The false albacore showed themselves after the swell began to settle and the mullet are starting to move around. There’s been some rumors of them in the surf up around Sandy Hook.
The tackle shops are starting to get fresh mullet delivered from their bait guys.
Despite a bit of rip in the surf over the weekend due to the swell, Grumpy’s Tackle in Seaside Park had a fluke and a striped bass weighed in, and some reports from surf anglers coming off the beach of small bluefish in the wash. The one bass weighed tipped the scale at 12 pounds and was landed on fresh mullet, according to the shop.
Capt. Dave Riback on the Queen Mary party boat said since the blow they’ve been picking at 1- to 4-pound blues and some false albacore. He called the blue fishing over the weekend “epic.” They were jig fishing a few miles off beach but still in view of the Highlands. His group on Saturday reeled them in as fast as they could drop the jigs in the water. They were using mainly size 17 AVA metals with green or red tails or epoxy lures. Sunday’s action was pretty much the same. On Monday, Cole Riback ran the boat and they had their bluefish limits before noon and we’re throwing fish back.
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The northeast swell did not disturb the good porgy fishing up on the Shrewsbury Rocks. Capt. William Egerter Jr. on the Dauntless party boat said once the boat got off the beach the swell was very lazy and slow. His fares reeled in about 10 to 25 porgies, along with some blackfish, fluke and a few small cocktail blues. He said the bigger blues were about six miles off the beach. One fish that may have been shaken up a little is the triggerfish. Egerter didn’t have any catches of them in the last few days. He said the ocean temperature is about 72 to 74 degrees.
Capt. Kevin Fahey on the Curlew, a Point Pleasant based lobster charter boat, was out Monday and hauled in 52 lobsters for his party. Fahey said they did some fluke drifting in the early afternoon and raised 10 keepers including a 6 pounder.
The fluke bit well over the weekend, too. Capt. Ryan Bogan on the Jamaica II said they had a big fluke landed by John Vafiadis from The Reel Seat. The fish weighed a few ounces over 9 pounds, which is many accounts would be considered a doormat or darn near close to it. So far, that’s the biggest fish landed on the Jamaica this month but there’s still some time left in the the fluking season to knock it out of the boat’s monthly pool lead. The fluke season ends Sept. 27.
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; [email protected].