Article by Capt. BJ Pietryak
This week in Delaware the weather took a welcome turn as a cool breeze swept over the waters, making being on the water much more pleasant. The near shore water is less than ideal and is still very green and dirty. Despite this, the flounder bite in the mornings is the best we have seen in years. However the afternoon bite is another story, producing many more shorts and not as many quality keepers. Moreover, reports of mahi around the Bass Pots and High Flier Buoys have been scarce, leaving anglers hopeful for clearer waters and a closer shore appearance of the elusive fish.
Near Shore Reefs & Coral
One of the fishing hotspots has been the near shore coral at the Old Grounds, which has proven to be a haven for fishermen, producing numerous trophy-sized flounder. The deeper wrecks and snags are also still producing some keeper sea bass, however with the water at 75 degrees, keepers have become a lot harder to locate than in previous weeks.
“Bad Wind Charters” was out again this past week with their famous Flounder Klacker rigs and put on a clinic each time, bringing home coolers full of the delicious flat fish. Bill and Kathy used the Klackers to bring home limits up to 5 pounds. Jigmaster Mike and his son also rode with “Bad Winds" and returned to the docks with their limit of fish. Donald Stephenson had the big fish for the boat this past week when he caught a fluke that broke the ten pound mark. Not many anglers can brag about a flatfish over ten pounds. Brent McClune, meanwhile, achieved a personal milestone, surpassing the 150 mark for keepers this year. Despite not getting on the water until 2 pm one day last week, he made the most of his trip, returning with near limits of fluke, all in preparation for an upcoming tournament where he aims to capture the biggest fish. Family bonding and friendly competition played a part in the fishing community as well.
The Falgowski family held their annual family tournament, with Ryan Falgowski claiming victory with a 6.53 pound fluke, and Finn Falgowski taking the kids division win with a 3.94 pound fish. Such events exemplify the camaraderie among fishermen and provide an excellent way to spend time with loved ones.
Carl Gutberlet was out just north of A Buoy and was kept busy catching 16 fluke in a little over 2 hours last Wednesday. Carl reported he caught fish on every drift over the coral and even caught a few doubles. The ocean was like a lake that afternoon and made for a very comfortable trip. Bob Bryant Sr. on the “Knot Crazy" landed a 26.5” & 7.4 pound fluke on ocean structure using squid and minnow combo that he weighed at Rick's Bait and Tackle. Todd Adams, Alex Adams, Jake Taylor And Trent Sapan caught 7 flounder and one sea bass out at the Old Grounds using squid, minnows, and Gulp. Mathew Tribbitt fished with Joey Pruitt, Carter Pruitt, Nick Muldry, and Capt. Mathew Muldry and returned with limits of flounder. The biggest fish was a 25.5 inch, 6.25 pound fluke caught on artificial bait.
Capt. Carey had the pleasure of taking out great grandson Talen and three generations of the late Capt. Vince Keagy ( Miss Kirstin) aboard the “Grizzly" and returned to the docks with a cooler full of bass, flounder and triggerfish.
The “Capt. Bob II" and “Judy V” worked the Old Grounds and had some quality trips for flounder with a few keeper sea bass thrown in for good measure. The big fish for them this week was a 6.2 pound flattie that had a big scar along its side from a previous gaff attack that somebody missed!
Carl Gutberlet was out just north of A Buoy, catching 16 fluke in a little over 2 hours on Wednesday. Carl stated he caught fish on every drift over the coral and even caught a few doubles. The ocean was like Lake Atlantic that afternoon and made for a very comfortable trip.
Bob Bryant Sr. on the “Knot Crazy" landed a 26.5 “, 7.4 pound fluke on ocean structure using squid and minnow combo. The fish was weighed in at Rick's Bait and Tackle.
Todd Adams, Alex Adams, Jake Taylor And Trent Sapan caught 7 flounder and one sea bass out at the Old Grounds using squid, minnows, and Gulp. Mike Manolescu hailing from West Grove, PA got two nice fish at the Indian River Inlet measuring 17” and 18”.
Noteworthy catches extended beyond flounder, with Austin Decker and Sean Jones landing a sizable 46.5-inch, 24-pound Barracuda while trolling squid near A Buoy. The rarity of such a catch added to the excitement, as barracuda sightings along the shores are infrequent, let alone encountering one of this size. Other anglers also enjoyed fruitful outings, such as Josh Marchyshyn, who reeled in a boatload of ribbon fish while trolling for spanish mackerel about three miles outside the inlet. Marty Lochart and grandson Christian also had a good day out near Starsite Reef catching small sea bass and some nice fluke. Squid accounted for their fish on this trip. Similarly, "Chasing Tail Charters" out of Lewes Harbour Marina embarked on a successful trip, catching mahi at the canyons before heading inshore for flounder and sea bass.
Bob Snare was out for a half day on the “Master” with Capt. Mike Cerchio and had good luck catching croakers and sea trout in the Delaware Bay. The Delaware Bay has also been starting to produce those big sheepshead we saw last year. Angler Vee checked in to Lewes Harbour Marina with a few nice sheepies up to 14 pounds. Wow, that is one big sheepshead!. Small fiddler crabs and sand fleas have been the best bait for targeting these fish along the Ice Breakers and outer walls of the Delaware Bay.
The Back Bays & Canals
The back bays are alive with tons of spot fish as well as small croaker and flounder. The big news however this week is a sewage discharge into the Indian River Bay. A Millsboro wastewater facility failure caused raw sewage to be dumped into a tributary causing the Dept. of Natural Resources to put a closure on clamming and harvesting mussels in the Indian River bay until Aug 24th. As of this time the crabbing is not under the closure, nor is commercial oystering, however I would be cautious in eating any crustaceans out of water infected with raw sewage. Those persons who frequent the sand bars or wade in the bay should also use caution and wash after exiting to avoid skin ailments for the next several weeks. Up until this point both clamming and crabbing have been very productive. Matt Pry reported catching good quality heavy males up to 6 1/2 inches.
Surf Fishing
The surf has been holding tons of small kingfish and spot. Several rays and sharks have also been reported. Riley Wowk of Mount Airy, MD caught a nice 13 inch kingfish off the surf using cut squid. Christopher Villanueva had a good day catching 2 rays and a shark off the beach on cut bait. Alonso Lopez got in on the ribbon fish catch while fishing cut bait at 3 Rs beach late in the evening. Khaliq Still got a few kingfish and spot from the beach using pompano rigs.
Until next week...
Tight Lines and Fins Up §
