Northern New Jersey Fishing Report - April 25, 2019

Fishing Report For Northern New Jersey

Fishing is full of superlatives and all of them are being used to describe the spring bass bite in Raritan Bay.

Incredible, spectacular, and best ever are just a few of the descriptions anglers and captains have uttered in the last week about the bass fishing.

Stripers up to 50 pounds have been taken on Mojos, shads, chunks and plugs.

Not every day is a bonanza as the stripers begin to spread out, but the action has been fantastic. Fishing elsewhere hasn’t been nearly as good, but it’s getting better.

Capt. Joe Karcich on Joey Tomato’s Fishing Charters out of Lawrence Harbor said he’s been slamming the stripers between 15 and 30 pounds, with just a few shorts in the mix. Monday’s charter saw 70 fish come over the rail.

He’s been getting a lot of fish on the troll using Mojos but a good number have been caught jigging big shads.

Capt. Phil Sciortino at the The Tackle Box in Hazlet said the bass fishing in Raritan Bay is the best he’s ever seen, and that’s saying something.

Plenty of the bass are in the 20- to 40-pound range and are starting to hit chunks as well as the Mojos and shads. It’s not just the boat guys doing well as anglers from the bay beaches are also catching big fish on plugs and chunks.

Capt. Jay Richardella on Side Job Charters out of South Amboy called the fishing “lights out,” landing bass from 20- to 45-inches on the troll, jigging and live bait.

He expects the good fishing to continue and has a few open dates left for the spring bass bite.

There haven’t been any reports of big blues in the bay as yet but they can’t be far behind.

Mel Martens at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright also added that Raritan Bay has been red hot and that loads of bunker have moved into the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers.

Stripers in the high teens followed them in and shore anglers have been catching them at night on plugs. Kayakers have been getting into them as well. The fish have been moving around, he said, so some searching may be required.

He also reported that a few small bass have been taken from the surf, mostly on clams.

Mike Gleason at Tak Waterman in Long Branch reported better bass fishing in the Shrewsbury River on plugs and shads. The surf fishing is coming along there as well with clams getting the most attention. Bunker chunks are also worth a shot.

Bob Matthews at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said the nice weather at the beginning of this week brought the anglers out in force.

He reported a better winter flounder bite in the Shark River and a few summer flounder were caught, and released, as well.

There have been a few keeper bass caught on the Belmar beaches, but he said most of the surf fish are on the small side. Clams, bucktails, bunker chunks and small plugs are all catching fish. My first beach bass of the year came on Tuesday on clams in Ocean Grove.

Matthews said the blackfishing has been decent at the Shark River Inlet, but the majority of the tog have been shorts. The party boats are doing much better with keepers.

Capt. Bobby Quinn on the Ocean Explorer out of Belmar reported a good trip on Tuesday when the blackfish were chewing and several limits of tog were taken. The biggest fish of the day hit 8 pounds. There were also loads of shorts around the boat.

Capt. Quinn will be sailing for blackfish until the season closes on April 30.

Capt. Pete Sykes on Parker Pete’s Sportfishing out of Belmar plans to get his season underway this weekend. He still has open dates for spring stripers.

Amanda at the Reel Seat in Brielle reported that the winter flounder fishing finally picked up at the bay end of the Point Pleasant Canal.

She also said schoolie bass are biting at the Manasquan River Inlet and back in the river itself. Small plugs and rubber shads are catching the fish. There were even a few reports of weakfish caught along with the bass in the river.

Greg Bogan at Brielle Bait and Tackle said there has been a big improvement in the winter flounder fishing over the last week. Anglers in boats and from the shore at the mouth of the Point Pleasant canal are getting flatties up to 17 inches using sandworms and chum logs.

Sandworms are also the bait of choice for blackfish and stripers in the canal itself. Clams and crabs are also catching some tog in the canal and the blackfishing has been decent at the Axel Carlson Reef.

At the Manasquan Inlet, short bass are being caught on small Avas and Tsunami shads.

Rich Hebert at Tackle World in Rochelle Park said his customers have been getting into the Raritan Bay bass bite which he called “off the charts.”

His freshwater guys are also doing well with spring trout. The local rivers are running a bit high, he said, but most days the fishing is very good.

Fishing Forecast For Northern New Jersey

If it’s bass you’re after, head to Raritan Bay. It’s an epic striper bite and shows no signs of slowing down.

Keep in mind that these big girls are heading up the Hudson River to spawn and carry the future of the stock so practice catch and release. Virginia just shut down its spring trophy bass season due to concerns over declining populations.

The stripers are also on the beaches. Most the fish are small, but at least they’re here and more keepers should be showing up. Clams, bunker chunks and shads are all catching fish as well. Have fun.