It’s great to be back fishing regularly. That late March, and early April cold snap was annoying, but the fish have taken everything in stride and we’re well underway into the season.
Big spring stripers are chewing to the west as anglers east of Jones Inlet wait for their shot in the ocean. Right on schedule in mid-April, slot fish moved up the Jersey coast and were a quick run away from the western south shore inlets. While that bite is still on in the ocean with plenty of bunker around some of those bigger fish have moved to the east along the south shore and some into the western sound as well. Find the bunker pods and you’ll find the bass. The regulations for using only circle hooks for live or dead bait remain on the books for the 2024 season. If you’re snagging bunker with a weighted treble, it’s a good idea to have a dedicated spinning rod for that on the boat. It doesn’t take much time to redeploy a live bunker on a circle hook. Another regulation still on the books this year is the 28-31-inch slot limit for stripers. It’s very easy to gut-hook these big migrators and we need them to be doing their thing and making babies. Speaking from experience and hearing the same from guys who have fished much longer than I have…the hookup ratio on a circle hook is much higher than on a weighted treble that you have no idea where it’s hooked into a snagged bunker.
As I’ve written a lot about previously, I love using artificials to catch stripers both by boat and surf. Surface plugs like a Doc, or large spooks are killer when fishing around bunker pods. I’m also a big fan of flutter spoons, which have gained tremendous popularity in the past few seasons. If you haven’t tried it yet, it’s like diamond jigging on steroids with vicious bites on the drop of the spoon. No Live Bait Needed has an exceptional lineup of big soft plastics with hefty jig heads to match up with. Their 6-inch paddle tail has accounted for some great catches for me and many others.
If you’re looking for top water or fly bite any of the bays throughout the island are holding smaller fish and a few big ones lurking around. The bait won’t be showing itself as obvious as in the ocean but structures and flats in marshy areas will be a good bet.
Further east the ocean hasn’t turned on just yet for a bass bite but from Great South Bay through Shinnecock and into the Peconic have bass and a few cameos from some weakfish. Not as vital as in April, but up until mid-June it’s better to try to fish the outgoing in the bays.
As I wait to rip out of Moriches Inlet on my buddy’s 23 Everglade with twin 150 Yamahas, I’m happy to be fishing the back bays to the east. It’s mostly a soft plastic bite aside from putting some darters and SP minnow plugs in the rotation when fishing from shore after dark. Come May 1st though I use the soft plastics sparingly when targeting bass. I’m happy to do it because for most of May is some of the most exciting inshore fishing as gator blues invade the bays to spawn.
They’ll bite and wreck just about anything you throw at them. This is the time to get your fix of topwater explosions. My plug of choice is a Tsunami Talking popper. The price is right, and they stand up to a beating. Out of the package they come with a belly treble and a single bucktail-flagged tail hook. I take the treble off to avoid a trip to quick med or ER. I’ve caught plenty on a single tail hook, as blues will hit at the back of the bait unlike stripers hitting from the front. Cotton Cordell pencil poppers are another hefty and affordable option I’ve had great results on as well. When the blues are around it’s just the cost of doing business to lose soft plastics and a couple of plugs if the fish gets near the leader.
Some people use wire leaders, which I’ve never been a fan of. More so to the west and in the western sounds, there’s some nice bass around with the blues and at times the competitive feed instinct kicks in with the bass. I’ve never caught a striper on anything with a wire leader and don’t think many people have.
Fluke season is here as well. New regs this year are 19 inches, 3 a day May 4th-August 1st. August 2nd – October 15th the size limit goes to 19 ½ and the bag limit stays at 3 fish. With the colder winter, the fluke bite may be one to wait on until water temps move up. What anglers lost in bag limit and time in throwing back a lot more 2024 shorts, was paid back in a longer season.
One last thing. On Friday, June 7th the 2024 Manhattan Cup takes place out of Liberty Landing Marina in Jersey City. I’m on the team that puts together and it’s my favorite day of fishing all year. Charter captains and local sharpies donate their boats and time to take out teams of anglers and post-combat veterans targeting bass and blues. Trophies are awarded for the biggest of each species caught in fly, artificial and bait divisions. Winners are determined by measurements and photos of those measurements, as the tournament is catch and release. This is my 11th year being involved and there is nothing greater than seeing what a day of fishing can do for brave warriors carrying seen and unseen battle scars. If you’d like to take a team out fishing on your boat, we’d be happy to have you. If you’d like to join us as an individual or a team of up to 4, we’d love to have you. You can reach out to me directly or check out our site manhattancup.com. The day is underwritten by the Fisheries Conservation Trust of the Recreational Fishing Alliance. All entry fees are a donation and tax deductible. Breakfast, a box lunch and a great party afterward are included. It’s a really special day I hope you can be part of.
Catch ‘em up!