Fish On
Few bass are keepers for local fishermen
RON NUZZOLO
Fishing remained solid throughout the past week, with schools of bass and big blues chasing bait from Sandy Hook to Barnegat Light. The story was the same this week: find the birds, and fish hard. Anglers jigged for bass and blues while constantly positioning themselves with the moving schools. Others gave their arms a rest and trolled for plenty of short bass - with very few keeper bass, if any. Big blues in the 12- to 15-pound range are patrolling up and down the coastline, filling up on mostly sand eels and peanut bunker.

Aboard Capt. Ron Fisherman, there was not one empty rod holder on board. Birds were working all over and moving fast. There were plenty of bass around, but again, few keepers were raised. Ava Diamond jigs, cripple herring lures and butterfly jigs seemed to work best.

On the Gambler, angler Skolmann from NJSaltwaterfisherman.com experienced the same: few bass aboard, with an occasional chopper bluefish over the rail. The pool winner was just barely legal at 28.25 inches.

If you're not chasing birds, then jump on the Voyager for sea bass. Diehard anglers aboard the Voyager had a great trip with a mixed bag: sea bass, giant porgies, cod up to 20 pounds, and a monster 31- pound pool-winner pollock caught by Dan Knoefal from Brooklyn. The sea bass pool winner was 13-year-old Thomas Morgis from Stafford, Va., with a 6 pounder.

Capt. Jimmy Elliot's Miss Belmar Princess fished through shorts and keepers, with blackfish up to 7 pounds. Capt. Jimmy sails daily for blackfish, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.; visit captjimmy@aol.com.

Fishing only gets more intense from here. In a couple of weeks, massive schools of herring should be moving in, and behind them should be the larger bass that we are hoping for - maybe even a few over 55. If you have a report, send it to me at ron@signbrothers.com.

Fish on.