OK… now what?
Flat, striped, toothy and mean, bucktoothed and beautiful or dark and deep? This is the freaky weekend that has everyone with a rod, reel, sand spike, korker, boat, kayak, canoe or Popeil Pocket Fisherman scratching their heads and trying to figure out just exactly what to chase.
I suppose it is a little bit easier for Saturday, since we can’t pop the top on Sea Bass until Sunday, but still…whoa! There is more! There is a really solid finger of warm water working it’s way into the Toms that has been confirmed to hold bluefin. 67 degree water with a 10 degree drop edge. Still want to flounder fish?
Let’s dial up the network, go to the front line, and help decide what to shoot at.
Before we hit the fish, a HUGE welcome back to Long Branch Bait & Tackle! Now as fully recovered as can be, and open 7 days a week for your service, and occasional friendly verbal abuse! Ray had reports of a nice school of blues doing their “destroy everything alive” in the suds late yesterday off of Long Branch Beach and solid news of decent stripers on clams early in the morning. Good to have you guys back in the loop.
In nearby Red Bank, Max at Pride Bait & Tackle was simply spankin’ the bass this week. He and youngster Kalib Johnson had 15 bass in the Shrewsbury that would have kept up to 22#. Da fish are on da bunka! Oceanic Bridge, the back of red Bank… it is hot fro the river right thru the bay. With some amazing stories of very big fluke that have been thrown back the last week or so, Saturday should be a monster!
Coming directly from a secret spot over a secret canyon on a very well known vessel, Dave from The Reel Seat has his offshore jaunt to tilefish land aboard the Voyager out of Brielle. All flavors of tile hit the deck; Golden, Blue lines, and even some way past delicious Rosefish. Also confirmation of a 60# bluefin down by the Baltimore, according to one of the region’s true offshore experts. Closer to home, Dave has good striper news from up the Manasquan. Stripers, weakies, blues and lots of big throwback fluke. Dave has also designed a cool new jig head, called the coil jig, that you can check out on his website for the opener of fluke. Those hard to get 5” Gulp Mullet work perfectly with them, and The Reel Seat has then in stock.
The word from Dominick at The Bait Shop in Bradley Beach is that even though the water temp dropped 5 degrees from those freaky couple of days, the fluke in Shark River are stacked up like flapjacks. Big flatties are chowing down on mostly meat but the GULP is still in there. Dom has Live killies, a squid buffet, spearing, and a wall full of GULP for when you are ready to fill the cooler.
Across the zone into Robbinsville, Eric and Chris over at Harrys Army Navy have been hitting it hard both in the shop and on the water. Eric has a couple guys from the midwest out on a charter and could not get his bunker spoons down past the 10# chopper blues to get even neat the stripers…. but the good ‘ol boys did not mind at all. They had never seen a bluefish before! After a few hours of hauling the demons, they may not want to again! If you can get below the blues you will be rewarded with big bass. Reports of 3 bass over 50# laded in the last several days. Add this action to opening of fluke and you have a weekend that has W-O-W written all over it.
So basically, the stars are all aligned! Opening day of fluke season is certainly going to take preference, but you can literally fish for anything you want! Tilefish and tuna to fluke and Sea Bass (Sunday opener). Weakies and Stripers to bluefish and blowfish (they are everywhere, by the way). A little early sharking isn’t out of the question either.
Best Bet for this weekend. Be prepared to take a primary and fallback position. The weather is going to be great, so try for that fluke limit early then choose your #2. I will be packing some clam for stripers in case I can’t find the free floating bunker buffet. If I don’t use them, it is Sea Bass in as number 2 on Sunday.
Stay Tuna-ed!
Great fishing this weekend! Tight Lines Everyone!