Fluke and Blue And Spot And Blowfish
But first, outside the shop news…
Those of you who follow social media might have heard of us mentioning the new business that opened next door to the shop, in the old pizza joint? If not, here are the details. Mystic Lobster Roll Company / Park Central Market / Mystic Subs is now open. Besides some of the best lobster rolls around, they offer award winning breakfast sandwiches (just ask Blackcloud Bob), and some of the best subs around. You won’t go hungry with the way they build these subs. You can get them to go, perfect for taking out on the beach or the boat. Coffee will be available in the morning, and on the weekends they will have a breakfast buffet going. They open at 8:00, but Phil, the owner, said they are usually there earlier than that. As you can tell by looking at the Grumpys crew, we like our food, and we have all been enjoying going here since they opened last week. We are not gatekeeping this one, so give them a shot, we think you are going to like them too.
A portion of Island Beach State Park will be closing temporarily while the piping plovers raise their chicks, as noted in the graphic above. There are two nests near Gilikens that are the cause of the closing, one that will hatch in a few days and one that will hatch the 2nd week of July. The closure will likely be in effect for 35 days after the later hatching, unless something tragic happens to the chicks. In the southern portion of the park there are currently no known nests, so there is no expected closure of the A7 or A23 vehicle access.
Now, shop news:
Ever have trouble convincing your friends that the 53 inch striped bass you caught is not the 35 inches they are saying it is? Well, now you easily can, proving your friends wrong (or right in some cases). The No Live Bait Needed (NLBN) Big Striper Official Measuring Board is now available. At 12 inches wide, it makes a safe surface to place your fish for measurement, protecting its slime coat from sand, grass, gravel, concrete, etc. It can measure fish up to 55 inches, and has marks for “slob”, “cow” and “mega”. When done, it can easily be rinsed off and rolled up for storage.
For those who fish deep water from a boat, we have a tool for you. Ever bring up a fish that has “the bends” when you catch it in deep water?. You know, eyes bulging a little, swim bladder pushing out of the fish’s mouth? A fish that cannot get back to the bottom because of gasses that expanded in its swim bladder? We now have the Anglers Choice Fish Venting Tool. A quick poke and the fish can get back to the bottom where it originally came from.
Lastly, for those who fish in the dark, we added another option to our headlamp offerings. We now have Rayovac Lightweight LED headlamps. This is a nice, inexpensive option for a “light use” headlamp, or a backup.
For the clammers, we received a big shipment of Killer Clam Rakes. These are available in-store only (shipping would be outrageous for these), so come on in and check them out.
The fishing report is pretty similar to the last one. Fluke and blues in the surf hitting bucktails and Gulp! or poppers and swimmers respectively. If you want to fish bait for the bluefish, mullet or cut bunker is your best option.
The life in the bay has picked up. The SPOT have shown up, and they are hungry. Sabiki rigs tipped with small pieces of fishbites has been taking those. Also showing up are blowfish, and small bluefish.
Some, well, one notable catch:
Scott got into the SPOT this week, catching multiples on a sabiki rig tipped with small pieces of Fishbites. Apparently something else wants his SPOT.
Scott is going through something. He has been dressing strangely for work…
(And he looks a little like Frank here. I will let them fight amongst themselves over who should be more insulted...)