Higbee's Bait and Tackle

Water temps in Delaware Bay are a bit cooler than normal for this time of the year according to Higbee’s Bait and Tackle. That has resulted in a much slower striper bite as compared to last year. Still, anglers are lining up along Fortescue Beach, drowning bloodworms and finding a few fish per day in the 34- to 39-inch size range. The north part of the bay is seeing much more consistent action with fish from 30 to 45 inches. As these fish move out of the bay, it will be a race between them getting to Fortescue before the horseshoe crabs start spawning. Once the crab spawn starts, the stripers have little chance of finding a hooked bait with the bottom covered in horseshoe crabs.

The latest report was that Fortescue Beach saw the striper bite slow down a bit after a couple of weeks with fish in the 26- to 40-inch size range. Some customers took their bloodworms from Higbee’s Bait and Tackle upriver to the Penns Grove area and found plenty of fish looking for a meal. Multiple reports came in from the area telling us that the bite in Salem County has been good for fish in the 30- to 45-inch size range. Based on reports and some pictures, these fish seem to be too thin to be pre-spawn bass, so they might have already spawned and are on their way to the Delaware Bay. Expect the for-hire fleet out of Fortescue to get busy in May and June with the black drum action.