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www.countmyfish.noaa.gov/register
The following link is for registering for Federal Purposes. You can also renew your prior license at the same link.
Christmas has come and gone, and I hope that everyone had a joyous and loving break from the trials and tribulations of our everyday life.
As Father Time leads us to the end of 2011, and we get ready to embark on a new year, this is a great time to take stock of what has been happening as well as looking forward to what might come.
Before sharing some of my resolutions for the New Year, let’s take a look at what 2011 brought us on the fishing scene locally. Rather than start at the beginning of the year, I want to talk about the great December striped bass action we have been enjoying right on up to Christmas.
I have been fishing these waters for close to 60 years, and this is the best run of December fishing that I have been a part of. A combination of warm water temperatures and an abundance of sand eels have kept a large population of stripers right off our beaches. Whereas December bass are usually smaller fish, this year we have been seeing keeper bass a regular happening.
Ironically, our bass bite in the bay waters was nowhere near as good as that in the ocean.
Flashing back to the spring, our run of striped bass was a bit slow in our bay waters, but there were several weeks when anglers were catching really big bass in the bunker schools. The best action this year was just north of Barnegat Inlet, off the sands of Island Beach State Park.
The big tiderunner weakfish, which traditionally show up in the spring to spawn, never showed in any appreciable numbers. I have long said that catching these breeding fish was not doing any good to the stocks.
Now the overall weakfish population is at a very low level, with anglers being permitted to keep one fish per day. The only good news I heard on the weakfish scene was a goodly number of spike weakies that showed up in the ocean in September and October.
Summer flounder fishing was pretty much a repeat of the last several years. The rigid fishing regulations and an 18-inch minimum size make it very difficult to catch keeper fluke. Many anglers continued to talk of catching as many as 50 fluke in a day with only one or two keepers in the entire mix. Our season was a little longer into September this year, but after Hurricane Irene passed through, the fluke seemed to leave the area.
There was a decent bite of blowfish in the spring, and these tasty little critters reappeared in August and September to provide some succulent fish dinners for savvy anglers.
Bluefish arrived on schedule in spring and stayed around into late November. Although these spunky fish provided action all summer, they did not seem to be around in the large numbers of some previous years. The head boats out of Barnegat that fished for bluefish did well on big choppers in both their day and night trips.
The wreck fishing activity was pretty productive most of the year when fishing was allowed. Overly restrictive black sea bass seasons and a one fish per day limit on blackfish knocked many bottom fishermen out of the box for many of the good fishing days.
When anglers were allowed to keep sea bass, the catches were decent. After the daily limits on blackfish increased in November, boats targeted them and limit catches were a regular occasion.
Anglers who enjoy crabbing were frustrated for the most part. I heard of some good action in the northern portion of Barnegat Bay, but the action from Barnegat south to Great Bay never really got going. Those who were willing to put several hours of crabbing in could catch a dozen or two, but full bushel catches were few and far between.
As mentioned earlier, this fall was a good one for striped bass. We never really got into the bigger fish this fall, but most fishermen had few complaints about the number of fish around.
2011 was the first year for the free New Jersey registry for saltwater anglers. The federal government decreed that there must be a registry system and urged the states to do it.
New Jersey took the lead in setting up a free registry system. Once we did it, New York rescinded its fee, and Maine instituted a free system. Although I did hear some grumbling about our registry, I think it went smoothly with little real inconvenience. Just remember that this is a yearly thing, and we must register again for 2012.
Now it is time for my resolutions. I don’t have to resolve to get out on the water more in the future. I get to spend plenty of time there. What I do resolve is to take more of my family and friends out with me.
Fishing is a passion of mine, and I intend to share that passion with more people in 2012. I can’t wait for the weather to break so I can get started.
James Hutch
Courtesy APP.COM
The big concentration of stripers that seemed stuck off Island Beach State Park have apparently moved north. Jack Monteiro at Surf Side Bait and Tackle in Long Branch said they’ve been getting bass on Avas and teasers from Long Branch to Sandy Hooks. Capt. Rob Semkewyc, of the Sea Hunter in Atlantic Highlands said the striper fishing has become a lot more consistent with bass feeding on sand eels. He’s catching keepers and shorts and even a few blues.
Courtesy APP.COM
Geri Demato at Jersey Joe’s Bait and Tackle said fluking is still hot in the surf. Anglers are using Gulp!, spearing and squid to land the fish. Little 1- and 2-pound cocktail blues are also biting in the surf Demato said. Anglers Dave Carluccio and Scott Kaufman, both of Toms River had a dozen blues on Hopkins and Crippled Herring metal lures. In the bay, Demato said the crabbing is fantastic with blue claws up to 6½ inches. Lou Antonis at Seaside Sam’s Bait and Tackle reports there are a lot of fluke running on both the bay side and in the surf. Tom Hansen at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle reports there is a night bite with 2- to 3-pound blues on metal. The shop also had a number of fluke weigh-ins from the boat My Honey II, which brought in four keeper fluke between 3 and 5 pounds. John Bushell at Betty and Nick’s Bait and Tackle also reported action with the bluefish. Bushell said anglers had them in the morning off the beach in the area of the Atlantic Bar and Grill and Area 7 on Island Beach State Park. The fish were hitting bait and metals. Bushell added that they had some reports of a few local schoolie-size bass in the water around the bathing beaches on IBSP. Jana Keslink at Grizz’s Bait and Tackle in Forked River said fluking remains decent in Barnegat Bay spots like the Double Creek Channel, the High Bar and the BB and BI buoys. Anglers are also catching blowfish in the bay on small hooks and clams. Out front anglers are catching sea bass on the Tires.
Courtesy APP.com
Ronny Bala at Fisherman’s Supply, Point Beach, reports boats are catching bluefin tuna in the Chicken Canyon. “The guys fishing around the scallop boats are doing pretty good,” Bala said. The Shearwater had non-stop action and brought eight bluefin tuna boat side while fishing in the canyon. Bala said the fluke fishing has been decent on the Sea Girt Reef. The shop has new 6-inch Gulp! swimming mullet in stock that are perfect for catching fluke. Capt. Willy Egerter of the Dauntless, Point Beach, said they’re picking some sea bass inshore and ling and codfish in the deeper water. Egerter said the sea bass bite is fair. Anglers are catching two to six keeper sea bass on the inshore spots. Most of their pool fish have been 5- to 8-pound codfish. At night, they’ve been finding bluefish drifting around the banks of the Mud Hole. Anglers are landing between two and 10 fish on the half-night trips. Capt. Matt Sosnowski of the Norma K III, Point Beach, said the night bluefish bite has been decent but the fish are starting to get a little finicky. “We’re seeing them in the water but there not biting sometimes,” Sosnowski said. Sosnowski said they had a couple good nights this week with the blues in the Mud Hole catching 7- to 12-pound fish. On the day fluke trips they’re landing fish drifting around the Sea Girt Reef. Capt. Jeff Gutman of the Voyager, Point Beach, reports the bottom fishing has been good with a mixture of sea bass, cod and ling. The high hooks have been 15 to 20 fish per trip. On one trip Andre and David Huwyler combined for 31 ling and 6 sea bass.
Courtesy APP.com
Jesse over at Fisherman’s Den in Belmar said the bass fishing finally slowed down. They’re still getting them on plugs in the morning, but the weigh ins have dropped off. The daytime blues have quieted down as well, but the night fishing has been good. He said the bluefish may be in their summer spawn. Capt. Chris Hueth of the Big Mohawk said the fluking was good all week with lots of fish. Fluke of up to 11 pounds were caught along with a bunch in the 5- to 8-pound-range. Capt. Ron Kish of the Capt. Cal II also reported a good week of fluke fishing in about 50 feet of water. Lois Plaska, Shark River Hills, took her first trip aboard the Capt. Cal II and won the pool with a 7-pound, 14-ounce fish, plus another at 6.8 pounds. Capt. John DeRose had the boat out when Carl Dienes, Whiting, landed a 10-pound, 14-ounce doormat. Capt. Howard Bogan of the Big Jamaica reported good bluefishing over the weekend, catching 7- to 14-pound blues chumming and on bait. Capt. Francis Bogan of the Paramount, Brielle, had two good deep water ling trips this past week followed by several days of mixed ling and sea bass on inshore trips. He reported sea bass fishing has still been from slow to fair depending on the day. He said he’s been mixing the trips with sea bass, ling and cod except for the Tuesday and Wednesday ling specials.
Courtesy APP.com
Inshore, the action is mostly with fluke from the beaches out into depths of 70 feet. The presence of sea bass is starting to pick up on pieces of structure but it’s far from drop and reel fishing.
Capt. Ryan Bogan of the Jamaica II, Brielle, reported the good fluke fishing seems to be holding up for most trips locally and off in the distance. Bogan said there seems to be a lot of new fish moving in a number of different areas from the beach out to 70 feet of water.
Barbara Berger, of Hamilton, won a fluke pool aboard the Jamaica II this week and took the early lead in the July monthly with a 7-pound 13-ounce fluke.
Capt. Willy Egerter of the Dauntless reports they have been starting their bottom fishing trips hopping about on the reefs and rock piles inshore trying to put a few sea bass in the buckets.
“The sea bass fishing is fair right now. Anglers are catching about 2 to 6 keeper size sea bass. After we catch what we can we head off into deeper water for ling and cod,” Egerter said.
The schools of bluefish are being found at their usual haunts such as the Barnegat Ridge, the Shrewsbury Rocks, and on the edges of the Mud Hole. The blues have been finicky at times in the Mud Hole and could perhaps be starting their spawn. Little cocktail- size blues are also hitting the surf in Seaside and Island Beach State Park. Anglers are catching them on metal.
Capt. Scott Hilliard of the Prowler 5, Atlantic Highlands, said he’s finding and jigging big blues, 12 to 15 pounds, on the Shrewsbury Rocks during his magic hour trips which depart at 3:30 p.m. and return at 9:30 p.m. Anglers have caught a couple striped bass on the evening trips to the rocks.
Capt. Matt Sosnowski of the Norma K III, Point Beach, reports they had some good nights drifting for blues in the area of the Mud Hole. Sosnowski said they had landings of blues in the 7 to 12 pound range. They are fishing with cut bunker and setting up chum lines to draw the fish in.
Capt. Charlie Eble of the Doris Mae IV said the night blue fishing is excellent on the Barnegat Ridge. Anglers are boating blues up to 15 and 16 pounds fishing with bait. Sean Clayton of Manahawkin won a pool on a night trip this past week with a 15-pound bluefish.
Offshore, the white marlin are starting to give anglers a thrill. Adam LaRosa of the Canyon Runner reports they had five white marlin landings this week out in the canyons while trolling. On one trip to the Lindenkohl Canyon, Captains Phil Dulaine and Koby Treadwell went for 3- for-6 on the elusive billfish on the morning troll.
Courtesy APP.com
Geri Damato at Jersey Joes Bait and Tackle said the fluking has been hot in the surf. “The first day of the summer Scott Kaufman had a 21-inch, 2½-pound fluke and two other keepers on squid and Gulp!” Demato said. She said the crabs are really starting to come in and there is nice size to them. “There have some blue claws up to 6¾ inches in the crab traps,” Damato added. Lou Antonis at Seaside Sams Bait and Tackle reports anglers he spoke with this week were fluke fishing in the surf where they’re starting to have a pretty good run of fish. Interest in crabbing in the Barnegat Bay is picking up also. “People are stopping in for crab traps and nets,” Antonis said. Tom Hansen at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle reports they had a bass weigh-in at the shop this week over 50 pounds. Shop employee Ray Kerico caught the striper from a boat snagging bunker. It weighed 51.2 pounds. Kerico also had a 47.35-pound bass from his kayak. The shop also had some other nice weigh-ins of fluke, bluefish and triggerfish. Hansen said the triggerfish are being caught in the Barnegat Inlet on clams. Jim Baron had two triggerfish that were both around 2 pounds. Pete Hiener weighed in another at 3 pounds. The fluke are starting to make their presence felt in the surf. A number of fish were brought in by anglers fishing with smelt, Gulp! and killies. Ronnie Fecak had the big fluke of the week, at 7.15-pounds. John Picaroni had a pair of fluke at 3.9 and 3.1 pounds and Pete Hallihan had one at 3 pounds. Out of the blues angler Phil LaGrossa weighed in a 10.15-pound bluefish he caught on a bunker. Over at Betty and Nicks Bait and Tackle John Bushell also reports the triggerfish are biting in the Barnegat Inlet along with some fluke. Anglers this week spotted a big school of bunker with some bass ripping through them from Island Beach State Park just off Two Bit Road but Bushell said the fish were too far off the beach to be caught from the surf. Anglers did catch some stripers during the week and Bushell added he had an angler bring in a 16-pound striped bass.
Capt. Charlie Eble of the Doris Mae IV, Barnegat Light, reports night blue fishing remains excellent with fish running 8 to 12 pounds. Some of the pool winners on the night trips this week were Anthony Kilpatrick, Allentown, with a 12-pound bluefish and Ed Bradford, Crum Lynn, Pa., with an 11-pound bluefish. On the daily fluke trips, Capt. Eble said the fishing slowed up a bit but they’re getting nice pool fish. Some pool winners were Pete Bonilla, Whiting, with a 4-pound fluke, Keith Wisner, Collingswood, with a 5-pound fluke and Nicky Mielewski, Bayville, with a 3½-pound fluke. Capt. Dave DeGennaro of the Hi Flier is on the trail of the bonito and bluefin tuna again. The captain found both species on a trip out to the Barnegat Ridge. The bonito were caught on a troll with a spread of eight rods. The bonito were little 4 pounders. The bluefin tuna was caught on a diamond jig by Bob Diener, Nanuet, N.Y. The tuna weighed 20 pounds. DeGennaro also made morning and afternoon trips for stripers putting his anglers into 30- and 40-pound bass. Angler Gene Linder had a 30 and 42 pounder fishing the pods. Capt. DeGennaro even had a 40 pounder himself taking time to drop a line in the water. Jeff Bauer of the Carolyn Ann III reports mostly 4- and 5-pound fluke won their pools this week. Pete Rudolph of Mahwah had the biggest fish of the week, a 5.5-pound fluke. Some other pool winners were Nick Perrone, Levittown, Pa., with a 5-pound fluke and Tony Boonstra, Cedar Grove, with a 4.1-pound fluke. Capt. Jack Shea of the Rambunctious is on the trail of the fluke. This week angler Rachel Synder landed a 21-inch fluke on board with Shea. Capt. John Koegler of Pop’s Pride, Beach Haven, drifted the Intercoastal Waterway and had reported three keeper fluke among many throwbacks. On a trip out front in the ocean, Koegler trolled up one 45-inch bluefin tuna. Scott Albertson of Scott’s Bait and Tackle said anglers are doing pretty good fishing for fluke in Grassy Channel.
Courtesy APP.com
Ronny Bala at Fisherman’s Supply said there is solid bluefin fishing in the Chicken Canyon. The area is holding a lot of life in the way of sandeels, whales and dolphins. The bluefin in the area are in the 60-pound range. Down off the Barnegat Inlet, Bala said there are triggerfish biting on the rocks and off the beaches fluke are hitting Gulp! baits. “Bass fishing is settling down but they are catching them on the Shrewsbury Rocks with bunker heads. There’s also some blues there,” Bala said. In the surf, the bass made a showing at Normady Beach and anglers are catching them at night with plugs and teasers. Capt. Bob Bogan on the Gambler reports the fluke fishing has been pretty good with anglers catching one, two or three keepers along with action from the throwback undersized fluke. They’ve had pool fish close to 6 pounds. The boat will be fishing for night stripers on Friday and Saturday and ling fishing Sunday night. Capt. Jeff Gutman of the Voyager is still making the run for codfish. The average landings on his latest trip were two to six cod per angler. Steve Stingler, Philadelphia, had 10 cod and took the pool with a 16-pound cod. On the ling and sea bass weekend trips Gutman said they are starting to see a little more presence from the sea bass. Capt. Ken Keller of the Norma K III reports the night bluefish trips have been very good. Anglers have been able to catch all the blues they can keep. Adam LaRosa of the Canyon Runner reports an excellent yellowfin bite this week. On one trip they brought boat side 30 yellowfin, keeping 13 and releasing the rest. The fish were caught on the troll and with jigs. Some of the yellowfin were in the 90 to 100 pound range. They also saw some action from white marlin, mako sharks and some mahi. Tommy Kilgannon at Pell’s Bait and Tackle reported a couple big striper weigh-ins. Bill Rodman landed a 52 pounder fishing with Dave D-Anna, who had a 37 pounder. The duo was fishing from a boat off Mantoloking. Matt Pharrell also had a 30-pound striped bass fishing from his kayak. The fluke bite is decent around the south end of the Sea Girt Reef. The fluke are also biting in the Manasquan River. It’s mostly a lot of shorts with a few keepers, but the action is steady. The blue claws are really starting to come alive. Kilgannon reported Bob Phillips had 6 to 8 dozen crabs in a few hours from Barnegat Bay. The light tackle action for small blues is good also in many places in the Barnegat Bay.
Geri Damato at Jersey Joes Bait and Tackle said the fluking has been hot in the surf. “The first day of the summer Scott Kaufman had a 21-inch, 2½-pound fluke and two other keepers on squid and Gulp!” Demato said. She said the crabs are really starting to come in and there is nice size to them. “There have some blue claws up to 6¾ inches in the crab traps,” Damato added. Lou Antonis at Seaside Sams Bait and Tackle reports anglers he spoke with this week were fluke fishing in the surf where they’re starting to have a pretty good run of fish. Interest in crabbing in the Barnegat Bay is picking up also. “People are stopping in for crab traps and nets,” Antonis said. Tom Hansen at Grumpy’s Bait and Tackle reports they had a bass weigh-in at the shop this week over 50 pounds. Shop employee Ray Kerico caught the striper from a boat snagging bunker. It weighed 51.2 pounds. Kerico also had a 47.35-pound bass from his kayak. The shop also had some other nice weigh-ins of fluke, bluefish and triggerfish. Hansen said the triggerfish are being caught in the Barnegat Inlet on clams. Jim Baron had two triggerfish that were both around 2 pounds. Pete Hiener weighed in another at 3 pounds. The fluke are starting to make their presence felt in the surf. A number of fish were brought in by anglers fishing with smelt, Gulp! and killies. Ronnie Fecak had the big fluke of the week, at 7.15-pounds. John Picaroni had a pair of fluke at 3.9 and 3.1 pounds and Pete Hallihan had one at 3 pounds. Out of the blues angler Phil LaGrossa weighed in a 10.15-pound bluefish he caught on a bunker. Over at Betty and Nicks Bait and Tackle John Bushell also reports the triggerfish are biting in the Barnegat Inlet along with some fluke. Anglers this week spotted a big school of bunker with some bass ripping through them from Island Beach State Park just off Two Bit Road but Bushell said the fish were too far off the beach to be caught from the surf. Anglers did catch some stripers during the week and Bushell added he had an angler bring in a 16-pound striped bass.
Capt. Charlie Eble of the Doris Mae IV, Barnegat Light, reports night blue fishing remains excellent with fish running 8 to 12 pounds. Some of the pool winners on the night trips this week were Anthony Kilpatrick, Allentown, with a 12-pound bluefish and Ed Bradford, Crum Lynn, Pa., with an 11-pound bluefish. On the daily fluke trips, Capt. Eble said the fishing slowed up a bit but they’re getting nice pool fish. Some pool winners were Pete Bonilla, Whiting, with a 4-pound fluke, Keith Wisner, Collingswood, with a 5-pound fluke and Nicky Mielewski, Bayville, with a 3½-pound fluke. Capt. Dave DeGennaro of the Hi Flier is on the trail of the bonito and bluefin tuna again. The captain found both species on a trip out to the Barnegat Ridge. The bonito were caught on a troll with a spread of eight rods. The bonito were little 4 pounders. The bluefin tuna was caught on a diamond jig by Bob Diener, Nanuet, N.Y. The tuna weighed 20 pounds. DeGennaro also made morning and afternoon trips for stripers putting his anglers into 30- and 40-pound bass. Angler Gene Linder had a 30 and 42 pounder fishing the pods. Capt. DeGennaro even had a 40 pounder himself taking time to drop a line in the water. Jeff Bauer of the Carolyn Ann III reports mostly 4- and 5-pound fluke won their pools this week. Pete Rudolph of Mahwah had the biggest fish of the week, a 5.5-pound fluke. Some other pool winners were Nick Perrone, Levittown, Pa., with a 5-pound fluke and Tony Boonstra, Cedar Grove, with a 4.1-pound fluke. Capt. Jack Shea of the Rambunctious is on the trail of the fluke. This week angler Rachel Synder landed a 21-inch fluke on board with Shea. Capt. John Koegler of Pop’s Pride, Beach Haven, drifted the Intercoastal Waterway and had reported three keeper fluke among many throwbacks. On a trip out front in the ocean, Koegler trolled up one 45-inch bluefin tuna. Scott Albertson of Scott’s Bait and Tackle said anglers are doing pretty good fishing for fluke in Grassy Channel.
Courtesy APP.com
Courtesy APP.com
Fishing Reports
