At the Somerset Fly Fishing Show last week, I had about a half-dozen anglers come up and show me cell phone pictures of surf-caught stripers from that week. Late January, keeper-sized, surf-caught stripers. It was all I could do not to grab a pair of waders from one of the vendors and check out this unusually good winter surfcasting.
The warm weather has kept a lot of fishing biting throughout the Garden State. Trout are chasing stickbaits and spoons in the reservoirs and lakes that support good numbers of them. Crappie fishing has stayed consistently good as the speckled panfish continue to hit live minnows and small jigs fished below floats.
Shiners are the name of the game for largemouth bass and pickerel, though anglers fishing with some of the traditional coldwater offerings are catching fish as well.
The walleye are being taken on the Delaware River, with natural offerings like minnows and nightcrawlers being the best methods.
On the headboat scene, the ling fishing is still top notch in the 95- to 200-foot depths. The Voyager has been scoring big on these tasty bottom fish. The Ocean Explorer has been mixing some double-digit blackfish in with their ling catches. The blackfish bite has been steady with a good amount of keepers coming over the rails on crab baits. The offshore cod bite has been slow to start, but the Gambler is finding some fish out there. One trip this week turned up a mix of cod and pollock into the 10- to 12-pound range. The North Star in Ocean City has been hunting tog at some offshore wrecks and has been putting some big white-chins on the deck.
Best Bets for the Weekend
If nothing else this weekend, swing by the Atlantic City Boat Show, say hello and get your subscription and Hogy gift pack.
If you’ve never caught a striper from the surf in February, this may be the best opportunity you’ll ever have to do so. Jetties have been the hotspots for the fish, and plugs or swim shads are working best. Remember, the back bays are still off limits for striper fishing until March 1.
Freshwater fishing is unusually good for this time of year, so you might as well take advantage. Largemouths and crappie are biting well on live shiners or fathead minnows fished under floats. Target a shallow pond, as these will warm up the most quickly.
Also, I suggest escaping all the pre-Super-Bowl talk and hopping aboard a headboat on Saturday or Sunday for ling or tog. Most boats are back at the dock by 4:30, which gives you plenty of time to clean your fish (and yourself) by kick-off time.