Thursday, December 5, 2019

Fishing Reports

Right now, I can't do any fishing and I miss the adventures I enjoyed sharing with you. All the reports are second hand from the fisherman I talk to. The blackfish bit well before the storm and are still biting. Seems like the cold weather turned them on. The bass continue to bite. It is hard to get out on a boat this time of year, but the fishing has been very good from the beach. That fishing should continue, as I caught until the new year last season. I miss exploring the beach and hope to get back there next season.

Friday, November 29, 2019

Holiday Fishing

Striped Bass fishing has been lights out from beach and boat this week. We enjoyed a donated fillet, grilled with garlic, oil and lemon, while cooking for Turkey Day. Blackfishing is the same old s%#t, as told to me by a sad faced skipper. Enjoy the rest of the Holiday weekend, stay safe and warm.

Friday, November 22, 2019

Blackfish Season

Blackfish season opened last weekend, but the weather was so bad, no one sailed until mid week. I spoke to one skipper who did exceptionally well. He wanted to keep it a secret, so don't tell anyone.

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

Fishing Report

The striped bass continue to bite, but not every day. Sounds like all sizes too. The bottom fishing is OK if you can get at least fifteen miles offshore and the dogfish don't bother you. The sea bass are big knuckle heads and the porgies are as big as hub caps. Some ling and bluefish too. Blackfish opens this weekend and they have been biting. This time of year you have to fish around the weather and we are lucky to have three nice days a week.

Monday, November 4, 2019

Fall Fishing

The striped bass fishing has everyone heading down to the docks. You can spot the striper fishermen very easily. They are usually wearing some form of camo and have a glazed look in their eyes and mumble about fifty pounders. Well, the striper fishing has not changed in the forty five years that I have been on the water, they don't bite all the time and you have to be there when they do. They can be the easiest fish to catch and the hardest the next day. Well, they are around, but you have to put in your time on the water and work to get them. Some do and some don't, it's striper wishing!

Friday, October 25, 2019

A Fishing Report

I spoke to the boat on the way in yesterday and Capt Steve was excited about the striped bass fishing. There has been a large body of jumbo bass off the Jersey coast for over a week now, and boats are coming in with epic catches. Some of these fish are topping the fifty pound mark. Bottom fishing has been a struggle due to the influx of dogfish. The big catches are coming from the boats running thirty or more miles offshore. The small boats are doing well with blackfish too. This is the time of year they bite on the inshore grounds and the season should be open now, not in the winter, when you are lucky to even catch one.

Wednesday, October 23, 2019

Busy Days

I have been home for a little more then a week and a day hasn't gone buy without a visit from a nurse, physical therapist, occupational therapist, social worker or a doctors appointment. I have not heard from the boys on the boat, but it seems there are some fish to catch when the weather cooperates. I will try to talk to everyone when I feel up to it. The forecast looks good for the next three days and everyone should be out there.

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

Four Long Months

Well, I have been a little busy with the fight of my life the past four months, so there was no fishing reports. I will try to keep the reports up to date, but the information will be second hand as my fishing days are on hold. I would like to thank everyone for their kind words and prayers because they worked, I am still here. I would really like to thank Evelyn. Without her, I would never be able to make it, she is the only reason I hung on in the darkest hours. Like Lou Gerihg said, "I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth."

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Next Fishing Trip

We will be doing a special trip out to the wrecks for ling on Sunday June 23.

Saturday, June 8, 2019

June Fishing

Not much to report, as I have been dealing with a nagging injurie and have not been fishing the last few weeks. Sea bass and ling remain strong and some days whiting make an appearance. Fluke have been hard to find and the blues are still around. Two more weeks of sea bass and then it's ling time until the inshore season opens again.

Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Holiday Weekend

Sunday, the Pioneer crew had a great day, filling the box with a boat limit of sea bass to five pounds. Seventy five bonus ling topped off the bags. Monday was just another day in the trailer park, too much skin, ink and camo, and not enough teeth. Full garbage cans of empties. The highlite of the trip was an eighteen pound monkfish.

Friday, May 24, 2019

Fluke Opener

We headed out yesterday to scout for fluke in advance of opening day. A few of the regulars were on the beach waiting on the tide and bluefish. We were all alone out at some of our favorite spots and did not have a touch until the bluefish arrived. I quickly took off our good bucktails as to not have them ruined, and a change in tactics made for a fun morning with many bluefish releases. We will try the fluke next week with a different tide. Looking good for Sunday's sea bass and ling trip, that fishing has been lights out.

Monday, May 20, 2019

Good Bottom Fishing

Plenty of big sea bass and good old fashioned orange belly ling. Doing it again next Sunday, no sud suckin' mule skinners allowed.

Friday, May 17, 2019

Spring Fishing

Winter returned a little this week. A try at crabbing produced lots of smalls and only a few keepers, but we are glad to see them this early. Yesterday, we made a trip to our favorite back-water beach spot. The plan was to fish on the bass early and then scout for fluke as the tide dropped. There were only a few regulars out, and the forecast called for sunny and 74 degrees. At 6am the temperature was only 53 and there were some sprinkles around. Fishing started of slow and after about a half hour, I landed a nice sized schoolie striper after a spirited, drag running fight. The sky darkened to the west and we continued fishing through a lite rain shower. It looked like the day would brighten and we caught another bass and a blue as another shower approached and it started to rain lightly. And it kept raining, to the point we were soaked and freezing. My partner was disappointed and wanted to continue fishing, be we retreated to the truck as the steady rain increased to a down pour. I put the heat on high to dry out and headed for home. Ten miles up the road, there was bright sunshine, blue sky and a beautiful day. You never know what you will get in the spring.

Thursday, May 9, 2019

You Have To Start Somewhere

We tried a couple local spots for blue claws and threw a half dozen keepers in the basket. Less rock crabs then last week and also a couple of blow fish. The blues have arrived at the Jersey shore and can appear any where at any time. A trip to the beach saw slow fishing in beautiful conditions but we did have a few short stripers and some blues. Still waiting on that first fluke.

Sunday, May 5, 2019

SEA BASS!

Sea Bass season opens soon and I will have a trip on Sunday May 19. Limited spots, so give me a call to get on the list. Spring is the best time of year to go fishing and we should see all kinds of fish along with the sea bass.

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Crab Time?

The Skylarker is in the boatyard for Coast Guard inspection and some fresh paint. With Tuesday starting off wet, we decided to try the local waters for crabs. There have been some reports, and we did not know what to expect so early in the season, but we found two keeper blue claws, seven shorts and a few dozen white-leggers now that blackfish season is closed. Stay tuned for an invitation only sea bass trip when it opens in two weeks.

Monday, April 29, 2019

Sunday

The day started off calm and the fishing was a slow pick of short blackfish with enough keepers for every one to take some home. We also had a keeper cod, some nice big ling and the first few out of season sea bass. As the day wore on, it became cold and raw with the east wind and we docked at 2pm, in time to go home and watch baseball.

Saturday, April 27, 2019

Spring in New England

We were invited to fish with our old friend Capt. Dave on the Tuna.com again and had a blast. On the way up the road, Dave called to say the fishing was poor and maybe we should not come until next week. With the weather being perfect, we decided to go and were glad we did. The fishing started as a pick and once the tide got right it was up and down fishing for the Skylarker crew. There was a nice mix of haddock, cod, redfish and cunners, and Evelyn also had a wolf fish and I landed the lone pollock as I was the only one fishing a jig. The only down side was the size of the haddock as it was about four shorts per every keeper but we still managed to come up just a few shy of a boat limit. Thanks to Dave and Sandro for another fun trip, we are already looking forward to our next adventure. Now it's back to the blackfish grounds on Sunday and the weather looks perfect.

Sunday, April 21, 2019

Happy Easter

Kabanosy, pierogie, eggs, rye bread and babka for breakfast today... my people's soul food. Happy Easter everyone, enjoy the day.

Thursday, April 18, 2019

Spring Bass Bite

The ocean run for the boats lasted three days, but I hear the Raritan bite is on big time. We hit the back waters yesterday a little later then I would have liked and had a nice bite going on right away and as usual in the spring, it was over by 8am. A few double headers and nicer fish up to twenty-four inches. Looks like rough weather coming in for a few days and we will try the local surf soon, lots of little bass around down this way.

Monday, April 15, 2019

First Trip Report

We had to deal with adverse conditions and our first trip was a bust. Thick fog all day and poor anchoring conditions made it tough and all that wanted to bite was 14 inch blackfish. Listening to the radio, the boats from as far away as Long Island all reported the same...the keepers had lock jaw. The bright spot of the trip was the big orange belly ling to let us know better days are coming. Back at it in two weeks, they should be chomping by then.

Thursday, April 11, 2019

Fishing this Sunday

Weather looks good for Sunday, 4/14. Blackfish are biting along with some ling and stray cod. If the stripers show we will get on 'em. Striper fishing was lights out from the beach this morning. Two hour bite on the schoolies, I had eight double-headers. See y'all Sunday.

Saturday, April 6, 2019

Next Big Trip

Saturday, April 27...We will be running a blackfish trip on the Skylarker. Call or e-mail if you would like to go. The ocean is starting to come alive, it should be prime time. Let's go fishing!

Friday, April 5, 2019

A Live Ocean

It was cold when we left the house Thursday morning, but mild by time we got to the beach at first light. The ocean was silky calm, no wind and we were on the top of the tide with a swell and good white water. As the day dawned, we could see hundreds of gannets diving just beyond the bar, following a school of dolphins. We were the only ones on the beach and had a full nature show. Big horse head seals surfed on the breakers, making sure no fish could get close to our lures. When we got home, the word was the Belmar boats had an all day striper blitz to the north. Fishing season has begun.

Friday, March 29, 2019

Opening Day

The Weather Channel said it was going to be "noticeably warmer" on Thursday. The only thing I noticed was the truck covered in ice and the thermometer reading 21 degrees. We headed out to an early season inside spot and gave it a good try. It turned out to be a pretty nice morning, and we saw a bunch of osprey and a bald eagle, and got a lot of practice. Well, we were home in time for the Yankee game. Today, we went to the beach to try the ocean surf and were the only ones out there. The south wind was not that bad but the surf was tumultuous and the only thing we raised was a curious seal that was trying to figure out what we were throwing at him. Another couple weeks and it should all begin.

Saturday, March 16, 2019

Changing Seasons

There are a lot of glowing fishing reports of backwater bass and even bluefish. I don't know who is catching them, as we spent a couple days scouting local waters and only saw one guy fishing. The beach was empty again, but the loons were feeding inside the bar and I think it is time to try the surf. The wintering seals and sea ducks are leaving the area and the first oyster catchers were on the beach. The old timers down here say when the "spring peepers" start singing fishing season begins. Yesterdays mild weather had the little tree frogs chirping, so it won't be long now.

Thursday, March 7, 2019

Duluth Trading Co.

They have their winter clearance sale going on now, and it's worth a look. 140 dollar jacket, good for fishing on sale for 22 bucks!

Thursday, February 28, 2019

National Geographic Day

We hit the beach on a lonely cold morning. With the temperature at thirty degrees, there was no wonder no one was around. We headed down to the inlet to explore, and a short way into our hike we found a snowy owl. Down at the inlet were all the usual winter visitors ( scoters and long tails) and we got a great view of a flock of common eider. Back behind the jetty, towards the bay, we saw a seal hauled out on a rock and found a trail leading back there to check him out. As we got closer, we found more taking in the sun on the rocks about 250 yards out. There were harbor seals and huge gray seals, the ones they call horseheads that had to be at least 500 pounds or more. The cool thing was all the noise they were making, grunting and barking at each other. I could only imagine how many fish they eat in a day, and how big the sharks are that eat them. Cool stuff to do in the winter while waiting for fishing to start.

Sunday, February 24, 2019

Spring Training

The first spring training games of the winter are on TV this weekend, reminding us that baseball and fishing are only about a month away. The Snowy owls continue at the beach and trying to find them is a fun way to spend a nice morning. The Bass Pro Shop has a big sale this week and it is always nice to go there as you can spend a day looking at all the cool stuff. Fishing in the ocean stinks as it usually does this time of year. About half a dozen fish for thirty anglers is a good day. Stripers usually start biting when bay water temperatures get to fifty degrees and we are looking forward to catching the schoolies. I don't expect too much in the way of flounders as there have been hungry seals around all winter. Lets hope we have an early spring this year.

Sunday, February 10, 2019

Up and Down

The weather has been normal this winter, with warming temperatures ahead of low pressure systems and then plunging after the passage of a cold front. The water is cold, as it should be this time of year, but the half way point of winter has passed and there has not been much snow. We were able to get out this week and explore the beach. Usually, you don't expect to see anyone out in winter, but it was really cool walking five miles and never seeing another soul or even a boat or ship out on the ocean. It was like going back in a time machine! Saturday, we took a ride to the NJ Maritime Museum. I call it the "shipwreck museum" as it is full of artifacts claimed by divers from many of the spots we fish. I found it very interesting and will go back again. Capt Steve is out this morning on the Ocean Explorer and I will get a report later. Spring training starts this week, it won't be long now.

Thursday, January 31, 2019

Ugly Cold

Damn, it's cold. That was a wild little five minute, white-out blizzard that brought in the cold air yesterday. Now we are stuck in the house with single digit temps. It was not too bad the other day, so we took a ride to the lighthouse. When I stepped from the truck and looked in the water, a big face was looking back at me. At least three big horsehead seals were hanging around the inlet. There were also a lot of birds but we did not find any winter exotics. We drove down to the other end of the island to check out the beach at Holgate. Everything was shut down, all the beach access was closed, the parking lots were chained shut and it was like "go away, we're closed." LBI is the real New Jersey part of the shore, crowded and over built like the rest of the state. I would not go out there in the summer for anything.  It is the opposite of the Bayshore area where we live on the mainland. Well, today I am sure the bay is frozen again and we have two more months of this winter to look forward to.

Saturday, January 26, 2019

Worst Time of Winter

The long month of February is the worst time of the year. Football is over, baseball is a month away and fishing is over until the water temperature gets up around fifty, about early April.

Thursday, January 24, 2019

A Winter Adventure

We had to get out of the house after the recent cold snap and headed to the beach. Driving out over the causeway, the Barnegat bay was completely frozen over. The winter beach is a wild and lonely place, and I almost wished I had brought the fishing gear, as the surf was clean and green and it felt mild in the sunshine. Instead we had the binoculars, and were ready to discover the snowy owls that winter over in the park. We headed south and there was enough cloud cover to make excellent viewing conditions. A little less then two miles in, we found a large male snowy on the second dune from the beach, close enough to get a picture. They are magnificent creatures and it never gets old finding one. We picked up some interesting shells on the way back to the truck. After lunch, we went on some trails on the back side and took pictures of the frozen bay. It looks like the mild weather will continue for a few days, and if enough anglers are interested we will go after the blackfish one more time.

Monday, January 21, 2019

Blood Wolf Moon

The strange winter storm passed, bringing in the coldest air of the season. The NW gale has been raging for two days and combining with the full moon, it is causing the lowest tide you will ever see. I am sure there are going to be all types of low water issues. It would be perfect for clamming, but with the high temperature at 15 degrees and a forty knot breeze, I ain't leaving the house! And speaking of the moon, I got up to watch the eclipse and wasn't too impressed as I have seen the "blood moon" in the past and this one didn't compare. Fishing was good the day before the storm as it usually is. Capt Steve ran the Ocean Explorer and came in one or two fish shy of a full boat limit. Maybe we can get one more crack at them before everything shuts down until April.

Thursday, January 17, 2019

Weather Forecasts and the Government Shutdown

Last week, all the media outlets were ranting over a snowstorm for the weekend. Now that the weekend is approaching, no one has a clue. NWS website says they are effected by the shut down, but they still give a forecast. I was thinking of trying the surf tomorrow but media outlets are calling for a low of thirty degrees overnight with light rain. Huh? That doesn't add up to me. Well the Weather Channel says the storm will start tomorrow but it is still in California today. Another huh? Well I guess we will be keeping the boat in this weekend, see what happens, and check back next week.

Sunday, January 13, 2019

Settling in to Winter

This week was cold and windy and not much happened. Yesterday was the only nice day and a few boats sailed. Capt Steve had the J II out to the mudhole and made a little catch of assorted bottom dwellers. The blackfish on the inshore grounds were picky, but they bit Friday in the gale of wind. We took a ride over to the Lacey High School fishing flea market and found nothing but junk and cheap old men. The place was packed. We will try to make our blackfish trip next weekend on the best weather day, so be prepared. Right now, it is cold, calm and snowing lightly on the Jersey shore.

Monday, January 7, 2019

A Nice Start to a New Year

It was a beautiful morning on Lake Atlantic, a pleasant change from all the bad weather. Onboard were a bunch of old friends from back in the old "Pioneer" and "Palace" days. The forecast called for wind, and it did scare away a few anglers, but the wind never picked up until the last drop and ride home. It was actually the nicest day on the ocean in months. As for the fishing, it was typical for winter, you had to wait for the bites and three dozen nice sized blackfish up to eight pounds were boxed. Better then sitting home watching the weather channel (there will be plenty of time for that) and we will try another trip Sunday 1/20.

Tuesday, January 1, 2019

Next Fishing Trip

Start off the New Year this Sunday, January 6. Come and join us on a deepwater wreck trip for jumbo blackfish. This time of year offers you the best chance at a double digit sized tog. Let me know if you'd like to go! Happy New Year.