Unbelievably, we are now in December. The fall season is flying by at a rapid pace, and the fishing days are getting colder. That goes with the territory, and the hardcore anglers don’t care as they are well prepared. The recent period of fishing, including the post-Thanksgiving weekend, provided some good action. Lots of short blackfish provided plenty of practice for some, while others recorded some nice catches. Some nice sea bass were also caught, which added some extra filets to the cooler. Let’s see what went on.
The Miss Avalon was able to get in three good trips from Black Friday through Sunday. The rain moved in Sunday but not before Capts. Irv and Brandon completed another productive day.
The Black Friday trip started slowly with a mix of keepers and throwbacks. Once the early afternoon breeze kicked in, the action turned on. There was plenty of action, and some nice catches, through the remainder of the trip. An angler named Bud was the high hook of the day with four keepers.
The Saturday trip provided a “great bite” throughout the day. This resulted in many keepers, with the largest weighing in at 5.3 pounds.
Closing out the weekend on Sunday resulted in another day with a good bite starting at the first drop and going throughout the day. The keepers totaled 23 for the trip, with the heaviest fish weighing 5.29 pounds, or just short of Saturday’s largest. This is important if either of those anglers were entered into the “Togzilla” contest. This is a separate pool, other than the daily pool, where the largest blackfish of the fall season claims the pool for the winning angler.
The Starfish has been running trips for blackfish, then changing things up and sailing 10-hour trips for sea bass. Give them a call or check their schedule on Facebook.
The pool on the Black Friday trip was won by an angler named Jim.
Sea Isle Bait and Tackle is open and ready to take care of your bait needs. Call ahead ,though, as Mike is running a schedule based around the weather. Bad weather means it’s not necessary to stay open but check prior to heading to the shop.
The Starlight Fleet is doing double duty as the Atlantic Star is going for sea bass on some 12 and 18-hour long trips, while Capt. Paul was running trips that are focused on blackfish.
Capt. Paul reported that a post-holiday blackfish trip had plenty of action that resulted in close to 20 keepers. Capt. Paul gave all aboard the opportunity for some extra fishing by staying out a little later than normal. That allowed for a few more keepers and extra practice of “catch and release.” You ‘gotta love it’ when a captain stays out and gives you every opportunity to add to your catch total. The pool winner on this trip was Tim Blocksom, who had two keepers with the largest weighing 4 pounds.
Capts. Ernie and Chris took turns on the wheel for the first 18-hour offshore sea bass trip of 2023. The weather made it an adventure but the results were worth the trip.
These anglers, led by Leroy Cooper who limited out and won the pool with a 5-pounder, had a really good trip. They were George Chambers and Gary Schwartz, who both had 4.5-pounders and limited out, and Charlie Han and Charlie Chung, who each had limits and 4-pounders. Others aboard were also able to catch their limits and some nice sea bass.
More 12 and 18-hour trips are planned through Dec. 31. Check out their Facebook page to see the schedule and to book online. You can also call 609-729-7776, ext. 2.
The Sea Star III, and Capt. Chuck, had an abbreviated week where they only fished a couple of days. Chuck reported that the action was good and more keepers are being caught now than when the season started.
The pool winners, both with blackfish, were Joe LoBianco, with a 4-pounder, and John Weaver, who won with a 3.5-pound fish.
The Sea Star III will sail through Dec. 9 and then will wrap up their season. And with the holidays approaching, don’t forget that you can get Sea Star III gift cards for the anglers in your family.
Capt. Skip, from Stalker Fishing Charters, Cape May, reported good mid-week striper fishing. His patrons caught bass that weighed close to 40 pounds and that were amongst the best of their careers. He found fish in many of the areas he checked, which made it easy for him to put the anglers on the fish. He can get you out to the fish, but you’ll need to give him a call at 609-972-5218 to schedule a trip.
Cape May Bait and Tackle reported that the dropping water temperatures have triggered the blackfish at the jetties and bridges to move out to the deeper water. This has resulted in better catch numbers at the Cape May and Wildwood reefs. Most fish are short but there are keepers mixed in. Green crabs and white leggers are both good baits.
Sea bass can still be caught at the local reefs but most have moved offshore to the wrecks in the 20- to 50-mile range. Anglers are reporting sea bass being caught from the 100- to 120-foot depths. Many are in the 2- to 3-pound range but there have been 4- and 5-pounders mixed in. Good-sized porgies and bluefish in the 3- to 5-pound range can also be picked up.
Closer in, large schools of bunker have been spotted about 3 miles off of Wildwood. Trolling Stretch Lures or Umbrella Rigs have resulted in some stripers being caught.
For good beach-based fishing for stripers, you’ll need to head to the LBI area, or even further north. Those beaches have been giving up stripers in the 30- to 45-inch range.
If you stay local, focus on the hours around sunrise or sunset as stripers move in toward the beaches looking for bait. Find a hole, or a cut in a bar, to increase your chances for success. You may also want to head to the local rock piles and toss out some live bait. Big stripers find live eels hard to turn down. Don’t forget your corkers since the rocks can be an extremely dangerous area to traverse.
The action has continued in spite of less-than-ideal-weather days. It hurts to lose these days, whether they’re during the slower mid-week time or, worst yet, during the busier weekends. Good luck whenever you do get to fish, take care, and I’ll see you around.
Submit fishing news and photos to mrobbins@cmcherald.com.
