Northern New Jersey Fishing Report
Sea bass season got off to a slow start last Friday due to the chilly water, but gathered momentum as the week went on. The action isn’t at the level everyone would like, but warmer water is on the way. Ling are taking up some of the slack.
Fluke fishing is also going in fits and starts. More fish were reported coming out of the rivers and bays, but it’s a bit of a grind. Again, higher water temperatures will get them chewing. Some fluke anglers are having better luck in the surf.
The beach is also the place for bass. Clams and plugs are catching stripers from Sandy Hook down to Island Beach State Park. Clams are good during the day, while plugs, like metal lips and glide baits, get the job done at night.
Raritan Bay bass fishing has cooled off, but there are still fish in the back of the bay and in the rivers.
Jumbo trophy stripers are hitting live eels on planer boards offshore, with the Shrewsbury Rocks a popular spot.
And there are some bluefish around. Not many have been reported, but those caught are big, 10 to 12 pounds.
Rick Hebert at Tackle World in Paramus reported slow sea bass fishing as the season got underway, but was happy to hear that the Big Mohawk out of Belmar got a boat limit of sea bass on Tuesday with 32 anglers aboard. Fluke reports have been just so-so, Hebert said, but he did hear of more bluefish showing up. Freshwater fishing has been good for largemouth, with anglers pulling them off the beds. Hebert added that Tackle World’s grand opening at its new location in Paramus this past Saturday was a huge success.
Capt. Dan Mazza of Thin Blue Tide Charters out of Keyport said the Raritan Bay striper fishing fell off a bit this past week. He managed to pull some catches together, finding scattered pockets of bass in the bay.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet said fluking has picked up in the rivers, with keepers reported in the Navesink. Big stripers are at the Shrewsbury Rocks eating eels. Bluff Day is this Saturday at the Tackle Box where locally made lures, the latest gear, and free merchandise will be available. Sciortino is also promising good vibes.
Capt. Will Davis of Epic 1 Charters out of Keansburg has been fishing the ocean for the jumbos using live eels and planer boards. Recent afternoon trips have seen bass up to 54 inches come over the rail. Capt. Davis can be contacted through his website.
- Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain in New Jersey
Capt. Harry Browne of Muscles Magoo Charters out of Atlantic Highlands has been targeting trophy bass for his clients out in the ocean, using live eels and planer boards. He’s been catching stripers up to 47 inches. Browne fished with live eels during the recent Fins for Freedom fishing event where more than two dozen volunteer captains and their boats took over 80 veterans out for a day of striper fishing. Capt. Browne also did some Raritan Bay fluking. He joined a group of veterans from Soldier On and members of the Hackettstown High School Fishing Club on a fluke trip sponsored by the Hi-Mar Striper Club. Fishing aboard the Ebbtide Too out of Atlantic Highlands, the crew caught plenty of fluke, but keepers were scarce.
Joe Julian Jr. at Julian’s Bait and Tackle in Atlantic Highlands said surf anglers are catching a lot of croakers on clams. He also had reports of a few small bass blitzes out on Sandy Hook, and there are some bluefish around. Fluking, he said, is still on the slow side, but he’s selling a lot of killies. There are stripers in the Shrewsbury River, and he heard that some people are trolling Mojos between the Sea Bright and Highlands bridges.
Mike Pinto at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright said bass are still biting in the rivers, but there is excellent striper action out front on the beaches. Clams and plugs are catching big stripers up to 52 inches from Sandy Hook down to Long Branch. He also reported that Raritan Bay is absolutely loaded with bunker, so there is plenty of bait around. Pinto added that the shop has TYG Glide baits in stock, but they are bound to go fast.
Mike Gleason at Tak Waterman in Long Branch said the surf is giving up bass from 20 inches up to 30 pounds. Gleason has been fishing artificials at night, primarily glide baits and metal lips. There are probably fish around during the day, but he’s only able to get out after dark. It’s typical spring fluking in the rivers, he said, with up and down fishing and the occasional keeper caught. There’s a ton of bunker around, and he added it’s just a matter of time before the bluefin will be here. Gleason said the shop is expecting more Fish Everything and Personal Best glide baits shortly.
Tom Palmisano at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said the fluke bite is starting to turn on in the Shark River, with a few more keepers being caught. He added that there have been a few stripers and blues caught in the river as well. The party boats out of the Belmar Marina reported a slow opening to the sea bass season, he said, but the fishing has improved over the past several days.
Capt. Rich Falcone on the Golden Eagle out of Belmar reported picking away at sea bass all day on Tuesday while getting some shots at ling in the bargain. The best bite came on jigs, he said. The Golden Eagle will be sailing for sea bass every day.
Capt. Steve Spinelli on the Skylarker out of Belmar said he’s been out for sea bass every day since the opener and said they were scarce for the first few days. The fishing is slowly getting better, and he’s been catching ling to help fill the buckets.
Capt. Payton Gepp on the Big Mohawk out of Belmar said the fishing was a little tougher on Wednesday after getting a boat limit of sea bass the day before. He said the crew fished hard and put together a solid catch at the end of the day.
Stanley G. at the Reel Seat in Brielle said sea bass fishing lit up for all the party boats on Tuesday. He said the boats were crushing the big stripers at the Shrewsbury Rocks, and bluefish have shown up in the back of the Manasquan River. The Reel Seat just received a new batch of Salty Degenerate Lures, including trollers, metal lips, and pencil poppers.
Christian Caparra at Fishermen’s Supply in Point Pleasant Beach said the fluke fishing is improving daily in the Manasquan River and at the inlet. There are also bass in the river at night, with small plugs and plastics doing the trick. There are plenty of stripers in the surf, he said, hitting mostly on clams.
Brian Flanagan at Captain Bill’s Landing in Point Pleasant Beach said folks are catching small bass at the Manasquan Inlet on clams. Anglers are also catching stripers in the Point Pleasant Canal on soft plastics and shads. Fluking is picking up in the Manasquan River on Gulp, bucktails, and killies.
Frank Giacalone at Gabriel Tackle Co. in Brick reported that the surf remains full of stripers, with clams the bait of choice. Fluke fishing is good, he said, but the water is still chilly, so the outgoing tide is producing best.
Pete Kupper at Charlie’s Bait and Tackle in Normandy Beach said the striper fishing on the beach is excellent. There were loads of bass, up to 38 inches, caught over the weekend, mainly on clams. The bite was on in Ortley Beach and Bay Head as well. Bass are hitting small soft plastics and poppers in Barnegat Bay, and there are bluefish up to 12 pounds back there. Fluking is still a little slow in the bay, but it’s getting better.
Ray Kerico at Grumpy’s Tackle in Seaside Park said it’s been an amazing spring so far with all of the bass on the beach. Anglers fishing with clams are catching multiple stripers, with slot fish in the mix. There are also big bluefish and black drum in the surf along with the stripers. It’s bunker chunks for blues and clams for the drum. There are also some stripers back in the bay, he said, hitting artificials. Fluking is still hit-or-miss, Kerico said, but that should change as the water warms up.
Best Bets for the Weekend
Clams for stripers on the beach are proving to be the best thing going, but there’s no sugarcoating it: the forecast looks dismal. Cool, wet, and windy weather is in store through Monday.
But it is Memorial Day Weekend, and a little rain never hurt anybody. Dress for the weather and give it a shot.
And, if there’s a silver lining in all the gray clouds, it’s that the wind will be from the east, which should bring warmer water our way.