Oh…. it’s ON!
No jokes this week. No funny quips or filler material. This is going to be short and to the point.
The fish are here, get off your aft and get wet!
Bottom line on the mobs of marauding bluefish are pretty basic. They are mauling everything that is in their way. Big heads, skinny bodies, chewing, stripping line, bending rods. They are reported to be flushing through the inlets into the near back bays, following anything that is swimming be it bunker, herring, rain bait, you name it. They are ravenous and on the feed.
Striper activity, is only a little more complicated since they seem to keying in on bunker, but with the rough surf the last week slinging a clam is an outstanding idea. The wash is covered in shells so there is lots of eats in the near breaks for them.
Weather-wise, it looks like we finally are going to catch a break. The strong NW is laying down this afternoon (Thursday) and opening up all kinds of possibilities for the next few days.
To the shops… let’s get hard facts:
From Tony’s Bait & Tackle in Manahawkin the word is Game on! Stripers, bluefish, weakies and tog are all eating. For those headed out in to the ocean, the seas look like they will be dynamite for covering some territory. 2-3’ seas will give you plenty of range. Be ready for jigging with big shad bodies or big bucktails with rubber twisters. On the troll those shad umbrella rigs should do the trick. Blues are lurking, but more spread than concentrated nearby. Togging off of Barnegat Light and nearshore wrecks have to be a part of your plan. Green Crabs and clam are the ticket.
Andy at Riptide Bait & Tackle in Brigantine has boys slinging meat and takin’ names. Clam is the number 1 choice for stripers but bunker is working too. The Stepian Family, a dad/mom/son team slammed the slammer blues up on the North end with choppers to 11#. Things slowed a little with the blow the last two days, but as we were speaking a 38” bass was coming in the door and the other phone was ringing with activity.
The surf in Brigantine has been hot with a mix of black drum and stripers
Some quick sidebar news… very happy to report that one of my home bases, Captain Andy’s in Margate finally shook off all the pain that Sandy dealt their way and opened their doors for business this morning. It will still be a week or two until the gas dock is open, but welcome back boys… bruises and all. Can’t wait to mess up that new floor with my korkers.
Justin at Fin-Atics in Ocean City has had his tog guys and his striper crews working hard for the last two days. A couple of weakies have been picked near the inlet and there was a mini-blitz of stripers when a school came in on a group slinging clams on the South End. Fish from 9-18# were taken. Those looking to take advantage of the last of the tog season have been doing very good on the piers but the fish are totally mobile. Fish a while and if there is no action, fire up your wheels and move.
TackleDirect on Tilton Rd in Egg Harbor Township announced a great service deal yesterday. The Tom Blecker Penn Service team is going to be set up in the parking lot for three days, May 16-18 doing FREE reel service including parts (while the parts last…). There will be lots of giveaways, a chance to win a Penn Torque… cool stuff going on, mark it down.
Joe at Two Chums Bait & Tackle in Sea Isle has his boys out throwing bucktails with curly tails at all the bridges and catching lots of short stripers. Plenty of 18-22” fish to play with and a few that stretch for dinner. Bluefish in the 3- to 5-pound range off the jetties and good tog being caught on the piers and off the bridges. Joe’s live tanks are up and running and he has a full compliment of baits available.
Mike at Sea Isle Bait & Tackle is loaded for bear in the bait department as well. He is moving lots of Zooms and Bass Assassins too as they are part of equation for lots of striper and blue action. Real good weakie bite going on behind Sea Isle as well with fish in the 4-8# range. That is worth showing up for! Also this past week a 40-pound drum from the beach along with a couple nice stripers.
Chuck and Mary at Off the Hook Bait & Tackle in Cape May have reports of both striper and drum coming from the Ferry jetties. The rock piles near the beach and those that have made it out to the Cape May Reef have been rewarded with a good tog bite. Lots of crossed fingers that the Drum fish bite will fire up in the Bay with this warmer streak of days just ahead of us. With the Thursday full moon, the time should be right about… now! Mary is doing spring cleaning so the discount table is stacked with stuff. Stop in and relieve her of some bargains!
Best bet for this weekend is to shake the dust off and get out! You can find fish in the back, on the beach, on the boat, but not sitting at home on your butt. The weather is going to be perfect for a spring day and the seas look like they are cooperating. I’d say, flip a few plastics by the bridges, then hit the pilings at high and low for some tog. I’m not much of a clam slinger, but if I was my sand spikes would be buried near any beach structure I could find.
Have a good day out after reading our reports? Drop us a comment below, we would really like to get your news.
Stay Tuna-ed!