It’s all happening in Raritan Bay.
This world-class striped bass fishery is producing stripers up to 40 pounds for boaters and beach anglers on plugs, bait, shads and on the troll. Those who know their way around the bay are calling it the best they’ve ever seen.
Rick Hebert at Tackle World in Rochelle Park said Raritan Bay was on fire with good reports coming from Officers Row and the Bug Light on the bay side of Sandy Hook. Shads, flutter spoons and metal-lipped swimmers are all working. The freshwater fishing, he said, has been up and down as the rivers and streams have been running high.
Capt. Jay Richardella of Side Job Charters out of Lockwood Boat Works in South Amboy said the striped bass fishing in Raritan Bay is as good as it gets. He’s been running morning and afternoon charters and catching fish on jigs and trolling. There are a few openings for this weekend and he can be contacted through his website and Facebook page.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet called the fishing incredible all over the bay. He said the bass have spread out and can be found from the Bayshore beaches to Sandy Hook hitting flutter spoons, shads, plugs and Mojos.
Mike Pinto at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said the striper fishing doesn’t get any better than it is right now. In addition to all the action up in the bay, he said the bite in the Navesink and Shrewsbury rivers is the best it has been in years. Paddle tails, SP Minnows, Yo-Zuri LC Hydro Minnows and other small plugs are all working, catching stripers up to 40 inches. He also reported a few bass taken in the surf at North Beach on Sandy Hook.
Mike Gleason at Tak Waterman in Long Branch said it’s still crazy fishing up in the bay and in the local rivers. Flutter spoons, Big Doc Spooks, metal-lipped swimmers and shads have all been catching fish. He also heard of a few fish being taken in the local surf and he expects that bite to pick up as the water warms. Gleason said he hasn’t heard much in the way of freshwater fishing as everyone is focused on the striper bite. He suspects anyone who is heading to the local lakes and ponds is doing well as the largemouth bite has been good all spring.
Bob Matthews at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar also reported incredible bass fishing in local rivers and bays with the best fishing to the north. He said the Miss Belmar and Golden Eagle have been limiting out on the last few trips. Matthews also reported that some bass are starting to show in the local surf. The blues, he said, can’t be far behind. While the winter flounder bite has been close to non-existent, Matthews said the first fluke of the year were caught and released in the Shark River earlier this week. The summer flounder season opens on May 2.
Capt. Pete Sykes of Parker Pete’s Sportfishing has Striped Bass Extravaganzas scheduled for this Friday, Saturday and Sunday and there are still spots available. He can be contacted through is website.
Boats blackfishing out of the marina, including the Big Mohawk, Ocean Explorer and Skylarker, have been doing pretty well with tog while getting some cod and ling in the mix. If blackfish are on your to-do list, the season closes at the end of April.
Like everyone else, Paul Pucinni at the Reel Seat in Brielle talked about the great fishing up in Raritan Bay. Locally, there are some bass being caught on the beaches and the Manasquan River is loaded with bunker. He also reported good trout and panfish action in the local rivers, lakes and ponds.
Jason Szabo at Fishermen’s Supply in Point Pleasant Beach reported good striper fishing in the Manasquan River on the outgoing tide with soft plastics. Fish range from 20 to 26 inches. Schoolie stripers are also being caught in Barnegat Bay. Winter flounder fishing has been very tough, he said, with the south end of the Point Pleasant Canal and near the Mantoloking Bridge as the only spots giving up fish. Blackfishing has been pretty good in the Point Pleasant Canal, he added, on clams and green crabs.
Capt. Danny Gregory on the Norma K III out of Point Pleasant Beach said the blackfishing keeps getting better and better as the water warms up. Most trips see a good mixture of keepers and shorts. On May I, he’ll be switching to stripers after the tog season closes.
Capt. Kenny Namowitz on the Mimi VI said it was a good week of blackfishing despite the weather. He reported that his hardcore toggers were out in force catching plenty of plenty of keepers with a number of limits. There are still a few spots open for Monday’s trip.
Frank Giacalone at Gabriel Bait and Tackle in Brick reported that the blackfish bite remains strong in the Point Pleasant Canal on sandworms and green crabs with the worms producing best. He also reported that the Mantoloking Bridge is holding st
ripers at night and the early morning with Kettle Creek shads and SP Minnows doing the trick. There were also reports of stripers and black drum in the surf as the beach bite is picking up.
Pete Kupper at Charlie’s Bait and Tackle in Normandy Beach said the bass are starting to show in the surf. The fish are mostly small but a few 30 inchers have showed up, hitting swim shads and clams.The stripers are biting in Barnegat Bay on soft plastics and blood worms, he added, and they’re in the Point Pleasant Canal as well. He also reported good winter flounder fishing in the bay last Saturday when the sun was shining, but it shut down on Sunday when the weather took a turn for the worse.
Ray Kerico at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park said he’s getting many more reports of stripers being taken in the surf. The shop weighed in its first keeper of the year from the beach, a 9.3-pound, 30 incher caught by John Speiser on a Tsunami shad in the Island Beach State Park surf. He said the stripers have spread out in Barnegat Bay. Bait outperformed artificials this past week but that will probably change as the water warms up.
Best Bets for the Weekend
If you’re after bass, Raritan Bay is the place to go.
Stripers up to 40 pounds are being caught from boats and the beach on a wide variety of aritificials and bait. There are also stripers in the tidal rivers, like the Shrewsbury, Navesink and Manasquan.
Blackfishing also picked up at the inlets and offshore reefs and rockpiles. Better hurry if you want to get in on that fishery as the season closes on April 30.
Such a shame that guys who have put their time in year after year now have to deal with massive crowds generated by OTW and B&T’s. Thanks for nothing