Fish On
After a few slow weeks, the fish are back
RON NUZZOLO
There was no need for a fish finder, but if you had turned it on, you would have read "fish" and "bait fish" from Sandy Hook to Barnegat Light up to 10 feet thick. There were so many bass, you could lose count within a couple of hours. I started an afternoon trip with my good friend Dan Zino aboard Fins on Feathers from Leonardo. The rhythm was the same for most anglers this week: find the birds and start jigging. We lost count after catching and releasing 75 bass in two hours. We had bass on the troll three or four at a time. As two guys fought fish on the troll, the rest of us worked jigs. At one point, with both poles with fish on, we just looked at each other hoping someone would jump on and take the fight. It was insane. Insane is the only way to describe this week's action. No keepers for Dan or me, but it was a great way to wind down the season.

Keith from Franklin started his trip at the Hook and followed the birds up toward Shrewsbury. After sore arms and losing count of how many fish he had landed, he was able to get a 28-inch fish for the dinner table. Avas, Crocs and 2- ounce Spro bucktails worked best.

Capt. Bob from Sandy Hook Fishing Charters had his last charter for the year. Mark, Joe, JJ and Smitty were on board for a memorable trip. Once again, AVA-47s and crippled herring were the ticket for a good mix of fish. Each kept his two keepers and a bonus fish. Even Capt. Bob was able to land two nice keepers when the boys got tired from jigging. All fish kept were between 31 and 40 inches, and they released over 60 other fish. Sea Hunter and The Fisherman party boats out of Atlantic Highlands also had similar reports, with numbers in the hundreds, so get on a boat and jig the day away. It's now or never.

Duffman from NJSaltwaterfisherman. com headed out on the Voyager from Point Pleasant and hit the offshore wrecks 70 miles out. Sea bass and humpback porgies were on the menu. A great trip, and all caught their share, as well as pollock to 12 pounds, cod to 5 pounds, knuckleheads up to 6 pounds, ling, and of course a monster bluefish at 18 pounds. Porgies were huge, most up to 5 pounds, and anglers filled 100-quart coolers to the rim. If I hadn't seen pictures, I wouldn't believe it either.

Tog fishing on the Bandit has been nothing but exceptional. Capt. Jerry, who was docked in Belmar, is now located on the Indian River Inlet in Delaware for the wintertime. In Delaware, Capt. Jerry fishes tog from now until April, and it's worth the trip. If you're not familiar with the area, the Del-Mar is home to the best tog fishing on the East Coast. With a 10- fish limit in Delaware, it's not uncommon for most to range from 10 to 16 pounds. That's bigger than most anglers see in a lifetime, so look him up and book a trip if you feel any symptoms of cabin fever.

Fish on.