Last weekend’s northeast storm pretty much put a stop to Memorial Day fishing efforts for the captains of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association. The ocean was completely unfishable for a few days while the bay waters were rough, and the bottom churned up.
Some of the captains managed to make some fishing trips once conditions settled down and found the fish were still around.
The “Star Fish” with Captain Carl Sheppard and mates Jon and Max had a local family out for a day of active bottom fishing. According to Max the crew caught many fish, filling the boat with good times and smiles.
Captain Gary Dugan of the “Irish Jig” made a quick scouting trip with his wife Tracy. Tracy saved the day boating a nice fluke for a fresh fish dinner.
Captain Brett Taylor of Reel Reaction Sportfishing managed a couple of trips while fighting some strong winds. Mike Pikulin and family worked hard in bay waters to put some 35 fluke over the rail and boxed 4 for the table to 22.5-inches. Paul Kaufman and crew working a variety of bay areas on their 4-hour charter with Captain Brett. The guys did a great job boxing 6 keepers while releasing many more. Finally, Bob Dodds and “Boston Bob” fished some new areas. Not only did they boat 30 fluke, they also caught their limit of 9 fish.
With some calmer ocean waters in the forecast, the black sea bass action will be picking up, and there are reports of some big stripers still being trolled up in the ocean on spoons.