Tuna “East of Chatham”
Quite often you’ll see the reference to “East of Chatham” when reading the offshore fishing reports in regards to summer bluefin tuna.
Quite often you’ll see the reference to “East of Chatham” when reading the offshore fishing reports in regards to summer bluefin tuna.
Gardiners Bay is approximately 10 miles long and 8 miles wide, and sits between the two forks at the eastern end of Long Island.
As bluefin tuna have been summering over in Jersey’s midshore waters the past few years, an oft overlooked spot is in the limelight again – the Lobster Claw.
Nestled between the North Haven Peninsula and Jessup Neck and southward of the western end of Shelter Island and part of the Peconic Bay estuary sits Noyack Bay.
The fall season of 2017 along the western end of Long Island Sound went into the history books as one of the best weakfish runs in recent times.
Tied with Atlantic City Reef for size at 4 square miles, and one of the two oldest of the artificial bottom layouts, Axel Carlson Reef is second only to the Cape May Reef (4.5 square miles) for size.
Along the west side of Shelter Island in Peconic Bay is a landmark and fishing hotspot known as the Greenlawns.
Twins, almost, birthed by the New Jersey Bureau of Marine Fisheries (the dam) and then artificial reef coordinator Bill Figley (the sire).
Milford Harbor, called “The Gulf,” is a square bay measuring one mile by one mile.
Located deep inside Jamaica Bay bordering the Train Trestle and Cross Bay Bridge, Silver Hole is a deep water depression once known for its exceptional early spring flounder fishing, which has declined dramatically here, just as it has in most bays and harbors surrounding Long Island.
Can’t say much for the snail-like crawl of the current in the combined 60-mile Delaware & Raritan Canal (D&R) and its Feeder Canal sibling, but the fishing for myriad species is certainly high octane and ignites in late February and continues through until ice up.
Located on Cape Cod in the town of Mashpee, the Waquoit jetty juts southward into the blue waters of Nantucket Sound.
Spanning the eastern complex of Jamaica Bay from Howard Beach in Brooklyn to Rockaway Beach, the North and South Channel Cross Bay Bridges set the stage for some fine all-around action on a variety of species through the course of the season.
Roughly 5-1/2 miles off the coast between Manasquan and Shark River inlets, the Klondike (40 08.956/73 54.565) is an easily accessible, bottom fisherman friendly paradise.
The middle or Center Wall lies just west of Pt. Judith, Rhode Island, forming the Point Judith Harbor of Refuge….
I’m always amazed that there are still surf fishermen out there who spend little or no time on the backsides of our South Shore barrier beaches.