LBI Fishing Report August 31, 2017

The end of August is here! It’s crazy how fast time flies. Here’s an LBI fishing report update for August 31, 2017.

The black sea bass fishing closed today, August 31st. It reopens October 22 with a 15 fish bag limit. It’s the last hoo-rah for fluke! Got five days to give it hell. Fluke season closes on Tuesday September 5th.

Currently we have a Labor Day Weekend – End of Season Fluke Sale! Order online or mentioned this post to take advantage of the sale in store. What’s on sale? The limited time sale is for only Spro bucktail jigs, Berkley Gulp Baits and and Fluke rigs are all 25% off.

Tomorrow’s September 1st and that means Holgate is open! The Island got pounded with swell the past four or so days but as far as we know the entrance held strong. When asked, Long Beach Township mention, no bulletins about a closure were posted.

Fishing reports the past couple days have been few and far between. The blow early week really put a damper on things. That with the combination of school starting has much less participation on the water.

Reports from anglers fishing the ocean for fluke and sea bass reported a very slow day. We heard most of the boats out struggled. Some boats got a couple fish but they are saying where.

Liz Weidenhof got this fluke today fishing aboard the Tightlines with Captain Jeff. Yes that’s Liz, the sister of John (Yonni) & Zach. Clearly this photo proves she is the best angler in the family!

Captain Jeff Warford was out on the water today with his friend Liz. She got this 19.5 inch fluke bucktailing with Gulp. Jeff said, “Fluke fishing was slow so we switched it up and targeted blues. “We crushed them casting plugs. Both Guppy Pencil Poppers and SP Minnows were working! The blues were feeding hard on snappers.” These cannibals are crazy!!! So much fun to see feed and even more fun light tackle catch and release on lures.

Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association Weekly Fishing Report

by Jim Hutchinson Sr.

As with much of the northeast coast, high winds and extremely large swells kept boats at the dock in Beach Haven. The captains of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association used the forced time off to tend to various items on their boats that might have needed attention. With the summer flounder season in New Jersey closing on Tuesday, September 5, the captains hope the weather conditions subside and the fish are still around that were present right before the nasty weather.

Last weekend Captain Ray Lopez had the John Doe party out for a trolling trip at the Barnegat Ridge on the “Miss Liane.” The group managed to boat multiple false albacore and one nice Bonita. Captain Ray also had the Jamie Cusmano group out on the “Miss Liane.” Sporty conditions mandated fishing inside in the area of the Barnegat Inlet. There was plenty of action there as multiple black sea bass, fluke, sea robins, and sand sharks were caught.

Just before the ocean became roiled up, Captain Carl Sheppard had a group of eight avid anglers out on the “Starfish.” Fishing structure in the ocean, the group reeled in the first triggerfish of the season and ended up with four to take home. Also going in the cooler was a nice 20-inch fluke. Captain Carl remarked the whole group did well with the youngsters aboard maybe even out-fishing their parents.

Captain Gary Dugan of the “Irish Jig” reports he is optimistic and keeping his fingers crossed that the fluke are still around this weekend. Once that season ends he will turn to wreck fishing until the stripers arrive.

Additional information on the captains and boats of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association can be found at www.BHCFA.net.

Author: FishHead.Greg

A Long Beach Island native with life long experience fishing and navigating the local waters, Greg is a distinguished Master Captain (the highest qualified operator license), holding a US Coast Guard Masters 50T Near Coastal License with Towing Endorsement. Raised in and now managing his family's bait and tackle business, Fishermans Headquarters (Since 1962, The Saltwater Fishing Bait & Tackle Experts) Greg is daily immersed in fishing. He is the Chief Contributor of FishingLBI.com (Long Beach Island's best fishing report blog) as well as the Admin for the shop's social media pages (on Instagram and Facebook). Be sure to follow! View all posts by FishHead.Greg