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