. That still may be comfortable on the big party boats, and the Golden Eagle from Belmar is planning to make the run. Remember that the sea bass fishery closes at the end of the month.

Wind is the enemy of winter fishing, and that may be a problem with south winds of 30-40 knots in NY/NJ Bight through Friday.