Northern New Jersey Fishing Report
The fall bass run just keeps going and going. Stripers stretch from Raritan Bay down to Seaside Park with boaters and surfcasters both enjoying excellent fishing. Bass can be found from in the wash out to the three-mile line and beyond. It’s a mix of shorts, slots and overs. There have been reports that the bass can be a little picky, so have an assortment of offerings in the bag and on the boat. There are still plenty of fish reported to the north and bait continues to spill out of Raritan Bay so the madness may last well into December.
Bluefin anglers are also having an excellent fall with a steady bite of tuna in mid-shore and inshore waters. A lot of recreational-size catches have been reported and there are still giants in the mix.
The more generous blackfish season opened last Saturday but so far reports have been mixed. The consensus is that the water may still be a bit too warm for the fish to really start biting.
Rick Hebert at Tackle World in Rochelle Park said bass fishing is consistent from Sandy Hook on down. He heard there were still loads of stripers in Long Island that have yet to make their way over to New Jersey. His first blackfish trip of the year was a bit of a disappointment with plenty of short life but only eight keepers around the boat. The dogfish were a constant pain. Hebert also reported good trout fishing at Round Valley Reservoir.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet said it was another crazy week with stripers all over the place. They’re in the back of Raritan Bay, around the Hook and all the way down the beaches. Shads, Avas, poppers, livelineing and metal-lips are all working. He said a few people are fishing for tog and sea bass but most folks are chasing bass.
Joe Julian Jr. at Julian’s Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Highlands said there were bass blitzes over the weekend on Sandy Hook. He said he’s been selling hundreds of diamond jigs but not to worry as he still has plenty in the warehouse. Blackfishing is still good under the Highlands Bridge, he said, and along the bulkheads in the marinas. He’s well stocked with green crabs for the weekend.
Mike Pinto at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said it’s been relatively quiet there for the past few days with folks picking bass here and there in the surf on plugs. He did say that shop regular Vegas Vin went bottom fishing at the Resor Wreck earlier this week and jigged a number of big weakfish. Pinto said he just restocked a new shipment of MP Bucktails and Blitz Baits.
Mike Gleason at TAK Waterman in Long Branch said the stripers blitzed there on Monday morning. He reported that the bass were on their way south and there are still a ton of bass to the north that should be headed this way. He, too, reported good bluefin fishing in mid-shore and inshore waters. There’s plenty of keeper fish in with the giants. Hogy 9-inch paddle tails have been doing the job. He’s also had good reports on blackfishing at the Shark River and Manasquan River inlets. TAK Waterman will be holding special sales for Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
-
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain in New Jersey!
Stripers hit the surf in Ocean Grove and Bradley Beach over the last several days. Bass were sending sprays of peanuts in every direction right in the wash on Sunday but the bass were very picky. They ignored almost everything. On Monday, the bass lowered their standards and hit spooks, pencils and topwater baits. Most of the well-fed fish were about 30 inches. The bass took Tuesday off, but were back in the surf on Wednesday afternoon on sand eels and adult bunker. A pod of bunker made easy pickings for the stripers right in the wash. It was a topwater bite again for about 90 minutes.
There were also a few massive eruptions off the Ocean Grove beach about a quarter mile on Wednesday that had to be tuna. The boats out of the Belmar Marina, including the Big Mohawk and Golden Eagle, have been finding bass on a consistent basis.
Capt. Rich Falcone on the Golden Eagle has been putting his anglers on the fish on every trip. On Wednesday, he reported that it started out a little slow in the morning so around mid-day, he decided to take a ride which paid off with keepers and overs coming over the rail up to 43 inches. He’ll be sailing open boat again on Saturday.
Capt. Steve Spinelli on the Skylarker out of Belmar said he’s been very happy with the striper fishing, catching a lot of big fish along with plenty of keepers. His anglers have been doing well with shads but he’s been catching them on surface plugs when the bass are busting on top. He’ll be blackfishing through December and still has open dates available.
Stanley S. at the Reel Seat in Brielle said there are tons of stripers around and the fishing has been excellent for beach and boat anglers. The bass are on peanuts and sand eels. He’s also had good reports on blackfish on the shallow spots in around 30 feet of water. Bluefin, he added, are hitting stick baits, NLBN soft baits and ballyhoo on the troll at Barnegat Ridge and in the shipping lanes.
Brian Flanagan at Captain Bill’s Landing in Point Pleasant Beach said he found good blackfishing last Sunday on the rock piles off Long Branch. He also had reports of good togging in the Point Pleasant Canal. Striper fishing has been very good from Long Branch down to Seaside, he said, and reports of bluefin caught on NLBN plastics and trolled ballyhoo have also been good. Captain Bill’s weighed in a 130-pound bluefin on Wednesday.
Kyle Tangen at Fishermen’s Supply in Point Pleasant Beach also reported good bluefin action six to 12 miles out slightly east and west of the shipping lanes. NLBN plastics, stick baits and trolled ballyhoo are accounting for most of the catches. Stripers are everywhere, he said, on the beaches early in the morning and offshore during the day. Out there, the bass are mixing with the tuna. Tangen said there are some quality blackfish around but the water may still be a little too warm for their liking. The Manasquan Inlet has produced some keepers and they’re in the Point Pleasant Canal as well. Offshore sea bass fishing has been excellent and he said the Voyager did very well on its most recent trip, catching some bonito and triggerfish along with sea bass.
Capt. Jay Richardella of Side Job Charters out of the Manasquan Inlet said he’s been crushing the stripers every trip out and the fishing is as good as it gets. He’s got open dates and can be contacted through his website.
Frank Giacalone at Gabriel Tackle in Brick reported that the striper bite remains good from Manasquan Inlet to Barnegat Inlet. Bluefin are right in with the bass and the bunker in the shipping lanes and at the Atlantic Princess.
Pete Kupper at Charlie’s Bait and Tackle in Normandy Beach said the striper bite was insane for parts of last Friday and Saturday. The bass were on peanuts, sand eels and adult bunker and they ranged in size from shorts to jumbos. Sunday was quiet, he said, but then it blew up again on Monday and Tuesday with some 40-inch fish in the mix. With all the bass and bait around, Kupper has high hopes for this year’s Surf Turkey Striped Bass Tournament taking place over the Thanksgiving weekend. Cash prizes will be awarded for this catch-and-release contest. Details are on the shop’s Facebook page.
Ray Kerico at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park said the striper fishing was just nuts there on Monday. Again, it was peanuts, sand eels and adult bunker that fueled the blitz and the bass came in a wide range of sizes. A few were over 40 inches and they hit Avas, pencil poppers, metal lips and shads. Kerico said that blackfishing has been decent on the inlet jetties and there have been limit catches reported on local reefs. Grumpy’s has some Black Friday sales in the works for Thanksgiving Weekend.
-
Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain in New Jersey!
Best Bets for the Weekend
To get in on this sensational bass bite, all you really have to do is go. Once this wind and rain clears, it should be game on for striped bass. The wind will be up but coming from a westerly direction which is always welcomed by surfcasters.
If you’re lucky, you’ll run into a blitz, and there have been plenty of them from Sandy Hook to Seaside. If not, plenty of fish have been picked blind casting Avas, pencil poppers, metal-lip swimmers and shads.