NJ Fishing Reports for Sept 2014...www.StripersAndAnglers.com

[DarkSkies]

NJ Fishing Reports for September 2014.....www.StripersAndAnglers.com (http://www.stripersandanglers.com/)

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

Since Sandy and the rebuilding/Beach replenishment, a substantial amount of Fishing Access has been lost. The ones who want to fish, are now crowded into less places, particularly the popular ones.
Please use common sense, when describing where you were fishing. :learn:

1. Fishing an area that is NOT residential? Being vague is less critical. For example, (Any)Park, or (Any)Bay, or mention a specific state park that has loads of parking and can handle the crowds.

2. 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. 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

3. 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 there 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)


**If you have any additional details you would like to share - weather conditions, tide (incoming, outgoing, ebb, flood) water temps, wind, bait present, or other mention of techniques or bait/plugs used - feel free. :fishing:
Thanks, and good luck. :HappyWave:

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
CMC - Cape May County


RB - Raritan Bay
BB - Barnegat Bay
CB - Chesapeake Bay
DB - Delaware Bay

Mecca.....Montauk

[DarkSkies]

August recap and some observations going forward -

1. Mullet run may be early
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?4729-Mullet-Run-and-chunking-mullet-or-bunker-tips/page2

Early fall run? (http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?9658-Early-fall-run)


2. Some interesting things happening on the back bay bait build-up
(post 33)
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?4060-Defining-bait-in-the-water/page2








September can mean different things to different people.

a. It can mean a month where some folks post the same yearly questions on internet message boards, asking...... "When will the fall run begin? Are the bass here yet?" :huh:
b. Or it can mean a month where some of the people who love fishing, for the sake of fishing....and are happy fishing in the dark, even if it's just bigger bluefish....are out there at night, putting their time in.....scouting the inlets, back bays, rivers, creek mouths, and harbors for those rare opportunities..... when it all comes together, in the deep privacy of the night....long before the fish move out to the ocean and start their televised and well-announced Fall Migration. :fishing:

The type of fisherman you are, and the fish you will catch, depends on which of the above statements you personally identify with. :learn:
All I know is...I can't catch fish, when I'm sitting on a couch....:)
Best of luck to all......:HappyWave:

[storminsteve]

I can't wait till tuesday. All the vacationers and bennies will be home and we will have the beaches back.

[fishinmission78]

storminsteve - technically anyone who crosses a bridge to go fishing is a benny. So unless you live in Point, Toms River, or the bayshore, you would be a benny too. Just saying.

[fishinmission78]

Oh, fishing report. Snap, almost forgot. I fished the park today. 2 short fluke in the wash. Not that much fun, some weeds still around and there were big swells. The swells were a lot worse than yesterday when I fished and got nothing but wet. Sucked. Should you be thinking of fishing the park this weekend realize that about 10,000 other fair weather fishermen will be heading down here too. Most of them will have 4-5 rods in front of them but will not be fishing. I agree with Steve's point that after Tuesday it will be a lot less hassles to find some good fishing. You have been warned.

[buckethead]

Fished moco this morning in the white water. As fishingmission was alluding to the surf has calmed down a lot though there is some chop out there. Managed one short bass on bucktail and gulp and one micro fluke. Wishing everyone a great holiday weekend.

[buckethead]

storminsteve - technically anyone who crosses a bridge to go fishing is a benny. So unless you live in Point, Toms River, or the bayshore, you would be a benny too. Just saying.

I agree. It's like arguing who is native to America, those of European or Spanish descent. We're immigrants to America unless you were born and descended from the Eskimos or Indian tribes.

[bababooey]

^^^^ The definition used to be that if you were born anywhere else but in Point or Manahawkin hospital you were a benny. Guess that has changed now, idk.

[hookedonbass]

Hey we were all bennies at one time unless you never moved from the house you were born in.
took a ride to the ocean today didn't have my rod. The surf doesn't look that bad.

[J Barbosa]

2 dozen crabs today...action was slow.

[hookset]

^^^ Someone said after the new or full moon it slows down. We are about a week away from that so does that make any difference when you go out crabbing or did you ever pay attention to that. thanks.
I fished the surf in moco today. 6-7:30am incoming tide. The waves aren't bad. Started near MB but it is a whole span of dirty water from the dredging. Moved further south to get away from that. Got one stargazer on bucktail with gulp. The water looks real fishy.

[buckethead]

The water looks real fishy.

Yessir but someone may have forgotten to tell the fish.
This has been the worst august I can remember in quite awhile. The water temperatures in the ocean have not been that bad. I remember one year the medium and larger bluefish showed up in august for a week in ocean county near the MI. Does anyone else remember that? Even with warmer water of this week we should have had triggers near the inlets and banded rudderfish and jacks from sandy hook to island beach. No one I know has caught any of those species from the surf yet. A strange year indeed. My fish to hours fished ratio is very poor for this year. Hoping for a better september.

[J Barbosa]

^^^ Someone said after the new or full moon it slows down. We are about a week away from that so does that make any difference when you go out crabbing or did you ever pay attention to that. thanks.

Never paid attention; we never really needed to. We usually only keep 2-3 dozen for us unless we are having company over. We haven't been able to be selective on some days...usually prefer to only keep 5"+. My dad says this is the worst year for crabbing he has ever experienced in the RB. He's been doing it for 35 years now.

Guys in the northern rivers are complaining there are no crabs there also...seems to be a decent amount in the southern/central part of the state.

[seamonkey]

JB thats strange. Do you think because we had a cold winter and more of the crabs died while hibernating in the mud? But if that was true it should have happened through the whole state, no?

[ledhead36]

Got a mess o croakers tonight in between the rain. Best time was close to high tide and one hour after. Best bait was fresh clams.

[J Barbosa]

Got a mess o croakers tonight in between the rain. Best time was close to high tide and one hour after. Best bait was fresh clams.

Nice. :thumbsup:

Going to give it a try if I can get out one night this week.

Changed it up this morning and went south...around 7am saw what I am pretty sure was Albies on spearing but they never came close enough to throw at them. Got my gulp and soft plastics torn up by big snappers.

More fluke around but it's certainly slow for September...no keepers.

blame the beach replenishment?

[jigfreak]

More fluke around but it's certainly slow for September...no keepers.

blame the beach replenishment?

Has anyone been around the monmouth beach to long branch stretch lately? The sand they are pumping is dark brown. Looks like a cross between cocoa puffs and a bad case of diarrhea. Where is it coming from?

[ledhead36]

Thanks jb.
jf some of that sand is coming from the bottom of the shrewsbury and the back side of sandy hook. It's sand mixed with river mud etc.
I wonder how come they're not testing that for contaminants. There has to be some kind of heavy metals buried in the muck over the years there. I would think the EPA should have to test it first. How come the ACOE gets away with things like this?
There are at least 2 dredgers in the river every night sucking up that stuff. This may sound stupid but I thought they were done with the replenishment at mb? I guess they will never be done.

[seamonkey]

Well the ocean looks like a lake today. Guys who were looking for calm water got their wish. But where are the fish? I took a ride along ocean city yesterday and didn't see any birds working or bait busting.

[buckethead]

Fished moco for 2 hours of the incoming tide this morning. Picked up 2 short bass on bucktail and grub and one short fluke.

[Blazin420]

Nice job on the bass BH!

Got out today for a bit of a marathon trip...Started out at 6am in MoCo on some rocks focusing on trying to catch some stripes...Hit my favorite rock pile first and there was a bit of weed on the S side and couldnt find a spot i liked on the N side so i moved to another jetty..Much cleaner there but couldnt seem to find any bass did manage 6 fluke 14-16in from 6-9am..And shockingly none came on GULP..3 on 1 of my sandeel teasers and 3 on white Zooms...Action slowed and i decided to move N into NoMoCo and start looking for some bigger fluke..Stopped for some breakfast and a java...Got back to fishing by 10...Walked alot and casted my way to my most recent spot for a keeper...Setup there for the rest of the day from 11-6pm..Bite was good on the incoming and slowed at slack but picked back up when it started moving again..From 11-6pm i landed 22 fluke from 13-17.5in...Most were in the 14-16in range but did have 4 that i looked at closer between 17-17.5..also managed 1 double on a GULP/BT Gulp setup thought for sure it was a keeper..15in on the teaser and the 17.5 on the BThttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/eusa_doh.gif...Missed a few,dropped a few,got an even better tan and enjoyed a great beach day with NO CROWDShttp://www.stripersurf.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif ..From after Labor day on is my favorite time of yearhttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/hihi.gif http://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/hihi.gif .....
Also had a bunch of robins which since this trip have been non exsistent for mehttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/nixweiss.gif ...Had 1 fish on in the wash that NAILED the rig and made some drag pull and then spit the hook...Never saw it but i was telling myself it was a big robin...Hope it wasnt a big flattiehttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/nervous.gif http://www.stripersurf.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif Total for the day was 28 fluke..

[cowherder]

^^^^^ Wow 28 fluke what an awesome day that was blazin! I feel the same way after Labor Day fishing rules whether you catch or not!
Too bad no keeps for you still sounds like you had a barrel of fun. Hey how was the water temperature today? Would you say its still warm or starting to cool down? And did you see or catch any hickory shad? thanks and congrats.

[Blazin420]

^^^^^ Wow 28 fluke what an awesome day that was blazin! I feel the same way after Labor Day fishing rules whether you catch or not!
Too bad no keeps for you still sounds like you had a barrel of fun. Hey how was the water temperature today? Would you say its still warm or starting to cool down? And did you see or catch any hickory shad? thanks and congrats.

Thanks CH! Water didnt seem much cooler than last week..Id say about the same maybe in the 74-75 range but it was gin clear...And with how hot it was yesterday i had to take a swim...No hickorys lots of spearing/snappers in the wash...I did get REAL excited twice when i saw some splashes out far and they moved quick was thinking Albies:dribble:but never got close enuff for me to see...I may head out to the rocks tonight looking for that striper

[buckethead]

Nice going blazin. 2 more short bass this morning, around sunrise. Bucktail and grub, moco.

[ledhead36]

Good to hear there are some bass around fellas. The back has been hit and miss. Haven't seen or heard of bass in weeks. Last night we picked away at croakers. I didn't want to sit out there till high tide at 2:30am so we cashed in our chips early. Got a few but it wasn't that great. What a difference from last year.

[Blazin420]

Nice to see you picking at those bass still BH...Got out last night and worked some jettys looking for some bass...Fished from 730-1130 all i could find was 1 small blue about 3lbs that destroyed my Zoom right next to the jetty...Water was like a lake out there with basically no wind at all...Was glad i didnt hit another spot ive been fishing cause with NO WIND the bugs there will eat you alive!

[buckethead]

Nice going blazin you are really putting in your time. I fished somoco for a change this morning. Ocean was like a lake. Fishing for bass -Got the skunk. We need a bit more chop. Monty please pray for some white water in new jersey.

[fishinmission78]

Went fluke fishing in the park this morning before work it was good to be back sans tourists. Picked up 3 short and almost legal fluke with chartreuse gulp and teaser. The ocean was a little too flat as bucket mentioned and there were some bugs. I like NE and NW winds the best conditions here.

[cowherder]

Monty please pray for some white water in new jersey.

Thanks for the conditions report buckethead. I think finchaser said that monty has abandoned nj and now only fishes montauk. Miss your nj reports monty!

[J Barbosa]

Fished yesterday from 3 to 9:30pm.

First spot out front...no signs of bait but that south wind was blowing pretty good. No sign of the snappers either so the goop was safe. Picked at some short fluke and snapped off one of my bucktails on a cast...got mad and left. Plenty of eye candy still left on the beach; never should have left this spot. :bigeyes:

Spot #2...Lots of good sized spearing and big snappers chasing them but couldn't even raise one fluke in the channel or the flats.

Spot #3...after dark trying to get a bass or bluefish but all I found were more spearing and an all out snapper blitz.

What's missing from this picture?
https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3874/14960855749_c7877f2b28_b.jpg (https://www.flickr.com/photos/94721242@N02/14960855749/)

[Monty]

Nice going blazin you are really putting in your time. I fished somoco for a change this morning. Ocean was like a lake. Fishing for bass -Got the skunk. We need a bit more chop. Monty please pray for some white water in new jersey.

:HappyWave:

Not much white water this year. Least on LI there seems to be some most of the time.


Thanks for the conditions report buckethead. I think finchaser said that monty has abandoned nj and now only fishes montauk. Miss your nj reports monty!

:HappyWave:

The more I fish LI the less I miss fishing the broken jettys that I loved fishing in Jersey.

[jigfreak]

Yeah monty kind of miss your jerzey reports as well. You know what they say a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. Tight lines.
jb whats missing from that pic? looks pretty clear and I cant see bait in there. There should be a few pieces there. Am I right?

[Monty]

Yeah monty kind of miss your jerzey reports as well. You know what they say a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. Tight lines.
jb whats missing from that pic? looks pretty clear and I cant see bait in there. There should be a few pieces there. Am I right?
:HappyWave:
I am enjoying the LI trips more and more as I start learning the different areas.
Really is some great water with structure that attracts fish. Incredible water, fun to fish.
I will always say I loved fishing all the jersey broken jettys, was fun going from one to another.
If they didn't have that replenishment I would still be fishing them, would be great spending a couple of those hours I spend driving instead throwing plugs from the sand.
But like you said "a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do".

JB, I see the crabs on the pilings. Whats missing?

[J Barbosa]

Missing a net to scoop them up and a third crab on the middle piling. :cool:

[jigfreak]

Hey when is the jb crab fest or did you decide to bag it and eat all the crabs yourself?:pig:
Bad night fishing in the back in OC. Water was warm and bait jumping all over. targeting weakies couldn't find one. did find some small blues they bit my pink zooms to shreds. Lots of these little buggers around right now.

[jigfreak]

But like you said "a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do".



Amen, dude.

[Blazin420]

I got out last night in search of the striped ones again..Worked a long stretch of sand in NoMoCo and threw it all...1st time in a while i came up completely empty...Not a tap..Im sure if i had tossed some GULP or worked the bottom some more i may have found a fluke or 2 but that was not what i was looking for...Fished from 730-1130 water was still a bit to calm for me..Light breeze was nice but we need a wind change to NNE or NW to get a bump in the water which looks like it may happen Mon-Tues...(MONTY bring us some white water PLEASE:d!!!!!!!)..Hopefully soon the water temps will drop a little and get some fish in the zone...Still have not heard much about weakies..I hope they show up this year like the past few..

[surferman]

Hey guys you can't catch them from the couch, right?
Fished ocean city area this morning. I think I missed the bite. Fished from 9-10:30 and caught one kingfish on bloods. It was nice to be on a beach with hardly any people though.

[fishinmission78]

Island beach this morning, incoming tide. Used a combo of small dead snappers. When I ran out of them I used gulp on bottom and top. Jerk shad to keep the tail biting to a minimum. Picked up 17 fluke and 2 keepers. Pretty decent action tho it did slow down close to high tide.

[J Barbosa]

Nice job fishinmission.

I had too much coffee yesterday and couldn't get to sleep. Went out late last night with the 5wt fly rod and some small spearing flies I tied. Wind was not as bad as they predicted and I managed to hide from it anyway.

Decent action under the lights but not as effective as using a snapper popper for sure. So much spearing everywhere I looked but only a few signs of mullet or peanuts though.

Was hoping for some kind of bass or bluefish surprise but it never happened.

Met up with my dad and brother this morning to do some crabbing and it was the best crabbing we have seen all year...I managed to scoop 3 soft shell and 5 hard crabs from one downed tree alone. Filled a 5 gallon bucket of 5"+ crabs in a few hours. Cleaned a bunch of them up and stuck them in the freezer for the winter.

Going to try to get some sleep and head out in the AM for some fluke.

[cowherder]

Nice reports fellas great action on the fluke fnm! jb a 5 gallon bucket of crabs is a lot! How do you cook the soft shells do you have any special recipe?

[J Barbosa]

Nice reports fellas great action on the fluke fnm! jb a 5 gallon bucket of crabs is a lot! How do you cook the soft shells do you have any special recipe?

I rarely ever get them when they are perfectly soft...so I usually just steam mine up and enjoy. You need a saltwater tank to get them just right. Too much work to fry just a few up IMO. I know I am doing soft shell crab lovers everywhere a disservice but o well...

There is a firefighter who crabs near our spot and if I see him I'll give them to him. I know he enjoys them much more than we do as thats what he mainly targets.

I remember being 15 or 16 and crabbing with my mom when he passed by and saw us with only two crabs in our cooler. We had just started crabbing for the day but I guess he felt bad so he dumped his whole bucket into our cooler. He said he didn't want them and was looking for soft shells. I never forgot that moment and good karma does eventually come back.

[jigfreak]

I remember being 15 or 16 and crabbing with my mom when he passed by and saw us with only two crabs in our cooler. We had just started crabbing for the day but I guess he felt bad so he dumped his whole bucket into our cooler. He said he didn't want them and was looking for soft shells. I never forgot that moment and good karma does eventually come back.

Right on good karma def comes back. And if you are bad to folks regularly that bad karma will roll up on you like a sombitch. Great crabbing report thats a lot.
Fished OC for the sunrise today decided to change it up. Managed a few medium blues and a 27 1/2" bass, all went back. All on ava jigs with green tail. Lots of small bait in the water and a few mullet.

[cowherder]

Nice going jf! I fished nomooco this morning. Didn't see a lot of mullet but there were oodles of spearing and rainfish you could see them in the waves.
Ended up with 9 fluke to 17 1/2 " wish the 17 was big enough to pinch the tail but he wouldn't have made keeper so I threw it back. double gulp on bucktail and teaser. White. There were some fish busting out far but I really couldn't see what they were. there were a few other guys around they were catching too and one guy caught a few small blues on metal.

[Monty]

Managed a few medium blues and a 27 1/2" bass, all went back. All on ava jigs with green tail. Lots of small bait in the water and a few mullet.



Ended up with 9 fluke to 17 1/2 " wish the 17 was big enough to pinch the tail but he wouldn't have made keeper so I threw it back. double gulp on bucktail and teaser. White.

Congrats on the catching and action :HappyWave:.

[surferman]

Fished cape may area this morning, Got 5 kingfish 1 cocktail and 2 spot on bloodworms. This was the first time I saw spot in a while. Hope they stay in the area for when the bass start up. Lots of life in the surf just out of casting range. probably bluefish

[J Barbosa]

Walked onto the beach yesterday afternoon and it was a zoo...by 6-7pm everyone left and we had the beach all to ourselves. Mostly very small fluke during the day with two around 17-17.5" taken on a chartreuse over white banana bucktail tipped with gulp.

Friend caught one small bass on a plastic swimmer.

Saw spearing and snappers, a few small mullet. No signs of bunker or big mullet yesterday.

[J Barbosa]

Lots of these sand crabs on the beach yesterday all of them dead (post shed?). I count 17 in this picture + 2 disgusting cigarette butts.

18838

[Blazin420]

Same here John went to the beach for the wifes bday yesterday so no fishing for me but when we went swimming the sand crabs were ALL OVER!! Mostly tiny ones in the thousands digging by your feet but if ya dug a little you could find bigger 1s all over....Liking the conditions tn looks like we may have some white water with the ENE wind :)...Ill be out searching around..

[baitstealer]

Wow that's a lot of sand crabs! No wonder you guys are catching a lot of fluke!

[buckethead]

Went down to the ocean this morning not to fish but to look at the water. It's chocolate milk as I suspected. The waves are spectacular. First noreast pattern of the fall but without a pressure drop and heavy rain I won't call it a noreaster. Waves are impressive though. Some about 6' or higher. No surfers out where I was. It may be a little too gnarly even for them until later this afternoon. This will put a hold on ocean fishing for at least 24 hours. I may try to hit the back later this afternoon before dark.

[jigfreak]

The waves are spectacular. First noreast pattern of the fall but without a pressure drop and heavy rain I won't call it a noreaster. Waves are impressive though. Some about 6' or higher.

Thanks BH. Agreed.

[Blazin420]

I got out last night with high hopes of hooking up with some bass...Had the right tide and the wind made for some real night white water...The N to S sweep was a bit of a pain but fishable..Worked 2 areas that have paid off for me in those conditions...Threw all the heavier stuff i had but couldnt find any lifehttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/no.gif fished from 730-1130pm...Water was up real high from the moon..And there wasnt much grass until i was leaving about 11...I knew it would be chocolate milk out there today....So far this Sept is slow to start compared to last year...Already had a bunch of bass under belt by now...Water needs to cool for sure but with those conditions last night i should have caughthttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/nixweiss.gif ...Oh well ill findem soon enuff! May have to stick to the flatties for the next 2 weeks or so..Like BH said gonna need a few days to settle out there..

[J Barbosa]

^^ # of resident bass in our area is definitely down. I remember you did good last August and September with the bass.

I was kicking myself for not going out yesterday but I couldn't make it out.

[vpass]

Finally got out for 2 hours after work today . Attempted ot catch Fluke with gulp but no success. Ended up with a few nice size pain in the *** for eating my gulp snappers. I had a great time getting out on the water. almost forgot how it feels to wet a line.

[DarkSkies]

^^ # of resident bass in our area is definitely down. I remember you did good last August and September with the bass.

I was kicking myself for not going out yesterday but I couldn't make it out.

You are absolutely wrong on that pal. :HappyWave:
Didn't you know that there are more striped bass around then ever? :beatin:
A well-respected Capt just made that incredible statement to me tonight.

[Blazin420]

You are absolutely wrong on that pal. :HappyWave:
Didn't you know that there are more striped bass around then ever? :beatin:
A well-respected Capt just made that incredible statement to me tonight.
Hahahaha thats like saying Obama is the greatest president we have ever had!!!!What a moron for saying that...The capt that is...

[buckethead]

^^^^^ Agreed blazin. Some folks have no clue.
Dark most of us know what the score is with the striped bass. There has been a steady decline. If someone says differently follow the money trail.
Fished moco this morning. White water and sand crabs, incoming. Picked up 2 short bass on bucktail and large pork rind.

[jigfreak]

6 fat bass tonight to 10#, released. In da surf moco near top of tide. Rubber shad. Mullet all over. Good to finally see some fish. DS just a thanks for all you do for striped bass. Some of these guys are clueless. They will kill the last striped bass until there are none left. I saw the thread its like you are trying to educate cavemen that they need to hunt different land each time instead of right outside the cave or there will be no cave beasts left to hunt. Unreal. You are a better man than me I don't how you put up with Fisher Price and the other idiots. They are the most notorious meatmen in the bay. It's like David trying to fight Goliath. Thank you dude, You sure have some balls. I would just give up on them.

[Monty]

6 fat bass tonight to 10#, released. In da surf moco near top of tide. Rubber shad. Mullet all over. Good to finally see some fish. DS just a thanks for all you do for striped bass. Some of these guys are clueless. They will kill the last striped bass until there are none left. I saw the thread its like you are trying to educate cavemen that they need to hunt different land each time instead of right outside the cave or there will be no cave beasts left to hunt. Unreal. You are a better man than me I don't how you put up with Fisher Price and the other idiots. They are the most notorious meatmen in the bay. It's like David trying to fight Goliath. Thank you dude, You sure have some balls. I would just give up on them.

Great report jigfreak. Nice C and R.
Also want to thank Dark, he puts a lot into trying to get these meatmen to see that they are putting a hurting on the breeders.

[Blazin420]

Awesome jigfreak thats a good night of fishing!! WTG!!...Also nice job BH on the shorts...Real nice to hear of some stripes being caught!!

[J Barbosa]

Got two bass last night on my teasers fished in front of a metal lip. I was fishing out front in MoCo as well.

No obvious signs of bait. Saw some bass caught by others as well.

[Blazin420]

Ok thats it I gotta go tonight after all these positive reports...Ill prob find the skunk but ya dont no unless ya go!!!

[DarkSkies]

Got two bass last night on my teasers fished in front of a metal lip. I was fishing out front in MoCo as well.

No obvious signs of bait. Saw some bass caught by others as well.

No Gulp? :scared:
I'll guess it was in a place where you had to walk less than 1000 feet....:rolleyes:
This can't be an actual JB report - are you sure you're not an imposter? :moon: :kiss: :HappyWave:

[J Barbosa]

No Gulp? :scared:
I'll guess it was in a place where you had to walk less than 1000 feet....:rolleyes:
This can't be an actual JB report - are you sure you're not an imposter? :moon: :kiss: :HappyWave:

I've never intentionally fished gulp for bass...I don't know where you got this idea that I don't walk far when I fish???

I'm getting my gulp fix in tomorrow AM on a friend's boat...Might go hit the surf again later tonight not sure yet.

[DarkSkies]

^ I asked you, and you said you won't walk too far if you don't know there are fish there.
I may be having a SR Moment here....please accept my humble apologies because you have been such an outspoken voice on the internet...:thumbsup:
So please allow me to re-phrase that....
Will you walk 2000 feet for a fish?
Would you be willing to walk more than 4 miles at night?...careful with the answer cause if you fish with Monty he will have you running a marathon just to keep up....;) :HappyWave:

[DarkSkies]

6 fat bass tonight to 10#, released. In da surf moco near top of tide. Rubber shad. Mullet all over. Good to finally see some fish. DS just a thanks for all you do for striped bass. Some of these guys are clueless. They will kill the last striped bass until there are none left. I saw the thread its like you are trying to educate cavemen that they need to hunt different land each time instead of right outside the cave or there will be no cave beasts left to hunt. Unreal. You are a better man than me I don't how you put up with Fisher Price and the other idiots. They are the most notorious meatmen in the bay. It's like David trying to fight Goliath. Thank you dude, You sure have some balls. I would just give up on them.


Great report jigfreak. Nice C and R.
Also want to thank Dark, he puts a lot into trying to get these meatmen to see that they are putting a hurting on the breeders.


Thanks for the kind words guys....:HappyWave:
It's something that has to be done, raising awareness...whether people like me or not...
The striped bass are in the worst condition they have been since the moratorium.

I know that if folks don't fish a lot they might not see that...
but if you fish daily and try to tell folks how healthy they are.....
You have some sort of hidden agenda.....Commercial or financial.....I have proven this in discussions, time and time again.

And congrats on the persistence for the bass Jig...you definitely put your time in......:thumbsup:

[surferman]

I fished south of ocean city today on the incoming tide after work. Right before dark I got 4 kingfish on bloodworms and one small bluefish. There was some activity pretty far out. Reading the albacore report from north I was hoping it was them but it was probably bluefish. It was a good time fishing and it really feels like fall out there. Come on fish!

[hookset]

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

[porgy75]

Looks like some stripers are finally here! Thanks for the reports will try to get out there sunday!

[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;)

[J Barbosa]

Will you walk 2000 feet for a fish?
Would you be willing to walk more than 4 miles at night?...careful with the answer cause if you fish with Monty he will have you running a marathon just to keep up....;) :HappyWave:

Yes...I already asked Monty to join him on one of his Montauk excursions this fall. Schedule didn't allow it this week maybe next week if Monty is okay with that. :HappyWave:

I fished on my friend's boat this morning. Forecast was 5-10mph winds with gusts to 15mph. Turned out to be 15-25+mph sustained when we got there but we decided to go anyway. Saw a decent amount of peanut bunker in the marina's on our way out but they are small 2-4".

We got beat up all day and the drift was way too fast us googs forgot the drift sock at home.

Got two hook ups that I dropped and that was it for the day...besides a good beating from 3-4fters in the bay.

Got back to the dock and our van is close to getting flooded from the full moon tide and strong winds blowing into the bay.
18849

On the brighter side the parking lot was full of small schools of peanut bunker. No signs of bass or blue in the parking lot...Dark I know you will ask me that...:moon:

Grabbed a short video but for some reason the first half of the video has too much glare. Skip to the 1 minute mark to see peanuts in the parking lot near my feet. A first for me...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/94721242@N02/15041520930/

[Monty]

Yes...I already asked Monty to join him on one of his Montauk excursions this fall. Schedule didn't allow it this week maybe next week if Monty is okay with that. :HappyWave:

On the brighter side the parking lot was full of small schools of peanut bunker. No signs of bass or blue in the parking lot...Dark I know you will ask me that...:moon:


You went out on a boat???:beatin:
Next 2 Sat. nights I plan on heading out there, any time you want to go is fine.

Dark is always looking for bait anywhere the water is 3" or deeper, best to keep him in the loop or he tends to go medieval if someone withholds info (be it in a parking lot or cove).

[ledhead36]

Dark is always looking for bait anywhere the water is 3" or deeper, best to keep him in the loop or he tends to go medieval if someone withholds info (be it in a parking lot or cove.

Because he is a master-Baiter.:laugh:
Sorry Rich couldn't help it he teed it up and I had to take the swing! We don't want you to forget where you came from, bud.
JB nice peanut bunker video. Looks like higher tide and clean water was that on the incoming? You def can see the peanuts at the 1:00 mark

[J Barbosa]

Looks like higher tide and clean water was that on the incoming?

Pretty good water quality out there today could see the bottom in 2-3ft of water in the marina. This was the end of the incoming tide in the RB or very close to it around noon today.

Monty, I'll call you during the week. Next week sounds good to me. I have a feeling your going to break the curse free tonight. :HappyWave:

[baitstealer]

Got out in somoco near the inlet this morning. Got one cocktail blue in the ocean as the sun came up. Ava with green tail. Surf is beautiful looks like it is cleaning up. There were a bunch of guys standing at the inlet rocks casting but I didn't see them catch anything. Had to leave because of church. Hope they get lucky it did seem like a lot of them.

[storminsteve]

I'm back did you guys miss me? Work has been crazy busy. I was in massachusetts with the wife over the holiday visiting her family. They have been catching some small stripers up there on the Cape beaches. From what I heard they had a pretty good run of bigger fish about a month ago. Pretty strange for August!
Fished Nomoco last night on the incoming tide.surprisingly crowded. Found a spot that was a little less crowded and picked away at the bass, catching and releasing 4 shorties. Mag darter and yellow SP did the trick. There was lots of bait in the water. It felt like a perfect fall night with slight northwest wind.

[plugcrazy]

Great reports guys glad to finally see some action! jb that was a cool vid thanks for sharing. blazing you got that fluke on a yozuri? Awesome,which one? thanks

[porgy75]

Way to go dudes. Went down to no mo co this morning. There was a lot of people on the beach. Casted a small diamond jig for the blues and whatever else was biting. Got one small fluke on that and nothing else. I did see some blues but they were way too far out to cast too past where the water was rough. Great beautiful day out there hope you all enjoy it.

[DarkSkies]

Yes...I already asked Monty to join him on one of his Montauk excursions this fall. Schedule didn't allow it this week maybe next week if Monty is okay with that. :HappyWave:


You really don't know what you're in for. :scared: Monty is like a freaking fishing machine. I got $5 that says you ask to take a break after the first hour of walking at the warp speed that Monty moves at....(unless he feels sorry for ya and ramps it down from his normal 78 RPM) ;) :HappyWave:




I fished on my friend's boat this morning. Forecast was 5-10mph winds with gusts to 15mph. Turned out to be 15-25+mph sustained when we got there but we decided to go anyway.
We got beat up all day and the drift was way too fast us googs forgot the drift sock at home.

Got two hook ups that I dropped and that was it for the day...besides a good beating from 3-4fters in the bay. No signs of bass or blue in the parking lot...Dark I know you will ask me that...:moon:

I know ya think I bust you a lot.....maybe......:moon:...because ya remind me of me when I was your age....:HappyWave:...I don't mind helping ya....but still have to bust ya along the way....:laugh:....
I will say you 2 have my respect and admiration for that trip....on most of the hardcore boating sites....the guys sat it out...saying conditions were too tough for them.......and you 2 mooks said effumall and were out there in the bay anyway.......hardcore....:thumbsup: :HappyWave:


Because he is a master-Baiter.:laugh:
Sorry Rich couldn't help it he teed it up and I had to take the swing! We don't want you to forget where you came from, bud.


And I am so grateful for mooks and good friends like you....to help keep it real for me....:moon: :HappyWave:
After all...."I'm just a Goog with a white bucket..."...thanks for the laughs, pal. :clapping:

[Blazin420]

Great reports guys glad to finally see some action! jb that was a cool vid thanks for sharing. blazing you got that fluke on a yozuri? Awesome,which one? thanks
Yeah it was the Mag minnow in the bronze color...Fluke seem to like them i got a 4 1/2lber on it in May off the beach..

got out yesterday for a bit of a marathon 9am-6pm...Got a late start but the 1st spot had birds around so i checked it out and out of no where the albies popped up!! I hooked up for all of about 5 secs and then it popped off:burn::burn:...I was pissed been trying for them for years and never landed 1!!!I had a few more casts before they were gone but no takers:beatin:.....Moved after waiting to see if they would return but no luck...Switched to fluking managed 11 flatties biggest was just short 17.99...LOTS of bait around saw a bunch of mullet schools,spearing and maybe rainfish...The ocean was definitly alive with bait.. Tried live lining some mullet i snagged but no takers...The stage is set with the bait lets hope some bigger fish show up for the show!!!

[DarkSkies]

Blazin, glad to see ya at least hoooked up. The feeling is addictive! :headbang:

When the albies are moving fast or are picky it's time to get creative.
I posted something today for you and the other guys who don't have a lot of experience catching them.

Take a look at that thread......our members have laid a lot of good advice down over the years.
(you can also follow the steps there to modify a tin with the fluoro leader and teaser attached.) The tin then becomes the teaser delivery system.
Good for rough water or when you have albies that seem to be picky that day.

Remember they have exceptional eyesight. Unless they are in a feeding frenzy are very discriminating as to what they hit in the surf line. They are much less picky when the party boats get them while bluefishing, when they will hit a bucktail, piece of meat, and many other non-traditional offerings.

The surf albies, will really test your patience and skill at times.
Hope this helps...Good luck....:HappyWave:


http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?3663-All-about-False-Albacore-(Albies)-and-Bonito

[J Barbosa]

I feel your pain Blaze.

Im pretty sure I was standing at the same spot from 6:30 until about 9am watching them break on bait just out of casting range. Around 8:30 or so a big boat ran them over and that was it for 15 minutes I didn't see another sign of them so I left. Looks like I should have stayed a little longer.

For me the hardest part of catching albies from the surf in NJ always seems to be REACHING them.

[Blazin420]

Worst part yesterday was they were right there in front of me and couldnt seal the deal....Saw 1 caught they werent huge but it doesnt matter to me i just WANT 1!! This is only the third time ive run into them in the past 10+ years and it was the closest theyve been....Ugh better luck next time maybe....Thanks for the linkj to the thread DS ill be reading up in case i run into them again..

[jigfreak]

Fished occo in the back before sunrise. 2 short bass on rubber and 1/2 oz jig. Lots of small bait around, a few mullet but most of them have left already. Good luck on the albies fellas I may start putting a little effort into getting one. As has been said find a beach where you know they have been and wait for them to come to you. It doesn't make sense to chase after them on the beach.

[storminsteve]

Nice going fellas. blazin and jb you have to be in it to win it! At least you tried.

[fishrich]

Two of us fished OC from noon till dark. Only managed to catch some two pound blues. Saw a lot of rainfish but the only thing bothering them were snappers and some albies, which were reachable but only a few at a time attacked the bait. Some mullet also showed up before dark but no fish showed up with them.

[DarkSkies]

^ Glad to see the OFFC are out on the prowl and fishing again. My old phone is broken and I have no way of getting in touch with you guys. Rich - Check your PMs :HappyWave:

[buckethead]

Fished moco this am from 4-6:30 outgoing tide. Fair amount of mullet and spearing in the water. Managed 3 short bass and a few blues on blue and white polaris popper.

[hookedonbass]

Nice!

[J Barbosa]

Two of us fished OC from noon till dark. Only managed to catch some two pound blues. Saw a lot of rainfish but the only thing bothering them were snappers and some albies, which were reachable but only a few at a time attacked the bait. Some mullet also showed up before dark but no fish showed up with them.

Were you the guy at the ASFMC meeting?

I fished last night for 30 minutes.

Pull up to a spot looking for signs of bait and right away I see a fish swirl. I hop out of the car and grab my rod make a cast and the fish swirls right behind it but misses.

Spent the next 30 minutes casting into dead water looking for that fish but it never happened (slack tide sucks!). Had to leave after that but at least its some action.

[fishrich]

Were you the guy at the ASFMC meeting?

I fished last night for 30 minutes.

Pull up to a spot looking for signs of bait and right away I see a fish swirl. I hop out of the car and grab my rod make a cast and the fish swirls right behind it but misses.

Spent the next 30 minutes casting into dead water looking for that fish but it never happened (slack tide sucks!). Had to leave after that but at least its some action.

No. I was not at the ASFMC meeting.

[ledhead36]

Well it was a long time coming but the bass are finally in the back. Got 4 tonight. One was a keeper 29" I let it go for good luck the rest of the fall. Clams did the job.

[seamonkey]

Nice going on the bass! I fished cape may over the weekend. Got some small blues to 4# on cut mullet. They are everywhere. Can't wait to see some striper action here.

[Blazin420]

WTG ledhead!!! I got out this am still lookin for that albie...Fished NoMoCo from415-730am didnt have alot of time since i had to be at work by 830 worked a good stretch of beach had 1 good bump in the dark then lost a tail on a Zoom to a bluefish about sun up...Once the sun rose there was a ton of bait around small bait(rainfish,spearing)in the wash and alot of action out a bit with a school of medium sized bait jumping all over looked like snapper size..Unfortunately the only thing i caught was good sunrise:don't know why:....Starting to think i got a jinx on me:scared::d...Seeing reports of the bass and albies plus all the bait im running into i cant seem to buy a fish:embarassed:...Ill tell ya working till 8pm tonight would be alot easier if i didnt reak of the skunk!!! Jinx or not ill be back out tm with the NE wind hoping for better results...

[ledhead36]

blazing I don't fish the ocean a lot this time of year so can only tell you what has been working for us in the back. First of all I am out fishing almost every night and I don't report because you wouldn't want to hear about the skunk after skunk. Bass fishing this summer for me has been bad. We turned to croakers and did pretty well but it seems there were not a lot like last year so it was hard. Many skunk trips for croaker and porgies so you shouldn't feel that bad. I did notice that we seem to be doing better on the incoming tide in the back. It might not be that way where you are fishing. Got all those fish within a one hour period near the top of the tide the rest of the time nothing. dont feel bad about the skunk no one catches fish all the time. Tight lines and keep trying it should get better real soon.

[ledhead36]

Oh I forgot to add that is an awesome sunrise pic thanks for sharing.

[Monty]

Great sunrise pic Blazin. Nice reports everyone.

[Blazin420]

Thanks guys...it was worth the trip just to see that sun come up..and thanks for the pep talk led thats why I love this site!!

[fishrich]

Two of us fished OC from 2pm - 7pm and got 30 blues ( 2 lb) and 5 fluke ( 2 keepers). The blues would only hit a mullet and nothing artificial. One of the keeper fluke hit a mullet and the others hit a teaser with gulp.
Good pick of fish till 6pm then only one fish last hour before dark.

[hookset]

Hit the surf last night after work. The tide was going out and it was loaded with little bait. Picked up cocktail blues, one fluke, and 2 small bass to 27" on bucktail and pork. Bite died at sunset. moco

[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.

[buckethead]

Thanks guys...it was worth the trip just to see that sun come up..and thanks for the pep talk led thats why I love this site!!

Yes I sure love those sunrises on the water. The fish are just icing on the cake. I pefer this site as well. The sites where the fish pic is posted without any other description is just chest beating ego to me. Not a big fan of that but I do like the folks here. I will try to help anyone who needs it.

[porgy75]

x2 what blazin420 and buckethead said. I love this site! I had a lot of time on my hands during the winter and read a lot of the threads especially in the surf fishing and main sections. I realized that half the time out there I wasn't even fishing the right beach by not reading the water and other stuff. So I have def learned a lot and become a little better. Thanks everyone!

[Blazin420]

Fished tonight 7-1030...two spots..both looked fishy...not a tap...threw it all..time to go into search mode and try a different area/tide..determined to shake this skunk..

[fishinmission78]

^^^^^ Blazin there are plenty of bluefish in ocean county if that's what you want. I fished a few mornings this week at Island Beach.and managed blues to 4# on mullet. 2 short bass as well. I did get a few on diamond jig with green tube and teaser but it's been trending more toward the mullet. The ones I got on diamond jig were right in the hour before and after sunrise. Then it was back to the bait and wait.

[storminsteve]

Thanks for the heads up fishing mission! I kept hearing of fish in ocean and somoco so I made a trip south this morning to somoco. Got 3 feisty stripers in the rough surf this morning with tsunami shads. I was worried about the blues and almost follow buckethead's lead with the bucktail. decided to go with the shads first and switch if there were any bite offs. Not one bluefish in the mix, all bass hits. They hit hard and fast. Bite was over at dawn. All healthy bass up to 26". Monty there is tons of white water now in NJ in case you want to leave the grey poupon at home and just put ketchup or regular mustard on your hot dogs.:headbang:

[Blazin420]

Thanks FM im really looking for the stripes but blues are always fun!! Appreciate the info...IBSP is always good for some blues this time of year!!

Nice job Steve...I hate when those damn blues rip up the shads!:D

[baitstealer]

Wow awesome reports gentlemen thanks! I'm trying to get out this afternoon or tomorrow and will post a report when I do.

[cowherder]

Nice going guys. I fished nomoco this morning from 6-8 and got 3 cocktail blues on metal.

[surferman]

Skunk report. Went to fish the ocean side in cape may county near an inlet tonight before sunset. It was windy and surf a little choppy. Casted a pencil popper for an hour and all I got was a few weeds and a plastic bag fish. May try sunday it looks like the surf will be better then.

[baitstealer]

Well I finally got out today. Got 1 striper and like you guys said it was around dawn. Was using a storm shad with a teaser. The striper hit the shad and hit it hard! He was 24". I was fishing nomoco. Also had a cocktail blue bite the tail off the shad, I put a new one on and had to retie my connection because it was loose. It seemed like everything died after that. Very foggy morning out there. Kind of cool to be fishing in that. Thanks for all the tips guys next time I will try a bucktail with pork rind to avoid the bite offs.

[hookset]

Thanks for all the tips guys next time I will try a bucktail with pork rind to avoid the bite offs.

Hey no problem glad to help a new guy. When there are blues around its a good idea to throw the bucktail first. Vision eels are $3each, tsunamis are cheaper. Storm and tsunami shads can run from 0.75 to $2 depending on size and where you get them. Learn to work a bucktail and don't get it caught in any rocks. Once you get the rhythm of it and catch you will be more confident in it. Bucktails are much more popular in montauk. don't know why more Jersey guys don't use them. There are also a few threads on bucktails here. I think surfstix, dark, and buckethead have written some good things about them. Do a search.

Picked up 2 short bass in the moco whitewater this morning. There was a lot of bait around. Fished for 4 hours starting at 4am. Figured there would be more fish but you know how that goes. Buckail and pork.

[SharkHart]

There isnt' many in NJ right now but every Sept i know a place in the barney that is a strong hold for peanuts and mullet and the Weakies follow. Toughest bite i ever seen, bait was uber thick with blitz conditions, weakies were ripping through and had nuts coming out of the water whole tide. I managed to trick a few, landed 4 to 24" mostly on black and dropped a few and 4 schoolie bass which were sitting on the outskirts



18873

[porgy75]

managed to trick a few, landed to 24" mostly on black and dropped a few and 4 schoolie bass which were sitting on the outskirts

Yowza thats a nice weakfish sharkhart! A lot bigger than some of the ones I saw reports about. Thanks for sharing. nice! When you say black are you casting lures to them or something else? thanks for any advice you can give.

[SharkHart]

Black 4" zooms they mostly laughed at it but occasionally you catch one in a frenzy just grabs it. My pants got soaked from the showers so i ditched the camera had 2 after that were about 4lbs or better

[Blazin420]

Great reports guys!! Well done!...

I got out today from 5am till 1pm with a buddy of mine started at a NoMoCo beach i havent fished in a while..Started in the dark with some big rollers...Worked a good stretch with no action...Sun came up and had mullet schools running past us..My bud hooked up and he thought it was a BIG fish... peeled drag until it stopped and hugged the bottom...We both assumed it was a ray tried to get him off the bottom but he ended up snapping the line...My buddy was pissed...Moved down the coast and worked another spot we have done well at in the past and found nothing just more bait...Further S we headed and decided to hit some rock piles...My bud is a newbie to the rocks so he wanted to get some time in on them..I ran down some basics with him on fishing jettys and we headed out...Water looked absolutly fishy..I thought for sure we would find some bass..Mullet was all around,Along with a ton of surfers:rolleyes:...We worked the rocks hard but all we found were a bunch of fluke..My bud did manage a decent keeper..I was more focused on trying to find some stripes so i only had a couple flatties..Water still felt a bit warm but it was clean and full of life...It was a good day as far as looking into some spots that should produce once more fish show..Checked out a few other spots on the way home just to make some notes for the log...

[J Barbosa]

^ Almost sounds like he hooked a stargazer that ended up burying itself in the sand.

[lostatsea]

Fished Moco on sat and sunday. Not much happening but I did get some fish. The further south I went the more weeds I found. Whats up with that? Sat I started at 5am and fished till 10. 1 nice striper 27" at 6:30 on a shad. Then a few small blues on a shad and then diamond a17 with red tail. Sunday there was lots of life in the water and seemed like less fish? Picked up 2 small blues on the a17.

[lostatsea]

Great reports guys!! Well done!...

.Worked a good stretch with no action...Sun came up and had mullet schools running past us..My bud hooked up and he thought it was a BIG fish... peeled drag until it stopped and hugged the bottom...We both assumed it was a ray tried to get him off the bottom but he ended up snapping the line...My buddy was pissed...

I noticed this too a lot of mullet out there yesterday and not many fish under them. I bet your friend is still wondering what that fish was could have been a big striper you never know!

[ledhead36]

There isnt' many in NJ right now but every Sept i know a place in the barney that is a strong hold for peanuts and mullet and the Weakies follow. Toughest bite i ever seen, bait was uber thick with blitz conditions, weakies were ripping through and had nuts coming out of the water whole tide. I managed to trick a few, landed 4 to 24" mostly on black and dropped a few

Spot on about this sharkhart. Fished last night and finally got my first fall weakfish. It was only 16" gently released. They used to be in the back bays in large schools and this year I don't know what happened. This spike ate a little piece of bunker. I was also fishing clams which got the most fish. 4 stripers short and fat. Right around high tide and a little after. These little footballs were feeding heavily on the small bait. They looked like stuffed pigs. There was also some peanut bunker around but not too many.

[hookset]

Great reports guys!! Well done!...
My bud hooked up and he thought it was a BIG fish... peeled drag until it stopped and hugged the bottom...We both assumed it was a ray tried to get him off the bottom but he ended up snapping the line...My buddy was pissed...


^ Almost sounds like he hooked a stargazer that ended up burying itself in the sand.

What was he casting when he hooked the fish? And how beefy was the rod and reel? It could have been anything from a stargazer to a drum to a big ray. To him it will always be the big one lost. Tell your buddy it could have been a record striper. There is no way to prove it wasn't. That's the beauty of the fish that got away.:)
sharkhart nice weakie report. Haven't seen too much of them this year nicely done.

[VSdreams]

That's the beauty of the fish that got away.:)
sharkhart nice weakie report. Haven't seen too much of them this year nicely done.

fish that got away

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKULfR4RjOA

X2 on the weakfish comment. nice fish SH.

[Blazin420]

What was he casting when he hooked the fish? And how beefy was the rod and reel? It could have been anything from a stargazer to a drum to a big ray. To him it will always be the big one lost. Tell your buddy it could have been a record striper. There is no way to prove it wasn't. That's the beauty of the fish that got away.:)
sharkhart nice weakie report. Haven't seen too much of them this year nicely done.
He was throwing a Yozuri Mag minnow which does dive deep..And he had a 9 ft Triumph St Croix rod...I was busting him all day that..."that was the 1 dude!!! The 50lber that got away"!!! LOL...We like to do some ball busting out there makes it fun haha.....But i really think it was a ray just by the huge run it took at first...If it was a stargazer it was the biggest stargazer EVER No way they can make runs like that...Then it just stopped and was dead weight...I have hooked rays in the past that have run exactly like that...And the water is still warm enuff for them to be around....Gonna head out tn and try some of the spots i scouted yesterdat at low water....

[J Barbosa]

Your right the stargazers don't peel line; I don't think I have ever had one even pull drag.

[clamchucker]

I have been fishing Island Beach more often now that September is here. Have been catching a few small bass in the mornings at sunrise. An ava jig has been working for me. Also there is a pretty good bluefish bite on cut mullet. More blues than bass.

[jigfreak]

i really think it was a ray just by the huge run it took at first...If it was a stargazer it was the biggest stargazer EVER No way they can make runs like that...Then it just stopped and was dead weight...I have hooked rays in the past that have run exactly like that...And the water is still warm enuff for them to be around...

Prob had a big cownose. They tend to dig in like that too after a strong run.
Fished last night. Picked up 2 small weakies on zooms in the back of OC. Too much bait and not that many fish. Pretty tough catching like sharkheart said.

[fishrich]

Three of us fished OC 2:30 - 7:30 PM and caught 60 bluefish (1 1/2 pounders). Most fish were caught on mullet, but right before dark schools mullet showed up in the wash and we were able to catch some of the bluefish on plugs.

[DarkSkies]

^ The OFFC out and on the road. :thumbsup:
http://stripersandanglers.com/Forum/showthread.php?8138-Tribute-to-OLD-FARTS-The-GROUCHY-BASSTARDS-and-the-CRABBY-OLD-BASSTARDS-out-there
So glad you guys got out and got some fish. Best of health and luck for the Fall. :fishing: :HappyWave:

[J Barbosa]

Three of us fished OC 2:30 - 7:30 PM and caught 60 bluefish (1 1/2 pounders). Most fish were caught on mullet, but right before dark schools mullet showed up in the wash and we were able to catch some of the bluefish on plugs.

Sounds like a great time. :thumbsup:

[Blazin420]

Three of us fished OC 2:30 - 7:30 PM and caught 60 bluefish (1 1/2 pounders). Most fish were caught on mullet, but right before dark schools mullet showed up in the wash and we were able to catch some of the bluefish on plugs.
Its always nice to have constent action like that!!..Nice job!!

What do you think about this bit of a blow coming thru...Help or hurt us? Im just worried all that bait thats been around NoMoCo(with no real fish on them:rolleyes:)Is gonna get blown out? I cant get out till the weekned..trying to get all my "honey-do" stuff done before a decent bite starts..

[jigfreak]

Help or hurt us? Im just worried all that bait thats been around NoMoCo(with no real fish on them:rolleyes:)Is gonna get blown out? .

Nice report fishrich. Lots o little blues on that mullet. Good job on the numbers. blazin Id say all the mullet are gonna go bye bye. Starting over from square one after with chocolate milk. the bays too. Thats too bad cause I had some decent weakie action in the back the other night.

[storminsteve]

Agree with jigfreak. Just looked at a surfcam and the rollers are huge! Monty that should be enough white water to last for the fall. Nice going on the blues fishrich you really caught a bunch!

[buckethead]

Fished the moco surf this morning during the last of the incoming. Surf was big but clarity wasn't that bad. No bait around I think the mullet really have thinned out. Picked up 2 short bass on bucktail and chartreuse grub.

[storminsteve]

Fished nomoco. Damn it was a beautiful night out there. Just a hint of chill in the air and not too breezy. Bait in close swimming by care free. Threw rubber shads, needlefish, and some sweet plugs, NADA!!!!!!!!:skunk:

[Blazin420]

Fished nomoco. Damn it was a beautiful night out there. Just a hint of chill in the air and not too breezy. Bait in close swimming by care free. Threw rubber shads, needlefish, and some sweet plugs, NADA!!!!!!!!:skunk:
Glad to hear im not the only 1 skunking it up in NoMoCo...Last night 7-1130pm...Three spots all looked good waves were up still but lots of fishy white water...Tried the usual stuff and couldnt get a bitehttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/no.gif ..No wind and a little chill to the air..Felt like i should of caught...I cant wait september to be over...That damn skunk wont stop following mehttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/mgun.gif http://www.stripersurf.com/forums/images/smilies/mad.gif ...

[hookset]

Add me to the skunk patrol guys. Fished moco this morning. Nice white water but not a touch. didn't see any mullet visible out beyond the surf break either.

[porgy75]

Skunk too. I tried 2 spots in MoCo. One had surfers and looked fishy. Another had no one fishing there but it was rocky and I thought there had to be one fish hiding there. Used a white storm shad for 2 hours. No dice.

[plugcrazy]

I cant wait september to be over...That damn skunk wont stop following mehttp://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/mgun.gifhttp://www.stripersurf.com/forums/images/smilies/mad.gif ...

Me too worst september ever.

[storminsteve]

X2

[J Barbosa]

Water in MoCo has a brownish tint to it but its definitely fishable. Visibility seems to be over 2ft from what I could tell. The big swells are subsiding.

Spent some time in the back this morning cast netting mullet not that many around but they are still there mostly 4-6" size. Did take over one hour to make bait this morning had to make a few stops to find them. We walked passed a guy who had a few big 8-10"+ cobs in his bucket (first I have seen in a few years).

Went with a friend and his young kid out front and we had a blast catching small 1-2lb blues on mullet until we ran out of bait. Swells were still to to big to throw small metals.

Nice sized pods of mullet out front no obvious signs of anything harassing them.

[storminsteve]

Nice going JB thanks for the mullet report too.

[SharkHart]

18911 Didn't like my chances on finding those weakies again and i didnt although the water in the bay wasnt too too bad. The nuts are getting bigger and will make their way out front hopefully. I did find 5 small bass but nothin over 22" and some blues were on them as well

[fishinmission78]

wtg on the bass and blues sharkhart. I would like to see some in the surf but it seems theyre not ready to move yet. Fished Island Beach this morning and caught a mess o small blues on cut mullet. One bass on the mullet at sunrise. He was short and got put back. Nice clean water.

[cowherder]

Fished nomoco last night 9-12. Wow I thought for sure there would be some fish at that place. It has always given me some this time in other years. Threw shads bucktails and sp and bomber plugs. One bluefish bite off that was it. Are the bluefish scarce now too? What's up?

[buckethead]

I worked some nice looking water in Moco this morning. A little too calm for me. First skunk in awhile. September is the fools month. It never used to be that way. Oh well an old man can reminisce can't he?

[hookedonbass]

I fished both saturday and sunday. Saturday I started in ocean county and was working poppers in the surf. Managed a nice 23 inch striper at sunrise and 2 small blues. That was it as soon as it got light out. Sunday I said the heck with it and bought some mullet. I was dying to catch some numbers of fish. The mullet did the trick. I got 18 small blues from sunrise to 12 noon. They were small but fun to put a bend in the rod until more stripers show.

[hookedonbass]

I worked some nice looking water in Moco this morning. A little too calm for me. First skunk in awhile. September is the fools month. It never used to be that way. Oh well an old man can reminisce can't he?

Please don't apoligize for reminiscing. I have learned a lot from your posts and enjoy the posts from the long timers like you and finchaser clamchucker, surfstix, surfwalker, etc.:thumbsup:

[buckethead]

Thank you hookedonbass. Fished moco this morning from 5-7am, One fluke on the teaser and one stargazer on bucktail and pork. Ocean was flat as a lake.

[seamonkey]

Fished capemay tonight on the incoming tide near an inlet. The bluefish were hungry. Picked up a bakers dozen to 2 pounds on a zara spook. Man they destroyed that plug will have to upgrade the hooks. Looks like mullet are still running Icould see waves of them. buckethead I would like to thank you and the others mentioned by hookedonbass. It's not often you find guys that nice on the internet. Thank you gents!

[fishrich]

Two of us fished OC from 11am to 7pm. Only caught a few small bluefish. Saw many schools of rainfish all day long, but not a single fish bothering them. When we quit fishing the wind was blowing 15 - 20 knots ENE.

[Blazin420]

Man ive never been happier seeing Sept end!!! It stunk for me!! Got out yesterday am On the rocks..from 445-10am...fished 4 different jettys and all i could find was 1 lil blue that crushed my smack it jr..he nailed it 3 times soo that 3 mins of excitement was worth ithttp://www.stripersurf.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.gif http://www.stripersurf.com/forums/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif that was about 7ish..Water was like a lake and very light breeze..Nice morning but the fish seem to have something against NoMoCo lately http://www.stripersurf.com/images/smilies/hihi.gif

[J Barbosa]

September has sucked the past few years and seems to get worse every year; I don't even bother trying unless the big bluefish invade us in decent numbers.

Its usually been a good time to put some fluke in the freezer but they didn't want to cooperate this year. Can't blame it on a lack of bait either...