May 1 2004 Well the boats is in the water and we made a trial run today. All systems are GO. Clamming and trolling Stripers in the bay. It's great to be back!
May 08 2004 We SLAMMED the Bass today with a couple dozen Stripers to 20+ lbs and a bunch of Blues clamming in the bay. It was too rough to fish the ocean with a NE wind at over 20 knots so we headed into the back bay. The bite was hot on the second drop. We even landed a 6lbs Blackfish on a clams. Now is the time to get out and get some Stripers.
May 16 2004 had some fly-Fishing guy's on today and had a lot of fun with Stripers and Blues. Biggest Bass landed went 12 lbs and the biggest Bluefish was about 6lbs. We also broke off a Bass that went at least 20 lbs. had the first Fluke of the season and it was caught on a fly. We were on fish all morning and had lots of hits.
May 22 2004 went bottom fishing today with Capt. Jack at Sandy hook reef. Had a good day with big Blackfish, Sea bass and Ling. Also caught some small Pollock and Cod. Thanks Capt. Jack.
May 23 Morning trip. had a tough day Fly Fishing out at Romer and Flynns. Had to stay close because of a very thick fog. Could not get to the spots I had planned on fishing. We read fish all morning but had a tough time landing them.
May 23 Afternoon trip Went Clamming out at Romer and had a good pick of Stripers and Blues. All bass were big except one slot. The Blues were huge.
May 29 Trips cancelled because of 25 to 30 knot winds.
May 30. We had a tough time finding the Bass today. We did however get into a few schools of Blues though.
June 5 & 6 Nor-easter blew all week end with smallcraft warnings. All trips cancelled.
June 8 Clammed out at Romer and Flynns. Lots and Lots of Blues all over.
June 12 First Fluke trip of the year. Landed a very good pick of good sized Fluke. Most of the keepers were 17" or better and and the throw backs were mostly just shy of 16.5". The biggest fish was a whopping 6 3/4 lbs and measured about 27". Sure wish we entered the JCAA tourney because that fish would have made third place. This is a very good sign of the fishing yet to come.
June 13 With all of the bunker in the bay we set out with a cooler of bunker and started chunking near the sticks but all of the sand sharks chased us out of there. Moved into the knoll anf cruised threw the fleet. Didn't see anyone catching so we moved out of the pack. Anchored up on the north side of the knoll near the rips. Had a couple of hits and a couple more dogs before landing a small bluefish. Moved in towards Chapel Hill Channel on top of some big Bunker schools but nothing was chasing them. We then moved in towards the Belford beach on top of some more Bunker schools before heading down to Keansburg. Made one more move out to the clam beds near Old Orchard before the wind really picked up. All in all we had a tough day finding feeding bass but have fun on the trash fish. I think it's time to pound away at the Fluke.
June 20 Fathers day trip. Found the birds working at the knoll bright and early. Had some fun with Blues before a Striper hit a diamond jig sent to the bottom under the school. We would have had more Stripers if an un-named Brooklyn boat hadn't plowed right through the school sending them under. Went to Fluking and ended with a nice bunch of keepers and shorts along with a bunch of Sharks "doggies" and assorted other sea critters. It was a beautiful day to be on the water.
June 27. Started out hunting for the birds near Flynns and Romer. No birds could be found in the area so we went outside off the hook and still nothing. Started Fluking down the beach near Sandy hook with several fish caught right away. Boy did that attract the fleet. 30 boats surrounded us in minutes. Could not get to repeat that drift again. Moved further down the beach but only shorts could be found. Went out to the channel and then in to the tower area of the knoll. Finished inside the hook with just shorts to show for the day. It did turn into a beautiful day to be on the water.
July 3. We had a very good day with the Fluke in the bay. Most keepers were between 17" and 22", the average was about 19". Plenty of bait in the water to attract the bigger fish.
July 4. Another beautiful day on the water. We had a good pick on Fluke today with many shorts, dogs and sea robins mixed in.
July 10 Had another pick of Fluke in the bay and ocean. There were a lot of shorts to pick through. The drifting conditions got tough when the tide changed but it was a beautiful day on the water.
July 11 A much better day for keeper size Fluke. They were still mixed with shorts but ended with a nice catch.
July 17. Had some young ones on today, about 8 & 9 years old. Ran up the beach for a catch of short Fluke and dogs. Moved back inside for some bigger fish including nice size keepers and big dogs and rays. The kids (girls) out fished both parents but a good time was had by all.
July 26 Fished on the Knoll today and picked our limit of nice Fluke to 20".
July 27 The weather was foggy and rainy today, with storms on the horizon. We did however pick up a nice pick of Fluke.
July 31 Tough day for drifting today. South east wind 20+ and gusting. Full moon roaring tide. Used 8 - 10 ounces to hold bottom. We still managed a pick of nice flat Fluke 16.5 to 18 inches.
Aug 1 What's up with this weather? Rain and thunder storms today with a forecast calling for more of the same. We fished on the knoll and in the channels for a good pick of Fluke up to 22 inches. We still were back in before the fireworks started.
Aug 7 What happened to Summer? Cold, cloudy and windy conditions met us today. Had to make a lot of moves from down the beach to the terminal channel to put a decent catch of Fluke together.
Aug 8 Started out at Sandy hook channel with the fleet. Not much happening so we moved to offshore of the Highlands bridge. Ended up down at the Shrewsbury rocks where we managed a good pick of keeper size Fluke. One good thing was all of the Albies breaking off the beach. Get out the light tackle because they were all over the place.
Aug 14 and 15. Hurricane weekend thanks to Bonnie and Charley. Well at least the worst parts missed us.
Aug 18 Water still a little murky from the storms. Well we had to pick through a lot of shorts out at Ambrose to fill the cooler with Fluke.
Aug 22 It was a tough drift today. Used 10 ounces on power pro and a drift bag just to hold bottom. Made drops on Chapel hill, Ambrose and Sandy hook channel to put a catch together before the wind went from ne 10-20 down to 0.
Aug 25 NE wind wouldn't allow us to get down the beach today so we stayed out of the wind inside the hook. Managed some keeper Fluke and a limit of cocktail sized Bluefish on light tackle. Wow! Was that fun.
Aug 28 Had a good day chasing Bluefish and Albies with the fly rod out at Scotland and between the channels.
Sept 4 Another great day with good weather. Stayed in the bay and caught some nice size Bluefish to 8-9 lbs and a pick of keeper Fluke to about 18 inches.
Sept 11 Rough day on the ocean and bay with ne wind at 15-20. We had to stay inside with the Flyrods because you need to stand to cast and that wasn't gonna happen outside. With tough conditions we still managed to land many blues to around 9 lbs and a small Striper. Considering the conditions, not a bad day.
Sept 12 Wow a Flat ocean today and we took advantage of it. Ran down to the Shrewsbury Rocks for some nice Fluke action. Finished with a nice catch of Fluke average size of 3lbs with the largest a nice 5 pounder. We also slammed the Blues on the way out!
Sept 18 & 19. Hurricane Ivan made a visit this weekend with Gale force winds and heavy rain. I hope that's it with the storms for this season. The big Fluke were hitting before the storm, fattening up for their trip offshore. The Blues and Stripers are hitting again and the Weakfish have finally shown up in the bay. I have open trips available for the next three weekends to take advantage of this feeding frenzy.
Sept. 22. Had a great day fishing for Fluke in the Reach channel today. Caught plenty of Short FAT fluke as well as a pick of keepers and Bluefish.
Sept 25. Trolled stretches out between the channels. No Bass but hit some nice size Bluefish.
Sept 26. A beautiful day on the bay provided a nice catch of Fluke as well as Bluefish in the Terminal channel.
Oct. 2. Chased Bluefish with the flyrod all morning out between the channels. A very fun day fighting blues in the 3 - 5 lbs range.
Oct 9. Fished out at the Shrewsbury Rocks for catch of Sea bass and Blackfish
Oct. 10. Started out late 8am at the RIP drifting eels for bass. Had a couple of runoffs but could not get thru the schools of Bluefish that were cutting the eels in half. We did have some with the Blues though.
Well that was the last trip of this season for me. I will be heading down to a warmer climate for a well-deserved vacation.
I want to thank you for fishing with me this year and hope to see you again next spring for the Striper run. I will run a special holiday promotion for anyone who books before the Christmas holiday. A charter-fishing trip makes a great Christmas present for that special person, or yourself. You can reserve a trip with a $75 deposit and wait until after the holidays to commit to a date.
