The weather gets cold and the fishing heats up! Today and yesterday were full of great fishing on both the beach and boat.  New arrivals pushing in have the table is set for an awesome weekend and beyond. Most are in the “young” teen size range but classy fish and trophies are present and more are moving in. Now’s the time to get out and FISH!

The local waters have come down from their early fall holdings and currently range in the 50’s. Areas of the bay range from 52 to 58 degrees and after tonight’s cold temps it will be lower. The LBI surf temperature is currently 58 degrees. These numbers are prime for striped bass!!!

The weather is looking great! Saturday is sunny with moderate northerly winds easing over the second half of the day. Sunday is just about flawless with light winds!

Surf Fishing

This week things significantly improved for the surfcasters working the beaches of Long Beach Island. The LBI Surf Fishing Classic had a lot of activity the past couple of days! Today and yesterday were the busiest tournament days of the year. So far today six fish were checked in. Yesterday had five fish entered. It’s great to see anglers putting in the time and getting the reward.

At the time of this report update… Top Three Striped Bass: John Matt 48#, Anthony Mormile 35.52#, John Baxter 29.76#. Top Three Bluefish: Rob Vallone 15.16#, Gary Grippaldi 14.12#, Chet Bojarski 13.16#. Senior Division Striped Bass: John Baxter 29.76#, Merle Van Liere 22.74#, Steve Warren 18.96#. Senior Division Bluefish: Chet Bojarski 13.16#, Bill Montrey 12.98#, Dan Procida 9.74#. Youth Division: Striped Bass is held by Logan Johnson hold the striped bass and Quinn Rutan has the bluefish. Cathy Thiel holds the lead for the largest striped bass in the Women’s Division.

For updated tournament information check out the Live Results Page found on the tournament website www.LBIFT.com

Here’s some recent weigh in reports…

Tonight Anthony Mormile of Egg Harbouir Township NJ  weighed in a 35.52 pound 46.6″ striped bass. He caught it off the North Beach surf on bunker at about 4:30 pm. This catch by Anthony is currently the second largest in the LBI Surf Fishing Classic.

Early this morning Jim Larson of West Berlin weighed in a 23.54 pound 41″ bass. He caught it at about 10pm last night fishing a Daiwa SP Minnow lures on the Barnegat Light Inlet jetty.

Joe and Cathy Theil stopped by yesterday afternoon to check in a nice  striped bass from the surf. They were fishing the mid island surf in the town of Surf City.  Cathy caught a 15.9 lb 38″ bass on a bunker chunk at about 1:45pm. This catch puts Cathy in the lead of the woman’s division in the LBI Surf Fishing Classic.

Here’s a surf report from Steve George, “Well that was a rush today! Started slow but man did it deliver in the end. Blowing and cold, but once I found them and figured out how they were feeding, I warmed up quick with steady striped bass action. Numbers not size but I’ll take it with over two dozen fish up to 25″. It’s a start and better days are coming. Have a great weekend!”

Boat Fishing

Anglers hunting bass are having great results. Some boats are trolling while others are fishing live baits. Both are working. Those that prefer to fool game fish with lures are also doing a number on the fish too.

I’ve been fortunate enough to fish before and after work the past couple of days. The sessions were great. Picking off bass on bucktails is always lots of fun.  Last night we got into a good late night bite. The photo below is one of many striped bass caught. (Check out the moon rise. Really wish I had my good camera on board.)

Some of the boats working the near shore grounds are catching really nice fish. Yesterday Trevor Jones weighed in a 46″35.8 pound bass that he caught trolling off of Island Beach State Park. The fish went for a chartreuse bunker spoon.

Here a stomach contains photo that I found interesting. One fat teen size had this pile of food packed in its belly.

In the boat anglers are catching in the bay, inlet and ocean. Yesterday and today trolling pulled quality fish. Fishing live bait as well as lures will also effectively hook bass too.

The backwaters are still cock full of bass. Most are schoolleis but there are nice fish in the mix. Fish the docks, bridges, sod bank marshes and especially the tidal creeks.

BL Inlet Tog Fishing

Tog fishing is awesome. The inlet continues to fire on all cylinders. Joe O stopped in yesterday and report fishing was great, “Everyone is out having fun catching fish. If you know what you are doing, finding good size keepers is an everyday thing.” Joe had one pushing five pounds.

Dave Hershberger reported, “Nice day to go fishing with the boyz.”

Tackle Talk

The Yozuri Hydo LC Minnow are in stock now! It’s been a long wait but it’s finally over. A big thanks to the guys at Yo-zuri for not only making another amazing fishing lure but more importantly releasing it before the expected availability date. They knew the North East bite would be on so they air shipped the lures in rather than having everyone wait for the lures to float over on a slow boat.

Yo-zuri is well known for making some of the finest, best catching fishing lures on the planet. Crystal Minnow, Mag Minnow, Mag Darter, Surface Cruiser, Hydro Pencil just a few. Their lure designers are always one step ahead of the market place and therefor responsible for some of the best new lure designs.

The Yo-Zuri Hydro Minnow LC Minnow is a brand new slender minnow style bait which floats and swims 2-3′ with a tight wiggle action. Featuring a new weight transfer system for long casting, the Hydro Minnow LC is a lure designed for the ultimate long cast. Even with a stiff headwind, the Yo-Zuri Hydro LC Minnow will cast like a bullet allowing the zone to be within your reach.

Available in two sizes in a great assortment of awesome time tested proven fish catching color patterns. The Hydro Minnow LC covers any and all fishing situations. Casting striped bass on the surf to hunting down inshore species like redfish, snook and tarpon. The ultimate coastal fishing lure.

Best of all Yo-zuri makes these lures to be the strongest possible utilizing extra tough and durable proprietary polycarbonate material as well as rigging the lures 3X strong treble hooks and heavy duty split rings. These lures are ready to fish right out of the box and will catch saltwater trophy gamefish.

Here’s the link to the Yo-zuri Hydro Minnow LC 6″ size and the larger 6-3/4″ size. Both sizes have a spot in my surf bag and will be in my every day rotation. I’m already looking forward to the productivity and versitility these lures will offer especially when fishing rough conditions and casting is the utmost concern. These lures are surf bag staples!