As seas calmed this week, fishing picked up all throughout northern New Jersey.
The water is still a little dirty in New York Harbor reported the crew at True World Bait and Tackle. Fishermen have been going out for tog, but the fishing has only been fair so far. Not many fishermen have been chasing stripers in the Harbor yet, but as conditions continue to improve, boats will be hitting it hard this weekend.
Porgies and blowfish are all over Raritan Bay according to the report from Julian’s Bait and Tackle. The blowfish are an unusual visitor in these numbers, but are fun to catch and even better to eat. The porgies are thick as well. Porgies are great fighters for their size, and can be caught in large numbers once you locate them. Some kingfish are around as well.
Tom at Giglio’s said the striper fishing in the surf is good right now. Fishermen are catching fish on plugs during the mornings, but the hot lure right now, Tom said, is the bucktail. Tipping the bucktail with a pork rind or soft plastic trailer has been increasing their effectiveness , Tom reported. Many of the fish are undersized, but keepers up to 32 inches are being caught. The Navesink River is also producing stripers. Bluefish have thinned out a bit, but there are still some smallish blues around.
Hit the beaches in the evenings with clams for a good shot at a striper in the Bradley Beach area reported the Crew at the Bait Shop. The striper fishing is picking up, but the surf temperatures are still a little warm. In Shark River Inlet, fishermen are catching undersized tog, especially on the Belmar side. There are sure to be keepers in the mix, the trick is bringing enough crabs to weed through all the bait-stealing shorts until you stick a keeper.
The Miss Belmar got out on Wednesday for the first time in a week and found bluefish to 20 pounds. The fishing was good, with steady action on jigs.
Best Bets for the Weekend
Reports were a little thin this week since many fishermen were in dry dock on account of last weekend’s conditions. Things are looking beautiful this weekend, and with more stripers arriving every day, it’s time to hit the water.
There have been reports of big schools of stripers off the South Shore of Long Island with boats catching them by vertical jigging. Those fish could be off New Jersey within the week. In the meantime, the surf is the best bet for connecting with a keeper striper. In the morning, swimming plugs and poppers are working well. Dunking fresh clams in the late afternoon and into sunset has also been successful lately.