New Jersey & Delaware Bay - Central New Jersey Fishing Reports

The crew aboard the 125’ Jamaica turned their attention to the striped bass bite just off the beach on March 22 and enjoyed solid action. Any time those bass pop up again along the beaches this month you can expect a few trips, but aside from the stripers the Big Jamaica is also focusing on cod, and tilefish before the black sea bass season reopens again on May 17.

Word from Capt. Joe at the helm of the Jamaica II is a return to cod, ling and blackfish trips departing at 5 a.m. on weekends in mid-April.

Our friends at the Reel Seat said Lloyd went out and killed it on the stripers while trolling with his new rod. Up in the Raritan, the bass are biting just about anything. Blackfish opens April 1, which is the same day as The Reel Seat’s grand re-opening. Winter flounder are finally getting active as well.

Kevin Fahey at Curlew Lobster and Fishing Charters said he is not in the water yet, but will be setting up soon to prepare for spring. Call to set up a charter now, they fill up fast! He is accepting bookings as of April 3rd.

Capt. Willie aboard the Dauntless said he was still focused on cod and ling in March.

Jason at Fishermen’s Supply said most of the striper action for the final days of March was up on Raritan Bay. Both boat and land-based anglers were doing well on stripers. Back in the local river and into Barnegat Bay it’s been a slow pick as anglers are using soft plastics and finding 18- to 24-inch bass. It’s been a slow start there in the Manasquan River area and upper Barnegat Bay according to the crew at Fishermen’s Supply, so they’re patiently waiting for things to heat back up.

Starting April 1 with the reopening of blackfish in New Jersey, Capt. Bob on the Gambler said he plans to be sailing on his Lazy Man Taug trips everyday (except Monday) from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. for $75 a head. “On Monday's we will be doing our 12-hour Taug-A-Thon trip from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m.,” Capt. Bob said, for $150 head. “We will continue to limit our capacity on our trips so reservations are highly recommended,” he added.

Capt. Alan Lee of Mushin Sportfishing said they are moving up to Keyport to fish for Raritan Bay stripers April 6th to May 11th. They will have open boat and charter trips.

Capt. Danny said the Norma K III has been targeting cod, pollock, and ling in March. They had a good mix of keepers and shorts. They have also been putting together some striper trips. Shads and flutter spoons have been working to get them in the boat. They had some overs as well as a handful of keepers.

Frank at Gabriel Tackle said there have been reports of winter flounder by the Mantoloking Bridge on bloodworms. Fishing remains good in the back bay and by the bridge. Bring bloodworms and sandworms for live bait. SP Minnows, Rapalas, Yo-Zuri’s, and any soft plastics will produce. Keep in mind, they’re going after smaller profiles. If you are lucky enough to have your boat in already, reports of stripers right outside the inlet and a report of bluefin being landed aboard Capt. Fred Gamboa’s Andreas Toy Charters on a tilefish trip to the Hudson in March. If you feel like traveling, head north and hit the back of the Raritan. They are stocked up with bloods & sandworms.

Amanda at Jersey Hooker Outfitters said there is word of some winter flounder and stripers by the Mantoloking Bridge. Not much is going on out front just yet. The back bays are offering stripers on bloodworms.

Kenny “The Killie King” Halverson at Pell’s Bait and Tackle said fishing blew up outside Shark River. Boats did well fishing around the railroad bridge and Raritan. The Edison boat basin had good action with bloodworms. Perch action in the Mullica remains good. Stop by and visit Kenny down in Mystic Island in Little Egg Harbor if you’re thinking of hitting the Graveling Point area, as he just set up a second location at Scott’s Bait & Tackle on Radio Road.

Pete at Charlie’s Bait & Tackle said fish in the bay are around but scattered and lethargic. The wind and the weather didn’t help. Kayakers under the bridge at night are doing okay. The docks off Seaside Park and Lavallette are offering action. Plastics and worms are working for stripers. Flounder fishing came to a halt. The bait offshore is bunker with stripers behind them.

Stop by and pay a visit to Phil and crew at The Dock Outfitters this month; there has been word in some areas around Seaside of stripers being taken from local docks.

During the weekend of March 25-26, John at Betty & Nick’s said a few stripers were caught locally on the back side of Seaside along some of the docks. “I hear the usual springtime bite you know where north of here is starting to heat up big time,” John noted, but things should start to “heat up” in the Park soon enough. Expect to see a new spring shipment of Alan’s glide baits arriving in early April.

Connor at Grumpys Bait & Tackle said there is a decent bite for stripers in Barnegat Bay. The Raritan is picking up with good size bass. Adult bunker are showing up there as well. Winter flounder are starting to bite in certain parts of the bay.

Mark at Hook House Bait & Tackle said the striper bite remains good in the bay. Bloodworms and plugs are getting the job done. Perch action is picking up. Bass are starting to bite off the beach as well.

Dan Tholen at Lacey Marine said the Toms River is offering up some bass. Bloodworms and small plugs got them to bite. It has been slow otherwise except for folks stopping in for spring prep on the boat. Don’t forget Lacey’s 19th Annual Open House will be held April 28-30 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. with door prizes, special offers and manufacturers’ reps on hand.

Liam at Creekside Outfitters said there are perch around hitting bloodworms, while striped bass are being caught locally on Barnegat Bay. The bass are hitting bloodworms, sandworms, as well as artificials. Kettle Creeks seem to be a good option for the stripers.

Capt. Sam Rescigno of the Mary M IV is chomping at the bit to return to the tautog grounds after April 1.

The Miss Barnegat Light will begin sailing again in May.

Capt. Ted aboard the Super Chic expects to begin fishing again sometime this month.

Greg at Fisherman’s Headquarters said the bay has some striper action. Smaller lures are working well. The water needs to warm up a little more. Afternoons are better to fish this time of year since the sun warms up the surface temperature. Outgoing tide is the warmest.

With action happening from docks and sod banks on Long Beach Island, the attention of many anglers is turning to the 21st annual Spring Derby which runs from April 1 to June 25 for LBI surfcasters. You can register at Jingles Bait and Tackle in Beach Haven for $20 with all registration money going to cash prizes for stripers and blues, the latter of which hopefully arrive in good numbers sometime during the middle of April.

According to Capt. John Lewis of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association, the first of two new reef deployments were completed on Friday, March 10 at the NE corner of Garden State North at 39° 37.978 N by 74° 00.798 W and was named The "New Jersey Maritime Museum" patch reef in recognition of the many years of support the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association and their Junior Mate program have received from Deb and Jim from the nautical museum in Beach Haven. “We are awaiting word of the date for the deployment of the balance of the reef balls we have on hand and the tug boat too,” Lewis said. Efforts by the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association and their Junior Mates have led to an incredible increase in material deployments outside of Beach Haven on the Garden State and Little Egg reef sites.