New Jersey & Delaware Bay - Southern New Jersey Fishing Reports

Gina at Dockside Cafe and Marina tells us with the closing of flounder season, her customers have moved on to fishing for spot, kingfish, blowfish and croakers. All are cooperating nicely, especially for anglers who are using clam chum in the bay. A few logs of chum and anglers tell us they are scoring dozens of decent fish, plus some triggerfish and large porgies. Other customers are just starting to target stripers again in the river. Live eels have been the best baits with fish running from schoolies to “overs” to 35 inches.

Mike at Tuckterton Bait and Tackle tells us that his customers have been loading up on crabs lately. Large numbers of big keepers are being found along the creeks and in the shallows of the bay. Most of the fishing action in the bay has been for croakers, porgies, spot and smaller blowfish, plus plenty of flounder are still hanging around. Mike hasn’t heard of a consistent striper bite yet, but will all the bait starting to make its move, that should materialize any day.

Justin with Allen’s Dock tells us it’s a bit early to say the fall run is in “full force”, but the stripers are certainly ready. In the Mullica, customers are seeing fish being caught on shedder crabs, live eels and on smaller trolled rubber shads. Plenty of fish are falling into the bonus tag and keeper slot ranges, and there have even been a few fish above the slot limit. Justin advises going out early in the morning or after dark for the best bite. There are tons of bait in the river and at night the fish really turn on as the schools of baitfish are getting blown out of the water under the bridge lights. Plenty of perch being caught in the river as well, with bloodworms and grass shrimp the top baits.

Wally at Jersey Devil Marina tells us that his area of the Mullica is seeing a very good white perch bite as of late. The fish, up to a pound, are hitting on grass shrimp, bloodworms and some anglers even say the fish are taking Fishbites. It has been the deeper holes near the feeder creeks that have been holding the best number of fish, along with many of the jumbos being caught. Reports from the lower part of the river tells us that the striper bite is getting better each week with fish from shorts to keepers with lots of fish falling into the “bonus tag” range. Anglers were having success with shedder crabs, but with them harder to get, many have switched over to live eels. Drifting live eels, especially in the early morning or late evening hours have proven most productive.

Stripers have turned on in the Mullica River according to reports out of Chestnut Neck Boat Yard. Anglers are finding plenty of fish, most of which are schoolies but there are larger fish to 30 inches also mixed in. Trolling smaller rubber shads have been taking larger numbers of fish, but fishing with live eels has been producing the larger fish recently. The river is also giving up plenty of white perch for anglers fishing bloodworms and grass shrimp. The bay is still producing plenty of croakers, kingfish, spot and even a few blowfish and triggerfish for anglers anchoring and chumming.

That chill in the air means fall is here and Capt. Andy with Riptide Bait and Tackle tells us fall hours are in effect. Plenty of summertime action still available of course, according to Capt. Andy’s customers. Triggerfish, sheepshead, spot and croakers are still very active in the back bays. The bay is also seeing stripers starting to feed on the large amounts of baitfish that are schooling up. Blues have also joined the party with snappers in the back bays, but larger fish showing up in the inlet and along the beaches as they intercept the peanut bunker schools making their fall migration.

“The mullet run is in full swing,” according to Noel at One Stop Bait and Tackle. This bait movement has gotten stripers, blues and weakfish in a feeding mood lately. Weakies to 22 inches and stripers to 30 inches are feeding under the cover of darkness along the inlet, jetties and beachfront. Both are taking pink soft plastics, and stripers are also being taken on hard plastics like SP Minnows. The daylight hours belong to blues, kingfish, tog, croakers, spot and triggerfish. All are being caught in good numbers on the jetties. Bloodworms have been the best baits for the smaller fish, while tog to 5 pounds and triggerfish to 4 pounds are taking sand fleas fished tight the jetty.

Capt. Sean from Waterfront Marine tells us that he’s excited to see what the fall brings. His flounder season ended on a high note with limits of flounder offshore on the last few trips of the season. He was also marking tons of life out on the 60 to 130 feet sites including large schools of sea bass and schools of weakfish He managed a few weakies, some of which were quality fish in the 20- to 24-inch size range. He tells us that the sea bass season should be “excellent” if the weather cooperates because every trip recently saw keeper size sea bass on the 100-foot wrecks. While offshore, Capt. Sean is also picking up some bonito while looking for cobia around the 5 Fathom banks, and he also says there are jacks and mahi at the pots.

Billy at Fin-Atics tells us the flounder season was ending with some decent keepers being caught along Corson’s inlet, including a fish over 6 pounds. Now anglers have shifted their focus to stripers and blues, along with the panfish that are still in the back bays like spot, croakers and snappers. Plenty of bait movement in the back bays with mostly peanut bunker schooling up in anticipation of the fall run. The lighted docks at night have been loaded with peanuts and anglers are picking off the occasional schoolie striper using live peanuts.

Peanut bunker and mullet are staging along the back bays of the Wildwoods according to Rick at Pier 47 Marina. At night, the stripers have been feeding heavily on all this baitfish around the lighted docks and along the sod banks. Anglers have been scoring fish to 31 inches on paddletails, rubber shads, naked bucktails, and Mag Darters. The bite has been almost exclusively at night with the higher tides producing many more fish than low water. The local daytime bite is seeing sheepshead still being caught under the bridges, snapper blues in the inlet, and togging has been really good at the Cold Springs Jetty.

Nick at Hands Too Bait and Tackle tells us that the flounder season ended on a good note with anglers finding limits of fish on the deepwater wrecks and reefs. The nor’easter will knock off the very last three days of the season for anyone who was looking to venture offshore. That same storm has gotten the mullet, spearing, and peanut bunker whipped into a frenzy in the back bays. They have been slowly moving out in small schools, but they are really on the move now and that typically triggers the “fall” run here in Cape May. Some anglers report catching a few stripers and blues along the sod banks recently of SP Minnows and topwater lures. Togging is also improving as the water cools with plenty of fish inshore, including under the local bridges and all along the jetties. Offshore action should only get better with current reports telling us that there are plenty of false albacore on the lumps within 20 miles being caught on the troll, and more mahi are showing up at the pots.

Higbee’s Bait and Tackle reports that the Delaware Bay is giving up a mixed bag recently of spot, croakers, kingfish, blues and weakfish for anglers drifting smaller baits. Anglers anchoring up at the structures are finding that lots of tog have invaded the bay and they are eating sand fleas, green crabs and fiddlers. Fish to 4 pounds were caught recently along with sheepshead to 8 pounds and tons of smaller triggerfish.

The end of the flounder season coincides with an incoming nor’easter so Cameron at Boulevard Bait and Tackle tells us that he is now keeper fall hours which is Thursday through Sunday. The end of the flounder season did not disappoint with anglers reporting plenty of action and some of the thickest fish of the season. Anglers are now targeting tog and sea bass from the wrecks and reef sites, as well as tog inshore on the jetties and bridges. Anglers fishing offshore recently came across keeper size cobia to 50 inches. Those fishing the inlet and beaches are seeing action increasing on snapper and tailor size buses.

There has been plenty of action recently in the Delaware Bay according to Dave at Big Dave’s Tackle. He tells us that his customers are scoring plenty of croakers, spot and kingfish, both from the beach and for boaters fishing the deeper channels. Bloodworms and Fishbites were working well for these fish. Weakfish were also making a showing for anglers drifting these baits, plus a targeted bite is starting up for anglers throwing soft plastics near the lighthouses. Reports are that these have been all quality fish in the 20- to 25-inch size range, some of the larger fish seen this season. Also at the lighthouses, and along the sod banks, bridges, and rock piles, tog and sheepshead have been making a good showing for anglers fishing tog jigs tipped with sand fleas or green crabs.