The first week of “after summer” and Long Beach Island is significantly less dense and slower. But the annual Tumbleweed Tuesday drop off is noticeably not as pronounced as other years. So here we are… 5 days left of fluke season, 8 days left of summer.

Here’s the Long Beach Island Fishing Report Update for Monday September 14, 2020.

We have a week full of waves and with the tropics active, there’s no end in sight. Right now there’s five active storms (Sally, Paulette, Rene, Teddy, TD21). Putting lots of motion in the ocean. The beaches of LBI had 3-5′ ground swell from Paulette with a north/northwest wind for most of the day. The conditions were clean with little to no weed or debris, just a good amount of sediment from the churning surf. Tomorrow (Tuesday) the winds swing back north east and fade later in the day. Then more north east winds in the forecast for the weekend. Things will be getting fishy in the Inlet and surf.

As far as recent surf fishing reports go we have a few…. Kevin Laverty caught more than a handful of kingfish off the surf. Kevin Benedict also got one kingfish too.

Oh ya… there was a redfish caught off the LBI surf in the dark!

Frequently Asked Question As Of Late – “I don’t have the heavy tackle to fish the surf in the strong ocean swell and wind. What should I target and where can I go fish?”

First and foremost crabbing and clamming in Barnegat Bay are great ways to enjoy time on the water. The delicious harvest is a major perk too! As far as fishing goes, there’s opportunities in the bay and Inlet. Get in on fluke while it’s still open, the 2020 Summer Flounder Fishing Season Ends Sept 19th. Weakfish are here in great numbers and offer fun light tackle fishing. The blowfish and snapper blues are still here. Land based tog fishing is promising. As far as locations… the Island’s bayside docks and bulkheads are fishy all spring/summer/fall. Check out the Ship Bottom Bayfront Park, all four of the Causeway Bridges and last but not least the Barnegat Inlet.

Variety Here Now

Late summer is one of the best times of year to fish Long Beach Island especially if looking for a variety. The usual residents are here like striped bass, bluefish, fluke, weakfish, blowfish, kingfish, perch, tog and sea bass. The structure loving warm water gamefish; triggerfish, sheepshead. The inshore pelagic like spanish mackerel, false albacore, bonita as well as the warm water inshore “exotics” mahi, almaco jacks, banded rudder fish among others like the redfish mentioned previously.

Bait Is Here

Lots of bait is show in the coves, marinas, docks, lights and bulkheads. In some areas they are moving. Spearing, peanut bunker and mullet are the three primary. Some mullet were already moving along Long Beach Island’s north end and south end inlets.We got our season’s first delivery of fresh mullet in a few days ago and expect to get fresh baits more consistently as the mullet run is just getting underway.

Creeping

Fish Head Ambassador Swagmattic was out last night creeping while most were sleeping. “Now’s a good time to go catching. It’s especially a great time to catch Jersey Grand Slams.” He reported, “I went out and tried my luck. Ended up running into Sloane. We caught a bass, a few fluke and a few weakfish. Just missing the bluefish which should of been the easy one. The fluke were a surprise. They were very active, hammering the jig. Most were good health size. Sloan got one that was a keeper. The fishing activity lasted all of the outgoing tide and right into slack. Once the tide turned it was off like a light switch.”

Resident Bass

There’s a good showing of striped bass in the back waters. Sunday evening John Bell reported, “The back bay stripers are putting on a top water show! I caught a dozen this evening fishing poppers on the sod banks.”

Barnegat Inlet

Barnegat Inlet has lots of fishing opportunities in September. Reports from anglers fishing the rocks are mostly positive. Tog fishing most are small but there’s keepers roaming the caves. Bring extra crabs because there’s lots of small sea bass. Fluke, blues and bass all call the Barnegat Inlet home in September.

Tuna Fishing

Before the ocean got swelly, the tuna bite was silly good. A whole lotta boat with bent rods for days. When will the small boats be back on the mid-shore grounds again? Keep your fingers crossed. The weather looks poop and as time goes on the days get shorter and the weather windows get tighter.