This knot is the most widely used knot because it’s fast, effective, and easy. You can use it to attach a hook or lure to swivel, leader or line.
Pass line through hook eye and turn 5 or 6 times.
Put loose end through loop at eye.
Pull loose end back through the new loop.
Pull line tight and clip.
Bob Matthews of Fishermans’ Den, Belmar, reported that things are about the same in the Shark River, lots of fluke but not a lot of keepers, with anglers reporting one to three keepers an outing. One Den regular, Mo, and his grand daughter, Ashley Benyola, 8, and her mother, Allison, from Brick, went fluking and Ashley outfished them all, catching 35 flatties and a couple of keepers up to 3 pounds. Matthews also said the party boats are doing real well with sea bass with fish up to six pounds being caught. They are also doing pretty well with ling. He’s received reports that the bluefishing is slowing down somewhat and he suspects they are on the spawn. He hasn’t heard much from the bass guys except the fly rodders are picking up schoolies at first light. The snappers are getting bigger and are now bait size. He’s got green crabs fro blackfish and the porgies are hitting sandworms. Capt. Ron Kish of the Captain Cal said the fluke fishing has really improved and he’s concentrating in deeper water. Dan Retelle, Philadelphia, landed an 8.8 pounder and he’s getting one to three keepers per drift. Capt. Ron said he’s going to stick in 60 to 70 feet of water where there seems to be a lot of life. Capt. Joe Bogan of the Jamaica II out of Brielle reported respectable catches of fluke and sea bass this past week when conditions were favorable. He’s been fishing in deeper water which requires a proper drift. Some notable catches this week were Ryan Bogan Jr., Brick with a 10-pound fluke, Pete Talevei, Trenton, with four fluke up to 8 pounds, 12 ounces along with six sea bass and Alex Pilewski, Trenton, who had a limit of fluke up to 8 pounds, 2 ounces, plus five sea bass. Some of the sea bass were up to 5 pounds, Capt. Bogan reported and most of the fluke caught were keepers. Greg Bogan at Brielle Bait and Tackle reports that the The Manasquan Inlet is alive with fluke, blackfish and hickory shad. Guys using Gulp!, killies and squid are catching fluke in the Inlet and throughout the Manasquan River. The hickory shad bite at the inlet every night around 8 p.m. on Sabiki rigs and shad darts. He also reported big blackfish in the rocks hitting crabs. On the freshwater side, Lake Riviera in Brick is red-hot in the evenings for largemouth bass hitting top-water lures.
Courtesy of APP.com
John Oswald
Ronny Bala at Fisherman’s Supply said the Manasquan River has been real hot for fluke. “A lot of people are flying out the inlet but the river is holding a lot of 3- to 6-pound fish,” Bala said. Mike Sullivan of Point Pleasant caught a 6-pound fluke and an 8-pound fluke on the river grounds this week. Outside Bala reported there has been some talk of bluefin catches in the Glory Hole and Chicken Canyon. Capt. Jeff Gutman of the Voyager reported good action with short and keeper fluke on his trips out front. Bill Werking of Toms River had a limit catch of fish up to 3 1/2 pounds and Walt Steward of Toms River had three keepers and won the pool with a 4 1/2-pound fluke. “We have been fishing the local reefs and other rough bottom so we have also been seeing some sea bass mixed in,” Gutman said. Capt. Ron Pry of the Miss Norma K said he has been fishing the Axel Carlson Reef for fluke and pink teasers seem to be working best with squid and spearing. Pool winners this week were Ben Gibbs from Clinton with a 5-pound fluke, Sara Everett from Hamilton with a 4 1/2-pound fluke and Dave Glenny of Marlboro with a 6-pound fluke. Joe Melillo of Castaway’s Bait and Tackle said the reports he has been getting from the Manasquan River have been excellent. “The river is paved with fluke,” he said. The sharpies are still taking stripers along the beach. Savvy striper fishermen are catching fish with plugs and bucktails from Belmar to Bay Head. Joe Santoro of Manchester weighed in an 18 1/2-ounce bass, Nick Grasso of Brick had a 13 pounder and Bill Williams of Normandy had a pair at 11 and 12 pounds. Tommy Kilgannon of Pell’s Bait and Tackle said he had some reports of kingfish and croakers coming up the beaches hitting sandworms and clam strips.
Courtesy of APP.com
Dan Radel
Tom Hansen at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park said the fluke in the surf is the game most anglers are playing lately. There have been some scattered bluefish, brown sharks at night and some talk of keeper-size bass around also but none biting as much as the fluke. Blackfish is now open and the Barnegat Inlet Jetty at the end of Island Beach State Park is a spot where anglers catch them because of the structure. Weigh-ins at the shop this week were all fluke and Gulp! baits seemed to be the ticket. Danny Prickett topped all catches with a 7.95-pound fluke. Other weigh-ins were from Joe Cassini with a 1.9-pound fluke, Don Brown with a 2.8-pound fluke, Greg Hryszko with a 2.1-pound fluke and Bob Hryszko with a 2.85-pound fluke. In the Barnegat Bay the crabbing has been consistently good Hansen added. John Bushell, Jr. of Betty and Nick’s Bait and Tackle in Seaside Park had some reports of anglers fishing the Barnegat Inlet. Bob Oxley had them one cast after another in the inlet, landing 14 fluke, however none were keepers. Brian K also fished the inlet and caught one shad, seven short fluke and one small bluefish. Brian was using the Gulp! sand eels. Darryl Zarichak fished the surf in Island Beach State Park and within a couple casts had a keeper 18-inch fluke on Gulp!. Zarichak said the keeper fluke was loaded with the crabs it was eating in the surf. Bushell added the crabbing in the bay continues to be good and there is light tackle action with snapper blues.
Courtesy APP.com
Dan Radel
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Dave’s Sinker Loop is another alternative to the array of loop knots that anglers use for attaching a sinker to a line or leader. This one is strong and can be tied in most leader and line materials, but it has no advantage over other knots in its group. It may be easier for some to tie and remember so it is worth considering.
Step 1: Dave’s Sinker Loop is begun by doubling the line or leader back to form a bight.
Step 2: Bring the bight, which is now a working loop, around and up perpendicular to the tag end and standing part which are parallel to each other. This forms a second loop.
Step 3: Bend the first loop over and down behind the standing part and tag end so that it extends well beyond the second loop.
Step 4: Pass the first loop through the second loop.
Step 5: Pinch the tag end and the standing part ahead of the forming knot and pull the first loop completely through the second loop until it is tight. Trim off the tag end, leaving and eighth-inch long tag.
Courtesy of APP.com
JIM HUTCHINSON
One aspect of fishing that many anglers do not get involved in is catching their own bait.
Most people fish for recreation and the opportunity to spend some time in the great outdoors. Catching your own bait can be a continuance of both of the above.
In addition to the fun involved in actually gathering the bait, there are a couple of other tangible benefits. First, you will be cutting down on the expenses of buying bait that sometimes is always not available.
Secondly, you will be assured of fishing with the very freshest bait. You will be using bait that is either still alive or same day fresh.
In considering the freshness factor, it is important that a bait gatherer take proper care of any bait he catches. If the goal is to use live bait, then there must be something available to keep the bait alive and healthy. If freshness is desired, then some form of cooler stocked with ice should be on hand.
Perhaps the easiest bait to gather yourself is a supply of live minnows for flounder fishing. Live minnows have long been a preferred bait for fluke, and gathering them can be a relatively easy task. One or two minnow traps and a bait bucket to keep them in is all you really need.
The actual task of catching minnows involves baiting a trap and placing it in an out of the way location where minnows are likely to be present. The bait can be squid, old fish parts, bread, or even human food such as bacon. The trap can be dropped off a dock or bulkhead or placed in one of the streams or ditches in the marshes.
Minnows, as well as spearing and grass shrimp, also can be caught with a seine net. A seine is a long net with wooden poles for handles at each end. This is a two-person operation as two people pull the seine through the water catching everything in its path.
The minnows should be kept alive, while the spearing, which die immediately after leaving the water, should be placed on ice. It can be interesting to look at the various creatures that may be caught in the seine including small crabs, baby fish, jellyfish and even seahorses.
Most local fish eat fresh clams, and they make great bait. Although you need a license to harvest clams, it is an easy task to catch a couple of dozen clams for bait.
In the spring of the year, schools of mossbunker swim by just off the beaches of Long Beach Island. Often striped bass and large bluefish will be feeding on them. Savvy anglers use large treble hooks to snag the bunker and use the swimming fish as bait.
Late in the summer large schools of baby mossbunker, called peanut bunker, invade our bay waters. A cast net is an effective tool to quickly catch a large number of peanut bunker when a school is spotted swimming on the surface of the water. Peanut bunker can be difficult to keep alive, but they do make good late season bait for large fluke and weakfish.
Other anglers use clam chum and light fishing tackle in the late summer to catch small fish called spots. The spots are kept alive in pens in the water until the fall migration of striped bass. Live spots are called bass candy.
Virtually all fish love to eat grass shrimp. It can be difficult sometimes to find live grass shrimp for bait. A long-handled scoop net with very small mesh in addition to seining can be used to catch these small shrimp. Just run the net along pilings and bulkheads to catch a supply of shrimp for bait.
The one drawback to catching your own bait as opposed to purchasing it at a bait and tackle shop is that you lose the opportunity to ask questions about where the best fishing is. However, if you know where you will be fishing, catching your own bait only adds to the enjoyment of fishing.
Courtesy of App.com
17 pound Striped Bass. Caught in Island Beach State Park. I used a fish finder rig and clams to hook this one. It took about 15 minutes to get onto the beach as it was low tide and I was using 12 pound test. Nevertheless a fun and enjoyable fight. Fish was released.
Caught aboard the Jamaica in August of 2009. It weighed in at a whopping 9.3 lbs. It won the overall pool on the charter boat by a measly 3/10 of a pound.
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