Article by Capt. BJ Pietryak
Last week saw a definite cool down both in the air temperatures as well as the water. Rain and strong wind storms kept many anglers off the water and beaches. Tog still remains pretty strong as the season comes to an end along with lots of by-catches of sea bass which is set to open on May 15th. Small rockfish are in the back bays along with some flounder. On the beaches and in the Delaware Bay, black drum and over slot rockfish are beginning to make an appearance.
New Regulations
I will start this issue clarifying some recent changes to our fishing regulations. First is the matter of FIN, or Fisherman Identification Number. All anglers fishing the Delaware waters will need to have acquired a FIN from the state, even when fishing on a vessel with a vessel fishing permit. FIN numbers are free and can be obtained by visiting the web site : www.delaware-fin.com or by calling the free/automated number: 1-800-432-9228. It is my understanding that law enforcement will be checking all persons on each vessel, not just the owner/captain this summer.
The second change is that as of July 2nd the slot for rockfish will become no less than 28” and a max size of 31”. Yes, folks this is a 3 inch slot. The ASMFC mandate will be on the entire east coast. It is believed that the Chesapeake Bay will not be required to follow this guideline, but at this time confirmation from the state of Maryland or ASMFC could not be obtained. If this is the case, it seems a little silly to not include the main spawning area of the striped bass for this reduction. The current regulation for the Atlantic Ocean is 28”-35”. The Chesapeake Bay is currently having their trophy season with a minimum size of 35”. This season goes from May 1-15. From May 16 - July 15 their season calls for one fish with a minimum size of 19 inches and no maximum size. This may be subject to change once the final guideline is confirmed.
Near Shore Wrecks & Reefs
The near shore reefs are still producing some decent catches of tog. Many anglers targeting tog are also reporting good catches of sea bass. Sea bass season is currently closed but opens on May 15. The current regulation for the upcoming season is May 15-Sept 30 with minimum size of 13 inches and a creel limit of 15. The added change to this regulation is that scup (porgy) possession limit will drop from 50 to 40 per day. We seemed to have made out with these limits compared to other states that are decreasing catch creel limits as well as longer closed seasons. Tony Walls caught 3 tog near Indian River Inlet all around 15”. All the fish were released unharmed. Greg Ruditys reported some good trips on the “Double Trouble Charters” with many anglers bringing home keeper tog.
Katie Kazimirwas out at Site 11 on the “Hall’N Ass”. The group released a lot of fish and managed to bring a few home for dinner. The fish bite turned on in the afternoon and the bait of choice was green crabs. Dave Tribbet joined a select group of anglers that can say he released a 20 lb. tog. His fish was 20.4 lbs. Great job by Captain Carrie as well as angler Dave Tribbet for releasing a trophy fish so it can breed again. Captain Carrie is out of Lewes Harbour Marina in Lewes. David Farkas was fishing Indian River and caught a few tog on green crab.
Flounder
Flounder, which started off very strong, appears to have slowed down with the temperature drop last week. Anglers did still manage a few to bring home for dinner.
Tom Passwater brought home 3 keeper fish with “Bad Wind Charters”, weeded through a bunch of shorts but did manage to get a limit. They went out later in the week and again brought home fish for dinner. All were caught in the Indian River area.
Rockfish & Black Drum
The surf has been the best area for both rockfish and black drum.
Michael Wankmiller was on the DE/MD line when he caught an over slot 45” rockfish off the Fenwick surf. The fish was caught on sand fleas. Charles Ritter went out for a couple hours and was rewarded with a 37” striper. Fish was released unharmed. Jimi Labita was fishing the Indian River Bay and pulled a nice 30” striper. Ryan West was also fishing the inlet and brought in a couple small rockfish. Henry Busby was fishing the beach just south of IR and pulled a rockfish out of the surf. Gary Harmison pulled a big over slot fish out of the same beach area as Henry. Mark Gilch was on the Delaware Bay and pulled a 40.25”. Robert Wilkerson was fishing sand fleas on the beach and caught a nice black drum for dinner. Jon Smith pulled a 20 lb drum out of the surf on May 1st. Sand fleas and clams have been the best baits this past week. Delaware Bay has not yet started to produce the big breeders it is known for. A few fish have been caught but I believe we are still a week or two away from the main group arriving. The weather is supposed to be warmer in the coming week. Hopefully this will warm the water and bring in the big fish.
Until next week...
Tight lines and fins up §
