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Delaware Bay Fishing Report 5-14-13


<b>Port Elizabeth</b>

Quite a few customers showed up today, because of the best weather in some time, said Sharon from <b>The Girls Place Bait & Tackle</b>. Previously strong winds blew or weather was rough. That kept news scarce, but customers today said a few drum were eased from the bay. Most seemed caught from the Delaware side, off Slaughter Beach, though a few reportedly came from the New Jersey side. Near Slaughter produced most drum in recent years, but Jersey gave up great catches a few years ago, and in the past before then. Spots like Tussy’s Slough, Bug Light and even the number 1 buoy, Sharon said, all on the Jersey side, attracted the fish in the past. Maybe that’ll happen again, and the Jersey side harbors oyster beds that can attract them. Drum forage on shellfish like that, including clams. Demand becomes high for surf clams for bait for drum and other fish, including striped bass, this time of year. If anglers want clams, like a bushel for drum fishing, ordering ahead is strongly suggested. Suppliers had difficulty keeping up with demand in recent years, so ensure a supply by telephoning the shop. Boaters did catch stripers from the bay at places like around Maurice River Cove, where a few said they reeled them in. Summer flounder season will open Saturday, and customers will surely try for them. Some are likely to target a variety, like flounder, stripers and drum, in a trip this time of year. Flounder will surely swim the bay, but how many, and how soon most will arrive, are the questions. Bigger flounder usually swim all the way up the bay early in the season. Later, large ones will more commonly hold in the southern bay, until most flounder move to the ocean in the height of summer, once the bay heats up. Flounder will bite nearly any bait. They like “meat,” Sharon said, like strips of frozen mackerel or chicken or fresh bunker.  But they also love minnows, either fished plain or with a strip of bait like squid or nearly anything. Plenty of minnows will be stocked for the opening. Tap Dancer Rigs are some of the most popular sellers for flounder at the shop. Flounder sometimes love the bait on the smaller hook on the rig’s trailer leader, more than they like the jig at bottom. The netter found croakers, not many, but good-sized, in catches. That was good news, and anglers hoped that meant a healthy population of croakers would arrive this year in the bay. Croakers were scarcer and smaller in recent years. Weakfish continued to show up in the nets. Larger weaks appear in spring, and smaller, abundant ones show up in summer. Weaks should school the bay this summer, and lots more probably did last year than anglers realized.  In addition to fresh clams and minnows mentioned above – and Sharon reminded that ordering the clams ahead matters – fresh bunker, when available, and most other baits are stocked.  The bunker arrived almost daily, and the netter sailed for them and caught, despite winds. But demand was high. Two bushels of bunker that arrived Monday were sold by 8 a.m. the next day, today. The Girls Place, located on Route 47, just after Route 55 ends, stocks a large supply of bait and tackle. It’s the long, one-story, yellow building on the right, with plenty of parking, including for trailered boats.

<b>Cape May</b>

Drum fishing picked up and was good on the bay, said Capt. Mario from the <b>Down Deep</b>. Space is available on a Marathon Sea Bass Trip on Sunday, opening day of sea bass season, on the ocean. That trip, a couple of open-boat drum trips and several open tuna trips were recently posted on the <a href=" http://www.downdeepsportfishing.com/ddsf/special-trips/
" target="_blank">Special Trips Page</a> on Down Deep’s Web site. Sign up for the <a href=" http://www.downdeepsportfishing.com/ddsf/76-2/" target="_blank">Short Notice List</a> on the site to be kept informed about special open trips.

One drum, a 35-pounder, was heaved aboard from the bay Saturday with Steve Harris’s group on the <b>Heavy Hitter</b>, Capt. George said. That was the season’s first trip for drum on the boat, and a few bites were probably also missed. The fish bit softly, and the trip fished on the Delaware side of the bay. The angling seemed slow for the fleet that night to George. One party boat landed a few drum, and a couple of boats caught none, he thought. George heard no drum booming, but heard others say they heard the fish well. Weather wasn’t bad, though forecasts called for rougher. Somewhat of a breeze blew, but seas were 1 to 2 feet. Charters will keep drum fishing, and will be able to sail for sea bass on the ocean, once sea bass season is opened Sunday. Summer flounder season will be opened Saturday, and George usually begins flounder fishing later in the season, at places like the Old Grounds or Reef 11, both on the ocean off the state of Delaware. But he’ll sail for the flatfish once the season is opened, if anglers want. Maybe the bay is warm enough for flounder, though the ocean is probably cold for them.

Surf fishing was excellent, said Nick from <b>Hands Too Bait & Tackle</b>. Striped bass were beached from both the ocean side and Delaware Bay side around Cape May, and tailor bluefish were banked, like around Poverty Beach. Occasional drum were heaved in from shore. One customer clammed a 25-pound 41-inch striper from the ocean surf Thursday. A 40-pound 35-inch striper, a whopper, was reportedly dragged to the beach from the bay at North Cape May late last week on clam. Whether clams or bunker were fished for stripers from the surf seemed personal preference, and both probably caught equally. More people fish clams, so more is heard about clams. But anglers might want to bring bunker for the blues. Drum inhaled clams fished for stripers, and one customer eased in a 30-pounder. Weakfish could be plucked from along Cape May’s jetties on bloodworms on float rigs or bucktails. Few boaters fished the bay, because of winds. But a couple of photos of drum were seen from boaters, and a few seemed to bite in the bay. Stripers were sometimes boated on the bay, and Nick would say try for them at places like the cove, Bug Light and Bayshore Channel. The cove is the area around Reed’s Beach or Bidwell Creek, or where the creeks flow into the southern bay. The bottom is flat near the shore there, but baitfish always seem to attract the bass. Anglers on smaller boats can fish the shallows there, and do catch. Larger boats like charters can’t really fish the skinny waters. Fresh clams and bunker are stocked when available. Bloodworms and all frozen baits are carried.

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