609-494-5739 by Jim Hutchinson Sr.
The fishing over the past week in the Beach Haven area has been very strong. However, the captains of the Beach Haven Charter fishing Association are casting a wary eye at the development of Hurricane Isaias. Although the storm is still south of the United States, Isaias is sure to influence the fishability of local waters for the next few days.
The water temperature in the bay waters behind Long Beach Island have been reaching 80 degrees and even warmer. As a result, most of the fluke have made their move into the ocean. That is where the captains have been concentrating their efforts with much success.
Captain Frank Camarda reports the party boat “Miss Beach Haven” has been finding some nice sized fish on both its ocean and bay trips. One recent pool winner took honors with a 25-inch fluke. Their 6-hourtrips on Saturdays and Sundays have proven to be very popular and advance
reservations help secure a spot at the rail.
The “Starfish” with Captain Carl Sheppard has been fishing inshore structure regularly. A recent trip with a local family experienced action-packed fishing all day. The crew fished many wrecks and caught over 60 fish including sea bass, sea robins, and fluke. The crew kept sea bass and
fluke for dinner. Some sea bass have measured up to 16-inches.
Captain Gary Dugan has seen the rods on the “Irish Jig” bending with large numbers of short fish with some fluke making it into the cooler along with some sea bass and even a ling. Early trip had decent action on short fish with these 2 keepers. Captain Gary had a shark charter for the birthday girl Kim, and they managed a 4-foot tiger shark among other fish.
Captain Brett Taylor of Reel Reaction Sportfishing continues to experience excellent action with up to 30 fish on a tide, although most are throwbacks. Recent trips have seen up to 5 keepers along with some sea bass and even a short striped bass on one trip. Captain Brett says his trolling motor was pivotal in keeping them on the edge between the wind and tide.
Captain Dave Wittenborn had the Smale group on the “Benita J” offshore on a tuna trip. The crew put together a nice catch of 50-60-pound class yellowfin tuna. By mid-morning everyone was tired from reeling in tuna, and they headed back home. Captain Dave stressed it was a great group that never once complained about the sporty conditions.
Additional information on the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association can be found at www.bhcfa.net
