New Jersey & Delaware Bay - New Jersey & Delaware Bay Surf Fishing Reports

Phil of the Tackle Box in Hazlet said stripers pushed back inside the bay during the blow as the Highlands Bridge area and the backside of the Hook had some quality stripers hanging around. Look for a few bluefish to be in the river systems as well.

No reports came in to Betty and Nicks in Seaside Park but John would expect bass and blues to be caught this upcoming week when the seas settle down. He will have plenty of fresh mullet in stock to toss out. Look for all sorts of new cuts and sloughs as the tides and currents have really been restructuring the beaches.

At Charlie?s Bait and Tackle in Normandy Beach, anglers have been heading to the canal to pull on blackfish off the bulkheads, which I took part in this week as Mickey Melchiondo and I ran out of green crabs quick releasing over 25 tog. There were also anglers livelining spot in the canal to land fish between 26 and 32 inches. The local surf should bounce back with 2- to 4-pound bluefish and stripers hounding mullet schools as there are still plenty of mullet in the backwaters.

Greg of Fisherman?s Headquarters in Ship Bottom said there has been steady action on blackfish at the Barnegat South Jetty. Green crabs are dialing in bucktoothed brawlers, some of which are pushing the 4-pound mark. That chew should continue on through October. Resident stripers were hanging around the back bay sedges as well as inside Barney Inlet. Don?t forget that the LBI Surf Fishing Classic kicks off on Saturday, October 7.

Kyle of Fishermen?s Supply in Point Pleasant said the back bridges are holding plenty of resident stripers if you want to fish them with live spot or soft plastics. Blackfishing in the canal is red hot as usual. He expects the surf to clean up and hopefully see some bass chasing mullet and peanut bunker schools this week.

Frank at Gabriel Tackle in Brick said the canal has been red hot for blackfish on green crabs and a few guys are livelining spot to find resident bass there and inside the river. Look for some blues and bass to hit the surf later in the week as the seas clean up.

The crew at Grumpys Tackle in Seaside Park said there were no reports for most of the week but fluke season ended well with a lot of flatties laying in the suds. Expect stripers to start feeding after the seas settle. Throw some white bucktails tipped with long slender soft baits to pick away at bass.

Mark at the Hook House in Toms River said most guys were fishing the canal this week livelining eels and spot for stripers that pushed inside to hunker down from the rough surf. Blackfishing is still top notch at the canal as well with green crabs the best baits.

At Jingles Bait and Tackle in Beach Haven, the word is water temps are now around 68 degrees and that there was some big erosion down in Holgate, so we?ll have to see what that looks like after the storms settle. Try tossing chunk mullet after the seas calm down you may find some bluefish and bass.

At Fin-Atics in Ocean City Dan said pier anglers have been pulling on both tautog and sheepshead through the rough weather. A big 10-pound sheepshead was taken off the Longport Pier this weekend, while the 9th Street bridge and Beer Pier are solid spots to pluck tog. A bunch of small sea bass are also hanging around the piers.

Down in Cape May, Jeff of Hands Too Bait and Tackle said chopper blues were still chasing the mullet around in the backwaters during the blow. The Coast Guard jetty continues to hold unicorns in the form of red drum if you want to try chunking mullet for them. Try tossing soft baits on back sedges around high tides for resident bass along the sod banks.

Noel of One Stop Bait and Tackle in Atlantic City said stripers did bite through the rough stuff near the bridges and Casino jetty as live spot accounted for some 28- to 36-inch bass. Blackfishing was solid at the new seawall as green crabs were the ?go to? bait to score with tog. You can catch a multitude of spot off the jetty rocks, then liveline them back for bass.

About the only thing happening down at Riptide Bait and Tackle in Brigantine was Andy getting a ton of news coverage for his Beach Cars of Brigantine calendar! If you haven?t gotten yours yet, do so now as they are moving fast. Other than that, look for kingfish and small bluefish to be on tap later this week.