Slow but fun day in the back bay.
July 04, 2023 Stone Harbor 1 photo
Flounder
Flounder
Dogfish
Dogfish

Trip Summary

Poked around in the back bay today with Shane, Abby, Collin, and Cody. We tried for flounder in a bunch of normally productive areas, but either they had lock jaw, or the various conditions made the thought of grabbing our offerings unappealing. We had the incoming tide early on. The water temperature dropped a few degrees, so that didn't help. The water was also very murky, again, no help. South wind, never good. And a full Moon. Not a fan of a full Moon for fishing. Despite the odds stacked against us, we picked at some fish. Cody started things off with a big shell he snagged on the bottom. While not a fish, it was a treasure from the deep. What six year old wouldn't love it? Abby struck next with a micro sea bass. The drifts were tough to maintain, even with the trolling motor. We ran to another area looking for a better drift and hopefully more compliant fish. We found the drift, but only a baby sand shark and dink flounder. After a few drifts full of whacks, nibbles, and tugs, but no hook ups, we made another move. I was hoping the ever present and overy abundant croakers would provide the boys with some steady action. Well, the conditions conspired against us yet again. The croakers were thinned out, voracious as always, but rarely hanging onto the hooks. We managed seven. Missed countless. Collin finished the fishing part of the day by hooking another dinky flounder. He was elated. It was a great way to finish up. We took a ride out of the inlet after to see if any dolphins might be around. It was bumpy but manageable. Unfortunately there were no dolphins around, but everyone enjoyed the ride. And despite the poor overall fishing, enjoyed the morning out. Tight Lines!
Frank Breakell
Stone-harbor, New Jersey, United States
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Whether you’re a novice or seasoned angler, Brynnie-B Inshore Fishing has a trip just right for you! Captain Frank Breakell offers something for every level of angler – every trip is fully customizable to suit your needs and desires. Everyone ...

Other reports from this charter

Back Bays, surf, it's getting better!
Back Bays, surf, it's getting better!
June 2, 2025
It's been quite the week. It started off with me and my two friends trying to get out for some flounder. We launched the boat, cranked her over, and realized there was no water coming from the engine indicating that it was pumping cooling water through itself. We trouble shot it at the ramp, but no luck. I tried trouble shooting it at home without any luck. I ended up going up to South Jersey Boatworks where Matt took time out of his busy day to swap out the pump. She's working great now. Memorial Day, Andy and I launched for our second attempt at chasing some flounder. Engine fired up and pumped water like a champ. We had some frozen spearing that we wanted to thaw out. Tossed it into the live well and hit the pump switch, dead. Tried the hose, also dead. Went to turn on my electronics and realized my house battery was dead. Great. So, we fished old school. Boat, motor, and gear. No electronics. We had about an hour and a half of incoming tide remaining and the ICW all to ourselves. We drifted along some ledges, got some hits, and missed quite a few. Finally, Andy broke the ice with a fat 20 inch flatty. Shortly after he landed a doggie and a skate. Then the tide slacked. Around this time a dozen boats moved in and joined in on our drift. The outgoing tide excited the bite from the shorties. We pulled in two 16-17" flounder each and missed a bunch more. Most of the boats in the area were catching and releasing short flounder. We saw two keepers taken. All of this during the first hour of the outgoing tide. We tried a few other areas and missed more fish. Called it a day about half way through the tide. Andy shared his flounder with me and Lisa turned it into a delicious dinner of flounder milanese. If you know, you know. If you don't, try it! You will not be disappointed. I took my battery back to West Marine where I purchased it. I explained how it was suddenly dead, wouldn't charge, or accept a charger being attached to it. Gave bad readings. They said their warranty for batteries is one year, mine was two. Out of curiosity they asked to keep the battery to test it out. Why not? They called the following day and said that it was in fact defective, and that they will be replacing it. They stand behind their products! Thank you Weat Marine. Hopefully, that's the last of the issues with the boat. Today, I had a surf fishing trip with a favorite family that comes back every year. Christopher and company met me on the very chilly, and windy, beach at 6am. I set out the rods in hopes of finding some stripers, kingfish, and maybe some blues. What we got were a bunch of little smooth doggies, croakers, a spot, and a little ling. Not the day I was hoping for. The wind, and chilly, dirty water conspired against us. On the plus side, they had a blast despite the conditions and lack of quality fish. Hopefully the wind takes a break for the remainder of the summer. Wishful thinking I'm sure. Finally, night time bridge hopping has been fairly productive. Some nights are better than others. But it's always fun! Looking forward to more adventures as the fishing season heats up. Tight Lines!
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