The fishing is heating up right along with the weather.
Fluke reports point to an improvement in the keeper to short ratio with some quality fish making it to the coolers this week. Shorts still rule the day but more anglers made it home with something for the table. At the same time, the offshore tuna bite keeps right on going.
The boats are also getting bonito, sea bass, porgies and ling, the surf has blues, small bass, kingfish and Spanish mackerel and the rivers and bays have a some of everything along with blue claw crabs.
Rick Hebert at Tackle World in Rochelle Park said he’s had reports of anglers catching big fluke, short fluke or no fluke. That’s fishing, he said. He had just returned from Nantucket where he caught a personal best 13½-pound fluke.
His customers are catching plenty of other fish, though, with some getting in on the good tuna bite while others are catching kingfish and Spanish mackerel in the surf, stripers on sandworms in the Hudson River and loads of ling in the ocean.
Capt. Phil Sciortino at the Tackle Box in Hazlet said there are plenty of fluke being caught and the number of keepers has gotten a lot better.
The bigger fish, he said, are on the rough bottom with a number of 5 to 8 pounders landed over the past week. The biggest of the week was a 12½-pounder.
Porgies have moved onto the rock piles at the Knoll and weakfish are being caught in the Reach Channel and at Old Orchard.
Sea bass and ling fishing has been very good at the FG Buoy and fluke and Spanish mackerel are on the beaches of Sandy Hook. And, he added, the crabbing is excellent, especially around Keyport.
Mel Martens at Giglio’s Bait and Tackle in Sea Bright reported better fluking in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers with more keepers being caught. The snappers are in there as well, along with plenty of blue claws.
The surf has been giving up a lot of fluke as well, but shorts continue to dominate. He said the fluke have been gorging on sand crabs.
There are also plenty of kingfish to be had off the beach along with small blues and Spanish mackerel. The bass are there as well and the water has been so clear, the stripers can be spotted swimming along in the wash.
Joining all those fish in the surf are cow nose rays, which have made their summer appearance. Hooking one of those will put you in a major tug of war and may cost you all the line on the reel.
Mike Gleason at Tak Waterman in Long Branch got offshore for some tuna fishing at the beginning of the week and found a good bluefin bite on jigs and topwater plugs.
He said the fluke fishing has been consistent in the surf there. You just have to weed through the shorts for the keepers.
The kingfish are also in the surf in big numbers and there are Spanish mackerel, small blues and few bass to be had as well.
Bob Matthews at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar reported good fishing over the last week.
The Shark River is loaded with fluke, he said, but most are on the small side. The largest fish he reported from the rental boats was 5 pounds but there was plenty of action.
Matthews also reported that divers in Shark River reported seeing large numbers of small bass just lounging around the bridge abutments. They’re all mixed in with the trigger fish, which are thick in the river and at the inlet.
The party boats out of the marina had plenty of fluke action in the ocean and a better keeper ratio.
Matthews added that the local surf offers kingfish, snapper blues, an occasional small striper and some Spanish mackerel.
Finally, he said, the excellent tuna bite continues offshore. Matthew’s friend, John Reilly of Hooked Café in Belmar made a solo trip and returned with a 70-pound bluefin he boated by himself.
Capt. Pete Sykes on Parker Pete’s Sportfishing out of Belmar said the fluking is definitely picking up with more keepers and plenty of action. There’s lots of life around, he said, and the water temperature on the bottom is getting where it needs to be.
The fluking, Capt. Sykes said, will only get better from here on in. He said a lot of the near-keeper fluke, at 17 or 17½ inches are fat and healthy.
He said his afternoon trips have been especially good and an excellent way to introduce youngsters to fishing. There’s plenty of action to keep them occupied with shorts and keepers, plus abundant sea bass and ling.
Capt. Bobby Quinn on the Ocean Explorer and Capt. Ron Kish on the Capt. Cal II, both out of Belmar, also reported solid fluking in the past week. Shorts are in the majority but some nice fluke up to 8 pounds have been landed.
Capt. Steve Spinnelli on the Skylarker out of Belmar has been catching fluke and ling and sea bass.
Capt. Jay Richardella on Side Job Charters out of Belmar has been taking his 38-foot Topaz on inshore tuna trips and having success with bluefin tuna from 30 to 90 pounds. Monday’s trip went 11-for-17 on the tuna. Bonito, mahi-mahi, big blues and Spanish mackerel have been landed as well.
Capt. Jay is also running open boat canyon trips for white and blue marlin. Contact him at (516) 578-2710 for more information.
Dave Arbeitman at the Reel Seat in Brielle had just returned from a tilefish trip aboard the Voyager out of Point Pleasant Beach and reported excellent fishing with Golden tiles up to 40 pounds, bluelines in the 10-pound range and a number of rosefish.
Arbeitman also managed to hook and land a yellowfin tuna on the trip.
He said the bluefin bite in the vicinity of the Virginia Wreck has been very good with tuna taken on poppers, jigs and on the troll.
His customers are picking away at the fluke in the Manasquan River and in the ocean and easily getting their limit of sea bass.
He also said there are a load of kingfish being caught and the shop is now carrying lugworms, which seem to be a favorite bait of theirs.
John Bogan Jr. at Brielle Bait and Tackle said the boats out of Bogan’s Basin are doing well with their target species. The Paramount has been finding plenty of ling with anglers returning with 20 to 30 fish per person.
The Big Jamaica has been catching bonito and Spanish mackerel, while the Jamaica II has been doing pretty well with fluke depending on conditions.
Capt. Joe Karcich of Joey Tomato’s Fishing Charters out of the Manasquan Inlet has been targeting fluke and sea bass on his open boat trips. Finding the sea bass hasn’t been a problem, but keeper fluke were a bit more elusive this week.
Best Bets for the Weekend
There are more and bigger fluke out there so if you can stand the heat, they’re a good target for the next couple of days. And if you’re heading for the beach to cool off, take a rod. There are fluke, Spanish mackerel, and small bass in the surf along with plenty of kingfish.
And if you have a chance to head offshore, take it. The tuna fishing has been excellent with the area around the Virginia Wreck the current hot spot. Stay cool.