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Hooking Up Anglers Since 2011.
Almost all large striped bass are females, and they definitely seemed to favor their human counterparts Tuesday as Joe Tozzi of Annapolis, Md., made his annual family trip with Capt. Hans Kaspersetz and me on Sheri Berri from Baker’s Marina on the Bay in Highlands. Last year the Tozzis arrived a week later and missed the hot bite in bunker...
Almost all large striped bass are females, and they definitely seemed to favor their human counterparts Tuesday as Joe Tozzi of Annapolis, Md., made his annual family trip with Capt. Hans Kaspersetz and me on Sheri Berri from Baker’s Marina on the Bay in Highlands. Last year the Tozzis arrived a week later and missed the hot bite in bunker schools off the south shore of Long Island. They still caught smaller keepers then, but this time were on target for stripers of a size they only see very briefly near home in early spring and late fall.
We ran east until coming upon a school of bunkers in 50-foot depths, and quickly snagged baits. Jen O’Leary, Joe’s daughter, hooked up first with the lightest rig aboard, a small Wave Spin reel on a 7-foot Shakespeare Ugly Stik, but eventually subdued a striper of about 30 pounds. She then added a similar bass on a heavier spinning rod, before her sister, Gina Tozzi, caught another in the same size class. It took some time before Tom O’Leary broke the male jinx by catching the largest of the trip, a 46-inch, 36-pounder — once again on that light Wave Spin outfit after another had broken off. It wasn’t wild fishing, but most welcome in July — when most big bass have usually migrated to much cooler waters from Block Island north.
Prospects in the near term are good because New York doesn’t allow purse seining in their waters. Those big schools of bunkers are thus protected, and provide the attraction for both stripers and thresher sharks. They hung around for another week last year until jumbo blues found them – sending the schools fleeing far to the east. Jesse York of the Atlantic Beach Rod & Gun Club said several threshers in the 500-pound class have been boated from the shallow waters this week, and a club member tagged two threshers Wednesday. Though Gene Graman of Middletown found plenty of bunkers there Wednesday with his That’s It from Twin Lights Marina in Highlands, the schools were more scattered after a late arrival — and they weren’t being hounded by stripers. Graman and Fred Fessel each caught a 15-pound class striper, and I lost one on the first run, but the big bass of the day before weren’t hitting.
Offshore anglers have been enjoying the best early summer run of school bluefin tuna in years. A fleet of scallop trawlers from all along the coast has been working in Chicken Canyon, and holding the tuna that are feasting on the scallop guts being discarded by those boats. It was “bumper car” tuna fishing Saturday such as I’d never experienced before, but everyone was hooking up after we made a fast run offshore with Sheri Berri on a perfect calm day for the 26-foot Regulator.
Getting a tuna to the boat in that mess was something else. I got broken off five times on bait by other boats, the scalloper, or their stabilizers hanging down on cables — but my son Mike (up from Miami for the weekend) managed to get one in on a Shimano Butterfly jig.
That fishing was particularly good on the Fourth as there were few boats fishing offshore that day, but Capt. Lou Grazioso of Striper Mania went out Wednesday and was shocked to find that almost all of the scallopers were gone — and the tuna seemingly with them. Chances are that they’ll settle in somewhere in the area on more normal bait, such as sand eels or squid, but it may take some experimenting before they’re located.
The Sandy Hook Bay Anglers Two-Day Fluke Tournament will be contested this weekend out of Atlantic Highlands Municipal Marina. The captains meeting is at 7 tonight in the Senior Citizens Building there. Boaters may enter the contest for $100.
Capt. Scotty Hilliard said fluking from his Prowler V out of Atlantic Highlands has been good all week as long as they have a drift in Raritan Reach. Evening bluefishing has been excellent as 10- to 15-pound choppers have been surfacing offshore of Shrewsbury Rocks just in time for jigging on the 3:30 p.m. trip. After that, they continue to chum blues into the dark.
Speaking of jigs, Capt. Pete Meyers has a huge selection of them (many quite unique) manufactured at reasonable prices by his Run Off Lure Company. All are handmade and painted locally. For information call (201) 906-5077.
Adam La Rosa is delighted at the way the canyon season has started out for the Canyon Runner fleet at Clarks Landing in Point Pleasant. The two boats during June accounted for 400 yellowfin tuna, 25 white marlin, 40 mako sharks and a 222-pound bigeye tuna. There are a couple of open spots available on the 48 Viking for July 10-11 and 15-16 for $725 per person.
The Beach Haven Charter Boat Association reports that Capt. Bob Gerkens of Hot Tuna last weekend went three for four on white marlin in the canyons — and that two of those released whites were over 90 pounds. Those would be potential big money winners in the upcoming Beach Haven Marlin & Tuna Club Invitational White Marlin Tournament. Capt. John Koegler of Pop’s Pride fished Little Egg Inlet for 20 fluke, including two keepers.
Hi-Mar Striper Club ran a June 26 trip aboard Mi-Jo II from Atlantic Highlands for Wounded Warriors. Lots of fluke were caught during that trip which was also sponsored by Ed Rembish for Brittashan Ent., and by Scott Biem for Twin Lights Marina. Capt. Jim O’Grady reports he ran south Thursday with his Cock Robin from Point Pleasant and got into small blues that were caught on poppers as well as jigs.
This Fishing Report was submitted on 7/8/2011 6:18:00 AM by Seamus and last updated on 7/8/2011 6:18:00 AM.
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