A big storm turned the ocean into a boil this week, making for unfishable conditions and keeping most boats at the dock. But before the wind and rain, the striper bite was red hot and it appeared that the tautog fishing was starting to get on track. There were also bluefin tuna in close, about 10-miles out, and a couple of anglers were able to chase them down. One big surprise this week was redfish. Several were caught in the surf on clams over the weekend, mainly in Ocean County. The ocean was calm on Thursday morning and the latest info is that bass are biting again for the boats in Raritan Bay and on the beach at Island Beach State Park.
Rick Hebert, at Tackle World in Rochelle Park, says there have been excellent reports of striper fishing in Raritan Bay right up until the blow began. The fish were hugging the bottom of the channels. He had a good day tautog fishing on Sunday at Garden State Reef, picking up an 8-pounder and two 7-pounders. The big fish of the day was a 9-pound tog that was released. The fish favored jigs over rigs.
Capt. Phil Sciortino, at the Tackle Box in Hazlet, says the stripers were all over the bay before the storm with folks getting them on the troll, Ava’s, and other sand eel imitations. Big bluefish were mixed in with the bass as well.
Mike Pinto, at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright, says an 18-pound striper was caught in the rough surf on Tuesday morning, indicating the storm hasn’t sent them packing. There were some big blues in the Sea Bright and Monmouth Beach surf over the weekend, he added, along with the striped bass. As for bass in the Shrewsbury and Navesink Rivers, the action has gone quiet, he says.
Mike Gleason, at Tak Waterman in Long Branch, says he was among the lucky anglers to land a bluefin tuna over the weekend. Madd Mantis poppers were the ticket, he says. The striper bite from the beach has been hit or miss. Timing it right with sand eel imitations is the key. Mike says the tog fishing has been decent, if not spectacular with a buddy of his landing an 11-pounder.
Bob Matthews, at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar, says the togging has been pretty good for boats. Lock-N-Load Sportfishing reported a 16-pound tautog was caught last week. Matthews reported lights out striper fishing for the boats up in Raritan Bay on Ava 27s and 47s with green or red tails. Surf fishing has been a little trickier, with a more consistent bite at Island Beach State Park. Most of the bass are shorts and they’re hitting a variety of offerings from sand eel imitations to plugs, swim shads, and teasers. Hickory shad, some as big as the stripers, are abundant as well. Matthews says the winter flounder continue to bite well in the Shark River.
Capt. Pete Sykes, of Parker Pete’s Sportfishing out of Belmar, says last Friday’s offshore black sea bass trip was a huge success with limits of big sea bass coming over the rail along with jumbo porgies. His next offshore trip is scheduled for Dec. 12.
Capt. Jay Richardella, at Side Job Charters out Belmar, says striper fishing has been lights for him over the last couple of weeks. He’s got a few more trips scheduled before he pulls the boat toward the end of the month.
Ryan, at the Reel Seat in Brielle, says from what he’s hearing, the tog bite has been a little slow. On the plus side, black sea bass are piling up on the offshore spots. The surf guys continue to pick stripers, he says, and there have been numerous reports of bluefin tuna in close, specifically at the Manasquan Ridge.
Dylan, at Fishermen’s Supply in Point Pleasant Beach, says there is good jumbo sea bass fishing about 40-miles offshore. The striper fishing was excellent before the storm for surf and boat anglers. The shop also received a report of a 60-inch bluefin tuna over the weekend that was caught on a popper relatively close to shore.
Capt. Matt Sosnowski, on the Norma-K III out of Point Pleasant Beach, says it was a nice weekend on the water, but the tog fishing is still a little tough. He’s mixing it up fishing at different depths from 20-to-80 feet of water, but the bite hasn’t been happening the way he’d like. He’s hoping the recent storm will shake things up and get the tog biting.
Capt. Kenny Namowitz, on the Mimi VI out of Point Pleasant Beach, says tautog fishing is slow, but he’s doing very well on his striper trips. My annual trip aboard the Mimi VI on the day before Thanksgiving produced loads of stripers up to 35-inches along with jumbo bluefish. The Mimi VI is sailing everyday for tog. Call ahead for reservations.
Frank Giacolone, at Gabriel Tackle Co. in Brick, says the surf bite for stripers has been hot from Mantaloking Beach to Island Beach State Park on anything that resembles a sand eel. The offshore boat action has been just as good jigging and trolling. Tautog fishing is still good at the Manasquan Inlet and in the Point Pleasant Canal and stripers continue to bite at the bridges in the Manasquan River.
Pete Kupper, at Charlie’s Bait and Tackle in Normandy Beach, says that Matt DePaolera was the winner of the Ninth Annual Surf Turkey Striped Bass Tournament with a 45.5-inch striper caught on a clam. This year’s contest drew more than 100 anglers and was a catch-and-release event. Kupper wanted to thank all his sponsors which included S&S Bucktails, PS Resin Lures, and Folsom Tackle for their support. Kupper also weighed in a 6-pound, 26-inch redfish, caught by Martina Mojica on a clam in the surf.
Ray Kerico, at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park, says the striper fishing in the surf has been very, very good. Anglers are catching bass anywhere from 18-to-45 inches. Tsunami and Bill Hurley Sand Eels, Ava’s, Deadly Dicks, or anything with a slim profile is working. There are loads of hickory shad around as well. Kerico also reported good tautog fishing at the Barnegat Inlet.
Francine, at Betty and Nick’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park, says the bass fishing on the beach has been red hot with fish up to 40-inches caught. The bite is all on sand eel imitations. She also reported redfish in the surf with several being caught on clams in recent days.
Fishing Forecast for Northern New Jersey
The latest word on Thursday morning is the bass are again chewing on sand eels. Surf anglers were getting them down south at Island Beach State Park and boaters were finding them up in Raritan Bay. Hopefully, the storm shook up the tautog and will get them biting on a more consistent basis.
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