Northern New Jersey Fishing Report
Striper fishing continues to improve with Raritan Bay leading the way. The back bay, Bayshore beaches and local rivers have all been very productive. Bass are hitting metal-lip swimmers, shads, SP Minnows and there were even late reports of live bunker generating bites.
Striper fishing in Barnegat Bay is gaining steam as well and the southern beaches are finally giving up some bass on clams.
Anglers are also banging big drum in the southern part of Barnegat Bay while blackfishing finally picked up for the offshore boats. It’s just too bad the tog season closes in a week.
Rick Hebert at Tackle World in Rochelle Park said he had good reports on stripers from the back of Raritan Bay and over to the New York side. Shads still reign but he did say anglers he knew were having success with live bunker in the bay on Wednesday. He also reported better blackfishing this past week. Hebert said warmer water got the trout moving and they were very active over the weekend. He fished Lake Musconetcong and caught more than four dozen.
Capt. Jay Richardella on Side Job Charters out of South Amboy said it’s been good striper fishing up in Raritan Bay, catching between 10 to 25 bass per trip on shads and on the troll. The only slow day was Good Friday, he said, when the fishing was, well, not so good. Side Job Charters will be heading back to Belmar on May 15 to start fishing for sea bass and stripers.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet said anglers are crushing the bass in Raritan Bay. Shads, metal-lips, SP and Hydro Minnows and pretty much everything else are all working. Boats are picking up fish trolling Mojos as well.
Joe Julian Jr. at Julian’s Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Highlands said it’s happening everywhere. Bass are biting all over Raritan Bay and in the local rivers. He also had a good report from the Rip at the tip of Sandy Hook. A friend of his caught 25 stripers on artificials on the outgoing tide. There’s an enormous number of birds around the Highlands feeding on all the bait, he said. Folks cleaning their catch are finding lots of peanut bunker in the bass.
Mike Pinto at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said the local rivers are on fire and there’s a lot of action around the Highlands. Fishing is also good over in the Rockaways. Pinto said the bass are in shallow water up in Raritan Bay hitting plugs and bloodworms. The shop, he added, is fully stocked with Al Gags Whip-It Fish and Ruthless Shads.
Mike Gleason at Tak Waterman in Long Branch said the fishing is excellent pretty much wherever you go and on whatever you throw. The bass have been hitting metal-lips, gliders, swimbaits and shads. He hasn’t heard of any action on flutter spoons as yet only because no one is trying them. Gleason said the shop just got a restock on Maine Fishing Co. darters.
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Tim Rizzuto at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said there have been keeper tog caught at the Shark River Inlet on green crabs, clams and worms. He also mentioned the hot striper bite up in Raritan Bay on bloodworms, plugs and plastics. Purple metal-lips have been working for him up there at night. The party boats fishing for tog out of the marina, including the Big Mohawk, Capt. Cal II and the Ocean Explorer have been catching keeper blackfish up to around four pounds.
Capt. Steve Spinelli on the Skylarker out of Belmar has been finding some nice tog on his trips. Monday’s outing saw a 5-pounder and an 8-pounder come over the rail. He’ll be targeting sea bass when that season opens on May 17.
Ted Imfeld at the Reel Seat in Brielle said stripers up in Raritan Bay and down in Barnegat Bay have everyone’s attention. There’s been a few bass caught in the Manasquan River and some tog at the Manasquan Inlet.
Capt. Tom Wolfe on the Norma K III out of Point Pleasant Beach said they’ve had decent tog fishing for the last several days, finding plenty of life with a mix of keepers and shorts. There have been a few limit catches as well. The Norma K III will be sailing for blackfish every day at 7:30 a.m. until the season closes. Wolfe said he marked plenty of stripers on Tuesday and there were fish on top but it was close to the three-mile line so he took a pass.
Kyle Tangen at Fishermen’s Supply in Point Pleasant Beach said there’s been chatter on spring bluefish in the Manasquan River but so far, their appearance remains in the realm of rumor. People are picking the occasional bass in the Manasquan River and he heard there have been a couple of cinder worm hatches way back in the river that have attracted stripers. Raritan Bay is on fire, he said, and the blackfishing is picking up in shallow water just in time for the end of the season. Tangen said the shop will be holding a special seminar this Saturday with Gold Coast Ballyhoo and Wolfpack Tackle on rigging techniques and strategies for offshore gamefish. The seminar starts at noon and full details are available on Fishermen’s Supply Facebook page. He added that the shop is fully loaded for the opening of fluke season on May 4.
Frank Giacalone at Gabriel Tackle in Brick said striper fishing in the bay has picked up on bloodworms, soft plastics and topwater plugs. Bass are also hitting eels in the Point Pleasant Canal.
Pete Kupper at Charlie’s Bait and Tackle in Normandy Beach said they had their first report of stripers on the beach over the weekend. The bass weren’t big but they are in the suds and hitting clams. He said bloodworms, plugs and plastics are working for bass in Barnegat Bay with night time offering a better bite. Kupper said Happy Baits soft plastics are becoming popular. He’s also had reports of black drum in the bay.
Scott Thomas at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park said giant black drum are slurping up clams in Barnegat Bay. The drum are in the bay behind Island Beach State Park up to Seaside. Thomas said you have to wade out a bit and cast into deeper water to reach the drum. Stripers are also picking up the clam baits. Plastics and plugs are picking up bass in the bay as well. Thomas also reported their first beach bass of the season on clams. Grumpy’s has fresh clams in stock. Thomas added that Yakkity Yaks Kayaks, next door to Grumpy’s, will be holding a special seminar on May 10 on kayak fishing for stripers in Raritan Bay. The seminar starts at 6 p.m.
Best Bets for the Weekend
It’s prime time for stripers. Raritan Bay and the nearby rivers have been the hot spots with bass hitting all kinds of plugs and plastics. Bloodworms are also working from the Bayshore beaches.
Barnegat Bay is also giving up a lot of stripers on worms and shads. Clams are catching big drum in the bay as well and they are also starting to work for stripers in the surf.
Blackfish season closes in just about a week so if you have tog on your spring fishing list, it’s time to go.
The weather looks to be on our side for a change so get out there.