High winds and rain cooled off last week’s hot bass bite but there are still fish around.
And some monster blues have joined them, up in Raritan Bay and south along the coast.
The boats guys got the bulk of last week’s action but the stripers made a few forays to the beach. You just had to be lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet said the weather kept most boats at the dock with the high winds making sailing difficult. He said it’s been hard to get a handle on the blackfish bite with the bad weather.
The boats that have ventured out are still finding bass, and bluefish have been mixed up with the stripers, he said. There are still loads of bunker around so there’s a good chance more stripers will show.
Bass boats out of Atlantic Highlands, namely the Sea Hunter and the Fishermen, said they got bass on Monday’s trip, but the fish were mostly on the smaller side. There were a few keepers, but it wasn’t the same action as last week.
Capt. George Bachert on the Angler out to Atlantic Highlands was waiting for better weather before resuming his blackfish trips.
He reported good action on last Thursday’s tog opener with some limit catches and fish up to 7 pounds.
Mel Martens at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright reported things were quiet there on Tuesday.
The bunker remain thick off the beach but the reports he received said the bass were scarce. Martens did get word of more stripers on the New York side so he’s hoping they will make over to New Jersey.
Martens also said there are sand eels in the surf which will hopefully bring some bass in range of surfcasters.
Bob Matthews at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said the bass fishing, which saw stripers over 40 pounds for the boats and some 30 pounders for the surf guys last week, slowed down on Monday.
Beach anglers reported a few small bass while those fishing from boats noted a decrease in the size of the fish they caught. There weren’t that many of them, either.
He’s a bit disappointed in the fall run as far as beach fishing goes and he hopes there’s another shot of fish before the season ends.
Matthews said he’s seeing more folks interested in blackfising as the bass bite cools.
Capt. Bobby Quinn on the Ocean Explorer out of Belmar reported that the tog fishermen that showed up on Monday were well rewarded. It was a small group, he said, but all went home with their six-fish limit and threw plenty back.
He’s running a special Thanksgiving Day trip leaving at 6:30 a.m. and returning at 1 p.m.
Back on the striper front, Capt. Pete Sykes on Parker Pete’s Sportfishing caught stripers on Friday and then the blues took over on Saturday.
High winds made sailing impossible on Sunday but he was back at it on Monday catching bass and blues.
Between the windy weather and bass with lockjaw, Capt. Rich Falcone on the Golden Eagle out of Belmar said it’s been tough for the last couple of days.
He reported seeing plenty of fish on Monday’s trip rolling on top but it wasn’t easy to get them biting.
Greg Bogan at Brielle Bait and Tackle reported that the blackfishing at the Manasquan Inlet and Point Pleasant Canal remains very good. And now you can keep six fish if you have the patience to weed through all the shorts.
He also said there are more bass in the surf, but not as big as the ones the boats were getting. Folks fishing the Sea Girt and Spring Lake surf are getting fish from 25 to 32 inches on shads and small plugs.
Vinny at the Reel Seat in Brielle said he received good reports on the bass fishing at the Shrewsbury Rocks over the weekend.
He also said the bottom fishing offshore was very good before the weather got too bad to sail. He reported loads of action on jumbo sea bass, porgies and even some bluefish.
The tuna are still around as well, he said, if you can get out to the canyons.
The Big Jamaica got out there last Thursday and Capt. Howard Bogan reported good action on yellowfin and longfin. Capt. Bogan said the tuna moved up to the 100-fathom line and were hungry.
The catch, he said, was mostly yellowfin from 50 to 60 pounds. Mike Houdart was high hook with two yellowfin and a longfin.
The Big Jamaica will sail for tuna one more time on Nov. 26.
The freshwater action appears to be slowing down in the northwestern part of the state with most of the sportsmen and women concentrating on hunting. Still, there are fish being caught.
Ryan at Tackle & Field in Wanaque said it’s been quiet but he did hear of a few guys having success trolling for walleye on Greenwood Lake.
Joe at Newark Sinker Company in Pine Brook said he’s received reports of hybrids still being caught at Lake Hopatcong along with largemouth bass. He also mentioned folks were getting trout in the Ramapo and Pequest rivers.
Fishing Forecast for Northern New Jersey
Thanksgiving Weekend is traditionally a good time for bass fishing so we have that going for us. There’s still plenty of bait in the area so there’s reason to hope the bass will be biting. There was also a report of sand eels in the surf which could bring the stripers close to shore and give the surfcasters a chance at some fish.
The bottom fishing has been good for black sea bass offshore and tog on the rock piles. The weather looks like it will cooperate for the next several days so it’s a chance to put something on the table other than leftover turkey.
Happy Thanksgiving