Northern New Jersey Fishing Report - August 25, 2016

There’s mahi-mahi at the Manasquan Inlet. That’s the word as warmer water and a waning summer are bringing tropical visitors to our area. There are also reports of false albacore at the Mud Hole.

While all that is happening, the solid fluke bite continues with no sign of letting up.

Like last week, the only real sore spot is the surf fishing.

Phil Sciortino Sr. at The Tackle Box in Hazlet said the things are slow off the beach at Sandy Hook. There’s some fluke, small blues and snappers but just not a whole lot.

The boat guys, however, are doing just fine as Sciortino said there’s no shortage of fluke around with shorts far outnumbering the keepers. The bigger fish, he reported, are being found in the Ambrose Channel and at the Mud Buoy.

The Sandy Hook Reef is holding a lot of porgies as are the local rock piles.

Joe Julian Jr. at Julian’s Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Highlands reported shorts are providing plenty of action around the bay and in the ocean. His reports of bigger fluke are coming from the Rattlesnake.

There are some stripers hitting eels at night at the tip of Sandy Hook and kingfish on worms. He added a few weakfish have been taken but they’re very much on the small side.

Capt. John Connell on the Captain John out of Keyport had a good day on Wednesday with four anglers getting their limits with some nice fish coming over the rail. He’s been fishing the deep channels and is advising those coming aboard to bring some 10- to 12-ounce sinkers to handle the deep current.

Capt. Ron Santee on the Fishermen out of Atlantic Highlands also had a good day on Wednesday with the pool fish going 7 pounds, 5 ounces and a number of other keepers in the 5- and 6-pound range.

The Fishermen has also been having good luck on its night bass trips with Capt. Danny Seich at the helm. Tuesday’s trip produced a pool-winning 33-pound striper.

The boats out of Atlantic Highlands have all been enjoying good fluking of late despite some tough winds, especially in the afternoon.

Capt. Hal Hagaman on the Sea Tiger II has been battling the breeze but still managed good catches on most days with a mix of keeper and shorts. The wind has kept him out of some of his favorite spots, but there are fish to be found almost everywhere.

Capt. George Bachert on the Angler had a good weekend with plenty of keepers over 5 pounds. Nuclear chicken Gulp worked well for the bucktailers and the bait fishermen got some fish as well.

Capt. Stan Zagleski on the Elaine B out of Highlands did some rolling around as well but had good fishing on Wednesday with several anglers getting four keepers and the pool fish running 7 pounds, 6 ounces.
He said the natural baits were getting most of the keepers lately but on Wednesday, everything was working.

In Sea Bright, Mel Martens at Giglios’s Bait and Tackle said the break in the heat brought more anglers down to the beach and they seemed to be doing better with fluke and kingfish in the surf. It’s not great, but an improvement.

The surf is full of bait and the snappers are stuffing themselves The crabbing in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers is really tremendous, he said. Martens also spends some time down at Gates Bait and Tackle in Point Pleasant Beach and he said guys are picking up small mahi at the Manasquan Inlet.

He also got wind of a few small mahi caught from the beach at Island Beach State Park along with some bar jacks, another warm water visitor.

Similar reports of the excellent crabbing are coming out of the Oceanic Marina on the Navesink in Rumson and Long Branch Bait and Tackle on the Shrewsbury.

The Shark River, not known for good crabbing is also having a good year with the blue claws, reported Bob Matthews at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar.

And the fluking remains strong. Matthews said the Den weighed in its biggest fish of the season when Ed Rumsby of Bradley Beach came to the scales with a doormat of 13 pounds, 5 ounces.

Rumsby caught the whopper at the Sea Girt reef on a Chartreuse Gulp grub. Matthews also weighed in a 9½-pound flattie caught on the Ocean Explorer out of the marina. Capt. Chris Hueth on the Big Mohawk reported good fishing for the last several days with the pool fish averaging about 8 pounds.

Matthews also said the Shark River is giving up some keeper fluke for the rental boats and there are triggerfish, porgies and kingfish at the Inlet. Plus, the snappers are all over the place.

Capt. Pete Sykes on Parker Pete’s Sportfishing out of Belmar said the fluking has been red hot for the last several days. Depending on the conditions, he’s finding fish pretty much everywhere he looks and there have been plenty of 7- and 8-pound fish.

Last Friday, the boat got its first double-digit fish of the season when Dan Disario brought a 10 pounder aboard. There has also been some nice sea bass in the mix. Capt. Sykes said that barring any interference from tropical weather, the fluking should remain good until the end of the season.

Capt. Steve Spinelli on the Skylarker, also out of Belmar, said the fluke fishing is really good right now with plenty of 5- and 6-pound fish. He’s also been getting in on the mackerel action while the bottom fishing trips are producing porgies, sea bass and ling. There have also been some triggerfish in the mix.

The Golden Eagle out of Belmar has been sticking with blues and finding decent fishing most days. Capt. Rich Falcone has been catching them up to 4 pounds on hammer jigs and teasers. The Golden Eagle is also fishing for fluke and sea bass on afternoon trips.

John at the Reel Seat in Brielle said things have gotten very interesting in the Manasquan River with the mahi at the inlet. He also said they were being caught along the docks by party boats on the Point Pleasant side of the river. They’ve been hitting small bucktails and pieces of metal. Small blues are also showing up at the inlet in the evening.

He also had his first report of false albacore at the Mud Hole and they’re always a lot of fun. John said he tuna action in the canyons has been slow, but there have been a lot of white marlin around.

As for fluke, the Sea Girt and Axel Carlson reefs remain hot spots to fish. The Gambler out of Point Pleasant has been having consistent catches with fish in the 5- to 6-pound range.

John Bogan at Brielle Bait and Tackle reported a lot of stuff going on right now. Mahi are being caught from the inlet to 15 miles out. Small stripers are hitting jigs and worms in the Manasquan River and there are still nice keeper fluke in the river as well. He added the shop has giant killies right now.

Northern New Jersey Fishing Forecast

Lots of options this weekend. Fluke fishing promises a lot of action with more keepers found in deeper water. The tropical visitors, mahi-mahi and false albacore, have appeared and schools of blues are popping up off the beaches. I saw them in Ocean Grove all week. Plus, the crabbing is terrific in most rivers and bays.