Southern New Jersey Fishing Report
The drum bite is on, but anglers wouldn’t believe where it’s been consistent. Ocean County, evidently, got a recent influx of black drum with some larger specimens inundating the local waters behind Island Beach State Park and Long Beach Island. Anglers working clam baits have been getting into the action according to social media and some of the local tackle shops. Striped bass action has been getting better with fish along the marshes and bridges starting to pick up. Ocean side stripers are hitting the sands and the boat decks as we are finally seeing some larger specimens to 40 inches in the mix. The Cape May and Delaware bay are the primary locations right now as some good sized striped bass have been trickling out of the Delaware River post-spawn. Tog season seems to be hit or miss with the bites and the weather with most charters claiming good days followed by very poor days. With warming ocean temperatures, the bite should push towards a more consistent, inshore bite. The icing on the report has been the showing of bluefin tuna into our coastal waters, so start grabbing the big dog reels and head east.
Here is this week’s rundown:
Hook House Bait & Tackle in Toms River said it was a tough go for toggers aboard a few of the headboats from the Point Pleasant area with a few keepers followed by some short life. The shop received a fresh order of surf clams as striped bass and drum are being picked up behind island state park. The IBSP jetty along Barnegat Inlet is giving up a few tog and small striped bass on the slower tides.
Creekside Outfitters in Waretown reported a few striped bass being caught in the back to 28 inches and several out front to over 30. Both sides of Long Beach Island and IBSP are producing striped bass via boat or land. Drum have been landed around the mid-island point of LBI and south to Graveling Point on fresh surf clam baits.
View this post on Instagram
Reel Reaction Sportfishing out of Waretown has been heading out in the backwater skiff to play around with schoolie striped bass and some tog off of small structure pieces. The skipper will be concentrating on striped bass and tog for the next few weeks until summer flounder becomes available.
The Super Chic out of Barnegat Light will be targeting sea bass in less than a month and the crew has a few trips booked on the weekends. The skipper said to give them a ring to get a charter together as dates are beginning to book up quickly.
Tony’s Bait & Tackle in Manahawkin received some nice chatter about drum hitting clam baits in the Barnegat Bay as it seems it’s been the buzz around the local shops. Striped bass are also taking some plugs and poppers along some of the channels, but boaters should be extremely careful transiting Double Creek as there are some new shallow spots. Togging action has been good for shorts, but much tougher for keepers unless you fish the extreme southern wrecks south of Little Egg.
Tackle Direct in Egg Harbor City said that fishing has been solid in the backwaters for striped bass along the Mullica and parts of the Great Bay. Anglers working skitter walks, poppers, and bloodworms are finding bass to 37 inches. Tog fishing has been good for some of the headboats working the offshore wrecks and fish to 20 pounds have been landed on white legger. Anglers working Graveling Point reported both striped bass and drum on fresh clam baits.
Tight Lines Bait & Tackle in Somers Point said it’s been tog to 18 pounds on crab and striped bass to close to 35 inches on clam and eels. The night bite for striped bass was good this past week for anglers working eels under a few of the bridges. The Sea Isle City area has been getting some nice weakfish to 23 inches on soft plastics. Togging was decent for some larger specimens with 18 to 20 pounders released from Atlantic City to Cape May via the headboat reports. The water is warm where it’s been more of a crab bite, but some anglers are still working clam and crab combinations.
Badfish Charters in Ocean City worked some light tackle and fly action on recent trips this past week to put anglers on striped bass up to 32 inches. The skipper has been plying the shallows of Ocean city and surrounding areas for bass. Give them a ring to get on the schedule for the rest of the month.
View this post on Instagram
-
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain in New Jersey!
The Cape May and Fortescue area had another solid week of striped bass action along the western parts of Delaware Bay. Large striped bass have been filtering in from the Delaware River as larger specimens were landed from the beaches and boats this past week. Anglers still working “bloodworm bombs” and large plugs are picking them up on the New Jersey side of the river around Philadelphia. Fresh clam baits, plugs, and chunked bunker have begun working for coastal striped bass. Fortescue has been the spot to be for anglers looking for large striped bass as the beach has been kicking ass this past week. Togging the Cape May area has been off the hook for larger fish to 20 pounds in addition for the numbers of keepers.
South Jersey Fishing Forecast
The best bet for the weekend will be to work the Cape May, Fortescue and even parts of the Delaware River where it empties into the bay. Chunked bunker and fresh surf clam remain the best baits to catch and release some of the bigger fish. There is nothing like putting a chunk of bunker or a slab of clam on the soak and waiting for the rod to go off. The beaches, especially Fortescue (not to spot burn) are the places to try your weekend luck on a bass. Option 2 would be to hit the wrecks, reef sites, and jetties for tautog with the further south you run, the larger the whitechins. Rigs and jigs are working with pretty much equal results which white crabs will pick up the heavier fish. Anglers looking for weakfish should try the Ocean City and Sea Isle areas with bloodworm or sandworms. The fish have been around some of the bridges and main channels, so drifting on a small vessel would be the best bet. Good Luck, Be Safe, and Tight Lines!