Northern New Jersey Fishing Report - June 6, 2019

Pictured Above: Jim Stareck with the 450-pound bluefin he caught off Manasquan. Tackle World in Rochelle Park provided the photo.

While some species are hitting better than others, there are plenty of fish to choose from as the overall bite continues to improve.

There’s been no let up in the excellent sea bass bite and offshore anglers continue to score with bluefin tuna. The striper action cooled a bit but there are still big fish around with the ocean giving up some jumbo fish on the troll and livelining.

The beach bite on bass is definitely getting better and bluefish of all sizes are at the inlets, in the bays and the ocean. Sea bass anglers are also finding plenty of ling to complement their catch

And finally, the fluke fishing is best in the rivers right now but there are signs of an improvement in the ocean with more fish being caught in the surf.

Northern New Jersey Fishing Report

Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet reported the striper fishing in Raritan Bay is still going strong. This spring’s bite is among the best and longest he’s ever seen. The bass popped up at the Navy Pier on Tuesday and were hitting just about everything including live bait, shads and trolled Mojos. The fish were up to 40 pounds, he said.

The Keansburg Pier, he added, has been the place for big bluefish on bunker chunks. Keeper and short fluke are in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers but the ocean fishing has yet to catch fire. The party boats out of Atlantic Highlands and Highlands are finding some keeper fluke in the bay but all of the rain isn’t helping. Still, fluke up to 7 pounds have been reported.

Mel Martens at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said his customers are picking up blues and bass in the surf and fluke in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers. The keeper fluke are in the rivers along with plenty of shorts and a few short fluke have been caught in the surf as well. The blues are in the rivers and ocean and have been up to 12 pounds hitting metal and plugs.

Mike Gleason at Tak Waterman in Long Branch said the fishing is improving there as he picked up a couple keeper bass fishing the ocean this week along with a few short fluke. He also took an ocean dive and saw loads of bass hanging around the jetties along with lots of fluke.

The beach fishing in Ocean Grove is certainly getting better. I had a good week on small bass using sand crabs in the surf. The fish are right in the wash and it’s fun fishing on light tackle. There was one keeper in the mix and best part is the bait is free and at your feet. Worms are working, too, as a young woman fishing close by on Sunday got at least four bass in quick succession.

Bob Matthews at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar reported that the sea bass fishing is still the best game in town followed by the great offshore tuna bite. He said the fluke fishing in the rivers is improving daily. One of the Den’s rental boats has eight keepers earlier this week with two to four keepers the average. Anglers are catching loads of shorts as well.

The offshore bass bite was a little slow, he said, with the early morning being best on the troll. The shop’s biggest weigh in this week was 42 pounds. Matthews added that the surf fishing is picking up with small bass hitting in the dark and blues during the day. There have also been a few fluke taken from the sand.

Capt. Pete Sykes of Parker Pete’s Sportfishing out of Belmar reported a good week of striper fishing on the troll and livelining. Tuesday’s golden hour trip saw plenty of action with bass up to 47 pounds. He got into the jumbos again on Wednesday morning. He’s still got open dates in June for day and golden hour charters.

Capt. Steve Spinelli on the Skylarker out of Belmar called the sea bass and ling fishing the best spring fishing he’s witnessed in years. The sea bass have been up to 5 pounds and most anglers are getting their limits. There were also some whiting among the catches and even a monkfish came over the rail.

Capt. Bobby Quinn on the Ocean Explorer out of Belmar has been reporting outstanding sea bass fishing almost every day for the last week.

Capt. Rich Falcone on the Golden Eagle out of Belmar has been targeting bluefish and finding them in all kinds of sizes, including the monster variety. He’s been putting his fares on fish up to 15 pounds. There have also been a few stripers in the mix. When the blues don’t cooperate, the Golden Eagle switches to sea bass and has been finding plenty of them.

Capt. Joe Karcich of Joey Tomato’s Fishing Charters, now fishing out of Clark’s Landing on the Manasquan River, said he had an outstanding sea bass trip on Tuesday fishing the Sea Girt Reef. He’s also booking striper trips and will be sailing for those this weekend.

Amanda at the Reel Seat in Brielle said the bluefin tuna bite has got everyone’s attention right now with good fishing reported at the Resor Wreck. The majority of the fish are being taken on the troll with tracker bars. The fluke fishing in the Manasquan is decent, she said, but still a little slow in the ocean. The sea bass fishing, on the other hand, is terrific on the local reefs.

John Bogan at Brielle Bait and Tackle also reported solid bluefin action at the Resor. There are blues and bass at the Manasquan Inlet and back in the river, with the bass at night and the blues during the day. The fluke are there as well and a few summer flounder have been caught on the beach. Considering all that’s biting now, Bogan gave the overall fishing picture an A minus.

Rich Hebert at Tackle World in Rochelle Park said he found outstanding sea bass fishing over the weekend. He did mention that he stopped in Raritan Bay for some fluking on the return trip and was disappointed with the results. An hour’s worth of fishing produced only one keeper and a few shorts. He suspects all of the rain had an impact on the salinity of the water as well as the clarity. A break from bad weather will help the fluking. He’s hoping to get offshore and a shot at all the tuna around. A friend of his fished approximately 20 miles off Manasquan on Tuesday and landed a 450-pounder.

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Best Bets for the Weekend

Sea bass looks as close to a sure thing as there is in fishing. Party boats targeting them are all reporting an excellent bite. Don’t delay as the 10-fish season closes on June 22.

Beach fishing is definitely on the upswing and it looks like the weather will cooperate. Worms, clams and sand crabs are catching small and keeper bass in the surf and there are some fluke there as well.

And you never know where the bluefish will pop up. Have fun.