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LBI Fishing Report 12/28/21

The local fishing in the Long Beach Island area keeps rolling on. Reports from the beach and boat are positive.

With this great late season mild weather… How long with things push into winter? Right now there’s no end in sight. Only time will tell!

LBI Surf Fishing

Striped bass continue to be caught on the beaches of LBI. Most are in the smaller size class however there’s always a shot at a keeper fish.

On Saturday (Christmas) Jamie Gramley reported two fish so far… 22″ and a 26″ on bunker, both released. He got the 26″ on his first cast.

Chris Masino shared a photo on Christmas Eve of a striper catch. His went for a teaser fished ahead of a Kettle Creek Paddle Tail Lure.

Chris Masino shared a photo on Christmas Eve of a striper catch. His went for a teaser fished ahead of a Kettle Creek Paddle Tail Lure. Photo shown above.

On Sunday, Dennis McNamara reported catching one 17.5″ striped bass that went for a Daiwa SP Minnow lure. He tagged and released it. Jamie Gramley reported he also caught a bass, a 23″ fish that went for a frozen bunker chunk.

Tommy McCann caught this (shown above) 23" striped bass fishing Monday (12/27/21) off the LBI mid-Island surf using bunker.

Tommy McCann caught this (shown above) 23″ striped bass fishing Monday (12/27/21) off the LBI mid-Island surf using bunker.

Also on Monday Jonathan Marinari reported a surf side striper on a softbait. Looking at the photo (below) brings back memories of the legendary Vision Sand Eel. Unfortunately they are no longer made but a great substitute that is a proven fish catcher is the Tsunami Sand Eel.

Jonathan Marinari caught this striped bass off the LBI surf on a sand eel softbait imitation.

Boat Fishing

We’ve heard a number of reports from the past few days of boat anglers catching along the beaches of IBSP and LBI on the troll and by anglers actively working lures.

Kip Patterson caught this striped bass fishing the waters near shore to Long Beach Island on Tuesday December 28. Thank Kip for rocking the Fish Heads Beanie!!!
Kip Patterson caught this striped bass fishing the waters near shore to Long Beach Island on Tuesday December 28. Thank Kip for rocking the Fish Heads Beanie!!!

Kip Patterson reported striped bass action today fishing in the ocean near shore to Long Beach Island. Dave Werner was out (different boat) and reported finding and catching striped bass. Dave also had great action on Friday morning (Christmas Eve).

Here's Eli Haegele with a nice striped bass he caught fishing with Nick Perello on Monday.
Here’s Eli Haegele with a nice striped bass he caught fishing with Nick Perello on Monday.

Here is my most recent video forecast… from 12/26/21

Not included… reports from boat anglers working the wrecks and reef sites for tautog has been good. Also the inshore bluefin tuna bite continues on with anglers still catching nice fish.

Captain Nick DeGennaro (r) jumped aboard with the Side Chick Fishing crew yesterday and got one bluefin tuna at 48.5".
Captain Nick DeGennaro (r) jumped aboard with the Side Chick Fishing crew yesterday and got one at 48.5″.

LBI Fishing Report 12/19/21

The unseasonably warm week came to a close and more realistic December weather is here. But we are happy to see the brutal Arctic is staying away for now. Anglers fishing the local waters of Long Beach Island are catching fish. Some are reporting really good things. They way things are going we expect the local fishing to roll right through the holidays and into the new year. We’ll see! Here’s a quick Long Beach Island fishing report update for Sunday December 19, 2021

Here’s the latest fishing report video posted yesterday evening…

Both yesterday and today we received positive fishing reports from anglers fishing in the beach and boat. We are still getting reports of bass in the bay too.

Today Sunday December 19, 2021 Jamie Gramley caught this 25″ striped bass. He reported, “This this one at low tide. They are definitely still here.”

Rob Swift reported in, “I just saw a guy pull a nice fat 31″ bass in on a paddle tail. I tried the same but no luck.” 

From the boats, striped bass fishing was very good the past two-three days. Great reports came in from numerous sources (direct) from both the waters on the north end and south end of Long Beach Island.

Dave Werner was fishing the north end waters reported, ” This morning was the best jig bite I have ever experiences! I had 20+ fish to 38″ without another boat in sight!”

Zach Michot was fishing the south end waters and reported, “Really good bites went down this past week. One day we had them off Brant Beach and another day we worked south out of Holgate. We got them really good in 45′ of water off Brigantine.”

It’s prime time tog fishing right now and anglers are rightfully catching good size fish. Also NJ’s Black Sea Bass season only has a few days left. It closes at the end of the year.

LBI Fishing Report 12/14/21

We can’t complain about the cards dealt this late fall. This week we’ve got mild weather and today is a beautiful sunny mid December day. Anglers are still catching fish on the boat and beach in the local LBI waters. Yesterday afternoon was good for some surf anglers on the south end of the island. Here’s a fishing report update for Tuesday afternoon December 14, 2021.

LBI Fishing Report 12/12/21

How long will the fishing season go on? Only time will tell. Our expectations are positive given there’s striped bass being caught in our local waters as well as the waters to our north and our south.

The five day forecast (excluding Monday) has the coldest low at a mild 44º. Thursday’s (16th) high of 58º looks encouraging as well as the highs next week in the mid to upper 40’s. Until the arctic freeze sets in we will have good fishing opportunities for striped bass. It’s also prime time tog season! Right Here! Right Now! Now’s the time to get some late season fishing in before a long cold winter. Let’s go fishing!

Here’s the Long Beach Island fishing report update for Sunday December 12, 2021

Update shop hours…

  • Monday – Thursday: 7am to 7pm
  • Friday & Saturday: 6am to 8pm
  • Sunday: 6am to 5pm

LBI Surf Fishing Report

Dave Minnick and Jamie Gramley have put in time all year long and it has paid off for them. They are both still catching on the LBI surf. A few other reports came in too.

Yesterday Dave was out giving it everything he had and reported, “It was well worth the drive and getting pummeled by the wind to catch striped bass in December on LBI. The Sea Provides!”

Friday Jamie reported, “Another fun day on LBI!” He caught two. Today he struck out with just a dogfish to report.

Todd Hirchak caught this striped bass off the LBI surf on a Tsunami Swim Shad on Friday. These lures are always a great choice!

Today was the last day of the LBI Surf Fishing Classic. A huge congrats to everyone who fished and caught. An even bigger congrats to those who won prizes. Everything will be wrapped up soon and final prizes will be awarded soon.

On the final day there was a 30″ 9.88# striped bass weighed in by Rich Sherman. He caught it on bunker in Spray Beach. 

Striped Bass On The Boats

The boat reports have slowed down significantly mostly due to the time of year. At this point in the year the majority of boats are out of the water. However for those still in there’s fish being caught.

Today Zach Michot was out and got into great fishing… actually “silly fishing.” He reported, “Silly December Fishing! 30+ caught in two hours all on jig and plugs.” Just look at that sounder’s graph!

Today was the Miss Barnegat Light’s final day fishing of the 2021 season. Well they closed it out on a good one. One of the mates Jason reported, “Really good fishing! Possibly one of the best days of the bass season. You couldn’t drop a jig to the bottom without hooking one. And best of all not far from the dock.” One of the anglers onboard James Berlanger posted a photo of a beautiful bass and said he had a great trip.

James Berlanger has a great striped bass fishing trip today aboard the Miss Barnegat Light party boat jigging bass.

LBI Fishing Report 12/6/21

This morning the sun is fighting to break through the marine layer. The ocean is a lumpy 2-3′ with an occasional 4′ wave in the water. A breezy south-southwesterly wind is on the beaches now and it will only increase as the day goes on. Maybe it will blow the fog outta here. The past few days have offered fair to good fishing for anglers on the beaches and boats fishing the waters of LBI. Here’s a gloomy Monday fishing report update for the Long Beach Island Area on December 6, 2021.

Long Beach Island Surf Fishing Report

Last week’s sporadic blitz fishing has seemed to sputter out. Our fingers are crossed there’s still more fuel in the peanut bunker (or we are ok with sand eels too) vs striped bass tank. We’ll have to fish and see. But in the mean time anglers are fishing and catching.

Today the fishing musician Rick Wieland stopped by with a 29″ striped bass. “Finally got one!” He said. “It was a long time coming.” Rick caught the fish off the Harvey Cedars surf at about 9:30am fishing a bunker chunk. “The ocean was rough. Lots o waves and white water. I was struggling to hold with 6oz of lead.” He said, “There were a few other anglers in the area but I didn’t see any other action.”

Jamie Gramley reported catching 7 bass today in 23-26″ range. He posted a photo (above) of some striped bass he caught with the caption, “Who said rough water is bad for fishing?”

Yesterday Eli Haegele caught this small striped bass of o the LBI surf on a yellow Yo-Zrui Mag Darters.

Yesterday Eli Haegele tagged us in a striped bass photo he posted. The fish fell or a yellow Yo-Zrui Mag Darters.

Today, Randy Hampton caught one on his first cast using a bone Daiwa SP Minnow. He reported, “The guy next to me caught one a minute later on black and silver SP.”

Trevor O’Neil reported, “We’ve been keeping the dog fish population well fed these last few weeks. I finally caught a little luck tonight on some fresh bunker rom Fish Heads!”

Jay Hoffman went fishing yesterday and put a lot of hours in on the beach. He had nothing to show for his efforts until late in the day. “I was posted up at a nice cut and as it got dark two bites. One after the other. Boom! Boom! I beached two plump sassy bass. I would have liked to fish the tide all the way up but Monday morning work rolls in whether I’m ready or not.”

Joe Handley reported, “1000 casted in the morning with no luck. Went back at dark mid-island and got three hits, two striped bass in 20 minutes.”

Striped Bass Fishing Reports From The Boats

Reports from boat anglers have been positive for a number of weeks now. This weekend wasn’t any different. Boat anglers had some great opportunities over this past weekend and a lot of them scored.

From the boats… both striped bass and tog are two great targets. Striped bass fishing is still firing on all cylinders. Anglers are catching good under the bird plays and also working broad areas on the troll. It seems the peanut bunker “match-the-hatch” is still the way to go however some anglers are catching going to the classic last all sand eel imitations. Illesor Retep reported seven trips out and have not struck out yet. Got 14 bass today (this was Saturday or Sunday).

Illesor Retep has caught on all seven of his trips out. He got 14 striped bass today.

Wreck Fishing For Tautog

Tog fishing at the wrecks and reef sites is good and has been since the season opened up to Five Fish Per Anglers (minimum size 15″) on November 16th.

Some great reports are coming in but none better than store staffer Matt “Swagmattic” from Sunday. He’s always fishing hard and it pays off. His report, “Jumbo’s! Fishing has been pretty rock solid so far this season bu t today was a day. I had three over 10# with two more double digits on the boat! Limited the oat 7 times over, sent more of the fish back swimming and kept a couple for the table.”

Store staffer Matt "Swagmattic" is always fishing hard and it pays off.

As far as land based tautog fishing… The phenomenal bite that seemed to run strong all fall at the Barnegat Inlet Jetty has slowed. With the shorter days, longer nights and colder weather patterns comes colder water temperatures. There are still tog present and anglers are catching however most of the tog have made the move or will soon move to the wrecks and reef sites. Based on reports the shallow water fishing has really dropped off in the past 5-10 days and the 50-70′ depths have really lit up.

Late Fall Bluefin Tuna

Late fall bluefin tuna or as some call them “Jersey Ghosts” have been around or a couple weeks. This past weekend had a lot of boats were out hunting and a lot found them chewing. It’s always rewarding to gear up customers through pout the year and then hear their success stories. We’ve heard from of great reports from numerous of customer in recent days.

LBI Fishing Report 12/3/21

Fall fishing continued strong this week with solid reports coming from both the beach and boat. Finally reports from the mid-island and south ends of LBI have started popping. As we enter into December mild temperatures prevail all the way into next weekend. Now’s the time to get in on the great late fall fishing on Long Beach Island. Here’s the LBI Fishing Report for Friday December 3, 2021.

LBI Surf Fishing Report

Abundant striped bass action on LBI this week had anglers catching on the surf with bait and lures. If fishing bait, bunker and clams would be great choices however you’ll need to pick through the doggies.

Fishing lures is highly suggested. Even die hard bait anglers have made the switch and many have reported fun action on the numerous pop up bass blitzes this week.

Best lures choices would be anything that matches a peanut bunker. For the past week plus, peanut bunker rom 3-6″ have been the main forage which striped bass in the area are keyed in on. Always match the hatch! Think bucktails, rubber swim shads, Yo-zuri Mag Darter, Twitch Bait, Pencil & Popper. They have all been good to me!

I’ve also seen some small clouds of micro bait around so teasers could be effective but aren’t suggested because they cut down your casting distance. Usually I fish teasers and depend on them when small slender sand eels are present. Right now that is not the case.

As far as timing, the afternoon incoming tide push into sunset has offered good success. But some mornings have produced too. There’s not tell when the next blitz will hit the beach so go when you can and hopefully you’ll connect!

Recent Weigh Ins At Fish Heads

12/3/21 -Tyler Conrad 28.5″ bass weighed in at 7.4 pounds.
12/1/21 – Kevin Laverty 31.25″ bass weighed in at 11.40 pounds

Click HERE for details on other weighs or the LBI Surf Fishing Classic

Hi Flier Open Boat Sat and Sun

In light of the good striper fishing and nice weather coming up I decided to keep the boat in for one more weekend. We have been casting lures into migratory fish under flocks of birds. Mostly 24 to 26 inch stripers with a few pushing 30 inches. When that slows down, we go on the troll where we have been getting a few bigger fish for the cooler. The bellies have been loaded with peanut bunker. 

Congratulations to Capt Nick DeGennaro and his crew, John Cavaliere and Colby Capri for landing our boat’s first Fall/Winter bluefin yesterday. A 60 pounder that Colby coaxed into crashing his popper. 

Nick will be working deck on the Hi Flier this weekend and it probably won’t be hard to convince us to give that fishery a try if everyone wants to. For now, I’m going to call these trips striper trips because we certainly are no experts in this winter bluefin fishery. If you add Nick’s fish from yesterday to all of mine, it comes out to a total of one, if that tells you anything. I’ve been in them a bunch of times, watching them air out, and crash bait on the surface, but getting them to eat has been a difficult task for me personally. It’s fine, though, I’m enjoying the ride. If any of you guys on board, want to try, we”ll make the run. We have the gear for it, as well. 

Open Boat or Charter: Sat Dec 4 and Sun Dec 5. 6AM to 2PM $250 person, 4 people max, all fish are shared. $950 for private charter.If we go chasing bluefin, either exclusively, or combined with striper fishing $350 person, $1,350 for private charter. 
Dave DeGennaro

Hi Flier Sportfishing

732.330.5674 cell

hiflier.com 

LBI Surf Fishing Classic Update – December 1, 2021

The final week and a half of the 67th annual Long Beach Island Surf Fishing Classic is here, and it appears the striped bass are going to make it an exciting finish. 

The last few days of November and those of early December have produced some hectic action on the front beaches of Long Beach Island. Prior to November 29, a total of 13 striped bass had been weighed in for the tournament. With six arriving on the 30th and another five on the 30th, that total almost doubled to 25 fish! Check here for the live results page.

Nick DeGennaro still holds the lead with his 18.02-pound linesider he caught in Barnegat Light on a lure.

Here’s Nick with his fish at weigh in at Fisherman’s Headquarters. He caught the striped bass in Barnegat Light on a lures.

Lures of several types now seem to be catching the most bass as opposed to bunker which was the hot bait early in the Classic. Successful offerings have worked well on the fish including bucktails, Hopkins, Daiwa SP Minnows, rubber swim shads like those from Tsunami. Also topwater plugs are stand out producers. One of the best is the Tsunami Talking Poppers.

Bird play is marking schools of bait and feeding bass. The fish can be seen breaking the surface as they chase and feed on large schools of peanut bunker. At times these feeds have been full on blitz conditions.

Greg Cudnik from Fisherman’s Headquarters in Ship Bottom attributes the success of artificials to the presence of spiny dogfish in the wash. These scavengers feed ravenously on any bait they come across. They do not attack artificials with the same intensity. He recommends anglers try to “match the hatch” using artificials that fit the profile of peanut bunker.

Cudnik says he was pleased as the fish arrived and notes this arrival is in line with previous years. A goodly number of the fish being caught are in the keeper-size range making them eligible for the Classic. “There are still good numbers of fish to the north, and they should keep arriving on our beaches well into December.”

Jingles Bait and Tackle in Beach Haven reports the surf temperature on the beach recently has been slowly dropping with the most recent reading coming in at 52-degrees. They are especially encouraged for the upcoming actions as the heavy surf fishing action has reached Surf City and is moving south. Earlier in the week they heard of a ”peanut bunker frenzy” with particularly good action in Harvey Cedars. 

They officially weighed in a striper weighing 8.72-pounds caught by Frankie Lenetti was weighed in on Tuesday. Frankie works at Surf City Bait and Tackle and Fisherman’s Headquarters. As per Classic rules, he brought the fish to a shop he is not associated with.

Aimee Welsh from Surf City Bait and Tackle calls the arrival of the striper schools “a breath of fresh air.” She is hoping for “neck and neck excitement” for the last week of the Classic especially since the fish are in the 8–12-pound range.”

Welsh expects the next couple of weeks to be just as good for bass and perhaps even better. She admits being pleased at the success recently of bass being taken on artificial presentations rather than bait. “I think that adds to the sport of it.”

The Classic will conclude on Sunday, December 12. It is not too late to register for the contest. Registration can be handled at any of the bait and tackle shops mentioned above. Complete information on the contest can be found at www.LBISFC.com