LBI NJ Fishing Report – LBI Surf Fishing, Barnegat Bay & Inlet

Opening day of fluke is finally here! Lots of anglers out on the hunt. So far numerous reports but all have a similar theme… lots of shorts but some reports were very positive. Store staffer Dave and Frezza were searching the waters down on the south end of the Island, “Lots of fish on bucktails but all small.”

Dave Werner was out on the kayak and put together a nice catch. He reported, “Great start to the fluke season! Limited out before work!

Al Stella and wife fished today and got four keepers up to 27″!!! The one was a really nice fish, “The top lure was the Tom Scibek Floating Jig Head. Pink was the hot color.”

Trophy Striped Bass

If you haven’t caught wind yet… trophy striped bass are in our waters and on the feed. The past week plus has been awesome and the action continues.

For some boats, it was another nice day striped bass fishing along the front beaches. I had Kelley out aboard Fish Head Charters today for a four hour charter. We ran up the beach to the area where we’ve been pounding all week. Bait was very scare but with scattered fish marks we deployed the trolling gear. Things looked promising and before long a couple friends fishing in other boats hooked up close by. We worked the area but did not get a bite. To shake the skunk we plugged some small bass in the bay before hitting the dock. We’ll be out again in the morning looking for revenge.

Dan D was out trolling with his buddy Trevor today and got this one.

Redman was in the shop a couple days ago getting prepped. He was out pre-fishing the LBI Cup today and got a pair of quality bass trolling late morning. He’s dialed in! “Released big bass up to 48″ today.” Look at this Clydesdale!

Wayne Smith stopped in this afternoon. He fished the sunrise session and got loaded with dog fish and got one bluefish.

Offshore Report

The Ponte’s Charter aboard the  Canyon Runner had a good trip. They returned to the dock with a 375 pound bluefin and they also caught three mako sharks. One was 84″ that met the new regulation. It went 225 pounds.

Beach Haven Charter Association Fishing Report

by Jim Hutchinson Sr.

The long awaited Memorial Day weekend is arriving in Beach Haven, and the captains of the Beach Haven Charter fishing Association are welcoming it with open arms. After a spring featuring unseasonable weather, spring weather is starting to take hold. As the air temperatures warm, the water temperatures also rise, and the fish are getting active.

The big news is the opening of the New Jersey summer flounder season on Friday, May 25. Early fluke action is usually centered in the inshore waters, and early indications point to that situation this year. Anglers after other species have caught an unusually high number of big fluke meaning the season should start off with a bang.

The black sea bass season has been in full swing for a couple of weeks now, and the inshore reefs and wrecks have been giving up decent catches of sea bass along with some cod and hake.

Small striped bass have been around for a few weeks, but larger fish started arriving in the last week. Boats trolling spoons and Mojo’s have been catching fish along with some reports of drop and snag action on bunker pods. Big bluefish have been making their presence known along the beach, in the inlets, and even in the bay waters. Some of these big choppers are weighing in at over 10-pounds.

The current fishing action in Beach Haven promises variety along with good action. The captains of the BHCFA are poised and ready to take advantage of the fishing.

The association has announced that it is dropping its minimum age from 13 to 12 for youngsters in the popular Junior Mates Training Program. Complete information on the Junior Mates along with the BHCFA can be found at www.BHCFA.net

Now is prime time striped bass beach and boat fishing! Gear up and fish! The season’s biggest fish have been around this week and are still hanging around. How long they stay is anyone’s guess.

Had a great morning on the water today aboard Fish Head Charters. We had good bass fishing during grey light plugging. A couple better size fish as well as blues in the mix. We headed up the beach at sunrise and started working the area where we’ve been fishing just about everyday this week. Once again they were there! Good size ones and surprisingly very few boats fishing. We had two quality bass, both 40 pounders (one at 39 and one at 42 pounds on the boga grip) that were released to swim another day. Anyone looking to fish EARLY tomorrow morning (4:30-9:30) should call/text asap 609-713-9299. We’ll be back to the dock at 10am. $150 per angler max 2 anglers.

Ryan Horton was in the shop today and gave us heads up he got a slob today!!! “I’m glad I took off work today! Got this 51 pound monster!”

Store staffer Kelley was out fishing aboard the Reel Innovation with Captain Jeff Warford and mate Dan D. They took the boat out for a shake down and get the boats first fish in the boat. Here’s a beauty!

Randy Townsend is out on the grounds trolling bass with super grom Seamus Carey and dad. They are pulling on some nice fish!!! Here’s a pair of nice ones. Blake S was trolling last night with Randy and got this one at sunset.

Quick update – Hot bite this morning with both bass and bluefish on light tackle scoring both keepers and shorts! Tide aligns perfectly for another slug fest tomorrow morning 5am – 10am $150.00pp . We will start off with the light tacklle and move off to the deeper waters to look for snag and drop opportunities and or troll for the larger bass that have worked there way into our waters!

 

Finally! The big bass have finally come our way. We had a 42 pounder today that crushed a big white Mojo. We were trolling off of Island Beach State Park in 63 feet of water this afternoon. Here is the YouTube clip of the end game: https://youtu.be/1nJMnukli-8 Lots of bunker pods around. Something was giving them a push at the surface. I almost reeled in the trolling gear and switched to snagging but I wanted to see if I could put another one in the cooler first and sometimes you should stay with what just worked instead of switching gears but I’m still not sure if I made the right call. After a while the bunker went down and we never got another bite. We still read big balls of bunker on the machine and a nice steady stream of big single marks right in the “kill zone” but they eat when they are ready not when we are.

Fishing is pretty good from both the beach and boat. Anglers fishing the local waters of Long Beach Island are catching and some nice fish at that!

Here’s a beauty that Marie got off the surf.

Chris Masino always puts in a lot of time fishing and it pays off. He got a 20 pound bass off the surf yesterday. He has a monster coming soon.

Some really nice fish are being pulled in the boat.

Jacob  Bowles was fishing yesterday with Dan Piazza. He reported, “We started off trolling in the rain not marking much anything. Trolled around and found some life. Started marking and hooked up on a Mojo. There’s big fish out there. ”

Store staffer Kevin was out yesterday putting some time in on the troll. eh got a 47″ 42 pound bass on a white Mojo.

Today I had store staffer’s Blake and Kelley aboard Fish Head Charters for a five hour striped bass trip. We pushed off the dock at 5 am and started out picking bass in the fog. Kelley got the biggest one (photo bellow) that was about 12 pounds. We soon took a look outside and ran up the beach. Going back to where we had marks the day before (and also fish were caught in the afternoon) we soon found it was going to be a slow morning. On the hunt for bait we did find scattered marks but it wasn’t until 8am that things started to come together. We decided to cover some ground on the troll and it paid off. Blake’s chartreuse custom wood metal lip lure got bit by a thirty class bass. Turns we had some occasional good marks, this was our only bite on the troll.

Store staffer Max was on the water this morning and trolled up a thirty class bass.

Today in the shop, I had a friend in willing to share a report. He was out this morning and got one bass trolling off of IBSP. Once in the bay heading in he stopped and got some blues on the west side of the bay. Then when pulling into the lagoon to dock, some birds were active. Turns out weakfish were boiling. The crew ended the day just a fluke away from a Grand Slam!

The bay continues to offer great light tackle fun. Here’s Nick Deg back from college and as always… catching fish. “Some nice Sedge Island fishing this morning. Not pictured is the fluke that got lost on the swing that would have made this a slam. All on soft baits.”

Austin Pound was fishing aboard LBI Charters with Captain Kevin Carr. They had a good catch of sea bass with jumbos in the mix!

Here’s the LBI Fishing Report Update for May 22, 2018.

Boat Bassing Has Heated Up! While not all out epic spring fishing some spectacular catches went down. Here’s a few reports.

Howard Clark was on the water yesterday afternoon and got into some good fishing. The photo does all the talking!

Captain Ken Nutt reported, “The guys got a couple nice ones out there today. We got a 48″ incher!”

Captain Hunter Gutwein reported, “Started the day with a nice sea bass catch.  We cleaned up mid day and then headed back out for an evening session. It came alive at about 6pm on the snag and drop. Got some nice bass again!”

I had Matt S aboard Fish Head Charters today. We started off picking a couple small bass inside. Headed up the beach at 6am and went on the hunt for the better class of fish that are here. Lack of promising bait and good marks, conditions called for trolling. After a few hours with not bites we called it quits. While we didn’t catch any trolling mojos and spoons there were a couple fish caught in the area by other anglers trolling.

Fluke Is A Few Days Away!!!

Some awesome reports from land based anglers as well as those on the boats. With the season opening on Friday May 25th the stage is set for a great opening to the season. The local waters are loaded with flatties! Now’s the time to gear up your tackle bag with all the essentials. We are fully stocked on all of the fluke fishing essential tackle. From Berkely Gulp Baits, Spro Bucktails, Magictail bucktails, Seaguar Flouro Carbon Leader to Floating Jig Heads from Tom Scibek. We’ll have live minnow in stock Wednesday/Thursday.

Zach Michot reported, “Lots of fluke in Barnegat Bay. I had about 100 fishing doing a commercial hook and line fluke trip. We smoked them on Magic Tail Teardrops Bucktails as well as the Magic Tail 3/4 ball head jig heads tipped off with Gulp Swimming Mullets.”

Dan D’s bucktailing the surf and Inlet and hammering the fluke. This entire week he catch and releasing each afternoon. Dan reports, “The flounder and stacked up thick!”

15th Annual Berkley Striper Club Catch and Release Spring Fishing Tournament

The 15th Annual Berkley Striper Club Catch and Release Spring Fishing Tournament is May 24 to May 28, 2019.  Sign Up Now For This Great Event!!! Get your competitive juices flowing and raise money for a great cause. All proceeds to support the BSC Fisheries Defense Fund for the effective management and ongoing research of striped bass, help provide a clean & productive habitat and to protect important forage fish.

Reports and conditions look very fishy. Best of luck to all of the anglers!!!

Tournament starts as of 7:00pm on the Thursday the 24th.

Sign Up In Store Or Online at www.BerkeleyStriperClub.org

Local Striped Bass Fishing Tournaments

LBI Striper Cup – The 14th Annual LBI Cup Striper Invitational hosted by the Beach Haven Marlin & Tuna Club is Saturday May 26, 2018. Captain’s Meeting is 7pm Friday May 25, 2018. For More Info www.LBICUP.com

The Waretown Volunteer Fire Company’s 1st Annual Striped Bass Tournament was been rescheduled due to weather. The Captains meeting will be May 25 at 7pm at the Waretown Vol Firehouse located at 117 Wells Mills Road (Rt.532). Entry fee is $150 per boat up to 4 anglers.

Striper Shootout – The 11th Annual High Point Vol Fire Co “Striper SHootout” is Saturday June 9th. For more info http://hpvfc.com/fishtourn.html

Mako Mania – The 33rd Anniversary Mako Mania Shark Tournament is June 23-24th. Captains Meeting in Friday June 23rd 6:30pm. More info www.gppcba.com

Fishing both sides of this weeks Nor’Easter we found the other side of the storm still producing stripers and blues on artificial presentations. Although we had to move around and find the opportunities our anglers aboard did  managed to persevere to land about 10-12 bass with bluefish spicing the catch as well.

The weather has cleared and we’re all looking forward to a great week of  prime time mid May fishing. Fish are off the spawn, hungry and on the move. Get in the game!

We heard about a couple quality fish caught in the boat off of IBSP yesterday. Again today some anglers too. We had a nice fish weighed in from frequent customer Tom. He got a beautiful 40 pound class bass off of IBSP trolling this morning. It went for a Mojo!

I had Lutzy aboard Fish Head Charters for a dawn patrol session today. Here’s one he caught at sunrise on a plug. After looking around out front we put a little time in the back waters. I managed two fish on the fly; one bass and one bluefish. Both fell for a white clouser.

Here’s a report from Carolyn Ann III out of Barnegat Light, “Looks like the short but wicked northeaster brought in some fish! Frank Decker of Port Jarvis, NY won the pool with a nice 4lb sea bass. A few limits were also made. Looks like a good week coming up, so come on fishing!”

Brian Marbut and Chris Goegelman fished the bay yesterday. Brian  reported, “We had some good blow ups on the flats. There’s some blues ripping around. Only connected with three but had lots of blow ups. Lots of fun!”

Chet Kosarek sent in this report, “Steady pick of Blues at Barnegat Inlet on Saturday, May 19. Mostly around 5 lbs. Not a blitz though. Marked a ton of bait Sunday at Meyer’s hole on my fish finder but no bites on bucktails, Sp Minnows or MoJo’s.

LBI Surf Fishing Report Update

Store staffer Steve-o got two nice fish chunking the surf late last night. Steve set up mid island on a nice section of water and soaked some bunker. He reported one rod when off right away. Both fish were in the low 40″ range.

Chris C. from Surf City fished bait (bunker and clam) yesterday. He caught 4 small bass on salted clam.

After closing up the shop last night Kelley got this bass at sunset on a bucktail.

Jeff W. of Surf City got four blues off the BL Jetty yesterday. Matt Polito was on the jetty yesterday and caught this yellow eye.

What’s that bright round thing in the sky? Finally the sun is back!!!

More reports of bass and blues today… It’s Mid May what else did you expect us to say. It’s game time. The bay, inlet, surf and ocean are all productive. Let’s get out and fish!

Chris Masino shared, “The yellow eye demonds are back!”

Dave Hershberger tagged us in a photo today and shared this report, “Awesome night on the beach with Dan. A 44″ set free to fight again and a 30″ that will be joining us for dinner.”

Matt from Barrington, NJ got this 22.9 pound bass fishing the LBI surf this monring chunking bunker.

Here’s Max Lentz with a nice fish he caught today on the boat.

Josh Severs sent in a report today… “It was a little snotty out there but better than I thought it was going to be. We marked bait consistently. Got a nice fish on a white Mojo north of the Pier at about 8:15am.

Here the LBI Fishing Report Update for Saturday May 19, 2018.

The rain and wind continue but the shop is buzzing. It’s great day to get your tackle in order and prepared for the next bluebird day. It’s also a great day to be a surf caster as these conditions are well know to put fish on the beach. Today and the last couple of days it stood up to the reputation. Anglers are catching bass and blues in the suds!

On The Water’s Striper Migration Map from May 18, 2018 shows quality fish moving into our area. It’s game time!!!

The LBI Surf Fishing Tournament now has a 30 pound class bass in the lead. Lew Halas recently got this 30.94. bass off the LBI surf.

Some blue blues in the surf  and some good size ones ranging from 8-12 pounds. John Parzych reported, “Everyone was catching around the top of the tide, mid-island surf. I got four blues on bunker and lost a few with bite offs. There was weed but it was tolerable. Fished 8-10 oz of lead.”

Thai was in the shop earlier in the day then again this evening. He reported, “I had a good two hour session in the inlet. Towards the bottom of the dropping tide, the bluefish showed up and it came alive! I was stoked to catch some fish on my new rod and reel. The new 10′ Old School GSB Lamiglas is an awesome setup.”

A customer in the shop this afternoon getting a big bag of bunker reported recently catching a number of blues and fluke. I got one fluke 26″ on a bunker chunk. Opening day can’t get here soon enough.”

Nick Honachefsky and “Dean Ween” Mickey fished yesterday and shared this report, “We haven’t fished in awhile and what do ya know. Neptune shines upon us! When what a crazy 24 hours. Here’s the report…. We are experiencing a stalled front here in NJ, the wind has been blowing east, north east for a couple of days. This really turns on the striped bass fishing from the surf.” Mickey went on saying, “I was on the beach for 11 hours yesterday catching striped bass. Nick Honachefsky joined me for for the second half and got a handful of pics. There were too many to count. I’m guessing 30. Nick has it around 24, but missed the first half.  This happened in my favorite place in the world and not just for fishing… the south end of Long Beach Island, NJ. NE means WET!”

Here’s a photo of a nice fish store staffer Jordan recently caught.

Local Striped Bass Fishing Tournaments

LBI Striper Cup – The 14th Annual LBI Cup Striper Invitational hosted by the Beach Haven Marlin & Tuna Club is Saturday May 26, 2018. Captain’s Meeting is 7pm Friday May 25, 2018. For More Info www.LBICUP.com

The Waretown Volunteer Fire Company’s 1st Annual Striped Bass Tournament was been rescheduled due to weather. The Captains meeting will be May 25 at 7pm at the Waretown Vol Firehouse located at 117 Wells Mills Road (Rt.532). Entry fee is $150 per boat up to 4 anglers.

Striper Shootout – The 11th Annual High Point Vol Fire Co “Striper SHootout” is Saturday June 9th. For more info http://hpvfc.com/fishtourn.html

Mako Mania – The 33rd Anniversary Mako Mania Shark Tournament is June 23-24th. Captains Meeting in Friday June 23rd 6:30pm. More info www.gppcba.com