Northern New Jersey Fishing Report
Fluke and tuna grabbed the headlines this week as fishing for both species showed a big improvement.
Boaters and beach anglers both reported better fluking on the reefs, in the wash and in the rivers. Shorts still outnumber keepers by a wide margin but there is plenty of action and some nice fish among the throwbacks. The flatties will be getting a lot more attention now that sea bass fishing has closed. By all accounts, it was a good sea bass season overall that started off with a bang and ended on bit of a whimper. Ling, winter flounder and whiting were welcome additions to the catches.
Reports from the canyons indicate tuna fishing is on with bluefin, yellowfin, bigeye and longfin all caught. Trolling, bait, poppers and jigs all caught fish.
Mark Fuduli at Tackle World in Rochelle Park said fishing is good with a lot of fluke being caught, especially in the rivers. Shorts outnumber keepers by a mile, but some nice ones have been landed. There are bass and blues in the surf, he said, with the stripers hitting mostly bait. Fuduli said he was fishing Sandy Hook a few days ago when an angler nearby hooked a cobia on a clam. Low, warm water in the streams and rivers has hurt the trout fishing, he added, and the largemouth bass fishing has slowed down as well with more smaller fish being caught.
Danny Stolba at Fish Tail Bait and Tackle in Carteret said bass, blues and fluke are all being caught in the Arthur Kill from the local pier. The stripers and bluefish are in the 35-inch range and the fluke have been up to 19 inches. All of the fish have been caught on fresh and frozen bunker.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet said it’s time to fluke with the bite picking up in the local rivers, Raritan Bay and out on the reefs. He weighed in a 9.8-pound fluke caught on the Keyport Princess and he heard of an 11-pounder winning the Frank Thomas Memorial Fluke Tournament last Saturday. Fluking has also been good in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers. Killies, bucktails and Gulp are doing the job. Sciortino said the eel bite for big stripers has gone quiet with the bass moving north, but there are blues around and kingfish, croakers and spot are being caught at the Keansburg Pier.
Joe Julian Jr. at Julian’s Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Highlands said he got his first good tuna report of the season with a friend of his catching a mix of yellowfin and bluefin out in the canyons earlier this week. The tuna were caught on bait and the troll. Julian said the bay is full of bluefish feeding on peanut bunker, there are bass and blues on the beach and fluke are biting in the rivers.
Mike Pinto at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said it’s a mix of blues and bass in the surf. Both are hitting topwater plugs and twitch baits early in the morning. The Shrewsbury River is also giving up blues and bass. Fluking is starting to pick up in the surf there, he said, on Gulp and bucktails. Pinto said the shop will soon be carrying the newest Blitz Baits with twister tails.
Mike Gleason at TAK Waterman in Long Branch was happy to report that the tuna fishing is finally getting started. It’s a mixed bag of fish with bigeye, yellowfin and bluefin being caught. Jigs, poppers and soft plastics are all working. Gleason said the shop now carries X Kiba sinking stickbaits and poppers exclusively just in time for tuna season. There are lots of fluke in the rivers and in the wash and during his last dive around the jetties, Gleason said he spotted loads of stripers hanging around the rocks.
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The sand bug bite has gone quiet for me in the Ocean Grove surf since last week and the cold water generated by days of a stiff southeast wind may have something to do with it. We’ll just have to wait and see. In the meantime, more fluke are coming out of the surf.
The folks over at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said the river is loaded with fluke and the rental boats have been getting a few keepers among the dozens of shorts. Bill at the shop said they weighed in a few 4, 5 and 6 pounders. Gulp and killies have been the baits of choice. There are blues and bass in the river as well hitting plugs and shads. Jesse Thomas at the Den said sandworms have been working for stripers in the surf. Now that sea bass season has closed, the party boats out of the marina, including the Capt. Cal II and Big Mohawk, are targeting fluke.
Capt. Rich Falcone on the Golden Eagle reported catching blues, sea bass and fluke over the past several days. He’ll be sticking with blues, stripers and fluke on his daily trips leaving the dock at 7:30 a.m. every day.
Capt. Steve Spinelli on the Skylarker out of Belmar said the sea bass fishing was a little tough on Tuesday but they were catching fluke, ling and winter flounder to fill out the catches. They also had some whiting to add to the coolers. Capt. Spinelli said he’s got few openings for charters early in July.
Matt Heagen at the Reel Seat in Brielle said the fluking in the Manasquan River is very good and the closer you get to the inlet, the better it gets. The fluking at the local reefs is also heating up, he said, with the Axel Carlson the most productive at the moment. Bucktails tipped with 6-inch Gulp pink shine or glow grubs are getting most of the attention. Heagen is also getting good tuna reports, especially from the southern canyons with yellowfin up to 100 pounds caught along with bluefin and bigeye. The tuna are on sand eels and jigs and poppers are working.
Capt. Jay Richardella on Side Job Charters out of Manasquan said they got into the tuna last week catching seven yellowfin, three bigeye and a couple of longfin in the Hudson Canyon. The fish were taken on bait and on the troll. Capt. Richardella is currently booking tuna and fluke trips and can be contacted through his website.
Kyle Tanger at Fishermen’s Supply in Point Pleasant Beach said the fluke are stacked up in the Manasquan River. Kayakers reported fish up to 28 inches caught. He also reported that the fluke bite on local reefs really lit up this past week, especially at the Sea Girt Reef. Folks fishing the Point Pleasant Canal reported good striper fishing at night on plastics and bucktails. Most the fish, he said, were over the limit. Tanger also received good news on bluefin tuna fishing this week. He also said the canyons turned on with yellowfin and bigeye reported caught on topwater lures. Sand eels fueled the action.
Capt. Danny Gregory on the Norma K III out of Point Pleasant Beach went searching for sea bass on the last day of the season on Wednesday and found plenty of life. However, it was a nice fluke that took the pool at the end of the day. The Norma K III started its half-day fluke schedule on Thursday.
Chris Parlow from Captain Bill’s Landing in Point Pleasant Beach reported that tuna, both bluefin and yellowfin, have been coming into the dock on a regular basis. Fish have been caught trolling ballyhoo and on jigs and lures like NLBNs. Tuna, he reported, have been located on the offshore grounds like the Bacardi and the Toms and the Lindenkohl canyons. He also reported that the ocean fluke fishing has been up and down with the fluctuating water temperatures. The bite has been more consistent in the Manasquan River and upper Barnegat Bay. Bluefish have also been coming in and out of the inlet and the Dog Beach has been a popular spot.
Frank Giacalone at Gabriel Tackle in Brick reported that fluke fishing remains good in Barnegat Bay, Manasquan River and at the inlet. Gulp is getting the job done and jerk shads have been producing so well they, can’t keep them on the shelves. Crabbing has picked up in the bay and lagoons with some nice size numbers being landed, he added.
Scott Thomas at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park said there are plenty of bluefish being caught in the surf on metals and mullet. There are still some bass around on clams and the occasional black drum as well. Fluke fishing continues to improve on the local reefs and in the surf. Bucktails and Gulp will do the job in both places. Thomas said there are stripers in bunker pods offshore. He was after sea bass in his kayak up to the north and picked several stripers livelining.
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Best Bets for the Weekend
Summer is officially here so it’s time for summer flounder. Fluke are now biting on the wrecks and reefs, in the rivers and on the beach. You’ll have to work for keepers but there’s plenty of action. Gulp, bucktails, killies, spearing and squid are all working.
That other summer favorite is also around with blues in the rivers, in the surf and offshore.
And if you’re willing to travel, tuna are in the canyons.