Fishing Report for Northern Jersey
The fishing bounced back fairly well after last week’s wet, windy weather. There have been reports of bigger fluke on the rough stuff and plenty of porgies in Raritan Bay.
The beach is giving up more keeper fluke as well and the small bass continue to pop up in the surf.
Plus, the black sea bass bite remains strong and there are plenty of snappers and crabs around to keep kids and adults happy.
Finally, the one-fish tog season opened on Wednesday, so they’re back on the menu for anglers and spearfishermen.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at The Tackle Box in Hazlet reported a number of big fluke caught in the last week, two in the 12-pound range.
One, a 12.4 pounder, was caught by Alfonso Toxtli of Clifton aboard The Prowler 5, out of Atlantic Highlands. The other was caught by Dominic Depiero aboard a charter captained by Sciortino’s cousin, Capt. Nick Laviola. The doormat tipped the scales at 12 pounds even and was caught in the Ambrose Channel.
Sciortino added there are loads of porgies on the rock piles and snappers all over the docks around Raritan Bay.
The boats out of Atlantic Highlands have been finding some big fluke as well.
Capt. Rob Semkewyc reported that Willie Meyer landed an 11.9 pounder on Monday and Capt. George Bachert on The Angler reported that Bill Gilleran from Bridgewater, caught a 7-pound, 6-ounce fluke on Tuesday to win the monthly pool of $1,600.
Capt. Stan Zagleski on the Elaine B II out of Highlands reported a nice catch on Monday with a number of keepers and the 8-pound, 7-ounce flattie caught by Bill Vanderstad of Pompton Lakes taking the pool.
Mel Martens at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said more keeper fluke are coming out of the surf, mostly on live snappers. The snappers are in the wash and close to jetties and easily caught on snapper poppers.
Martens said that small blues showed up in the surf this week and there are some in the Shrewsbury River as well. Small stripers continue to bite in the suds.
Porgies, he added, are biting opposite Officer’s Row up at Sandy Hook and the crabbing has been very good in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers.
Mike Gleason at TAK Waterman in Long Branch said the beach fluking has been improving with more keepers coming out of the suds. The small stripers show no signs of quitting this summer, hitting small plugs, sand crabs and live snappers.
In a first for me, I caught one of the small bass on my snapper popper while I was fishing for bait. On Tuesday, I got two keeper fluke on live snappers, with one hitting right at my feet in the wash.
A small bass also hit another live snapper the next day.
There has been a lot of birds working off the beach in Ocean Grove and Bradley Beach all week so I have to believe there are some bluefish around. Unfortunately, it’s been another poor summer for them.
Bob Matthews at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said some nice fluke came to the dock at the marina this week with Bob Crisci from Philadelphia landing an 8-pound, 9-ounce fish while fishing aboard the Ocean Explorer.
Matthews said the fluking in the Shark River has been steady, but it’s been mostly short fish. There are plenty of snappers in the river, and some anglers are using them to target bigger fish.
He added the shop has green crabs now that the blackfish season is open.
Capt. Bobby Quinn on The Ocean Explorer reported a good week fishing the hard bottom in 50 to 70 feet of water. In addition to Bob Crisci’s fish, his fares had plenty of keepers with fish up to 7 pounds, along with some nice sea bass.
Capt. Pete Sykes of Parker Pete’s Sportfishing out of Belmar said he’s been picking some nice fluke as well, also up to 7 pounds. Everyone has also been getting their limit of big sea bass.
Capt. Steve Spinelli on The Skylarker has been adding ling to his fluke and sea bass catches on his daily trips, giving his fares some additional variety.
While he’s still in the hunt for bluefish, Capt. Rich Falcone on the Golden Eagle has been bottom fishing for fluke and sea bass, reporting good catches on both most days.
Capt. Falcone is also taking reservations for his September and October tuna trips.
Capt. Ron Kish on the Capt. Cal II said he’s been happy with the fluking over the last week with bigger fish coming aboard.
Most of the fluke boats are reporting success with bait and bucktails, but the bucktails appear to be catching the larger fish.
Alex Kondas at the Reel Seat in Brielle reported better fluke fishing on the reefs and wrecks this past week. Guys fishing around structure are getting the bigger fish, but they’re also losing more gear. It’s the price you pay.
The fluking is still good in the Manasquan River, he said, from the inlet back to Treasure Island. Jig heads tipped with Gulp continue produce.
Small stripers, with some keepers mixed in, are still being caught near the bridges on plugs and swim shads at dusk and dawn.
Offshore bottom fishing has also been good with ling, sea bass and winter flounder. Some of the winter flounder have been up to 3½ pounds.
Farther offshore, Kondas said, the tuna fishing has been decent. Anglers have been chunking yellowfin at night, then finding a few bigeye on the troll as dawn approaches. Most of the action has been in the Hudson Canyon.
Greg Bogan at Brielle Bait and Tackle said he, too, has been getting better reports on the ocean fluking with bigger fish on the rough bottom. He said the Manasquan River has loads of smaller fish right now.
The river is also full of snappers.
The boats out of Bogan’s Basin have been doing well with ling, winter flounder and sea bass along with fluke. The Big Jamaica has also been catching a lot of mackerel as it continues to look for blues.
Bogan said the absence of bluefish might be cyclical in nature as he remembers some of the old-time party boat captains talking about periods of 6 to 8 years when they would just disappear.
Rick at Tackle World in Rochelle Park also reported better fluke fishing in deeper water, 60 to 70 feet on structure. The porgy fishing has also come on strong in Raritan Bay, he said.
On the freshwater side, he said the bass and walleye fishing has been good early in the morning in the local lakes and ponds. Once the day heats up, the bite is done.
There are still plenty of trout around as well, he added, and the recent rains have helped them spread out in the rivers and streams. You’ve got to fish for them early as well, as they go dormant in the heat.
Chris at Tackle & Field in Wanaque said the action is mostly on bass right now at Lake Hopatcong, Greenwood Lake and Monskville Reservoir. Topwater baits in the morning and evening are doing the trick.
Larry at the Newark Sinker Company in Pine Brook said his customers that fish Raritan Bay are doing well with porgies and triggerfish. The Passaic River, he said, is running pretty low, but there are still some carp and pickerel to be caught.
Steve at Garden State Bow & Reel in Stockholm said the large and smallmouth bass bite has been good throughout the watershed. Topwater baits are catching all of the fish, he said.
The landlocked salmon have gone deep with the heat at Lake Aeroflex and Lake Wawaynda so he doesn’t expect to hear much out of there until things cool off.
Fishing Forecast for Northern New Jersey
Call me prejudiced, but surf fishing looks pretty good right now. There’s more keeper fluke coming out of the suds and there are a lot of stripers in the wash as well, which is a bit unusual for this time of year.
Live snappers and Gulp will work for the fluke. Bring a light rod with a snapper popper to catch your bait, then hook the snapper near the dorsal fin on a regular fluke rig. The live snappers will also work for the bass, as will small plugs, sand crabs and clams.
There are bigger fluke on the rough bottom and it’s not too late to enter the Jersey Coast Anglers Association Fluke Tournament this Saturday. There is a $1,200 prize awarded for the biggest fluke weighed in at each of the seven weigh stations. Visit jcaa.org for details.