OK, who ticked off Mother Nature?

I know it was not me, so it must be one of you other guys. Somebody has pissed Ma off, and she is returning the favor with what has to be some of the worst fishing weather for the beginning of a summer season that I can remember. Wind, got it. Tropical Storms, got it. Threats of another Derecho, got it. In fact, as I am writing this on Thursday morning at 11am, it is blacker than night outside my office and a car alarm is going off from the last clap of thunder. C’mon Ma…cut it out… will ya?

Truth of the matter is, the fishing when you can get out has been pretty productive. There have finally been some decent reports of yellowfin showing up offshore, the fluke bite is still alright, deep wrecks are giving up tasty cold water dwellers, and there are plenty of big stripers hitting the scales.

Up at Effingers in Bound Brook, Rich tells of nice stripers taken live-lining bunker and reports of good success with big Storm Wildeye Shads. In the freshwater, the fly-fishing team up there are taking fish on dry flies. Pheasant tails and the usual. Water has been up pretty high with recent rains but the South Branch and the Gorge are still producing.

Good to see the guys at Keyport Marine Basin back up on their feet. Fluke fishing and striper fishing has been pretty good depending on the weather. Regular Bernie O’Brian brought a whopping 8.5-pound flattie to the scales this week… he isn’t talking about from where..go figure. There are decent-sized bluefish in the back bay to bend a rod on too.

Joe at Julians Bait & Tackle in Atlantic Highlands reports a good striper bite on plugs at night. A couple of their regulars, Tony Lucia & Frank Fatullo were working pencil poppers and hooked up with some decent bass. Hit the scales at 27 & 35# respectively. Fluke bite in the back is pretty good if you can get out there without getting blown to Montauk and back.

Dom at The Bait Shop in Bradley Beach has it broken down pretty good. Beach = NO, Boat = YES. The bunker schools are out in 50 to 60 feet of water and that is where the bass are. “Snaggin’ and draggin’” is the way to go, and according to most the only time to bother is cocktail time. It’s an evening bite, and the fish are all big.

Joe Sr. at Joey’s Bait Shack in Belmar suggests hitting the back for big bluefish if you want to hear that string zing. Crabbing in the back is really just getting started with lots of egg bearing females showing up. There have been some real nice stripers taken on bunker noggins (that is a head, for the uninformed) around Cliffwood Beach.

One of the high points of my week was getting Jill on the phone at Reel Life Bait & Tackle in Point Pleasant…. who wanted to talk to Bob anyway? The beach has been slow in her area with more action up river. Fluking has been pretty good on GULP & spearing while decent sized bluefish have been hitting metals and poppers in the back. Striper bite is slow, and more up north.

Also in Point Pleasant, Ron from Fisherman’s Supply has had a few guys hooking up solid around the Rt. 35 bridge at night using Mambo Minnows. In Allenhurst and Long Branch there have been some sizable bass taken on pencil poppers off of bunker schools. Bring the rod you can go long with.

Good info from our new buddy Pete up at Atlantic Highlands Bait & Tackle. He is a surf guy at heart and was up at the Hook at low tide the other evening, which although it is not a great time to catch, he points out, it is a great time to do a little recon. Seeing where the actual bowls and cuts are, rather than just guessing, can make all the difference in the world when the water comes up. In my neighborhood, the first blowout tide in the fall gets at least a couple hours worth of driving the hard pack with a handheld GPS to make the spots.. not a bad idea if you have one. Fluking in the rivers is good with most guys bucktailing squid and spearing, but GULP is on the menu too. There have been a few decent weakies taken near the floodgate and the Hook is holding some fish that are taking clams or bunker. If you are planning a shark adventure in the near future, Pete just ground up about a ton (no lie) of bunker and has mackerel, squid and all kinds of buckets for you. Full supply of baits too. He is there early 7 days a week; 4:30A M-F and 4A Sat/Sun.

Word from the Reel Seat in Brielle is “Let’s Go!”. Dave was off on another tilefish adventure last week and some big goldens hit the deck. A 49-pounder and two more in the 40s came over the rail making for lots of happy anglers. There were also a few bluefin trolled up out there which is making all the tuna guys twitch a little and even a yellowfin! Striper anglers have been doing OK in the morning on bunker spoons and then the bite seems to shut down until later in the evening when the fish are on the schools. Seabassing is good, fluking only OK.

Best Bets for the Weekend

I think it is time to break out the shift-work plan. In the dark, it is a quick drive around to the bridges to work the shadow lines. Check the bait in the lights to figure out exactly what to throw, but I’d suggest a plastic on a leadhead or a slow rolling floating swimmer. Then it is down to the beach to walk a while for daybreak looking, or listening, while working something large and noisy. If the weather cooperates (Sunday looks better than Saturday right now), a short morning cruise with the bunker spoons to grab a couple and then it is back to the dock. Sleep until 5, grab some grub, and get in on that late evening bite of monster bass on bunker in 60 feet of water. Then re-fill the cooler with cokes and 5 hour energy, and start all over again!

If you don’t knock yourself out fishing right now, you are going to regret it in February!

Get out there!

Stay Tuna-ed!