Tight Lines

Many boats are already out of the water, but it’s not for a lack of stripers. Dave Lilly borrowed a boat this morning and took his son Jeremy and a friend to the back of the bay where they found unlimited numbers of keeper bass by trolling ho-jos, The water was down to 45 degrees and there were few boats on a calm Saturday, though bass were on top all morning. It was different in the ocean where the Golden Eagle from Belmar reported bass on top that wouldn’t hit well,

The forecast is for NE winds at 10-15 knots before going east at 5-10 in the afternoon.

That was Capt. Ron Santee’s assessment of the striper fishing today on his Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands, There was life over a wide area, and bass from 28 to 35 inches bit all day. Topwater lures worked best, and heavy shads were productive if fished close to bottom in the fast drift.

The Jamaica from Brielle may have room on its 10 p.m. trip to far offshore wrecks. Limits of sea bass up to 5 1/2 pounds have been common along with lots of jumbo porgies and even some bluefish and weakfish. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations.

Mike Monte saw some cormorants diving in the Sea Girt surf this morning and cast a Tsunami Sand Eel in that area to release two stripers in the 25-inch class and lose two others in that obvious sign of sand eels being present.

Chuck Many fished off Cape Charles, Virginia this morning to release trophy bass with Capt. Clinton Lessard. He recommends that veteran skipper to anyone seeking the striper of a lifetime. Call 757 710-0098.

Saturday’s forecast is for west winds at just 5 knots before increasing to 10-15 with gusts to 20 in the afternoon.

Bob Matthews reports as follows from Fisherman’s Den in Belmar Marina:

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The bass bite is still hot on the party boats, the Eagle and Belmar returned today with a mixed bag of bass 28 to 38 inches, fish over 40 inches and bonus fish.The boats were fishing off Seaside and Island Beach they had Big Blues mixed in.The surf is feast or famine, they come in on peanut bunkers, if you’re there it’s fishing at its best,the next day you spend gazing at a dead sea1 have had zero luck hitting those remarkable days, when I’m working the fish are blitzing,on my days off I spend looking an empty beautiful surf,so goes the season of peanuts.The bottom boats are doing very well with blackfish, we should see the fishing hold up as long as we don’t get a bad winter storm.I’m still hoping we get a infusion of sandeels in the mix, that would make for a more consistent fishery.             Keep warm and dry, see you on the beach. BOB”

Vinny D’Anton called from Lavallette this afternoon and said nothing was going on, though birds were working outside the bar as anglers hoped they will move in. There was a very brief blitz yesterday afternoon that included a bass in the 30-pound class.

Mike Monte was determined to catch a bass on a Tsunami Sand Eel at Belmar this morning, and didn’t take any other lures with him. He was encouraged by the presence of cormorants diving in the ares, and managed a couple of small bass that hit right in the wash. Hopefully that’s the start of more consistent fishing.

The Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands only found some small bass where he ended up with a blast yesterday before heading out to the ocean where there was 3 knot drift and they just picked away. The high hook caught seven bass and two blues, while the pool striper was 34 inches.

A small craft advisory is up for Thursday afternoon to Friday afternoon. Tomorrow’s forecast is for southwest winds qt 15-20 knots plus gusts to 25.

 Reply  Rep

Vinny D’Anton said there were lots of anglers on hand yesterday afternoon as stripers blasted peanut bunkers in the Ocean County surf, and the action was so intense that some anglers left them biting as they couldn’t fight any more. Many lures worked, but Vinny stuck with poppers. Yet, the same area had no bait and no bass this morning.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar got into lots of bass and good readings this morning, but they didn’t bite well. However, they did end up limiting on bonus bass.

Capt. Ron Santee got into small bass right away with his Fishermen from Atlantic Highlands, but then did a lot of searching for bass that weren’t hitting before returning to his starting place and bailing out with a hot bite that included bass breaking next to the boat.

The forecast is for west winds at 10-15 knots.

Tuesday’s trip of the Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands will be the last that Capt. Rob Semkewyc runs as he heads down to Oriental, North Carolina in retirement to escape New Jersey taxes

Rob is going out at the top of his game as the fall striper run has been exceptional. The boat will be going to Montauk, where it will be run under another name. Rob has not only established a great reputation for his fishing abilities, but I’ve always been able to count on the honesty of his reports, good or bad.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar was into lots of stripers this morning, but it was difficult to get hits from them.

Mike Monte reported morning surf fishing has been tough, but he knew of afternoon surf blitzes over the weekend in Ocean County — and I just got a call from Vinny D’Anton as that county has broken open for surfcasting. Vinny has been into bass up to 32 inches.

The Golden Eagle from Belmar reported a slower day of striper fishing though not for any lack of bass. They were splashing on the surface this morning and birds were diving, but they just weren’t hitting well. That changed during the day, and the boat went into overtime in order to come up with a good catch of keepers and bonus bass. Shad lures worked best, and there were even some fluke released,

The Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands reported another fine day of striper fishing, but Tuesday will be the Last day to fish with Capt. Rob Semkewyc. More about that tomorrow.

The forecast is for northwest winds at 15-20 knots with gusts to 25.

The northwest gale worked out well for Jersey Shore surfcasters, but boaters will be a lot happier with Sunday’s forecast of southwest winds at a mere 5-10 knots before shifting to northwest in the afternoon. The entire fleet should be back in action, with the striped bass being the featured species.

The Jamaica from Brielle may have room on its last canyon trip at 10 p.m. Sunday. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations.

It’s been a long time coming, but it appears that the northwest gale has started a striper feeding frenzy in the N.J. surf.

Vinny D’Anton reports he got into them this morning at Sea Girt, but there were other groups of surfcasters doing the same thing at nearby beaches. Vinny and Frank Manzi har good-sized schoolies up to 28 inches. Vinny was using a MirrOlure, but other lures were also working.

Nick Kolodiy of Brick checked Bay Head in the morning and saw bird action well out of casting range, but went back in the afternoon and was able to reach bass up to a 28-incher with a shad lure. The howling west wind made long casts possible.

That wind kept most boaters at home, but the Golden Eagle from Belmar reported very good fishing for stripers and big blues on the Thanksgiving trip — and will be back out there in the morning.

The gale warning continues to the morning with northwest winds of 20-25 knots and gusts to 35. However, the Big Mohawk from Belmar plans to run a blackfish trip as they will be tucked in close to shore where there’s a lee and the Thanksgiving trip produced some tog limits on both rigs and jigs. Whitelegger crabs worked best.

Sunday’s weather looks best with west winds of only 10 knots.

Black Friday has become the busiest day of the year for party boats as anglers with 9-5 jobs have a weekday off — but so does almost everyone else. Only those arriving very early can get aboard party boats that sail early, but that might not be the case tomorrow because a gale warning is posted through Saturday morning. West winds of 25 to 35 knots with a chance of morning showers will gust to 35 knots in the afternoon. Some boats are canceling trips, though it should be possible to fish early very close to the Jersey Shore — and that wind is no problem for NJ surfcasters.

The Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands had a good striper catch by 10 a.m. on their shortened Thanksgiving trip, but they won’t be sailing tomorrow. The Golden Eagle from Belmar has also canceled for Friday.

Though surfcasting has been tough, Vinny D’Anton got into stripers yesterday afternoon when he found small peanut bunkers inshore in the Spring Lake surf. Bass up to 26 inches hit his MirrOlure.

Shortened party boat trips have become a Thanksgiving feature in recent years, and the weather seems to be shaping up perfectly for those who would like to fish while not interfering with family dinner plans. They may even find lots of room on party boats — in contrast to the mob scenes common on Black Friday. Check with your favorite boat for their sailing time.

The Sea Hunter from Atlantic Highlands reported another good day of striper jigging, and they will fish from 6:30 to 11:30 tomorrow. The Golden Eagle from Belmar reported very good striper action today, will sail from 6 to1 tomorrow with reservations required. The Jamaica from Brielle will sail for stripers from 6 to 12:30.

The forecast is for northwest winds at 10-15 knots with 2-to-4-foot seas.

Surfcasting for stripers remains very spotty, but Mike Monte fished Monmouth County beaches with an old favorite– and the pearl Bomber Long A produced bass of 25 and 27 inches.

Chuck Many has been putting his crews on Tyman from Highlands into lots of big bass before taking a break to catch more colorful red drum at Hilton Head, S.C.