Bluefish have been hard to come by most of the time this season, but there was finally a breakthrough today as the Golden Eagle from Belmar reported “Super Crazy Bluefishing” today. To be sure, they were only 2-4-pounders, but any-sized blues in quantity are unusual these days. That fishing was on jigs, and they also had chub mackerel, bonito and sea bass.

The Jamaica from Brielle also had blues yesterday mixed in with bonito, chub mackerel,  Spanish mackerel, and a few sea bass. They recommend epoxy jigs and A-17 diamonds.

Vinny D’Anton reported some 3-pound blues were caught this morning in Shark River on poppers. He hooked the only small striper among them.

Capt. Vinny Vetere had a good day with stripers upriver on Wednesday. His Katfish from Great Kills may be available for charter or open boat on Saturday. Call 917 393-8908.

The surf at Manasquan was still rough and fishless this morning, but with light winds forecast the surf should be calm and clear tomorrow.

Nick Honachefsky of Saltwater Underground reports tropical waters have moved in within three miles of the Jersey Shore. He used Williamson Flash Feathers to catch both Spanish mackerel and “chicken” dolphin out there today.

Southeast winds at just 5-10 knots are forecast for tomorrow. Sunday should be south at 5-10 knots with patchy fog and 3-foot seas.

The JCAA new format fluke tournament is underway, and the MidAtlantic has its captains meeting in Cape May on Sunday.

The official  results from the recent White Marlin Open at Ocean City, Md. are in, and they set a high standard for the MidAtlantic . You’ll notice that several Brielle boats were in the money, but Frank Criscola’s tuna champ Crisdel was listed as from Ocean City rather than  Brielle Yacht Club.

The official release follows:

AUGUST 11, 2019 Final Tournament Summary
The 46th White Marlin Open can be considered the most successful tournament yet for a number of reasons: 404 boats fishing for a World Record $6,186,870 in prize money is a good start. The red hot billfishing set a tournament record for the number of billfish caught and released. The prize money paid included two anglers that each won over $1,500,000, a blue marlin won $962,165, a tuna that took $935,915, a dolphin that won $74,900, and a shark that won $231,300.
As impressive as the payouts were, equally remarkable was the huge number of marlin caught & released. By definition nobody saw them at the scales, but the release flags flew all week. The tournament record was 1,358 whites caught in 2016 but the anglers toped that by over 100 fish. The final count was 1,459 whites caught with 1,429 released with the top release boat, “Big Deal” out of Brielle, NJ breaking a 39-year-old record for most billfish releases by boat. The previous record was 26 white taken by the “Escapade” in 1980. In addition to the white marlin, the boats took 47 blue marlin with 46 released, and 13 sailfish were released as were the 2 spearfish caught. The total number of all billfish caught in the 46th Open was a staggering 1,521.
In the money divisions, basically, the big fish in most categories on Thursday held their spots after the last day of fishing. Ocean City, Maryland native Tommy Hinkle weighed a 79.5-pound white marlin on Thursday while fishing aboard the “Fish Whistle out of Indian River DE. The fish took 1st place and netted Tommy $1,504,720. Hinkle had also won the top white marlin in 2008 making Tommy the first angler in tournament history to win the top white marlin twice! The “Backlash” out of VA Beach, VA kept their $1,502,450 for the 73.5-pound white caught on Monday by angler Michael Wagner from La Plata, MD. “Chasing Tails” with angler Nate Walker, both from VA Beach, VA caught their 74-pound white on Monday and earned $135,000 (they were entered in fewer added entry levels than Backlash).
The 465.5-pound blue marlin caught on Tuesday by Craig Dickerson from Pasadena, MD aboard the “Haulin N Ballin” out of Ocean City, MD was the only qualifier in that division and Dickerson won $962,165 for his blue.
The “Crisdel” out of Ocean City, MD weighed in a 201-pound bigeye caught by Russell Garufi from Bishopville, MD on Monday and stayed in first the whole week to kept $935,915. The “Seakeeper” from Wilmington, DE weighed a 150.5-pound Allison tuna on Friday. The angler was Andrew Semprevivo from Mystic Island, NJ who took 2nd place and won $135,432 for his efforts. Ocean City native Ronnie Fields weighed a 145.5-pound tuna off the “Mjolnir” out of Bay Point, FL on Tuesday and held on to win $128,675.
The 277.5-pound mako shark caught Monday by Greg Robinson aboard the “Polarizer” out of OC, MD was the only shark weighed and held onto $231,300 won from the “Big Fish” pool.
The “Give It Away” out of Jupiter FL took over 1st place in the wahoo division with a monster
91-pound fish caught by Anne Aramandia from New Braufels, TX who won $24,475. Other
winners in the wahoo division were the “The Natural,” who won $23,475, “Keepin It Reel” who
won $20,475 and the “Nighthawk” out of Brielle, NJ with angler Jay Monteverdi, also from
Brielle who won $20,475.
The big winner in the dolphin division was the “Miss-Tress” out of Brielle, NJ with Randy Drozd
also from Brielle. The “Miss-Tress” was in the small boat dolphin division and the 38-pound
dolphin weighed on Friday won $74,900. The 1st place 41-pounder taken off the “Playmate”
out of OC, MD won $20,380 while the 2nd place dolphin was caught off the Stewart, FL boat
“Irene”. Angler Frank Sinito form Jupiter, FL won just $3,000 as the boat was not entered in
extra added skill levels.
In the Small Boat Division, it was Tommy Hinkle with the top white which helped his winnings
grow to $1,504,720. The heavy fish was taken by the “Reeldiculous” angler Graham Ward who
caught a 121-pound yellowfin good for $108,000.
Top Release Anglers
White Marlin Open Grand Champion
Ed Russo from Carlstadt, NJ
Fishing on “Big Deal” out of Brielle, NJ
1,190 points, 17 white marlin released
2nd Place Angler
Robert Wedeking from Princeton, NJ
Fishing on “Override” out of Brielle, NJ
910 points, 13 white marlin released
3rd Place Angler
Victor Roof, Jr.
Fishing on “Game On” out of Charleston, SC
875 points, 10 white marlin and 1 blue marlin released
4th Place Angler
Nicholas Rodriguez from Dover, DE
Fishing on “Par Five” out of Dover, DE
735 points, 8 white marlin and 1 blue marlin released
5th Place Angler
Dante Rodriguez from Egg Harbor, NJ
Fishing on “MJs” out of Cape May, NJ
735 points, 8 white marlin and 1 blue marlin released
Top Release Boats
1st Place Boat
“Big Deal” out of Brielle, NJ
1,960 points, 27 white marlin released*
$84,150
2nd Place Boat
“Uno Mas” out of Ocean City, MD
1,785 points, 23 white marlin and 1 blue marlin released
$31,860
3rd Place Boat
“Tar Heel” out of Wanchese, NC
1,750 points, 25 white marlin released
$28,800
* Broke a 39-year-old Tournament Record for most release points by a boat. The previous
record was 1,949 billfish pts. by the “Escapade “ in 1980 which consisted of 24 white marlin
released and 2 boated. The “Big Deal” out of Brielle, NJ caught and released 27 white marlin
to earn the WMO top release boat ever.

Anglers are running out of time to enter some tournaments this weekend.

As detailed in the release from Paul Haertel of the JCAA in last night’s blog, entry in their new format fluke tournament ends at 11:59 p.m. tonight. Entrants can pick one day from Aug. 16-18 to fish. Check that blog for details.

The Hudson River Fisherman’s Association closes entries for their Catfish Chaos Derby at 8 p.m. Friday. That Hudson River contest has weigh stations on both sides , and costs only $20 for adults and $10 for kids under 16. For info visit hrfa.org or Facebook@HRFA Catfish Derby – or call Scott Havner at 845 300-1562.

The captains meeting for the big-money MidAtlantic offshore trolling tournament is on Sunday. Read the press release a by Jeff Merrill at the end of this blog.

The bonito are back. The Jamaica from Brielle sent a report about them just after last night’s blog went in. High hooks had over 20 of the bonito that had been scarce for a few days. Bon Thach won the pool with a 6-pounder. Some blues and chub mackerel were also boated. In addition to those daily 7:30 a.m. trips, the Jamaica has a tilefish trip which sails at 10 p.m. Sunday and returns at 4 a.m. Tuesday.  A 31-hour tuna trip has been set for 7 a.m., Thursday Sept. 5. Reservations for those trips can be made by calling 732 528-5014.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar also got into the bonito yesterday, especially when they went into overtime during an afternoon blitz. They had already caught some blues, chub mackerel and keeper sea bass and fluke.  They went back to the same area today for a repeat of that action.

The Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands fished inside today due to the rough ocean, but still had plenty of action with mostly short fluke. There was one limit catch.

The northeast wind created what appeared to be ideal surf conditions for striped bass. When the Shark River regulars didn’t find much doing there, they all rushed to the surf only to find the same thing. I talked to an angler who had been at Manasquan since 5 a.m. trying everything without a touch in beautiful rough but fishable waters. Vinnie D’Anton and I even tried sand fleas at Spring Lake without a hit in the white water conditions that are usually best for fishing with mole crabs.

Bob Correll fished the Bay Head surf early and caught a small blue on his first cast — but nothing after that.

Tomorrow’s forecast is for east winds 10 knots, while it goes northeast again on Saturday — but at just 5-10 knots.

Below is a shot of the cutlassfish that Alvin M. Trotter caught while fluking off Belmar. As you can see, there’s no confusing cutlassfish with anything else!

 

 

Jeff Merrill’s press release:

Sizzling Billfish Bite Sets the Stage for Another Exciting MidAtlantic!
Middle Canyons Hot and Cape May is Ideal Location!
You could run out of adjectives describing the current billfish bite along the canyons off the mid-Atlantic coast but safe to say “it doesn’t get much better then this!” A combination of cobalt blue water, abundant schools of forage species and ideal weather have produced incredible action with white marlin and blue marlin for those making the run offshore. And, with the 2019 MidAtlantic tournament just days away, this world-class bite couldn’t happen at a better time! That’s right! We’re just a few days away from sportfishing’s “Main Event” on the tournament calendar and preparation for this year’s event has reached a feverish pace. Canyon Club Resort Marina in Cape May, New Jersey put the Mid in MidAtlantic and, as always, will be “home base” for the tournament which is set for its annual run the week of August 18-23. At Canyon Club Resort Marina participants are right smack in the middle of the action enjoying the best access to the fish whether running north to the Hudson Canyon or south to the Norfolk Canyon as well as every canyon in between! In fact, during the recent White Marlin Open, Ed Russo garnered the Top Angler award for the tournament among a field of over 2000 anglers and 400 boats with 17 white marlin released and his boat, Big Deal, won the prestigious Top Boat award for 28 white marlin released during three days of fishing including 15 in one day while sailing from Canyon Club Resort Marina for the event!
Tournament entries have been flowing in at a steady pace and while Canyon Club Resort Marina is filling up, some slips are still available for vessels of various sizes. Join the tournament fleet at Canyon Club Resort Marina along with many of the MidAtlantic’s previous winners who sail from Cape May each year. Besides a world class marina that offers all the amenities to pamper tournament participants, family, crew and friends during the best week on the tournament calendar, you’ll also be at the tournament’s epicenter with access to the “Big Top” tent which includes the “Sponsors Midway” where you’ll find the latest in gear and services offered by MidAtlantic exhibiting sponsors. For dockage information and slip reservations give Paul Hoffman a call at 609-884-0199.
The tournament’s base entry fee of $3000 includes all dockside social activities for up to six people. Proceeds from ten optional calcuttas with fees ranging from $1000 to $6000 provide the prize money for the tournament. Last
year well over $3 million was paid out and the MidAtlantic continues to be, boat-for-boat, the richest big game
-more-
-2-
fishing tournament in the world. The event’s prize structure provides numerous big payouts each year and last year
eight winners walked off the awards podium with checks greater than six figures while eight others won $25,000 or
more!
Participants will select three days to fish during the week of August 19-23 with cash prizes awarded in various
ways for white marlin, blue marlin, tuna, dolphin and wahoo weighed as well as billfish released. Minimum
weights are 65 pounds for white marlin, 400 pounds for blue marlin and 50 pounds for tuna (big eye, yellowfin or
true albacore) to win cash. All boats must fish within 125 miles of the Cape May Sea Buoy regardless of sailing
port.
The MidAtlantic gets underway on Sunday, August 18 when late registration, calcutta entries and a cocktail
reception will take place from 1 – 4:30 p.m. at Canyon Club Resort Marina and the event’s only satellite venue,
Sunset Marina in Ocean City, Maryland. For your convenience registration can also be completed online prior to
the tournament at http://www.themidatlantic.com. You’ll also find complete rules, schedule, calcutta information, points
and prize breakdowns and a link to purchase 2019 tournament apparel. For additional tournament information
contact Tournament Director Aaron Hoffman at 609-884-0177. Be sure to follow the action via the South Jersey
Tournaments App which can be downloaded for free on any IOS or Android device from the Apple App and
Google Play stores. Additionally, follow the tournament on Facebook at The MidAtlantic Tournament; on Twitter;
@midatl and on Instagram; @themidatlantictournament.
It’s the 2019 MidAtlantic! It’s only a few days away and it’s gonna be another dandy! Come join the fun and
perhaps you’ll have the opportunity to join the winners on the podium and be in a photo with a big check.

A state record cobia was caught Friday around McCrie Shoal by Len Andalis. As best I can piece together the article which appeared in the Atlantic City Press, the angler was fishing for fluke on his Franchesca Rose and cast a 6-ounce Spro jig to the fish which was probably spotted.  It took the jig as soon as it hit the water and ran uff 100 yards. The fight went on for 1 1/2 hours. The cobia was weighed at Canyon Club Resort Marina in Cape May, and at  90.6 pounds was clearly larger than the listed record of 87 pounds. Ironically, the state spearfishing record for cobia was also broken on Sunday with a 74.5-pounder speared three miles off Sea Isle City.

Speaking about summer surprises in N.J., there was another cutlassfish caught. Alvin Trotter was fluking off Belmar, not far from the inlet, when he hooked the long, flattish silvery fish with a mouth full of sharp teeh. He e-miled me a request to identify it, and even before seeing the photo I knew what it was as several have been caught lately. As previously noted. I caught many of those odd fish while fishing the piers of the U.S. Naval Station in Trinidad, West Indies while serving as a Navy officer there from 1961-1963 — but only at night under the lights.  They are an important market fish in many tropical countries, being caught in great depths at night where swordfish feed on them,

The photo below was supposed to be of the cutlassfish, but Word Press has been inserting different photos than selected on a few occasions lately. I’ll try the cutlassfish tomorrow.  Worst of all, I couldn’t match that shot at Manasquan this morning. I didn’t raise a thing on a popper, and know of only one bass caught under good conditions. I switched to Fisherman’s Choice squid strips soaked in shedder crab oil to release two short fluke up to 16 inches.

Bob Matthews, at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar Marina, says ocean fluking has improved. Gianna Murphy of Lake Como weighed a 6-pound, 5 ounce fluke she caught off the Trade Winds on a strip of salmon belly.  There are plenty of fluke in Shark River, but keepers are hard to come by. Kingfish plus small blues and stripers are in the surf, and inlet anglers are catching snappers while getting some shots at Spanish mackerel.

Kingfish were abundant Monday afternoon when Nick Honachefsky of Saltwater Underground fished the Lavallette surf to release over 20 up to a relatively large 13 inches. Spanish mackerel were jumping, but wouldn’t hit.

Paul Haertel of the JCAA submitted the following notice:

LAST CALL FOR JERSEY COAST ANGLERS ASSOCIATION NEW FORMAT FLUKE TOURNAMENT 8/16-8/18 – YOU MUST BE ENTERED BY 11:59 PM ON THURSDAY 8/15. YOU MAY DO SO ONLINE UNTIL THAT TIME OR YOU MAY CALL 973-943-8201 TO PAY BY CREDIT CARD OR FAX YOUR APPLICATION WITH CREDIT CARD INFO TO 732-506-6975.
The Jersey Coast Anglers Association’s is second fluke tournament this summer on August 16th, 17th and 18th. The weather looks good and the fluking is finally picking up. Now is the time to start filling your freezer and perhaps win some cash!  We are going to try an exciting new format and see how much interest it generates. For seven years in a row, we have had bad weather or a bad weather forecast on the day of our tournament. Therefore, this tournament will run for three days with hope that we will have good weather on at least one day. We realize that not everyone can fish two or three days, so to be fair to everyone, each boat will be limited to fishing only one day. However, each entrant will be able to choose the day they fish. The other major change is that the 1st through 5th place prizes will be based on the total weight of each entrant’s three largest fluke. This will take some of the luck factor out of the tournament and we are also limiting the number of anglers to 4 per boat to keep it a level playing field. Based on a minimum of 250 boats, 1st place will be $5000, 2nd place $2500, 3rd place $1500 and there will be gift certificates from our sponsors for 4th and 5th place. Additionally, there will be a $1000 prize for the largest fluke in caught in the tournament. We will also have $50 and $100 three fluke Calcuttas, $50 and $100 single fluke Calcuttas and even a $50 single seabass Calcutta.
This tournament is being run on short notice so there will only be four weigh-in stations this year, located in central part of our state. The weigh-in stations will be Fishermen’s Den in Belmar, Capt. Bills Landing Marina in Manasquan, Creekside Outfitters in Waretown and Fisherman’s Headquarters in Ship Bottom. However, if this new format works, we will add more weigh-in stations to the north and south next year. We hope to take the best features of both of our tournaments and combine them into one really good tournament next year.
The awards ceremony and Country Style Barbeque will be held at the Brick Athletic League Building from 5-9 PM on August 18th. Barbequed chicken, pulled pork, sausage & peppers, baked beans, corn on the cob, coleslaw, macaroni salad, soda and water will be served and you can BYOB as well. We will have a 50/50 and live entertainment will be provided by Ken and the Escorts!

Entry fee per boat (up to 4 anglers) is $150. The entry fee includes two admissions to the Awards Ceremony/BBQ but additional tickets may be purchased in advance for $25 each. Extra tickets will not be available at the door. You may sign up online until 11:59 PM on 8/15. For complete details and to print and application or to register online go to www.jcaa.org ,visit our Facebook page or call Paul at 973-943-8201.

CALL FOR JERSEY COAST ANGLERS ASSOCIATION NEW FORMAT FLUKE TOURNAMENT 8/16-8/18 – YOU MUST BE ENTERED BY 11:59 PM ON THURSDAY 8/15. YOU MAY DO SO ONLINE UNTIL THAT TIME OR YOU MAY CALL 973-943-8201 TO PAY BY CREDIT CARD OR FAX YOUR APPLICATION WITH CREDIT CARD INFO TO 732-506-6975.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) issued the following press release after last week’s summer meeting:

Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board Approves

Draft Addendum VI for Public Comment

Arlington, VA – The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission’s Atlantic Striped Bass Management Board (Board) approved Draft Addendum VI for public comment. The Addendum was initiated in response to the 2018 Benchmark Stock Assessment which indicates the resource is overfished and experiencing overfishing. The Draft Addendum explores a range of management alternatives designed to end overfishing and reduce fishing mortality to the target level in 2020.

“The Draft Addendum is a critical first step to stem overfishing as quickly as possible and begin efforts to rebuild the biomass,” said Board Chair Dr. Michael Armstrong with the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries. “Following approval of the Addendum, the Board will likely initiate a new amendment to consider a longer term strategy to fully rebuild the resource.”

The Draft Addendum proposes management options for both commercial and recreational sectors in the ocean and in Chesapeake Bay in order to reduce total fishery removals by 18% relative to 2017 levels. The proposed measures include reduced quotas for commercial fisheries, and changes in bag limits, minimum sizes, and slot size limits for the recreational sector. Since catch and release practices represent a significant component of overall fishing mortality, the Draft Addendum also explores the mandatory use of circle hooks when fishing with bait to reduce release mortality in recreational striped bass fisheries.

It is anticipated the majority of Atlantic coastal states will conduct public hearings on the Draft Addendum; a subsequent press release will announce the details of those hearings once they become finalized. Fishermen and other interested groups are encouraged to provide input on the Draft Addendum either by attending state public hearings or providing written comment. The Draft Addendum will be available on the Commission website (www.asmfc.org) under Public Input by August 19^th. Public comment will be accepted until 5:00 PM (EST) on September 27, 2019 and should be forwarded to Max Appelman.

Speaking of striped bass, this morning couldn’t have started any better for me when I got to the beach at first light. I was reeling in my second cast on open beach and already starting to walk toward a more likely spot when my Storm Big Bug popper was nailed almost in the wash. I was sliding a 25-inch striper out of the water wnen Vinny D’Anton arrived and said “They’re here. We should have a good morning.” Long story short — no one raised another fish before I left to give Point Pleasant Canal a try for blackfish.

Some sandworms left over from fishing with Chuck Many Friday evening were immediately attacked in the canal — but by the young-of-the-year sea bass that have arrived in force. It’s hard to get through the 5-7-inch sea bass with soft baits. I released a couple of tog to 14 inches yesterday morning on the slack, and a 13-incher today among all the sea bass. Green crabs are the best bet for blackfish in the canal as usual.

Though the weather forecast kept many anglers home, it was a very fishable day. Capt. Ron Santee said he hit the change of tide just right in the morning, and there was a good pick of keeper fluke as everyone went home with a fluke dinner from the Fishermen out of Atlantic Highlands.

The Queen Mary from Point Pleasant had mostly sea bass on Sunday, but also a surprise tuna.

 

Jon Falkowski of Linden fished aboard the Misty Morn from Morgan yesterday and was pleased with the results. He had a keeper fluke plus nine shorts. There were seven keepers among nine fares — which isn’t bad for Raritan Bay this year.

Scott Leadbeater has been frustrated by the lack of bluefish to cast to in the bay from his 20-footer out of Atlantic Highlands he managed a consolation prize of two legal fluke in Swash Channel and at the towers.

The forecast is for northwest winds at 5-100 knots in the morning.

 

 

Capt. Stan Zagleski usually finds a few doormat fluke each season with his Elaine B. II from Bahrs in Highlands, and another  was added Sunday as Ken Peters of Springfield, N.J. came through with a 10-pound, 5-ounce catch.

That was a good day for those using Gulp Grubs  on jigs or big baits as some had fluke limits, and one angler limited on both fluke and sea bass. Pete Burrows of Hillside weighed a 7 3/16-pound fluke.

 

Capt. Rob Semkewyc reported better action with both keeper fluke and sea bass that day on his Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands.

The Big Mohawk from Belmar had some fluke limits Sunday. They will sail at 6 a.m. tomorrow.

There wasn’t much doing this morning when I walked down to the Bay Head surf, though I did see one Spanish mackerel caught. I only baught one small bluefish o a small popper, but later found out that just a few blocks further south there was a blitz of cocktail blues pushing spearing up on the beach. Joe Melillo, of Castaways Tackle in Point Pleasant, said he was kicking those small blues back in the water after they’d jimped up on the sand while chasing spearing.

I didn’t see any Spanish mackerel jumping offshore, but Ray Soriente ran his Boston whaler fout miles out of Manasquan inlet and found them mixed with cocktail blues. he managed to troll six Spanish.

Vinny D’Anton stuck with the Monmouth County surf and released three school stripers up to a 27 1/2-incher on his Chug Bug.

Allen Riley and John Mazzeo from South Plainfield hadn’t had much luck at Sandy Hook lately, but walked into a blitz of blues that Rilry said were feeding on spearing or rainfish. They hit readily before movin offshore, and ranged from snappers up to1-2-pound yelloweyes. Mazzeo kept some for strip baits, and caught short fluke steadily. Riley couldn’t get them on Gulp, but the hooked fluke up to a 17-incher on the strips.

Capy. Vinny Vetere took his party for the large porgies today on Katfish from Great Kills. They had lots of light tackle sport, but Vetere goes back to bunkers for stripers tomorrow on an open trip. Call him for a reservation at 917 693-8908. I tried to insert a porgy shot, but ended up with the striper shot from Saturday. You never know with Word Press.

The wind may change to northeast after midnight, but the forecast for the morning is still west at 10-15 knots with gusts to 20 and possible showers or thunder storms.

Mimi VI from Point Pleasant has an open bottom fishing trip on Wednesday at 6 a.m. The fare is $75. Call 732 370-8019.

 

A Friday evening trip with Chuck Many on his Ty Man from Gateway Marina in Highlands started well as Capt. Hans Kaspersetz hooked a rod bender on his light rod that turned out to be about a 6-pound worm-eating bluefish. I then got the right hit on sandworms drifted in Shrewsbury River, and had a good tussle with a 30-inch striper before it was released.

Chuck had to run the boat in order for us to make a proper presentation in the strong current, but Hans and I each only released a short bass before we dropped Hans off at the dock. I stuck it out with Chuck as he checked several areas, but the marks we recorded just didn’t turn into hits. I finally hooked a 26-incher upriver, but we were drifting so fast that it felt like I was trolling that bass on the surface while reeling it in.  It’s hard to believe that stripers could pass up juicy sandworms drifting past them, but I’ve seen the same thing happen on other occasions. A gusty and cool northwest wind didn’t help, but we were treated to the sight of decorated boats participating in the Festival of Lights

There was some good news on the fluke front today. Capt. Ron Santee said he had a perfect drift all day, and it turned out to be one of the top ten trips of the year so far on the Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands. Several fares limited, and others bagged two fluke. June Benson boated a 7.4-pound fluke. There was also a showing of big sea bass.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar only picked on bluefish with jigs, but added chub mackerel on bait plus some sea bass. They have postponed Tuesday’s 16-hour tuna trip due to the forecast for that day. It will be run on Tuesday, Aug. 20.

Vinny D’Anton didn’t get any good news on stripers from Monmouth County beaches this morning, while he tried Shark River which also disappointed.

Joe Melillo, at Castaways Tackle in Point Pleasant reported that he and some shop regulars caught cocktail blues, Spanish mackerel and fluke in the local surf before the sun got high. Small metals and teasers did the job.

I took a shot at Spring Lake where those fishing before I arrived said they were bothered by snappers. They were gone when I started popping, but I did get one solid hit before heading for breakfast,

Scott Leadbeater fished his 20-foot Aquasport out of Atlantic Highlands yesterday along with Tim Moger of Belmar as they scratched out two legal fluke among some shorts off the Nay Pier and in Chapel Hill Channel in good drifting conditions with the west wind and outgoing tide. A move to Flynn’s Knoll produced two more keepers on the mussel beds.

Monday’s forecast is for west winds at 5-10 knots before becoming 10-15 with gusts to 25 in the afternoon.

The 46th White Marlin Open at Ocean City, Md. ended up yesterday with a record total of white marlin.

It’s refreshing to see a species in such good abundance at the same time we’re facing tough restrictions on most species and a virtual disappearance of such once abundant fisheries as Atlantic mackerel, winter flounder and NY/NJ Bight silver hake (whiting).

The previous record was 1358 in 2016, but the unofficial total as of Friday night was 1429 whites released plus 30  weighed in for a total of 1459.

There were also 46 blue marlin released and just the one winner boated. There were 13 sailfish and two spearfish released, while tuna fishing was slow with just 18 boated and one release reported. That also applied to dolphin until a Friday surge brought the count up to 20 weighed and one release. The nine wahoo boated were in the normal range, and the only shark was Greg Robinson’s 277.5-poumd mako on Polorizer that was worth $225,000 because it was in the Big Fish Calcutta.

The earlier blog today summarized the unofficial results, and the WMO promises official results shortly which I’ll pass along.

Good weather continues tomorrow with winds of 5-10 knots northwest , becoming west in the afternoon.

The Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands reported somewhat more keeper fluke and sea bass in beautiful weather today. One angler had a fluke limit.

A few school stripers fell for poppers on Monmouth County beaches this morning, and there was also a showing of cocktail blues. Lots of Spanish mackerel were spotted jumping far out of range.

 

The million-dollar mark was well passed by two boats in the White Marlin Open which ended last night in Ocean City, Maryland.$1.5 million Tommy Hinkle was the winner with a 79.5-pound white on Fish Whistle which made him the first to win the WMO twice. He did that  this time in the Small Boat Division, and took home $1,500,000.

Nathan Walker had taken the lead right away with a 74-pounder on Chasin Tail, but wasn’t in all the Calcuttas and took a big hit revenue for second place though $135,000 is still a good week’s work. It was Michael Wagner on the third place Backlash who got the other $1.5 million prize for a 73.5-pounder.

Only one blue marlin met the 114-inch minimum for weighing, and Craig Dickerson swept the category on his Haulin N Ballin with a 465.5-pounder for $900,000.

Frank Criscola barely missed out on a million, but was happy to settle for $940,000 on his Crisdel from Brielle Yacht Club as Russel Garufi reeled in a 201-pound bigeye to win the tuna division.

There were lots of changes the last day in dolphin and wahoo as Play Mate won $18,000 for a 41-pound dolphin, and Give It Away took $16,000 for a huge 91-pound wahoo,

I’ll have a complete list of major prize winners and other details in my blog this evening.

There was some confusion with the Marlin Cam, but it appears all the big money leaders held their places while there was a massive turnover in dolphin and wahoo. I’ll double check everything and add a blog in the morning.

As this is being written, boats have just concluded fishing in the canyons before making the long run back to Ocean City, Md. for the final weigh-in to determine how the White Marlin Open purse of $6, 143,000 will be split up.

As noted in last night’s late blog, there was a dramatic change in the biggest money division of the contest as Jimmy Hinkle brought a 79.5-pound white marlin to the scale on Fish Whistle. He was a winner in 2008 and is entered in the Small Boat Division which builds his prospective earnings up to $1,460,000. Nathan Walker on Chasin Tail led from the first day with a 74-pound white. Though the huge pay-off was denied, he should be able to make it home with $135,000.  The third place Backlash +will provide Michael Wagner with a $1,500,000 award for buying into all the Calcuttas.

Haulin N Ballin has had no competition in blue marlin for their 465.5-pounder and $740,000. Frank Criscola’s Crisdel from Brielle Yacht Club boated a 201-pound bigeye tuna the first day, and I predicted that would be hard to beat. So far that’s been true, and it could be worth 940,000.

Game Changer has been leading the way in dolphin with a 35.5-pounder, and The Natural has made a runaway in wahoo with an 82-pounder.  The shark division doesn’t attract much attention, but 277.5-pound mako on Polorizer is also in the Big Fish Calcutta and could pay off $225,000.

There were 268 boats eligible to fish on the last day.

The species count for Thursday included 38 white marlin released and two boated; one blue marlin released; three tuna boated; and one dolphin brought to the scale.

I’ll have the major winners in my late blog, and all the details as soon as they become available over the weekend.

Phil Fischer reports he dodged thunderstorms in Raritan Bay yesterday, but came up with two legal weakfish up to a 4-pounder plus kingfish and two keeper fluke — but not the porgies which had been plentiful at this time last year.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar reported very good jigging today for 2-4-pound bluefish plus some sea bass.

Capt. Howard Bogan hasn’t been reporting this week because he was fishing in Ocean City with Nighthawk III. They got a thrill when J.P. Monteverdi fought a 54.5-pound wahoo that tied for third at that time and was the daily winner which could lead to a $16,000 pay-off. He said Wednesday was the only slow day locally for the Big Jamaica 7:30 a.m. daily trips, though bonito have been scarce this week while chub mackerel dominate.

The Monmouth County surf continues to produce a few school stripers on poppers. At least it did for Vinny D’Anton who released two and Frank Manzi who hooked one — though I couldn’t buy a hit among all the surfers enjoying the swells.

Capt. Vinny Vetere said striper fishing in Hudson River was no good today, but he ran to L.I. Sound with his Katfish from Great Kills to limit with bass up to a 46-incher.