Southern New Jersey Fishing Report
So much for April showers! April has been dumping buckets of rain and putting a major damper on the bay fishing with run-off and chocolate milk looking water. Anglers looking to catch a few striped bass and white perch are having some tough conditions. The Toms River and Mullica have been a little churned with 4 days of rain, and angler participation was down over the past week. The striped bass were cooperating prior to the beginning of the week with decent action on bloodworms and they have been hitting some artificials during the dinner-time high tides. Tog fisherman have been reporting some decent togging for quality on the wrecks, but the fishing has been so-so with the windy and rainy days. Hopefully the next few weeks will give us warmer, drier conditions to get the fish and anglers moving.
Here is this week’s rundown:
Hook House Bait & Tackle in Toms River received a shipment of NLBN lures and some custom plugs for striped bass fisherman. The shop is loaded with minnows, salted clam, and bloodworms for bass and perch anglers. The Toms River has been the place to be for action on both fronts. Fish & Game has been around, so be sure you are using circle hooks when targeting striped bass with bait.
Creekside Outfitters in Waretown reported some sporadic striped bass fishing on the east and west sides of Barnegat Bay behind Island Beach State Park and from the BI to BB buoys. A few hardy anglers were trolling small plugs and hooked up near the defunct power plant outflow. Togging has been slow from most of the area reef sites with the AC reef showing the most promising bites.
Reel Reaction Sportfishing out of Waretown was able to get out and play around with a few cooperative stripers before the 4 day rain event. The skipper has both vessels operational and will be dunking the larger vessel in the slip this week.
The Super Chic out of Barnegat Light has been working the gear and vessel for the next few weeks as the skipper and crew await the May sea bass season.
Tony’s Bait & Tackle in Manahawkin reported some decent perch fishing along parts of Beach Haven West, but the recent rains have put a damper on the salinity and the bite. Striped bass action was fairly good over the Easter weekend with anglers hooking striped bass up to 26 inches from the Ship Bottom pier as well as a few anglers releasing fish to 28 inches from the bridges. The bridge bite has been slower as the resident fish seem to have pushed around the bay. Tog fisherman are getting some sporadic bites from the Barnegat jetty, but the best action has been from the reef sites south of Little Egg Inlet.
Tackle Direct in Egg Harbor City recommends anglers to keep working the Tuckahoe, Mullica, and Great Egg rivers for striped bass up to 30 inches. Jumbo bloodworms worked along the sod banks, bridges, and tributaries have been the best baits for foraging bass. The shop reported a few bigger fish being caught south of Cape May and also along with Raritan as the store has been selling plugs for the Raritan angling crew. Togging started off with some nicer fish being landed from the offshore reef sites on green crab and white crab. The bite has been slow, so be patient on the bite and hook sets.
Tight Lines Bait & Tackle in Somers Point reported some nice striped bass on jumbo bloodworms behind Somers Point and along parts of Ocean City. The bridges have been decent on striped bass during the early morning tides. Tog fisherman are finding some cooperative tog to 18 inches off the bridges and piers with green crab.
Badfish Charters in Ocean City found some striped bass in waters as shallow as 3 feet over Easter weekend, but incessant rain kept the skipper off the water over the past few days. The crew will be back on the search this coming weekend looking for striped bass in shallow water.
-
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain in New Jersey!
The Cape May and Fortescue area had some better reports of fish to 40 inches over the past week prior to the recent rain events. The bites have been on jumbo bloodworms dunked off the Delaware Bay beaches. The rivers of the Cohansey and Maurice rivers have been harboring some striped bass and white perch. Small pieces of bloodworms on two-hook rigs have been the ticket for the perch, while jumbo bloodworm balls have been working on striped bass. The rain did put a damper on angler activity, but that should rebound with clearer skies and drier conditions this coming week. The Cape May reef site, Wildwood, and a few other deeper wrecks were decent on larger tog specimens. Anglers are also catching a few keepers from the area rocks and jetties, so no boat needed on these fish.
South Jersey Fishing Forecast
The best bet for the weekend will be to target tog off the bridges, jetties, and piers for extreme south jersey anglers with the bite being solid for the start of the season. Green crabs, cooked shrimp or white crab (if you can get them) are perfect for early season tog. Some anglers prefer cooked mussels or clam baits for the early April fish, but it seems they are already biting on the crab. Anglers looking to hit ocean, should be hitting the deeper wrecks as there were some nice fish to 9 pounds landed over the past week and it should only get better with warmer water conditions. Striped bass is still a bloodworm bite for most of our readership. The key has been to working the rivers, outflows, and tidal creeks as most of the bass seem to be concentrated in these areas. A simple 4-in FinS or shallow swimming plug may also do the trick on these bass, especially if the water temperatures trend upward. There are some migratory fish pushing out of the Delaware, so the southernmost parts of New Jersey are the best spots to intercept these larger specimen. Good Luck, Be Safe, and Tight Lines!