Tight Lines

It certainly feels like fishing time this afternoon as it’s in the fifties at Toms River — and going up in the evening rather than down. Unfortunately, there’s also south winds and rain is on the way. Small craft warnings are up, and there will be a gale watch tomorrow as the 25-30 knot south wind gusts to 40 later on along with rain. Clearing west winds on Friday will blow at 15-20 knots with gusts to 25. However, Saturday continues to look good with west winds at 5-10 knots. It should be fine for the Jamaica’s offshore wrecks porgy trip that day which sails from Brielle at 1 a.m. Friday night. Reservations are required. Call 732 528-5014.

The Big Mohawk from Belmar is already looking forward to blackfishing at 7 a.m. over the weekend. That fishing was good on their last trip.

Nick Honachefsky was offshore last week  with Capt. Fred Gamboa (left) on his Andrea’s Toy from Keyport as they did very well with tog on deeper wrecks despite the cold while doing an Saltwater Underground video.

Grumpy’s Tackle in Seaside Park reports that the New Jersey Beach Buggy Association will be running their Fishing Flea Market from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at Toms River South High School.

 

The New York Boat Show opens tomorrow at the Convention Center and runs through Sunday.

The Fly Fishing Show runs from Jan. 25-27 at the N.J. Convention Center in Edison.

Though the southwest wind is predicted to moderate in the morning, there are gusts to 30 knots forecast in the afternoon. However. Saturday is looking good.

The Canyon Runner is catching giants up to 600 pounds out of Oregon Inlet, N.C., and only has a few openings down there this season. They also have a few tickets left for the Feb. 2 Seminar at Atlantic City. Call Adam La Rosa at 732 842-6825.

Vinny D’Anton has had a slow start to shore fishing in the Sarasota, Fl.  area, but broke through this afternoon by catching sea trout, ladyfish and a pompano on a DOA Shrimp.

I didn’t think a blog was necessary last night with gale-force winds whistling outside the windows. Those warnings were continued into tonight along with freezing spray and very low late afternoon tides. Bob Correll walked the Bay Head beach this afternoon and reported ice on the beach with very low waters.

It drops to 15-20 knots with gusts to 30 from the northwest tomorrow before diminishing to 5-10 in the afternoon, Unfortunately, it switches to southwest at 15-20 with gusts to 30 on Wednesday.

Saturday was one of those rare calm mid-winter days, and that enabled the Big Jamaica from Brielle to get in another day of hot porgy fishing on the offshore wrecks. The pool winner was a 6-pound haddock, a very rare catch south of New England. Sammy Sin from Brooklyn, boated the haddock. Telmo Marques from Silver Spring, Md. took second with a hefty 3.75-pound ling. Some mackerel and white hake were also caught.  The Jamaica will run that trip every Saturday, leaving at 1 a.m. Friday night. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations.

The Ocean Explorer from Belmar reported blackfish were chewing Saturday, and limits were “easy”.

Needless to say, with a winter storm and gale warnings for winds up to 40 knots, there will be no fishing Sunday. However, if you can get there, Striper Day is being held on Long Island at Ward Melville H.S. in East Setauket from 8;30-2;30. Admission is $15, and the first 500 receive a goody bag. Seminars go on all day.

As predicted yesterday, the morning was fishable, and the Big Mohawk from Belmar reported improved blackfishing with some limits and an 8 1/2-pound pool winner.

 

Adam La Rosa reports that at least five giant tuna were caught yesterday by boats sailing out of Oregon Inlet, North Carolina. After starting off with yellowfins, the Canyon Runner broke the ice as Capt. Deane Lambros found a 93-inch bluefin that hit a balao. Boats that concentrated on them had good yellowfin catches. La Rosa reports the Canyon Runner only has a few dates left in February and just six in March. If you want to get in on the best chance of catching a giant tuna all year, call 732 842-6825 right away. The same applies for the few remaining tickets to the Canyon Runner Seminar at Atlantic City on Feb. 2.

The Staten Island Fisherman’s Flea Market runs from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday in Labetti VFW Post, 390 Hylan Blvd., Staten Island. Admission is $5, with youngsters under 10 admitted at no charge. Seminars by local pros are included, with Chuck Many providing his striped bass presentation, Joe Zagorski on tautog — plus Niyo Averse and Ron Redrow covering fluke.  Capt. Vinny Vetere of Katfish at Great Kills will be displaying his Ho-Jo trolling lures and TGT spoons along with his mate — Percy Wentworth of Percy cast nets fame.

Saturday’s weather may be fishable early as northeast winds of only 10 knots are predicted before shifting to east  15-20 knots in the afternoon.  Sunday is a different story as it starts out southwest 15-20 with gusts to 25 before gale warnings go up in the afternoon. Morning rain changes to snow and sleet.

The Big Jamaica from Brielle sails at 1 a.m. to the offshore wrecks which produced limit catches of large porgies last Saturday. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations. As noted in a blog this week, the Jamaica had planned to do Sunday and Monday 7:30 mackerel trips, but that may have changed with the mackerel disappearance noted in yesterday’s blog.

The Mimi Vi from Point Pleasant will try to make blackfish trips at 7 a.m.  Saturday, Sunday and through January. Spots on those $75 trips can be reserved by calling 732 370-8019.

Both the Big Mohawk and Ocean Explorer from Belmar reported Thursday blackfishing in good conditions was sluggish with only a few keepers caught.

Just when it appeared we were going to have a winter mackerel run, those fish did a disappearing act. The Brooklyn VI from Sheepshead Bay had a good weekend, but there was nothing the last two days in the area where they had been located. The Brooklyn VI ran as far as 40 miles searching for them, but found nothing. Calls to commercial boats revealed that they also couldn’t find them. The water got colder, and fishing will be discontinued until further notice.

Ironically, the Big Jamaica from Brielle had just scheduled mackerel trips for Sunday, Monday and the following Sunday from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. That boat had limit catches of big porgies on offshore wrecks last Saturday, and will repeat that trip which sails Friday night at 1 a.m. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations.

The marine forecast is for a mere 5 knot south wind in the morning, but with likely rain.  Saturday morning may be fishable in 10-15 knot northeast winds and snow holding off until the afternoon.

With decreasing wind in the forecast, the Brooklyn VI will be sailing for mackerel from Sheepshead Bay tomorrow at 7 a.m. in hope of repeating the weekend catches. When the Golden Eagle from Belmar stopped sailing in the fall, they noted they would start up again if mackerel arrived. However, they haven’t posted anything so far.  Though north gusts to 20 knots are forecast for the morning, they are supposed to drop to 10-15 knots from the east in the afternoon. The Big Mohawk from Belmar will be sailing for blackfish at 7 a.m.

The traditional spring mackerel runs along the coast have been non-existent for years, and sparse during the winter in recent years. However, the Brooklyn VI from Sheepshead Bay found good quantities for jigging  on Saturday — and followed up on Sunday with all large to jumbo mackerel. Herring are also abundant, and that boat is sailing daily at 7 a.m.

West winds gusting to 20 knots are forecast for the morning, but that should be fishable for blackfish boats along the jersey Shore. The Big Mohawk will resume daily trips at 7 a.m.

Though the wind is shifting gradually to the west. the big swell currently on the ocean has resulted in the Big Mohawk from Belmar holding off until Wednesday before resuming blackfishing,  Small craft warnings remain up until Tuesday afternoon, though the forecast for tomorrow morning is only for light north winds. 

The annual Canyon Runner Seminar is coming up on Feb. 2 in Atlantic City. Only 50 tickets were left last week, and there may not be much time before the seminar is sold out. I’ve attended a couple of these events and consider them to be a must for offshore anglers. For details and reservations all Adam La Rosa at 732 842-6825. If you want to get in on the best tuna fishing of the year, also get details on the Canyon Runner winter trips in North Carolina — where multiple strikes from giant and medium bluefins are routine. Last week they only had three dates left in February and seven in March.

Small craft advisories for northeast gusts to 30 knots are going up at 2 p.m. and into late Monday. However, it looks fishable again on Tuesday with northwest winds of 10-15 knots.