It’s our last weekend of August and summer is almost over! School children and teachers alike are trying to savor the remaining days before they begin walking the locker-lined hallways. It may be the end of summer, but the fishing has been off the hook with the fluke bite turning on from Sandy Hook to Cape May. Anglers ask where to target? The answer is from the inlets to the inshore reefs as there has been plenty of fish to go around. The Northeast winds last week brought in a serious dose of clean water and anglers have been bailing Mahi from the reefs and pots, and some have even seen juvenile Sailfish balling bait. Sea bass does closes prior to the weekend, so anglers will need to get their fix until it opens back up in October.
Fishing Report For Southern New Jersey
Fisherman’s Supply in Point Pleasant reported the fluke fishing has been on absolute fire with keepers and full boat limits coming from the Axel Carlson, Sea Girt, and Shark River reef sites. 3 to 4 oz bucktails tipped with Gulp (Pink Shine, White Glow, or Nuclear. Chicken) have been the baits of choice. Some of the fluke have approached 12 pounds, so now is the time to get out there and target them. The Manasquan River and surrounding bridges are still choked with small bluefish and striped bass which are hitting lures during the night. Offshore has had some Yellowfin and Bigeye, and there are good numbers of Mahi around the pots.
Capt. Bill’s Landing in Point Pleasant Beach reported good fluke fishing at the Axel Carlson with keepers to 9 pounds being caught on bucktails and Gulp or strip baits. The surf from Manasquan Inlet down through Island Beach State Park has had a decent number of fluke caught along with some bluefish to 20 inches.
Norma K III in Point Pleasant Beach reported good fluke fishing continuing with quality-sized keepers coming over the rail in droves that last few trips. Anglers who fished bucktails tipped with Gulp baits have been doing better and pool winners have ranged from 6 to 9 pounds. The boat recommends bringing some extra tackle as they have been fishing sticky structure. The boat sails every Friday and Saturday night for bluefish.
The MIMI VI out of Point Pleasant has been hitting a lot of the inshore wrecks for fluke, sea bass, and Ling. The skipper has a few open-boat bottom fishing trips scheduled for the first week of September, so call before they fill up.
Jersey Hooker Outfitter in Brick reported some nice fluke being caught from the beaches from Seaside down through Island Beach State Park. The Manasquan River has had lots of striped bass and bluefish being caught on plugs and soft plastics at night.
Grumpy’s Bait & Tackle in Seaside Park reported decent fluke fishing from the surf with a fair number of keepers being caught. The shop did weigh in a couple of nice fish over 5 pounds caught on the S&S bucktail and Gulp from the beach.
Lacey Marine in Forked River reported a solid week of fluke fishing from the reef sites and wrecks in the 50- to 65-foot range. Anglers have also worked some of the pipes from Long Beach Island to Ortley to find keeper flatties. The inlet is still a good place to be for keepers, but you must drift live baits. Crabbing is still going strong along the marshes from Bayville to Barnegat.
Super Chic in Barnegat Light has been busy working some of the inshore wrecks for fluke on some of the charters. Capt. Ted did have the vessel offshore for Tuna this past week, so he was out of range for a report.
Creekside Outfitters in Waretown had good reports of fluke from the Barnegat Light reef and some of the southern reef sites with limits of fluke being caught on S&S bucktails tipped with Gulp grub tails. Most of the keepers have been caught on the 6-inch Pink Shine or White Glow tails. There has been some action on the incoming tide for anglers fishing the back-bay and most of the action has been on live Peanut Bunker or Mullet. The Blowfish bite has been good from the BI buoy down through the Causeway bridge.
Tony’s Bait & Tackle in Manahawkin reported good fluke fishing from the reef sites along Long Beach Island and during the incoming tides at Barnegat and Holgate inlets. Blowfish have been hitting in the backwaters along the whole length of LBI. Anglers fishing offshore have been picking up lots of Mahi as most of the pots, buoys, and floating debris is loaded with them.
Fisherman’s Headquarters in Ship Bottom had great things to say about the area fluke bite with lots of quality keepers being caught. There has been quite a few in the 4- to 7-pound range landed at the reef sites with an occasional 10-pounder. The back bay is choked with 12- to 18-inch striped bass which are hitting topwater plugs, poppers, and soft plastics during the night. It’s worth checking any areas that have consistent lights and to work those lures in the shadow line. Offshore still has some good action on Yellowfin Tuna as the northerly canyons have had the better bites.
Riptide Bait & Tackle in Brigantine reported a decent flounder bite off the surf, but anglers must go through quite a few shorts to find a keeper. Small snapper bluefish and Kingfish are taking Bloodworms in the surf. Earlier in the week, the shop heard of a very good flounder bite at the Little Egg reef site with most keepers being caught on bucktails and Gulp.
Fin-Atics in Ocean City reported that Kingfish and Brown Sharks are hitting in the surf with the kings biting on Bloodworms. Brown sharks are picking up Mackerel, Bunker, or Kingfish heads. In the back bays, there have been lots of small flounder and sea bass to keep the young ones happy. Snapper Blues are around and make great baits for keeper flounder. Crabbing has still been red hot in the back.
Peace Token Fishing Tackle in Cape May reported a decent number of keeper flounder coming from Wildwood and Cape May reef sites. There have been Mahi hanging around some of the pots and minnows work best to target them. Offshore has been good in the way of Yellowfin and Golden Tilefish have been hitting on the deep drop. Crabbing in the back of Wildwood and Cape May is still very good in the incoming tides.
Hands Too Bait & Tackle in Cape May had good reports of keeper fluke being caught from the Cape May reef site and reef site #11. “It’s been a very good week for fluke fisherman, so grab those bucktails and Gulp and get out there”, said the shop-owner. Crabbing is still very good in the back bays of Cape May and Wildwood. Anglers fishing the jetties and surf are picking up Kingfish, small bluefish, fluke, and a few weakfish.
South Jersey Fishing Forecast
The best bet for this weekend is to get out there and fish. If you have a boat or opportunity to go on a boat, then any of the reef sites are a good option as most have a good amount of fish on them. Bring plenty of bucktails and Gulp baits as this seems to be the best way of catching keeper fluke, but you must be right on the structure or snags. Anglers fishing the beaches, jetties, or inlets will also have great shots at keeper fluke with similar lures. The most optimal times are the last hour of the incoming through the first hour of the outgoing. With the amount of fluke caught this past week, it’s a good weekend to target the flat ones.