Fishing Line for Sept. 28

If you check the calendar it says September. When I was checking the fishing reports I thought we may still be in May. Yes, there were flounder, triggerfish, sea bass (released) and weakfish that were caught. But there was also a half-dozen drum fish caught on one boat’s charter. Also, and unfortunately, the 2022 summer flounder fishing season is now officially over. Remember that the flounder you are reading about were caught while the season was open. The time between when I receive the reports, write the column and when it’s printed makes it appear that the season was over before the fish were caught. Let’s check things out. 
The Miss Avalon, while hosting a weekend charter trip for a local business, caught the regular summer staples of flounder, triggerfish and sea bass. There were plenty of flounder caught with both throwbacks and keepers. Nine were big enough to go home. 
They also had a bit of a surprise and for a moment could have thought they were back in May. They landed six keeper drum fish with the largest weighing in at 68-pounds. While drum fish are occasionally caught this time of year, the fact that made this day special was that six were caught on one trip. As I’ve written before, you never know what is lurking under your boat.
Drop your bait down and hold on. First, Fish Adventures in Sea Isle hosted Chuck Bandy who went out for a morning of Mahi fishing. His time was used wisely as he landed a “gaffer” plus a few smaller fish. 
Boulevard Bait and Tackle was busy with reports of flounder catches from the inlet where Kevin reeled in a 19-inch keeper and Tracy caught an 18.5-incher. Flounder are also still being caught in the back as Tricia, who was fishing from her kayak, proved. 
It was also reported that the surf is surrendering some nice-size snapper blues. Toss out some Spot or mullet and you may be able to catch some. And remember, the flounder that were mentioned earlier are still lurking in the sands just off the beach so you may be able to snag a flattie also. The Sea Star III, per Captain Chuck, had a good week. Action varied as some nice keepers cleared the rail and one angler even recorded a limit of three keepers. The sea bass were also hungry as they “were eating everything” that was offered to any flounder in the area. Let’s hope those sea bass stay in the area and are hungry and ready to eat on October 7th.That’s the opening date of the next segment of sea bass season. 
Chuck’s pool-winners this week, all with flounder, were Dan Breslin who won twice with a2-pounder and a 3.45-pounder, Walt Prawdzik (3.7), Nick Ristine (2.8), Jim Hornbach (5.0) and Ryan Murray who won his pool with a 3.85-pound fish. 
The Sailors Delight is catching flounder everyday as we approach the end of the season. Some keepers are mixed in amongst their daily catch. Other species being caught as summer winds down include sea bass, kingfish, bluefish, sand sharks, porgies, a sundial, lizardfish and sea robins. Everyday, and every drop, is a fishing adventure.
Grassy Sound Marina reported a nice catch by Diane Casey as she landed a 19-weakfish. She was fishing in Nichols Channel and using a minnow as bait. 
Another catch of note went to John Dailey who was fishing a little over a mile off the coast when he hooked into, then defeated, a 48-inch Cobia. 
Sterling Harbor Bait and Tackle reported that fifteen-year-old Gabriel McDevitt was fishing aboard Dan McDevitt’s boat the “Fish On”. They were fishing off Cape May Point when Gabriel caught a 48-pound Cobia that fell victim to a bunker chunk. Nice catch Gabriel. 
Well, as flounder season winds down and we feel the sting of its ending, we can take some solace in the fact that sea bass season will reopen in nine days on October 7th. Get your gear ready, tie some rigs, or visit your favorite tackle shop to buy some pre-tied ones, and get ready to hit it hard for the next twenty days. Then, the short season ends on October 26th, and you can take a break. Then get ready for November 1st when the final segment of the 2022 sea bass season opens. It will run through December 31st. While preparing for that, don’t sleep on the rest of what’s available to you. Weakfish, bluefish, blackfish (still one per day), kingfish, striped bass, sheepshead and Cobia are still out there swimming around and looking for a meal. Good luck if you get out, take care and I’ll see you around.