609-494-5739 The bay fishing has been good in terms of action with catches over 70 fish for 4hrs, but in terms of keepers we are picking at them catching 1 to 3 fish per trip. The Ocean is getting better, as I ran one ocean trip and a few scout trips with my family to put up to 4 keepers plus some nice Sea Bass in the boat in a few hours. Unless seasickness is an issue, I would start recommend hitting the ocean as you have better chances of catching keepers. I’m starting to see the characteristic bites of the Northern Puffer aka “Blowfish” on our artificial baits, it may be time to start targeting them for kids.
Here’s the rundown of the past few trips:
Early in the week, I had new client Dave Samuelson and his son James from upstate NY on a 4hr Bay & Inlet Fluke charter. It’s been a tough go of late in terms of finding keepers, but Dave landed a solid 19.5in Fluke on the 1st drop. The duo had to pick through 30 more shorts, before finding another 18.5 inch Fluke. All fish were landed on the bucktails tipped with natural bait. In the afternoon, I had new clients Marc Schessel with his son-in-law Ted Dembowski and 7 year old grandson Nash. This trip was not so much about getting keepers, but putting Nash on some fish. We jigged bucktails in a variety of areas to catch over 40 fish with 1 keeper at 19.5in. Nash learned quickly and ended up catching 15 all by himself! Great job and he’s already looking forward to next year!
Next, I had our first ocean exploratory trip with return client Matt Windover and his father-in-law Steve Sims boxing a solid 6-plus pound flattie amongst over a dozen short Fluke, short Sea Bass, and Sea Robin. In the afternoon, I had Mark Centerione and two kids (Natalie & Mark) on a 4hour bay trip. It was very windy and made for challenging conditions, but the kids did great for their first ever Fluke charter and 9yr old Mark ended up putting a solid 20-inch Fluke in the box with over 15 caught for the trio.
With some actual down time on Saturday – I took Luke and my parents out to a few of my favorite wrecks to scout around – it wasn’t lights out, but we did put a few in the boat. Luke caught the 1st on the 1st drop, and we picked at short Fluke, short Sea Bass, and Ling. We boxed two keeper Fluke (21 in and 19in), 2 Sea Bass, and a Ling. It was an awesome day on the water, with a solid T-storm coming through the inlet!!
On Sunday, I had new clients Zeb DiVittorio of Texas, William Hibray, and Andy Weeks of New Jersey on a 4hr Bay/Inlet trip. We worked a variety of areas to find close to 20 shorts with 3 keepers as the crew was using bigger baits to put keepers in the box. All were jigging bucktails with natural bait. In the afternoon, after Sunday’s morning charter I went with my wife Jen and son Luke to a few different snags. We ended up putting 4 keeper Fluke to 23.5 inches and 3 nice Sea Bass to 18 inches. Jen was happy as she caught her limit of Fluke and Sea Bass!
Monday, I had new client Lou Sigillo, his three kids (Emily, Matt, Johnny) and Emily’s boyfriend Billy Lowen of Beach Haven West. Lou wanted to learn a little about fishing the bay as they are new to fishing. We fished a few different areas and they ended releasing 71 Fluke, while boxing 3 keepers and Matt’s 1st ever Bluefish. All fish were caught on bucktails.
We have been busy to say the least, but it’s great being on the water!
We are 7 days a week (morning/afternoon). If interested in booking a charter, book our site (www.reelreactioncharters.com) or call/text 609-290-7709. As always, we use the highest quality gear and everything is included: gear, tackle, fish-cleaning, and ICE! It’s “no worries” fishing. Just come aboard and FISH.
Capt. Brett Taylor ~ www.reelreactioncharters.com ~ Call or Text: 609-290-7709
