Catch and release thread

[hookset]

Nice going fellas managed 2 bass to 25# and a handful of monster blues to 13#. Mad dog bite that that lasted for 47 mins. Pencil poppers did the trick. All still swimming.

[cowherder]

:clapping:Awesome reports guys keeping me chomping at the bit till I can get out this weekend! Congrats on the catches I am jealous. even better on the relaseing big bass. finchaser thanks for sharing your old school knowledge will have to try that.

[DarkSkies]

2 night report...have been putting in a tremendous amount of time fishing since Tuesday night when I lucked into all that night bluefish activity....these last few nights have felt like chasing ghosts of the past, as I am starting to feel there are no discernible patterns anymore. I have gotten pretty depressed about it, and some of the best fishermen I know, tell me they are quitting until fall. :kooky:
(then, 3 nights later, they're back out there again....;) )

Thu night....Failure.....sinking into the abyss of Depression.....:(
I had 2 areas that had produced in the past. Fish almost guaranteed this time of year. Both back bay. First area totally dead, no visible bait anywhere. Still looking for those cinder worms, I was extremely disappointed to only have found (2) of them 2 nights before.
Went to another area, fished hard....best I could manage to do was raise and miss one fish at 4am.....popper....I put myself in a bad position just for the opportunity to see if that area had some fish......I'll tell the story in the future when the embarassment has worn off....:bucktooth:....total skunk for me....

When I was done with that trip, I told myself I would quit....I had just about had it....these sporadic bites.....very scattered amounts of fish from land...and most of our old haunts being destroyed by jetty replenishment......
In another post I mentioned not fishing the jetties too much this season because of the small fish there....the truth is,.....there aren't even a lot of tiny fish to be had from fishing those jetties........it really is dismal.....
In the past, places like Monmouth Beach, with good jetties and structure, would hold 20-30 lb bass at night, this time of year, for weeks at a time.....now that has all evaporated....and I am more depressed about it, than anyone could know......

So I had it in my head, that I was giving up....not going to bang my head against the wall any more, for such scattered success....:embarassed: :don't know why:
(Of course, we probably have all said that, at one time or another.....:rolleyes: )












Fri night..6-14-14....redemption.....:fishing:

I haven't been going into too much detail about it, but in addition to fishing, I have been poking every nook and cranny I know of, to find concentrations of bait....
Other than the bunker, the rainfish in the channels.....and the small flounder and fluke on the bottom of those channels....there is not much bait on the sidelines.....
I have walked miles of shoreline and sedges, late night, and early morning, to find very few species of juvenile baitfish, in our NNJ bay and river area....this has not given me confidence.....fish won't come in and hold, in an area, without food to hold them.

What a lot of people are experiencing is a one day, hour, or segment in time, of success....and without this food in place.....the fish move on....it has become very frustrating for a lot of us....

Last night I played a hunch... fished 12-4AM....decided to concentrate on an estuary I know of, way in the back bay......
It was a good hypothesis....there were a lot of grass shrimp, they were tiny.... 1/4 to 1/2" at the largest....baby minute grass shrimp...
the fish were feeding on them....you could hear them occasionally break water....was very low key.....not a lot of surface activity....

It took me a long time to figure it out.....
The first hour, I only managed to raise 2 fish....one on a popper, the other on a small metal lip....I realized that only the smallest presentation would have a chance, and went through every small profile in my bag...even throwing 3/8 oz jigheads with 3" curly tail (anticipating cinder worm activity)....That small grub and jig usually always catches, when I can't get them to hit anything else....and still, I was failing.....

I was ready to give up, and leave, when I adjusted my retrieve and started catching fish on poppers......
I really had to tease or **** them off.....and the activity ramped up as I dialed in a bit more......I missed a lot of fish.....the adrenalin took some of my depression away and put me on full alert.....:headbang:



Ended up with 11 blues to 7#
1 small legal bass.
All released......

[buckethead]

Fished moco this morning right when the tide turned and started comiing in. Wind shifted to NE and there was a little chop on the water. That was just enough to stimulate activity. Picked up 2 bass, one 29" and the other a short. Both released, bucktail and pork on the bottom.

[cowherder]

bucket head and dark nice catching and releasing as well!

[DarkSkies]

Some of my night tide trips from the last weeks of June.....
Fishing last weeks of June 2014
Estuary fishing..... back bays, and alternating between bay, inlet, jetty and ocean bites....some bait around, I have been chasing after it as it moves from place to place.

6-19-14 AM
Fished 3 hours.
One 9# bass, released. 15 small blues, poppers and mag darter. The blues were real aggressive....lots of fun seeing them smash the top water plugs. :bigeyes:

6-20-14 AM
Based on the good action from the night before....Fished from the dark into sunrise, no action at all. 5 hours. N wind blowing all night. Hate that freaking north wind for NNJ!

6-24-14 AM
Fished 3 hours total, one 12# bass on swimmer, one bluefish on swimmer.
Left and went to another location. Got another 5 small blues on poppers. All fish released.

The fish have been so scattered that unless you're out there every night you can't consistently catch them. Drives me absolutely nuts. On the other hand if someone only fished once or twice a week, it's easy for them to mis-calculate that there are no bass left.
What is left, is the dribs and drabs, the remnants of a late Spring bite, still hanging out in the area and tight to the bunker schools at night.


6-30-14 AM
Fished 3 hours, one bass -- 24 # -- on Northbar bottle, released.


18653

18645

It was the only fish on artificials that night. Lots of bunker around, but no indication of bass under them. Was getting discouraged at the lack of action and tremendous amount of bunker.
Went through many different profiles and presentations. At one point I was bouncing a light bucktail on bottom. Getting hit regularly but not able to hook any of these fish. My best guess is that a lot of croakers or spot had moved in that night. Fish with small mouths. I was puzzled by these small fish and why they could be there in so many numbers that night, but they were. And no reasonable amounts of bass (or bluefish) chasing them, other than the one I got. Was very happy with that one bass, she put up a nice fight.

[cowherder]

This guy released a 48 pounder. Awesome!:clapping:
From the al ristory report yesterday.

Nellie Greer of Bethlehem, Pa. took a half-day off work to fish this afternoon with Chuck Many of Annandale. That turned out to be a good choice as he caught a personal record 48-pound striper while chunking in the bay. That fish fought a long time in a strong tide, and it floated back up after release, requiring Many to pull anchor and net it again. Matt Calabria of Hazlet worked on her until she was able to swim down. Releasing fish in warm waters is much more difficult than when water temperatures are lower. Rather than just sending them back head first, it may be necessary to work them alongside until they pull out of your hands

[buckethead]

Outstanding job on the catch and the release.

[DarkSkies]

Some of my night tide reports for the first 2 weeks of July...
If you look at the 2 weeks prior to that you can see a definite difference in the quality and quantity of fish. The latest night menu is mostly scattered blues...with a few occasional bass thrown in.

You never know when those conditions will change for the better....even if just for that night.....hence the push to be out there as often as I can....:fishing:







7-3-14 AM
Fished 2 1/2 hours. 5 bluefish to 6#... black bomber. One bass 13# on rapala swimmer, All released.
Bunker were around this time, but the little mystery fish were not.


7-4-14 AM
Fished 3 hours. 4 bluefish to 5#. 2 bass to 14#. Small swimmer. All released.


When people talk about how easy bluefish are to catch, I challenge them to catch 10 bluefish in a night on artificials, when they are scattered, and the only thing that calls them in is your skill at presentation..

3. It was damn hard, I worked for every fish......Also notable is that this is a pure night bite.Even with overcast skies, all activity turned off an hour before dawn.

[cowherder]

Nice work DS!

[hookset]

A few bass to 32" last night before dark. Pencil poppers. Moco. Lots of mullet and other bait in the surf line. All released.

[Blazin420]

Very nice hookset!!I Fished last night from 730pm-1230am hit 3 spots in MoCo...All i came up with was a 17.5in fluke that slammed my Yozuri mag minnow...Thought it was a small bass at first...Threw everything..With the reports of mullet around, i tossed a bunch of Redfins with no hits to show for it then the wind picked up and i couldnt get them out far enuff...Nice conditions NE wind that wasnt too much and some nice water but the spots i tried were empty..Back to focusing on some flatties Sunday..Gotta get a few more keeps before the season ends. But i will looking for that pre sunrise bass before the GULP comes out;)

[buckethead]

Nice going hook. I probably fished the same area of moco as you this morning, a little south of where I usually fish. The NE wind was pretty strong and steady and the surf was kicked up from the offshore storm. Gave in my best for an hour at sunrise. Managed one 29" bass about 8# on buck with 6" chartreuse grub. Fish still swimming. That was my only activity - not even bluefish. Crazy fall so far.

[nitestrikes]

Decided to make the run out East and fished Monday and part of Tues. There were a lot of little bass in the surf feeding on anchovies and spearing. Managed 27 bass to 12# on the day and overnight. In the day bite bucktails, SS popper and small metal were the ticket. In the night it was bucktails and darters. Seems like it may hold for a while. I'm glad because it was getting very frustrating. All fish still swimming.

[Blazin420]

Got out last night from 8pm-1230am...Found some decent action right away...2nd cast i get hit hard 2 more casts and im tight with my first keeper of the Fallhttp://www.stripersurf.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif ...A nice 29in,hit a vision surfeel.(fish safely released for good MoJo)..Couple more casts and 2 more misses and then hooked up with another decent fish that looked to be about 27in..He hit the Mag darter...Walked a bit and hooked up again with a real nice fish made a great run then the thing switched it up and ran right at me...I knew i would loose himhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/no.gif the line went slack real quick,tried to reel as fast as i could to catch up to him but once i did the hook must have loosened in his lip and he popped off in the washhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/eusa_doh.gifhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/eusa_doh.gif ...Those bigger fish are smart they no how to get unhooked...After that the action slowed and only 2 more bumps! Lost the tide and packed it in....Lots of guys out last night and saw 1 nice fish come off the beach..Real nice fall night!!

[Monty]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^;
Real nice report Blazin. Congrats on the catching and releasing.

[storminsteve]

Nice going blazin! You did better than me. I went to fish moco last nite but the place was so crowded I thought I was at a strip club. Maybe they were giving away $100 bills?:don't know why: Made a slight detour S and fished from 10-1. Picked up 2 to 26" on a bucktail and pork. No bait was visible but it seems the bass are here finally. good luck everyone!

[vpass]

Nice going Blaze, and steve. You did better then me also. I must of been in the same spot as Storminsteve. there were to many people for that spot. I left to looking for better location. didn't plan it well. I ended up going home earlier then planned due to frustrations which i won't get into it here for now.

[Monty]

Well the surf has calmed down a lot since then. Fished the SS from 5 to 8 today. Water just a tad dirty. got into some big blues on poppers. No one caught bass where I was it seemed the blues took over. Still a lot of fun and rod bending. Good times. Great surf shots monty what camera are you using?
Thanks rockhopper, its a Nikon AW120 (waterproof).
Well fished this morning from 1:30-10:00, the short LI trip.
Wind at times was a bit challenging with keeping in touch with the artificial.
Missed a hit early on then around 3:00 picked up a short on a bucktail (thats a major event for me :bucktooth:)
Around 4:00 picked up a bass around 36 inches, on a Super Strike Darter (also not something I do a lot), released.
That was all of the catching, dropped a small fish and missed a hit all around 9:30.
Had a great time, made this trip with a friend. Lots of fishing talk, some laughs and lots of fishing.

http://rocksimpson.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/2014_10_26_SB_SS_Darter_1.jpg

[baitstealer]

Nice fat fish dude, any idea of the weight?

[Monty]

Nice fat fish dude, any idea of the weight?
Thanks, no idea.


Is that an olive green darter? Good job man she is a fattie!
Thanks, was a gold over yellow.

And recently went all crushed barbs on plug hooks. Really helps in the release.

[Blazin420]

Been out deep into the night past 2 days and the next wave of fish is here and moving...Pretty amazing fishing during the right time of the tide...I gotta be vague but i had 1 of my best nights ever in those 2 nights..2 nights 38 fish multiple keeper sized fish 28-34in..And about 6 that were around 20#...My biggest went 44in...My bud got a 42in...bucktails/pork and shads...Bunker were thick...Im running on about 7 hrs sleep for 2 days:scared::d but god damn was it worth it!!! :cool: Top pic is my buddys 42...Bottom is my 44in hard to tell from the pic but she was beauty...Oh BTW everyone safely revived and released!

[cowherder]

:clapping:Awesome catching and releasing you are a true sportsman blazin. Very nice job!

[Blazin420]

:clapping:Awesome catching and releasing you are a true sportsman blazin. Very nice job!
Thanks cowherder!! Its all about the hunt! I truely enjoy seeing these beautiful fish swim away!! Nothing better then reviving a fish in the wash and feel it tense up just before she splashes you with that big tail to swim away!

[hookset]

moco this AM. 2 keepers to 13# released, Needlefish. No bait, birds showing, or any other hits. just random casting.

[buckethead]

Nice going fellas. Sometimes it rains and sometimes it pours. I was in the right place at the right time today. Started a little later than I usually do. After sunrise and the tide started coming back in the action got better as mostly blues and big bass were among the thousands of bunker. There were bunker, butterfish on the beach, rainfish and even some squid spit up by the bluefish. Throwing only large pencil poppers I managed 8 bass to 26#. over a dozen large blues to 13#. All bass were legal size. There was not one short among them which was disturbing. All fish still swimming. As hookset said the fish activity was not always showing and some were enticed with blind casting. Good day overall among the overcast skies.

[buckethead]

Today I managed 8 bass to 26#. over a dozen large blues to 13#. All bass were legal size. There was not one short among them which was disturbing. All fish still swimming.

[finchaser]

yesterday I had 6 bass 29 to 45 pounds 2 on jigs and 4 live lining bunker on circle hook not snag and drop

today I had 3 bass 22 to 33 pounds live lining bunker on circle hook not snag and drop


all but one were released here's a few

[buckethead]

Nice going finchaser and on the releases as well. I did not see any short fish today, they were all larger sized bass. How about you?

[finchaser]

Same here no shorts either but my fish doesn't count as much as the great job you did bucket head mine were boat fish

[plugginpete]

Nice!!!!!!!

[cowherder]

Wow you guys are getting some big fish. Kudos on the catching and releasing!:clapping::clapping:

[cowherder]

Awesome reports way to find the fish guys! and even better that they were released way to go!

[surferman]

Great job dudes way to get on the bass! nice job on the releases too. I am counting the days till we have numbers like that in cape may. Keeping fingers crossed for a decent Fall run.

[storminsteve]

I picked up one fish on polaris popper right before dark yesterday, 30" healthy bass with sea lice, released. Nothing was showing in the water. Nice work guys.

[DarkSkies]

Eli's Pre Halloween fish.....


Report and pics courtesy of Eli.....:HappyWave:

Well it's been pretty lackluster overall this fall. Spent most of the time blackfishing across the pond with good results. A few bass here and there but not like the last 3 years. Until Thursday, the bay was cool, clarity was good and a fish I have never seen like this swallowed my bunker. Bottom of the outgoing tide I had a monster run on a livie.

She measured 49" and was put back to swim after photos. Looking at formulas she would be right in that magic range, I'll never know, but it was great to see this torpedo swim off. Being a fish gorging on bunker think there is a chance it was 50. I've lifted a 46" bass into the kayak before, but this one made the boat feel tippy like never before. Thank you Gene for the photo.

19033

19034


Sometimes just be ready for anything, go out and fish because life is too short, enjoy every moment

[finchaser]

Did the boat thing yesterday 1 bass 31 pounds on a jig still alive and well

[surferman]

Nice job jgfreak and finchaser. I saw where a large body have moved on down to Island beach. Thanks for saving some for us! Hopefully we will get some soon. Fall is almost over!

[cowherder]

Great job guys!

[storminsteve]

Got out and fished completely in the dark. Last of outgoing and part of incoming. Picked up 11 little guys and one keeper. Let the keeper go to keep the fish Gods happy.

[hookset]

Outstanding job fellas. I fished last night got 13 to 15lbs most were small. Feisty and fun though. All still swimming.

[finchaser]

Good number of boats off Squan now. Anyone got the intel? What's the dilly-o?
Finchaser? Finchaser? Where's that intel chain hookup dark was promoting in your name? Would be nice if there was a phone app for the finchaser hotline.;):HappyWave:


Was there went a little further south had 4 fish to 36#still swimming all live lining bunker on circle hooks. Got a call on way in from a charter boat friend it was going down north of the inlet had to quit due to a dinner engagement

[cowherder]

Way to go finchaser. Must have been awesome to catch and release fish that size. Kudos!

[seamonkey]

Nice going, and remember so send those fish down our way!

[finchaser]

thanks guys but they are boat fish and don't count yours are bigger achievements IMO. I will be back on the beach soon my life time love.

[jigfreak]

thanks guys but they are boat fish and don't count yours are bigger achievements IMO. I will be back on the beach soon my life time love.


Damn you are quite the humble guy. Thanks for all the insight and helpful hints through the years finchaser. You seem to be one of the least chest pounding guys in the game. Wish some of the a-holes out there could learn by your example.
I took the day off today and fished moco. Didn't seem to be much happening first so I went for breakfast. Got back to a lifeless beach but started throwing big swimmers so I wouldn't be one of the looky lous standing around waiting for the stripers to fall from heaven. Caught a monster blue about 16 lbs blind casting the metal lip. Within 15 minutes of that there was some intense action. We all had fish for about an hour and a half, mostly metal lips and poppers as they pushed the bunker on the beach.
Went for a break, stopped at a tackle shop for some new leader material and such. Back out at 7 and fished till 9pm. Picked up one blue and 4 bass to barely short of keeper size on the metal lip and mag darter. Pretty good day despite the crowds.

[storminsteve]

Damn you are quite the humble guy. Thanks for all the insight and helpful hints through the years finchaser. You seem to be one of the least chest pounding guys in the game. Wish some of the a-holes out there could learn by your example.


X2. finchaser if you do ever have a surf seminar I'm in!

[finchaser]

Fished the boat again fish were smaller all released but 1 (the small one for my neighbors dinner for her guess from Alaska who has never had bass. Mine were 21#, 23 # 26# wind was fierce and it was cold in a 26' regulalor.

[Blazin420]

Hit them pretty good last night!! I had 7 bass 5 keepers 28in,28in,30in,32in and a healty 34in! Hit 5 in the first hr or so all on the Burple BT i tied earlier in the day with a black grub on it...Then nothing till about 12am changed positions then my bud Dave starts to nail them on a white Darter...Lost my darter recentlyhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/burn.gif so i throw on the northbar bottle darter and WHAM picked up the 32in and 2 more about 26-27in then of course a blue sliced me off at the braidhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/burn.gif http://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/burn.gif SO i lost the Northbar...I was PISSED...Fun night with some good action..Dave had 11 and about 5 or 6 keepers all in the 28-32in range.We both missed and dropped multiple fish..Best part no one was around guess they were afraid of little coldhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/hihi.gif Pics of of the 2 best for the night!

[Monty]

Hit them pretty good last night!! .Best part no one was around guess they were afraid of little coldhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/hihi.gif

Awesome report, :thumbsup:
Congrats on the effort and catching.

[Blazin420]

Thanks Monty....And BTW all safely released to fight again!

[vpass]

Nice going Blazin, you and Dave must of been the only guys out last night. I'm sure those fish made your blood warm. I have off from work and can't last more then 30 min. fishing. I got to find decent gloves.

[SharkHart]

Had to try one of my favorite patterns hard NW that drops out after dark, drove like 50 miles and realized I have no waders and no korkers AHHHHH went to message my friends about it oooppps left the phone too rushing out the door! Well what the hell this googan is going to try anyway. POW! 19071 i was high and dry on some rocks casting up the Jetty and into fish right away but i was quickly mugged by some less then english speakers and another guy who switced from left to 5 yards to my right. I asked him if he could angle up the rocks cause that is where i am getting bites and he said he need to cast straight to work a sweep. I got 4 missed a bunch of hits before that was a cluster, worked some bay spots and picked up 3 more. it was chilly on those rocks though.

I even googaned up my photos tonight, she was released though

[cowherder]

Nice going shark and blazin! Kudos for finding the fish. I fished nomoco last nite from 9-11:30. That was all I could take it was damn cold! Looks like I should have stayed a little more time. All I caught was the skunk.

[hookset]

Just got done was the only one out there in the rain. Fished a blurple sp and picked up 6 bass. 2 were keeper size the others were rats. The biggest one was 33". All released. Caught east of the parkway.

[jigfreak]

Last night picked up a bakers dozen bass to 11lbs. All on mag darter. Still swimming.

[buckethead]

This is the first reported release of a 50 this year on 5/8. Congrats

Ed Plichta released a 52-pound striped bass late that afternoon while trolling a Tony Maja white number 4 bunker spoon out of Barnegat Inlet. That was not only the first "50" reported this year, but a season leader by far. Though trolling bunker spoons in the ocean around this time usually produces spawned-out bass from Chesapeake and Delaware bays, that fish was obviously loaded with roe (possibly headed to the Hudson River) and therefore released.

[strikezone31]

winner of the manhattan cup 47lbs released. lucky guy well done!
"What a day. Joined the rest of the fleet from the manhattan cup and everyone else it seemed that was out fishing on friday off Sandy Hook. All the bluefish you could handle, some real gorillas. Then that one bite that made the difference. Took the prize for overall with an estimated (C&R tournament) weight of 47 lbs. Huge thanks not only to Captain Vinny Vetere of Katfish sportfishing but also to the FCA and all the sponsors of the Manhattan Cup!! "

2015 Manhattan Cup Winning Striper

[surfstix1963]

I was fishing a SS inlet with a live eel unweighted at my favorite magic hour as I call it.

The eel did its thing swimming down to the bottom.

About 15 minutes in- the eel became very nervous. Then I felt the eel swimming rapidly up to the surface. As it reached the top of the water I saw a huge shadow following.

When the bass came to the surface it whacked the eel with its tail causing it to fly out of the water.

When that eel landed the bass circled in front of it and flared it's gills and sucked that eel in like a piece of spaghetti!
Off it went - so I bowed to the cow and when the line came tight the circle hook did it's job. The bass then realized she was hooked and started ripping line off the reel swimming like hell trying to rid itself of the hook.

When it finally slowed some I started working her back to me. Then that big bass 2nd run started and game on again. Finally I tired it enough to work it to the rocks. When I got her in close I climbed down to my landing perch and grabbed the fish.

A quick weigh and measure revealed 41 lbs. 49"
I popped the hook out and put the big one back to swim again. Off it went and that's my story.

Quite honestly it was a learning lesson on how bass attack an eel. Was great to watch how it played out since this all happened at the surface. It was just the perfect time of the early a.m. Exact part of the magic hour. For the first time everything played out like I had planned it.

That doesn't exactly happen all the time. This was quite a few years ago when we still had a good number of large bass.

[lostatsea]

Wow awesome stories! Never knew a bass would go after an eel like that!

[DarkSkies]

I was fishing a SS inlet with a live eel unweighted at my favorite magic hour as I call it.

The eel did its thing swimming down to the bottom.

About 15 minutes in- the eel became very nervous. Then I felt the eel swimming rapidly up to the surface. As it reached the top of the water I saw a huge shadow following.

When the bass came to the surface it whacked the eel with its tail causing it to fly out of the water.

When that eel landed the bass circled in front of it and flared it's gills and sucked that eel in like a piece of spaghetti!
Off it went - so I bowed to the cow and when the line came tight the circle hook did it's job. The bass then realized she was hooked and started ripping line off the reel swimming like hell trying to rid itself of the hook.

When it finally slowed some I started working her back to me. Then that big bass 2nd run started and game on again. Finally I tired it enough to work it to the rocks. When I got her in close I climbed down to my landing perch and grabbed the fish.

A quick weigh and measure revealed 41 lbs. 49"
I popped the hook out and put the big one back to swim again. Off it went and that's my story.

Quite honestly it was a learning lesson on how bass attack an eel. Was great to watch how it played out since this all happened at the surface. It was just the perfect time of the early a.m. Exact part of the magic hour. For the first time everything played out like I had planned it.

That doesn't exactly happen all the time. This was quite a few years ago when we still had a good number of large bass.


Wow awesome stories! Never knew a bass would go after an eel like that!



Great story Rich.....

I heard you tell that before but I didn't know the exact size of the fish....seeing a fish that big come out of the water is an adrenaline-filled moment that will last forever in your head.....:bigeyes:
Nice work on the release as well.....:thumbsup: :HappyWave:

[SharkHart]

Wish things were going better for guys fishing north of LBI, this is such a great group of guys I hate to even report right now, I dont know what it means for north fishing but south of AC has a very solid body of stripers, there was an all time classic night friday with big fish, I even ventured far south one night to cape may and the fish were violently crashing water every 15-20 mins dead in close but very very pickey, got a few there. I also got my new PB @ 43lbs on a yellow wood northbar, felt great hugging her taking her back out for the release. I allowed a super unexperienced angler from my work to tag along (claimed to be experienced) he showed up in a bathing suit and trout vest, watching him trying to unhook a 38 lber with forceps was priceless. I lost some respect with some hard core guys I know well every time they hooked up my goog buddy would get 10 yards and shine a strong flashlight on them because he wanted to watch as a spectator, i was like dude thats gotta stop!

[plugcrazy]

Wow bass to 43 lbs from shore that sounds like a dream that came true! Congrats on your pb and thanks for sharing.

[lostatsea]

Awesome report congrats!

[Blazin420]

Great job Shark seems your having a great spring!! I jealous brotha! WTG!

[storminsteve]

Yeah shark you da man! Wish we could have something even close to that. .

[hookedonbass]

Wish things were going better for guys fishing north of LBI, this is such a great group of guys I hate to even report right now, I dont know what it means for north fishing but south of AC has a very solid body of stripers, there was an all time classic night friday with big fish, I even ventured far south one night to cape may and the fish were violently crashing water every 15-20 mins dead in close but very very pickey, got a few there. I also got my new PB @ 43lbs on a yellow wood northbar, felt great hugging her taking her back out for the release.


Great job Shark seems your having a great spring!! I jealous brotha! WTG!

Yeah that seems like some awesome action. Congrats and please send some our way.
congrats as well for releasing that cow!

[buckethead]

Nice going shark hart. Good job on the release as well.

[finchaser]

7 bass to 31" and 3 small blues all on plugs all released

[cowherder]

Wow nice going and congrats on the releasesll!

[buckethead]

Congrats on the fish finchaser. I'm sure you worked hard for them. Well done.

[DarkSkies]

I forgot to mention this.....

6-15-15
C&Release....a 50 # bass....

The story.....
On a Monday night......6-15.......

A group of old timers were fishing on a pier in RB.......

Late at night....after most of the other fishermen went home.....there were only a few left....
One of them fishing a bunker head managed the fish of a lifetime......

He got into a battle with a bigger fish....he knew right from the start that this was something different....
When he brought it to the bridge net they use....it was too big to fit in the net.....they had to use supplementary means to get it up there....struggling with his 2 other friends...

They finally hoisted it up.....
Measured it...took a few quick pics....
They did this quickly as the lucky old timer wanted to C&R the fish....
And lowered it down just as quickly.....reporting that she swam away on her own power....

They did have some of the few remaining people that were there as witnesses.....

I haven't seen the pics yet....but the old timers have a lot of credibility with me....
Fish weighed on a genuine boga...and the length and girth measurements make sense as well......I believe them...








A fish like that would definitely have gotten their names in the paper...and they chose not to go that route......
I congratulate them on a great fish....and the C&R...:clapping: :clapping: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :HappyWave:

[porgy75]

Just saw this today.

"The Fisherman magazine eliminated striped bass from their Dream Boat Fishing Challenge this year, in order to discourage killing a lot of big breeders, and are instead giving prizes for the best release photos of that species."

[BassBuddah]

This is a Captain that knows how to do it. He also wrote that recent book "Caught" about striped bass.
Capt Jeff Nichols of Second Choice charters


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1SE2FNfskM


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ctfDEcfGPbQ

[jigfreak]

Fished the back for a few hours. Top of the out and the outgoing. Water wasn't that bad still very warm. Lots of mullet and peanut bunker. They were getting hammered by bass. Unfortunately they were really keyed in on that bait. It was a bad night to be a baitfish back there. Managed 4 bass to 31". 2 of them were keepers. All released. Magdarter got 2. Black sluggo got the other 2.

[hookset]

Got into a decent bite last night somoco. Swimmers were the ticket. half a dozen. One keeper about 12lbs. Still swimming.

[seamonkey]

Great reports gents. Picked up 3 striped ones 8-10p tossing some pink fin s to structure in cape may. Finally it's on!

[buckethead]

Nice work on the releases.

[cowherder]

Fantastic job guys!

[buckethead]

Managed 5 bass on bucktail and pork this morning. 2 were legal 10 and 9#. released.

[cowherder]

Nice!!!!!

[finchaser]

This morning 4 to 6:30 released 7 bass to 28" and 4 blue fish in the 4-6# range my partner had 4 bass and a10# blue all on DOA rubber and jig head

[seamonkey]

This morning 4 to 6:30 released 7 bass to 28" and 4 blue fish in the 4-6# range my partner had 4 bass and a10# blue all on DOA rubber and jig head

Wow you are like the borg catching fish with 20mph winds and thumbing your nose at Joaquin who is just offshore. Nicely done.

[nitestrikes]

Released a 17 and 19 pound striper last night. A few small ones as well. Yellow darter was the ticket for me.

[cowherder]

Fantastic report and release sir thanks for sharing.

[buckethead]

Caught 2 fish this morning, one was keeper size. 16lbs and 36". Both took the redgill teaser in front of the bucktail. both released.

[cowherder]

:clapping::clapping::clapping: Nicely done guys!

[finchaser]

Did the boat thing 1 mile out we had 4 bass 32 to 41 inchs forgot the scale all still alive and well

[jigfreak]

Got some keepers last night. Fish ranged from 5-13 lbs. All still swimming. Magdarter and larger darter worked. One fat blue as well.

[cowherder]

:clapping::clapping:Nice work guys!

[buckethead]

Fellas - good job

[finchaser]

Boat today we had 7 fish to 43 inch 32 pound all live lined on circle hooks all released no snag and drop

[cowherder]

:clapping:Nice work there!

[hookset]

Great job finchaser. Finally picked away at a few yesterday. Lots of peanuts around. One keeper 12# released. The rest were shorts.

[surferman]

Good job thanks for saving some for us SJ folks.

[fishrich]

The OFFC managed to get to OC around noon and get on the peanut bunker train and get rid of the three peat skunk. All fish, except a couple blues, were bass 24" to 30". Followed the birds and fish thru a few towns. Sometimes the fish were close, sometimes the fish were only caught on a long cast. The action slowed down around 4 pm, so we picked a spot to plug before it got dark. We saw a few birds but could not walk fast enough to catch up to them, so we just stopped in a cut and plugged and started hooking up. We had good action till about 5:30 pm.

[fishinmission78]

Nice going gents. Heard of a lot of action today that I missed out on while at work. Have followed your reports over the years and have been reading of some strike outs lately. Good news that you found em congrats.

[jigfreak]

Time for a fishing report. Fished a popular county, the only one with decent fish in it, last night in the dark. Dropping tide, 6 hours, into part of the incoming. Tossed mag darters and m/l swimmers. Managed 5 bass, only one was a keeper, about 15#. Released. Worked for every one of em.

[SharkHart]

I got 3 yesterday, wished i left after the first shot, only seen them come in briefly 2 more times into spot i was boxed out, few spots did slightly better. Then looked all over and they never came in all day with birds in distance many times. at least 2 fish were the better sized ones 28-29" last min decision but WAS gonna start where i found these, heard a few guys that knew what they are doing had closer to 10 to 12 fish 19892

[finchaser]

Did the boat thing 2 of us had 30 bass to 31" all on pencils and shad had to go almost to Barnegat inlet to get them today was dead from Manasquan inlet to the piers and absolutely no life from Barnegat inlet back to Manasquan inlet

Got a text from a friend got home swapped out boat stuff for surf stuff went to Southern Monmouth county for tail end of a few hugh blues passing also on poppers

[finchaser]

Had 4 today to 35" on white shads

[plugcrazy]

Nice going gents. Did anyone see the Grumpys weigh ins from yesterday. Some really nice fish brought up on the beach. congrats to all who were able to get out.

[clamchucker]

Well done finchaser. I had a Dr's appointment the other day and missed out. Will try today and see what I can find. Good luck folks.

[finchaser]

Released 2 bass to 37" both on loaded c-10 redfin from 2 to 4 pm

[VSdreams]

Cool looks like a fattie. Could I ask if they hit far out or in close? Thanks

[finchaser]

Pretty close was not out on a bar

Large schools of peanuts ruined this mornings fishing BUNKER SU_K

[finchaser]

Released 1 bass around 29" on a white SS popper lots of herring some south in the wind and a SE swell seems to have turned them off.

[hookset]

Released 1 bass around 29" on a white SS popper lots of herring some south in the wind and a SE swell seems to have turned them off.

That s wind is never any good for me either except for one specific area. After the dismal results yesterday went back early today and fished in the dark. Fishing was a little better. Fished a silver belly loaded redfin and managed a few. No keepers but they hit hard and it was fun. Bite turned off before sunrise. Very cold out there last night.
Congrats on the C&R.

[DarkSkies]

Fishing Reports Spring 2016

March
3-16 Wed PM
Fished a few places after the proposed SMS meeting. A wide range of water depths were probed, nothing.

3-23 Wed PM
Same routine. The water had warmed up a bit so had to be out giving it a shot. Full moon tides and past log entries drew me out there. Friends doing real well fishing clams and worms in various places. Strictly tossing artificials, still no action for me.
Did some scouting of early season estuaries and nurseries. Lots of bait being built up, particularly spearing, and freshly born grass shrimp. This might set up to be a good year.

3-30 Wed PM
Same routine. Was discouraged because some of the bait guys I ran into, said that even they were doing poorly. Time to expand the area I'm fishing in and make more stops.

3-31 Thu PM
3 bass to 28", released.
First bass of the season.

Back out again. Didn't like the wind so slept in my vehicle for a while. Got up a few hours before dawn, wrapped up in some old blankets. It was cold but wind had died down a bit. Got to the water, first cast was into a feisty bass, just under keeper size. Thought it would be great, but I assumed wrong. Had to work for these fish. Spent the next 2 hours wading and moving, trying different strategic hiding places. Managed 2 more, all on mid level swimmers. Could not buy a hit on rubber or bucktail. Bite died at the first hint of gray light.

[storminsteve]

moco. Landed a baker's dozen of bass. One keeper 35 inches, released. Rest were all small babies 14 to 20 inches. missed a few others as well.

[fishinmission78]

Fished the whole weekend. Kept a few stripers between 15 and 20 pounds, and a 29 pounder that swallowed the treble and was bloody.
I rhrew back about 20 Keepers, all 15 pounds and up.

[Monty]

Fished the whole weekend. Kept a few stripers between 15 and 20 pounds, and a 29 pounder that swallowed the treble and was bloody.
I rhrew back about 20 Keepers, all 15 pounds and up.

Congrats, sounds like a great weekend.

[jigfreak]

Nice going I had 2 decent fish last night one at 11 and the other at sixteen#. On rubber, released.

[cowherder]

awesome catching and releasing going on here gentlemen. Nice to see it.

[finchaser]

This morning 9 bass to 29" and 4 blues to 10# all on jig head and tube tail, released.

[J Barbosa]

This morning 9 bass to 29" and 4 blues to 10# all on jig head and tuber tail

nice

[bababooey]

Nice catches gents!

[surferman]

Wtg

[J Barbosa]

Chunked overnight and the bluefish kept us busy throughout the night. We managed 4 bass overnight on the chunk, the two largest going 31# and 45# on boga (both released).
Check out the serious girth on the 45# along with the deformed stripes...would love to know what caused that and how long ago it happened.
Went on the troll at day break and put a mid 20# bass in the box and dropped another one.


http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20962&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20961&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20963&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20964&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20965&stc=1

[J Barbosa]

http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20966&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20967&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20968&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20969&stc=1http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=20970&stc=1

[cowherder]

Wow that is a true cow! Congrats, and on the release as well.

[jigfreak]

That thing is a pig JB. Outstanding job.

[lostatsea]

Also wanted to add, great striper Jbarbosa congrats.

[plugcrazy]

Now THATS a COW!! Good job man you have the magic touch!

[cowherder]

Even Capt Al Ristori is talking about catch and release, good read.
This was in todays Al Ristori column, I agree!
Give pregnant stripers a break (https://tightlineswithalristori.com/2018/04/18/give-pregnant-stripers-a-break/)Raritan Bay-area striper fishing looks as if it will be breaking open any day now, but the downside to the good fishing is that it’s mostly on females ready to spawn in a week or two.
Actually, almost all stripers over 20 pounds are females. The very occasional male that large will probably be easily identified as it leaks milt when lifted. There are fair numbers of amaller males and immature females around if you want a fish for the table, but it’s clearly a shame to take a bass bursting with eggs that will be rejuvenating the stock in just a few days. That’s especially the case in Raritan Bay where the Hudson River stock has been providing us with fine summer fishing after the southern spawners are long gone to the east.
https://tightlineswithalristori.files.wordpress.com/2018/04/pregnant-striper.jpg?w=760
Bob Bowden with an obviously pregnant striper released in Raritan Bay recently from Ty Man to spawn in the Hudson River next month.