NJ fishing reports for June 2012. ..www.StripersandAnglers.com

[DarkSkies]

NJ fishing reports for June 2012. ..www.StripersandAnglers.com (http://www.stripersandanglers.com/)





NJ fishing reports for June 2012...www.stripersandanglers.com (http://www.stripersandanglers.com/)
Important when registering on our site -- use an active email address so you can activate your account to be able to post.

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:
Out Front (Ocean) OR -- Out Back (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!


IF you are fishing an area that is NOT residential, being vague is less critical. For example, it's acceptable to say (Any)Park, or (Any)Bay, or mention a specific state park that has loads of parking and can handle the crowds.


If you are unclear on this concept, ask yourself:


If I name this place on the internet, will it be too crowded for me to enjoy tomorrow when people hear I got 30 fish here today?


If the answer is "Yes", then you should probably not be so specific.
More discussion on this:
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...ead.php?t=3763 (http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=3763)

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.






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
AI - Absecon Inlet
CISP - Corson's Inlet State Park
CMC - Cape May County
CMR - Cape May Rips
GEI - Great Egg Inlet
TI - Townsend's Inlet

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

[DarkSkies]

Vpass,
you won the plug in the May 2012 random drawing!:clapping: :thumbsup:
PM me your address so I can send it out to ya!




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.

If you struck out or got skunked, it would be helpful to hear that as well. Anyone who posts a report can win a plug even if they got skunked! :skunk::D


This month we're giving out plugs from Ace Baits, or something similar.
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/...splay.php?f=83 (http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/forumdisplay.php?f=83)

Thanks for posting and helping to make this a great site! :clapping:


http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6338&thumb=1&d=1238964999 (http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6338&d=1238964999)

http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6340&thumb=1&d=1238965622 (http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6340&d=1238965622)


http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6339&thumb=1&d=1238965319 (http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=6339&d=1238965319)

[clamchucker]

I have not had a chance to report. Catching some small bluefish in the Barnegat inlet and Island beach over the last 2 weeks. They are small, usually no more than 6 lbs, but give some nice action on small diamond jigs. The best days have been when the water is neither calm nor rough. Sunrise and late afternoons are best.

[Monty]

Fished this morning 1:30 to 10:30 bay side.
Missed a fish on 14” Hogy around 3:30.
Then when the sun started to rise got into some blue fish. Caught 27, lost a few. Early on caught 4 that were between 30 and 35 inches. These were on assorted wood (couple pics here: http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?8453-Rip-Plugger%E2%80%99s-is-bigger-than-Speedy%E2%80%99s ). Bigger Blues would hit the wood, not metal
Then had to use metal to catch the rest that were between 1 and 5 pounds. Missed and lost a bunch, was great fun. Last fish was caught at 10:15. Was basically all alone, few guys in site catching at times but 100s of yards away.

Since I may not catch a Striper again (its been blues and more blues for me for awhile), the site of a gator slamming a top water plug will always get the adrenalin going.

http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_3_BF_AH_WR.jpg

[cowherder]

Wow 27 blues fantastic Monty! :clapping::clapping: How much would you estimate the blggest blue weighed? 35 inches had to be at least 13 lbs, no?:bigeyes:
I fished somoco this afternoon because there were some bunker there yesterday.today was pretty dead, threw a pencil popper for 2 hours, and then a bomber before dark, skunk city.
Happy to year you got those blues Monty, good job!

[DarkSkies]

Fished the ocean last night, marathon 6 hour session. I usually catch 20-25# bass this time of year at night by blind plugging,...a lot of effort....

Some may not feel it's worth it as the snag and drop fishing gives a higher lb yield/ per man hour fished....

I really can't get excited by snag and drop fishing although some friends have gotten some nice fish that way this year.....


Fished last of the ebb and half of the flood.

Fished at 8 separate spots, covering 15 miles of beach. Only found fish at 2 of those spots..
The action got a little better when the offshore swell from the pending storm kicked up around 2am...but overall, it was a very slow pick...each fish was caught independently of the others...with no discernible pattern....

Also dropped 2 additional fish due to googan error. :bucktooth:


The 2 bass were around the same size, both released.
Fish I dropped were on swimmers.
Fish I landed were on small rubber.
2 bass, low teens.....



A lot of effort for those fish....way more effort than I usually put in this time of year...in my experience, the surf fish are scattered...this despite the extreme abundance of bait in the surf zone....which is further evidence that the striped bass biomass is shrinking.


Read this thread to learn more.
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?8450-Honey-the-Striped-Bass-are-Shrinking-How-to-Recognize-the-Signs


OR The Stripers and Anglers Yearly Coastwide Stock Accessment...
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?7784-StripersandAnglers-yearly-coastwide-fish-stock-assessment-state-of-the-fishery








1527115272
Pics
2 bass low teens.








***************
Monty and others, outstanding reports! :clapping: :thumbsup:
At least you guys are out there and trying.
Pebbles and I were in Moco yesterday afternoon and saw a picket line of guys just standing around waiting for action to happen, and it never did...despite that, there were a few hardy souls out there, who didn't read the manual of what it takes to be a cool surfcaster, who were giving it their best, blind casting.....way to go, guys.....

[basshunter]

Hey guys at least you are catching. I got skunked last 2 times out. I would love to even get some big bruiser bluefish. congrats.

[finchaser]

Way to go Monty:clapping:

[Mike O]

Fished for a few hours early Sunday morning. The seaweed situation was brutal. The kind that took about a half hour to get off your LOL. No fish

[Monty]

Fished the ocean last night, marathon 6 hour session. I usually catch 20-25# bass this time of year at night by blind plugging,...a lot of effort....
Some may not feel it's worth it as the snag and drop fishing gives a higher lb yield/ per man hour fished....
I really can't get excited by snag and drop fishing although some friends have gotten some nice fish that way this year.....
Fished last of the ebb and half of the flood.

Fished at 8 separate spots, covering 15 miles of beach. Only found fish at 2 of those spots..
The action got a little better when the offshore swell from the pending storm kicked up around 2am...but overall, it was a very slow pick...each fish was caught independently of the others...with no discernible pattern....

Also dropped 2 additional fish due to googan error. :bucktooth:


The 2 bass were around the same size, both released.
Fish I dropped were on swimmers.
Fish I landed were on small rubber.
2 bass, low teens.....
A lot of effort for those fish....way more effort than I usually put in this time of year...in my experience, the surf fish are scattered...this despite the extreme abundance of bait in the surf zone[B]....which is further evidence that the striped bass biomass is shrinking.

Great to see you get out and do some fishing Dark.
Sounds like a fun outing, congrats on the fish

"Some may not feel it's worth it as the snag and drop fishing gives a higher lb yield/ per man hour fished...."
:laugh: What is there a new contest? :headbang: Need Bass Poundage!!! :headbang: Quickly :headbang:
I find the more hours I "fish", the more fun I have.... Hate making the last cast.....sometimes I make 20 of them.
Anti snag and drop :laugh:

[Monty]

Way to go Monty:clapping:

Thank you :HappyWave:, the numbers of blue fish this outing compared to yours recently..... only it took me 4x the hours fishing and when I was done I could not move my shoulder (may have winced on a few casts the last couple hours), my back was demolished, hands are ripped apart, hammys and quads are aching.....but it was a lot of fun and hopefully will repeat it next Sunday early AM. :d

[storminsteve]

Hey nice work fellas
agreew with you too monty, if the only thing you are after is that 40lb fish, then maybe you should give up fishing. I was down there this weekend and saw guys standing around waiting for it to happen. Didn't have my gear with me but if I did I wouild have been one of those blind casting fools dark talks about.:d
When did fishing become so compartmentalized that fellas only want to make the effort if they see giant bass blitrzing in front of them?:huh:

[vpass]

Way to go guys. Great to see you guys getting out and connecting with some nice fish.

[finchaser]

Tonight 7-9 released 11 bluefish all on rubber went through 3 packs 39 pieces they wouldn't touch metal

[finchaser]

This morning 6 to 8 AM 23 blues 4 to7 pounds all on metal all released

[porgy75]

I fished near MI this morning in the surf. I tried throwing metal and bucktails. Not one fish for me not even one lousy bluefish.
I have to tell you guys I really enjoy the reports. There are a lot of sites out there and right now it seems not too many guys are catching. All chatter, no action. You can tell when guys are not doing well as it seems the level of chatter goes up and the reports down. Anyway, I don't mean to offend but it seems you guys here are in like the top 20% of all guys who catch from the surf.
So if I might ask, dark, why the gloom and doom? At least you are catching. I would love to even catch half of what you guys are running into. Also, any tips would be appreciated. Thanks and no offense meant.

[buckethead]

Nomoco from 6-8tonight. As the tide came in so did the blues. Got them to 13# on pencil poppers. Was trying for a bass but I did not see one caught despite all the bunker around.
Porgy, I can't speak for others here, but on some internet sites guys are all talk and no action. They wait for the rreports before they run out. The way I look at it, this is beautiful weather now. In July it will be hot and nasty with the bugs. Right now with the overcast skies, fishing is heaven. Catching is always more fun, but it seems it is a lousy Spring for a lot of us. I catch too but the skunks outnumber the catching days.

They say that's why it's called fishing, and not catching. I think there are good reasons behind that.Keep at it and try to fish dawn and dusk, If you can spend a few hours plugging or bait fishing at night. You will probably increase your odds.
Also try to learn Sandy Hook better. A lot of times the fishing this year has been poor, but when the fish do come in you have a good chance of getting them there at the end of day or in the night time. Good luck.

[xtreme_visions]

1ST TIME OUT IN AWHILE :skunk: USED BUNKER AND TRIED SOME METAL. NO LUCK :banghead2: FELT GREAT TO JUST GET OUT THERE AND RELAX. HOPE TO GET OUT THERE MORE OFTEN NOW. LIFE IS SLOWING DOWN A LITTLE WHICH WILL LEAVE ME MORE TIME TO FISH :HappyWave:

[hookset]

Don't feel bad extreme visions.:skunk:for me too. Fished the top of the tide last night in moco. Water was high, conditions were good. Threw the bag, no fish.

[finchaser]

this morning 6 to 8 AM released 9 bluefish all on metal
Tonight 7-9 Pm released 19 bluefish on metal and jig head with Havoc paddle tail

[DarkSkies]

I have to tell you guys I really enjoy the reports. There are a lot of sites out there and right now it seems not too many guys are catching. All chatter, no action. You can tell when guys are not doing well as it seems the level of chatter goes up and the reports down. Anyway, I don't mean to offend but it seems you guys here are in like the top 20% of all guys who catch from the surf.
So if I might ask, dark, why the gloom and doom? At least you are catching. I would love to even catch half of what you guys are running into. Also, any tips would be appreciated. Thanks and no offense meant.



Porgy, I can't comment on why some folks do or don't post reports on other sites.

I have noticed some trends over the past few years....

1. There are a lot of fish caught that are never reported.,
2. Some of us.... by virtue of our connections and network, get sent these pics or reports, but confidentiality prevents us from saying much about them.
3. Because of the access we have lost, many guys are being understandably tight lipped, and don't see much value in letting others know when they're into a good land-based bite. The reasons for this, as evidenced by further lost access each year, most recently monmouth county bridges, are self-evident.
4. I say this to let you know it isn't always accurate to guage what guys are catching, or not catching, by reading internet reports.....





I thank you for the kind words, and your remarks about the negativity in some of my posts are understood.

What you and other newer anglers need to understand is that as recently as 8 short years ago, what many guys refer to as "Epic fishing" was standard fishing for us....it was not uncommon to catch 10 fish or more in a night, on a regular basis, in season....

and the day bite was such that you could easily drive along the towns of a county, find some action, and catch a mixed bag of a dozen fish on many daytime trips......






These conditions no longer exist on a consistent basis in NJ. I feel the fishing we remember as "good" is not a part of many newer anglers' experience.

Additionally, we have to watch the fishing deteriorate every year, while groups that allegedly represent the interests of ALL anglers, like the JCAA and Tom Fote, tell us that there is no problem - that the bass stocks are healthier than ever,,,,,:kooky:

Those of us who fish regularly, know this is simply not true.....









When you read Finchaser's reports, and see that he caught 100 fish in a week,...what you don't know is that for the 2 weeks prior to that he had been fishing twice a day, with no results at all.....


This theme of not finding the numbers of fish we used to, is played out along the NJ Coast, with many in denial....There are quite a few seasoned anglers, old-timers with decades of experience, who have given up fishing regualrly at this time in our 2012 season because other than the bunker blitzes, they know that the fish are scattered.

A lot of folks out there are coming to the conclusion that it's not worth it to pursue these scattered fish (from land) when you consider the poor economy and gas prices.
Each night I'm out there, it becomes easier and easier to find places where no one is fishing....because in many cases fishing participation (land-based) has dropped off to only a fraction of what it used to be.









I am trying to be as honest as I can about that....there's no sense hyping the bite.

Last trip out, I managed to catch 4 bass in a marathon session...and I know most guys will not be able to duplicate that action.

I would like it to be that an average guy who wants to catch a fish or 2, should be able to go out for a few hours, and do just that....but in NJ, this is becoming less and less common.....









I know my honesty is not appealing to some, but at least I'm being honest.....:learn:
Hope that explains it a little better for you and anyone else who had the same questions....:HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

2 night skunk report....

Mon night-
After finding some action the night before, I had to be out giving it a shot. Unfortunately the N/NE winds were a steady 20 mph which made the ocean unfishable. Tried a few other places, good tide stages, with no results.


Wed night 6-6-12
Another marathon sessioon, all of the ebb tide....
Fished the best part of the tide for each location.
Fished the back bay, had about 5 minutes of night bluefish action on rubber. No bluefish landed, Then I lost them and didn't feel like running around to see where they went, so it was on to the ocean.

Fished the ocean, no activity at all for me.
Beautiful night and conditions, not a tap.
Went back to try to find the blues again, no success at all. :skunk:

[clamchucker]

What you and other newer anglers need to understand is that as recently as 8 short years ago, what many guys refer to as "Epic fishing" was standard fishing for us....it was not uncommon to catch 10 fish or more in a night, on a regular basis, in season....

and the day bite was such that you could easily drive along the towns of a county, find some action, and catch a mixed bag of a dozen fish on many daytime trips......






These conditions no longer exist on a consistent basis in NJ. I feel the fishing we remember as "good" is not a part of many newer anglers' experience.

Additionally, we have to watch the fishing deteriorate every year, while groups that allegedly represent the interests of ALL anglers, like the JCAA and Tom Fote, tell us that there is no problem - that the bass stocks are healthier than ever,,,,,:kooky:

Those of us who fish regularly, know this is simply not true.....




Dark you are absolutely correct on this. I think part of the problem is that a good number of folks have only been fishing a few years and don't have the perspective that some of us have. They don't remember the moratium because they were not fishing then. To them it is hard to relate to. That being said, Tom Fote and the JCAA do not represent my interests. I have met Tom a few times and found him to be a pompous *** who appears very egotistical. I don't know how he ever managed to rise to the position he now holds. I told him some things about the fishery and it was like it went in one ear and out the other. He certainbly wouild not get my vote if he had to be elected.



I have been fishing the morning tides. Lots of small bluefish in the surf line from Island Beach north. Metal and small Gibbs littleneck poppers. If any of you Dads want to take your sons fishing for Fathers Day, the bluefish are around, along with hickory shad. Teasers or small plugs will take those. Bass are being caught but it is mostly bluefish for the mornings.

[DarkSkies]

Clamchucker, thanks for the perspective.
Glad to see you guys are getting out....can't catch fish from your living room.....




*************
I fished last night, most of the ebb.
Beautiful conditions.

Made 5 different stops this time.
Lucked out at the first stop with a short bass on small rubber within 5 minutes.

Ran into someone who drives 80 miles (each way) once a week, to get to our NJ beaches. He fishes eels, and his dedication so impressed me I dropped my Rumplestiltskin usual unsociable night attitude :laugh: and we chatted for awhile...
I think those of us who can fish a lot or live closer to the beach (it takes me about 45 minutes to get out to a fishing spot, very grateful for that) sometimes don't understand how precious our NJ waters are, and how valued they are by people who don't live in the area......

We had both been saying that we hadn't seen short bass for awhile, only larger sized fish, and yet each of us got one in the next half hour. Maybe coincidence, maybe something else, but I was glad to see a few around after they seemed to have disappeared in early April.

I dropped one fish on a ML swimmer, (fishing the ML plugs of Speedy, Killie, and Bill from Alloway in rotation now that the bunker are around, after I lost my original Surfstix swimmer :HappyWave:to a high teens fish in the early season.....)

The Daiwa SP came out of my bag and was part of the rotation, with no results.


In the next few hours the best I could do was one more fish on small rubber, small legal bass.
All fish still swimming. :fishing:










Highlight of the night....
I'm trying to listen to feedback from Porgy and others who say I've been a bit crabby lately....:moon: and am trying to be a bit more positive....so here goes....the false dawn was so beautiful, the rays of orange and purple light were awe inspiring......:kooky: :laugh:


And I did get to see a really cool motorcyle chase on the way home...speeds over 100 mph on the parkway.....young kid tried to outrun a trooper and finally saw the error of his ways......at one point I thought he would be killed he was going so fast.....not a good idea to try to outrun a police interceptor in the daytime.....glad it didn't turn into a tragedy....

(How's that for brightness and sunshine, Porgy? :HappyWave:)

[Monty]

Lucked out at the first stop with a short bass on small rubber within 5 minutes.
[/B]I'm trying to listen to feedback from Porgy and others who say I've been a bit crabby lately....:moon: and am trying to be a bit more positive....so here goes....the false dawn was so beautiful, the rays of orange and purple light were awe inspiring......:kooky: :laugh:

(How's that for brightness and sunshine, Porgy? :HappyWave:)
Nice report, great to see some positive/fun stuff in your report Dark. Was a bit to much :waaah: in them recently. :HappyWave: :laugh:


As always, your reports are the best, thank you for sharing them with us.

[storminsteve]

Congrats on the fish. I fished moco from 6-7 today, nothing for me.

[hookset]

SoMoCo before dawn, one 18# bass on a bunker head.

[gjb1969]

fished all day one rat!!!

[Monty]

My Bluefish Bonanza
Fished bayside this morning 1:15 - 11:00.
Great time with Blues again. Caught at least 70, most 2-5 pounds, 5 Gators that were between 30 and 34 inches.
Picked up a gator around 1:30 on a BM A40, another gator around 2:20 on a Dookster (caught 2 blues slowly walking the Dooksters in the dark on top), had 3 14" Hogys ripped up in different areas (everywhere I go there are blues now). Caught most of the blues after sun-up. Love catching the 30" and over Gators, ended up with the last gator in the pic at 10:15 on the Dookster. Had my leader cut off 3x at swivel by the blues. They would not hit metal, wanted something splashy (pencil, polaris poppers, Dooksters). Was lots of top water fun, chasing poppers, aerial display. There was only one other angler in the area. Since May 13 I have fished 9x and caught zero bass and have caught over 130 blues.....I'm thinking I may go hang out on Bluefishandanglers.com until this Striper slump ends.
(This is an example of a Happy Post):HappyWave: :laugh:


http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_10_Blue_AH2a.jpg
Dookster at 10:15 AM

http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_10_Blue_ST1.jpg
Surftix Plug

[clamchucker]

Very nice job Monty. Seems like you ran into some nicer blues. We have been getting them in the Barnegat inlet around dawn and dusk, mostly smaller. They are fun to target.

[Mike O]

Got a nice 23" fluke this morning from the beach about 4lbs. It jumped on my teaser, almost at my feet.

[madcaster]

Fished 8 to 1am SH ocean side looking for bass but only saw small blues I pulled a :skunk:. My buddy landed a few blues . I couldn't hook up. they kept biting off the tail on my rubber shads and they were ever to big for them I didn't have any bluefish plugs with me.

[wish4fish]

monty dude thats awesome! u got more boofish in a day then sum dudes catch in a week lol. u r the man catch em up!

[cowherder]

Fantastic catches Monty! Finchaser you better watch out he us catching up to you!

[storminsteve]

Fished nomoco 4-7pm, 5 blues on small metal. Monty those are incredible numbers many congrats.:thumbsup:

[gjb1969]

the bluefish king:viking:

[Monty]

Very nice job Monty. Seems like you ran into some nicer blues. We have been getting them in the Barnegat inlet around dawn and dusk, mostly smaller. They are fun to target.


monty dude thats awesome! u got more boofish in a day then sum dudes catch in a week lol. u r the man catch em up!


Fantastic catches Monty! Finchaser you better watch out he us catching up to you!


Fished nomoco 4-7pm, 5 blues on small metal. Monty those are incredible numbers many congrats.:thumbsup:


the bluefish king:viking:

Thanks, normally I would be able to catch a bass or few in the areas I have been fishing, but Blues rule this year for me :viking:. My buddy fishes one of the areas regularly too and he also notices the lack of bass compared to the past few years. The area I fished yesterday has had very few Blues in it the last two years, before that (even 10-15 years ago), this type of fishing was normal. I caught more Blues yesterday than I did in all of 2010:huh:. Started fishing the Dookster last year (Zara Spook type of plug (never fished this type of plug before)), has gotten bigger blues and more action than pencils and other poppers multiple times this year and last year got a few bass on it. The Dookster :thumbsup:
Oh well, guess I am the The Bluefish King for 2012, aka: VP S and A Googans

The Dookster after 30 or so Blues
http://www.rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_10_Dookster1.jpg

[DarkSkies]

Fished the ocean last night. Trying to economize on time spent, fished the highest part of the tide, 3 hours.

When I got there the wind was blowing a steady 15mph SE....eventunally it minimized to under 10, making presentation easier.

Fished 5 different locations.
Water and swell were beautiful.
Water was clear and the mild SE swell looked promising.
However, there weren't many fish around.

One lucky bass for me on rubber, no other action at all.
Fish was caught 1 hour before 1st light.

Fish was a small keeper, around 9#, released.










******
Monty your report has so many levels of awesome. :clapping: :thumbsup:
I know how hard you have been fishing in your marathon sessons.

You earned every one of those fish, Many Congrats. :clapping::clapping:

[bababooey]

:clapping: Way to go guys. Monty, Dark should be giving you an award.
Bluefish King, Bluefish King - accolades to the master of the hook that stings!

Dark what's with the grumbling you are turning into a crabby old man. :laugh: :HappyWave:
Come on out and fish on the boat with me if you want some fish.

Some reports, sorry they are late. I have been out 5 times in the last 2 weeks. Only connected with bass on 2 of these trips, the last one being Friday. The bass are scattered among the numerous pods of bunker. The best bet is the afternoon bite. The morning bite is usually over by 7am for the early risers. I hate getting up at 3:30 to get on the water in time. More of a wawa coffee and afternoon kind of guy.:cool:
Our biggest bass was 34 pounds. The ones we kept had bunker in their stomachs. The rest of the time we got covered up by big blues to 16pounds. They are a voracious sort, making short work of any live bunker we throw out. So you surf folks keep on catching them, and please keep your limits of blues each time as they have infested the inshore waters.
More bunker than I have seen in many years, very few bass. Lots of gator blues.

[c4charlie]

Was near the fishing grounds this weekend and decided to take the family on the way back from a bday party we attended. My older son and I were plugging. I couldn't get anything but light hits on the lures. Sure enough, I look over and he is hooked up and kept hooking up. He was nice enough to hand the rod over to his little brother for a few of the fish. Such a great night as the sun was going down. One that they will sure remember.
15289
15288
15290

I was out on Fri night and caught a bunch of 20" stripers in two spots out of the 4-5 spots I visited. Also been hitting some local lakes in my new kayak! Going back again soon! Tight lines.

[clamchucker]

Your sons look very happy c4charlie. Nice report.

[gjb1969]

way to go the smiles say it all!!

[Monty]

Sure enough, I look over and he is hooked up and kept hooking up. He was nice enough to hand the rod over to his little brother for a few of the fish. Such a great night as the sun was going down. One that they will sure remember.
Great report, awesome when the kids are out with you, great smiles.

[jigfreak]

Got some fish tonight above 25#. Pencils.

[seamonkey]

Awesome jigfreak! I fished LBI last night with clams and bunker. Wet and miserable, only lasted an hour. Skates and dogs, all she wrote.

[Monty]

Got some fish tonight above 25#. Pencils.
Nice :thumbsup:

[vpass]

:wow:You guys are having som great action. :clapping::clapping:

Nice going Jig:drool:

Monty, 70 blues that's awesome. I need to get out and get me some. :drool:

C4, your kids face says it all. Good going.:thumbsup::thumbsup:

[DarkSkies]

Great effort, guys. :HappyWave:

[madcaster]

Fished incoming in RB hooked a few blues and let my daughter reel them in ...she landed one big gator .She had a hard time


trying to bring in this one in. about 8 lb's 15291
It gave a good fight . She was so happy:) to get this one in

[xtreme_visions]

MANAGED TO GET OUT ON SUNDAY WITH THE GIRLFRIEND FOR A FEW HRS. AROUND 4-9PM. FISHED METAL & RUBBER. CAUGHT THE BIG :skunk: UNLESS U COUNT THE FISH I DROPPED INCHES AWAY FROM LAND :don't know why: WOULD HAVE BEEN MY BIGGEST BLUE YET :banghead2:LIKE TO THANK THE OGB FOR TAKING THE DRIVE TO MEET UP WITH US FOR SOME POINTERS. ALWAYS A PLEASURE :HappyWave:

[finchaser]

This AM 6-8 released 26 blues 3 to5 pounds all on poppers

Madcaster congrats to your daughter:clapping:, brings back memories when i fished with mine

[cowherder]

Wow guys great catches!

Madcaster that report is awesome! She must have been so happy. I'll bet she's hooked now.
I fished nomoco last night for 2 hours before dark The tide was outgoing and the blues were hungry. I got almost 20 with poppers like the little neck popper. The biggest was about 5 lbs and it was a lot of fun.

[madcaster]

15298
She has been fishing blues for a while now . I made this wood sand spike for her to support the pole when she was younger.
She caught her first one all by herself a couple years ago. I would cast it (bait) and she would hold the pole and set the hook and reel them in.

[xtreme_visions]

FISHED OC LAST NIGHT. 3 SMALL BLUES FOR ME ON RUBBER AS THE SUN WENT DOWN. 1 GUY WAS VERY UNHAPPY WITH ME FOR THROWING THEM BACK :ROFLMAO :2flip::moon:

[DarkSkies]

Extreme, glad ya got some fish. :clapping: Some people don't understand how hard it is to catch bluefish on artificials at night....when they're not in a feeding frenzy or blitz, they can be quite picky....and it's a challenge to match profile and presentation to get them to hit in the dark...bait fishing is another story, but the artificial game is tougher...so congrats for the catch....did your girlfriend catch some too or were ya solo this trip?

****

Madcaster, that pic is precious.....treasure it because these days will flash by in a blur, and before you know it she will be too old and no longer interested in spending time fishing with Dad anymore,,,,but for now, those times are more precious than all the gold in the world....enjoy them, savor them, good times....:clapping: :thumbsup:


(With your permission I'm gonna copy that post into the Family Fishing thread....great pic!)









*******
Fished last night, some of the flood this time.
The optimum time to fish is a little off this weekend as the tides are either too early or too late...but I had to get out there and see the ocean again.....the ocean has cleaned up nicely, still a mild NE swell out there.

No real bass activity on artificials to speak of.
Managed one bass, around 10#, on small rubber, released.
Also dropped another one on rubber.
The activity was scattered and came at different locations, around 1 hour before sunrise.

[xtreme_visions]

she flaked out on me as i was getting the gear together. but thats okay! i got to stay out way past her bedtime :boring:. drove around and checked a few spots after i was done to see what was going on. will be out again sunday :fishing:

[Monty]

Fished this morning 1:30-11:30 Bay side.
Real nice time, no crowd, most of the time all alone and happy :)
Finally caught a striped bass (was a month between bass :wow:), was a short on a black teaser around 2:30 am, also picked up a small Blue also on the teaser around 1:45. Was throwing large wood most of the night, mixed in with assorted Hogys in locations where I thought a Bass may be (see how that worked out below :kicknuts:). Then Sunrise and it was Blue time again :wheeeee:. Ended up with around 35, lost/missed lots. Hit assorted top water first, then metal, then top water again (left'em biting). Took the treble off all the plugs before I started throwing them. Noticed I missed a lot of hits during a 15-20 minute period.....user error below. Caught a couple on Rip-Pluggers wood, a few on SurfStix's Orange Loud Mouth Popper and the rest on metal and the Doooooookster. Great time, its been a very lucky year for me with lots and lots and lots of Blue Fish action. The last two years were very lean in that area, I missed it and appreciate it more now. No Gators this morning, but a couple in the mid 20 inch area. Lots of Tarpon imitators.


http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_17_BF_SS1.jpg
SurfStix's Loud Mouth Popper

http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_17_BF_Dook_1.jpg
Dookster


http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_17_HH_Plugs.jpg
Caught a couple Blues on these Rip-Plugger Plugs


http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_17_Dook_WOH.jpg
Googan move number 17 (looked it up in the book), fishing without hooks...when you think you are fishing with hooks :kooky:

http://rocksimpson.com/images/2012_6_17_hogy.jpg
When I found nice water like a rip that I thought could hold a Bass, a Blue was waiting

[ledhead36]

Nice pics monty looks like the bluefish tore that rubber up! We have been getting some blues in the back of the rbay at the top of the tide. Usually a solid hour around both stages, with it dieng down on the slack and then starting again. Most blues are around the size you got in your pics. The bay is infested with them. I have noticed they sometimes run bigger right before sunrise and then the small ones take over. All on bunker chunks.

[GeoffT]

RB last night. First excursion in a couple months. Water was a bit stained and pee warm so wasn't expecting much of anything. Even a small blue or fluke would be nice.

Got more than I bargained for. 3 cocktails and 4 bass to 18 lbs. All on a TA darter as they wouldn't hit anything else.

Nice to know I haven't lost my touch. :)

[cowherder]

Wow awesome reports guys!

[xtreme_visions]

nice reports guys! :HappyWave: cool pics monty. just got in from some great action myself! used more rubbers today then i did all thru high school :ROFLMAO started getting them at the top of the tide. steady action till about 9. 5 for me. missed so many i lost count. really sucked missing so many fish because each time i missed 1 the rubber was destroyed. slow retrieve seemed to be what worked. not sure if i was working the bottom or what :huh: all small.

[xtreme_visions]

learned the importance of the proper setup today. wrist and hand are in bad shape and my forearm is a little swollen from throwing rubber for 4hrs with a 10ft bait chucking setup :kooky:

[finchaser]

Should have used the rod you got from me with the 5000 the 10' is a bait setup

[finchaser]

9 blues released all on rubber this am 6-8am

[madcaster]

Fished outgoing 8pm to 11:00pm SH we new it was going to be bad:scared: ,but we tried any ways ...:skunk:

[xtreme_visions]

Should have used the rod you got from me with the 5000 the 10' is a bait setup

oh trust me i plan to. once i get that thing back in 1 piece :HappyWave:

[plugcrazy]

Nice reports guys, At least someone has been catching. I have been plugging LBI and south and have been skunked last 3 trips out.

[storminsteve]

Great reports fellas. monty you are getting to be the bluefish king. Giving finchaser and dark a run for the $$. Do you see any bait in the water when you are fishing, any feeding activity or is it all silent until you punch the poppers out?

[Monty]

Great reports fellas. monty you are getting to be the bluefish king. Giving finchaser and dark a run for the $$. Do you see any bait in the water when you are fishing, any feeding activity or is it all silent until you punch the poppers out?


I'm in this ridicules Bluefish streak (and Striper slump :don't know why:).
This last time out there was an occasional school of bait being harassed about 70-300 yards out. Maybe see something 2x an hour for a few seconds. But there were Blues all over the place, hundreds of yards from where I would see the activity. I have not the slightest idea on what they are feeding on. Its been mostly poppers or metal fan casted, just an unbelievable amount of Bluefish in the area. Might go 15 minutes tops without a hit worse case after sun up. I am enjoying it while I can after a few poor years of Bluefish action for me.

[DarkSkies]

I'm in this ridicules Bluefish streak (and Striper slump :don't know why:).


That's ok, bro, I think you're catchin more fish per hour than any of us.....:drool:

(Except for that Grouchy Basstard Finchaser,,,,,)
:laugh:




*********
2 night report.....slim pickens out there in terms of bass.....

Fished Sun night, 4 hours, 3 stops, best I could do was one dropped bass, rubber.

Mon night, fished 6 hours, ebb and flood, 2 small keepers, released, rubber.










Many of the internet heroes and chest-beating fishermen :viking: have given up on the night artificial bite.....as there are only a handful of NJ places that have any numbers of bass available to land based anglers....and most of the others have either none, or the fish are very scattered......

Finding forage in the area can change this equation in your favor, otherwise, it's hundreds of casts, blind casting,,,,for these scattered fish.

If there is a pattern to it, I haven't found it yet.....most of my fish are caught when my mind is wandering from the numbness of wondering if I'll be able to find one or 2.

The fishing is going back to the way it used to be at night before the heroes hyped up action that most of us were not seeing....I'm fine with that.....just wanted to let the folks out there know that it ain't easy to catch bass at night lately unless you're raking crabs or throwing bunker heads.......

Don't get discouraged if you are out there and not catching.

The fishing will settle into this summer pattern as approx 80% of the bass available to shore anglers are now in the MA/ Block/ LI Sound/ Rhody Area.









Congrats to those who are getting out and catching some fish....if you do get a bass at night on artificials, consider patting yourself on the back, as it ain't easy...


And remember the surf bluefish action in some areas is exceptional.,...try to concentrate on those areas if you really want to catch more than one fish every 4 hours, as I have been doing....:d.
:thumbsup:

[storminsteve]

Wow dark lots of work for those bass, I admmire your persistence.:HappyWave:
Fished nomoco this afternoon till 8pm, lots of bluefish on the poppers.
Most were smaller, around 4-5lbs, but I did get 2 to 9lbs. Lots of fun as they came in before dark and crashed the topwater.

[Monty]

Fished Sun night, 4 hours, 3 stops, best I could do was one dropped bass, rubber.

Mon night, fished 6 hours, ebb and flood, 2 small keepers, released, rubber.

:HappyWave: Dark, Congrats on the bass. Its fishing, if it was easy everyone would be out there and it would suck. Enjoy the time out on the water fishing in the search for stripes (and succeeding). It took me 60 hours between catching a bass :ROFLMAO . :wheeeee:


Wow dark lots of work for those bass, I admmire your persistence.:HappyWave:
Fished nomoco this afternoon till 8pm, lots of bluefish on the poppers.
Most were smaller, around 4-5lbs, but I did get 2 to 9lbs. Lots of fun as they came in before dark and crashed the topwater.
Gotta love the top water action.
I am a little addicted to trying to get the bigger ones now. The Gators are a ball, love the sound of the drag and their shear power is great.

[DarkSkies]

:HappyWave: Dark, Congrats on the bass. Its fishing, if it was easy everyone would be out there and it would suck. Enjoy the time out on the water fishing in the search for stripes (and succeeding). It took me 60 hours between catching a bass :ROFLMAO . :wheeeee: .



Yes but you were more of a Googan last year with those stats...:bucktooth:.this year you are coming up fast and need no handicap....:d..:thumbsup:..except for a head's up after the season is over and you start trying to hook trees again.....
:HappyWave:


*******


Gotta love the top water action.
I am a little addicted to trying to get the bigger ones now. The Gators are a ball, love the sound of the drag and their shear power is great.

Monty, I''m with you.....I would rather chase after 10+ lb blues all night in place of smaller bass....the bass....once you get their head out of the water, are a few runs and done....not so for the bluefish......not too many species come close to that insanity for land based anglers.....:headbang:











************
New Moon in June.....


Fished last night, 6 hours.
I knew I had to be out there, as mentioned it was the first night of the new moon.....
Conditions were perfect, but someone forgot to tell the bass.....
Every year this time I get a few 20# by blind casting at night....with the warmer ocean temps now the majority of bass have moved further North...and what's left for the Land Based Anglers (Artificial bite) has been pretty dismal...


Nonetheless, a good surfcaster has certain times of the year, where you know you just HAVE to be out there.....:drool: Thie June New Moon is definitely one of them.......

I was pumped full of energy as I set out enthusiastic and optimistic.....despite moving several times, 4 hours later I had nothing, not even a tap......

My surfcasting sessions are pretty intense,, I give it all I have till I find fish....and last night was so discouraging I was almost out of steam, dejected, and kind of crabby that the fish just weren't there in any numbers......














Then I remembered a Googan I know, by the name of Geoff T,,,..;) :HappyWave:
He got some decent fish earlier in the week, and I made some calculations to see if I could fish where he was.....

Most folks don't know, that Geoff, a humble kind of guy, :laugh: is actuallly the inventor of the Windows System..... Bill Gates of Microsoft bought him out at the early stages. Geoff doesn't like folks to know this,,,,,he maintains a regluar 9-5 job, but is actually sitting on billions of $$ of Microsoft stock......:whoo:

This fortuitous acumen has allowed Geoff to fish in some very unusual places and opportunities...I had some inside intel that Geoff had a private fish pond built in Raritan Bay, for his NJ surf fishing needs......

This private pond consists of hundreds of striped bass, from 15-45lbs, which are available any time Geoff wants to make the run to fish NoMoCo.....there is a secret walkway to this pond, guarded by a crusty old troll of a man....and if you don't know the password, you ain't getting in to fish it......


I brought the old man some specialty beer, fudged the password,,,and he let me in......

I was amazed at the bass that were out there in that warm, dirty water.....:drool:




1531115312





After taking the long walk....I eventually managed 2 bass around 17# on Killie's ML swimmer.....copy of a Gary2 slim...


Dropped a smaller keeper on rubber.

I was back to being pumped up again....isn't it funny how a few fish can help change your mood? :learn:

[storminsteve]

Hitting it hard, taking no prisoners DS. Awesome report. I'm assuming the part about Geoff is just another one of your wacky stories? Enjoyed it anyway.

[Monty]

After taking the long walk....I eventually managed 2 bass around 17# on Killie's ML swimmer.....copy of a Gary2 slim...


Dropped a smaller keeper on rubber.

I was back to being pumped up again....isn't it funny how a few fish can help change your mood? :learn:[/COLOR]

Dark I'll second Storminsteve, awesome report.:thumbsup:

[DarkSkies]

Thanks for the kind words people....:HappyWave:



Nice reports guys, At least someone has been catching. I have been plugging LBI and south and have been skunked last 3 trips out.

Plugcrazy, you're not alone....the truth is that we are now in a summer pattern, and except for a few schoolies hanging around some ocean and back bay structure, chasing bait, and some bigger fish staging in deeper Bay channels and off the Shrewsbury Rocks area.....
Most of the bass have left our NJ area for cooler waters.....
For the insane among us who don't mind plugging a whole tide, 5-8 hours at a time, you can probably still find some fish.
:fishing:
And the old timers I know who are raking crabs, and throwing bunker heads in strategic areas at night, they are catching some fish to the 20's, though even they tell me the bite is very sporadic.







*******
Went out last night looking for a repeat of the action.
I was shot from fishing all those night hours and working during the day. Could not muster a full marathon session.
I took a nap waiting for the water to cool down, and got out and fished for 2 hours deep in the night.



Same general location.
Same password to the troll gate keeper at Geoff's private fishin pond......;)
(Steve, in answering your question, yup, I've been telling colorful stories like that for years....I don't think Geoff will mind a little ball-busting.....as I've known him for years as well.....:HappyWave:



When I got out there the water was still murky. Fished rubber for awhile with no results. Switched to Killie's ML swimmer, kept at it for an hour, and managed one bass, probably low teens. Dropped it due to bad hookset and googan error...:bucktooth:

[finchaser]

You can't catch what doesn't exist

All the bass in the world couldn't consume the amount of bunker out there today over 20 miles of bunker in some spots from the surface to 40' down

did have a 38 and 31 pound fish both still alive and well

[clamchucker]

Fished the park this morning. Got a few small bluefish near the inlet on incoming tide. Metal. Finished up before it got hot.

[cowherder]

Great job guys!

[xtreme_visions]

1 blue for me around 9pm last night. caught on a teaser

[Mike O]

Skunko @ SH except for a searobin. I even got chased by a park ranger for fishing in a restricted area! (bird sanctuary) Iwas told. Same place where I caught 4lb fluke last week. No wonder I was the only one fishing there! I guess I did not see the big stop sign in the dark.

[jigfreak]

Mike your lucky you didn't get a ticket. There was a nature protection lady sitting there in a chair to stop guys from fishing or walking there. She must of had the day off when you gor in there. It really sucks, closing down that prime real estate for a few stupid birds.
Fished moco with rubber and small plugs tonight. Bass to 13#. Water was like a pond. We need some more weather to churn things up a bit.

[DarkSkies]

Jigfreak I took the 2nd shift last night. There was a bit of a swell. I'm guessing it was advance warning of the pending weather we're getting in the next 48 hours. By the end of the tide it was back to being a lake again like you said. I
m hoping as well that the swell will beef up again. Fishing calm flat ocean water in the summertime has produced poorly for me.

Got out later than I wanted, missed the alarm.
Had 2 hours to fish.
Knew the fish would be scattered so I moved along at a quick pace.

Hit 3 locations.
Dropped 1 bass at the first one on small rubber.

Managed one small keeper around 9 lbs on small swimmer at 2nd stop, released. (note the Daiwa did nothing for me last night though with the conditions it was the first one out of my bag.)








3rd stop was close to first light. Managed a few small blues on small swimmers. This activity where I was only lasted 15 minutes. These were the first bluefish in the ocean this year for me..... I'm a little behind Monty in that Dept. :HappyWave:

Then it seemed all the bluefish in the area left to go harass the endless schools of bunker which were just out of surfcasting reach. No matter, all of it was happy bunker and any action I noticed was over by 6:15 am.
More thoughts on that tomorrow.

[storminsteve]

Jigfreak and Dark congrats. You are really putting your time in. For me it has been hit and miss even the blues. Got 2 last night before dark on poppers. incoming tide. Nomoco. That was it, no bass no nothing. Hello summer.http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/images/icons/icon9.png

[Monty]

Congrats on the catching guys, I fished bayside this morning 1:30-9:00, El-skunkaroo for me.
Water was very murky, saw no bait. Was nice and calm out, enjoyed the time on the water:).
Through rubber, wood and metal...nothing doing.

[basshunter]

Same helping of skunk foe me monty. I fished somoco tonight before dark on the incoming tide, first 2 hours of it. The south wind was pretty strong and put a bow in the line. Fished metal, ava 17s, and pencil poppers. No takers for me. dark and jigreak someone should start following you around ar night you guys are really amazing. I don't know how you are getting it done but congrats.:plastered:

[DarkSkies]

^^ Basshunter, I want to stress that right now bass fishing from the NJ Surf is pretty poor, if you compare it to just a few short years ago. Some of the internet heroes try to paint it as better than that, but look at their results, where are their surf caught fish? :don't know why:
If you take the snag and drop bunker fish out of the equation, many surf guys have poor results as well.
Again, I don't want to reference all surf guys out there...I have friends who fish every day, or almost every night....and among us we have seen some nice fish,,,,but all at the expense of hard work, sweat, blood, and persistence,,,,,which seems to be a combo that a lot of guys don't want to follow anymore....too much work for a 20# bass....:kooky:

If you read my reports, you will see I'm big on fishing the moon tides....
There are several reasons for this, too much to list here,,but the main ones are better current, more disorientation of forage fish, and bass being less wary during these tides.

In fact, I encourage you to try to focus on these tides as well. If you just did this one thing, I bet your catches would increase significantly......

Feel free to PM me if you want more specific advice.....:fishing: :HappyWave:





********
Skunk report:
^ Given the above words, and being at the end of a week of moon tides, I got blanked last night. I knew I had to be out there. As basshunter mentioned the S wind was pretty harsh and consistent. There are only a few places in NJ where a S wind is a benefit, and I wasn't at any of them last night. The forecast had the wind shifting to a SW, which has been a great wind pattern for me this year. Things never really turned out that way, hard S all night. Hey, that's fishing.....

Made 4 separate stops, fished most of the tide, man my a** is beat today.
Best I could manage was one small piece of rubber bit in half by a bluefish....another first, first bluefish this season in the middle of the night in the ocean for me.....they are really everywhere now, and very small bluefish in the surf line....not really enough to pump up my level of excitement like the gators do.....

The swell was perfect, the wind made it so I had to find places that were tucked in.
I believe the S winds did dirty up the water a bit, and for the next few days guys tossing bait (bunker, eels, and crabs) at night may have the advantage of a few of those scattered fish.....good luck, people.

[finchaser]

Skunk report:
^ Given the above words, and being at the end of a week of moon tides, I got blanked last night. I knew I had to be out there. As basshunter mentioned the S wind was pretty harsh and consistent. There are only a few places in NJ where a S wind is a benefit, and I wasn't at any of them last night. The forecast had the wind shifting to a SW, which has been a great wind pattern for me this year. Things never really turned out that way, hard S all night. Hey, that's fishing.....

Made 4 separate stops, fished most of the tide, man my a** is beat today.
Best I could manage was one small piece of rubber bit in half by a bluefish....another first, first bluefish this season in the middle of the night in the ocean for me.....they are really everywhere now, and very small bluefish in the surf line....not really enough to pump up my level of excitement like the gators do.....

The swell was perfect, the wind made it so I had to find places that were tucked in.
I believe the S winds did dirty up the water a bit, and for the next few days guys tossing bait (bunker, eels, and crabs) at night may have the advantage of a few of those scattered fish.....good luck, people.

Did some one hold a gun to your head oh great king of the Googans

[storminsteve]

^^ Basshunter, I want to stress that right now bass fishing from the NJ Surf is pretty poor, if you compare it to just a few short years ago. Some of the internet heroes try to paint it as better than that, but look at their results, where are their surf caught fish? :don't know why:
If you take the snag and drop bunker fish out of the equation, many of the surf guys have poor results as well.
Again, I don't want to reference all surf guys out there...I have friends who fish every day, or almost every night....and among us we have seen some nice fish,,,,but all at the expense of hard work, sweat, blood, and persistence,,,,,which seems to be a combo that a lot of guys don't want to follow anymore....too much work for a 20# bass....:kooky:

.

hard workm sweat, blood, persistence?
Are you talking about bass fishing or working on a road gang?:scared:

most guys only want the easy fish - when are you going to get that in your head, dark?:beatin:

That being said, thanks for the report. I was going to go out last night but the winds kept me home. You are truly hardcore dude! I fished moco from 5-7:30 today. Lots of bunker and guys waiting for the magic moment. I fished a pencil popper instead of standing. One small blue for me.

[fishinmission78]

Got a few blues in the seaside surf this morning, small metal and teaser. Blues are real small too but are hungry, eating sandeels.

[finchaser]

3 blues on rubber just before dark today

[jigfreak]

A few small bass into the dark tonight. Somoco. They hit swimmng plugs like bomber and such. Pretty aggressive actually. This NW must of shook the surf zone a bit. Got an equal amount of bluefish.

[finchaser]

This AM 5 -6:30 out front all caught on metal and released
3 bass to 8#
12 blues to 10#
2 weakfish to 16 inches

Also false albacore were seen from the beach and boats today for those of you that persue them

[Monty]

This AM 5 -6:30 out front all caught on metal and released
3 bass to 8#
12 blues to 10#
2 weakfish to 16 inches

Also false albacore were seen from the beach and boats today for those of you that persue them

The False Albacore sighting, whats the earliest they have been seen before? Thought this was a mid-late August thing at the earliest.
Great report Finchaser! A Fluke short of a Jersey Grand Salami (JGS)?

[finchaser]

I have never seen them this early inshore. Earliest offshore was like mid July

Played the tide in a spot 4 more blues 6-10# all on rubber 5 to 7PM

[buckethead]

Awesome fishing guys! Finchaser nice going. Good to see some weakfish in the mix. So hoping they come back.
I have not reported for awhile. Been raking calicos and putting them in a shedder tank. Lots of work and I had a problem last week when my tank broke and had to borrow one from a friend for awhile. The fishing has been so so, not constant. Have gotten bass to 24pounds though, It has slowed down in the last few days, Waiting for the next full moon, should be good.,

[jigfreak]

Fished somoco last nite, good water and solid westerlies. Reminded me of fall. almost a cool dozen bass, all small runts except one 34". Swimming plugs. The amount of small bait is like a smorgasbord out there. A few hickories too.

[DarkSkies]

Great reports guys. Getting out and fishing while 90% of the fishing world has given up on the surf bass night bite, great effort, proud of ya's. :clapping:


Mon PM -
I couldn't fish the marathon session I usually fish...but the ocean was calling me....
The swell was good, water clearing up. What drew me out there, as others mentioned, was the W Winds.....always a good pattern and hard to find consistently in the Summer, when the S and SE winds seem to prevail, no matter what the forecast.

I fished hard, moved a few places, not all held fish.
Managed 5 bass to 8#. released.
All on small swimmers.

I know a lot of guys won't be excited about this, but I am....:) these areas had held bigger bass, but extremely scattered...a friend of mine calls it the "ones and twos NJ Summer curse" :kooky:to signify the traditionally slow summer night artificial bite......

But because of the small bait, some bass have set in as possible summer residents....
Or, they got pushed out of the bays and rivers with the hotter water......

Not exactly sure what the story is, or if they are simply following the now abundant forage types,.....
Sand Eels,
Squid
Grass shrimp...
Peanut bunker...
and some smaller forage I didn't yet get a chance to identify.












The keeper size fish hit very sluggishly, possibly due to less oxygen content in the surf zone,....(If anyone wants to start a thread about oxygen content and levels of bass activity, it would be appreciated)




But overall, I had a blast.....

All fish released.






Caught fish Tues night as well, over a broader range of shoreline....more on that when I get a chance....:fishing:
















*******
Fin WTG on the bass, blues and weakfish......that's the best news I've heard from that area for quite some time...:thumbsup:

[Monty]

I fished hard, moved a few places, not all held fish.
Managed 5 bass to 8#. released.
All on small swimmers.

I know a lot of guys won't be excited about this, but I am....:)
But overall, I had a blast.....

All fish released.
Caught fish Tues night as well, over a broader range of shoreline....more on that when I get a chance....:fishing:

Great report Dark, sounds like a fun time.

[finchaser]

This morning from 5 to 7 AM had 5 bass to 31" and 11 bluefish to 9# on bucktails and jig head with a rubber tail. All still alive and well

[DarkSkies]

Monty, I'm beat, but to me it's worth it. :kooky: :HappyWave:
Fin ya grouchy basstid! good to see you finally getting some good bass numbers. :clapping:
Some people may have noticed the negativity...and that's because we're used to catching fish here....we don't need the internet or facebook reports, if they're there we can catch em....:fishing:


Finchaser fishes twice a day sometimes....Despite not having my car right now, I'm still out there 2 nights a week, at least, to try...as I have said over and over, you can't catch fish sitting at home in front of your TV or computer screen....but lately, it really has been dismal....





I know and have fished with folks who travel far to get to our NJ beaches,,,,and I don't think it's fair, or accurate to hype a bite....it costs some folks upwards of $50-$100, gas, tolls, etc, to come to the NJ surf to fish....and if they really don't stand a fair shake at getting some fish....they should at least know that, in honest and candid terms....

Fishing is so bad at Island Beach now that the tackle shops are raving about the 1-2lb bluefish...:huh:
Even the fluke that surf guys have come to depend on are few and far between.

I know some of those guys in the shops, and I understand,,,,,they really need to bring customers through the door or they will go out of business.....I just don't see the logic in creating a "fever" to get out there and fish when realistically, 90% of the guys who go out to try will not be able to find a few fish.....

This is further evidenced by a review of most of the interrnet Saltwater fishing boards...for the most part, where the majority of the surf Striped Bass reports have dried up.....:fishing:

[DarkSkies]

I think we all fish for different reasons...
* A day at the beach, with Family....
* Dad taking a son or daughter out, and showing them the ropes...
* Getting away from the pressures or stress of everyday life.....
* Getting a chance to re-charge our batteries......

If one of the above is what speaks to you as you read it, by all means go fishing....
But I also feel a responsibility candidly state to you, (especially the folks who drive far distances to fish our shores) the striped bass fishing is not that great right now, for most of us....



This is a natural progression that happens every year...
I call it the Summer Doldrums....
as the water temps heat up..
as the bunker continue to migrate north...
as the bass congregate in the Migrational Summer Region of the LI Sound and the Cape Cod to Maine areas.
as the oxygen levels in the hotter southern waters drop to make it unpleasant for the bass.



I don't want folks to have to read negativity...but I am beholden to no one on this site who would force me to say things that aren't accurate...and that is something folks have come to expect from me over the years....my honesty and candid comments on the issues out there....


It's something that in the past has pushed me to fish other states when this happens....right now a few folks I know are up in the MA area, and Out East, trying their best for some of the legendary land-based action...and to be honest, they are having spotty fishing up there as well....












I hope I have explained some of this for the folks out there, especially the ones who live further away.
Any of our contributing members who want to make a trip can always contact me via PM for up to date intel and suggestions.
As always, thanks for reading....:HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

Tue PM...a few more small Bass.......

After the previous night's action, I was a little encouraged. I planned to spend more time, had some great expectations.In the end I caught fish, covering 20 miles of coastline to do it. I stopped at 8 locations, 3 of which produced fish.

However, one of the places produced great action, at one point a fish or hit within every 5 casts....for summer fishing, that's fantastic, even though the fish were schoolies.

First started near an inlet, where I noticed a lot of fish feeding. Quickly determined they were hickory shad. Changed up to add a small teaser and I got one every few casts. After a half dozen I knew it was time to press on as there were no bass or blues in the mix.

About these shad:
They are a lot of fun to catch, sometimes called "Jersey Tarpon"
They have a strong smell, I think stronger than herring.
They will hit very small plugs and small metal aggressively.

A teaser may be the best way to catch a lot of them. They frequently feed on very small bait and that night, it was smaller than 3". Either grass shrimp or rainfish. A 3" redgill produced results, but if I were to have downsized I believe I would have had them on almost every cast. They were very active in the feeding.


Some younger fly fishermen came by. I told them the fish were "in the seam". At first they didn't understand what I was talking about but gradually understood as I showed them. I hope they got some after I left.





Moved on to other areas I felt would be productive. When fish are scattered and the temps are high, for me it becomes a numbers game to try to put the puzzle pieces together. Lately, it's like you're opening a new puzzle every night, and the conditions, parameters, and location change.
It makes it a real challenge. I can understand why a lot of guys quit or resort to bait fishing as a way to at least get something on the end of the line.


Continued on fishing, pushing it and pushing it, till I had no energy left.
At the 2nd to last stop I found aggressive action, as mentioned getting a strike or fish within every 5 casts.
This lasted for about 1 1/2 hours of feeding activity.
I believe they were feeding on small bait that has recently moved into the surf zone, as these fish were definitely not there last week.......














Total for the night (all released)
6 bass, 2 legal sized to 9#.
5 bluefish -
6 hickory shad

All on small swimmers, this night was the first night in weeks that the Daiwa SP has outfished the other plugs I use, probably because of the calmer water and smaller forage in the surf.






Some observations:

Note the bluefish were actually harder to catch than the bass in the dark---the bluefish are smart enough to nudge the plug, realize it's plastic, and then turn away, while the bass are not. I had 3 times as many bluefish hits as bass hits. I was able to selectively target the bass and get the numbers I did by "teasing" them, the same as I have done in the Winter when the fish are scattered.

The smaller bass were aggressive, but the keeper sized ones were halfway in before they actually fought. It was like they are affected by the lower oxygen content in the water.

This is similar to what I experienced in the Winter when the water temps went down close to 40 and the Bass were almost comatose.

From this I can hypothesize when the ocean waters are calm, I will probably have little chance of catching night bass....IMO you need some sort of an offshore swell to get these fish more active....hence the reason why some guys with bait are still catching bass....

All the bass and blues were very skinny, like they were starving.
Looked like fish that had gotten blown out of a river, inlet, or bay, definitely not migrating fish.

[baitstealer]

I really have to hand it to you guys, great reports. Unfortunately mine are not so great. I have been out 4 times in the last 2 weeks and have not caught or seen a bass where I was fishing either by me or anyone else. It it like a tozic dump out there. Of course I have caught plentty of skates and sea robbins but no bass. I am using bunker and fishing usually between 4-6pm when I get out from work. Anywhere from sandy hook to bradley beach. Like you said I think it is the water temps but what do I know. You guys are catching and I am not. I really don't play around with lures and metal that much but based on the bluefish reports I will try throwing metal avas some more. Great job you guys are doing and congrats you are putting in your time so obviously you are catching. Thanks for the level of detal too, Each time I read one of these reports I feel like I am there. Too many guys post up they caught and don't even tell you how. Thanks and tight lines to everyone!

[finchaser]

this morning 5 to 6:30 released 11 blues to 6# and 1 bass blues were caught on bucktail with twister tail the bass on a SP minnow

[DarkSkies]

^^ Baitstealer thanks for the kind words.
It doesn't always work out, though, fished both sides of the tide last night.....got blanked....5 hours of nothing, not even a miss.....:o


There was limited activity....a friend fished all night and dropped one nicer fish.....not a lot else going on....
Yet, the conditions were those that make a surfcaster drool....

Because of the bigger water, I concentrated on fishing bigger rubber, and bigger plugs...not a touch for me....

Big swell, nice churned up water, pretty clear, dark night, steady W wind (S before the tide change, then shifting to a SW)
Definitely fishable, fishy looking,. the type of water that causes ya to get goose bumps... (or at least it does to me) :drool:


I got a little lazy last night and only made 4 stops, figuring I would fish them harder and concentrate more....
What I had to eventually admit, is that night fishing for bass with Artificials in June, is a numbers game....and right now. I'm averaging fish at about 30% of the places I try.........

There was an offshore swell kicking up from the tropical storms, and had I fished an eel last night I probably would have had some success....but hey that's fishin....:don't know why:











By 4AM. I was tired, out of energy. Stinking of day old sweat and with and skunk clouds, hanging over my shoulders....


I made a quick detour to see if I could mug that grouchy basstard Finchaser....rumor has it he has a rich friend, who's been letting him fish out of his helicopter....as they search the surf for signs of early morning life.....

Finchaser is the handsome but Grouchy chap jumping out of the helicopter in this video...since it was a few years ago, he has aged a tad since then...:ROFLMAO :HappyWave:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKgxGQL4DjM




*******
Anyway, I couldn't find those guys or where they were jumping out of the helicopter to get those fish he got this morning.....such is life....and I had to swallow the bitter pill of defreat due to googan tendencies......while the grouchy basstard gloated over the phone about how he was one of the few to catch fish this morning.....(and he was!)

Congrats ya grouchy basstid....:clapping: :2flip: :kiss: :fishing:

[cowherder]

Yet, the conditions were those that make a surfcaster drool....

Because of the bigger water, I concentrated on fishing bigger rubber, and bigger plugs...not a touch for me....

Big swell, nice churned up water, pretty clear, dark night, steady W wind (S before the tide change, then shifting to a SW)
Definitely fishable, fishy looking,. the type of water that causes ya to get goose bumps... (or at least it does to me) :drool:


By 4AM. I was tired, out of energy.Stinking of day old sweat and with and skunk clouds, hanging over my shoulders....
:fishing:


Always enjoy the level of detail and descriptiveness you go into with your reports dark!
That part about finchaser was funny too. do you think he would ever jump out of a helicopter for a fish?
Congrats to you guys at least you are trying!
I will try to fish sometime this weekend. The tides look bad so maybe the sunrise might be better for me.

[DarkSkies]

!
That part about finchaser was funny too. do you think he would ever jump out of a helicopter for a fish?.


Thanks Cowherder.....
I can't answer for him...but ya know....those crazy Eye-Talians....always up for anything.....:kooky: :plastered:

[finchaser]

Thanks Cowherder.....
I can't answer for him...but ya know....those crazy Eye-Talians....always up for anything.....:kooky: :plastered:

Not in this life time that's something a Googan like Dark would do to catch a fish and write a story for his merry men. I got out of dodge when the lighting started this Am, not Dark he continued to fish and look for me, lighting strikes to his head have made him like he is. As for me i was at the tackle shop sipping tea and eating a pork roll sandwich with the rest of the OGB's. As we ate we commented there is probably some deranged person out there risking his life to prove he could catch a fish ,my phone rings and guess who, gotta love it.

[DarkSkies]

lighting strikes to his head have made him like he is. As for me i was at the tackle shop sipping tea and eating a pork roll sandwich with the rest of the OGB's. As we ate we commented there is probably some deranged person out there risking his life to prove he could catch a fish ,my phone rings and guess who, gotta love it.

A few thoughts.....
* Don't knock the lightning till ya tried it.....much more energizing than putting your finger into a socket or drinking a few 5 hour energy drinks at once....:kooky: :laugh:

* You were sipping tea? Boy that's a real manly drink...:whoo:....the morning breakfast drink of Old Farts everywhere....:laugh: :kiss:.....and I bet that pork roll sammich wasn't nearly as good as one from the Wilson Ave Deli, made with LOVE by Rip's Indian girlfriends.....:drool:





But........ you were one of the only grouchy basstids to get some fish, though.....:moon: :thumbsup:

[rip316]

A few thoughts.....
* Don't knock the lightning till ya tried it.....much more energizing than putting your finger into a socket or drinking a few 5 hour energy drinks at once....:kooky: :laugh:

* You were sipping tea? Boy that's a real manly drink...:whoo:....the morning breakfast drink of Old Farts everywhere....:laugh: :kiss:.....and I bet that pork roll sammich wasn't nearly as good as one from the Wilson Ave Deli, made with LOVE by Rip's Indian girlfriends.....:drool:





But........ you were one of the only grouchy basstids to get some fish, though.....:moon: :thumbsup:


I do miss my girlfriends from the Wilson Ave. Deli. the extra armpit hair makes it all the more enjoyable. yummmmmyyyyyyyyy.

[porgy75]

^ Are you serious? Yucccch!:upck:
Great reports and catches guys. Tou guys must be magicians still getting bass. Congrats on that, way to go!

[wish4fish]

I do miss my girlfriends from the Wilson Ave. Deli. the extra armpit hair makes it all the more enjoyable. yummmmmyyyyyyyyy.


dude that is plain nasty but i wud eat it too! and also if they dont shave it saves the flavor yum lol!

[storminsteve]

Way to be out there guys, Funny stuff Rip. Are the girls hot or not? That's what I want to know!
I fished nomoco this morning from 5-7am, outgoing tide. One blue on a small popper.

[lostatsea]

Great reports guys. Funny comments, you guys are nutzo. Good to hear some are still catching the bass. I fished oc last night. One stuped ray on fresh bunker. It was about 20lbs, not a cownose. Is anyone catching cownose rays yet?

[chas527]

got a cownose wednesday morning about 25 to 30lbs at sh on a fluke rig.

[buckethead]

Picked up a few small bass this morning in somoco. Nothing keeper sized, but fun anyway.
Was fisihing a black bomber with teaser. Had a few blues and hickory shad smash the teaser as well.

[lostatsea]

Buckethead thats good news. Chas527 thanks for the info about the cownose. I have been getting a few like I got the other night. I checked online and I think they are called butterfly rays. Does anyone eat these cownose oir butterfly rays? I am fishing for stripers or brown sharks at night, so far no luck with either. If this keeps up I may try keeping a ray and eating it. what do you guys think?

[cowherder]

Way to go guys!