Not great. That sums up our own personal offshore fishing lately. On our last two trips, we covered 180 miles and 140 miles, respectively, with nothing to show for it except a 15 lb mahi. While I was covering all that water from the Texas Tower to the 28 Mile Wreck, some boats were catching 30 lb class bluefin less than 20 miles from my home port of Barnegat Inlet. I think I am going to keep it closer to home this weekend and Monday, unless I get some really good intel to change my mind. To be clear, they are not slaying the bluefin, they’re catching a few, one, or none. The grounds they are fishing on typically provide a variety of bonita, albacore, king mackerel, spanish, mackerel, mahi, and more. I’m not saying any of those species are there, I’m saying, historically, this time of year, any of those species could be in the mix. The water there is blueish and 74 to 77 degrees. A good amount of flying fish, which should attract some mahi. I will be running Open Boat or Charter to these grounds, armed with trolling gear and prepared to bait fish, as well. 

Our inshore sharking trips have been doing very well. I tell people to expect two to three foot Spinner, Blacktip, and Atlantic Sharpnose sharks. They are small in stature, but are high powered pelagic sharks that give a really good fight on light tackle. The bigger sharks don’t always get the memo that we are fishing for smaller sharks and on all three of our trips last week we had a 130 to 150 lb class brown shark. All catch and release, as these are not edible species. It is possible to combine some inshore fishing with this, as well, like casting lures at the inlet jetty for schoolie stripers and blues, or fluking inside the bay. We could also try some live grass shrimp for the ultra lite mix of species on six pound tackle. Weakfish are always the target, but they are not always there, so the goal is to catch as many different species as we can. 

Looks like a really good marine forecast for this stretch of dates:

Sailing Open Boat or Available for Charter: 
Thursday July 28 10AM to 5PM  Barnegat Ridge 15 to 20 Mile Range $275 person
Friday July 29 10AM to 5PM  Barnegat Ridge 15 to 20 Mile Range $275 person
Saturday July 30 6AM to 2PM Barnegat Ridge 15 to 20 Mile Range $300 person
Monday August 2AM to 4PM Mid Range Tuna 30 to 60 Mile Range $450 person
All trips are limited to 4 passengers. All fish are shared.
Any of these dates are also available for your private charter to fish inshore, offshore, or the bay.

Pic: Steve Ondrof of Rockaway NJ with his 15 lb Mahi caught at the 28 Mile Wreck this past Saturday.

Dave DeGennaro

Hi Flier Sportfishing

732.330.5674 cell

hiflier.com