The Bay Is Alive With The Sounds of Fish Feeding
We’ve been busy at the shop this past week. A lot of stuff has come in. We have had restocks of Shimano Reels, Penn Reels, Danco Premio Pliers, and Yo-Zuri lures.
We also had some new stuff come in. Nichols lures sent is the 9” Ben Parker Flutter spoons, so now we carry three sizes, the 6.5 Mini Magnum, the 8” Magnum, and 9” Super Magnum. We also added two new colors, Blueback HD, and Shattered Glass Silver.
We now have MaiTai Rigs in the online store. These premium rigs are tied locally with quality components and good hooks. Right now we have bass and shark rigs online, and will be adding more varieties in the coming days and weeks.
We have also added the new Daiwa Saltist MQ reels. The infamous Diawa Saltist inshore spinning reel has been updated with the Monocoque Body for added strength and durability. These are sweet reels.
As for the fishing? That has been busy too. First, the striped bass. We have been hearing a ton of reports from all over the Barnegat Bay watershed. Most have been from the west side of the bay and the rivers and creeks that feed it, but a few east side spots have started to produce too. Lures have been working in the low light and dark conditions, while bait has been working 24/7. We have plenty of bloodworms and salted clams in the shop for those who need them, plus the rigs you will need.
Here are some notable catches:
George Miller has been on absolute FIRE this week. This is just one of his fish. I could fill the report with just his pictures if I wanted. His fish were falling for Scabelly Gliders and Madd Mantis Quakes.
Grumpys Jenni did a trip with Shore Kayak Fishing and got into them. All their fish fell for either Rapala X-raps or S&S Bucktails Savage Shads.
David McCalllum got into fish up to 32 inches for a few days too. Between he and George, I hope they leave some fish “uneducated” for the rest of us. Some of David’s fish, including the one pictured, fell for a Yo-Zuri Mag Darter. Some of his other fish came on bloodworms. The second picture is a good example of how an inline circle hook catches the fish right in the corner of the jaw. Just a reminder, these hooks are required to fish for striped bass with natural bait.
Grumpys John got out one night this week. Very late one night. He got into fish on the east side of the bay using Kettle Creek shads on S&S Bucktails bullet head jigs.
Striped bass are not the only game in town. The other game is the very tasty winter flounder. Bait is the name of the game for these fish. We have the bloodworms, slated clam, and Fishbites worm alternative that will give you a good day on the water. We also have the blocks of clam chum that will help bring the fish to you. And we have the flounder rigs you are going to need.
Here are some notable catches.
Grumpys Ray and Grumpys Sean got out one afternoon and put together a nice catch of winter flounder. It doesn’t matter whether it is summer or winter flounder, Ray always seems to get the big one.
And now we are back to George Miller, who apparently wasn’t satisfied with having a good catch of bass for the week. He got out on the bay one afternoon and also put together a nice catch of winter flounder.
Winter flounder make some famously good fried fish sandwiches. Ray is enjoying his.
