DELAWARE
BAY
Anglers who wanted to fish in the
Delaware Bay have had to contend with
everything from strong spring tides to
gale-force winds over the past two
weeks. On days when conditions were
comparatively fishable, a few brave
souls did venture out and they managed
to land the occasional fish.
The
big news is the arrival of striped
bass at the mouth of the bay. We heard
of two fish over 40 inches landed, one
on a trolled Stretch 25 and the other
on a live eel. When you consider that
very few boats have ventured out in
the past two weeks this has to be a
good sign for a decent striper run
this fall.
Further
up the bay we continue to receive
reports of trout around the Crossover,
the Elbow, the Oyster Grounds, 14-Foot
Light and Ship John. Frozen
peeler crab, cut fresh bunker and
bloodworms have all been mentioned as
productive baits.
Croaker
reports have also been encouraging
with these fish found from mid to
lower bay areas. Once again with so
few people fishing it is hard to get a
handle on exactly where the croakers
are staging. I do look for some good
action around Brown Shoal and the 8s
if and when the winds slow down.
Flounder
catches have been conspicuous by their
absence. Tautog and the occasional
sheepshead were caught over artificial
reefs and the Outer Wall. Look
for tog fishing to improve right
through December.
Several
fishermen have moved to the tidal
creeks to avoid the wind and they are
catching good numbers of white perch.
Some channel cats have also been
caught. It's bloodworms for the perch
and cut bunker for the cats.
When
the weather settles down the bay will
be a whole new ballgame. With a
lot of luck, big rockfish should be
available at the mouth of the bay and
over Brown Shoal. Tog fishing
will only get better while croakers
will move into the ocean.
INSHORE
OCEAN Not much to
report from here as only one or two
boats have been able to make it past
the inlet. Those who did get out
reported sea bass and croaker
scattered from Site 10 to the Old
Grounds. A precious few flounder
were in the mix.
One of my
personal favorites, the Croaker
Canyon, has seen some trout and
croaker in recent days. This area
is located about two miles off of the
Old Coast Guard Station in 30 to 40
feet of water.
Anytime you are
in the ocean during the fall, keep an
eye out for false albacore. If you see
two or three birds dipping and diving
over a small bunch of fish, chances
are good the fish are false albacore. Casting
a small metal lure where you think the
fish will be and a very fast retrieve
can connect you to one of these
speedsters. Trolling small spoons
is another good way to catch albies. I
use casting tackle to troll so if I
hook one I can play him on the lighter
gear. False albacore are a saltwater
fly caster's dream come true as they
are easy to spot on the surface and
will take a properly presented fly.
OFFSHORE
OCEAN The last
reports we had from the canyons
indicated wahoo and dolphin were still
available. I'm sure a few hardy
souls will venture out there again
this fall and find some very
interesting action.
INDIAN
RIVER INLET The
inlet should really turn on this week.
I look for the arrival of rockfish in
all sizes with keepers as elusive as
ever. Hickory shad should be available
as well.
I enjoy catching
rock on lures even if most of the fish
are shorts. Bucktails and shads work
well in the shallow rips while a
Stingsilver is the ticket in deeper
locations. In truth, you stand a
better chance of landing a keeper on a
live eel or spot. When lots of
sub-28-inch fish are around, this can
be an expensive operation, but you
have to pay to win.
Night time jetty
fishermen will connect using the same
live baits as well as black plugs and
bucktails. There should be some pretty
good rockfish action this fall to
reward the jetty jockeys for a long,
hot summer.
Tog fishermen
will be more numerous along the rails
as the water begins to cool. Tog
will be caught from boats fishing by
the Coast Guard Station and alongside
the bridge supports during slack
tides.
Massey’s Ditch
will also see some rockfish and tog
action this fall. The rock will be
along the bank and the tog will be
caught from the fishing pier.
THE
SURF With the
beach closed much of the time due
to high tides, surf fishing has been
very difficult. I do expect to see the
bluefish run continue this week and
the very real possibility of the first
big rockfish of the fall landed from
the surf. Fresh mullet and bunker
will be the top baits for both
species. Also expecting to see
some big bluefish along the beach.
