Hey Gang, The main concentration of linesiders is still up around Raritan Bay and the outside of Sandy Hook. They extend as far South as Island Beach State Park. It can be spotty but when we get into them, wow. We always prefer jigging, sight-casting and snag and drop before just trolling around and hoping.

Hey Gang, That in initial wave of large fish that were found off of North Jersey finally made their way to the Cape-Atlantic area. Typical of the past few years, our friends are finding they are more scattered and need to be trolled up. Reports are most are being found beyond the legal limit of 3 miles. The main concentration of linesiders is still up around Raritan Bay and the outside of Sandy Hook. They extend as far South as Island Beach State Park. "Up North", specifically Manasquan Inlet, where we moved the boat for the month of November, we are doing pretty good the past few days. Look for our "Mighty Heron Charters - Manasquan" listing on fishingbooker to get in on the action before the end of November.

The air is hot, and the water has really warmed up. We have moved into classic summer fishing with a nice wrinkle this season. + Bay fishing is shifting into mid-summer mode. We are seeing many flounders and as usual for this time of year the keeper to throwback ratio is getting higher. Still keepers around and just because a fish might not be a "keeper", it does not mean it is not a nice fish. Charlie, his grandson Carter, and his pal Justin landed five keepers including a 23-inch 4.5-pound flounder on a recent bay trip. The "snapper/tailor" blue fish bite has been a little disappointing. By now, we hope to see more "pop-ups" of these guys. We feel confident they will make a better showing soon. The weakfish have been bigger this year but still not considerable numbers. Hopefully, they will continue to recover. A pleasant surprise is the large numbers of croakers showing up both in the bay and the ocean. They have not been this far North in many years. The croakers in the bay are small (think white perch) but they have been thick and provide action. Get enough of the larger ones and it is fish taco time. The reef and wreck fishing on our 5-hour ocean trip is already better than last year, when chilly water really put a damper on the bite. Nice - sized flounder are coming over the side pretty consistently. A fair number of keeper sized black sea bass are in the mix. Reports are that cobia are showing up and we hope to try for them later in the week. Small sharks are definitely around. We have not yet seen large schools of bunker to try to snag-n-drop for near-shore sub-tropicals. The tuna bite has been good to very good. They have been found as close as some of the ridges only 15 miles off the coast. Canyons are more consistent. We still have no consistent reports of mahi, but we will be trying twice this week. As important as fishing is, we are still very happy to have out so many wonderful families creating memories.

Hey Gang, Sorry it’s been a while since a report. The important stuff- Bay fishing has been pretty strong the past few days. The keeper - throwback ratio for flounder is good. Weakfish and blues have made showings but are spotty. Small blues and shad pop-up over rips when the tide and current is right. The wrecks and reefs are picking up. The ocean water temp has shot up 5 degrees in recent days with all the East wind. Flounder are there for sure and the warm water fish should arrive soon. We’ve been catching fish and having fun. Check out the size of this eel caught by Justin on one of the reefs. It was almost 4 feet long. On a personal note, we thank all of you for your kind words. We have reached 100 five-star reviews on fishingbooker. It means a lot to us.

Hey Gang, The flounder season is off to a decent start. So far, there is not as much action as previous years but there is a higher keeper/throw-back ratio. Bluefish have started to show up in the bay and we are always ready with ligh tackle. Weakfish continue to be spotty. Targeting these guys is still more of a specialty trip that needs to be done on the right tide and dusk and dawn. The East wind has been relentless and there is alot grass in some spots which is not helping. Hopefully a more normal Summer weather pattern starts soon.

Hey Gang, So how is this “winter” going? The ocean water temps are running about 5 degrees above normal for this time of year. This could mean a warmer start to the beginning of the season. Here are the topics for this message: 1) Flounder season opening and May availability 2) Consider including us in your Ocean City vacation as soon as possible 3) April Tog/Blackfish trips 4) Black Sea Bass opening and availability Flounder(fluke) Season The season, minimum size and bag limits are supposed to be the same as last year. So this means the season should start around May 2nd and run until late September. The bag limit will be 3 fish. 2 fish must be between 17 and 18 inches and 1 fish over 18 inches. If you’re looking for a weekend trip, the only availability left for Saturdays in May is May 27th - all others are booked. There is good availability on Sundays. If you’re not crazy about going out on the ocean, May and June are your best bets for true doormats in the bay. Ocean City Vacation Start planning for your Ocean City vacation ASAP. The pace of bookings is picking up. Please consider booking a date now. By the 4th of July last year, we needed 7 - 10 days of lead-time to accept new bookings and by the last week of July, the month of August was completely booked. April Tog/Blackfish We are offering Tog trips from April 15th – 30th. These trips will be 7 hours. Black Sea Bass Final season and bag limit regulations have not been set yet. Last year the Spring season ran from May 17th until June 19th with a limit of 10 fish at 13 inches per angler. We expect it will be the same this year. We are running 6 & 8 hour trips. Hoping to see you soon. -Capt. Mike