Mother Nature threw us a real screwball for the end of Summer Flounder season as wave heights to 6 feet made getting out of the inlets tough and battered the beaches for surf anglers working the suds. It plain stunk for most! All the news isn’t bad, as the fall action has started with False Albacore action off the beaches, and increased Striped Bass activity around the backwater bridges. Sea Bass fishing will re-open this month, and the jetty blackfishing is usually outstanding for October. Offshore tuna fishing should be good, if the seas finally calm down and cooperate. Hopefully we paid it forward for October and November with the lackluster ending to our Fluke season!
Fishing Report For Southern New Jersey
Fisherman’s Supply in Point Pleasant reported a rough ending to New Jersey’s Summer Flounder season with anglers having to deal with heavy seas due to offshore storms and high winds. Anglers who did brave the conditions had a tough time holding bottom, but did catch some nice doormat sized Fluke. Early this week, False Albacore did push into the Manasquan Inlet and were being caught with metals worked quickly back to shore. Bluefish in the 2- to 4-pound range have been around the jetties, rockpiles, and inlets, and are also hitting jigs. Striped bass up to keeper size have been caught with live eels drifted under the bridges and with soft plastics worked on the shadow lines. The Manasquan River has been choked with Blowfish up to the bridges as most soft plastics and Gulp come back with the tell-tale “bird-beak” bites.
Capt. Bill’s Landing in Point Pleasant Beach had a few keeper Fluke being reported from the beaches and inlets at the close of the season. The beaches have had small bluefish, some false albacore and even a few keeper striped bass being caught. The back bays are doing well on crabs as most are loaded with meat.
Norma K in Point Pleasant Beach reported a pick on Fluke to end the season and the boat’s monthly pool winner was Dan Schneider with a solid 8-pounder. The Bluefish trips have changed with nicer fish moving in to 8 pounds. Most have been caught on bait and jigs, and the skipper feels it should only get better as the Fall moves on. The boat will be sailing on a ¾-day schedule through February and Bluefish night trips will continue Friday and Saturday nights.
The MIMI VI out of Point Pleasant finished the year strong with putting some anglers on the personal best up to 8 pounds. The boat will be sailing for open boat Ling, Cod, and Porgies this Friday and Saturday with a 7am departure. The skipper has some Hudson canyon tuna trips available in October with 10-man limit—call for details.
Jersey Hooker Outfitter in Brick had anglers working eels and soft plastics around the bridges for Striped Bass in the Shark and Manasquan Rivers. The shop received confirmed reports of False Albacore along the beaches North of Manasquan Inlet and some did push into the inlet area. Small metals worked quickly resulted in several hookups.
Grumpy’s Bait & Tackle in Seaside Park reported an uptick in the fall fishing with the 1st keeper Striped Bass hitting the sands. The fish was just over 28 inches and fat, and was released to fight another day at a bigger weight. The shop has been hearing of some other keeper sized fish being caught and released on plugs worked during the night shifts. The store is stocked with fresh Mullet and there has been consistent action on cocktail Bluefish throughout the day.
Lacey Marine in Forked River had slow reports to the end of the Fluke season in the ocean with only a few boats making it out. Most boats worked the inlet for a slow pick on Fluke. The backwaters have been very good for Blowfish and most can still target them even in bad weather. Heavy clam chumming has been the way to go to boat quantities of Blowfish. The lagoons of Forked River to Barnegat are loaded with small Striped Bass feeding on schools of Peanut Bunker. There are some weakfish being caught on chummed Grass Shrimp around the Myers Hole area. The store has a full line of winterization products on hand along with rebates on some of the products.
Super Chic in Barnegat Light worked the last few trips of the Fluke season at some of the inshore wrecks and anglers caught Fluke to 6 pounds, but the conditions were tough. The crew will be running canyon trips for October.
Creekside Outfitters in Waretown had a lot of anglers complaining of poor sea conditions that inhibited them getting out for the close of the season this past Saturday. There were a few keeper Fluke caught from the Barnegat Inlet on live peanut bunker and the boats that did make it out caught Fluke up to 10 pounds at some of the nearby wrecks. But overall, it was a relatively slow weekend. Blowfish have been caught from the 42 and BB buoys on clam and squid and the key has been heavy chumming. Bluefish are still being caught around the Barnegat Inlet and from the Island Beach State Park and Long Beach Island sides on metals.
Tony’s Bait & Tackle in Manahawkin reported plenty of action in Barnegat Inlet on small Striped Bass and Bluefish. Bucktails, metals & sub-surface worked soft plastics have been very effective. Live Spot, Peanut Bunker, and fresh Mullet are working on these fish. Blowfish are abundant all over Barnegat Bay from Toms River south to Little Egg. The Fluke season ending with a dud as the weather was a major damper for boaters and surf fisherman due to nasty conditions. Striped Bass have been around the bridges for anglers working small soft plastics at night.
Fisherman’s Headquarters in Ship Bottom reported a poor ending to the Fluke season for most. Some charters did make it out and boat fish to 10 pounds, but it was a rough go. The Causeway bridges have been good for Striped Bass at night for anglers working 1/2oz jig-heads tipped with 4-inch pink-ice Fin-S soft plastics. Blowfish have been very good from the 42 to the BB buoys and mid-island to Little Egg inlet.
Riptide Bait & Tackle in Brigantine reported a few Striped Bass to 30 inches being caught from the south-end jetty on plugs and soft plastics worked during the cleaner water tides. Anglers have been playing with resident Stripers in the backwaters. These fish are small, but a blast on light-tackle. The Mullet are starting to pile up along the beaches and inlets with small Bluefish on them. The shop did weigh in a couple Fluke to 4 pounds prior to the close of the season.
Fin-Atics in Ocean City reported a tough end to the Summer Flounder season with very challenging ocean conditions. Most boats had a very tough time making it out, and settled for fishing the inlets hard. A few nice Flounder were caught to 6 pounds on bucktail and live bait combinations. Striped Bass activity is getting better with some of the cooler nights, and the bridges are the place to target. Most Stripers are in the 14- to 26-inch range. The shop has a special on re-spooling Power Pro Super Slick through October 15th.
Peace Token Fishing Tackle in Cape May reported some Weakfish being caught near the Cape May Ferry terminal along the jetties with pink soft plastics. Anglers fishing the bayside beaches are picking up Croakers, Kingfish, and some small Bluefish. The shop is fully stocked with fresh and frozen baits for the Fall Striped Bass run.
Hands Too Bait & Tackle in Cape May reported Kingfish and Croakers along the Delaware Bay beaches on clam, squid, or Fish-bites. Bluefish are along the front beaches and have been averaging 2 to 5 pounds on metals. Weakfish are sporadically being caught along the jetties and rock-piles on soft plastics and on live Peanut Bunker. Striped Bass have been caught on artificials, plugs, and poppers. The shop reported Mullet along the surf from Wildwood to Cape May.
Southern New Jersey Fishing Forecast
The best bet for this weekend might be to stay local and target Blackfish off the inlet rock walls and jetties. Green Crabs tipped on Tog jigs or rigs should be able to get most anglers their one-fish limit, but bring a bunch of greenies to have fun playing catch and release with the rest. Most inlets are experiencing 1- to 5-pound Bluefish chasing Mullet and other baitfish, so working metals along the rocks should provide instant hookups on these fish. By the way, these are perfect size for the grill. The marine forecast doesn’t look too bad for boats to venture out for Mahi or offshore pelagics, so they may also be in play. Good Luck, Be Safe, and Tight Lines!