<b>Brooklawn</b>

A few striped bass were boated on the bay, but the fishing was slow, and mostly dogfish bit, said Rick from <b>Big Timber Bait & Tackle</b>. Stripers swam Delaware River, but windy weather kept many from fishing, and waters weren’t so high from the storm, because of the drought, but were dirty like chocolate. Still, stripers were boated and caught from shore along the river north of Ben Franklin Bridge, and toward the mouth of Cooper River. Boaters fished clams, and shore anglers used bloodworms and clams, scoring equally on both, after bloodworms had caught more before. Blackfishing was good at the rocks in the bay, like at the lighthouses, and the ocean jetties. Summer flounder were caught and released in the back bays along the coast, and flounder season will open May 5. Fresh clams, bloodworms and the entire supply of baits is stocked. Big Timber carries bait and tackle for fishing on all waters from fresh to offshore.

<b>Port Elizabeth</b>

Striped bass, not many, were pulled from the bay “here and there,” Sharon from <b>The Girls Place Bait & Tackle</b> said,  but most large stripers were probably spawning in Delaware River. Fishing for them on the bay usually picks up in May, when the breeders return to the bay from the river, making their way to the ocean for the season. Stripers were caught throughout Maurice River, all the way up to Millville. One customer said some anglers scored well on the bass and white perch in the Maurice. Bloodworms are the most common bait, and both the bass and the perch will bite them. But stripers in the river will chomp other baits including bunker and even clams. Herring that migrate up the river this time of year used to be a popular bait, but became prohibited to possess this year. Drum fishing could start to turn on in the bay, if it hadn’t already, around May’s full moon, during the first week. Blackfishing seemed good on the bay. Customers seemed satisfied. If boaters can lie close to the lighthouses, the tog can usually be grabbed along the rocks at the bases. The shop’s bunker netter kept finding a few weakfish in catches. The weaks weren’t big, and more were probably lost than caught, because of the mesh size. The bay’s bunker population was fairly good. On some days it wasn’t so great, but the shop’s usually had no difficulty stocking the menhaden. Nothing was heard about bluefish since a few were reported caught several weeks ago. Blueclaw crabs could already be nabbed from the creeks to the open bay. A neighbor’s son’s trip bailed 60 keepers. Fresh clams, fresh bunker, green crabs and nearly all the baits are stocked. The Girls Place is open full time, was even open during the storm, and is located on Route 47, just after Route 55 ends. It’s the long, one-story, yellow building on the right, with a large parking lot, including plenty of room for trailered boats.

<b>Cape May</b>

Drum, the first of the season aboard, were hauled from the bay on Friday on the <b>Down Deep</b>, Capt. Bob said. The Wojcik Landscaping charter clammed the five 25- to 30-pounders. The Pete Roman charter aboard angled in blackfish from the ocean. They released out-of-season sea bass, and Bob hopes the sea bass, good-sized, remain for the opening of sea bass season May 19. Openings for charters remain for drum, blackfish, sea bass and other fishing that will kick in later this year.

The surf on the bay around the Cape May ferry jetties was the place to be for striped bass catches, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. First light, dusk and the top of tides produced, mostly on lures, especially Bombers. But stripers were hung at other spots from the surf around the same times, from the bay to the ocean. A 35-inch striper was clammed from shore at 2nd Avenue. So was a 30-inch drum. Not much was heard about bluefish. Most of the past week was windy for boating on the bay, including during the weekend’s storm. But party boats, larger vessels, sailed for stripers on the bay. Boating for the bay’s drum and stripers should pick up soon. The time of year was here for drum to arrive from the ocean, and stripers will return to the bay a moment from spawning in Delaware River. Then the stripers will migrate to the ocean. Good blackfishing was clobbered from along the Cold Spring Inlet jetties on green crabs, sometimes on clams.

Back to Top