The sea bass season opens tomorrow in New Jersey, and the Forked River Tuna Club has a tournament for that popular bottom fish on Saturday.

Boaters can sign up for the contest on Friday in the clubhouse at 7 p.m. for $125 a boat. Should the weather not be good, the contest will be run Sunday- or even next weekend. Call Paul Haertel at 973 943-8201 for details.

The annual Governor’s Cup Surf Fishing Tournament will be contested Sunday at Island Beach State Park. More about that tomorrow,

Maryland boats got a head start on sea bass, and Capt. Monty Hawkins on Morning Star from Ocean City reported three limits, plus the first cutlassfish of the season.

Small craft warnings for southwest winds are up until 8 p.m. , but at west 15-20 knots in the morning should be fishable for sea bass off the N.J. Shore.

Globetrotting angler Kil Song reported poor casting for yellowfin tuna plus hot weather in Panama, and couldn’t wait to try for fluke as soon as he got back. There was cool weather and lots of action on the Frances Fleet from Point Judith, R.I., but only one of his 19 fluke was a keeper.

Andreas Toy did a lot of running yesterday with the 44FA as they started up in the bay to catch the eating size stripers their party wanted before taking a tour of the Hudson River — and then heading south to look for a trophy striper which they did with a 48-incher. After that release, they cast for bluefish before returning to Point Pleasant.

This 14-foot, 4-inch hammerhead shark was caught in the Padre Island, Texas surf on May 5 by Glenn Laskowski Jr. on a cownose ray bait. He and his friend tried to release it, but Field & Stream reported the shark was too far gone. They were able to get it to a pier where it weighed 1054 pounds — still well short of the IGFA record of 1,280 pounds from Boca Grande, Florida.

Since the tautog season closed at the end of April, party boats have had to scratch out some ling while releasing lots of sea bass, or pick at fluke which haven’t been very active in cool bottom waters. From Wednesday through June 19 the limit will be 10 sea bass at a 12 1/2-inch minimum, which shouldn’t be difficult to fill from untapped wrecks. Be sure to check with your favorite skipper before sailing as some set up limited Marathon trips for the opener.

The weather tomorrow looks good in the morning with southwest winds at 10-15 knots increasing to 15-20 plus gusts to 25 in the afternoon.

Nick DiNapoli fished the Monmouth surf yesterday morning on the end of the flood to catch three stripers up to 26 inches with two on bloodworms and one on fresh clams. but still hasn’t come up with a keeper.

The N.J. Division of Fish and Wildlife sent the following reminder:

Today is Opening Day of the 2023 Striped Bass Bonus Program! Anglers can keep one striped bass (at 24” to less than 28”) per permit. Reporting bonus harvest within 24 hours is mandatory.Anglers will be which increase to 15-20 in the afternoon plus gusts to 25.eligible for an additional permit after a harvest report is submitted. Permits issued in 2022 are not valid in 2023.Please visit the Striped Bass Bonus Program webpage to apply and for more information. Reminder to Register: Participation in the free NJ Saltwater Recreational Registry Program is mandatory for all saltwater anglers 16 and older before heading out to fish.

---

Fish Bound from Ocean City Maryland produced incredible numbers of tautog exceeding 10 pounds during their winter to spring charters as noted below by Capt. Zane Bounds:

We wrapped up our Final day of the Winter/Spring Tog season yesterday. It has been a super long season for us, and we are ready to catch something different. The mild Winter had us start Togging Nov 1, and we never stopped fishing all the way through.

Some very impressive fish were caught this year with Jens 23.9 pound jumbo leading the pack. We had 3 fish over 20, and 5 at 19+ pounds this year WOW!! Lots of PB, and way to many DD to count.

The last week of Tog fishing was slower then I had hoped for, with only one day where everyone got their limit. Few healthy releases with Mike’s 14 pounder topping the list.

Next year we will be cutting back on the amount of Tog trips we run, so availability will be limited. We will not start fishing for them till Dec 10 this year. These fish need to start getting a break, and 7 months of Tog fishing Is way to long for these fish. November will focus on Deep water Jumbo Fluke, and SeaBass. If you have a trip scheduled with us in November for Tog please let us know. We will give you the option to switch over, if you would like.

Kevin and I both want to Thank everyone who fished hard, and traveled far to fish with us over the Winter. Lots of laughs, and some awesome fish.

Looking forward to the start of our SeaBass season tomorrow. Thanks Guys!!

The morning forecast is for northwest winds at 5-10 knots before going southwest 15-20 with gusts to 25 in the afternoon,

All reactions:

1111

Though they can’t be retained, there seem to be good quantities of striped bass in the 40-50-pound range in NY/NJ Bight which can provide anglers with a personal best catch.

Greg Prestosh reported releasing five over 40 pounds yesterday from his boat off the North Jersey Shore, including a PB of 48 pounds for Jim Hancharick.

Chuck Many said yesterday wasn’t quite as wild on his Tyman from Highlands, but when both he and Jake Many brought in 44-and-45-pounders at the same time he was able to get this photo before release:

With only four anglers aboard this morning, they had nine big bass on at one time which included a PB for Kevin Many at 48 pounds.

Though the wind is going northeast, it may be fishable at 10-15 knots with gusts to 20 before dropping to 5-10 knots in the afternoon.

Ocean fluking remains a pick, but Prowler 5 from Atlantic Highlands reports 23 keepers were caught yesterday even though the engines were working all day to provide a drift. A 5.3-pounder is leading the monthly pool.

The Jamaica from Brielle is leaving at 10 p.m. on a tilefish trip and has room for last minute anglers. Call 732 528-5014.

Rip Tide Bait & Tackle in Brigantine reports the lead in their black drum contest is up to 45 pounds, 6 ounces.

It appears that striped bass off the northern N.J. Shore have so many bunkers to select from that they’re difficult to interest in those being offered by anglers.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar reported plenty of bunkers near the beaches along with striper marks among them, but the linesiders wouldn’t hit. Sometimes that can change suddenly, and boaters should have good weather as they try since light west to southwest winds are forecast. The Golden Eagle will be trying for stripers again at 7:30 a,m, while itching to switch over to sea bass when that season opens Wednesday.

Chuck Many doesn’t bother with bunkers under these conditions as his eels are striper candy. His report from Tyman out of Highlands yesterday follows:

Not the complete mayhem of some of the last few trips, but very consistent action with David Glassberg, Robert Melloy, & Christian Johnson Regulations have definitely helped the last few years as my logs show more fish and bigger fish.

+12

Yesterday’s N.J. Marine Fisheries Council meeting didn’t produce any resolution to the ASMFC Emergency Action which requires a change in the maximum size to 31 inches by July 2. That issue will be passed on to the Council’s striped bass advisors for action at the next meeting. If no action is taken. N.J. will be subject to a striped bass closure even including the Bonus Program.

Even though NY/NJ Bight striped bass fishing has been generally very good, the spring run hasn’t worked out well for party boats. Indeed, after waiting until May 5 to get started, Capt. Ron Santee has given up on that fishery and switched to bottom fishing with his Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands. Santee will be targeting ling before the sea bass season opens on May 17.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar had a good bite of large bass in bunkers yesterday, and found the menhaden again today — but this time the stripers among them wouldn’t hit even snagged bunkers. Of course, that could change again tomorrow!

NYC charter skipper John McMurry got into very cooperative stripers yesterday that jumped on flies and plugs. The largest was a 45-inch fork length bass on fly pictured below.

Higbee’s Bait & Tackle in Fortescue has been reporting big bass being released by local surfcasters using bloodworms — such as this 43-incher by Steve Gallo.

Ron McCelland with a 12-pound tautog he caught last week from Fish Bound out of Ocean City, Maryland.

Capt. Frank Massaria finally had a tough morning with Raritan Bay stripers on his Vitamin Sea from Keyport this week, but was back into them on his afternoon charter.

The forecast remains good with west winds at 5-10 knots before increasing to southwest 10-15 plus gusts to 25 in the afternoon.

If you want to catch a personal record striper, now is a good time to try for one provided you are prepared with a large scale or a tape for taking measurements with which to use the formula for weight since those jumbos have to be released.

Chuck Many reported as follows:

Left the dock yesterday a little after 10am, brought 70 eels, out of bait by 4pm. Damn Son! That was sick William Veth, Matt Wellbrock, & Cesar Carranza! Ended 35 for 48 to Willie’s 50. In addition to the eels, smashed a few on the C80 Plugs!! Just a great time with great people!!! WOOOOOOO!!!!

In addition. the Golden Eagle from Belmar reported lots of bunkers on the surface with jumbo bass under them. All caught were released after being hooked on live bunkers plus a few on shads.

Mimi VI from Point Pleasant will be running a limited Mother’s Day trip for stripers, and also has some for bottom fishing coming up. Call 732 330-5674.

The Queen Mary from Point Pleasant hasn’t started running yet, as Capt. Dave and Cole Riback have been battling big dolphin and casting to yellowfin tuna in Panama along with Jerry Postorino.

The forecast is for west winds at just 5-10 knots before going southwest at 10-15 with gusts to 20 knots in the afternoon.

Though there have been some

Though there have been some blues around for a few weeks, they haven’t turned on for the NY/NJ Bight party boats anxious to switch over from stripers that have also been fussy.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar concentrated on lues yesterday — and found them. The only problem was that they wouldn’t bite. The blues, including some big ones, were splashing, but wouldn’t hit anything thrown at them. The few that hit were all lost. An attempt at fishing for them on a reef only produced sea bass that are out-of-season until May 17. The Golden Eagle didn’t fish today, but will be back at it at 7:30 a.m.

Though charter and private boaters with live bunker continue to do well with Raritan Bay stripers, those fish have become hard to interest in party boat techniques many days.

Capt. Dave DeGennaro has been doing well with 30-36-inch stripers on both bait and lures in Barnegat Inlet. The tide is key to that action rather than time of day, so he’s sailing open with Hi Flier from Barnegat from 1:30 to 8:30 p.m. from tomorrow to Friday. Call 732 330-5674.

Barnegat Inlet striper on Hi Flier

The forecast is for west winds at just 5 knots before going southwest 10-15 plus gusts to 20 in the afternoon.

Vinny D;Anton and Frank Manzi fished the Sarasota area yesterday with a guide to cast shrimp under docks for redfish and other local species. Frank is heading back to N.J. today, and the stripers there are in trouble as he’s now retired from the FBI and can put in a lot of time seeking them.

Even by Chuck Many’s standards, Sunday was a great one due to the size of stripers released from Tyman out of Highlands. Though many jumbo bass were unexpectedly lost, Many’s crew caught 33 out of 54 hooked — including the first two 50-pounders reported on the boat since it returned from the winter fishery in Virginia. Personal records were set by Chris Pereina with a 54, and by Chris Fiori at 52 pounds.

Fifty-pounders have always been the primary goal of dedicated anglers, and many outstanding ones, including Al Reinfelder, have gone to their graves without ever being fortunate enough to encounter one among the thousands they caught.

It was almost unheard of to release a potential 50-pounder in previous decades, so it was easy to keep track of most of them caught since they ended up on an official scale. There were big swings as numbers jumped whenever a large Chesapeake year class got to about 20 years old, but the Schaefer Contest that covered the Atlantic Coast estimated about 50 a year were weighed over a long period.

Now that it’s illegal to retain those super-spawners, the numbers of fifties reported has shot up even though many are merely estimated and often don’t even look close in photos.

Though a 50-nch striper was usually just above or below a 50 decades ago, that was because fish were measured to the fork of the tail at that time. Most anglers don’t have a 60-pound scale as Many does, but the formula developed many years ago is well-accepted as a legitimate means of determining released fish weights.

As noted here many times, the formula involves measuring the length to the fork of the tail plus the girth. It only takes seconds to do that, so the fish can be safely released. The formula is girth squared times length to fork of tail divided by 800. Many anglers forget to use the fork length which results in false fifties. In order to correct that on a big bass subtract about four inches from the overall length.

Capt. Ron Santee marked lots of bait and saw some bass trolled, but couldn’t find any biters today on his Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands. He’ll stick with that fishing until switching to sea bass when that season opens on May 17.

Andreas Toy from Perth Amboy reported bunkers were hard to come by this morning, but they kept working for them as that’s what the bigger bass wanted.

Capt. Mark DeBlasio reported a successful May 6 tilefish trip on his Water Proof from Point Pleasant from Point Pleasant, but a big bluefin tuna hooked while doing that was lost.

The Viking Starlite Sag Harbor Scup Express won’t be sailing tomorrow, but will then finish up there through Sunday. One angler caught both the largest 3-pound porgy and 5-pound weakfish today as porgy fishing was very good.

The Jamaica from Brielle reported a good tilefish trip yesterday with many limits taken. In addition to the golden tiles, several of the smaller bluelines were added. There is room on the next tilefish trip at 10 p.m. Saturday. Another trip has been added on Monday May 15 at 10p.m. Call 732 528-5014 for reservatios.

The Jamaica II made a ling trip yesterday, and had a good pick with a high hook of 33.

At Belmar, the Golden Eagle will be concentrating on bluefish tomorrow while also being ready to switch to stripers if they are feeding. Capt. Ralph Leyrer ran an open trip on his Last Lady as a hot bite at the end resulted in leaving them biting.

Tomorrow starts fine with north winds at just 5-10 knots before switching to west in the afternoon.

Manasquan River often has lots of blues at this time of year, but that wasn’t the case this morning when Andrew Sokol cast an SP Minnow there — though a 21-inch fluke provided a pleasant surprise.

Nicholas DiNapoli worked the Monmouth surf yesterday with both clams and bloodworms to catch three short stripers. For the first time, clams worked better for him — though Nick is still waiting for his first keeper this season. There have also been some good striper reports on clams in the Seaside Park area.

Much further south, cobia, such as this one caught by Amber Marchant, are showing off Palm Beach.