New Jersey Fishing Reports

Capt. Joe Baumle from Sour Kraut Sportfishing from Leonardo just returned from fishing for giant bluefin tuna from Prince Edward Island in Canada, he said. The fishing was phenomenal, and abundant bluefins gathered only 10 to 15 miles from shore. Land could be seen. Bluefins 400 and 500 pounds jumped from the water. Any offshore angler should visit, he said. He fished on a commercial trip that bagged a 500-pounder, and a charter that released three bluefins including a 700-pounder. An 800-pounder was reportedly landed the day he left. Commercial fishing can only bag the first bluefin hooked on the trip. Charter fishing is essentially catch-and-release, because charters with a permit can only bag one giant a year. Joe flew to the island, and one of the mates from Sour Kraut drove. Driving took 15 hours.

A trip for mahi mahi tackled 42 on Tuesday, 25 miles off Sandy Hook, on livelined peanut bunker with Manicsportfishing from Keyport, Capt. Greg said. Another trip was going to fish for them today, before the forecasted rough weather. The trips are limited to four anglers. Mahi have been abundant. When peanuts were tossed to structure like a buoy for chum, a swarm appeared, like from nowhere. On one of Greg’s fluke trips this week, a 280- to 300-pound sandtiger shark was caught and released. In 50 feet of water!

Capt. Wayne O’Neil from Twin Light Marina in Highlands, Capt. Chris Bauer and Alex Bender boated tuna, skipjacks and mahi mahi at the Triple Wrecks on the Old Gray Mare on a trip, Marion from the marina wrote in an email. Twin Lights, located on Shrewsbury River near Raritan Bay and the ocean, with no bridges before them, includes a marina with boat slips, dry storage, a fuel dock, and a combined bait-and-tackle shop and ship’s store. Baits stocked include those for offshore. The fuel dock is available 24 hours a day with a credit card.

Everybody fished for mahi mahi this week, because the dolphin showed up, said Johnny O. from Fisherman’s Den North in Atlantic Highlands. Now rough weather was moving in, and anglers will see if that changes fishing, including for mahi. Stormy weather is forecast for the weekend. If the year’s first hurricane shoves into the East Coast next week like is possible, rough weather could last into next week. Late summer’s storms are arriving! The changing seasons. Let’s hope for no hurricanes, of course. All baits are stocked, including for offshore.

Shark River Inlet

***Update, Friday, 9/14:*** The year’s first <a href="https://www.goldeneaglefishing.com/tunafish" target="_blank">tuna trip</a> is set for Sunday on the party boat Golden Eagle from Belmar.

Manasquan Inlet

An open-boat trip crushed yellowfin tuna, including on popper lures and jigs, Sunday with Mushin Sportfishing from Point Pleasant Beach, Mushin’s Facebook page said. The trip was scheduled to fish overnight. But so many tuna were caught – “filled the boxes,” the page said – that the trip headed home in late afternoon. At first, in the morning, the tuna were trolled. But they were so abundant, so the boat was stopped on them, and more were clobbered on Madd Mantis poppers, Sting-O jigs and chunks of bait. The trip limited out, and the anglers grew tired of catching and releasing more. “Nice quality Yellowfin to 80#!” the page said. The trip also nailed some “beautiful mahi off a piece of flotsam,” it said. Charters are fishing, and open-boat trips for tuna have been added for Sept. 22 to 23 and 29 to 30.

Tuna fishing is booked for this weekend on the Tin Knocker from Point Pleasant but might be weathered out, Capt. John said. Stormy weather is forecast, and afterward, a hurricane could slam the East Coast next week. But tuna trips are running on the vessel. Inshore fishing for tuna still seemed better than offshore, for now at least. The previous tuna trip aboard, covered in the previous report here, trolled six yellowfin tuna. That was mid-shore, 70 miles from port, on side-winders and spreader bars.

A bluefin tuna or a yellowfin tuna was caught here and there at the Chicken Canyon, Alex from The Reel Seat in Brielle said on Sunday. Farther from shore, white marlin fishing was the best in a decade. In a tournament last weekend, catches of the marlin included more than 20 in a trip. Dave from the shop on Thursday said bonito, Spanish mackerel and king mackerel were fought at places like Little Italy to between the Klondike and Shrewsbury Rocks, not far from shore. Plenty of mahi mahi gathered a pot buoys, he said. Many white marlin gathered at Hudson and Toms canyons, he said, but also gathered throughout waters like that to canyons down south. Dave tilefished on a party boat at Wilmington Canyon on Monday, and whites swam that water. The tilefishing was good, and he drilled all of his on slow-pitch jigs. Dave’s an avid tilefisher, and even books party boat trips for tiles that sometimes anglers are welcome to join throughout the season. Call the store for info. The shop even sells a <a href=" http://www.fishingreportsnow.com/Product.Reviews.2012/The.Reel.Seat.Custom.Tilefish.Rod.cfm" target="_blank">custom tilefish rod</a> that might be the only available off-the-shelf. The store also carries the variety of slow-pitch jigs and the reels and rods to fish them. That is the first slow-pitch tilefishing reported on this website ever. The shop can educate you about the jigging.

It’s time! The year’s first tuna trip will sail Sept. 17 on the Gambler from Point Pleasant Beach, and room is available, the party boat’s website said. The trips are already filling, and do fill up, so book them. See the <a href=" http://www.gamblerfishing.net/offshoretrips.php" target="_blank">tuna schedule</a> on Gambler’s website for info, including about reservations.

Barnegat Inlet

***Update, Friday, 9/14:*** <a href=" http://missbarnegatlight.com/offshore-tuna-trips/
" target="_blank">Tuna trips</a>, sailing 30 hours, will be launched Sept. 22 on the party boat Miss Barnegat Light.

A trip on the Super Chic from Barnegat Light was going to sail offshore Sunday night, trying to get into the good white marlin fishing that was happening, Capt. Ted said before the outing.

Great Egg Harbor Inlet

The only offshore reports were about lots of white marlin to the north, said Justin from Fin-Atics in Ocean City. No fish like bonito schooled inshore locally. They always seem only to show up farther south like at 5-Fathom Bank and farther north.

Townsend’s Inlet

Four mahi mahi were trolled, several jumped off and some false albacore, big ones, were also trolled Monday inshore aboard, said Capt. Joe Hughes from Jersey Cape Guide Service from Sea Isle City, affiliated with Sea Isle Bait & Tackle. Fun fishing, and this has been a good season for the angling. He wanted to fish for white marlin soon, but weather looked rough. Keep up with Joe’s fishing on <a href="http://captainjoehughes.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Jersey Cape’s Blog</a>.

Cape May Inlet

Mahi mahi fishing picked off a bunch Monday 30 miles from shore on the troll, not as many as on the previous trip, but scoring okay on the Heavy Hitter from Cape May, Capt. George said. Trips are also trolling 5-Fathom Bank for plenty of bluefish and some bonito, Spanish mackerel and king mackerel. That was the mix of fish George heard about in past days.

A trip for marlin Wednesday went 3 for 7 on whites and broke off a 300-pound blue at the canyons in 100 fathoms with Fishin’ Fever Sportfishing from Cape May, Capt. Tom said. Then the trip tilefished, but only on half a drift, because two pods of tuna were seen. The trip went after the tuna, but they disappeared. Still, the tilefishing cranked up five goldens and three rosefish. The biggest goldens weighed 43, 27 and 23 pounds. Daytime swordfishing trips will begin on this month’s full moon. The fishing should begin to be great then. Swordfishing during daylight is common to the south like in Florida. Tom is pioneering the fishing locally. The trips fish the bottom in deep water for the light-sensitive swords. The trips first tilefish, then get after the billfish. Charters and open-boat trips are sailing.

Tuna fishing was pretty sporadic in warm water at places like the Elephant Trunk, said Nick from Hands Too Bait & Tackle in Cape May. But marlin fishing, mostly for whites, was unbelievable, a banner year, at the offshore canyons. That mostly seemed from Poorman’s to Baltimore canyons. A few blue marlin were also reeled in.