Article by Rick Willman
Hi folks. Fall is approaching and in many anglers’ opinions the real fishing season is just getting under way.
In the back bays you still have a good flounder bite. As the water cools, the flatties will school up and start their trek to the deeper waters. As this takes place we will have more large fish being caught in a more concentrated area.
Croakers and spot are here to provide us with plenty of bends in the rod. Bluefish continue to put a smile on many faces during and incoming tide in the Indian River Inlet. Striper fishing will just begin to turn on with the water cooling. We can’t forget about our friend, the tautog. This bait thieving critter makes many a man’s blood boil when he pulls up an empty hook.
When you get the hook-up be ready for a real tussle and be sure to keep him out of the structure that he is sure to dive back into if you give him a chance. Sea bass fishing usually picks up in the fall and we will have to see the final regulations to see when we can catch these tasty guys. All in all, there is a lot to look forward to on the fall fishing scene.
Don’t give up on the offshore action as many a tuna and dolphin have been taken on a chilly day.
Some of the successful anglers this past week have been Buster Davis who caught a 5 lb. 4 oz. flattie in the Indian River Inlet on a fly. Tom Breen of York, PA fished Reefsite #10 using Gulp! swimming mullet to score a 5 lb. 9 oz. flounder while fishing aboard ”One More Drift”. Damion Thomas of Bear, DE used squid at Site #10 and fooled a 5 lb. 1 oz. flounder that measured 25 inches. Anthony Semonelle of Newark, DE used shiners in Massey’s Ditch to trick a 4 lb. 8 oz. flounder. Preston Miller of Mohnton, PA took his wife, Kathy, to Site #10 where she scored a citation 7 lb. 3 oz. flattie. Capt. Brent Wiest and mate Dave Walker took their party to Reefsites #6 & #7 in the Delaware Bay and ended up with 13 keeper flounder in the box.
Bill at Bill’s Sport Shop reported that Dan and Matt Langdon on the "Offishal" caught 2 longfin albacore tuna, weighing up to 40 lbs., using spreader bars and green machines. The team also boated a bunch of dolphin on ballyhoo deep in the Baltimore.
Short weakies are being caught in the Rehoboth Bay along with sea bass, croaker and flounder. Flounder, croaker and sea bass are being caught at “B” Buoy and the Old Grounds. At the Indian River Inlet, blues and plenty of short flounder are showing up. There are also reports of nice croakers and spot.
In the Baltimore Canyon at the 40-fathom line, yellowfins, false albacore, and dolphin are being captured while trolling naked ballyhoo behind an Ilander daisy chain.
Chris Wagner and crew trolled from the Tea Cup to the tip of the Baltimore using ballyhoo and picked up 24 mahi weighing up to 20 lbs. Louie Sartori and crew went to the 30-40 line behind the Tea Cup and came back with 19 mahi.
At Rattle & Reel Sports Center Ron said that keeper flounder are being caught but the majority are coming up short of the 18-½ inch size limit. A few stripers are still being taken in Indian River Inlet.
Capt. Joe Morris at Lewes Harbour Marina said the offshore billfish blitz continued as a big body of white marlin moved south. Some of the hottest action took place in the Norfolk Canyon. Many crews enjoyed fantastic fishing, recording double-digit release days.
Tuna were harder to come by this past week, but in addition to marlin, canyon fishermen had good success with dolphin. Vince Scheivert, David Bargeron, Jake Boyer and Gary Socco spent the night at the tip of the Baltimore on Sunday and released a white marlin and put a load of dolphin in the box. The highlight of the trip was a large hammerhead shark that they battled on a 20 lb. spinning outfit for quite some time before being released. Vince ran the “Black Bart” to the Poor Man’s on Saturday where the guys caught several gaffer dolphin and a mess of triggerfish off a floating barrel.
Inshore, trollers encountered dolphin, skipjacks, false albacore and a handful of small yellowfins at the Nineteen Fathom Lump, the Hot Dog and in 30 to 40 fathoms east and southeast of the Dog.
Bill McMahon weighed in a 20.7-pound mahi he hooked at the 19 Fathom Lump. The wahoo bite was pretty good on structure between 20 and 40 fathoms also. Donnie Weitzel wound in a 24.3 pounder at the Hot Dog aboard the “Snow Goose”. Donnie said the crew also released a sailfish at the Dog during the same trip. Jog Beaudet boated a 27.7-pound wahoo in 35 fathoms on the Triple Play.
Closer to the beach, bottom bouncers enjoyed better catches of croakers and sea bass on the Old Grounds. Bill Swords brought back a nice batch of 28 quality sea bass from structure changes east of the shipping lane. Fishermen on the “Pirate King II” had a bucket full of bass and hardheads from live bottom north of “DB” Buoy on Saturday. Captain Vince’s patrons on the “Miss Kirstin” returned from the Old Grounds on Saturday with several nice sea bass, some blues and a 5 lb. fluke.
With proper drift conditions, flounder came from Reef Site 10. On Monday, Captain Brent on the “Katy Did” worked site 10 for 15 keepers. Brent ran the “Lil’ Angler II” on Tuesday, and went back to Reef Site #10 for 16 more keeper flatties.
Artificial reefs in Delaware Bay still gave up a few flatfish. Sites 4, 6 and 7 yielded some fish. Tom Kemper caught a 6.2 pounder, and Brad Pecoraro put a 5.75-pound fluke aboard at Reef Site #8. Tom Gehman was surprised when he landed a 17 lb. black drum at Reef Site #8 on Saturday.
Croakers were a little more cooperative in the Bay over the weekend. Better catches of hardheads were reported from Reef Sites #6 and #7. Croakers also came from edges of The Lower Middle shoal. Clams, bloodworms, shrimp and FishBites were favored baits.
Until next week, have fun and be safe!
Rick and his wife Deb are owners of Rick’s Bait & Tackle in Long Neck, DE.
