Photo Gallery: May Day Stripers ‘26 - The Fisherman

Photo Gallery: May Day Stripers ‘26

A photo array from May courtesy of The Fisherman’s subscribers.    

From the tides of March, through the first official day of spring, and into the month of June, the 2026 striper run at the Jersey Shore has been one for the ages.

As we look towards the Fourth of July, a cold winter and cooler water temps during the spring run could prove beneficial to those looking to continue their own personal striper quest into the warmer days ahead.

mike tango
Mike Tango emailed us (info@thefisherman.com) on May 16 after a successful day of herding cows about his 34-foot Regulator.
Keirnan Ryan
Keirnan Ryan got his new personal best striper in mid-May somewhere off the North Jersey coast around Sandy Hook.
jones
On May 18, Donell Jones reported that he got into some new moon striped bass on the top of the outgoing tide around Sandy Hook tossing a 6-inch Yo-Zuri Twitchbait.
frank
Well-regarded “weakfish whisperer” Frank Ruczynski said the tiderunner action has been slow this season. “On the bright side, it’s one of the best spring striped bass runs we’ve seen in South Jersey in years,” Frank added.
cathy
Cathy Kain celebrated her birthday on May 3 with a beautiful 38-inch striped bass caught and released in Barnegat Light after picking up some clams and pointers from Eddie and Gabe at Surf City Bait and Tackle.
charlotte
Charlotte Burnley caught (and released) this 35-inch striper during the Governor’s Cup tournament at Island Beach State Park in May. “Unfortunately it was too big to qualify,” said proud dad Roger, who added “Still a nice fish.” Indeed!

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