NJ Fishing Reports for the week of 3-31 to 4-6-2008

[bunkerjoe4]

Please post fishing reports here.......as little or as much detail as you want to give.

Please note: NO SPOT BURNING! Posts burning spots will be Edited or DELETED!
Some veteran fishermen have put in years developing and learning about certain spots.Some of these spots can only handle a few guys at a time. We are losing enough access as it is, due to the unfortunate behavior of a few selfish people. No sense in making it worse.

For some areas, it would be wiser to say:
OutFront (Ocean) OR -- OutBack (Bay) -- if you feel too many people will figure out what you are talking about. "Spot burning" also could involve mentioning something specific only to that area. If you do this, your post may be edited, or deleted. Remember that thousands of people could potentially read these posts. You don't want to be fishing next to ALL of them at the same time!

We post these reports so our community will have a sense of what is working, what is not. We want to show people how to catch fish, rather than where.Even if you struck out or got skunked, it would be helpful to hear that as well.

If you have any additional details you would like to share - weather conditions, tide (incoming, outgoing, ebb, flood) water temps, bait present, or other mention of techniques or plugs used - feel free, as long as you are not overly specific about location.

Some acronyms -

SH - Sandy Hook
NoMoCo - Northern Monmouth County (below the hook to Shark River Inlet SRI)
SoMoCo - Southern Monmouth County (below SRI to Manasquan Inlet)

OC - Ocean County
IBSP - Island Beach State Park
LBI - Long Beach Island

AC - Atlantic County
CISP - Corson's Inlet State Park
CMC - Cape May County
CMR - Cape May Rips


RB - Raritan Bay
BB - Barnegat Bay
CB - Chesapeake Bay
CBBT - Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel
DB - Delaware Bay

[bunkerjoe4]

The week in review:
It has been another week of ups and downs, folks. The flounder season started with a whimper. Some who are chumming heavily are doing well. Others are trying just as hard, and feel there are less flounder around than last year.

The best place to get larger migratory bass is still the Delaware Bay in South Jersey, where keepers are now being caught with some regularity. Additionally, they have been catching shad for the last 2 weeks in the Delaware River, though that is hit and miss as well. Spawning herring can't be too far behind.

The Raritan and Barnegat Bay areas have yet to turn on with any consistency. It's a coin toss from one day to the next. Even the well-known publicized spots are not always working, which is why is doesn't pay to chase reports.

Instead, early spring is all about the temperatures. I don't feel the northern bays have reached optimal consistent temps for the action to really turn on yet. There are keepers being caught, and many shorts, but many are not catching.

Some believe that given a few sustained sunny days, the back bay action will heat up. That 's possible, and I hope it rings true. Meanwhile, colder waters have not stopped the back bays from filling up with bait --

adult bunker, some small peanuts and spearing, herring, small invertebrates starting to stir in the mud, and harbor seals which have arrived to feast.

The puzzling thing is -- further north, there are bass in the Hudson, from Piermont to Croton and Peekskill. They are not there in huge numbers yet, but guys are catching. They are also catching schoolies in the Hackensack river.

So where are all the migratory bass that usually are in the RB and BB by this time of year?

Good question. I don't pretend to have all the answers. I just try to look at logs, and trends from year to year. The real truth is anyone's guess.

I do know that they are still catching big bass down off the CBBT. Those numbers are dwindling, and I believe the bulk of the bass have started their northward migration. It will take some time for all the stragglers to get here, so I believe we are still in for some large numbers of spring bass.

Others have said there are changes in the spring migration patterns, or biomass, but I don't think there is enough info yet to make an informed decision on that. Only time will tell.

Meanwhile, trout season has started in Pennsylvania, there are still some flounder and bass to be caught at the right times, and better fishing is definitely ahead of us.

If you are out there fishing, you will know within a short while if you will be into fish. If not, move and find a more productive spot. If that doesn't work, cut the trip short and go home. Come back another day.

It's better to make 5 short trips to try to find the fish than one long day trip where you feel you wasted your time.
(Of course, rising gas prices are hurting some fishermen, particularly those who live far from the water. It's getting expensive to do anything lately.)

But you can't put a price on the comfort that fishing gives to your soul, and the peace of mind you have after a day/night on the water away from all your troubles. :idea: That's one of the most difficult things to explain to people who don't fish -- why we fish.

Although some bluefish have allegedly been caught, I predict that the early season skinny tail racer bluefish will be here in numbers sometime in the next 2 weeks. They usually can be found in the back bays by casting metal and poppers at the end of the day. This is the best time to take kids fishing, because most children bore easily.

So get ready to take the kids fishing for bluefish! And get out there yourselves, and catch em up! Better days/nights are definitely ahead. -- bunkerjoe

[fishinmission78]

Been out a few times in the last week. Couldn't do anything with bass, but we did get some flounder over the weekend. mussels

[cowherder]

Gone fishin 4x in the past 2 weeks 0 for 4. Twice in the day, twice at night, clams. think the water's too cold yet, or maybe I just suck.:D

[bunkerjoe4]

Basshunter, you won the free plug as part of our monthly promotion for those who post reports in the regional forums.

Please check your pms (top right corner of page underneath your handle), and let me know where you want it sent.

A sincere thanks to all who have posted in these forums. It doesn't matter whether you caught fish or not. If you went fishing, and can describe something about the conditions when you were out there, even if you got skunked, it's helpful to our online community.

Water temperatures in the bays have gone up 5-8 degrees in the last 48 hours, and bigger pods of bunker have been sighted out front in the ocean, moving northward. It won't be long before bigger bass are here, so get out there and catch em up! - bunkerjoe

[fishlipper]

Was down by one of the rivers out back this am. Big spreads of bunker, seals feeding on them, and birds diving for the leftovers. Did not see any bass feeding on them, they usually stay away when seals are around.

[wish4fish]

no keeper bass yet this year.http://www.stripersandanglers.com/images/icons/icon8.gif went fishin with my uncles last week, caught some flounders. :drool: really boring catchin them, i want some bass! lol hey whats the story with the contest. i didnt even know there was one?

[clamchucker]

Last night RB outgoing, clams. Finally turned on a little, 3 bass up to 29" (only 1 was that size, others a lot smaller). Still, it was nicer to see bigger fish come in. What a difference afew days of sun on the water makes.

[bunkerjoe4]

Hey whats the story with the contest. I didnt even know there was one?

Wish4fish and others, for a limited time we will be running a giveaway promotion. A custom plug or some type of lure will be given out every month to one member who posts in the regional forums. I didn't publicize this too much, because I didn't want to skew or alter the reports.

It's not necessary to catch fish to participate. Anyone who has gone fishing and posts a report, whether they caught a fish or not, is eligible.

Even if you got skunked, posting a report telling us that helps our community make decisions when they go fishing, and is appreciated. That way, I think it's fair to everyone, and fulfills my goal of keeping things honest.

For those who haven't seen it, the notice is on the main page, when you first look at the area titled "Regional Forums".

*********
"Become a Member Win a Plug! For a limited time, every month a plug will be given to one random member who posts in Regional Forums. This is based upon a random number generator."

**********



So, now people officially may be aware, and know that all report posts are greatly appreciated. Good luck to all.

The bite has turned on in the last 48 hours, folks. If anyone is still sitting at home waiting to hear about others catching, now is the time to get your gear together and get out there. It's still a little cold, windy, and miserable sometimes, but the fish don't care if it's raining. It's all based on the water temperature. So get out there and catch em up! - bunkerjoe

[clamchucker]

Tonight outgoing RB.clams. Hit the usual spots, seems everyone and their brother had the same idea. No fish. Among all the guys fishing,only saw one vey small bass pulled in. Bunker that were around were not to be seen tonight.

[fishlipper]

I was out there last night too. looked light a coal miner's convention with all the headlamps. skunk city.

[fishlipper]

Out there again in the slop last night. Wind in our faces up to 25mph, waves breaking hard. The fish were chewin. Needed 4 oz to hold bottom using clams, 2 bass up to 22" in an hour outgoing. After that hour, I had enough and packed it in.

[clamchucker]

fishlipper, I think we may have fished the same general area Sunday. I was part of the early morn shift near that well publicized RB spot. There were 3 other guys in our immediate area, windy and cold as hell, fished the outgoing with clams. Between us we had about 12 fish up to 30", most were shorts, but the bite was active. I got the 30", and one other very small bass. I left after a half hour, maybe those other guys caught more. Wind in your face was a good thing that day.