Fishing Reports 6-30-14

Flounder is arguably the most popular fish in NJ. Most fishermen have fished for them at one time. They are also on most menus in shore town restaurants. There is good reason for this popularity, they make a delicious meal and they are a blast to catch.

Summer flounder are a flatfish with both eyes on the top side of their body.  This configuration allows them to lie flat on the sea bottom and along with their ability to change the color and patterns of their body, makes them excellent ambush predators.  Fluke will lie along the bottom in areas where baitfish will swim along with the current. The challenge in flounder fishing is to find the areas where the fluke would set up to catch the bait fish.  The first thing to look for is changes in bottom elevation, broken or rocky bottom, wrecks and/or reefs.  Any of these will provide a good ambush environment for the flounder.  The next challenge is to mimic the patterns of the bait fish. Smaller fish will follow the current, so predators will position themselves facing into the current. In the the case of flounder they wait for the bait come to them.  

To accomplish this the fishermen wants to present their bait in a way that it follows the current naturally.  Most fluke fishing is drift fishing, picking an area to target and letting the boat drift over that bottom.  The optimal drift speed is under 1 knot. Some days the current is moving much faster than this, so in that case many fishermen will use a drift sock to slow the drift. A drift sock is similar to a small parachute that is tied to the boat to create more drag.  Keep in mind the wind can overcome the current and will push the boat against the tide, in this case the pros will power drift. Power drifting is using the boats engine(s) to mimic the current over an area, regardless of the wind.  The most important thing is to realize which direction the current is moving over the area that you are targeting. If you present the bait in the wrong direction you will catch less fish when you are hitting the fluke in the back of the head!

Always remember to follow the NJ fishing regulations. Currently, summer flounder season is open until September 7th and you are allowed to keep 5 fish at a minimum of 18”.

Good luck!

Atlantic City

I talked to Noel Feliciano from One Stop Bait and Tackle, “We’ve been busy with fluke, croakers, triggerfish, and kingfish. Some nice flounder being caught. We weighed a 6.8lb flounder for Robbie Hawes, the fish was caught in the surf! The stripers are still being caught through the night and early mornings.  We are also seeing some nice weakfish. The best bet for weakies is a float rig with a blood worm.  Plenty of live NJ minnows in stock, the biggest we’ve seen all season!”

Margate

Robin Scott, Ray Scott’s Dock, Just when no one thought fishing in the Margate Bay could possibly get any better, it did exactly that! With five pound after five pound flounder coming through the back door, the competitive spirit has electrified Margate. Dr. Dan Greenberg of Longport rolled out solo early in an attempt to top Margateʼs Fire Chief Tony Tabassoʼs five pounder and four and three quarter pound flounder. Exactly seventeen minutes and one drift past the end of the dock later, Dr. Dan was back. Normally an anglers quick dockside return is prompted by some sort of engine malfunction, never good news. This one however, yielded a six and an eighth pound beauty in the cooler. Which of course, incited a frenzy among those on the fence about whether or not to head out on the bay.  The next five and a half pound flounder was boated by Barry Winokur of Margate. James Texada of Villanova landed 126 flounder with 10 double headers, an uncommon occurrence. Bill Mendenhall Sr., a Margate Bay frequent flyer, landed three double headers, one of which had an over four pounder and one over five on a top and bottom rig, a once in a life time feat.
The Klein family of Ventnor took a brief respite from dad Danʼs Atlantic City TriAthlon training to fish with friends in celebration of eleven year old Ryanʼs birthday to yield two flounder at twenty-two inches. Ethan Vogin and dad Mark of Ventnor fish together every weekend. This weekʼs dinner was a fat twenty-one inch flounder. Dr. Jim Spotila of Margate and Dr. Hal Avery caught a twenty-three inch flounder while Mike Passaro of Southhampton, Pa. and Jimmy Long of Philadelphia each won $100.00 gift certificates in the dock tournament for their four and a half and five and a half pound beauties. The Hockfield family of Margate caught blue claws and a 22” flounder with eight year olds Chloe and Maya. Likewise the DeNino family of Longport took lucky charms Alexis and Kyan Longinotti out to land a 3.28lb. and a 2.8lb. flounder.
With water temperatures steadily rising along with extremely healthy catches of flounder and blue claws, the timing is perfect for families to head to the bay!”

Ocean City

Bill Wiggins, Finatics, “ Flounder fishing in the back bay’s has gotten a little better. Some fish in the 5-6lb range. Berkley Gulp in Chartreuse or Pink are still working real well.  Look for the fluke in depths around 15ft. There are also flounder showing up in the surf. Nightime, weakfish are being caught around 9th street bridge.  Pink zoom or pink Fin-s have been working well on 3/8 0r 1/2oz jig head.  In the surf, the kingfish are showing up, but they are not thick yet.  Look for them to increase as the water temps come up.  Brown sharks are around and being caught in the surf, mackerel is the bait of choice.”

Avalon

Avalon Hodge Podge Bait and Tackle’s, Tammy Carbohn, “With over 14 fluke weighed in this week the largest weighed in at 7.9# & 21 ½” caught by A.P. Rossi from Wilmington, DE age 10! He landed this fish while fishing with his family in the back bay near the Avalon Yacht Club using minnows. We also weighed in a Black drum from the same area weighing in at 8.47# & 25 ½” caught by Stephanie Hays of Avalon Manor. She landed this odd ball on minnows & squid while drifting for fluke. There were also more weakfish and blues caught throughout the ICW.”

North Wildwood

Debbie Mooers, from Grassy Sound Marina sent over the results from their 8th Annual Flounder tournament.Tournament Results:

BOAT DIVISION

1st Place Heaviest Flounder: Bill Roverano, Phila. Pa. 6.5 lbs 

2nd & 3rd Place Heaviest Flounder: Ken McDermott, CMCH 5.3 lbs

Chip Gruff, North Wildwood 5.3 lbs

3 Heaviest Combined: Randy Peterson, Warrington, Pa.

Women’s Div.: Mary Bohrer, N. Wildwood 3.8 lbs.

Children’s Div.: Wayne Petersen, Mickelton, NJ 4.2 lbs.

Daisy Mae Award: (11th Heaviest) Mark Zebley & Keith Arenberg 

FISHING PIER Division

1st Place: Tim Everett, Phila., Pa. 2.8 lb.

2nd Place: Ken Kang, Cape May

3rd Place: Savannah Kang, Cape May

Bill Kinsley Award: (First fish of the day) John Shahan, Phila., Pa.

Wildwood

Cathy Algard, Sterling Harbor Bait and Tackle, Fishing remained good this past week on the Jersey Cape. Flounder fishing is picking up every day with the best action continuing to be at Reef Site 11 and the Old Grounds. Back bay fluking remains good with keeper flounder in the 3 to 5 pound class being caught on a regular basis with plenty of shorts in the mix. Scott Harbison of Monroeville, NJ checked in with a 4 pound 11 ounce flounder caught on a live minnow in the ICW near Grassy Sound. Joanna McShaffrey of Erma, NJ caught a 24 inch flounder in the Wildwood back bays. Now is the time to get out there and sharpen your skills and find your hotspots before Sterling Harbor’s 21st Annual Duke of Fluke Tournament which will be held July 12, 2014! Croakers made a showing along the beachfront and in the back bays and bloodworms has been the bait of choice.

Shark fishing remains good between the 20 and 30 Fathom lines with dusky, hammerhead and mako sharks being caught. Offshore fishing was spotty with some reports of yellowfin tuna in the 60 pound range, and a few mahi and white marlin being caught in the Baltimore and Poor Man’s Canyon’s. Crabby Jack gives the crabbing 3 Claws this week. Entry forms for Sterling Harbor’s 21st Annual Duke of Fluke Tournament on July 12, 2014, are available in the shop and can also be printed online @ www.sterlingharbor.com.”

Cape May

Rusty Zeigler, Off The Hook Tackle, The Fluke fishing right now is pretty good right now.Even with the easterly wind anglers have seemed to find some fish for the box.It seems that the Reefs and Wrecks in 60-90 ft. of water are holding the bulk of the keepers.There are plenty of fish in a little shallower water but the keeper ratio is not as good.The Old Grounds,Reef #11 and the Cape May Reef have been the most productive areas reported.

Charlie Rojas Fished the Old Grounds with his Pop and Brother Anthony,They filled the cooler with 10 keepers to 24"

The Delaware Bay has produced some nice stringers of Fluke for anglers drifting around Miah Maul and Flounder Alley.A standard Fluke rig with Spearing and Mackerel is the bait of choice.  Barry Roxberry had a good day at a little wreck inshore on Sunday,He caught a nice mixed bag of Croakers,Triggerfish, Sea Bass, Bluefish, and Weakfish.

There is still good fishing behind Stone Harbor, Wildwood and Cape May.Anglers have been catching Fluke, Weakfish, Stripers and Bluefish.With the occasional Sheepshead and Triggerfish.

The Tuna fishing remains to be good for the boats trolling the Poormans and Washington Canyons.Yellowfins and Big Eyes Have been caught with a few White and Blue Marlin mixed in.

Bluefins have been caught around the Elephant Trunk trolling Blue and white and pink and white Ilanders and Joe Shutes.”

Matt Slobodjian, Jim’s Bait and Tackle, Hey guys, the wind was a factor this week it kept a lot of boats at the dock. The guys who did go found the Fluke fishing to be pretty good at the Old Grounds and Del. reef site #11. The drift was pretty fast and heavy lead was a must making it a little tougher to fish but there are some really nice fish coming in. The Cape May reef is giving up a few Fluke as well, there are also some Trigger fish hanging around the wrecks. Smaller hooks and baits will work much better to put some Triggers in the boat. We are also starting to see some nice fish come in from the Delaware bay in the area around Miah Maul light and the stakes in the same area. There is still some good Fluke fishing going on in the intercoastal waterway and Cape May Harbor we've weighed fish to7lbs. from the back this week.

There are some Croakers in the Rips off of Cape May Point with a few Fluke mixed in. There are also good numbers of Croakers in the Canal and they are pretty decent sized fish.

The inshore Tuna bite was pretty good this week. There was a mix of Yellowfin and Bluefin in the Teacup area and on the lumps inside the Elephant trunk. We haven't heard of anything on the chunk, all of the action was on the troll. The big Bluefish showed up in some of these areas as well.

The Canyons are showing a lot of White Marlin activity but the Tuna bite was spotty. Some big Blue Marlin were being hooked up this week a lot of which were hanging around the schools of Skipjacks. The best Tuna bites that we heard of were around the 1000 fathom line of the Wilmington and an early morning Bigeye bite in the Washington

In the surf the croakers have shown up in good numbers its hard to keep a bait away from them at Higbee's beach. The surf Shark fisherman are doing pretty well on Brown Sharks and we've seen the 1st Sand Tiger pictures from the beach.The fish looked to be around 150lbs.”

To send fishing reports or for more information, email chuck@offthehooktackle.com or Twitter@OffTheHookTkl

Fishing column 6-16-14

Most people are familiar with tuna, I would bet most people have eaten tuna salad sandwiches, or eaten tuna at a sushi restaurant. One of the most popular shows on the National Geographic channel is Wicked Tuna. That show has shown the general public the beauty and power of the Bluefin Tuna.

I wonder how many people realize that tuna fishing can be very good in the waters off of NJ.  Yellowfin, Bluefin, BigEye, and Albacore tuna can all be landed in the Mid-Atlantic region.  Tuna as a species are some of the fastest and largest growing predators in the ocean.  The Bluefin Tuna can achieve giant status and reach nearly 10ft in length and weights over 1000lbs! 

Normally we see Bluefin arrive in the waters off of NJ in mid to late April depending on the water temperatures. They are voracious feeders and are looking for large concentrations of food. The first wave is usually the largest and they rarely stay in our waters. They have a one track mind and are moving to summering grounds where there are higher concentrations of bait to maintain the calories they need for their massive size.  The first really good tuna fishing comes when an eddy breaks off of the Gulf Stream and brings the warm nutrient rich waters into the canyons.  This usually brings in a mixture of Bluefin and Yellowfin.  Trolling in the canyon edges around these temperature breaks is the most common way of targeting these fish.  Trolling dead ballyhoo, cedar plugs, green machines, spreader bars and various other lures from 5-9 knots is typical.  Last summer we had one of the best Big Eye Tuna seasons in recent memory. Big Eyes are notorious for coming in schools and decimating the trolling spread of many an angler. They are one of the most challenging of the tuna to catch; they reach sizes up to 400lb and are very powerful.

Tuna fishing is highly regulated by the national marine fisheries and bringing the wrong fish to the dock can result in very expensive fines. So, before you go looking for tuna, first make sure you have your Highly Migratory Species (HMS) permit current and on the boat. It is very easy to obtain, just go to https://hmspermits.noaa.gov/PermitList.asp.

The current regulations are as follows:

Bluefin tuna- 1 school BFT (27 to <47") + 1 large school/small medium BFT (47-<73")

Yellowfin tuna- 3/person/day or trip. The minimum size for yellowfin and bigeye tuna is 27" curved fork lengt3/person/day or trip.

There are no recreational limits for Big Eye, Skipjack, or Albacore tunas.

The next thing is to make sure you identify the fish you catch properly.  It can be very tough to distinguish tuna especially when they are in the 30-70lb range. Here are a couple of helpful tips to identify the fish. 

The pectoral fins on a Bluefin are short and end well before the origin of the second dorsal fin.

Yellowfin have narrower pectoral fins that reach beyond the origin of the second dorsal but not beyond the base.

Big Eyes have stockier bodies, as well as the pectoral fin is thicker and it reaches the origin of the second dorsal fin. There are more keys to identifying these fish.  Stop by your local tackle shop and I am sure they will explain in more detail.

Margate

Robin Scott of Ray Scott’s Dock in Margate reported:

“Hot, hotter, hottest! Flounder fishing continues to pick up steam as anglers hit the

Margate Bay to ply their favorite techniques. Father’s Day weekend conditions were the

most favorable in anyone’s memory with sunshine, cool breezes, no flying insects and

flounder aplenty. The dock’s Captain Ed Giacomucci led the Margate Slatkin family

team to victory with three flounder, one over four pounds. Bill Mendenhall and buddies

Skip and Angelo from Downingtown, cleaned out the bay with eight keepers, two over

four and a half pounds. Bill has been a regular in Margate for over forty years. Ryan

and Cole Klein of Ventnor caught their Dad Dan a nineteen and a half inch flounder for

dinner as Meghan Lelli of Chester boated a nineteen inch flattie for her dad. Ten year

old Nick Dimeo, a student at Slaybaugh in EHT landed a 22ʼ inch flounder for his dad

Dougʼs Father Day dinner. One can only imagine the fish tales at school Monday

morning! Jon McNicholʼs of Philadelphia demonstrated how well his dad taught him to

fish by his buddy Mike Dorrisʼ and his four fish bounty. Courtney Blunt of Egg Harbor

City and Vance Ellis of Marlton were high catch on their Deck Boat trip with three

beastly flounder, two of them at four three quarter pounds. Fatherʼs Day perfection was

the name of the game on the bay behind Margate!”

Jessica Obermeyer of The Jessie O Fishing Fleet sent over:

“Jessie O' Fish N' Fun has continued to reel in generous size fluke up to the 6.11 pound range. Lots of fish weighing in & winning pools are averaging 3 1/2 pounds. Pools winners for the week include George Erskin of Somers Point, Frank Lacey of Ocean City, NJ, Tony Turtzo of Villas,Tony Lee of Somerdale, NJ, Grace Donahue from Cherry Hill, NJ & Kevin Smith from Cherry Hill, NJ. In addition to fluke we have been picking up Blues in the 4-5 pound range. The Fish N Fun sails twice daily in the back bay for flounder at 8am & 1pm.

Ocean City

Bill Wiggins at Finatics, said that the water temps are climbing, hitting the mid 60’s along the beaches and approaching the 70’s in the back. He said the fluke fishing is still good around Ship Channel, with the temps rising look to deeper water 12-15ft.  The best baits are minnows and/or Gulp on a1-1.5oz bucktail. There are still stripers out front but they are on smaller side. Bill, said that the higher temps make the bigger fish less active.  Weakfishing is still good at night. His tip of the week, float bloodworms on a float rig around 9^th street bridge.

Sea Isle

Mike Cunningham, Sea Isle Bait and Tackle,” Fishing was a little tuff this weekend with the strong tides from the full moon and the steady winds but anglers where able to some success.  The flounder are starting to bite in the ocean TI reef and OC reef both produced some nice flounder. Keepers where taken in the bay but the wind mad drifting difficult.  Had a customer come in Friday with a nice blue fin and mako from the cigar.  also have a customer fish the deep water reef for sea bass said it was kind of a slow pick but ended up with  8 fish per man all L and XL fish they also had a cod over 30 pounds and one that was just a keeper. Surf action was slow wildly scattered stripers and king fish.  Some nice weak fish and stripers under the lights at night, small swimming plugs and soft plastics are working best.”

Avalon

Tammy Carbohn, Avalon Hodge Podge Bait and Tackle, “Fluke, Fluke and more Fluke… Of all the fluke we weighed in this week, the largest was caught by a 13 year old named Peter Campagna (pic) from Lancaster, PA. His fish measured 24” & weighed in at 5.66# caught using Gulp shrimp behind Stone Harbor, NJ. Other inshore catches included bluefish, weakfish, kingfish & croakers! These fish were caught a variety of baits and lures. Finally the off shore tuna bite was hit or miss at best when the boats could get to the fishing grounds. Tim Kroh reported 10 bluefin trolling ballys at the Lindenhol canyon.”

Wildwood

Cathy Algard, Sterling Harbor Bait and Tackle, “Fishing season is in full swing right now with many choices for anglers from inshore to offshore. Back bay boat and kayak anglers are still catching flounder up to 5 pounds with an occasional trophy weakfish. Jason Bailey of Conshohocken, PA checked in with a 5 pound 11 ounce weakfish caught on a Pink Glow Fin S while fishing the back bays on George Danley’s boat “Liquid Asset” out of Wildwood. Patrick Latham and son Carson of Ewing, NJ landed two nice Father’s Day fluke while first time kayak fishing on a Hobie Mirage Outfitter kayak near Richardson Channel. There are still plenty of schoolie stripers in the back bays hitting on top water plugs, and the Northeast winds late in the week really turned them on! Surf reports were quiet this week, except we did hear of few kingfish being caught. Good catches of kingfish, flounder and weakfish have been reported from the ferry lanes. Offshore, at Reef Site 11 and the Old Grounds when the weather permitted, fluke fishing has been excellent with spearing or mackerel strips being the bait of choice. Scott Wheeler and crew of Wenonah, NJ had a nice catch of flounder up to 5 pounds while fishing Reef Site 11 on his boat “Big Bone” out of Wildwood. Citgo Ed of Erma, NJ stopped in and reported where not to go; he reported no action at the Wildwood Reef. Seabass action is good on the wrecks along the 20 Fathom line. Offshore, shark fishing remains excellent with many mako sharks, brown sharks, threshers and blue sharks being caught. In the canyons, both yellowfin and bluefin tuna action remains good with a spattering of mahi-mahi in the mix. Crabby Jack gives the crabbing 4 Claws this week, and said big bright moon shone down from the sky and made for good catches of crabs!”

Sterling Harbor’s 21st Annual Duke of Fluke Tournament is scheduled for Saturday, July 12th! Call the shop at 609-729-1425 for more information!

Cape May

Rusty Ziegler, Off the Hook Bait and Tackle, “Flounder fishing is heating up on our offshore structure. The local wrecks and reefs some nice flatties. Bucktails with strip baits, gulp, spearing and/or smelts are the baits of choice.  The back bays from Cape May to Avalon are still producing as well.  Spearing, minnows & Gulp rigged with a bucktail or a jighead from ¼ oz to 1 oz is best.  The Tuna bite in the Canyons is getting good.  The Poormans is he hot spot for now.  40-60 lb yellowfin, some Bluefin mixed in.  Trolling Ballyhoos behind witches and Joe Shutes are the hot rigs.  The weakfish bite along our Jetties is still good (if you are the early bird) using bucktails and jigs.  Guys are catching them on bloods and shedders throughout the day.  The weather has made it tough for boats targeting drum.  The westerly wind has kept most at the dock but the boats that have fished saw fish; not huge numbers on the deck, but fish are being caught.  The drums are there but seem to be in breeding mode.”

Off The Hook just announced, The 1^st Annual Cape May Flounder Tournament, to be held on July31^st-Aug2nd, please call the shop for details. 609-884-0444

Matt Slobodjian from Jim’s Bait and Tackle, “This week we are getting better reports on Fluke fishing. Some of the local boats have tried Del. Reef Site #11 and have had some half decent catches. Other guys have run to the Old Grounds and have had double digit catches. Fran Carter of Upper Township took his crew of 4 to the Old Grounds and brought home 13 fish to 6.4lb. John Cranston of Belleville NJ also fished the Old Grounds and managed to boat 9 nice Fluke. The Throwback ratio from both guys seemed to be around 4:1. There are some fish at the Cape May Reef the fish are hanging close to structure at all three places, short drifts work best.

The Drumfish are still biting in the 20ft Slough off of North Cape May. Some days are slower than others usually due to water conditions and wind but double digit catches are still happening for some of the local charter boats. Bait will become a little harder to get as anglers start to fish for other species so call your local tackle store to check the availability ahead of time.

The Striped Bass bite has slowed down on the beaches, a few were caught this week but the water temp. Has brought things to a crawl. The best time to target Bass now would be early morning or at night around the rock piles.

The offshore bite continues to be good this week the water moved into the Poorman's canyon and the Yellowfins were there. Water also moved into the Wilmington but the fish weren't as cooperative there. However good catches of Dolphin were reported on the pots.

The Bluefin are starting to show up on the Lumps around the 20-30 fathoms range on the troll. The fish we saw were in the 20-40lb. class but I'm sure the larger fish will be mixed in, if not now very soon.”

Some nice fluke from Ray Scott's dock

To send in fishing reports or for any questions Chuck can be contacted vial email at Chuck@offthehooktackle.com or Twitter @OffTheHookTKL

Sharks! Most of us associate the word with the movie “Jaws,” the popular 1975 movie about a great white shark terrorizing a New England town. 

The reality is shark attacks on beachgoers are extremely rare. 

Sharks are even featured for a whole “Shark Week” every summer on the Discovery Channel. It’s no wonder that shark fishing is so popular with fishermen all around the world. Along the New Jersey shore, June is considered prime time to target sharks, such as, makos, threshers, tigers and blue sharks. 

The most sought after shark in these waters is the mako. The mako shark is an apex predator; it is at the top of the ocean food chain. Makos are impressive animals. They can grow over 11 feet long and reach speeds in excess of 22 mph. The current world record, according to International Game Fish Organization is 1,221 pounds, caught by Luke Sweeney in Massachusetts in 2001.

Mako sharks have a large range in coastal waters, but are most often targeted between 40 and 70 miles offshore of New Jersey.

The most common method of shark fishing is drifting along temperature breaks over underwater structures. The fishermen deploy chum, or ground-up fish, to attract the sharks to the boat. Bait is either whole or strips of fish, usually mackerel or bluefish. The baits are deployed at various depths to maximize the potential of the shark finding it.  

After the bait spread is in the water, the anglers wait for the sharks to arrive. Once hooked up, mako sharks can be one of the most exciting fights in fishing, with a good chance of multiple acrobatic leaps and strong runs.  

The current National Marine Fisheries Services regulations for shortfin makos are one shark per boat with a 54-inch or greater length from nose to the fork of the tail. Also, keep in mind, sharks fall under the Highly Migratory Species permit, along with tuna, marlin and swordfish. So before you target any of these fish, make sure that your permit is up to date. Information on the permit can be found at hmspermits.noaa.gov.  

Mako shark is prized for its food value, and is very similar to the taste of swordfish.  

If you are not interested in eating your catch, besides taking photos, you can participate in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s mapping program. The program uses a smartphone application to record the GPS coordinates of a live release and then posting that location to a global map. More information about the program is available at nmfs.noaa.gov.

According to the NOAA, the shortfin mako shark population is currently healthy and sustainable. But be aware of the current regulations and practice safe and proper techniques when releasing all sharks.

For those interested in sharks, starting Thursday one of the biggest shark tournaments in our area will be taking place in Cape May. In its 34th year, the South Jersey Shark Tournament will be held out of South Jersey Marina from June 4-7. Weigh-ins will be from 2:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday. For more information, call South Jersey Marina at (609) 884-2400

 Fishing Reports

 Margate:

Robin Scott, from Ray Scott’s dock, reported, “The flounder season is off to one of the strongest starts in recent history with reports of fish over 6 pounds plentiful. It was gratifying to see many of the locals get into the fray on the Margate bay. Izzy Posner of Linwood, Michael Mosca of Linwood, Nate Acito of Ocean City, Jason Cadiou of Margate, Michael Corletto of Margate, Jim Varley of Margate, Mark and Ethan Vogin of Ventnor, the Perrone family of Margate, the Klein family of Ventnor, the Tabasso family of Margate, the Cherry family and Calhoun family of Ocean City and many others braved temperamental weather conditions over the past 10 days to yield fantastic flounder dinners. The dock set a record with entries into its annual season-long flounder tournament and awarded a number of $1000 gift certificates to rental customers catching flounder over 4 pounds. 

There were so many of them, it was suggested that we raise the required size to 5 pounds. That won’t be happening any time soon. We like to see anglers enjoy success and have a weekly target in sight. With the weather and fish forecast strong for this week, work places in the tri-state area might have a higher absentee rate as our extended family converges on the Margate bay.”

Atlantic City:

I talked to Noel Feliciano, owner of One Stop Bait and Tackle, who said there are, “Lot’s of bass!”

Most of the fish are averaging over 30 inches, with some up to 47 inches. The T-Jetty is still the place to be. Hot baits are clams and bloodworms and the hot artificials are Pink Zooms and SP minnows. Kingfishing is good, but Feliciano thinks it should get a lot better this week with the change in temperatures.  

Ocean City:

Mary Barrus, from The North Star, said the boat had mostly private bookings this weekend. But they did have an 8-hour sea bass trip with a 20-person limit up to 5 pounds.

The North Star is sailing weekends until Father’s Day, then daily. A full schedule is available atwww.fishocnj.com.

Avalon:

Tammy Carbohn, of Avalon Hodge Podge, said it was quite a week of fishing in Avalon.

“Since my last report, we have weighed in 12 nice-sized fluke, five stripers and a 7.67-pound and 29-inch weakfish. The weakie was caught by CJ from Dorchester, N.J., using Bass Assassins. The biggest fluke measured 22½ inches and weighed 8.7 pounds caught by Mike Prus of Mays Landing using gulp in the Pig Pen. The largest bass this week was 38 inches and 22.55 pounds caught in Corson’s Inlet by Tom Schults of Maple Glen using clam. Niel Cox, of Lansdale, Pa., weighed in a 65-pound black drum from the Delaware Bay he caught using clam. Finally, one of my customers showed me a picture of a red drum he caught in the back bay on Friday using clam.”

Cape May:

Matt Slobodjian, of Jim’s Bait and Tackle, said “the drum fishing is as good as it has ever been. Charter boats are reporting double-digit catches almost every day. Bait has been a problem this year, as two of our normal clam suppliers have stopped handling clams. It’s a good idea to call a couple of days ahead to check availability and reserve bait. One of our Junior Anglers and a local boy Dennis Cluff, of Cape May, weighed in an 80.6-pound drum this week. The weakfish are biting pretty well on the Higbee’s Beach jetty and the Cold Spring inlet jetty on blood worms and artificials. We are starting to get some good reports from the Hereford Inlet rock piles as well.

“We held our shark tournament last week. Capt. Pete Hondros and his crew took everything with the only qualifying fish a 205-pound thresher. We weighed a couple makos but nothing over the 150-pound minimum. There were also a few big makos lost during the fight.”

“Fluke fishing is still a bit slow but a few are still being picked at the Cape May Reef. The backwaters are still the best bet for fluke.”

Fred Klug, of Utsch’s Bait and Tackle, said the charter boats did really well last week.

“The charter boat Full Ahead had a striped bass that hit the scale at 36.7 pounds and the largest drum was 66 pounds. The Full Ahead charter and the Gone Fishin’ charter had 13 drum each. Last weekend, I saw a 35-pound tile fish and a nice-size tuna from one of our slip holders. While the drum bite is still on, some of our slip holders are gearing up for shark fishing.”

Rusty Zeigler, of Off The Hook Bait and Tackle, reported “Flounder, weakfish, bluefish, tuna, black drum, and sharks, we have seen a little of everything this week. The drum bite is still on fire along the North Cape May beaches. We are still seeing fishermen catch their limits. I think the bite will be good up to the next moon. Mikey Viera, 7, caught a 61.2-pound drum with his grandfather, Dave Cluff. The weakfishing has been really good along the jetties, many fish in the 6- to 8-pound range. Jonny Thomsen weighed a 6.57-pound weakfish caught in Cape May Point. 

“The hot lure for weakfish has been a purple firetail Mister Twister on a bucktail. Flounder fishing is still good in the back bays. Sharking is getting good. Al Columbo, Chazz Columbo and Gary Miller on the Miss Jax weighed a 220-pound thresher from the 28-mile wreck. We will be bringing specialty bait for the shark tournaments. Call to reserve at (609) 884-0444.”

Captain Harvey Yenkinson, of VetCraft Charters, sent the following report, “Drum fishing continues to be good in the Delaware Bay if the timing is correct. Drum fish can be caught both day and night due to their ability to feed in both scenarios. It has been tradition in Cape May for anglers to fish during the late afternoon and evening time frame for these bottom feeders, but we often have a good daytime bite as well.

“Trips this week have had good bites in both time frames. In general, last week, the best bite was in the late afternoon toward the end of the outgoing tide in water depths around 20 feet. Holding the rod in your hand allows anglers to better feel the subtle tugging type of bite that these fish produce as they suck in the baits toward the back of their throats where they normally use their pharyngeal teeth to crush their normal prey of mussels, clams, oysters, snails, crabs and other items. 

“In the Delaware Bay, these fish feed heavily on the razor clams that tend to inhabit algae-laden bottom habitat. Charter captains in Cape May recommend keeping no more than one per person and releasing the bigger ones.” 

 Chuck Hinchcliffe is proprietor of Off the Hook Bait and Tackle at 989 Ocean Drive in Cape May. 

Wildwood:

Cathy Algard, of Sterling Harbor Bait and Tackle, said drum fishing remained excellent in the Delaware Bay when the weather allowed and should remain good through the next couple of weeks until after the full moon. Weakfish action slowed during the cool northeast winds, but as soon as the sun came out, so did the weakies. 

“Nice weakfish are being caught around the jetties at Cape May Point, North Wildwood and Cold Spring Inlet. Bill Hansen, of Philadelphia, checked in with a 5-pound, 11-ounce weakfish measuring 28 inches. Melisa Smith, of Philadelphia, weighed in a 5-pound, 8-ounce weakfish that hit a bloodworm near Cape May Point,” Algard said.

“Bobby Greenling, of Marmora, caught and released a 30-inch weakfish while fishing a Cape May jetty. Fluke fishing in the back bay remains good, with some 3- to 6-pound fish being caught. Bucktails with mackerel strips or spearing with a gulp. Swimming mullet on a teaser hook has been working well for anglers. 

“Jim Rossiter, of Bridgeton, had a 4-pound and a 5-pound flounder while fishing the Wildwood back bays on his kayak while using gulp. Swimming mullet on a bucktail. 

“Michelle and Rich Derer, of Wildwood, boated Flounder from 20 to 24 inches while drifting mackerel strips on a bucktail behind Wildwood on their boat.

“Sea bass action remains good on the wrecks around the 20-fathom line. Shark fishing is just kicking into gear with reports of thresher, mako and brown sharks between the 20 and 30 fathom line.”