Well, fishing really kicked it up a notch this past week, as some big flounder, including one of the double-digit variety, were caught. Also, a local flounder tournament was held, and we have results to report. Let’s check out what happened in the local waters.
The 29th Annual Duke of Fluke Tournament was held July 16. Anafter-tournament party and awards show followed, and a good time was had by all the attendees.
The winners in the different categories, starting with the single-heaviest fluke, were Team Bad Beagle and Capt. Sean Gallagher, with a 6.42-pounder. The three heaviest fluke winner, with 14.76 pounds, was Mo-Joe, with Capt. Joe DiDomenico. The Kayak Division was claimed by Joe Muravsky, with a 3.14-pound fluke, while the Junior Angler Award went to 9-year-old Addison Dameron, who caught her 4.19-pound winner while fishing aboard the Patricia Lynn III. The Duchess Award winner was Megan Trainor, with a 4.27-pound fish she caught from the Miss Addison II.
Two non-flounder categories were also up for grabs. The heaviest sea bass winner, a 1.91-pound fish, was caught from the Adam Bomb III, with Capt. Adam Crouthamel, and the heaviest bluefish, at 2.39 pounds, went to the Her Ring, with Capt. Chris Lowery.
Boulevard Bait and Tackle weighed in one of the biggest flounders of the year, so far.
John stopped in with “a fish of a lifetime” after a trip to a local reef. The flounder was 32-inches long and weighed 12.5 pounds. Congratulations, John, on one fine flounder.
Another very respectable flounder was caught by Kyle, who, while fishing the back bay, landed a 26-inch, 6-pounder. The back bay also provided a nice weakfish for a young angler named William.
The Miss Avalon is busy fishing the local reefs for, and more importantly catching, flounder, sea bass, and triggerfish. They reported that more flounder are arriving, which is good to hear.
As we hit mid-week, 6-year-old Matthew showed those aboard how it’s done. On the Wednesday afternoon trip, he landed two keeper fluke. Nice job, Matthew.
They are sailing daily, starting at 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Saturday trips are mornings only, while Sunday’s is a five-hour trip, for the price of four, that leaves the dock at 8 a.m. Ladies’ half-price trips are on Monday and Friday afternoons.
The Avalon Lady is catching some nice flounder in the back bays and creeks behind Avalon. There are still very nice flounder in the backwater from Cape May up to Ocean City and beyond. Our local boats that fish these areas are giving their patrons a shot at catching good quality fish.
First Fish Adventures of Sea Isle City had good action recently, as three young anglers from Lancaster County caught 31 flounder, including three nice keepers. Also, the Anthony Lombardo family got in on the hot bite, as they had “plenty of action” that saw their trip end with four keeper flounder.
Sea Isle Bait and Tackle weighed in a 4.55-pound flounder for Ron, who was fishing in a backwater location.
The Sailor’s Delight, another boat enjoying our backwater fishing, has had its patrons catching a “plethora” of fish. In addition to some nice keeper flounder, they have been catching plenty of pufferfish, kingfish, sea bass, and sea robins. They sail in the morning, afternoon, and an evening trip, so just give them a call and grab a day and time to your liking.
Don’t forget to tune into 98.7 The Coast at 8:35 a.m. each Monday and Thursday to hear Capt. Andrew’s Marine and Fishing Report.
Grassy Sound Marina was busy, as you would suspect during our recent warm weather stretch. As we know, warm weather draws people to the water.
A nice catch was made by Jason Taitt, as he landed a 21.5-inch flounder from the pier.
The fish, tagged by the American Littoral Society, fell for a squid and minnow combo fished during the outgoing tide.
The Gallagher family was in town for a visit from California. Their Uncle Kevin put them on some flounder as 7-year-old Steven and 5-year-old Caitlyn were able to each put a keeper in the cooler. A good time was had by all.
If you stop by the shop, don’t forget to wish Maggie, the store’s four-legged ambassador, a happy 12th birthday. She’ll love all the extra attention.
The Sea Star III continues to find the fish, with keepers of both sea bass and flounder, for their patrons. In addition to some bigger fluke, several limits were also recorded.
Nice fluke like the 6.25-pounder for Martin Overline and the 6.1-pound fish for Kirsten Johansen highlighted the week. Those anglers won their daily pools and were joined in the winners’ circle (all with flounder) by Clarence Snare (2.1 pounds), Joe Baker (3.0), Jeffery Clark (3.35), Jim Hornbach (3.65), and Fran Semon, who caught a 4.4-pounder.
Capt. Mike, aboard the Miss Chris, reported that they spent most of their recent trips fishing down at the Point.
Croakers were the main target, as they “showed up in big numbers.” The croakers, along with kingfish, blues, and weakfish, made for a good mixed bag, while sand sharks provided some extra excitement for the younger anglers.
A trip to note was enjoyed by Jim and Pam Anderson, who teamed up to catch 30 fish, including Pam’s pool-winning kingfish.
Cape May Bait and Tackle sends word of good catches for our local party boats that are fishing the local reefs where they’ve been catching sea bass, flounder, and triggerfish.
The 5-Fathom bank is where anglers have reported snapper blues and Spanish Mackerel hitting trolled small metals and Clarkspoons.
Offshore anglers are catching Yellowfin and Bigeye tuna at the canyons and some of the mid-shore lumps.
Much closer to home is where you find surf anglers catching croakers, weakfish, kingfish, and flounder. Fishbites, clams, minnows, and if you can get them, bloodworms, are all producing fish. Another productive technique for catching flounder is to bounce bucktails through the shallow water along the local beachfronts.
Hands Too Bait and Tackle reported that the Bodacious had a “great” day of tuna fishing recently. They went 10 for 10 on Yellowfin tuna. The tuna bite right now is hot, so if you want to book a trip, check out the Bodacious Sport Fishing Facebook page for additional information.
The summertime striped bass fishery continues to be productive for Nick and his friend. They were each able to land a keeper-sized striper during a recent outing.
Another good week, with a nice increase of summer action, due to more, and larger, flounder, more triggerfish, plus other seasonal fish, like kingfish, croakers, sea bass, and weakfish, has concluded. The tuna bite offshore is also a welcome addition and only raises the excitement felt around the local docks. Get out if the opportunity arises. Take care, and I’ll see you around.
