The Fishing Line June 22

Fishing seemed to be heating up. But the weather warmed, storms blew through, it cooled, then when the weekend approached, the heat returned. Unfortunately, so did the wind. Some may have been able to get out in the back, but even then the drifts were tough – fast, across the creeks sideways, being pushed up against the sod and just plain tough. Still, some fish were caught, and that’s what we’re here to discuss. Let’s begin.
The Royal Flush, on their 2 daily trips, are fishing out front. They are catching sea bass, flounder, snapper blues, kingfish and porgies. Russell Lindner caught a very large sea bass, Jake Cheramy from Colorado wrangled in a sea bass and Melissa York got a 2 pound flounder.
Captain Ray from Tide Runner Charters reports good fishing when the wind allowed for a departure. Weakfish ranging from 15-20 inches were being caught outside the surf line for the fly and spin anglers. While fishing the ocean, they also came across blue fish, stripers and a few fluke. One interesting situation happened while a striper was being caught. As it got to the net, so did a shark. Well, they only had to net a head and a small portion of the body as the shark wanted it more.
In the backwaters, stripers and blue fish appeared after the new moon. The fly folks got hits on popping flies on floating lines, while the spin anglers had success with popping and swimming plugs. Both morning and evening tides were productive.
The Sea Star III is sailing daily and producing fluke and sea bass. Both have been coming over the rail during the day trips. The drum fish are being caught during the evening trips of Wednesday and Saturday. A 56 pound pool winner was caught by Jessica Trentham on June 11. The drum fish trips are now ending for another year, and Captain Chuck would like to thank everyone who got out for “another great season.”
Sterling Harbor Bait and Tackle report that fishing was hampered by the previously mentioned wind. The Delaware Bay is still good for striped bass and drum fish from the Jersey side.
Fluke fishing “picked up” at the Old Grounds and Reef Site 11 with fish up to 22 inches being reported. Back bay fluke from Sea Isle to the Wildwood area improved when conditions allowed.
Sea bass are good at the Cape May Reef and the inshore wrecks.
From the surf, stripers and blues are still being caught. Proof comes from Rodney Searcy of Wildwood, who caught a 27.5 pound striper on bunker from the Cape May beach.
Offshore, the winds played havoc again, but some nice makos were reported, and tuna were also reported to be breaking while the shark fishing was going on.
Crabby Jack grades crabbing at three claws this week, mentioning “plenty” of nice sized crabs, plus many roe carrying females that went back in the water so the species can continue. Remember to put back any females with the egg sacks because the future depends on it, and so does our future crab dinners.
From Grassy Sound Marina comes word that Turtle Creek was the “most productive area” near the marina. It gave up a 23 inch, 3.8 pound flounder to Mark Fineberg, and three keepers up to 20 inches to Diane Casey. Her husband John caught three shorts, so they had plenty of action. Others who had success in the area while on rental boats were Al Kline with a 20 incher and Julian Petrucci who had three keepers out of six fish caught, up to 20 inches. A few weakfish and some nighttime stripers also came from the area. The top and turn of the tide seems to be the prime fishing time.
The Pier provided a 20 inch keeper for Mike Ruk and a keeper for Jim Perry that fell for a squid and spearing combo.
Remember that the 10th Annual Grassy Marina Flounder Tournament on June 25 is quickly approaching. Call or check out www.grassysoundmarina.com for information or to register.
Congratulations go to 15-year-old Walter Belles who sent word of a 45 inch, 72 pound drum fish that he caught recently. Good job Walt and keep fishing and reading the column.
Boulevard Bait and Tackle sent in word of an 11.2 pound, 31 inch flounder caught in our local water recently. The fish was weighed at another shop, but Cameron got word and pictures out. It’s nice to see some big fish in the area. Also mentioned was that Tracy and Tom continued catching some big blues.
Sailor’s Delight Back Bay Fishing reported a good day recently with weakfish and a number of fluke being taken. This includes the first keeper fluke of the 2016 season that was caught by James McCabe. 
The MidAtlantic Tournament is celebrating its 25th Anniversary this year. The “Tournament Headquarters” is based at the Canyon Club Resort Marina in Cape May. Sunset Marina in Ocean City, Maryland will be the only satellite port in the tournament.
The tournament starts on Sunday, August 21 with the registration. A welcome cocktail party will go from 1 to 4:30 p.m. at both venues. A Captain’s Meeting will start at 4:30 p.m. Anglers may choose three of the five available days to fish within the defined boundaries.
For further information, contact Tournament Director Aaron Hoffman at (609) 884-2400 or visit the official website at www.themidatlantic.com for complete information, rules, schedules and Calcutta breakdowns.
 The Environment: The Ocean City Fishing Club is part of a nationwide effort to collect and recycle discarded fishing line. Monofilament fishing line takes 500 years to degrade.
Through help provided by the South Jersey Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation and fishing outfitter TackleDirect, the club recently had a receptacle installed near the end of its 635-foot pier.
Augie Conte Jr. said that protection of the environment was one of the OCFC’s founding principles when the club was established in 1913.
“We’ve long been aware of the environmental danger posed by anglers who carelessly throw away fishing line,” Conte said. “Our members welcome this opportunity to be part of an important recycling project.”
Volunteers from the foundation will empty and clean the receptacle on a regular basis, and the line will be shipped to the Berkley Line Company in Spirit Lake, Iowa, for recycling.
Submit your fishing news and photos to mrobbins@cmcherald.com.