The fishing action in the Beach Haven area is waking up, and the captains of the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association have been busy as the temperatures warm up.
One big occurrence has been the changing of the guard for the popular head boat, “Miss Beach Haven.” Long operated by Captain Frank Camarda, Captain Steve Palmer is now the proud owner of the craft. Captain Steve plans to maintain the proud tradition of providing excellent bottom fishing for families and fishing experts alike. The “Miss Beach Haven” traditionally offers both fluke trips in calm bay waters in addition to bottom fishing area ocean reefs and structure.
Captain John Lewis of the “Insatiable” reports he has a busy schedule ahead of him in the upcoming weeks with a myriad of boat deliveries. Captain John specializes in driving boats down and back to Florida in addition to deliveries in the northeast.
Captain Gary Dugan reports he has the “Irish Jig” in the water for the early striped bass action and is putting the finishing touches on his tiki cruising craft. He also has his waterfront business, Cape Horn Marina, ready for the summer season. He is getting positive reports on stripers and black drumfish in the Great Bay area.
Captain Brett Taylor of “Reel Reaction Sportfishing” has already had a couple of fishing trips on the water and had striped bass coming over the rails. His most recent trip was a 3-hour afternoon trip despite thick fog. At first, they targeted bass, catching and releasing several fish along with a pair of keepers. They then tried for blackfish with the good action on short fish.
The numbers for the most recent reef replenishment efforts on the northeast corner of the Garden State North Reef are set at 39-37.978 N X 74-00.798 W. The section is named the “New Jersey Maritime Museum Patch Reef” in recognition of the many years of support the Beach Haven Charter Fishing Association and our Junior Mate program have received from that institution. More deployments of reef building materials are expected in the near future.