Striped bass fishing continues with some nicer fish unexpectedly caught north of Manasquan in the ocean. The bass have ranged from 30 to 47 inches and were caught on jigs and swimshads off of a few party boats. I’m sure there may be a few schools south beginning to migrate up the coast – just look for diving gannets or gulls. A few winter flounder were landed this past week with some up to 17 inches caught on bloodworms which is good news. Heavy chumming seems to be mandatory to bring even a few winter flatties in. It hasn’t been a mad-dog bite, but at least they are trickling in. The weekend has tautog set to open with 4 fish @ 15 inches, but mother nature may have other plans.
Here is this week’s rundown:
Hook House Bait & Tackle in Toms River had some better reports of winter flounder being landed north and south off the Route 37 bridge. The deeper holes, heavy clam chum, and rigs baited with blood worms have been the ticket. Striped bass are still being landed along the Toms River and the backside of Island Beach State Park (IBSP), although it has slowed down.
Lacey Marine in Forked River reported a spotty winter flounder bite along the Intercoastal Waterway (ICW). The issue has been the weather and lack of fisherman. Striped bass are picking up soft plastics along lagoons and some of the sedges. Bloodworm fisherman have been doing much better along the Toms River. The shop hasn’t heard of much action along the beaches.
Creekside Outfitters in Waretown is fully stocked with green crabs as they prepare for the upcoming tautog opener. Striped bass action was decent over the past week along the docks at Barnegat and around the Route 37 bridge. The Long Beach Island bridges have been much slower with a few shorts being caught.
Reel Reaction Sportfishing out of Waretown was blown out for their 1st charter of the season, but the skipper will be on the water following this upcoming weekend’s blow. The night bite slowed down tremendously on larger fish with mostly shorts being landed and the crew is loaded with Striped Bass Bonus permits again for the 2023 season.
The Super Chic out of Barnegat Light has continued to work on the vessel for the upcoming season. Currently, the crew is booking for May sea bass trips.
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Tony’s Bait & Tackle in Manahawkin reported some spotty white perch action in the backwaters of Beach Haven West, but it’s very spotty. Some of the marshes on the west side of Barnegat Bay have some perch and small striped bass. The bridges have been a tad slower on the bass bite. The shop has tautog gear and baits for the upcoming opener, but call ahead to reserve your crabs.
Tackle Direct in Egg Harbor City had excellent reports of some larger striped bass up some of the rivers leading to Mays Landing on bloodworms or clams. The Mullica River is seeing white perch, schoolie striped bass, and a decent number of catfish picking up bloodworm baits. Anglers working the lighted piers, bridges, and docks are finding some action on striped bass. Soft plastic baits, small plugs worked ultra slow, and bloodworms have been the lures of choice. The shop has a bunch of tautog jigs and rigs for the weekend opener.
Tight Lines Bait & Tackle in Somers Point reported solid striped bass action on schoolies up to 30 inches along the bridges and docks. The night bite and tides have been better for artificials while the day time bite continues to be a worm bite. With the warmer temperatures, the shop expects good tautog fishing for the start of the season and they are loaded with green crab baits.
Badfish Charters in Ocean City has been working some of the backwater creeks to find cooperative schoolie striped bass action on the light-tackle. These have been catch-n-release trips and the skipper has some availability this upcoming week.
The Cape May area continued to have similar action on schoolie bass in the bays and around some of the lighted piers and bridges at night. The inlet has been quite on striped bass, but with the tog opener arriving soon there should be more angler participation. Most of the Cape May tackle shops have well-stocked bins of green crabs as they are set for the season. The Maurice and Cohansey rivers continue to provide decent striped bass action on bloodworms along with some good sized white perch. The Fortescue beaches have been better with bass to 32 inches being landed on bloodworms as of late and the bite should get even better.
South Jersey Fishing Forecast
The best bet for the weekend will be to bag Saturday and fish Sunday as the winds and weather look down right nasty for the first half of the weekend. Marine forecasts are showing winds to 40’s in the morning along with rain and thunderstorms. With the tog season open on Saturday, most anglers will have better shots on Sunday. Green crabs and cooked shrimp tipped on jigs dropped along the jetties should produce some bites on tog, but you may have to work for keepers. Depending on the sea conditions, boaters hitting the reef sites will have the best bet on keeper tog. There’s no secret as the Raritan has been on fire for big fish if you’re willing to make the trek north, but if you want to stay closer to home. Lighted docks, piers, and bridges are the main game for artificial striped bass fishing, otherwise it’s bloodworm dunking along the main channels.
Good Luck, Be Safe, and Tight Lines!
Thanks for your complete reports.