NJ Fish On - Fishing in New Jersey » Island Beach State Park

Raritan Bay — Continued

Al Ristori — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 21:36:00 +0000

By Al Ristori

May 02, 2010, 10:08PM

Due to some technical problem, paragraphs from Sunday’s blog were stripped in transmission.

Dave Lilly of Hazlet quickly limited his crew by trolling Stretch plugs from his center console out of Angler’s Marine at Sea Bright in Raritan Bay. Hank Fister, who’ll be celebrating his 83rd birthday during the week, was aboard along with Al Tumolo and Keith Bielfin.

Capt. Jack Shea trolled the small Maja spoon off Island Beach State Park on Friday to boat a striper just over 40 pounds and another just under 30 pounds from his Rambunctious. Shea reports that Barnegat Bay stripers are starting to hit clams, and that the bay is full of 3-to-5-pound blues plus some much larger choppers, such as those up to 15 pounds that went through Double Creek Channel last week.

Allen Riley of South Plainfield had no hits Friday morning in the Sandy Hook surf before leaving his clams with Lou Vargas of Fanwood when he went home. Vargas then used that bait to land a 34-inch bass.

Capt. Jeff Gutman of the Voyager from Point Pleasant said Friday’s cod trip was very successful as about 50 cod were boated, and anglers averaged three to six plus shorts. Bob Brinton of Oceanport won the pool with a 25-pounder, which was also his first cod. Gutman will sail for cod the first three Fridays in May.

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Raritan Bay heats up

Al Ristori — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:35:12 +0000

By Al Ristori

May 02, 2010, 7:58PM

While Sunday’s ocean striper fishing generally left much to be desired, Raritan Bay continued to produce plenty of bass. Capt. Sal Cursi of Cathy Sea at Sewaren said he didn’t have to go far in order to catch all the stripers his party from Canada could handle on both live bunkers and by trolling Stretch plugs. Most of the bass are the same teen-size stripers that dominate in the ocean, but they ranged up to 20 pounds today.

Fleets of boats were running all along the Shore seeking signs of bass in a choppy sea. but results weren’t generally good. There was a report about a better bite off Asbury Park, but I haven’t been able to confirm that.

Capt. Hans Kaspersetz took his friend, Dave Marrazzo of Middletown with his sons David (12) abd Jake (9) out on Sheri Berri from Baker’s Marina on the Bay out to the ocean. Shrewsbury Rocks had been a productive area Saturday, but there was nothing doing there — and a call about a shot of action off the Red Church came too late to get into that brief shot. There were some marks off the Highlands Bridge, where the farther jigged a 33-inch striper that Jake reeled in. Trolling then produced a short just under 28 inches on a bunker spoon for David — but that was it despite many marks in the area.

Tony Arcabascio of Bayville had heard of a striper bite off Seaside on Saturday, so he ran his Maja to the Ferris Wheel and trolled a 28-pound striper on his Maja bunker spoon. There wasn’t anything showing there, and with no more action in the fleet he ran to good reports off Island Beach State Park where a 31-pounder was trolled in increasingly rough seas.

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Stripers hitting jigs to the east

Al Ristori — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 09:36:56 +0000

By Al Ristori

April 29, 2010, 8:32PM

Party boats running to the east from Atlantic Highlands had great striper jigging Thursday, with lots of large bass among them. Capt. Rob Semkewyc of the Sea Hunter and Capt. Scotty Hilliard of the Prowler reported finding lots of bird action and bass that hit jigs readily.

Capt. Bud McArthur didn’t have such good news further south as he fished from Spring Lake to Lavallette on his Splinter from Brick without any success while hardly marking any fish or bait.

A surfcaster spotted a massive school of dolphins off Manasquan blasting into a school of bunkers during the morning..

Shore fishing wasn’t as good as on Wednesday. There were no surf reports from northern Monmouth County, and I saw only one bluefish caught on a jig late in the afternoon at Manasquan Inlet — where it had been very good the previous evening. Nick Honachefsky of Normandy Beach only picked at blues in Island Beach State Park around noon — in contrast to Wednesday’s red hot surface plugging. He could see schools of blues crossing the outer bar in clear waters, but they didn’t want plugs. He did manage some on bunker chunks, and by working a Deadly Dick slowly over the bottom. John Green of Brick got there at the end of the bite, but reported blues were hitting in the inlet earlier in the morning. He later found out that both blues and bass hit lures in the park during early afternoon.

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Blues please shore anglers

Al Ristori — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 21:36:08 +0000

By Al Ristori

April 28, 2010, 8:26PM

Big bluefish have been working their way within range of shore fishermen the last couple of days. It was an all-out blitz Wednesday at Island Beach State Park. Nick Honachefsky of Normandy Beach and Mickey Melchiondo threw popping plugs in the afternoon for 53 blues, as choppers hit on almost every cast. In addition, they caught two stripers on clams — a keeper and a 26-incher that was tagged and released.

I stopped by at Manasquan Inlet during mid-afternoon, started casting an A.O.K. peanut bunker jig blind, and soon had a 10-pound bluefish hooked. With no net available, I had to try lifting it over the seawall — which didn’t work. After that I rerigged with a double line in the braid plus a long 60-pound leader that I could reach for lifting — and had no more problem making releases of the large blues. Quite a few anglers showed up and had good action for a short period in a very strong northwest wind blowing against an incoming tide in a rough inlet. Similar action was also reported at Shark River Inlet.

Allen Riley of South Plainfield didn’t see anything like that in the Sandy Hook surf. It was very cold there in the morning, with blowing sand that got into everything — and fishing was dead.

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Balance of Friday's column

pokerchi — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:25:12 +0000

Following is the balance of Friday’s column that didn’t make print:

Joe Blaze of Brielle released a 30-inch bass while fly fishing Sunday morning after we walked on at Island Beach State Park, but that was the only fish we saw caught..

At Seaside Park, Don Hieb of Milford weighed in a 19-pound striper Sunday at Betty & Nick’s. Eric Green took over the winter tournament at Grumpy’s Tackle on Tuesday by weighing in bass of 17.9 and 15.1 pounds.

Bruce Vitale of Piscataway and Mike Obuch from Bridgewater had fine ling fishing Monday aboard the Gambler, and added a 5-pound cod, but had to release four out-of-season sea bass, Vitale praised the Gambler’s mates who helped customers with dogfish that were a problem early before the last drop produced lots of ling.Vitale fished aboard the Ocean Explorer from Belmar on Wednesday at 17 Fathoms. Anglers seeking the pool caught a few blackfish on crabs, but Vitale said ling fishing was much more productive.

Tom Paglioroli’s fiancée, Denise Marie Theiler, once again outfished him as she boated a 12-pounder plus a 7-pound tog and two smaller keepers Sundayat two small wrecks 14 to 15 miles offshore on Capt. Tom Ferrarra’s TWrecks Charters from Little Egg Harbor.

At Brielle, the Jamaica reported very good ling fishing Sunday along with a few cod. Chris Anderson of Somerset had a 17-pound cod. The Jamaica sails the next two days from 4 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Capt. Joe Bogan reported finding a wreck on Sunday with his Jamaica II that was loaded with porgies as well as ling. Trevor Daniels of Mt. Holly boated a 25 ½-pound cod. Adam Nowak from Passaic had eight cod up to14 pounds. Chris Molinari of North Haledon totaled four cod, a bucket of ling, and lots of porgies. The next 14-hour trip sails tomorrow at 3 a.m.

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Tuna jumping — mackerel & ling cooperate– Garden State Show opens

pokerchi — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:24:12 +0000

This January is one for the books! Capt. Arthur Stokes was trying to troll bluefin tuna surfacing this morning in 60 feet of water off the Spring Lake Hotel from his Fintastic out of Clarks Landing in Point Pleasant. What are tuna doing here in the middle of the winter?

From a catching standpoint, mackerel and ling are much better bets. Capt. Jimmy Elliott of the Golden Eagle from Belmar had another good day with mackerel, as most fares had about 100 mackerel on the east side of the Mud Hole. Elliott said there was no drift in the light morning wind, and dogfish were a problem — but it was still good fishing. Unfortunately, the easterly wind and rain will probably eliminate that fishing for a day.

Bruce Vitale of Piscataway fished aboard the Ocean Explorer from Belmar, and reported good ling action plus some tautog.

You can’t prove it by me, but there are still some stripers around. Grumpy’s Tackle in Seaside Park reported that their winter contest had a new leader Tuesday when Eric Green weighed in two bass of 17.9 and 15.1 pounds.

Joe Blaze of Brielle and I walked on at Island Beach State Park in the morning and cast into a calm, clear sea with just a 3-foot swell. It was a great morning to be on the beach, and cormorants were picking up some sand eels, but we never had a hit. The only other angler there did get one light tap. I also tried casting a plug into the building east wind in the evening at Point Pleasant with the same lack of results.

A better place to be on Thursday will be at the Garden State Outdoor Sportsmen’s Show in Raritan Center, Edison. That show runs through Sunday at the Expo Center. Go to www.gsoss.com for information and directions. I’ll have more about the show tomorrow, and will be doing seminars there Saturday and Sunday.

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Golden Eagle hits mackerel on first trip

pokerchi — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:50:45 +0000

Capt. Jimmy Elliott got the winter mackerel season started today on the Golden Eagle from Belmar. There were just spurts of jigging action, though the high hook had 75 to 100 of the small to mediums. There were also plenty of herring, and spiny dogfish weren’t a problem for those who kept their rig off bottom. One bluefish was also hooked. Elliott expects to do better on Sunday as he’l be concentrating on the portions of the Mud Hole that produced best.

The Jamaica from Brielle had very good ling fishing today, plus a few cod up to a 10-pounder. Sunday’s trip is from 4 a.m. to 5 p.m. Call 732 528-5014 for reservations.

Striped bass are still a possibility in the surf. Joe Blaze of Brielle and I walked on at Island Beach State Park this morning. I released a short and dropped another on a Tsunami Halograpic Sand Eel. John Miller used the same lure just north of me to release a 30 1/2-inch bass. Blaze didn’t have any luck on fly tackle in a very strong current running to the north. It was a pleasure to fish in the mild weather, but the surf was surprisingly rough for virtually no wind.

Betty & Nick’s in Seaside Park reported that Ron Tremblay of Howell kept bass of 9 and 11 pounds in the park, and released a 17-pounder on a schoolbus Bomber. That shop also knew of a 12-pounder at Lavallette and of some shorts at 2-Bit Road.

Bob Correll of Bay Head fished locally to break the ice for the new season with a short on metal at his local beach.

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Mackerel still the best bet

pokerchi — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:46:45 +0000

The winter mackerel run is well underway. Capt. Jimmy Elliott of the Golden Eagle from Belmar said this morning’s drift was too fast at 1.7 knots in a 20 mph west wind, but they still had good action in 70-to-80-foot depths near Ambrose. By the end of the day most anglers had 100 mackerel, though they’re mostly mediums — with only a few large mixed in so far. Elliott said action was faster Monday, when Capt. Rich Falcone had better drifting conditions. Two anglers filled their box on the Golden Eagle with about 300 mackerel. Wednesday’s morning weather looks good, but there are gale warnings for Thursday.

Joe Blaze of Brielle and I walked on at Island Beach State Park this morning to find a fairly calm surf with crystal clear waters, but no sign of fish. Cormorants were picking up sand eels, though that sign didn’t pan out.

Betty & Nick’s in Seaside Park reported a keeper was weighed in from that town. Nick Kolodiy of Brick said inothing was doing in Bay Head both morning and afternoon despite the clear water, light winds, and relatively mild temperatures.

Bad news from Trenton. The Speaker didn’t post the Pots off the Reefs bill despite the fact that over half the Assembly members are signed on as co-sponsors. Reef Rescue will have to start from scratch in the next session.

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Mackerel hot at Ambrose

pokerchi — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:45:45 +0000

Capt. Jimmy Elliott called from the Golden Eagle out of Belmar this afternoon to report he’s found the concentration of mackerel after just picking in the Mud Hole yesterday. A move to Ambrose produced coolers full of medium mackerel. The Golden Eagle is sailing daily at 7 a.m. for mackerel.

Capt. Mike Copeman of Renegade from Point Pleasant said the hot afternoon striper bite north of Shark River Inlet dropped off the last two days. Another boat got into stripers earlier in the day at Shrewsbury Rocks, and the Renegade caught acouple of bass after the hot bite was over. Copeman will continue to fish the afternoons when those stripers have been hitting. Art Berkman was the angler who jigged the 40-pounder on the Renegade during Friday afternoon’s trip. He used a T-Hex jig.

Joe Blaze of Brielle had already caught and released a striper of about 30 inches on his fly rod after walking on at Island Beach State Park before I even got there after rigging my rod. Blaze said the bass hardly fought, as he was able to strip it in rather than reeling in the clack line to fight it on the fly rod. There were lots of anglers enjoying another great day on the beach, but I saw only one other fish hooked — and it got off.

Bruce Vitale of Piscataway fished aboard the Gambler from Point Pleasant with Mike Obuch from Bridgewater as they had a fine catch of ling after the first few drops weren’t productive. Vitale, who noted that the mates were very helpful when spiny dogfish interfered, also had a 5-pound cod, a conger (silver eel), and an ocean pout. A few sea bass were also caught, but had to be returned as the season is closed.

Capt. Joe Bogan fished a wreck today that was loaded with porgies. The Jamaica II from Brielle also had cod up to a 25 1/2-pounder by Trevor Daniels of Mt. Holly — plus ling. The next 14-hour trip departs at 3 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 14. Thursday’s trip produced 30 or more ling per person. Kevin Matysik of Perth Amboy bagged 81 ling and one cod.

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Stripers still available to the north

pokerchi — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 00:55:20 +0000

It may be all over but the shouting for boaters, but striped bass are still available in January. The Fishermen and Sea Hunter have finished their seasons in Atlantic Highlands, and the Golden Eagle made it’s last striper trip from Belmar today. Capt. Rich Falcone found little life to the south before turning around and heading north into some action. Nearly 30 shorts were released, but six keepers came aboard. Capt. Jimmy Elliott will begin running the Golden Eagle at 7 a.m. Saturday for mackerel. None have been caught locally so far, but there have been some reports from the east. Mackerel are overdue for the winter run, and the water temperature is right for them to be in the Mud Hole. Elliott said it was the same thing during the last warm winter, when mackerel didn’t show until January — but the season then ran much later into the winter.

The Gambler from Point Pleasant will stick with stripers through Friday.

Betty & Nick’s Tackle in Seaside Park had reports of a few stripers being caught in Island Beach State Park this morning. I made a brief attempt in the Point Pleasant surf when I saw Roy Heartley plug the second of his two shorts. A couple of others were also caught along the beach, and I got one hit on a Tsunami Halographic Sand Eel.

Capt. Pete Meyers, of Run-Off Lure Co., made his annual Jan. 1 trip for big blackfish Sunday on a friend’s boat out of Manasquan Inlet. There were no huge tog that day, and hardly any at all on Sea Girt Reef. A move to to the Axel Carlsen Reef produced a decent catch, including some 4-to-5-pounders.

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