With the sudden arrival of summer, by the temperature and not the calendar, the fishing action really increased, as the mercury in the thermometer rose. Lots of fish you would expect this time of year, and in places you would expect, plus one from an unexpected place. Let’s getright into it.
Sterling Harbor Bait and Tackle get us started, as Cathy checks in for the first time this season.
Cathy echoed the feeling of the good weather kicking the fishing scene into high gear.
She mentioned improved flounder fishing in the back bays, weakfish arriving at the local jetties and good drum fishing during the week and the weekend off North Cape May and Villas as evidence. Also, the sea bass fishing got better at the Cape May Reef and the wrecksfarther out.
Jim Roberts weighed in his first-ever drum fish that hit 42 pounds on the store’s scale. Congratulations, Jim.
Other anglers who contacted the store with news of their big striped basswere Brandon Oleweiler, who caught and released 47 and 43-inch fish, and Jim DeLuca, who did the same with his 42 and 41-inch fish. Stripers can be caught along the Delaware Bay shore and the North Wildwood beachfront.
Following the latest full moon, blue claw crabs are out of the mud and are starting to be caught. Grab your traps and some bait and get out there.
The Sailor’s Delight was busy throughout the week but even more so over the weekend.
Plenty of flounder were caught, the anglers were busy, and some good keepers were also caught, providing a nice dinner for those with the hot hook.
Also, congratulations are in order for Capt. Andrew and his crew, as the Sailor’s Delight was named the 2022 Best of The Jersey Shore Gold Winner in the Charter Boats category.
Grassy Sound Marina reported some action off the pier recently. One angler landed a shark that, in the picture, appeared to be close to 3 feet long. Another angler, Carmen, landed a more traditional pier catch of a flounder that measured 19 inches. Maggie, the pier’s resident dog, kept an eye on the happenings.
The Sea Star III was busy during the past week with the opening of sea bass season, which saw plenty of keepers, including “some real nice ones” being caught, while their evening trips saw a “more consistent” drum fish bite.
Sea bass won all the daily pools and were claimed by Joe Weaver (3.10 pounds), Frank Servocky and Paul Bodkin (2.0 each), Dennis Seifert (2.5), Lisa Orsati-Wiker (1.85), and Mia Pfaff with a 1.9-pound fish.
Evening drum fish trip winners were John Snyder (40.52), Chris Gardner (52.06), and Jonathan Frasca with a 58.9-pounder.
The Miss Chris is also sailing by day for sea bass and by the late afternoon and evening for drum fish. They have been catching a good share of each. Check out their Facebook page for a list of scheduled trips.
Jim’s Bait and Tackle announced they will be hosting the “Jim’s Bait and Tackle Tuna Tourney” June 18. Call the shop or check out their Facebook page for rules and the entry fee.
Cape May Bait and Tackle was busy with weigh-ins and plenty of picture reports that were sent in. They also reported that big stripers were at the Cape May beaches and hitting clams, as well as bunker chunks. Weakfish are around the rock piles and drum are being caught in the Delaware Bay. Flounder are in the backwaters, while sea bass are being caught at thereefs and from various wrecks.
Anglers who identified themselves were Kevin, who checked in with a nice striper, plus a puppy drum, that he caught from the beachfront while using clams. The “Bryant boys”’ checked in while fishing in the bay where they caught a couple of drum fish.
An unidentified angler stopped in with a striper that was 37 inches and 18 pounds.
Hands Too Bait and Tackle had Joe check in with a striped bass he caught that hit his fresh bunker offering and had two anglers stop by with a drum fish that appeared to be in the 45-pound range but didn’t have a listed weight.
The Miss Avalon has been doing well with sea bass on both their regular trips and their eight or 10-hour extended trips. Check out their schedule as the longer trips are scattered in.
As with most boats, good forecasts allow for longer trips that are scheduled a few days in advance.
The Avalon Lady has been busy lately with good trips, as some nice flounder were caught. Friday’s trip had 10 keepers and Saturdays had eight, with Ed catching a 23-inch, 4.56-pound pool winner, while I had a 23.5-inch fish that was 4.05 pounds. After a couple of days off, they were back at it with a Wednesday morning trip that produced eight keepers despite a heavy breeze.
They sail every morning, except Tuesdays, from 8 a.m. until noon.
Boulevard Bait and Tackle reported many stripers being caught from the Sea Isle beaches. Karl and Ethan had a good father-son outing, the Fulleylove family bettered the rough surf while catching their stripers, Greg caught and released 41 and 43 fish after tagging them with ALS tags, Pete landed and released 42 and 30-inch fish during a night outing, Rich caught a 37.5-inch “dinner fish,” Bud measured and released a 40-incher and other catches were made by Tony T, Deano, and another angler named Tony.
Weakfish also made the scene, with Mike weighing in a 24-inch, 3.7-pounder and Ted catching one from the local surf while using a hunk of clam.
Mike Young (19 inches), Chris Poirier (20), Dean and John Mel with a back bay boat limit, and another Mike with a 24-incher, led the anglers who caught flounder.
Ted sent in a picture of two bluefish he caught, but the odd catch of the week went to Ted, who landed a sheepshead from the surf. That’s not something you see too often.
Sea Isle Bait and Tackle weighed in a 13-pound striped bass for Jim T., who put in his time before finally catching his keeper.
Special thanks for the reader submissions sent in by the Bransfields family, who fished on the Gone Fishin’ IV and had a good day on the drum fish grounds, and to Jim Hopp, who reported on a trip on the Melody Ann where he caught a nice drum fish and his friend Curtis Obriant caught a 50-inch, 50-pound striper. Obviously, due to its length, it was released after a photograph.
Well, it was a busy week. I hope you got to enjoy some time on the water, and if not, try to do it this week. Take care and I’ll see you around.
