Northern New Jersey Fishing Report
The quality of the fluke fishing seems to be in the eye of the angler. It’s either very good, decent, or terrible depending on whom you talk to.
One thing is certain: there’s plenty of action, with short fluke coming up all over the place. And it is improving. The dearth of keepers is what’s giving the fishery low marks. More fish for the box have been reported in just the past few days.
Most agree the tuna fishing is very good, with bluefin in close and yellowfin and bigeye in the Hudson and Spencer canyons. Anglers are catching them on the troll, on jigs and poppers.
There are still stripers in the surf, while bluefish are offshore, along the beaches, and in the bays and rivers. Spot and croakers continue to keep folks happy in Raritan and Barnegat bays, and crabbing is terrific.
Rick Hebert at Tackle World in Paramus said fluking offers plenty of action but few keepers. He said he’s been getting better reports from the spots to the south, such as the Axel Carlson Reef. He said plenty of light tackle setups have been going out the door as fluking in the surf has become popular. Tuna reports, he added, have been good with yellowfin in the southern canyons and bluefin in mid-shore waters. Freshwater fishing is best early in the morning or late evening as the heat of the day makes for a slow bite.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet said the fluking has been good on the local reefs and croakers and spot are in Raritan Bay, around the piers and in the rivers. Crabbing is good in the Navesink River, he said.
Capt. Harry Browne of Muscles Magoo Charters out of Atlantic Highlands said he caught fluke non-stop on Sunday, one right after another, on Gulp and killies. Unfortunately, not one was a keeper. He aims to rectify that problem this weekend when he’ll head to a spot he’s pretty sure holds bigger fish. Capt. Browne has open dates on his schedule and can be contacted through his website.
Joe Julian Jr. at Julian’s Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Highlands reported keeper fluke caught off Leonardo. He also reported good fluke fishing on the east side of Atlantic Highlands Harbor. Pink shine Gulp is a favorite bait. Based on what the fish are disgorging, Julian said the fluke are feeding on small peanut bunker. Croakers and spot are still in the bay, he added, and there are cocktail blues around as well.
Mike Pinto at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said the beach fluking there is pretty good with lots of bites, loads of shorts and a few keepers. Pink shine jerk shads have been his go-to Gulp. He added that there are also a few blues in the surf. The shop, he said, just received a new shipment of Giglio’s T-shirts.
Mike Gleason at Tak Waterman in Long Branch said the tuna fishing has been good, if a bit inconsistent. He said some giant bluefin have appeared among the 50-inch recreational size fish. More yellowfin showed up last week in the Hudson and southern canyons. Folks were catching them on the troll. Gleason said there’s a steady pick of fluke off the beach with a few keepers mixed in with the shorts. He added there are a lot of triggerfish around the rocks and stripers are in the surf. There are still some stripers in the local rivers, he added, along with fluke.
The bass continue to hit sand bugs in the Ocean Grove/Bradley Beach surf, although the bite seems to have fallen off a bit in the last few days. The fluke action, however, is getting better, but it’s still mostly shorts.
Jesse Thomas at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said there’s a load of fluke in the Shark River, just not a lot of keepers. He estimates the ratio of shorts to keepers at 20 to 1. He did say there are schoolie stripers in the river at night, hitting small plastics and plugs. The party boats out of the marina, like the Big Mohawk and Capt. Cal II, seem to be doing better in terms of keepers, he said. Spots off Long Branch, Elberon and Deal have been productive.
Capt. Steve Spinelli on the Skylarker out of Belmar said it was a good week of fishing. He reported encouraging catches of keeper fluke up to 4 pounds, lots of sea bass, bluefish and ling.
Capt. Rich Falcone on the Golden Eagle out of Belmar reported excellent bluefishing lately and that this past Wednesday’s trip was no exception. The fishing gets better each day, he said, and they’re starting to see bigger fish in the 2- to 4-pound range, along with the occasional bonito coming over the rail. Plain metal jigs continue to be the top producer, with Ava 17s and 27s working the best.
Stanley Gola at the Reel Seat in Brielle said the fluking on the local reefs is pretty good. He fished on Saturday and landed a 7.6-pounder. Fluke fishing in the Manasquan River has also been steady. He reported solid yellowfin fishing in the Hudson and Toms canyons, and there have been a few wahoo in the mix.
Brian Flanagan at Capt. Bill’s Landing in Point Pleasant Beach said the fluking in Manasquan River is holding up nicely. He picked a 20-inch fluke from the dock on Wednesday morning. His fish hit a Gulp jerk shad, but he said killies have also been productive. There are also fluke and bluefish biting between the mouth of the Point Pleasant Canal and the Mantoloking Bridge. Flanagan had good reports of yellowfin at the southwest corner of the Hudson Canyon, and bluefin spread around at the usual spots. He also had his first reports of mahi-mahi taken off the pots. Fluking, he added, picked up on the wrecks and reefs, and Capt. Bill’s will be the weigh station for the Jersey Coast Shark Anglers Fluking Fever Tournament this Saturday.
Capt. Tom Wolfe of the Norma K III out of Point Pleasant Beach said the fluke fishing definitely improved over the past five days with fish spread out to the north, south and east. Pool winners have all been in the 4½- to 5-pound range. Wolfe said that most of the bigger fish have been caught by anglers going old school and dragging bait. Folks bouncing bucktails and Gulp are catching more fluke, but not necessarily bigger. The Norma K III is also sailing Friday and Saturday nights for blues. Jigs are catching most of the fish, and there are sea bass and ling in the mix.
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Frank Giacalone at Gabriel Tackle Co. in Brick reported plenty of fluke in Barnegat Bay and the Manasquan River. Killies, spearing, and Gulp are the baits of choice. He also had reports of triggerfish at the Manasquan Inlet, with shrimp and sand fleas the best baits. The offshore tuna bite has been good, with solid reports of bluefin and yellowfin at the Hudson and Chicken canyons, the Atlantic Princess and Resor Wreck. Crabbing has been good off the local docks and bridges, and clamming the sedge banks is also paying off.
Pete Kupper at Charlie’s Bait and Tackle in Normandy Beach said the stripers are still hanging around in the surf with a few picked up on clams. There are plenty of spot and croakers back in Barnegat Bay, and Kupper said a small live spot is proving to be the best bait for big fluke in the bay and the Manasquan River. Small blues are in the bay feeding on spearing, and crabbing back there has been very good.
Liz Ribas at Grumpy’s Tackle in Seaside Park said there are bluefish at the Barnegat Inlet and loads of spot and croakers in Barnegat Bay. The beach there is giving up some nice fluke, with a 4¾-pounder plucked from the surf there on Tuesday. Crabbing, Ribas added, is great.
Best Bets for the Weekend
Despite the grumblings about the lack of keepers, fluke are still the best bet for the weekend. There is plenty of action, a decent shot at one for the table, and they are biting pretty much everywhere. Fluking in the rivers and bays has been steady, and the offshore reefs and wrecks are starting to give up bigger fish.
The tuna bite has also been solid, with bluefin in mid-shore waters and yellowfin in the Hudson and southern canyons.
And that summer favorite, crabbing, is excellent.