Well, this past week was a lot slower than any of us would have wanted. The weather wasn’t great, but it cooperated enough for boats to get out. Once out though, the stripers were just hard to find. Some, just enough, were caught to keep it interesting, and keep alive a hope for more. Let’s hope the weather continues to allow the fleet to get out and pursue the elusive target before it gets too cold, and too nasty. On to what we have.
The Sea Star III and Captain Chuck report that this week resulted in more “BIG” stripers. But even with the big fish coming aboard, the week had tougher conditions than would be liked. There seems to be no consistency, as some days saw fish, while others were more challenging.
As for the fish, Mike Ostroski caught a 37 pounder, Dave Sedlack had a 31 pounder, and a couple of group shots showed nice fish and happy anglers.
The Sea Star III will be on the water through Dec. 24, so make your plans and get out while the option is still there. After that, Captain Chuck and staff will take a long, well deserved rest.
Captain Bob on the Full Ahead was out on Friday and reported “another good day.” They were aided by the wind, as it kept “boat traffic to a minimum.” It’s not often that you hear of a benefit like that due to a windy day. Anyway, the five anglers aboard returned with six fish. Not a bad ratio for the conditions, and the inconsistency of the current striper bite.
Later in the week they had a “change of pace,” so after riding around looking for bass they tried for tog. The results? A boat limit with fish up to 8 pounds. Sometimes changing things up works out.
Cape Queen Sportfishing had a few good trips recently. Leroy Burroughs and friends took a trip for stripers after a previous trip for sea bass. Skeeter, who won that pool, struck again as he caught the only legal striper of the day. Two trips, two pools. Get him to buy some lottery tickets.
The next trip was for Dave Knowles and friends. Congratulations go out to Anthony Malusa who caught his very first striper. The fishing was a little slow as “they seem to be playing hide and seek.” Slow or not, that was a good job, Anthony, on boating your first striper. If you’re like the rest of us, I’m sure you now have the fever and want to go get number two.
The final trip was the Ron Jon and friends party. They limited out with fish from 30 to 44 inches long. A good time was had by all as the “stripers cooperated.”
Off The Hook Bait and Tackle sent in word and picture of a personal best tog of 12.92 pounds for Jerry Barlow. Congratulations, Jerry. I’m not sure if you had already caught a double-digit tog or if this was your first, but either way I hope to someday join you in that club.
Keith Arenberg caught a nice striper on a recent Sunday. I was out grabbing some downed trees for the woodstove and heard word was that it was a 30 pounder. I saw a picture of it, and that number looks to be accurate. It was caught while trolling off of Ocean City.
Cameron from Boulevard Bait and Tackle reported he and some friends had a good tog trip recently. The anglers ended up with a five-man limit with the biggest fish being just under 12 pounds.
Caveman Fishing will be offering jumbo offshore sea bass trips as of Dec. 19. They will also run open boat or charters for stripers as long as they stay in South Jersey waters. They will fish for sea bass as the weather allows, because they plan on heading offshore up to 55 miles out. If you’re interested, give them a call at (609) 846-5874 or (609) 425-1970 for more information.
On Dec. 14, they put a good striper trip together for “family and friends.” They went up to Sea Isle and caught fish in a place where they fished the day before without getting a bite. It shows perseverance pays off.
Summer flounder update: A recent development is the proposed reduction in harvest of the summer flounder. The results could be a 40 percent cut in allowable catch over the next two years. Per the Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council, this is because of overfishing and a stock biomass that is in decline.
How this would be accomplished locally is yet to be determined. One local fisherman, Bill “Bucktail Willie” Shillingford, feels that the Mid-Atlantic Council will establish a 19 inch minimum size with a 90 day or less season. An opinion in an article I read also added the possibility of a three-fish bag limit. The article also felt an open season could be June 1 to Sept. 15. The council will meet in Baltimore where a possible solution to the problem will be proposed.
Researchers from a number of East Coast colleges will present the idea of a slot-fish being used to help anglers in their quest for a keeper. Due to male fish being smaller, more females will survive to breed. Conversely, more pressure may still be put on the females due to the 19 inch size. If you get that bigger fish, it’s probably a female, and one you may want to release. Now you face a situation of keeping a legal fish which is your right, or releasing it after you spent the time and money to catch it. The slot- fish would allow the angler to keep a fish and give people a reason to go fishing, while allowing a larger breeder to spawn again.
Bill Shillingford feels the 19 inch size limit could be a disaster for South Jersey. Bill, who tags fish, looked at his data which covers 15 years to determine that feeling. His data shows the average size of fluke caught locally to be between 15.83 and 16.81 inches. These numbers include fish that were caught and tagged during out-of-season periods. This is important because further data shows that the largest fish are caught in April and the first three weeks of May. That means the biggest fish are here before the season even begins. After that, the average size drops. Fish caught in July average only 13.25 inches. *This data only reflects South Jersey and Cape May County, but Bill feels these numbers are similar up the coast to at least Barnegat Inlet.
Bill mentioned another factor that may contribute to tougher times for our local flounder. The ongoing beach replenishment projects, being done by the Army Corp of Engineers, are drawing sand from the inshore lumps. These lumps are crucial to the fluke migration as they move in and out of inshore waters. He feels that if removed, the inshore spawning migration may not occur. The fish stop at these lumps as they move inshore to spawn. The better food supply in the back waters is important for “effective spawning.” Never making it inshore would obviously effect the spawning and perpetuation of the species.
For a point of reference, Bill has tagged over 8,000 fluke for the American Littoral Society. Of those, a little over 10 percent have been returned. He has the knowledge, experience and statistics to verify and support his opinions.
More information should be out on Thursday as I wrap up this column. I will pass it on as it becomes available. Hopefully, it will be news that is good for all involved, from the bait shops, to the boat captains, and finally to the anglers seeking fluke.
Submit your fishing news and photos to mrobbins@cmcherald.com.
