New Jersey & Delaware Bay - Northern New Jersey Fishing Reports

Our first call this week went out to Chris over at Bayonne Bait and Tackle who told us the back bay waters are loaded with baitfish. He also mentioned that some local bass are being caught after dark in the deeper waters of the Bayonne, South Amboy, Perth Amboy and around Swinburn and Hoffman islands. Fluke fishing has also been good in the deeper waters and while shorts dominate the fishing you can still pull a few keepers on slow fished jigs. There has also been fair numbers of mixed size tog being caught however green crabs have been getting scarce. In addition to the whitechins croakers, spot, cocktail blues and snappers are also being caught. Anglers fishing along the inshore waters are into croakers, triggerfish, sea bass, tog and some kingfish, he said.

Joe over at Fairfield Fishing Tackle said good fishing reports along northern waters this past week were few and far in between. A few anglers ventured out along the inshore waters and did well with the bluefish, bonito and Spanish mackerel and light tackle fishing the back waters of the bay saw decent numbers of croakers, spot, snappers and cocktail blues, not to mention rays, skate and doggies. Joe also said Labor Day Weekend ends the summer tourist season along the coast you can bet serious fishermen will be seen in better numbers this coming week, especially if we get the predicted nice weather.

Over at Dockside Bait and Tackle Kenny had a few reports for us this past week. He said anglers fishing the backwaters of the bay enjoyed some good light tackle fishing for croakers, spot, and an occasional weakfish or two, cocktails and snappers this past week. He said two things stuck out this past week: the striped bass were caught in the evenings and the good light tackle fishing for croakers, spot, a few weakfish, mixed size blues and tog that were caught. He was another person that told us the Back Bay was loaded with all kinds of baitfish and he expects that the current mix of fish and more to be around into the fall should the batfish stay around.

I checked in with Steve Haas over at Up Front Bait and Tackle and he told us he too saw plenty of baitfish in the back bay waters and croakers, spot mixed size bluefish, along with short fluke and a hand full of keepers, despite the nasty storms that hammered the area this past week. He said only a few boats even ventured into the mid-range waters, but the few that did had some mahi. Bonito were blitzing the beaches down from the Hook however here too they were small. Lastly he told us one fish limits of sea bass and tog along with a few triggerfish, croakers and porgy dominated the bottom fishing.

It was another decent week of fishing for boats fishing out of Wagner’s Marina this past week. Mike told us boats fishing out of the marina saw hit or miss fishing. When it comes to the fluke if you knew how to use a jig you caught flatties. It was the same with the blues and bonito. There were good numbers of fish out there but you had to know how to keep your boat quiet and your lures in the strike zone. Lastly Mike said the storms kept a lot of anglers off the water and hopefully this coming week will see some better weather and water conditions.

We got another upbeat report from Phil over at the Tackle Box. Drifting worms and jigging put anglers into a good bite of evening stripers for the first time in quite a while, Phil said the weakies moved into the lower Shrewsbury River, around the 1 Can at the Hook and in the Ambrose Channel and the Reach. Some good fluke fishing was also seen along the northern part of the Shrewsbury Rocks. Phil was another person that told us the bay is still full of all types of baitfish. He also mentioned some stripers being caught in the evenings. Lastly he said some mahi were caught when boats were able to get out to the mid-range waters.

It was a decent Labor Day Holiday Weekend for boats sailing out of Atlantic Highlands Municipal Harbor. Lou Fligor told me has seen better Labor Day Weekends but with the kind of weather we had this past summer the fact that we had good crowds and full parking lots on Saturday gives us hope for a good fall of fishing, he said.

The top trip aboard the charter boat MiJo this past week was with longtime patron the Arthur Killies fishing Club who had a decent number of keepers and a ton of shorts along with their one fish limits of sea bass. Capt. Mike Scardingo said it looks like the fluke are on the move and the storms we have been having are not doing us any favors. Most trips saw more sea bass than keeper fluke, he said.

I spoke with Capt. Bunting over at Julian’s Bait & Tackle and he told me fluke fishing was decent along the east edge of the Shrewsbury Rocks during the week. On the flip side of the coin bluefish and bonito were scarce this past week and seemed to have moved from the areas they were being caught in last week. Bottom fishermen are picking away at one fish limits of tog and sea bass, along with some croakers, scup and occasional triggerfish. Lastly he said the bay and backwater areas are still full of all kinds of baitfish.

I spoke with Capt. Bob Henn of the half-day boat at Ebbtide Too and he told me it was a tough week because of the weather. The boat only got out on a couple of trips and the fishing produced decent numbers of shorts a handful of keepers and some sea bass. “Hope the weather predictions hold true for next week so we can get a whole week of fishing in,” he said.

A call to Tim over at Bahrs Landing Marina got us a report of slower fishing this past week. He said the pop-up storms some of which were very severe, put a damper on the fishing on several days. Fluke fishing was still a heavy with short fish along with occasional keepers. In the bay a combinations of snappers, cocktails, croakers and spot were still on tap for light tackle fishermen and inshore action was decent with mixed size blues, small bonito and a few Spanish mackerel. In addition he said bottom fishermen are into a mix of triggerfish, ling, one fish limits of sea bass and tog and spot.

It was a light week of fishing for the crew of the charter boat Hyper Striper. Capt. Pete Wagner said the boats one trip enjoyed a decent catch of blues and albies. Pete told me he still has some open dates for the striper fishing in October and November so give him a call for info and available dates.

Another place we got a report of spotty fishing this past week was over at the Twin Lights Marina. Sources there told us boats fluke fishing out of the marina did well in between the storms on the northern end of the Shrewsbury Rocks. Bay fishermen were into a mix of croakers, spot, cocktail blues and snappers, along with very good crabbing, we were told.

“I got in one trip before heading to Creole State for some good cooking and fishing in the Gulf,” said Capt. Fletcher Chayes of Two Rivers Charters. Anglers had a nice mixed bag of fluke, sea bass and other fish on the trip. “We are looking for some good fishing when we resume fishing northern waters,” he added.

It was a good week of fluke and sea bass said Greg Hueth of the Big Mohawk III. Greg told me even with not always good seas the fishing remained decent. Early week fishing was a decent pick of fluke, shorts and some keepers and one fish limits of sea bass. Fishing later in the week was decent but anglers had to work for their fish. The top fish on the boat this past week was a 7-1/2-pounder. Greg said the boat will be going into the dry dock for its annual sprucing up and will be returning to the water on September 22 in time for the sea bass fishing.

Despite the crazy storms and weather this past week it was a decent week of fishing in Shark River, the inlet jetties and the beaches to the north and south of the inlet, said sources over at the Fisherman’s Den. Rental boat fishermen are into tons of short fluke with a few keepers mixed in. Anglers fishing the jetties are picking up some tog, triggers and fluke. Bonito, mixed size blues and a few Spanish mackerel have been hitting the beaches on the top of the tides north and south of the inlet. Party boats have also been into mixed size blues, along with bonito and Spanish macs and fair fluke fishing.

Bluefishing was good with mixed size choppers, bonito and Spanish mackerel in between the nighttime storms stated Capt. Rich Falcone of the Golden Eagle The boat’s first evening bluefish trip also saw decent fishing. He also told me this coming weekend will start a series of seven open boat tuna trips in a row, so give him a call to reserve a spot on the boat if you want to get into some tuna. Rich said it would be nice to have several days in a row where the weather was decent and the fishing was good instead of the off and on pattern we are stuck in.

Our last report of the week comes from Capt. Al Shinn of the Miss Belmar and Miss Belmar Princess. Al said he too had an up and down week because of the weather, and it seems like the weather reports hurt more than the actual weather. The best day of bluefishing was on Saturday when the slammers seemed to be everywhere on the surface of the water. During the week one day you wound hammer the blues, bonito, and Spanish mackerel, the next day you had to work for them. However when they turned on it was a real mad dog bite. He said with all the baitfish that are present in northern water the fishing could get really interesting rather quickly.

Another boat captain that told us it was a good week of fishing despite the weather forecast was Capt. Nick Caruso of the Ol’ Salty II and Big Kid. Nick told us he managed to get in five trips this past week and all saw one fish limits of sea bass, ling and fluke. He said while the fluke catch was dominated by short fish several 5-pound fish were boated with an 8-pounder the top catch this past week. The boat will be doing an offshore trip in the next couple of weeks so if you want to get on the action give him a call at the number in his ad for info.

Even with the weather it was a busy week for the crew of the Skylarker. Capt. Steve Spinelli said he started the week of by putting members of the Belmar Fishing Club into fair bite of fluke and sea bass. Next up was the Paul Tomachavich group who enjoyed a good pick of fluke and sea bass. A mid-week trip with the Wayne Mancini charter enjoyed fluke to 5-1/2 pounds and a limit of knuckleheads. The Fischer party bent rods with fluke, sea bass and blues. The Jesse Martin group decked blues to 8 pounds while the Saturday trip with the Berginer Roofing group decked a mix of fluke, sea bass and blues.

One of the persons to tell us of a slower week of fishing in northern waters, was Nick over at Bullet Hole Annex. Off color water was an off and on thing for a few days because of the severe storms that passed through the area for several days. However a few flips of the tides usually cleaned up the water, he said. He too said the fluke fishing was heavy with shorts but savvy fluke fishermen were pulling some nice keepers. He said the fishery that got hurt the most was the tuna action along the mid-range waters and offshore grounds.

I gave Phil Bouchard a call at the dock of the Misty Morn and he had no kind words for the weather or weatherman this past week. He told me the boat got out on several trips and saw a lot more keepers and less shorts. He also mentioned that the boat will be sailing a limited open boat schedule for the next couple weeks. Anglers should check the boat’s website for the open boat days. Lastly he said the boat has the next couple of weekends open.