# I smell stripers.



## KHangler (Aug 11, 2004)

First shot at them coming this Saturday via charter.  I'll post an update after.


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## Manayunk Jake (Oct 3, 2001)

Greetings KHangler!

Good luck on your charter!

The party boats out of Wildwood/Cape May have landed their first stripers from the rips. Not a whole lot caught, but its still early....

I've heard/read reports that chunking in Delaware Bay is turning on. If the last couple of years are any sort of indicator, an angler's best chance for a true cow will be chunking in the Delaware Bay.

Stripers are also turning up along the beaches up and down the Jersey Coast. Fresh surf clams seem to be the weapon of choice, although quite a few have been taken by early pluggers. The water is still relatively warm, so the best is yet to come.

The back bays still have stripers to 10 lbs. For those that can't find access to sod banks at the causeways, the Fish Finder II out of Brigantine has been picking up some decent fish. You can also try bridge fishing (where allowed), but I also heard they are cracking down on the use of "bridge gaffs" on undersized fish. Hopefully we'll see more pier nets up on the Longport Bridge....

Most (if not all) of the North Jersey fleet is still targeting blues, but some stripers should be mixed in soon. Last I heard the blues were still dominating catches in Raritan Bay, too. That doesn't necessarilly mean the stripers aren't there. It just could be a problem of the blues being too thick (not a bad problem in my eye!)


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## KHangler (Aug 11, 2004)

I thought I smelled stripers, but it turned out to be just croakers and skates. We caught one short in the rips, but that was it. None chunking in the bay, either.

Maybe next time.


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## AplusWebMaster (Jun 21, 2004)

*Some folks gettin' 'em...*

FYI...

*Delaware Bay Fishing Reports*
- http://207.19.102.202/fort-cgi/dbma...ult&view_records=1&sb=2&so=descend&ago=8&nh=1

10-23-2004 rental - "...caught 4 stripers. One 22in and 3 in the 19in range. Stripers biting on bunker. Next couple weeks should produce some keepers."

10-22-2004 MISS FORTESCUE - "...DRIFTED SOME EELS AND CAUGHT 1 SLOT FISH, A 29" TROPHY FISH AND A 44" 33LB ALL STRIPERS. WE ALSO GOT A FEW SMALL BLUES. THEN WE ANCHORED UP AND CAUGHT OUR LIMIT ON THE BOAT OF SLOT FISH AND MANY THROWBACKS..."

10-19-2004 Benita Marie II - "...Fished west of EP caught 4 stripers 1-24.5 the rest were under sized. Might have done better if it were'nt for the bait stealin' blues..."


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## Manayunk Jake (Oct 3, 2001)

Greetings KHangler!

Thanks for the report - you'll do better next time! What boat did you take out?

I'd still like to get a chunking charter up for mid-November -- the fishing should be more consistent. Cape May boats average $600.00 for an all day trip, but Fortescue boats charge half that. You just need a captain that will look for the big fish, and not put you over a bunch of schoolies hoping for a keeper or two....


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