Under normal circumstances, this is the week you save your sick days for. The first real push of mullet are flushing out and moving south, there are balls of peanut bunker (juvenile menhaden) just behind the surf line, ravenous bluefish and bass are crashing the suds and throwing little bits of carnage up on the beach and the birds are screaming and feasting on the blood stained sand. OK, snap out of it. Not happening… yet.
I have only missed one morning in the last 10 days since the beaches opened up to buggies down here on Absecon Island, and although we have dragged a few stripers up on the beach and there is plenty of bait, “Game On” does not describe the situation. It’s true that this morning, the mullet were literally bouncing off my waders after being thrown airborne by the short curl, but as far as predators, the pickins have been fairly modest. Most bass are small residents with a couple larger fish mixed in, and the blues are still “tailors” in the 3-pound and under range. Good fishing, moderate action, but not classic October.
Back bay poppers are still doing their thing with good schoolie catches during low light, which is a blast, but owning a boat right now is a little frustrating. You can’t fish for fluke, you can’t keep more than one tog, you can’t fish for weakies unless catching spikes is you idea of a blast, sea bass is closed until November 1, and there is no inshore bite of anything else. Frankly, my boat has not left the slip for anything except gas since Irene.
We did take run on Capt. Billy May’s Boss Lady out of Avalon last week with an all-star crew of guys that usually run their own boats and whomped up on the yellowfin population at the Lindenkol. I have to say that overnighting is my second favorite thing to do this month (my roots are in the surf), and our 20-plus-hour tour on this beautiful custom 50-foot East Bay Express was one for the books. We put 22 yellowfin in the box, and had all-night action on live squid, jigs, some stomach-extracted ribbonfish and even a couple on poppers after first light. We did do battle with a couple swords on the overnight, but unfortunately the swords won this one. Normally fishing in a center console for day and overnight trips, I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciated the comforts that Boss Lady had to offer. Nice to be dry at night….
On to the North to South Jersey tour so you can figure out what your plans are for the upcoming beautiful weekend.
A slow pick up at Lake Hopatcong says Laurie up at Dows. They are operating from 6a.m. to 6 p.m. these days, and boats will be rented into November. There are still hybrids being taken on herring, some tasty walleye and a few feisty pickerel to tangle with.
Giglio’s up in Sea Bright was jumping with action when I called so I only got a few words… “Albies on the beach, bass and blues…gotta go.” Sounds like Sandy Hook is starting to heat up a little, which is great news for all of us downstream.
Offshore fishing is still real good according to Dave at The Reel Seat in Brielle. There is a strong yellowfin bite on the chunk and the longfin bite is smoking in the Northern canyons. There seems to be two classes of Longfin out there, the 25- to 30-pounders and the 60-plus-pounders. Hot lures are small 6- to 8-inch jets and the smaller Black Barts like the Tuna XXX and the ProJets. Black Barts are not inexpensive so when charter guys come in and buy them, and then come back to get a few more after fishing them you know it’s the right go-to for right now. You can get them from Dave either rigged or un-rigged while they last.
All the happy campers at Grumpy’s in Seaside are scratching their heads trying to figure out why there are not a million chopper blues ripping the life out of the mats of mullet on the beach. There are a few bass being caught, there are a few blues being caught, but the action is not what it should be for this week in time. Still some blowfish in the back. But spirits are high and optimism prevails…. oh, never mind, they are ticked the big fish are not there yet. Me too.
Fisherman’s Headquarters in Ship Bottom is reporting that the kingfish bite is still good. Tailor blues are banging the mullet all over the beach with guys catching them by the dozen. You have to love these mini-choppers on light tackle, but personally it’s like riding a scooter instead of a Harley. You get there, it’s fun while you’re doing it, but it does not suck the air out of your lungs when you hit the throttle. Back bays also have small-fish action with blues, weakies and some schoolie bass. The thing about Barnegat is that you just never know when one of the resident lurking monsters is going to show up.
Andy at Riptide Bait & Tackle in Brigantine says his guys are still blasting the kingies in the surf, and the scales have been busy for the Atlantic County Surf Derby. There are blues and some stripers on the beach like the 11-pounder local Pat Amato weighed in yesterday. There is bait on the beach and, like the rest of us, waiting for the big girls to show up is the number one topic of conversation.
Team Tackle Direct has been on the beaches, bridges, and sedges the last couple weeks with schoolie stripers, kingfish, small blues and some really decent tog action. These guys are pulling double duty getting ready to make the move from their current location on Bay Ave in Somers Point to the almost completed Superstore they are outfitting just a few miles away. Stay Tuna-ed for details on the Grand Opening – it is going to be a monster store unlike anything in the region.
At Fin-Atics in Ocean City they are bait-stocked and ready. Lots of small blues in the surf. Anglers are still catching those little locomotive kingfish, and yanking really nice class tog out of the bridges. The mullet run is on, it is official, but where are the big girls at?
Speaking of girls, I spoke to Mary at Off the Hook (one of my favorite shop owners and clearly the most attractive) in Cape May this morning about a really wonderful tourney that anyone in the area should be looking at for the weekend of November 5th. The 5th Annual High Tides Striper Tournament benefits the Brendan Borek Memorial Fund and is just loaded with great prizes, great fishermen, and a real fun awards ceremony. Full details at Hightidesstripertournament.com. No kidding, if you live in Cape May or the immediate area, check it out.
Best Bet for this Weekend
The way I see it, you’ve got 2 choices. It is going to be a picture perfect opportunity to overnight at the canyons both from a marine forecast AND recent catch standpoint. If you are not offshore-bound, strap on the waders, get out the plug bag, and get ready for when the blitz begins. I’m tellin’ ya, all hell is gonna break loose soon with all this bait in the wash and it is going to be much more fun telling about it, than hearing about it.
Stay Tuna-ed!