Article by Capt. BJ Pietryak
Well summer is still in full swing! Hot, humid, and nasty is the story this week.The good news is we have had some southern breezes to make fishing a little better. But overall the fishing with the dirty water from last week's hurricane and the heat have made fishing very spotty at best.
Sea Bass & Croaker
Sea Bass remains good with plenty of keepers coming over the rails out at the deeper wrecks. Fishing the NJ/DE reef as well as Site 11 continue to produce some nice knothead sea bass. Clams still being the best bait with jigs and squid being a close second. The water in the deeper wrecks is getting much clearer at this weeks end and we are starting to get better reports of fish being caught. The inshore areas such as Site 10 and the inlet area remain pretty dirty and not much action is being reported. Hopefully by next week the water will clear up but more storms are predicted for this weekend so we will have to wait and see. Croaker are still around. The fish remain small, not many of the bigger fish we normally see at this time of year have shown up.
Flounder
Flounder in the back bays are around but the early weeks dirty water made them hard to find. Old Inlet tackle reports that keepers are about ten fish for every one keeper. As far as the old grounds and coral beds offshore, many reports are coming in that as of Thursday the water is starting to clear and bigger flounder are being caught. These fish are one of the main staples for the head boats as well as many charters so it's good to see they are catching again post storm. The Thelma Dale out of Lewes is having a great year for flounder with several trophy fish being caught. Wednesday report was a near total limit of flounder with several sea bass keepers also thrown in. Hook’em and Cook’em also reports some great catches of flounder on the coral grounds near A buoy as well as the old grounds.
Sharks, Rays, Rockfish & Bluefish
The Indian River Inlet at night is still producing some decent bluefish and sharks at night but the catch has definitely slowed. Rockfish can be caught on eels and sand fleas at night along the rocks as well as by the old bridge pilings. Not many reports of rays this week but a few sharks have been caught at night on cut bait. Sharks at the near shore wrecks have also slowed. I believe this is because of last week's storm and should return to normal by weeks end.
Cobia
I did not receive any reports of cobia being caught this week. Cobia season was in full swing and should return as soon as the water settles down. These fish are still around, they just need to regroup after the storm. Eels as well as live spot and cut bait remain the best baits and the Fenwick Shoals reigns the best spot to target these fish.
Surf Fishing
Turbulent water as well as dirty water is the story here. Catches are down this week mostly from the storm however, Old Inlet makes a great point, many anglers new to surf fishing are using way too large pieces of bait and hooks that are too big for the fish you are targeting. Kingfish is the number one species to be caught this time of year. They have small mouths and require a small hook with a small piece of fresh or artificial blood worm. Many anglers also cast way beyond where these fish are in the surf. Many of the fish reside just beyond or even in the breaking waves. If you're not getting bites trying to throw across the Atlantic Ocean, try tossing baits just beyond the breakers and bringing it back slowly until you find the strike zone these fish are in. A hand held rod will also always catch more fish than a rod left in the rod holder while you lay in your chair catching the rays.The surf is also a great location to catch spot. These small bait type fish are actually great to eat and can be caught daily easy on a kingfish rig or sabiki rig. To keep kids entertained, set out to catch a few of these fish. Not the bluefin of the Atlantic, but a definite treat for kids who want action.
Crabs
Crabbing which had really slowed after the storm seems to be back in full force with many reporting 10-15 keepers per pot. Samantha and I hauled 54 keepers on Thursday for our 4 pots. Lots of jumbo males are showing up, so grab some bunker or chicken and have some fun...give hand lining a try too!
Tight lines and fins up.
