# Hudson River Fish-In



## Manayunk Jake

Greetings All!

Looks like Castle Point/Sinatra Park in Hoboken NJ will be the site of the Pier and Surf Hudson River Fish-In. I still want to check out other locations, but this seems to be the frontrunner. There is a good description of the site on The Hudson River Fishermen's Association, New Jersey Chapter at:

http://www.hrfanj.org/

Click on Access on the left hand side to reach the Access Page. Scroll down to "New Fishing Pier...Hoboken!", then click on For more on this story click here! *Castle Point* at the end of the 11/01/01 entry.

David (cocoflea) and I are still interested in alternative sites and any feedback that local anglers may have. I will be visiting the area in two weeks and will check with local bait and tackle shops. We hope to have the site finalized by March 1st and the date finalized by March 15th. I have also emailed the HRFANJ to see what they recomend.

Hoping to see as many P&S members as possible....


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## cfishigotu

Welcome Manayunk Jake, I have seen your postings on the Pierand Surf many times.

Any thing we can help you with will be my pleasure. Capt Chas gives you good info. When you guys make a final decision on when and where you go, I will then direct you to the nearest Bait and Tackle shop.

Take a look at our fishing trips section of www.hrfanj.org we have several surf/pier type already planned for the Spring run that will go well into the nighttime action.

Good luck on your quest.


Carl Hartmann
Director HRFANJ
[email protected]


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## shaggy

Now, I am some what familiar with the NJ turnpike, and I am pretty sure me and the Jeep can survive the trip "north" at least with some good directions, so for now will await the March announcement as to the when, and hopefully, it doesn't interfere with some planned AI trips.

Have Jeep will travel.


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## davehunt

shaggy,

It's pretty a easy spot to get to from the turnpike, the park is located along Frank Sinatra Drive (formerly River Road) about midway between the Holland Tunnel (Jersey City) and the Lincoln Tunnel (Weehawken).

I'm pretty sure the The Hudson River Fishermen's Association, New Jersey Chapter web site (the link is in Manayunk Jakes original post) have pretty good directions. I grew up in the area so if there's any confusion let me know.


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## Sandcrab

*Hello MJ!*

Glad to see you're plugging away and keeping busy.

Do you plan to fish directly from the pier? What hours are you looking at as "parking on the street is at a premium"?

I'll try to make it if I can - I think the NY striped season starts sometime in the middle of March...I may have to visit some folks North of the Tarrytown bridge to get my old bones warmed up for the big boys!


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## davehunt

The New York Striper Regs are as follows;

Marine Waters 28" minimum, 1 Fish, Season is from April 15 - Dec 15

North of George Washington Bridge 18" minimum, 1 Fish, Season is from March 16 - Nov 30

Here's the NYS DEC link

http://www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dfwmr/marine/swflaws.htm


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings Sandcrab!

I explained to the guys at HRFA-NJ that we need a spot open at night (most river stripers are caught in the wee hours of the morning, with some action in the early evening.) The overnight fishing knocks a lot of state parks out of the running. Castle Point has both a pier and a section of riverfront. It also has some riprap. That way everbody can fish there own method... pier, bank, structure. Distance casters may have an advantage since the spawners are notorious for hugging the channel edges, especially by day. In early Spring they will spead out on the flats looking for warmer water and baitfish. Bait seems to catch the most fish (maybe because thats what everybody uses), with sandworms/bloodworms and fresh herring the baits of choice (but don't rule out livelined white perch, herring, and eels!)

Its good to see interest in the Fish-In picking up. I'm still filtering through the info HRFA-NJ provided, and I want to check all the spots out before making the final call.

Once again, any feedback from locals will be greatly appreciated!


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings davehunt!

Thanks for the link.... That reminds me, I have to look up the "line of demarcation" that determines where a license is necessary....


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## davehunt

Jake,

I'm pretty sure it's the GW Bridge. Everything below the GW is considered marine waters and not suject to a license.


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## Rugger

I'm in; I can probably haul a friend or two up with me if you need a ride from the DC area. All I can say, though, is one of you guys still living in NYC better bring a box of Veneiro's cannolis & sfoigatella if we're fishing Frank Sinatra Park


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## HelpOnTheWay

I believe that if fishing from the Jersey City side of the river you are subject to NJ regs. For the moment, the season is open from 3/1-12/31. 1 fish over 28", and 1 fish between 24" and 28", with no license needed. There is talk of getting rid of the slot fish, however, so keep an ear tuned.
I might need to join in the fun, as i've spent 24 years fishing the Jersey Shore, and have never wet a line in the hudson.


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## davehunt

HelpOnTheWay,

Your right, NJ regs are in force, I've gotten so used to being on this damn side of the river that I default to the NY regs.

Thanks for the wake up


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## cfishigotu

Davehunt, most of the Hudson you do not need a license. Also, in New York waters north of the GW, an 18 inch Striper is legal to keep. However, there are rumors that it may be set back up to 28 inch's.


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## cocoflea

I also heard the same thing that NY is going up to 28" since it's neighboring states limit is 28


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## HelpOnTheWay

It seems that the NJ striper regs will be 2 fish over 28" after 3/1/04. A big thanks goes out to the ASMFC for permitting NJ anglers to fish for bass at all. The small ones are terrible on the table, and the big ol' cows are just getting overpopulous....
 

Gotta love mismanagement :barf:


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## davehunt

I've been taking lunch time walks the past 2 days in Hudson River Park (Manhattan side of the river, Pier 45, across the river and just south of Castle Point.

I've seen Canada Geese and Mallards, which are pretty common, but I've also seen what turned out to be (upon a little research) Bufflehead.

http://www.shawcreekbirdsupply.com/bufflehead_info.htm

I spent about 15 minutes yesterday watching one in particular diving repeatedly near the pier. Per the web site above, this species "typically eat aquatic insects, snails, crustaceans and aquatic plants". Since I saw the geese and mallards eating the algae growing on the pilings, I hope this means that this little duck was going to the trouble of diving for a more protein packed meal, and if so, fish should be around as well!!!!

Anyway, it's a great sign of life below the surface.

I've got to find a way to bring some tackle to work, maybe one of those collapsible rods!


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings davehunt!

Oh for the good old days... Late in the 90s Carol would have Fridays off. She would pick me up at 3rd and Spring Garden in Philadelphia. She'd already have lunch (sometimes ribs, sometimes steaks or hoagies) in the car, and fishing tackle in the trunk. We'd head for the pier on Columbus Blvd, toss out the rods, and eat. We usually used dough or cheese baits until we finished eating, then we'd bust out the chicken livers. If the tide was right, we could catch a dozen or so catfish before I had to sneak back into work. I'd return all sweaty, smelling of cats and liver, and my coworkers assumed I had been out for a "nooner". It wasn't until I started bringing the pictures in that they believed we were "just fishing"!

The good fishing began in March, or even as early as February when we had the supermild winters. I could use one of those days about now....


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## shaggy

Love to make the drive, but, my brother and I are figuring out our Spring AI fishing dates, and would like to get a date (or some dates) so I can see if able to make. We have some tenative dates for March, April, May and early June, and anything, even if nor etched in stone, would help the Spring planning.

Have Jeep will travel.


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## davehunt

I was in Jersey City on Saturday so I swung through Hoboken on the way to see if there was any activity in Sinatra park - it was completeley empty.

It was around 3:30 in the afternoon (don't know what time the tides were) but I think the real reason the water front was so dead was do to the fact that Saturday was the Hoboken St. Paddy's Day parade!


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## Big Rad

*Man-Jake*

Ahhh.....man you bring back the memories for me. I worked at PNSY and at lunch we'd go out and wet our lines. We caught Jumbo cats and some nice stripers. I'll never forget catching a keeper Striper on a piece of Genoa salami.


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## plove53

This sounds like fun... I'm only around 20 min out... I think I'm in.


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings plove53!

Just what we're looking for -- a "local" guy! We KNOW there's a few of you out there lurking in the shadows....

If you do show up, you'll definitely be the official photographer. You'll need the micro-cam to get shots of Jason and Anthony's fish (this is one Fish-In we will not let them dominate!)

Went to your dotcom site -- you have a great eye. But some of those "towering" photos were intimidating (oops - almost typed penetrating!) Guess Ol' Sigmund knew what he was talking about after all....

Welcome aboard, and please keep your ear to the ground. We need all the North Joisey details we can get!


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings davehunt!

I'm not surprised that noone was there in this early in the season (especially with water temps not breaking 40 yet.) Other than the lack of anglers, how did the place look. Frank Sinatra Park is one of the places that allows night fishing, something that will be very important to the sucess of the Fish-In. The evening bite is good, but things can really get "hot" between 2:00 AM and 5:00 AM. That seems to be standard for every big river in the North East....


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## ReelinRod

*Jake*

Count me in for the Hudson. 

I love fishing rivers, I fish the Delaware through Philly a few times a week with some great C & R success.

Do you have a ball park on a date?


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## davehunt

Jake,

I've never fished there, but It likes like a perfect spot for the fish in. Plenty of room to spread out and plenty of on street parking.

Also, Washington Street is very close, making coffee/food/whatever runs convenient.

PS.
There are some great pictures on the HRFA web site, in particular is an arial shot that shows the whole park. The fishing pier is a 125 ft long 'T' pier. (See link, scroll to bottom)

http://users.nac.net/chasstamm/hrfanjorg/castle.htm


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings Sgt_Slough!

Ne Philly, huh? We've had some luck at the mouth of the Neshaminy Creek (the big jetty that heads out from the marina.) There's also a back way to fish under the Tacony Palmyra bridge where there's nice deep water. If you can get some distance, Pennypack Park can cough up a nice striper or two. And the water under the Art Museum Dam on the Schuylkill River has some monsters during the herring run.

You're Delaware River experience should pay off on the Hudson. Glad to have you aboard....


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings davehunt!

Yeah, I've included the link in a couple of spots on the NJ and NY/CT boards. I've been watching the HRFA/NJ reports, but so far nothing has been caught except a few rat stripers on bloodies. I'm thinking April 10th or 17th for the Fish-In, which should give the big stripers plenty of time to come up the river. This might interfere with freshwater trout opening days, but you have to have priorities. The 10th-11th is Easter weekend, which might be a problem, too. But I think April 03rd will be too early (given the current weather/water conditions), and the 24th - 25th too late. Besides, by the last week of April striped bass fishing will be in full swing on the Chesapeake, and it will be harder to lure those Southern Boyz above the Mason-Dixon line.

Any and all input is appreciated....


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## ReelinRod

*Jake*

I fish those spots on the D and also many on the Joisey side, there are some nice flats that should be getting my attention in about 2 - 3 weeks. The airport will be getting good too real soon. The road is complete from UPS to Essington now, there is a good mile and a half of river access there now. 

I would love to fish the Schuylkill there by the museum, is there shoreline access other than the wall at the Water Works?


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## plove53

Manayunk Jake

Where do you park you car around there?

-phil


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## davehunt

Jake,

The 17th would work, but Easter Weekend will be tough.

Everyone should weigh in with a vote, that way you can pick the weekend that will have the best turn-out.


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## ReelinRod

FWIW, my vote is the weekend of the 17th!


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings davehunt!

When we finalize the site, we're going to try to give options on dates. The problem with fishing the "run" is that if you miss it, you're stuck with the resident schoolies. David and I want to maximize everybody's odds of hooking a cow. That's the logic behind a two day event, too. If a member can't make it Saturday, there's still Sunday. And the "warriors" will be able to do their marathon thing....

We should be voting on the dates by March 15th....


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings Sgt_Slough and plove53!

That's the bad part about fishing the Art Museum (Fairmount Dam) -- parking! The best fishing is on the West River Drive side (opposite bank of the Art Museum.) There use to be a big parking area right near the Spring Garden Street Bridge, but the city chained it off because of @#$%&* roofers dumping at the back of the lot.

There is room for one or two vehicles in front of the chain -- after that, you can park in Eakin's Oval in front of the Art Museum (the "Rocky" steps) and tote your gear across the Spring Garden bridge and up to the dam. There are a few spots for access before reaching the dam for the young (and young at heart) if you don't mind vertical walking.

The good part about the fishing is that the cows are an easy cast away. The tough part is the sharp rocks.... Biggest fish reported last year was 44 inches (its all catch and release, and PA Delaware River estuary rules apply.) Bucktails with plastic worms or sassy shads, big plugs, and live "pike" shiners all work, but bloodies are the preferred bait. Catfish and white perch like the worms a little too much. Gizzard shad and herring chunks work too. A livelined herring should work wonders, but the current tends to wash them back toward shore. Theres about a four foot difference in tides.


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## ReelinRod

*Jake*

A 25lb 10oz Big-D striper was weighed in today at Brinkman's. It was taken up in Bristol.


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings Sgt_Slough!

I forgot about the "mini-season" -- From the Pennsylvania state line to Trenton Falls March 1 through March 31. I usually think about the regular season (June 1 through December 31 and from Trenton Falls upstream open year-round.) 

That's a damn nice fish for this time of year! I wonder if it was a "holdover" fish (seems kind of early for the sea run stripers.) Every year for whatever reason about 10 percent of the big fish stay in the river instead of retuning to the ocean (maybe they follow the shad?) Some have traveled up as far as the Delaware Water Gap.

There's no reports on Brinkman's web site for this year -- where did you find out about the fish?


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## ReelinRod

Bill told me, I wish I had seen the fish, to see it's coloration.

Brinkies still has reports . . . 

http://members.aol.com/wormpeople/reports.htm

The club has casting practice this morning . . brrrr, after that I don't know what I am gonna do. I've got 3 doz bloods, will travel! Thinking about a little town at the end of the road on the edge of the Del. Bay. NJ DNR has netted a few hundred stripers in the past couple days down there. They are around; question is, will they bite?

_*Edited 9:00pm Saturday:*_

Did go down for the top of the tide, wind was holwing, water looked like chocolate milk. My bud, first cast got a 26 incher. I didn't get a bite.


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings Sgt_Slough!

Yeah, water temps are still r-e-a-l cold... The cats we caught last week felt like they'd been on ice! Its weird that low water temps effect sea run fish, but landlocked stripers at Kinzua and Raystown hit through the ice....

I guess I should have said Brinkie's doesn't have any new reports (there last report is from July 03...) The pics from last year show some nice stripers that look like they may have been caught from the bank (or the boat angler's took the pics at the ramp.) In the one pic there are no leaves on the trees, so that must have been an early (or late?) fish.

I'm going to North Jersey to check out Sinatra Park for the Fish-In, then I'll stop at Shark River Inlet on the way back for winter flatties (if I can find room to fish!) The weather report for Sunday is too nice....


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## Manayunk Jake

Greetings All!

Fletcher's Boathouse (http://www.fletchersboathouse.com/) on the Potomac is open, and they're not reporting any stripers yet. I think we'll need some warm weather to start the Spring melt to trigger the herring, shad, and stripers!


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## ReelinRod

*Brinkies still has reports . . .*

This one is dated March 12, 2004

http://members.aol.com/wormpeople/reports.htm


"Well things are starting to look up in the lower Delaware river for stripers. I just had a customer with a 25 pound, 40 inch fish taken at Bristol off the shore line. He also had a buddy that caught a 34 inch fish on Wednesday this past week. Both these fish were taken on bloodworms. I still have not heard of any fish at Station Avenue or Linden Avenue as of yet. But they are still catching a few fish at the Frankford Arsenal. Over all I think they have taken between 6 and 10 fish all under 24 inches so far. And again all were taken on bloodworms. Another customer was out in a boat around the Tacony Bridge and picked up 4 fish 15 to 22 inches this past Thursday. He also had several catfish all taken on bloodworms and clams. And several guys have been fishing the art museum and have picked up 6 fish, only one over 30 inches. The rest were throw backs. These fish are hitting 4 to 6 inch sassy shads, 6 and 8 inch twister tails and 6 inch Bomber Long A's. Now for the best fishing has been down river around the Commodore Barry Bridge to Pennsbury. Here there have been several keeper fish taken. One customer was down last weekend and he boated 4 keeper size fish and another 10 throw backs. One other customer fished the jettie at the Delaware Memorial Bridge and has 9 fish with one 36 and another 34 inch fish with the rest under 24 inches. All these fish are being taken on bloodworms, clams and herring. So all this is good news and it should just get better and better each warm and sunny day."


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## cfishigotu

*Hudson River report*

Hudson River report

6 pound Bass landed yesterday at Piermont
9 pound Bass landed last week, also at Piermont

Big ones should come up in the next few weeks.


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