Surf fishermen landing striped bass off Ocean County's beaches
There hasn't been too much development in the spring striped bass run over the course of this week. In other words, it's trotting along.
Fishermen had a pretty slow bite in the Raritan Bay. Capt. Alan Lee's Mushin charter boat was able to get several bass to hit on the troll on Sunday. That had followed a couple days of wind that had stirred up the coastal waters. The boat was back out Tuesday and landed two keepers after a full day on the bay.
Mike Pento at Giglio's Tackle in Sea Bright said the kayak fishermen are marking bass in the Shrewsbury and Navesink rivers but the fish are not jumping in the boat, so to say. He also said there is a lack of bunker in the rivers. The full moon is next Tuesday and perhaps that could stir the fish up. As of now, fishermen really need to put the time in.
Surf fishermen along the Ocean County beaches and barrier islands are catching some bass in the surf on clams, mostly. There are blitzes yet, as its just been a singular fish here and there to speak of. But fish are out nosing around in the troughs.
More: Spring Run: Striped bass hit in the surf, black drum invade bays
Grumpy's Tackle in Seaside Park had a fishermen report directly from the beach. The angler was Wayne Kuehler who sent the shop a photo of the 30-inch bass he caught dunking clams. That was on Tuesday. The next day and further south, Jingle's Bait & Tackle in Beach Haven on Long Beach Island weighed in Pat Gallen's 8-pound striper he caught off the beach in Surf City using salted clam.
The black drum are "keeping everyone on their toes" in Barnegat Bay, according to Grumpy's, thought the initial drum madness seems to have tapered off, there are still quite a few around. The shop last's reported drum catch was on Wednesday.
More: What's biting: get the latest fishing reports here
The boats fishing the wrecks and rock piles for spring blackfish had fairly good action. The Big Mohawk party boat was out a couple of times this week and picked away just about everywhere they went with shorts and keepers mixed in. There were anglers who managed to catch their daily bag limit of four tog and a few others that came close to it.
The great white sharks are swimming up the coast. The first Ocearch-tagged white shark to reach this latitude was a 13 footer nicknamed Mahone. That shark never came inshore though, taking a route offshore of the canyons. It was up by New England as of Thursday, but others sharks are not too far behind and could be in Jersey waters soon.
When Jersey Shore native Dan Radel is not reporting the news, you can find him in a college classroom where he is a history professor. Reach him @danielradelapp; 732-643-4072; dradel@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: NJ fishing: First surf-caught striped bass hitting in Ocean County
