Article by Capt. BJ Pietryak
Well, this week we finally saw some temps that we normally see this time of year. The thermometer rose into the mid 70’s early and shot up to the 90’s by the weekend. With the warmth in the air, so did the water begin to warm. Of course this week also saw the opening of the sea bass season on Sunday.
Sea Bass, Tog & Flounder
The opening day of sea bass saw dense fog throughout the morning causing many anglers without radar to stay home. For those who ventured to the wrecks were rewarded with monster fish and many anglers hitting their limits. Ryan West and Bryan Wheatley fished with the family and were rewarded with a limit of big sea bass. John Coffey and friend ventured out and returned with a box full of big ones and even managed a few tog before the season came to a close. Brian reports they were a few short of their limit but only kept quality fish and returned many smaller keepers to be caught another day.
Capt. Beebee of the “Surface Tension” Sportfishing got an 8 man limit this week. They were using Ocean Arsenal sand eel rigs. After trying these high low eel rigs a few years ago it's all that I use when fishing for sea bass. Capt. Austin had a group out for their first sea bass trip of the year and were lucky enough to bring home some quality fish for all the guys on the charter. “The Grizzly” also returned this week with a boat load of big sea bass. Hook’em and Cook’em tackle at Indian River reported they have been busy all week fileting fish brought in to the cutting stations. Old Inlet was also slammed this week with angler getting rigs bait and reports. The sea bass were caught everywhere with the NJ/DE reef being a hot spot with Site 11 close in second place. Even though these major wreck areas had the most catches, the coral grounds near A buoy also produced some nice fish as well as the site ten wrecks. Fresh clam was used by most with salted clam and squid coming in second. Jigs and metal spoons accounted for a lot of the trophy bass caught this week. As the week drew to the end the focus moved to flounder. Many anglers also took the opportunity to catch a few tog before the season closed earlier last week. In the back bays many anglers found flounder much more willing to chase bait than in past weeks. In the far outback it was a bit windy but Jon Wittman was able to catch a few nice big flounder. Jon reports that one of the fish he caught coughed up his lunch on the deck of the boat to include a few juvenile flounder. This is a great sign and shows we have lots of young in the back bays which will grow over the summer into mature fish. Craig Beard caught a bucket list 5 lb Flounder this morning. They also caught a few not as big keepers to make a big dinner for all. Brandon Roberts caught a nice solid 18” from the back bays on gulp. Lewes Harbour Marina hosted the Joe Morris Memorial Canal Flounder Tournament on Friday and had tons of leader changes as the anglers poured in to weigh fish. Matt Moffa took first with a nice 4.15 lb flounder, Matt Michell took second with a 4.0 lbs, and 3rd was Jim Olonieski with 3.99 lbs, 4th was Jen Petkus at 3.99 and 5th was Kyle slayman at 3.83 and Tim West in 6th at 3.62 lbs
Rockfish, Black Drum & Bluefish
On the beach this week black drum were more eager to bite the hook. Fresh big clams or crabs were the ticket to catching these big ugly brutes. The fish were holding close to the beach and a short cast often worked better then a long one. Change baits frequently to allow the scent to attract the fish. On the bay side the shoals along the NJ side of Delaware Bay are holding some big breeding drum. The hour before and after a low tide produced the best results.
Chumming the water with clam also seemed to really help. Back on the beach blue fish have shown up in larger numbers with a better quality fish. Dave checked in a couple slammer blues on Tuesday. Ryan Kaposcsi and Jessica Byrne also checked into Lewes Harbour Marina with some big blues. The fish were caught on mullett and top water lures. We have not seen a lot of big blues in the past years so it's good to know they are returning. Early morning bites or just as the sun is setting is the best time for catching the blues. Many anglers are starting to chum the bay areas for black drum and rockfish which may be why these blues have shown up. Rockfish in the surf have been slow compared to our southern areas in Maryland, however if you put the time in some nice fish can be caught. Connor checked in at Jim's Bait and Tackle with a nice picture of an over slot rockfish. The fish was chummed up in the Delaware Bay on clam. Old Inlet Tackle reports that good bluefish and a few rockfish were taken from the Cape Henlopen Pier with bluefish up to 30”. The cast for a cure tournament was held on 21 May, however at the writing of this article I don't have any results and will post them next week. Old Inlet Tackle has a great selection of surf equipment as well as all the fishing supplies you need.
Crabs & Clams
Clamming is slow but beginning to pick up. Many of the clams are still deep in the mud so make sure you dig down with your rake. Crabs are on fire in the Indian River with the back bay areas producing the best. Fresh bunker in the pots are producing about 9-11 keepers per pot. We are also seeing females with egg sacks. Remember these must be returned to the water unharmed.
Until next week...
Tight lines and fins up
